Stunt History Revisited

New Products That Are Worth a Closer Look

By Bob Hunt

As seen in the November 2023 issue of Model Aviation.

AD•JEC•TIVE: A WORD OR PHRASE NAMING AN ATTRIBUTE …

FORMER MODEL AVIATION Aeromodeling Editor Bob Hunt shared his review of Stunt History: The Story of Model Aircraft Control Line Precision Aerobatics (1937-2014) a book by Wynn Paul with a retail price of $225, plus shipping and handling. Here is what Bob had to say:

There are simply not enough adjectives to adequately describe Wynn Paul’s new two-volume set titled Stunt History: The Story of Model Aircraft Control Line Precision Aerobatics (1937-2014). The 46 years that Wynn spent researching, compiling, and writing this magnificent story was time and energy well spent.

The two books in this set measure 9 × 12 inches each and feature glossy, full-color hardcovers and glossy, full-color heavy paper stock pages. The front cover of each book features six of the more significant airplanes of the eras that each book represents. Volume One covers the history of the sport from 1937 through 1979, and Volume Two covers 1980 through 2014. The two books come packaged in an attractive, illustrated, sturdy slipcase that is most appropriate for coffee table presentation—a top-quality package for sure.

The sheer magnitude of the material contained in these two books is almost beyond comprehension. There are 976 pages and more than 1,500 photographs (mostly in color). Wynn chose to write this book in chapters that describe the happenings of each year, with hundreds of short vignettes describing the airplanes of Stunt’s past, the people who designed and flew them, and great, often humorous, stories of each era.

Using carefully compiled data, Wynn listed the results of each year’s Nats, team selections, and/or world championship competitions. Again, all of this contains unfathomable detail. Wynn has also chosen an "Airplane of the Year" for each chapter, and there is a beautiful artist’s rendering of each of those airplanes at the beginning of the chapter in which they were significant.

The most interesting, to me, were the chapters preceding my involvement in the event. Reading about those who lived that history, and seeing how they steadily moved the technology forward, was—and still is—fascinating to me. They were the pioneers who formed the Stunt event and developed the airplanes and hardware that allowed it to rapidly progress.

I also got a kick out of seeing many of those who would eventually become the icons of the event when they were just starting out. The photos of George Aldrich (father of the Nobler) and Bill Werwage (father of the Ares and many other famous designs) as youngsters with their early models put the entire story into perspective for me.

In these books, you will no doubt find many of those whom you revere and see them pictured and discussing their formative years in the event. In the later chapters of the books, you will find other youngsters and watch them develop, as you will read, into today’s icons. Good examples of this are David Fitzgerald and Derek Barry. They were child prodigies who became even more prodigious as they aged. It’s just great stuff!

There is no way, in this short review, that I can adequately convey the scope and significance of this amazing piece of work by this profoundly dedicated individual.

There will be only one print run of this landmark book set, so if you love the Stunt event, the airplanes that have been designed and flown in it, the people who have lived the history, and the great and cherished stories of its past, do not miss the opportunity to own this once-in-a-lifetime piece of model airplane history.

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