Flight Brings Back Memories

Howard Moore Round Rock, Texas Goldberg Jr. Falcon takes to the skies again
I built a Carl Goldberg Jr Falcon in 1973 as a teenager.(I have had an AMA membership continuously since then, AMA #60513) It gave me some of my first R/C experiences with a Cox Golden Bee and 2 channels of an MRC proportional radio. Over 30 years later I found this mostly built Jr Falcon on E-bay. Whomever built this airplane was going to fly it with a single channel radio as it had been built with only a rudder and no elevator.

The mounting blocks inside the fuselage were configured for an escapement type rudder control. This airplane had obviously been collecting dust for quite some time before finding its way to E-bay. The plane had been sitting on my shelf for a few months when I read the article about Carl Goldberg in the November issue and Jay Smith's challenge to fly a Goldberg airplane on the Carl's 100th birthday. I pulled the plane off the shelf and got to work getting it ready to fly. With a 100 watt outrunner and 8x6 folding prop on 3 cells it flies substantially better than I remember it with a Cox engine.(Not to mention quieter and cleaner) Flights of 10 minutes are very relaxing with a 1300 mah battery. The maiden flight took place on Carl's 100th birthday and every pass up and down the runway brought back memories of my youth and a large dose of goosebumps. Thank you Model Aviation for helping us remember where this hobby has come from and leading us into the next era of the hobby.




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4 comments

Does anyone have original plans for the Goldberg Falcon they would like to sell?

I downloaded the Jr last year. On the workbench list. http://www.outerzone.co.uk/plan_details.asp?ID=2191 Falcon 56 what you were looking for? http://www.outerzone.co.uk/plan_details.asp?ID=2424 Cheers, Paul

I built one in 2008 from original plans I'd been hauling around since 1968. Axi 2208/26 motor driving an 8x4 prop with a 3s1300 battery. I added ailerons and also went without landing gear. It is a pretty hot little ship. Thanks for sharing yours.

Reading this got me to thinking about how I got started in the hobby. Was out earlier flying my little Hobby Zone "Champ". Made me think of my Dad. It's not Father's Day or his birthday and it did bring a smile to my face. Boy do I miss him and wish I could tell him I love him. Think we could have had a real, good laugh today. Years ago, we would visit some friends of his, Carol and Gloria Horner. I remember that Carol and his son Denny used to fly big control line planes. When we visited, I was always mesmerized by those birds. I think this is where dad got the idea for a birthday present for me. For my ninth birthday (1972), he bought me the Cox Stuka Dive-bomber with an 0.49 engine. Cool, black, sleek. Real rubber tires. Even had a canopy, movable rear machine gun, and a bright red bomb on the bottom. A real airplane. I remember how happy i was. We, (him, my little brother and me) went to fly it at the old Jefferson Elementary School. We got it started, and he was going to show me how to fly it. Wide open, of course. It took off in a roar, made two laps, and dove into the ground and exploded into a hundred pieces. WOW! Dad felt bad and promptly took us to the store and bought a second one. We returned to the school and got this one started. He wanted me to fly it. If my present was gonna crash, he wanted me to, at the least, be the one who crashed it. It was my present. The mighty Cox 0.49 roared into the air. I WAS FLYING A PLANE!!! A fast one, too! I made one lap and felt pretty good. I wanted to go higher. I pulled on the controller, and she IMMEDIATELY responded with a climb straight up into the atmosphere! WOW! I'm controlling this! I'm flying! It flew across the sky, right over my head. At FULL SPEED! Look at that sucker go, I thought. WOW! Then, all that power was aiming at the ground and a second later, Stuka Dive-bomber #2 was in pieces all over the ground! WOW! DID YOU SEE THAT!!! WOOOOW!!! The GREATEST BIRTHDAY PRESENT...EVER!!! THANKS DAD!!! I didn't have any kids of my own. My son, Ricky, was already 16 when I met Alice Sellers. So, I didn't have the chance to do something like that with him. But, I DO have two grandsons. Dad, I promise you that we will have a time where we will make a memory like this for them. After their crashes, I'll be sure to share with them the ones that you and I shared that September day in 1972. I love you Dad... and I miss you. Thank you for making me who I am, and for making me who I am not. Life is short and sweet. And I have been blessed!

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