Ace Simple Duster by Steven Swinamer

The Swinamer vintage ½A model airplane factory has turned out yet another enviable product in the form of Fred Reese's (Ace R/C) Simple Duster, which originally appeared in the February 1987 issue of R/C Modeler magazine. Those long, cold Canadian winters provide ample opportunity to build up a fresh squadron of models for the long-awaited flying season. Steven is an ardent believer in the Earthly spiritual connectedness between mankind and the sound and smell of an .049 engine screaming at 20,000 rpm. It is akin to the swoosh sound at launch and after-aroma of an Estes rocket motor after a flight that a model rocketeer is drawn to.

The Simple Duster uses the famous Ace foam wing core. Ace had both a constant chord and a tapered chord version. The Simple Duster uses the tapered chord version. Otherwise it is a built-up balsa model with a span of 35 inches and a flying weight of around 18 ounces when powered with an .049 engine (an unthrottled TeeDee .049 in this case) and a miniature 2-channel radio. The foam wing panels were until recently available on eBay, but not at the moment. Laser Design Service offers a short kit of the Ace Simple Duster if you are not into cutting your own parts from balsa sheets, and they also offer a balsa built-up version of the foam wing.

The RCM article can be found here. You can look for a hard copy of the November 1984 R/C Modeler on eBay. Plans for the Das Not Ugly and for the Simple Duster can be downloaded from the OuterZone website.

* See Steven's Bee-Tween, Ace Whizard, Simple Citabria, Simple Duster, Quarter Pint, So-Long, and Ace Pacer models.

Posted April 20, 2019