The World of Aeromodeling: Those Marvelous Miniatures - AMA Films

Covering all modeling disciplines including extensive interviews with notable modelers such as Phil Kraft, his factory, full scale and model flying. Maynard Hill, his electrostatic autopilot and many other interesting modeling activities all around the country. Final sequence is a beautiful montage to music of soaring mixed in with full scale hang gliding from the cliffs at Torrey Pines California.
Produced by AMA Member Jay Gerber
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#iflyama

[@altbob]

"the feelings of nostalgia and the intrinsic joy of flight combine to form a heady emotional brew..."

[@MrDanoman812]

Late 70's, early 80's... my young years of flying these. It's been an amazing hobby all my life. :)

[@stejer211]

Spot-on! The lady at 8:34 is holding a booklet with 1977 on it.

[@abcdefg4570]

At 35:00, where he is talking about the electrostatic autopilot thing replacing a 5-pound gyroscope, it made me laugh, as gyroscopes weigh next to nothing nowadays. Having only been alive for 17 years, I haven't ever experienced the early days of aeromodelling. Nowadays, it's all so easy. Easy to design aircraft and perform analyses on them in free CFD and CAD software, and construct them using CNC hotwire cutters and 3d printers, and such modern building techniques. The modern components are absolutely amazing, as anybody can acquire a 30km long-range RC and full HD digital video link for less than 400$, as well as antenna trackers and the whole shebang. 40 years ago, it would probably have been insane to say that these things are going to exist one day, and that even teens can build ultra long-range UAVs at home.

[@Computer28413]

Im aeromodeling and This video make me proud. The best Hobby in the world

[@thadrobinson8343]

The jazzy soundtrack sets this one apart.

[@thermalascension]

I great film , I was and still am here. 🌪️. My sailplanes cost as much as a car , these days , but , what a lovely ride.. 👍

[@45035]

Out standing shipmate. Press on. USS Kitty Hawk CV-63 Jan 1980 to July 1983.

[@davidfalgout7304]

I made a loan to buy my first Kraft Radio! I still have my fathers Escapement Transmitter. I was never used! All these years later I still fly RC and build with balsa. Thank you for uploading this video. Now off to fly my marvelous miniature~!

[@JessHull]

thats awesome! I just got back into balsa model building after 20 years of not doing it.

[@malakiblunt]

"they are stout hearted men whos jobs are fraught with peril" these films are so well written , thank you so much for posting them

[@tomasinacovell4293]

It's more hackney really, I guess they thought it would sound more well written at the time, they should have referred to this as "aeromodeling" more consistently though.

[@thomasfischer1017]

Magic...Aeromodeling🛩👍Fantastic🎥Video👍🛩🌠🛩🌠🛩🌠

[@sophiasocal68]

I was introduced to RC flying back in 1978 when I was 10 y.o. Today I'm 54 and still flying RC!

[@rodneydaub3812]

Wow, thanks for this. I learned to fly when I was young, right before the 1991 radio frequency changes, where by 91 all radios had to be "1991" ready .. It's cool seeing the guy flying control line right in the middle of an Airport runway. I too belonged to a Aeromodeler club that was attached to a small airport. Pre 9/11 of course I had a "Scat Cat" , a "Miss Martha" , a Sig "Astro Hog" and a Great Planes PT 40 , with a German H.P. engine Best days of my life.

[@aureliobrighton1871]

I was born 1964 in Germany and Graupner/Robbe catalogues became sort of my yoga retreat when I was around ten. Some of the models are such vivid memories that I can recall my actual ideas watching them on the gorgeous photos. I think even then e.g. the retractable gears were very uncommon. Thankyou for the timeride 🌸:)

[@agfc6291]

The Golden Age of air modeling, indeed! Miss those days.

[@LuisMiguelGarciaTorres]

that big blue fling boat near the end is still impressive to this day. people just dont appreciate it as much.

[@tomasinacovell4293]

That's right, it is a flying-boat the Martin PBM Mariner, and I wish that he had said it completely, so many mistakes in the narration script with no insight to the subjects. Nice seeing a lot of the stuff again, but god I just want to wash the style out of my mind. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_PBM_Mariner

[@MadMonkey572]

I saw this years ago, I'm happy to have found it again. Depressing how the hobby was exploding at the time and now we're in danger of losing it all.

[@altbob]

And yet there are twice as many AMA members today as there were in 1977. We just need to all hold together and get through this dark time with the FAA.

[@Mike-01234]

@@altbob Between the DOJ, and deep pocket lobbyst who do anything to make drone delivery a reality model aviation will be done away with eventually

[@darrelschrock6520]

I'm not sure how there can be a negative comment on a history as rich as this. Wonderful stuff!

[@jamesshepard1606]

Awesomeness

[@gianieverson]

20:53 OMG

[@angelreading5098]

Wonderful historic coverage of model flying,we have come a long way since those early models and radio systems,we owe a lot to these pioneers of model flight and what we have today,reliability and modern materials have enhanced the best hobby in the world.

[@PS-nf3xw]

Underrated

[@jonnyspeed]

Love these old documentaries.

[@alfred.g7521]

Hang gliders toward the end indicate this to be about 77-80 era. I was doing both at that time. Still do.

[@elliothuh669]

Funny to hear "the feelings of nostalgia" in this video lol For those of us born in the past 30 years or so.

[@dougstarwalt8984]

How grand! Never saw a date, but the 1977 AMA rule book pretty much confirmed the time frame. -=Doug

[@mikegee9284]

Just watched 3 of your videos on the trot - thank you for posting. What comes to mind is that it was a much simpler and more innocent world then than it is now. To be able to turn back the clock to those times when an rc plane was the must have Nintendo.

[@zeddboy46]

Graham Leatherland. A great heart warming film of all kinds of people simply enjoying themselves, its age only adds to its charm as the modelling principals are the same as todays. I have been flying models of all disciplines since 1975 and I hope that more youngsters will get involved now to secure the hobbies future. Maybe more films like this one would do the trick.

[@JimmySlaughter]

Thanks for posting all of these old films! It's been very interesting to watch several of them today.

[@Pyro_Patriot]

Agreed!

[@aerofpv2109]

I 2nd that ☺

[@djacob7]

Excellent doc. They didn't foresee miniature jets yet.

[@awuma]

So many great hours flying with a 3-ch Kraft system ... it never let me down. Great film. BTW, 34:50 Maynard Hill of course much later first flew a model across the Atlantic.

[@aerofpv2109]

Simply superb as today things are much simpler with EPP foam and lipo technology. Thank you to all the pioneers of RC flying especially to the ones I saw at field I grew up in at Floyd Bennett ☺

[@cowboy6591]

22,000 views and only 200 votes ? Come on !!!! Great video...

[@BlackPixxelDE]

Awesome, thank you for uploading these videos!

[@aeromodelisme45]

Super ce reportage ! vive l'aéromodélisme

[@bessybessy]

marvelous - right word ! Thank you for this movie ;)

[@dr1llb1t8]

wow awesome this stuff still exists. great

[@MisterHobby]

Beautiful video

[@undiaencasa]

Muy buen vídeo

[@bigerosk]

Really awesome document I enjoyed so much

[@davidmiller5832]

I remember the pride modelers showed when they brought out a plane they spent months building. Now the RC fliers take pride on how deep their pocket book is.

[@modelaircraft]

As technology advances so do the wants and likes of the hobbyist. There are still plenty of modelers that build their own planes in every facet of this great hobby/sport. When I was a youngster, I was mostly interested in building but as the ARF became available and electronics aka radio control become more sophisticated my interests moved from building to competing and general fun flying. Today the hobby is filled with wonderfully talented flyers and demonstration pilots who do not have the time to build from scratch and devote their time to developing flying skills. Every modeler has many options to participate at whatever financial level they feel comfortable with. Generally, there is something for everyone and yes, there is motivation when in competition to want the best of everything…..this does not necessarily apply to the largest segment of the hobby that flies for fun and not competition. You don’t win contests with the “latest and the greatest”….you win with dedication, practice and perseverance not with “deep pockets”. I made that movie in the 1980’s and even back then there were those advances in the hobby that were costly. For example, note the segment with Phil Kraft and the wonderful radio he manufactured…every modeler wanted one of them if they could afford it…..Jay Gerber

[@davidmiller5832]

modelaircraft Compitition is a very small part of the hobby. Not many RC pilots compete. I'm just saying that in the hobby, the pride taken nowadays is in what you bought/own. Not what you built. It seperates the modelers from the fliers. Not disrespecting either side. Just pointing out the different aspects that came about in RC. Motorsports has gone the same route. From racing to shows. It's more of "what you have" than "what you've done". As far as competition, I had a talk years ago with Mike McConville. I asked him why he doesn't fly his own designs or even the brand he marketed as high performance. He said that to win you need to have the nest designs out there and the ones Horizon Hobbies had couldn't compete. So in competitive RC, you do need to spend money exponentially to the level of competitions you compete in. While the modelers are still there, RC has changed and has grown a second group of hobbyist. The pure fliers.

[@jorgenelsonfelix52]

👍 Espectacular muy bien 👍

[@flyawayandyk2916]

yep ....I love the rc flying in the sky .....forever !...

[@aerofpv2109]

I feel your joy Andy. Same here.

[@flyawayandyk2916]

Aero FPV ======= yep ..thanks 😊

[@davesweany8650]

Yep can't divorce our first love, better than the first kiss

[@flyawayandyk2916]

@@davesweany8650 ==== Hahahaha 😅😅 Thanks 🙏👍👍🍅

[@leifvejby8023]

Interesting seeing the electrostatic autopilot - we heard a lot about it in the days, that it would soon be in the shops, and then - - nothing!

[@aerofpv2109]

And today it is easily offered for FPV pilots. This was an eye opener for me. I didn't know of it back then.

[@leifvejby8023]

The autopilots we can get no are based on gyros. (They used to be mechanical gyros, but are solid state now).

[@aerofpv2109]

I took these things for granted not know how it all started nor how far back this went. Great RC history ☺

[@vracan]

so nice to see the beginnings of model aviation , not so nice today seeing pretty much the ending of it unfortunately due to complex regulations - very sad! : - (

[@chrismofer]

3:06 wow! i fly here, now called the Apollo 11 field by the San Fernando valley flyers. it's still there and still boppin, tho now in danger thanks to the FAA, it's proximity to an airport, and it's status as a public park.

[@JessHull]

I don't think Don Sr. liked when the instructor said that Donnie Jr. was doing better than him, LOL!!!!!

[@reinhardlehmann8161]

How old is that film ? I think around the erly 70th ?

[@frogsoda]

12:50 - 13:30 America That Was. Before NAFTA.

[@ProfClaudeBalls]

Who's the narrator? Very classic voice... Ooh, it's in the closing credits: John Facenda.

[@modelaircraft]

You may recognize him from NFL Films and Football Follies! 🏈

[@triskellian]

Wonderful film about the marvelous sport of model aviation! I wonder what year this was made.

[@shimanosv9143]

+triskellian I think 1977, look at 8:44

[@triskellian]

+shimano SV You have a sharp eye! Thank you!

[@shimanosv9143]

+triskellian cheers. greetings from serbia, europe.

[@triskellian]

+shimano SV Greetings from the US. :-)

[@melvinguenther577]

nice

[@JamesManimal]

DANG was I spoiled when I started. I had hours of experience in flight simulators. but when I built that Cessna... I learned that those planes do NOT like to roll.

[@peterzingler6221]

Cessna isn't really a beginner plane. Needs lot of rudder

[@9HighFlyer9]

Now I know why there are so many RC fields next to dams and levees.

[@mikeyseaman73]

Around the time when I was in the third grade I had already been build balsa wood airplanes but it was then that I built the largest one it was a glider , it had a 64inch wing span , but it was my Dad that taught me how to read the blue prints in detail , it was looking over his shoulder is what facensted me into learning how to build the model airplanes, I learned every detail of the aircraft, from the flaps, control services to the degree of dieheadrial in the main wing

[@bradgotch]

“Give me the transmitter”

[@RolloTomassifan]

As soon as I get it up she takes over 😂

[@GuitarGuys7299]

Thanks for posting these awesome videos! I dig the 70's soundtrack. BTW, Who is the Narrator?

[@modelaircraft]

The narrator is a well known Philadelphia TV personality from many years ago named “John Facenda”…..we used him for many, many videos and films and his voice became known in the football sport circles as “the voice of God”…….I used him to narrate a good number of the modeling videos that I made for the AMA. His voice is so recognizable and powerful for fitting into the mood of just about any story telling venture. Jay

[@GuitarGuys7299]

modelaircraft Thanks for the reply. As soon I read that he narrated Football and Sports shows in your reply, I remembered that's where I had heard him before. Also, thank you for the vintage videos. Please keep posting them. I'm sure the AMA has a lot of great historic footage from yesteryear that would be great to see sheared here on KZbin.

[@thermalascension]

You can still find me at tory pines

[@Thebuilderofthings1]

Wasn't that PBMC a cover issue in M.A.N.?

[@valeraberezko6720]

добрый день благодарю за видео напишите скакого года в америке был развит авиамоделизм и какие моторы ставили на авиамодели красивые копии ну молодцыпрошу ответ

[@jimmyhaley727]

this guys voice sounds like the ole NFL films voice

[@modelaircraft]

That's because it's a film by AMA Member Jay Gerber, who used to make NFL Films! Very good ear!

[@FPVSlacker]

The old days, when Americans were still free. Now you must get permission from the government to play with your toys at the park.

[@prowlus]

36:27 just like today’s as3x tech

[@KevanleeRice]

hotdogs' hambergers'cotton candy' italia suasage dogs onions and peper yum yum

[@KevanleeRice]

spruss goose again we dont have the type miney that rokafella had we make brom scratch balsa and basa thin plywood

[@KevanleeRice]

newclass rc to be coming up iam biulding my version now weedeater rc model boats class dose i dont know why nobod8 that model never thought of it

[@garygullikson6349]

Flowery narrative was apparently intended to convince suspicious and fearful public that model flying is worth tolerating. It would be good if well done updated videos, not silly crash videos, be made to convince a new breed of enviro-extemists that model flying is worth tolerating. I have suffered two model sites being closed down to model flying, not many authorized sites left in once-active SoCal area.

[@stejer211]

I bet those sites were producing a lot of noise with that ancient IC engines technology ;)

[@stanburdick9708]

what I find ammusing is they used to dress up to go fly...........

[@KevanleeRice]

drop out space men

[@wun1gee]

More flying sites wasn't the problem them and it's not the problem now. Excessive and heavy-handed regulation was the problem them and it is the problem now. Inviting state and federal government into the fold has never made anything better..

[@billhendricks1473]

Right, leave it to the gov to ruin anything.

[@KevanleeRice]

gorilla glue two part epoxy

[@FPVREVIEWS]

If only we could get some federal agency to see the value in model aviation... Now we are wishing we had not.. Instead of seeing value, the FAA just sees the future of the US that must be crushed and suppressed, criminalized, and register everyone the same as SEX OFFENDERS are required to register. What the FAA misses, is that the economic future of this and the next generation depends on the experimentation and progress that is being made in model aviation right now. So it' time for them to back off, and quit responding to the public's hysteria over these things they call DRONES. It's an irrational fear driven reaction, and will serve no purpose other than to make sure the public distrusts the government. That will for sure hurt the economy, and will, in the end result in criminal convictions/imprisonment for those who overstep their congressional mandate with illegal over-reach programs.

[@KevanleeRice]

girl with nice butts in rangler jeans miley colon says

[@KevanleeRice]

super cool lrij2ct