Glossary of Terms

A B C D E F G H I J K L M NO P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

ABC
The composition of an engine made of Aluminum and Brass, and is Chrome plated.
 

AMA
The Academy of Model Aeronautics.
 

AMA#
The number assigned to a member of the AMA.
 

AILERON
The movable control surfaces on a wing that rotate in opposite directions to make a plane bank left or right in flight.
 

AIR INTAKE
The vent line into a gas tank that allows air to enter the tank in an attempt to pressurize it for better, steady fuel flow. This vent line can be connected to an external nipple on the muffler to pressurize the air in the tank.
 

AIRWORTHY
A model that has been given a COMPLETE examination and deemed to be air and ground safe. Following the AMA’s safety code will help to make your ship airworthy.
 

ANTENNA
On the transmitter the antenna is normally located on the top and extends fully when being used and is collapsed when not in use. This antenna should not be pointed at the aircraft during flight. It should be held so that it is at an angle to the aircraft. Most receiver antenna are simply a wire that extends from the receiver flight pack. Both antenna are 39 ½ inches long on 72mhz. NOTE: During use, both antenna should be fully extended and not folded or shortened for any reason.

BALANCED PROP
When a propeller is placed on a balancing device and it shows even distribution of weight, it is considered balanced. A balanced prop will cause less vibration, noise and damage to the plane and engine as well as the radio. NEVER fly with a propeller that has not been properly balanced.
 

BARREL
The device in the carburetor of an engine that determines the speed of the engine. A barrel that is wide open is running at maximum speed. An almost closed barrel is running at a slow speed. Changing the barrel opening also changes the speed.

BATTERY CELL
A single device that comes in various sizes and is normally rated at 1.25 volts. This 1.25 volt (dc) device is commonly called a ni-cd. A single cell 1.5 volt battery (eg. duracell, engergizer) IS NOT rechargeable and is made of carbon.
 

BATTERY PACK
A group or combination of battery cells, hooked in series, to obtain different battery voltages.
 

BINDING SERVO
A servo connected to a push rod that does not move freely while in use. Sometimes, when the receiver and transmitter are active, a binding servo will make a buzzing sound. This is the servo using up battery power trying to force its way back to normal position.
 

BLEED SCREW
A screw adjustment on the carburetor. Slight adjustment of this screw adjusts the low setting of an engine by closing off a tiny air hole in the carburetor.
 

BLIND NUT
A special type of nut that has several sharp protruding points around its edge. These points will "bite" into the wood, holding the nut in place. This makes it possible to remove bolts or screws as needed without having to disassemble the model just to put a nut on! These are widely used for engine mounts.
 

BRASS FUEL LINE
Fuel line that is made of soft brass that can be bent or shaped to fit your fuel routing needs. Generally used through a firewall connecting the fuel tank to the engine.
 

BUDDY BOX
A second box (or transmitter without power) that has the same sticks and controls as a regular box (transmitter). The buddy box is connected to the working transmitter that is controlling the aircraft. The instructor, by flipping a switch, can allow the student using the buddy box to control the airplane. The same switch allowing the student to fly will instantly give control back to the instructor should the aircraft become unstable.

Top of Page

CARBURETOR
The area where the fuel and air are mixed properly allowing the engine to run properly.
 

CASTER OIL
Oil that can be added to fuels to help reduce engine wear. Caster oil can burn and leave brown lacquer on the engine. Newer fuels use a synthetic oil or synthetic/caster mix.
 

CCRCC
Citrus County R/C Club
 

CHARGER
Used to charge battery packs so that they can be used.
 

CLEVIS
A connector used on a push rod to connect the push rod to a control horn on a flying surface or to a servo arm. A Clevis can be nylon or metal. Some can be soldered in place while others can be adjusted by screwing them onto the push rod.
 

CON-ROD
Rod between the piston and the crankshaft of an engine.
 

CONTROL ARM
A plastic (or aluminum) arm attached to the servo with a screw. The control arm moves a control surface by moving a connected the push rod forward and back. Designs vary but most have several holes drilled into them allowing you to change the push rods position which will change the amount of "throw" the servo gives to the connected control surface.

CONTROL HORN
A plastic device that is connected to all of the airplanes movable control surfaces. A clevis or z-bend will usually join the control horn to the push rod coming from the servo control arm.
 

COOLING FINS
The fins that surround or stick up from the outer surface of the engine, engine head and it’s muffler are used to air cool the engine.
 

COVERITE
Brand name of Iron on fabric or plastic sheeting that is used to cover model airplanes.

DEANS PLUG
A three pin plug that is polarized and used to connect any number of wires to each other. These include servo, aileron extensions and battery connections.
 

DINGER
Polite term for minor Crash.
 

DUAL RATE SWITCH
A switch on some radios that will allow you to change the rate or amount of throw a servo gives to a control surface. Dual rate low can be set to give less overall movement, than dual rate hi, which would be very helpful for a student pilot or a pilot who is working on aerobatics.

ELECTRIC STARTER
An electric motor powered by a 12 volt battery (gel cell or wet) that has a rubber inverted cone that fits over the planes cone shaped spinner. When switched on the starter spins the cone or spinner - starting the engine. An electric starter is used in place of "hand flipping" or using a "chicken stick."
 

ELEVATOR
Moveable control surface connected to the horizontal stabilizer. Movements cause the aircraft to change altitude. The control surface is generally used to "pull" the aircraft through a turn but more importantly for taking off after flight speed is reached.
 

ENGINE MOUNT
What the engine is mounted to on the airplane. The mount can be made of wood, fiberglass or aluminum. There are new soft engine mounts that decrease the amount of vibration the engine gives to the airplane, reducing noise as well as wood and radio failure due to vibration.
 

EPOXY
A two part glue. One part is epoxy and the other hardener. By themselves they don’t do much. Add them together in equal amounts and you have a strong fuel proof glue. Epoxy glues range is cure times from 5 minutes to two hours. Epoxy thinned with isopropyl alcohol makes a thin paintable fuel proof sealant for fuel tank and engine compartments.
 

EPOXY BRUSH
A low cost brush similar to brushes used to apply PVC glue to PVC. Because epoxy is glue, once it hardens, the brush my not be good for another use.
 

EXHAUST
Residue gas and oil that exits the muffler while the engine is burning fuel.

FLOODED ENGINE
What happens when too much raw fuel (UNBURNED FUEL) gets into the engine chamber. To remove, hold the model up 180 degrees and empty the raw fuel from the chamber.
 

FOAM TAPE
Spongy tape that can have adhesive on one or both sides, and and is used to secure servos or to help seat wings to the model so they don't slide in the wing mount.
 

FOAM SPONGE
Used to insulate radio equipment, and gas tanks from vibrations in model airplanes.
 

FOUR CYCLING
Term used when a two cycle engine is running very rich. (a two stroke engine has one piston)
 

FOUR STROKE ENGINE
An engine that uses two cams and two rods, and fires on every other stroke, as compared to a standard engine that fires on every stroke.
 

FREQUENCY FLAG
A white lettered number, designating the channel and frequency of a model transmitter.
 

FREQUENCY CONTROL PIN
A pin used in a system of policing, who is using a certain frequency at a model field. NOTE: NO ONE WILL TURN THEIR TRANSMITTER ON, UNLESS THEY HAVE THE FREQUENCY CONTROL PIN IN HAND.

FUEL
A mixture of synthetic oil and nitro-methane that is used to power model engines. They come in ranges of 5% to 50% nitro mixtures. RC airplanes usually use 10 or 15% mixtures.
 

FUEL BULB
A large rubber bulb used to fill gas tanks when a fuel pump is not available. NOTE: The rubber bulb types have been known to decay inside, over a period of time. Be aware of small rubber chips that could get into the engine because of a decaying bulb.
 

FUEL FILTER
A small device that is designed to filter unwanted particles entering from the fuel to the gas tank, or gas tank to engine. Some are screw apart type filters and can be cleaned.
 

FUEL LINE
What feeds the fuel to the engine on a model. They can be made of plastic, rubber, or brass.
 

FUEL INLET
Where the fuel enters the engine through the fuel line.
 

FUEL PROOFED
An area that is painted or designated so as to not allow raw or burned fuel to penetrate the area.
 

FUSELAGE
The main body of an airplane.

Top of Page

GLOW BATTERY
A dry cell or ni-cd battery that is rated at a high current capacity, and a voltage of 1.5 volts, to ignite the glow plug of an engine, and enable it to be started.
 

GLOW PLUG
A device containing an element, that is screwed down into the engine from the top, to ignite the fuel when a glow battery is connected to it. Some types have an idle bar across it underneath to allow the engine to perform better at slower speeds. They come in two sizes, a long reach and a short reach. Most engines will use the long reach types ranging from .20 to .90 engine sizes. The short reach is for the smaller engines .10 to .15.
 

GLOW PLUG WRENCH
Tool used to remove glow plugs from engines.
 

GOLDEN PUSH RODS
A special type of push rod that takes a piece of plastic about 1/8 in diameter and uses another smaller piece of plastic to slide inside the larger one. This kind of rod can be curved and bent in several places to allow ease of installing to the servos- Another type that is even stronger takes the smaller plastic rod above and uses a strong but flexible stranded cable to connect as needed. This type is usually used to control nose wheels and throttle cables.
 

GROUND CREW
People involved in checking and maintaining your model on the ground before it is flown by yourself or an instructor.

HINGES
Devices that are between the fixed surface of an airplane and the moving surface of an airplane. Hinges allow the control surfaces to move which allows the pilot to control the airplane.
 

HOT STUFF
Another name for a kind of super glue for model building-THESE TYPES OF GLUES ARE KNOW TO CAUSE ALLERGIC REACTIONS IN SOME PEOPLE. DISCONTINUE USE IF A RASH OR ITCHING DEVELOPS. ALSO FALLS UNDER THE NAMES "JET", "SUPER JET", or the trade name CYANOACRYLATE ADHESIVE, also "LOCTITE"

IDLE BAR
A metal bar built into a glow plug to help keep its temperature high enough to ignite fuel even a low rpm’s. See also, GLOW PLUG.

LEAN SETTING
The setting of the needle valve in which the engine begins to overheat and slow down because not enough fuel is getting to the engine to keep it cool. Backing the needle valve out will solve the problem, and allow more fuel flow to the engine.
 

LOOP
A maneuver accomplished by pulling the stick back on the transmitter, and holding that position until the airplane has completed an entire vertical circle in the same plane from where it was started.
 

LOW WING
A wing that is underneath the fuselage and the weight is such that it rests on the top of the wing in flight. A low wing airplane is MUCH more maneuverable and does not have the "self correcting" ability the high wing plane does. It is more of a "go where you point it" type aircraft.

MIXER
A way of controlling two servos at one time with the flip of a switch on your transmitter. Example: Larger models may wish to have the ailerons and rudder move at the same time to insure better stability and smoother control of the model. So, a mixer switching device would allow the two surfaces to be controlled on one stick, instead of two. Transmitters without mixing capabilities can still mix servo control by using a "Y" harness to connect to servos into one channel.
 

MOLEX CONNECTOR
Another type of connector used on receivers in connecting the servos to the receiver.
 

MONOKOTE
A plastic covering that is ironed on a model airplane.
 

MONOKOTE IRON
The small teflon coated iron that is used to put iron on materials on model airplanes.
 

MONOKOTE HEAT GUN
A heat gun fashioned in appearance like a hair dryer only higher temperatures are used to shrink the films covering the model and rid the material from wrinkles and bubbles.
 

MUFFLER
A device placed on a model engine to help reduce the noise produced by the engine.

PIT
Where you set up your equipment to start your model or to perform maintenance on it. The pit is at a safe distance from the runway. *THERE WILL BE NO FLYING IN OR OVER THE PIT AREA*
 

POWER PANEL
A metal panel that provides all the necessary voltages needed to start your model, including a glow battery, an electric starter battery, power for electric fuel pumps and the necessary meters to measure the voltage and currents coming from it.
 

PROP
Short for propeller. A device that rotates on the engine and is designed to pull the model in the air due to it's diameter and pitch. Novices should seek the advice of veteran flyers about props as it goes beyond this description.
 

PROPELLER
SEE PROP.
 

PROP LOCK NUT
A small rounded safety nut used to secure a propeller to an engine when a plastic spinner is not used.
 

PROP NUT
A small nut used with a washer to fasten the prop to the prop shaft.
 

PROP REAMER
A tool that makes larger holes in wood propellers to accommodate the prop shaft of the engine it is mounted on.
 

PROP SPINNER
A plastic (or aluminum) nose cone that is used to secure the propeller to an engine and to allow the use of an electric starter on the engine.
 

PROP WRENCH
A wrench used to remove propellers from the engine. The nuts used on the engines are usually metric in size but the threads are standard.
 

PUSH ROD
The connecting device between the servo and the control surface it is operating.

RPM
Stands for rounds per minute or revolutions per minute.
 

RAW FUEL
Fuel that has not been burned yet.
 

RECEIVER
The radio device in the plane that picks up the signal from the transmitter to control the airplane.
 

RESIDUAL MOISTURE
Water that can be left in raw fuel inside of an engine or fuel tank and cause rust to form on the moving parts inside. Removing fuel supply and running the engine to "empty" will generally help prevent this.
 

REVERSING SWITCH
A switch inside the back of a transmitter that enables the user to reverse the direction of the servo if desired.
 

RINGED PISTON
A piston that at the top of the cylinder uses a snap on ring to seal and compress the piston inside of the sleeve in which it travels.
 

RICH SETTING
Where the needle valve is backed out too far (feeding too much fuel) causing the engine to run sluggish with no power. Turning the needle valve in will solve the problem.
 

ROTO STOP SET SCREW
This screw setting will stop the amount of travel on the barrel of the engine inside the carburetor. It should be adjusted so as to allow the barrel to be completely closed and to shut off the engine with your radio. *NEVER USE AN ENGINE THAT CANNOT BE SHUT OFF BY THE RADIO*
 

RUDDER
The moveable control surface connected to a vertical fin (vertical stabilizer) on the back of the fuselage. The rudder can move the plane left and right or help hold it in a "knife-edge."

SAFETY HAZARD
Something not in accordance with the AMA safety code-Disregarding the safety rules.
 

SCHNUERLE PORTED ENGINE
A method using a baffleless piston of port by-passing. (IF ANYONE HAS A GOOD EXPLANATION, PLEASE E-MAIL ME)
 

SERVO
Device containing a small motor used to control a movable surface or throttle of an airplane.
 

SERVO CENTERING
Taking the set screw out of the servo and with the proper tool adjusting or "centering" the servo to the control surface.
 

SERVO THROW
The amount of movement on a control surface.
 

SILK SPAN
A fabric type covering that is applied to a model and can be painted.
 

SLEEVE
What the piston of an engine travels through to run an engine.
 

SOLAR FILM
A low heat type plastic covering that is used to cover a model airplane. Solar film is used to cover sheeted foam cores used in some models.
 

SOLDER
A mixture of tin and rosin core that when heated with a soldering gun will weld an electrical, conductive joint on the components connected. The joints on batteries and electronic boards are soldered.
 

STALL TURN
A maneuver that makes the model climb vertically into the air, only to kick the rudder over, with the engine power reduced, causing the direction at which the airplane was to rotate 180 degrees. Then the airplane falls back in the opposite direction it came up in.
 

STICK
The item on your transmitter that controls the moving surfaces of the airplane.

TAIL DRAGGER
A model that has a tail wheel or skid on the back of the fuselage used for ground tracking. The tail wheel is usually joined to the rudder control.
 

TRACKING
How well your model travels on the runway, when taking off.
 

TRANSMITTER
What is used to transmit the necessary commands to the receiver, and make the model fly correctly.
 

TRICYCLE LANDING GEAR
The more common type of gear found on training aircraft, that uses a steering nose wheel under the engine mount, and is attached to rudder on the same servo. The other two wheels are attached to the wing or farther down the fuselage.
 

TRIM ADJUSTMENTS
What is used to balance or trim the aircraft to fly almost by itself. The trim controls are little fine tuning adjustments, that compensate the main stick throws on the transmitter. They correct minor errors in the main sticks while still maintaining the full use of them to fly the airplane.
 

TWIN ENGINES
Having two engines on one flying model.
 

TWO CYCLE
What is referred to when a single piston engine is running at the proper speed.
 

TUNED PIPE
A long special pipe, that is tuned to feed back shock waves, (audio waves), into the engine chamber at the precise time, to enable the engine to turn more rpm. and give more power.

VOLTMETER
See METER.
 

WHEEL COLLAR
Used to secure wheels in place on landing gear.
 

X-HINGE
Iron on Cloth Hinge that completely seals the gap between a control surface and what it is attached.