Q-talk 78 - Nov/Dec 1999 - index
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- Category: Q-Talk Index
- Published: Friday, 31 December 1999 06:11
- Written by Tom Moore
- Hits: 2724
NOV/DEC 1999 ISSUE NUMBER 78 |
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QUICKIE BUILDERS ASSOCIATION
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SO LONG 1999
by Tom Moore
2000, READY OR NOT, HERE WE COME!
Being on the threshold of 2000, I look back over all we have accomplished. With QAC going out of business in the mid-eighties it left a lot of builders without support. From that point on we could only rely on ourselves and I have to say that you have made the difference. Without the internal support of the group many of the planes flying today would never have made it. I am certainly one of those that was helped along the way by this group.
We have had first flights every year and I don't see this changing for a while. There are many builders that are still working on their planes. The QBA still is getting new members into the group that have bought an incomplete project. With the amount of kits sold by QAC, there are many planes still out there that have a chance to fly and many of them are finding new homes. The new interest in the Quickies can be attributed to several things. A lot more Quickies are flying and more people are seeing them.
One new method people are using to gain access to the Quickie is through the technological monster of the 90's, the INTERNET. With the introduction of the QBA web site a few years back, we have been receiving more and more inquiries from owners and prospective owners of Q's. Some of these folks are new owners and some are builders who have had their kits for some time and did not know of the QBA's existence. I know it's hard to believe, but there are still people building in isolation.
The visibility that the Quickies are getting is something that is going to continue. All of the qualities that originally drew us to the Quickies continue to attract new admirers. Some of us were drawn to the Q's sexy design. I still remember seeing a Q on the front cover of the March 1984 Sport Aviation magazine with the snow capped mountains in the background. Others were attracted by the planes economy. Whether you fly a Q-1 or a Q-2, it's difficult to find a plane with the Q's GPH/SPEED ratio. Most of us were intrigued by the claims of high speeds on low horsepower. Though some of the performance capabilities of the Q's were exaggerated by QAC, the plane has met most of our expectations and then some.
The new builders were attracted to the Quickies by the same qualities that we were, plus one. One of the big attractions for these new enthusiasts is the entry price of a Q kit. If you have monitored the classified section of any issue for the last five years you will know what I mean. The price of a partially completed plane is a great bargain. This is a two-edged sword with the sellers not getting the price they would hope for. However, the new wave of builders is certainly offering a seller a much improved chance of finding a buyer.
We all know that these projects require a lot of work to complete. There is no way to compare a kit marketed in the early eighties to a current kit on the market. Where we do come out ahead is in the finished product. This was true then and it will be true in the year 2000 and beyond. These planes are a BANG for the buck. It will get there in a hurry, on a lot less gas, than all of the others. And the best thing about it is, you will have the time of your life doing it.
Keep building, it's worth it!!
THE INDEX IS HERE
I know I have been promising this for some time, but the newsletter index is finally complete and is ready to go. This index covers all topics covered in the QUICKTALK and Q-TALK newsletters from the beginning in 1982 up through 1998. This information was put together by a multitude of QBA members. They did an outstanding job researching the newsletters and making the information available. You can get a copy of this newsletter index in one of three ways. E-mail me. Send me a blank diskette and I'll return it with the index on it in a .TXT format. Last, but not least, I will make the index available on paper. Yes, Virginia, paper does still exist. There is a $2.00 fee for the paper copy to cover printing and postage. Send your request in with your renewal and save some postage.
QBA LIBRARIAN
Mike Brown has done an excellent job in 1999 gathering plans for the Q-1, Q-2, Q-200 and TRI-Q's. Mike has most of what QAC published. He is still missing a few odds and ends, but is making progress. All of what Mike has put together is available to all QBA members for just the cost of copying and postage.
As soon as Mike can get a list of all of the material, I'll get it in the newsletter.
You can contact Mike via e-mail or send him a self-addressed stamped envelope for information. If he doesn't have what you're looking for, he can put the word out and see if someone else does.
SPRING FLY-INS
There has been talk of several fly-ins being organized for the spring. One is planned for California and the other in Illinois. The MAR/APR newsletter should have a schedule for you.
Please update your address and telephone information on the QBA's builder list. Check out the JAN/FEB 1999 newsletter and verify if your address data is correct. Update me on any changes. Thanks, Tom.
Other Articles In This Issue
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