Model Airplane News Cover for April, 1962
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Here is what the blurb about the cover has to say:

"... Joe Coles' very excellent Nationals scale winner is designed to a scale of 1" to the foot. The North American FJ-3 Fury is a very colorful subject and lends itself to good finish and detail so necessary for a scale winner. Joe's model also won the Testor best finish award at the '61 Nats..."

About the Model

The FJ-3 lends itself quite well in the 1" to the foot scale to which the model is built. There were only two deviations from scale:

• The FJ-3 "flying tail" was replaced with a conventional elevator system so that the model could be flown on control line
• The tail end of the model had to be enlarged to accommodate the Dynajet engine

of some note is the engine. The Dynajet Engine has been around for over 50 years, and is the most popular hobby jet engine. Created shortly after WW2 this engine was commonly used on control line airplanes, and tether cars. Here is a video showing its operation:

The dynajet weighs only a pound, and produces 4.5 pounds static thrust; it is capable of pushing a control line airplane over 150 MPH, and has also been used on many RC planes. It operates on the pulse jetprinciple, simialr in most aspects to the engine on the German V-1 missiles. It makes a very loud noise.

Here is the article and plans for the FJ-3 Fury which you may read by clicking to enlarge the photos.

        

North American FJ-3 "Fury" Scale Model
Right: Dyna-Jet pulse engine
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About the Full Size Airplane

The North American FJ-2/-3 Fury were a series of swept-wing carrier-capable fighters for the United States Navy and Marine Corps. Based on the United States Air Force's F-86 Sabre, these aircraft featured folding wings, and a longer nose landing strut designed to both increase angle of attack upon launch and to absorb the shock of hard landings on an aircraft carrier deck. Although sharing a U.S. Navy designation with its distant predecessor, the straight-winged FJ-1 Fury, the FJ-2/-3 were wholly different aircraft. The FJ-4 Fury was a complete stuctural redesign of the FJ-3.

  

North American FJ-3 "Fury"
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In addition to Model Airplane News, this airplane was also featured in the WINGS "Friend or Foe" trading card series of the early 1950s

Trading card representation of the North American FJ-3 "Fury"
Click Here to see all 200 cards in the series
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Here is a video about the North American FJ-3 "Fury"

Click here for more information about the North American FJ-3 "Fury"

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