Byron's Origional Airshow Memories!

[Jetpainter]

Way too cool. I was 12 years old and just starting to discover hobby quality R/C cars when that video was shot. Guess it was the Joe Nall of it's day?

Yeah it was the place back then if you wanted to see Giant Scale and Ducted Fans.

Byron's kits were state of the art back then. Dinosaurs by today's standards, but cool back in the day. Custom retracts, belt reduction four blade prop drives for a Quadra 50. Canister muffler/engine mounts. Some pretty cool stuff.

 

[camss69]

It was before my time, but I've heard about it and watched the videos and it looks so cool. It's hard enough to coordinate 4 - 57" warbirds in a pylon race I can't imagine trying to coordinate all those planes and boats, sound effects and the pyro..etc.. Would have been a blast to have been a part of that. It's a shame that the only product Byron still puts out is fuel as far as I know of.

 

[Jetpainter]

I scanned some pictures tonight when I got home from flying. I think these are from 89. Make sure to look in the background of the photos, you'll see all kinds of cool things.

This first set is the facility.

 

[Jetpainter]

Here are some warbirds and the really cool big B-29.

They had several of the B-25's in the striking back show they flew really well. They were my favorite.

 

[pawnshopmike]

@Jetpainter
Very very cool pics Doug. Thanks for sharing.

Where did all the $$$'s come from? Surely Byron didn't make all that money from R/C?

 

[Jetpainter]

@Jetpainter
Very very cool pics Doug. Thanks for sharing.

Where did all the $$$'s come from? Surely Byron didn't make all that money from R/C?

From what I can remember he owned a company called Midwest Industry's. They made boat hoists and boat trailers and things.

One thing the pictures don't really show you is that the flying field is in a very nice subdivision. There were several high dollar homes there at the time. It was pretty obvious when you were in Ida Grove that Byron pretty much had his run of things.

 

[Jetpainter]

I was wrong about the HMS Bounty, it was 1/2 scale not 1/3rd scale.

 

[Bartman]

I was wrong about the HMS Bounty, it was 1/2 scale not 1/3rd scale.
View attachment 29984

only half scale?

 

[Bartman]

that big B-29 is like WOW!

 

[camss69]

Were all the planes in the show owned by Byron or did they belong to the pilots? I'm guessing the big B29 was owned by Byrons but what about all the smaller fighters and other planes? The C47 dropping all the parachute guys was really cool in the video. Then it looked like 2 zeros crashed during the show, one intentional and one unintentional with the ejected pilots parachute caught in the elevator. We're there a lot of crashes during the show?