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Aviation History
1910
1910 - 0086.PDF
I/Hfif] JANUARY 29, 1910. CORRESPONDENCE. The name and address of the writer (not necessarily for publication) MUST in all cases accompany letters intended for insertion, or containing queries. . design, and I expect to have it ready for trial early next spring. I shall be pleased to give any further information about the above machine if required. Wishing your paper every success. Wigan. W. FAIRHURST, Jun. Correspondents asking question s relating to articles which they have read in FLIGHT, would much facilitate our work of reference by kindly indicating the volume and page in their letters. NOTE.—Owing to the great mass of valuable and interesting corre spondence which we receive, immediate publication is impossible, but each letter will appear practically in sequence and at the earliest possible moment. STABILITY OF THE CLARKE GLIDER. [323] The following corrections of some misprints in the article by me in your issue of January 22nd on the stability of a machine having the small plane (sustainer) in front, will make it more intelligible:— For " Y " throughout, read " 7." In the penultimate line of the first column, for — read In the last line, before " also," insert " therefore." In the middle of the second column, for " (when a = 0)," read " when (0= o)." For " pertrophied," read "hypertrophied." T. W. K. CLARKE. MODEL MONOPLANE. [324] I am making a model monoplane, the main plane is 4 ft. by 10 ins. Could you tell me what the maximum weight should be ? also what is the correct angle the planes should be ? Would " J. A." be kind enough to give me details of the principle embodied in his gearless-spring motor for models, as he said he would in your November 27th (No. 48) issue. Thanking both in anticipation. B'ham. MODELLER. [325] Enclosed you will find a photo ot my machine. The engine is i\ ins. bore 2\ ins. stroke, air-cooled, and weighs only 8lbs., the cylinder has been turned from solid, the crank-case is aluminium, and has long bronze bearings, the crank is of steel, and connecting- rod is of bronze, the cylinder-head is held down by means of two J in. steel rods, and is ground into cylinder, needing no packing, the head is fitted with both valves, which are 1 in. across, the carburettor is of the surface type, the coil and accumulator are slung to frame behind carburettor, the switch and sparking-levers are on the right-hand side of photo, just above wing, the propeller, which is only an experimental one, is made of wood and is of 2 ft. 6 ins., the wings are adjustable every way, and can be taken off in about half a minute; the machine complete weighs about 25 lbs. The results we have got from it so far are very satisfactory. Since I completed it about three weeks ago we have had very bad weather. I made the machine complete, including patterns for engine, in little over a week. I shortly intend to put on the market similar engines to the above in different sizes. At present I am making patterns for a V-type engine having four cylinders, 4 ins. bore, 4^ ins. stroke. The machine I at present intend to make for this is entirely my own TIMBER. [326] The white Canadian spruce (not silver spruce) is the best wood I am acquainted with for spars. When a better wood than this is found it will be used for the oars in the Oxford and Cambridge boatrace. For sheer toughness with lightness I commend the choice of willow for small fittings and parts. The cricket-bat makers know. The difficulty with these woods is they cannot be procured in long lengths. Baltic spruce, the common white deal of commerce, is, perhaps, the most unsuitable wood to put in an aeroplane's framework, but the Canadian variety as used in boatwork, and for oars and sculls, will be hard to beat. It is not easily procured in lengths of more than 12 ft., but is much cheaper than silver spruce. I have had perfect deals and battens of this wood of Messrs. Williams and Sons, Lower Marsh, Lam beth, and it is of those firms who specially cater for yacht and boat builders that the right thing can be got. I think the toughest and most elastic material for models' frames is bamboo. The part to use is the slip of tough wood immediately below the flinty surface. The amateur model maker can split it out from the bamboo, showing various sizes of strip from one piece. Nearly all the " wood " for a large model can be got from an odd piece of about this diameter, and twice the length 01 frame or span of the proposed machine. Japanese fans may be studied by the amateur model maker. Some of these are indeed clever ; others would make good wings. Fawley. T. OSBORN SMITH. 7" h\6: Here is a section A MODEL BIPLANE. [327] I enclose a photo of one of our aeroplanes. This particular one, I think, is rather a triplane. The framework is built of fine wood and bamboo. The planes are covered with light fabric. The area of lifting surface is 1,372 sq. ins. The power is obtained by an elastic motor of our own invention—powerful elastic drives a big aluminium wheel (pulley). The propellers are twin aluminium ones ; each one has a small aluminium pulley. The big gear drives the two propellers by a single band ; one side the band is cross-turned, to drive the propellers in opposite directions ; the elastic is fixed to the big gear, which drives it 400. Since the big gear is 12 ins. in circumference, and the small ones 2 ins. in circumfeience, therefore the propellers revolve — = 2,400 revs. The small wheel ••i-.. -:^' • Mr. Fairhurst, Junior's, Monoplane Model. 82
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