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Aviation History
1912
1912 - 0808.PDF
QFIJGHT SEPTEMBER 7, 1912- CODY AND HIS "CATHEDRAL »» 1 The centre portion of the Cody biplane which won the £5,000 in prizes in the Military Trials. RECOGNITION has come to Cody at last, after many years of hard, up-hill work ; seldom has success been better earned than his. In spite of apparently insurmountable obstacles, but with the enthusiasm of the true pioneer, he has persistently toiled to overcome an endless succession of difficulties. Cody's success is all the more creditable because his work is so entirely original; original, yet not freakish. What he does is his own thought, and mostly his own handiwork too. From the first he determined to build a big machine ; a natural impulse, for there is nothing small about Cody, even his compass looks twice the size of what one generally imagines to be suitable for aeroplane work, and when, incidentally, I asked him the time, I was not in the least surprised to see him pull out a watch reminiscent of the days of our grandfathers. As in his earlier machine, there is a free simplicity about the con structive detail that appeals mightily to the common sense, though it may at times offend the susceptibilities of the standardised engineering mind. Similarly too, there remains that great, perhaps the greatest, feature of Cody design, to wit, the divided elevator, which is worked in unison with the warping of the main planes for the maintenance of lateral balance. Steering is accomplished by twin rudders, independently mounted on twin outriggers of bamboo. There is no rear elevator, but fixed transversely to each rudder is a PMf by G. M. Part. The Cody biplane about to start on the official test in the Military Aeroplane Trials. very small horizontal damper plane. The control differs from that of most other machines in that the steering is effected by a horizontal wheel arranged as in a motor car, except that the steering column itself has a universally pivoted support for the purpose of warping and elevating. In the Cody machine the feet are, therefore, left free from the control, and very naturally Cody has of late adopted the pedal acceleratoi, which makes the driving of the Cody " bus" still more like the driving of a car. In the construction of the machine silver spruce is used for the spars and struts, American hickory for the landing chassis and engine bearers, and stout bamboo poles bound with tape for the outriggers that carry the elevator and rudders. Pegamoid is used for covering the planes, and I understand that the fabric has withstood three years' wear and tear. The landing chassis is practically the same as that of the earlier machine, and includes a central skid that carries a pair of small buffer wheels in front and a kangaroo-like tail of laminated wood behind. An ingenious dodge on this tail, which gave Cody much pleasure and some profit in the trials, is a length of chain (rather like a Parson's non-skid for a motor car tyre) lhat could be drawn up out of the way by a string. On landing, the string was released so that the vibration of the tail could shake the chain rings that encircled it down into contact with the ground, where they acted as very effective brakes. Two wheels, mounted on vertical telescopic tubes with powerful coil spring shock absorbers, support the weight of the machine at starting, while in the air these same springs pull upon the main lift wires under the lower planes. The wheel track is only 3 ft. 6 in., and small wheels are, therefore, fitted as fenders to the wing tips. Indeed, these latter may be regarded as part and parcel of the chassis arrangement, as they come frequently into use. The pilot's seat is now partly covered in, and immediately behind it is one passenger seat, from which a beginner first obtains tuition by handling an extension of the control lever over the pilot's shoulder. Subsequently the positions are reversed. On either side of the pilot's seat, but outside the nacelle, are two other seats, the position of which gives an absolutely unrivalled opportunity for observation, but is not everybody's choice in a "joy ride" all the same. From the purely patriotic view one cannot but lament the fact that Cody was unable to secure a British engine to meet his requirements, not that there is anything but praise for the Austro- Daimler, which is unique of its kind and behaved splendidly, but I hope to see the Cody absolutely all British-built yet. C. M. P. 808
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