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Aviation History
1914
1914 - 0155.PDF
FEBRUARY 7, 1914. the same as those supplied by the authorities on the subject thev will be understood more fully than any amount of reference work » Personally, I have no suggestion to offer as to how this is to be accomplished, but I hope that by bringing this point forward, some help may be derived from any subsequent discussion." [We shall be glad to hear what any of our readers have to say on this subject.] ' Report of Experiments with the Shorter Monoplane. By L. G. RYLEY (The Coventry Aero Club). Trials with the above type of machine (described in FLIGHT November 22nd, 1913) were carried out a few weeks ago, and for the benefit of other readers who may be considering the question of constructing a similar machine, I am sending these results. Mr Shorter is very busy at present, and the writer, who was present at the above, has been asked to write the report. I need not weary the reader by describing how we searched for a suitable slope, but I must describe the " aerodrome" itself. It consisted of a small " knob " in the middle of a somewhat small and " squashy " field. For a glider with good ash skids it would not have been so bad, but our 12" "pram-wheels" were continually sinking in. However, in due course, a fairly suitable Saturday arrived, and we transported ourselves and machine along. The monoplane being now erected, Mr. Shorter (minus hat, coat, and other weighty material) entered the pilot's seat, and two 10" [10'?] ropes were attached, one to each wing tip. One enthusiastic individual sprang forward and swung the propeller in fine style, and when the speed of same had increased somewhat, we started off down the hill. Unfortunately the wind was only blowing 7 m.p.h., and the slope was on the flat side, with the result that the machine refused to rise. I had a faint idea of what towing was like, but I did not think it was as tough as this. On returning we noticed the wheel tracks down the hill, which explains why we could not get up sufficient speed for the machine to rise. The second trial, however, was more succes- ful, for we ran much faster, and when about halfway down the slope the machine (with pilot aboard) made a few hops at about a foot ofl the ground. Several more hops were indulged in, but the duration could not be increased. The monoplane was then tried minus pilot and some good towed flights were obtained. During one of the latter the detachable joint in the fuselage gave way, when the machine landed heavily and so put an end to the sport. Neverthe less, I believe we all felt better for our i\ hours' exercise in the open. Now for the conclusions. Readers will gather from the above that the narrow " pram-wheels " sinking in the ground was the cause of the trouble all along. The machine was originally intended to be tried on a smooth track (in fact the very first trial was carried out at such a place). With regard to the leather belt, this worked excellently up to a certain speed, but when Mr. Shorter endeavoured to go " all out " a slight slipping was perceptible. However, as soon as the propeller speed decreased slightly, the belt again took up the drive excellently. When it was first decided to construct this machine the writer obtained a couple of bevel gears and the constructor the chain wheels, &c, but so many of those " know-all-about-it" folks kept advising us to use a belt that to satisfy our own curiosity as well we gave it a trial. Hence the experiment. With regard to the question of fitting a " freewheel" (FLIGHT, November 22nd, 1913), I think it an advantage to leave this out, as any momentum the propeller does possess could be used to assist the cranks over the " dead centre." However, Mr. Shorter firmly believes that if he built a second machine possessing more area, using the same propeller and an efficient chain drive, it is possible to do a few hops on level ground against a slight breeze. Personally I think a machine of this type should be constructed similar to a rubber-driven model, i.e., the controls should be fixed, or nearly so, as this would enable the pilot to give more attention to the pedalling. When a model is launched the extra power or "burst" of the "motor" makes the machine climb, and when the rubber " runs out" the machine automatically glides down. Now if a cycleplane could be constructed similar to this, and the pilot strapped in a la Pegoud, he (the pilot) could govern the height by the speed. All the pilot has to do is to travel " all out" along the track, and if the speed increases sufficiently the machine will rise automatically ; if it does not, then alter the angle of the elevator slightly and try again. [This suggestion certainly seems founded on common sense. J Upturned Wing Tips. Many aeromodellists will have read with especial interest Mr. W. E. Somerville's account of his full-sized experiments with upturned wing tips, as given in January 31st issue, pp. 108-109. For purposes of lateral stability, and more especially for prevention of side-slipping, the value of such have long been known to model workers, and some of the best known flyers have used them m one form or another in their machines for years. In the case of full- sized machines, there of course always arises the question of the personal control of the pilot to complicate the simpler questions of 1/llOHT either inherent stability or a slabili'y obtained by automatic means. A bicyclist naturally prefers a bicycle as it is, unstable naturally, he neither desires a machine stabilized by means of a gyroscope or any such mechanical device, even supposing such could be added to the machine without increase of weight, or the necessity of employing extra power. And to a certain extent one can fully appreciate a pilot's feeling in the matter, any stabilizing device must undoubtedly be of such a character as not to in any way interfere with the pilot's free control of the machine ; nor must it, if possible, in gusty weather add to his discomfort by giving him greater stability at the expense of a consider able increase in pitching and rolling ; for such a system, however, favoured by inventors, will certainly never be used by those who have the actual flying of machines. How far the system of upturned wing tips fulfils these conditions is a matter with respect to which probably considerable difference of opinion exists. So tar as upturned tips v. dihedral angle is con cerned, from the very large number of model experiments that I have seen on this point, I have no hesitation in saying that upturned wing tips is by far the better system of the two. How to Make a Simple Winder. By J. E. ROGERS. Procure an ordinary egg-beater, remove the bottom part of the same, and the small cog with its shaft furthest from the big cog, so that it is left as shown in Fig. I. Next cut out a piece of tin T-shape, T Piece CUT FROM 5MCCT TIN FICi. 2 bore a hole and bend at the dotted lines, so that it looks like Fig. 3, slip on the forks, make a groove round the shaft, put a copper wire ring in it and compress it tight. Solder the T-piece in position as in Fig. 1. Next procure a screw and wing nut. Drill a hole in each fork three-quarters of an inch from the bottom, pass the screw through the holes, and solder the head to the fork, and you have the winder complete. Bamboo. It is probably not too much to say that every practical experi mentalist in aeronautics has at some time or another used bamboo in some part or another of his machines. It has been used (and smashed) in the case of man-carrying gliders probably more often than any other wood. For full-sized work, or, indeed, in any case where the " tube," be it large or small, is employed entire, it is not a success, and undoubtedly more than one fatal accident has happened through its use, but when employed in a proper and scientific manner, it is undoubtedly very hard to beat. It, is an ideal substance for model work, but only the very best portion of the wood must be made use of. First of all a tube (the larger the diameter the better) should be procured of tome convenient length, say 4 ft. This should be sawn from end-to end in strips, a quarter to half an inch wide, according to the size of the lube and the width of strip desired. These strips should next be planed on both sides, the soft inner pith all removed, ditto the knots and the hard outer shell. When this is done we have left a wood of great strength and also flexibility, most useful for skids and chassis on larger models, for the wing spars of smaller models (when some \ inch wide), and for many other purposes. A wood which can be readily bent by the dry hea 155
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