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Aviation History
1917
1917 - 0051.PDF
JAKUAKY XI. I/IIGHTI A Scale Tractor Biplane. IN sending along two photos, of a scale tractor biplane he has built, Mr. F. J. Mabb, Secretary of the Leeds and District Model Aero Club, says :— " Having met with some success with scale models, thefirst being a model of the So h.p. Blackburn monoplane, 1 decided to construct another—a tractor biplane—incor-porating various ideas of my own into the construction. One is the use of wood and wire in conjunction, which makesa light and strong job and will stand up to the rough usage of model flying much better than all wood. " I have made it a point to do away with use of screws andtacks as much as possible, practically all joints being bound with silk thread and varnished. Only four scrrws are used, take the type up. They would be surprised at the amountof knowledge they would gain. " The dimensions of this model are as follows :—Spun,42 ins.; chord, 6J ins. ; overall length, 39 ins. ; complete weight, 28 oz. ; carrying a load per «ii. foot of 8 oz. ; traitorscrew, 12J ins. diam. of ijj pitch, running at 2,000 r.p.m. for 30 sees. ; this screw is of the built-up type, three lamina-tions of dark walnut and two of satin walnut. The planes are double surfaced, with a gap of 7$ ins., set at a stagger of2$ ins., 8 gap struts, angle of incidence :J deg. ; chassis, the usual vee type, fitted with 3|-iti. wheels. These are turnedfrom wood with aluminium discs fitted OH the outer sides. The body is covered one-third with the same metal, a beutoncowl covering the motor, which consists of five cogs, all one size, four of these carrying the skeins of rubber, which nre Two views of Mr. F. J. Mabb's scale model tractor biplane. these holding the wood faceplate on to the longerons whichcarry the motor. " The best flight up to writing does not exceed 20 yards,the weather having not permitted any chance to give the model a fair trial, although at the best I don't suppose Ishall get more than 100 yards, and perhaps not even that, but I think that a few yards' free flight from a model of thistype is far more satisfactory than even half a mile from some so-called models. Even if one does have a smash every nowand again, you have the consolation of repairing it, besides having found out the weak points. Of course it is not wisefor novices to start off on scale work, as it would probably only mean failure and throwing the whole thing up in disgust,but it's a great pity more experienced model makers don't four strands of quarter strip per skein ; 600 turns can be gotwhen the rubber is lubricated. Tail members arc of piano wire, single surfaced. " The centre of gravity has been placed well forward bymaking the rear of the body extremely light, at the same time very strong. , " The planes are made so as to be quickly dismantled forcarrying, being constructed on similar lines to the full sizer. " All struts are of streamlined form to do away with asmuch resistance as possible." Mr. Mabb would be pleased to hear from any aero-modellists in the Leeds district and to give them any assistance possible. His address is 4, Bk. Greenmount Terrace, BeestonHill, Leeds. UNAFFILIATED MODEL CLUBS DIARYAND REPORTS. Club reports of chief work done are published monthly.Secretaries' reports, to be included, must reach the Editor on the last Monday in each month.Finsbury Park and District (66, SOUTHVIEWRD.,HORNSEY) SPECIAL NOTICE.—The club has been offered by an anonymous donor somevaluable prizes for competition if the active membership is brought up tu .o by Whitsuntide. The secretary uould, therefore, lie pleawid to hear from anyparson who is desifous of becoming a member. Monthly Riport.—Again the past month's work has been rather below thenormal owing to the bad weather, but the quality of the flying has shown a marked improvement. The club's records for tractor monoplanes, hi. and r.o.g.,have been increased to 73 seconds and 55 seconds respectively, the former by Mr. A. Richards and the latter by Mr. C. J. BurchelL December and wasunruly, but some good fly in? was done by Messrs. Richards, Rayner and Colemao. The 9th was much better, but only Mr. Rayner and his brother, inkhaki, appeared with models. Drummer Rayner's model " smashed-up" on first flight owing to a nose dive. The former's model was flying consistently through-out the afternoon, doing good durations. The 16th was foggy, and the 93rd was wet and wio<iy. On Boxing Kay, one of the most slice ssful meetings of theclub took pUce. The morning was cold aad frosty, with a slight ground mi*t, awl was ideal for Hying. The competition for Mr. A. E. Jones' prize money had £3 SI U.S. Navy to Try Kite Balloons. " ' ' ACCORDING to a statement before a Committee of theHouse of Representatives, the American warships " Nevada " and " Oklahama " are being fitted up for the purpose of )>een arranged, am! was Hnwn without a hitch. Two flight* had to ne mailo byeacli competing model, a h.l. and a r.o.tf. The result was as follow* : Mr. A. Richards first, w th 98 points ; Mr. F. K. Kayner second, with 03 points; Mr.('.. I liurtliell third, with 72 points.; and Mr. K. Coleman with 60 pointa. The last-named had extremely hard luck throughout the contest. Mr. I'. J. Poultneyacted as> official timekeeper and observer. During the morning many flight* of 60 seconds and over were made by the various models, and the records mentionedpreviously were also made. All the models in u« were lu>lluw.,p»r tractor monoplanes, and werr mo»tly four-footers. A junior, K. K. SCunsell, wa« (lyingasmall model very well. The 30th wa» rather windy, but nevcrthebn the attend- ance wit not small. O.c of the best flights of the afternoon WM Blade byMr K tColcmiin» machine, when it flew a distance of nearly \m yardi. Anothergood flight was made by Mr. Kayncr's model. Oti thin occasion it made a swift steady climb to a good altitude, and then " K( off " for a journey of about 3V.yards. The steadiness of this machine was remarked by everyone present. Mr. Richards record-breaker was out, but for some unaccountable reason, it failed tomake very long durations. Messrs. Burdicll (sen.) and Ilurchell jun.) were out with their light weight mono*., but tlicy did nut stand such a g*od chance in tlicwind as the heavier machines. AH tire meetings recorded above have been held at Parliament Hill Fields, Harnpstead. JUM recently two »cale models (notflying) have been completed, a Morane-Saulntcr by Mr. Wayner and a Nieuport " Scout " by Mr. Richards. Yet another memlier ba» to be added to the Club'sRoll of Honour ; Mr. W. Hardinge has now joined the K.A.M.C., and ia stationed at Blackpool. Mr. Richards commenced lu's duties at. treasurer onJanuary ist, 1017. ^ • testing kite balloons for spotting purposes during navamanoeuvres to be held at Guantanamo. The kite balloons will be 75 to 80 ft. long, 30 ft. in diameter and carry twomen. They will be inflated with hydrogen from a tank on board the ship.
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