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Aviation History
1936
1936 - 1861.PDF
40 FLIGHT. JULY 2, 1936. MODELS By M. R. KNIGHT Power and Speed WE illustrate this month the low-wing monoplane Hornet with which Mr. H. E. White, B.Sc, of the Northern Heights Model Flying Club, recently won the Flight Cup for speed, the recorded velocity being 42.61 m.p.h. The Hornet has only one square foot of wing area, and weighs no less than 57 oz. Approximately 1 h.p. is derived from 16 02. of I in. flat rubber arranged in five skeins, and turning the airscrew at over 3,000 r.p.m. Steel gears are used, the shafts running in phosphor-bronze bearings. The number of turns given is about 300, the motor run being under five seconds. Fuselage and wings are of birch, with stressed-skin covering of 1 mm. three-ply, the strength of which can be gauged from the fact that three hours was sufficient to repair the results of a head-on collision with a concrete grandstand on the occasion of the Speed Contest. The undercarriage is of 10 S.W.G. spring steel wire encased in wood, and incorporating a stout coil spring in compression. The wheels are of ^ in. plywood. The airscrew is of birch, the difficulty of carving being compensated for by the fact it has emerged unscathed from all vicissitudes. The nose-block is of birch, turned on the lathe, and hollowed to -rV in. The tail is of steel wire, covered with heavy Jap silk. The fin has a small trimming tab of plywood, hinged with spring steel, and this is the only adjustable fitting in the machine. An early attempt is to be made on the British speed record, which stands at 33.8 m.p.h. The figure is arrived at by taking the average of three up-wind and three down-wind flights. A Scale Cup-Winner THE second model illustrated is the large Leopard Moth with which Mr. W. L. Henery, of The Model Aircraft Club, won the Flight Annual Trophy at the Northern Heights Club's Gala Day, described on this page. The scale is 1^ in. to 1 ft., the wing span being 56^ in. Practically all the structure is of balsa wood, the weight being 14 oz. Power is derived from four skeins, each of four strands, of \ in. x 1/20 in. rubber, geared to an airscrew 14 in. in diameter. First flown at Warwick in July, 1934, the model has since put in many hours at Wimbledon, and took a prominent part in the displays which the M.A.C. Circus gave at the Hurlingham Polo Club in 1935 and 1936, and at the official opening at Walsall Aerodrome in 1935. It won the M.A.C. Scale Model Contest in 1935, Grand Rally Contest for Scale Models 1935, and the Scale Model Contest at the " Northern Heights " 1936 Gala Day, as , described on the page that follows. The longest flight made to date is Two "Flight" Cup Winners Described : Recent and Forthcoming Events Mr. White's 42 m.p.h. Hornet, which has 57 oz. per sq. ft. wing loading and a rubber motor which generates 1 h.p. at 3,000 r.p.m. Contest, flown on May 31. The models were required to rise from the ground, and cover in flight a course of 150 feet. The best flight counted, each competitor being allowed as many attempts as his model would stand! True racing models are by no means easy to build and operate, and are useless for any other purpose, hence the majority of entries consist of "general-purpose" models speeded-up by using extra rubber, and sometimes a clipped wing. This year victory went to a genuine racer, H. E. White's low-wing Hornet, described above. His winning flight was highly spectacular, the model hurtling along about two feet above the ground, and zooming up over the finishing line. A speed of 42.61 m.p.h. was recorded. The model needs a ground speed in excess of 40 m.p.h. to take off in still air, and a fairly high wind prevented any trial flights being made. Fortunately the wind dropped to practically nothing iti time for the winning flight to be made. Second place went to W. Worden (T.M.A.C), who reached 22.54 rn.p.h. with Zephyr, and W. L. Henery 45 sec.—which, of course, is a good figure for a model built exactly to scale except for the airscrew. Speed Contests T HE Cup donated some years ago by Flight was this year awarded by the S.M.A.E. to the winner of the Speed Mr. Henery's ii in. to 1 ft. Leo pard ; even the instruments are to scale
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