Model Aeroplanes and Their Engines: A Practical Book for Beginners

by George Anthony Cavanagh

The greater the development the truer the fact that model aëroplanes may be instrumental in bringing to aëronautics men who may make valuable contributions to aëronautics. As a matter of fact, there are already in active life, contributing their share to the development of aëronautics, young men who only a few years ago competed for prizes which the writer offered for model competition.

The young men who are now flying models will live in the new age—and they have much to give and much to receive from it.

Through the tremendous strides forward of aëronautics there are wonderful possibilities for the employment of ingenuity, genius and skill, and business opportunities, as great as have ever been created by progress in important lines of human endeavor. Problems of engineering as huge as were solved by master builders; juridical and legal questions to be decided as stupendously difficult as any Gladstone would wish them; possibilities for the development of international relations greater than were ever conceived; problems of transportation to be solved by the application of aircraft, as wonderful as any economist could wish; opportunities to gain distinction splendid enough to satisfy the most ambitious person.

Henry Woodhouse.

New York, June 5th, 1916.

LIST OF CONTENTS

	PAGE
Introduction	[ix]
History of Model Aviation	[1]
Construction	[8]
Propellers—Wings—Frame—Assembling—Launching—Chassis—Pontoons—Launching an R. O. G. or Model Hydroaëroplane.
World Record Models	[52]
Lauder Distance and Duration Model—Hittle Tractor Hydro—La Tour Flying Boat—Cook No. 42 Model—Rudy Funk Duration Model—Alson H. Wheeler Twin Pusher Biplane.
A Model Warplane	[83]
A Simple Compressed Air Engine	[85–93]
Compressed Air Driven Models	[94–102]
The Dart Compressed Air Driven Model—The McMahon Compressed Air Driven Monoplane—The McMahon Compressed Air Driven Biplane.
Compressed Air Engines	[103–109]
Wise Compressed Air Engine—Schober-Funk Three Cylinder Engine—The Schober Four Cylinder Opposed Engine.
Gasoline Engines	[110–117]
Jopson—Midget Aëro Gasoline Engine.
Steam Power Plants	[118–122]
H. H. Groves Steam Power Plants—G. Harris’s Steam Engine—Professor Langley’s Steam Engine—French Experiments with Steam Power Plants.
Carbonic Gas Engine	[123–124]
The Formation of Model Clubs	[125–138]
World’s Model Flying Records	[139–141]
Dictionary of Aëronautical Terms	[142–152]

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

		PAGE
Model Aëroplane in Flight		[Frontispiece]
First Model Aëroplane Exhibition	Opp.	[4]
Propellers (Diagram 1)		[9]
How to cut propellers (Diagram 2)		[11]
Designs for propellers (Diagram 3)		[14]
Designs for propellers (Diagram 4)		[17]
Wing construction (Diagram 5)		[20]
Members of the Aëro Science Club	Opp.	[22]
Members of the Milwaukee and Illinois Model Aëro Clubs	Opp.	[22]
Frame construction (Diagram 6)		[25]
Model Assembly (Diagram 7)		[30]
C. W. Meyer and Wm. Hodgins exhibiting early type models	Opp.	[32]
Henry Criscouli with five foot model	Opp.	[32]
Schultz hydroaëroplane	Opp.	[32]
Rubber winder (Diagram 8)		[35]
Chassis construction (Diagram 9)		[38]
Pontoon construction (Diagram 10)		[43]
Obst flying boat	Opp.	[44]
McLaughlin twin tractor hydroaëroplane	Opp.	[44]
Louis Bamberger hydro about to leave water	Opp.	[44]
E. B. Eiring and Kennith Sedgwick Milwaukee Club How to launch R. O. G. model	Opp.	[48]
Waid Carl, Concord Model Club Launching R. O. G. model	Opp.	[48]
Wallace A Lauder model (Diagram 11)		[54]
Lauder distance and duration model	Opp.	[56]
Lauder R. O. G. model	Opp.	[56]
Lindsay Hittle world record hydroaëroplane (Diagram 12)		[61]
La Tour Flying Boat (Diagram 13)		[66]
Ellis Cook R. O. G. model (Diagram 14)		[73]
Funk duration model (Diagram 15)		[78]
Rudy Funk speed model	Opp.	[80]
McMahon and Schober compressed air driven models	Opp.	[80]
Alson H. Wheeler twin pusher biplane	Opp.	[82]
C. V. Obst tractor	Opp.	[82]
Model Warplane		[84]
Simple compressed air engine (Diagram 16)		[87]
Schober compressed air driven monoplane	Opp.	[90]
Schober compressed air driven biplane	Opp.	[90]
Dart compressed air driven model		[95]
John McMahon and compressed air driven monoplane	Opp.	[98]
Frank Schober preparing model for flight	Opp.	[98]
John McMahon pusher biplane (Diagram 17)		[102]
Wise compressed air engine	Opp.	[104]
Schober-Funk three-cylinder rotary engine	Opp.	[105]
Schober four cylinder engine (Diagram 18)		[107]
Jopson gasoline engine	Opp.	[110]
Sectional view of Jopson engine (Diagram 19)		[112]
Power curve of Jopson engine (Diagram 20)		[115]
Midget gasoline engine	Opp.	[116]
English steam power plant	Opp.	[120]
V. E. Johnson steam driven hydroaëroplane	Opp.	[120]
English compressed air driven biplane	Opp.	[122]
Tractor hydroaëroplane fitted with steam power plant	Opp.	[122]
English compressed air engine fitted with simple speedometer	Opp.	[122]
The Rompel six-cylinder carbonic gas engine	Opp.	[124]

MODEL AËROPLANES