Wonwings Diary-a blog with a difference.

[Guest]

Nope that it doesnt

[Guest]

does anyone happen to record that program on our new "super ships"???

i missed it and would love to see it. i dont want to have to go all the way to southhapton to see them!!

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Meccano Engineering in miniature-The models say it all.

Meccano dealers cabinets like this were once commonplace,in those days you just pointed to the parts that you wanted,and a well wrapped and sealed item was placed onto the counter,I have yet to meet a shopkeeper who relished adding up the numerous amounts of small Meccano parts,especially with a queue building up like a Tesco stores on a busy Saturday ! each part is hand strung in place with cord,in fact Frank Hornby insisted that every nut was threaded onto every bolt in the early days of Meccano,the idea being to make sure that there were no faulty threads as often happened,can you imagine this happening today with little if nothing in the way of inspection ? notice also to the right the various colours of boilers issued by Meccano,the cabinet is a thing of beauty in its own right.Almost every major hardware store in the land selling Meccano had one of these on their counter.



Early Meccano dealers cabinet,note the different coloured boiler collection to the right.



Meccano V-1 Doodlebug,very clever but simple construction,not an easy subject in Meccano.



Just look at the way this racing car has been engineered in Meccano ! a clever bit of construction given the fairly complex shapes involved.



Meccano Steam Carriage,note the tiller steering.A basic but non the less attractive subject.



Very neat Meccano steam engine of modest dimensions.



Gigantic Meccano Traction engine in yellow and blue,note the twisted brass stancions,this is available from some model engineering suppliers.



Gigantic Meccano warship looks stunning,what is it Bunkerbarge ?

[Guest]

The Gauntlet has been thrown!

[Guest]

I would start the bidding with a County Class Cruiser but difficult to see from the angle.

I certainly don't know the shape as well as I do the Bismarck.

[Guest]

Not even going to hazzard a guess...Bunk will flame my ass again.

[Guest]

I'm honourably bowing down from this one. Mainly because I have been working since the stroke of midnight and it is now 12.30 pm.

Enthusiasm is definately on the wane at the moment!!

[Guest]

sleep well dude

[Guest]

I have to hang on in there until we depart tonight at 18.00 hrs. The coffee is getting stronger!

[Guest]

jees, long shift then!!!

what keeps you busy? other than posting on here and coffee?

[Guest]

We had some repairs to do today that entailed us getting in early to give us time to complete them. Stand by started at midnight and we were alongside for two. Then the games began.

As it happens we have completed them but I still have to wait until we are on our way again and I can determine whether the repairs have been successfull. Amongst all that I went outside for a breath of air and took some pictures of the decks!!

Plus we took fuel today, plus we took a delivery of diesel oil today, plus every man and his dog has visited us etc...etc...!

[Guest]

oooh, so you manage to keep busy then!!!

oooo!!! pictures of the decks!!

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Lets take a look at the Caproni Stipa.

CAPRONI STIPA DUCTED FAN DESIGN.

Over the years there has been some remarkable designs that had got maligned in aviation history,this is one such machine that just because of its odd looks many people could not take seriously,read the story of how one dedicated man set about conquering ducted flight with an ordinary Gipsy Major engine for the power source is a real one,that foresight has been reproduced as a modern flying replica that actually flies,here is that proof-





A book published by Giorgio Evangelisti prompted a group of Australians to build a replica of a remarkble flying machine from the past,the Stipa was built by the Caproni compani in Italy to test and develop a tubuler fuselage that was made into a ducted fan from a Gipsy Major engine providing the motive power,whilst a strange looking machine this aircraft must go down in history as a development way ahead of its time,Luigi Stipa knew exactly what he wanted and achieved that aim with the barrel like fuselage and the thrust harnessed within the tube driven by a single Gipsy Major engine .

Whilst many did not want to get involved with a flying replica a very special person got to work and built her,his name was Bryce Wolff,a creater supreme,who in 1977 met the original builder Gianni Caproni and managed to acquire enough material and drawings to build this definate one off machine.

Powered with a Italian Simonini racing engine the project was worked out at a scale of 65% original,remember the original was some some 12 feet tall and had a large wingspan of some 50 feet.

So 69 years after the first flight of the original machine another ducted fan flying barrell took to the air once again,sitting atop that big fuselage test pilot Bryce got to grips with the un-usual layout and managed to keep her steady with the wings level,we owe a lot to this design which was very advanced for its time,Caproni will go down in the annals of aviation history for what he achived,the ducted piston powered fan would eventually be fine tuned into the jet engines we know of so well today,a pioneer ? he most certainly was and we salute him here on Scale-Models for his foresight and a spirit of adventure.

[Guest]

That`d be a barrel of fun to model.....hmmmm.

[wonwinglo]

***And we could roll out the barrel Duncan !:smile11:

That`d be a barrel of fun to model.....hmmmm.