John Aero

The saga continues. I'll add some more pictures when I sort out my Photobucket problem. I have been in doing other jobs on Tilly such as finding a more sensible way to re-attach the lower rear valance covering the rear springs which took so long to remove. It was obvious that the answer to the valance fixing problem had to be some anchor nuts in the body work. To this end I shaped strips of 4 mm ply wood around the inside periphery of the rear body floor. There was a long piece across the back and a shorter piece on each side. These strips were held in place while I then drilled up with a slightly larger drill at each bolt position through the body and into the wood. The ply strips were then removed and I pressed some M 6 pronged “T nuts” into the holes in the ply wood. The “T nuts” were also glued in with boat building epoxy. The “T nuts” are longer that the ply is thick, so they also extend down into the enlarged bolt holes in the glass fibre, thus accurately locating the nuts. Some new stainless socket cap bolts and washers were coated with Vaseline and without the valance in place, the ply strip assemblies were coated with epoxy and put back into position and then the bolts were used to draw down the ply strips until the epoxy cured. The thin ply wood is perfectly adequate to locate the nuts and to take the compressive strength required. The ply strips were given a final sealing coat of epoxy. This work will all disappear under the upholstery. The upper mating surface of the lower valance is a flange about 40 mm wide, but the lower edge of the 9” deep, ‘'J” section valance curves further forwards, making it difficult to screw in the fixing bolts with a straight extension on a ratchet spanner from below. Using a small spanner inside the valance is a painful and slow business. The simple answer was to drill holes in the lower curved surface, directly under the bolt holes. These new holes are just wide enough for a No 5 Allen key in a 4BA socket to go through on a long homemade ¼” square extension. All I have to do is pop a socket cap bolt on the Allen key end and push it vertically up to engage the fixed “T nuts”. It saves working inside the valance. The valance now refits in about 15 minutes. The extra holes are invisible unless one lies in the road. The special extension was made from a 10" length of ¼” ground square steel stock. The ¼” drive No 5 Allen key socket fits perfectly onto this, but the problem was finding a double ¼ “ square drive for the other end so that the normal ratchet handles would fit. I solved this by putting a spare 10mm socket reversed onto the end of the square bar. Into the socket end I put an M 6 x 20 mm extender nut (or joiner/tube nut). I then put another spare 10 mm socket on to this projecting nut so that I now had the required ¼”square driver end fitting. The two sockets containing the joiner nut were secured together by the simple means of some gaffer tape. I’ve finally got Tilly's new axle back home. When Boris said that you can drive as far as you like, I took the opportunity to arrange a Click and Collect with the Engineers at Chichester. On the first morning of the relaxed rules I set off at 06.00 with my PPE (which every good workshop always has), in the car along with flasks of coffee, orange juice and food. I joined the motorway and slipped into the Bomber stream (the London bound commuter traffic) and went M.1, M.25 and then peeled off on to the A.3 and after an uneventful journey I was in Chichester by 10.30. I made one comfort stop both ways at a well run Motorway loo, I then removed my PPE gear, first spraying my door handles steering wheel, gloves and mask with Isopropyl Alcohol. so I could have some in car refreshment. On arrival at Heathrow Transmissions I opened my boot and unstrapped the old axle. I stood apart and called the mechanics who lifted the new one into the boot. They retired and I strapped the axle down. The whole thing took 20 minutes and I was on my way with one more comfort stop and I was home by 15.30. A close neighbour also wearing PPE helped me lift the axle out of the car onto my special axle trolley. I secured the straps and I trundled it it into position under the back end of Tilly. Onwards and upwards..

It was indeed a wonderful achievement. The info I have comes from Mckay's book on the DH.60 which states that following the Brisbane crash the Moth was rebuilt by DH (Australia) at Mascot, but to static standard only, before shipment back to the UK.. There is a photo in which the Moth looks pretty good. I believe that Amy was loaned another Moth for her tour, but I can't remember where I've read this. John

The fuselage of AAH was originally Red when owned by Wally Hope. I'm aware of the Australia crash and that it was rebuilt for static display before being shipped back to Britain. As it now hangs in the Science museum the underside of the fuselage between the under-carriage shows several streaks of red paint showing through the green and also faintly around the edge of a metal panel. I doesn't look like primer to me. I have a photo on file, but I am having problems with Photobucket and also the photo I think came from off the web. If I can crop it for reasonable use I will try to post it. John

I recieved mine today. It's a lovely kit. John

I feel your pain with the 'push pop'. The other night I was using one of my heavy duty staplers. It jammed because I'd used the wrong gauge staples. I gave the jammed magazine a good tug and the damn thing fired a staple a good 100 mm into my left thigh. One push ,double pop. @@&%$ John A great build.

I've quickly fiddled with this drawing to balance the fuselage profile with the other views. It was 1:72 when it left me. To scale it, a half span should be 120.5 mm (centre to tip) and the fuselage is 164 mm (not including the tail light). John

Martin I have the package ready to go as soon as I can post it. I did a quick check on the drawing I posted and to my annoyance the fuselage is a slightly different scale to the other views as printed in the book. I've fiddled with it in my drawing program and I've produced a composite drawing which corrects this problem. I've also come across two overall length measurements and I've gone for the AP length (38' 10") which does not include the tail light. Martlesham measured what they got at that point in time and so the tail light was an afterthought/ later requirement.. Cheers John PS I have had some Sticky pads at my demos at Telford but I'm down to only a few now in my personal collection. The firm who made them for me has since disappeared as far as I know.

Martin. I've just sent you a message re the drawings. Your cockpit cutout is too broad to the port side. The cockpit shown here is better but not quite right in shape on the top right sloping port edge. Look at the Hawker Data sheet I posted, as there is a kink. This drawing is the one from A.F.P, Vol 2 and I have modified it to show the correct stringers. This drawing was also the reference for the Putnam drawings, as they too have the incorrect number of stringers. The wheels and tyres by the way I believe are the same as the Bristol Berkeley and in this drawing are shown too thin in side profile. Oh, and the radiator filler is Ok in side view but in plan it is a thinner aerofoil shape not circular.. John

Thank you Mike for re-posting this. I hadn't noticed that you had restored it as in 2018 I was busy with Cancer treatment. I'm pleased that it is still of use. Cheers John (now hoping to dodge Corvid 19).

Not many folk would recognise a Villar-Perosa gun, but it was probably the only gun which would fit. It has the distinction of being designed by Major Revelli as an Italian aircraft weapon, but was developed by the Germans and Austrians as an infantry Machine Pistol after a number were captured after the Battle of Caparetto in 1917. It has a very complicated firing mechanism. The built up gun ring and cockpit were still on top of a storage crate (out of shot) when I was on a visit to Personal Plane Services Hangar a few of years ago, as was a Pilatus P.2 fuselage outside in some Bramble bushes. John The junk pile, I think the fuselage is the crash dummy. The gun ring is out of shot up on the shelf. I think this is the pseudo German machine, restored to a later guise.

Incredible work on an aeroplane of which so little is known. John

I'm afraid that Brass Strutz (T/m) are no longer available. Most of the machinery such as the wire drawing bench was scrapped when Mike Eacock died. I rescued the key wire forming machine element but found that the special forming die roller sets had disappeared so it was rendered useless as they were engineered by Mike and were not commercial items. I like the finest soft Iron Florists wire, which I use in 1:48 or Albion Alloys Point one (0.1) and Point 2 MM (0.2) Nickel Silver wire. Ceramic (Rigging) wire is available in the States. All the ones mentioned are cut to length rigid wires. For the stretch threads then Easi-Line appears to be the most popular or the non stretch old standby, is Nylon invisible thread. Some lycra threads such as Goldzak (if you can get it) are good but some cheaper brands are UV sensitive. John

Ahh I missed the Australia bit. John

Use a nose wheel set from a Frog Mk 3 Shack. I have plenty if you need one. John

I have long intended to do a 1:48 model of the Messenger and the Gemini as these are another two of my all time favorites from my boyhood days at Tollerton aerodrome. Also I was able to fly in G-AKIN last year. There are 1:72 scale plans of the Messenger and the Gemini which has a virtually identical airframe, and they are all based on the original Aeromodeller plans, both in the magazine and the Harboro Book of Miles Aircraft. The same plans unfortunately also appear on the net and in the Air Britain Miles books. There are some errors in this Messenger plan. One is that the whole tail group is drawn a scale 3" too far forwards. I confirmed this by actually measuring G-AKVZ. There are also other issues. To this end I've drawn my own plans for both of these aircraft by gathering together information from differing sources. VZ has the early Military square rear cabin windows whilst KIN has the later ovoid shaped ones. The windscreen was originally more upright which was replaced by a more rounded Gemini type on most later machines. You can PM me if you wish. One of my first vacform kits was a 1:72 Messenger in 1972. John