Lee-Richards annular wing 1913, scratchbuilt 1/72

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

These are all old builds, and in retrospect should have been posted at the beginning of these series. They often represent the first, hesitant steps on scratchbuilding.

Here is another from 2006, 13 years ago (original text as posted then):.

 

Look! it's a spaceship from Saturn!...a flying doughnut!...the last area 51 project!...well, actually not.
It is a pioneering plane devised by two gentlemen from Britain a few years ago (more than a hundred, actually) to take advantage of an interesting aerodynamic concept. And yes, it flew...eventually.
It was powered by an enclosed 80 hp Gnome engine, could carry two people and had elevons.
After a research session in my library and the Net, I found notes and images that helped a lot, but I also found the seemingly unavoidable contradictions among references that I like so much.

Anyway, choices were made, a new # 11 blade was inserted in the handle and very much in Monty Python's Holy Grail fashion we went, to travel across the meandering paths of scratchbuilding, clapping our coconuts.

As you can see in the images, the usual pre-kit is cut from styrene, a 7 cylinder engine made of the same material and some spare parts adapted for the occasion.

Finally, the strange but beautiful shape of the Lee-Richards annular wing will cruise again on the sky of imagination.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TallBlondJohn]

Sadly nobody seems to have followed up this ring wing idea - except perhaps for the 1:1 replica Moa is working on in secret - or maybe that's his flying saucer.

 

This is the wikipedia article:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee-Richards_annular_monoplane

[invidia]

WOW thats a fantastic looking plane. 

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

2 hours ago, TallBlondJohn said:

except perhaps for the 1:1 replica Moa is working on in secret - or maybe that's his flying saucer. 

  

Darn!

My secret is out!

How would I be able to leave Dismayland if things continue to look orange?

[RidgeRunner]

You are back.... And Wow! A great build, Moa

[pheonix]

Nothing hesitant about that - more like ambitious I would have written. And an excellent model it is too. What an unusual design among your huge collection of unusual designs. Thanks for posting and for the information about the original.

 

How is your full scale replica progressing?

 

P

[fjaweijfopi4j48]

1 hour ago, RidgeRunner said:

You are back.... And Wow! A great build, Moa

Hey, I have been steadily posting WiPs and RFIs, many of them, you ere asleep! 😉

 

9 minutes ago, pheonix said:

Nothing hesitant about that - more like ambitious I would have written. And an excellent model it is too. What an unusual design among your huge collection of unusual designs. Thanks for posting and for the information about the original.

 

How is your full scale replica progressing?

 

P

I tell my neighbors it's the wing of a giant Mexican Sombrero for the upcoming summer.

[72modeler]

Looks like something the Skunk Works would have done if they had been around at that time! Terminally weird, but another great build, Moa!

Mike