1:1 Modeling

[Skyking]

These are some shots I took at the Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport New York last weekend, of a full scale FLYING reproduction of the Curtiss H4 America that the museum is building and using as a flying display piece. It will be accurate down to the hardware, including being powered by 2 Curtiss OX5 engines. There is some talk of attempting the original transatlantic flight that the original airplane was designed for in 1913, but the advent of WW1 brought the plan to a halt.

This is a picture of the original undergoing high speed taxi tests on Keuka Lake in Upstate NY, the same lake the Curtiss Museum is located on.

[Skyking]

This is one of the large aelerons for the upper wing, almost 12 feet long. The America has a 175 foot wingspan, a rather large airplane for 1913. Hanging on the wall above it is an original Satbilizer built for the America. It was used as a model for joinery, construction techniques, etc.

[Skyking]

This is a shot of the outter lower wing panels, still in the jig. The guys in the restoration shop are doing a fine job, closely reproducing the cabinet grade woodwork that Curtiss was noted for.

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A shot of the port side of the fuselage in the jig. All the "hoops" you see are steam bent spruce, and they will be glued and screwed to the spruce longerons and stringers, then wire braced and fabric covered. One concession to modern materials will be the covering, it will be a polyester based cloth called Ceconite, not the original Egyptian Linen that Curtiss used.

[Skyking]

Here's the lower wing center section that is mounted to the fuselage. This will also have the engines mounted to it.

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Here's the starboard side of the fuselage in the cockpit area. A fully enclosed cabin was deemed to be needed for flying over the North Atlantic, which is direct contrast to the open cockpit NC series that made the first transatlantic trip after WW1.

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I'll post a few more shots as work progresses and more trips are taken. This is certainly an interesting project and it should be fun to follow.

Cheers

Mike

[Skyking]

Hi everyone,

The America has a 175 foot wingspan

ummm... that should be 75 foot wingspan, not 175.

(accepting my nomination for the Fumbling Fickle Fingers of Fate Award with grace and humility)

Cheers

Mike

[Skyking]

You're not fooling me. These are actually shots of your 1/48 shop diorama. C'mon...'fess up.

Thanks Rusty, I can only wish that were true. I'm sure if anyone could pull it off though it would be John Reid. Are you listening John? hint hint

Cheers

Mike

[Skyking]

I missed this one on the last post. Here's a view of the entire fuselage/hull, looking down the starboard side. Amazing woodworking here. The joints were all nice and neat, no gaps, no globs of glue running down the pieces, but what really caught my eye was that all the slotted screw heads on the brass screws were all pointed in the same direction; with the airflow. AMS is an affliction even in the full size arena. The original Curtiss MF Seagull the museum has on display is also built with the same attention to detail. The screw slots all point with the airflow, the joints are nice and tight, and the mahogony hull looks more like a fine piece of furniture than an airplane. Curtiss hired the best craftsmen he could find to buld his airplanes, and it is evident by the finished results.