Santos Dumont 14 bis (1906) by Greg Davis - FINISHED - Model Airways - 1:16 scale

[Greg Davis]

4 hours ago, George Ramey said:

Beautiful job, Greg. Really impressive build. Good catch on the extra crossbeams. I think I'm about a week behind. I decided not to assemble the forward and aft cockpits after the forward cockpit was installed on the fuselage as I previously proposed. Mine are now assembled, less the cross piece under the motor mount support as you suggested. Just attached the motor mounts and waiting for them to cure. Rather than disassemble the engine fuel distribution tubes from the motor to install it, I'm going to try mounting it on the mounts before sliding the cockpit assembly onto the four fuselage bamboo corners. I'll let you know if that works. 

George

Sounds good - I hope the engine / mount slide in nicely. By the way, during one of my trial engine fittings I had the top part of the engine support detach from the vertical strip. After putting it back together, I decided to add a couple of triangular corner gussets to help support the joint. Even before this happened I was concerned about the butt joint being able to support the engine. I would guess that in the original plane, the joint was likely rabbeted and a lot stronger than how the model is designed.

Also, when it comes time to install the wings, there is another part that is not mentioned in the instructions. There is a middle rib that needs to be added at the joint between the wing panels. You can see a bit of it on the plans - a lot of the rib is concealed by the fuel tank. You can also make it out on the prototype model in the pictures on p35 and 36 of the instruction manual. I wish Model Expo had secured a third party beta model builder to make this model and provide edits to the instruction manual before the kit was released to the public.

[Greg Davis]

I have the canard trial fitted / lined up square with the fuselage. It turns and rises / lowers nicely. Should be interesting to see if I can get it rigged to the cockpit controls later - they are suppose to be functional.  

Here's another place where a beta modeler may have been able to provide feedback to make the canard fitting a bit less sloppy. Note how the 'canard axle tube' doesn't reach fully between the two canard supports. If the tube had been about 3mm longer, there would still be free movement but a much more professional fit. Later, during the final attachment, I may fit a pair of 1.5mm washers to fill in and balance the canard installation. 

 

[George Ramey]

It appears that the instructions were made by marketing guys, not the designers. A though the instructions were rather nice visually, the execution was vague to poor.

The firewall scribed lines for the installation of the motor mounts are too close together so I had to move each outboard so the motor would fit. This caused the gap between the fuselage sides and the bottom of the motor mounts to be less than the fuselage bamboo diameter causing me to trim the fuselage side a bit and bevel the bottom of the motor mount common to the firewall so the fuselage bamboo would nest under the firewall.

Thanks for the heads up on the wing installation rib. I haven't even fit check the wings to the fuselage yet.

I trimmed the canard axle tube to fit the gap so I didn't have your problem. Page 36 of the instructions is pretty sketchy on rigging the controls to be functional but it can probably be figured out. I'll send photos soon.

George

[George Ramey]

Greg,

How do you attach the Pe2 rigging links to the nail at the pointy end? Ref page 25, 26 of the instructions. I'm considering installing the nails backwards so the nail head captures the link unless you have a way to do it per the picture.

George

[Greg Davis]

I installed the nails backwards. I put the turnbuckles on the pins and a drop of CA on the end of the pin before pushing into place. Just needed to be real careful about slanting the turnbuckles correctly as soon as the CA sets they don't move anymore! Also they are really easy to bend in a way that in not intended.

[George Ramey]

Success! Got the cockpit preinstalled on the fuselage assembly, then installed the cockpit to the fuselage with the entire engine intact. The turnbuckles are loosely nailed to the cockpit. Rigging is next and then I'll permanently attach the turnbuckles. So relieved this worked out.

[Greg Davis]

23 minutes ago, George Ramey said:

Success! Got the cockpit preinstalled on the fuselage assembly, then installed the cockpit to the fuselage with the entire engine intact. The turnbuckles are loosely nailed to the cockpit. Rigging is next and then I'll permanently attach the turnbuckles. So relieved this worked out.

Congratulations! 

[Greg Davis]

I started working on the landing gear - the instructions indicate that this should be installed before the wings are attached (and that is getting close now).

 

Still disappointed that the tires are part of a casting and not rubber. I was afraid that paint on the tires would easily rub off if the plane was rolled over nearly any surface. Because of this, I decided to blacken the middle part of the tires before painting them black. If (when) the paint comes off, the blackened metal will take over! I brushed blackener onto the tires, let them set a few minutes before rinsing them. After drying the flat black paint was applied.

 

I also used blackener to color the landing gear axle assembly. The wheels are not permanently attached at this point, before doing so I will add the 'rubber' suspension system to the landing gear.

[George Ramey]

In my last post should have written " got the ENGINE preinstalled on the cockpit assembly". sorry for the confusion.

George

[Greg Davis]

I've added and rigged the canard controls

I blackened all the metal parts and then painted the handle of the lever brown. This work didn't go as well as it should have. I broke one of the support legs on the wheel control as I tried to bend two of the legs to be a little closer together and thereby match notches in the base. Fortunately the repair looks fine. I wanted to note that there is a hole in the base (close to the basket) for the control line to pass thru and down to the bottom of the fuselage. In order to keep the hole from being blocked the base needs not to be pushed tight to the fuselage stringer.

 

After gluing the lever assembly together, I congratulated myself on applying some petroleum jelly to the horizontal part of the lever in order to assure free movement - but then noticed the base was reversed from what it should be. The glue join was really strong and I decided not to dissolve / disassemble the joint - I'm sure this is the way Santos-Dumont had wanted it assembled originally and the actual error was on the real plane. I had to toss the supplied rigging line for the control lines as it had a number of snags and I couldn't get a long enough piece to do the work - so a quick trip to the local stash of extra materials.

 

The controls actually move the canard up/down and right/left. I think that before the model is complete, I will restrict all motion to prevent overuse and/or breakage. I typically think that static models should be static! 

[George Ramey]

My lever will be installed just like the plans show because I built the lever base backwards by mistake so the lever assy will be installed on the inboard side of the fuselage corner bamboo. On the canard wheel, I notice the plans have the rigging hole on the opposite side of the base which would have required the base angle to be attached to the outboard side of the fuselage corner bamboo.

I'm glad you're ahead of me on the build as you have pointed out some traps I would have undoubtedly fallen into. Right now, I'm fabbing the 4 pillow blocks that attach the four fuselage corner ends to the aft cockpit. Also, for me another PIA build out of flat brass stock. I'm using a crude jig to try to get a symmetrical part but it still requires a bit of fiddling. I think I'll complete the fuselage and controls and do the wings at the very last because my work table is too small to fit the entire aircraft.

YouTube has a few videos of replicas flying/attempting to fly which are interesting.

George

[Greg Davis]

Today I decided to permanently attach the wing panels

This is completely out of order from the instructions - I hope its not a bad idea, but I just 'felt' it was time!

 

The instructions suggest that the landing skids are first attached to the wings and the fuselage as well as the wheels. Then, to set the dihedral 1.5cm shims are to be put under the wing skids. This minimally assumes that the skids are both the same length and don't flex to much when being used as supports. Here I have set the dihedral using a pair of 1-2-3 blocks while the fuselage / canard assembly sits solidly on the work space. The downside is that the whole structure now becomes more unwieldy as the time comes to adding the skids and other objects. I'll also be adding bamboo diagonal reinforcements to installed wings at a time I can't move the structures as freely. The way I interpret the instructions, wing rigging was to be done before wing installation. I don't think that it will be that problematic to add it with wings in place - certainly not as challenging as rigging a ship.

 

As George alluded to, once the wings are added the model does take up a good deal of space. So now I'm back to the question: where does this thing go when its done? My wife thinks it would look good hanging from the ceiling and I'm thinking a flat mount onto a wall could be interesting.  

 

[Egilman]

2 hours ago, Greg Davis said:

My wife thinks it would look good hanging from the ceiling

Good Idea! just hang it like a museum would hang it.... Five wires (one holds up the nose with it's boxkite) & two crossbars, one under each wheel carrying the weight....

 

I wonder if Dumont ever figured out why this thing would take hops but would never actually fly...

[Greg Davis]

34 minutes ago, Egilman said:

Good Idea! just hang it like a museum would hang it.... Five wires (one holds up the nose with it's boxkite) & two crossbars, one under each wheel carrying the weight....

 

I wonder if Dumont ever figured out why this thing would take hops but would never actually fly...

I don't know, his next plane the No.15 had a similar bi-plane large dihedral wing system and now the box canard was in the rear and the propulsion changer from pusher to tractor. He also lowered his center of gravity by sitting just on top of the bottom wing. This plane wasn't successful, perhaps due to an extremely narrow wing chord - reportedly about 2ft - that couldn't have produced a great deal of lift at the low speed possible by the craft. Perhaps this was why it didn't successfully fly. His next airplane the No.17 is reported to have been similar to the No.15 and is not well documented. It is claimed that this plane went untested. His final sequence of planes - the Demoiselle sequence - were all small monoplanes where the pilot sat over the landing gear under the wing. This was clearly his most successful design - I feel it has a number of 'modern' aspects to it. I have no idea if the design is all his and/or it was a natural assimilation of current designs. It is also impressive that he let plans for the Demoiselle be published (in Popular Mechanics) so anyone interested could build one. I understand that the Demoiselle plans are the only SD plans that exist, the rest having been destroyed after the French had accused him of operating as a German spy. This picture shows Santos-Dumont with one of the later Demoiselles (with a pretty nice prop!).

 

[Egilman]

Yeah, he was figuring out CoG right about then, but they still missed the even more important aspect of balance around that CoG... At least they had got away from those horrible twin main wing monstrosities they were trying to fly....

 

Dumont was the closest of the Europeans gaining an understanding of control in three axes, but the Thomas Edison approach to the engineering was slow going....

 

And it wasn't long, everything was published back in that day as it was believed that science was for everyone... How it works wasn't patentable, how to make it work was... Everyone wanted to be the first to really "Fly" like a bird... I personally believe SD had just about figured it out, and then saw the Wrights working solution in Paris....

 

It didn't take long after that for everyone to figure it out...

 

Dumont's subsequent airplane work after that was proof of concept, and when he established it to his satisfaction, he stopped...

 

I believe his stopping work was a major loss to science....

[Greg Davis]

15 minutes ago, Egilman said:

I believe his stopping work was a major loss to science....

By 1910 (in his mid-thirties) SD's health was starting to fail, symptoms and then diagnosis of multiple sclerosis - Its also suspected that SD suffered from bipolar disorder. The last 20 years of his life don't seem to have been particularly good ones. Its clear he had a level of regret that planes were so quickly weaponized. If times and his health had been better, I expect he would have continued his exception line of applied research. Very sad as to how he went from such great highs in the early 1900's to committing suicide in 1932.

[Egilman]

2 hours ago, Greg Davis said:

Very sad as to how he went from such great highs in the early 1900's to committing suicide in 1932.

In 1908 he was considered the worlds leading expert on heavier than air machines... By 1912, he was simply a peer, By 1914 he was an also ran that worked on airplanes once....

 

That is sad....

[George Ramey]

Been trying to figure out how the ailerons are supposed to be operated. At first, I thought they may have been cross coupled the the left/right canard wheel. Found a YouTube video that shows a flying replica that has the ailerons operated by a rope from each aileron being looped to the pilot's chest and arms where he moves side to side to activate the ailerons. I can't find a rigging scheme yet.

 

[Egilman]

On 3/2/2024 at 4:08 PM, Greg Davis said:

Its clear he had a level of regret that planes were so quickly weaponized.

Yep, Orville expressed the same in '17 and again in '32.... But military advancement is what drove the advancement in engineering... The one thing I wish? someone make a kit of the first military airplane, Signal Corps #1....

Edited March 4 by Egilman

[Greg Davis]

9 minutes ago, Egilman said:

someone make a kit of the first military airplane, Signal Corps #1...

Maybe a scratch build project!

[Greg Davis]

1 hour ago, George Ramey said:

Been trying to figure out how the ailerons are supposed to be operated.

I have not seen a picture and / or diagram depicting the aileron control system. Like you, all that I have found is the verbal description of lines being connected to his coat and body movement would then translate into aileron movement. If I do locate additional information I will share!

[Egilman]

Ok Those images are not available from any repository I have access to....

 

But what I can tell you is the craft was built in 1909 never made a flight longer than 220 metres, and it only made 8 flights in total before it was completely destroyed... the "Ailerons" shown on the kit were added after it's third flight to improve roll control and were simply straight fins intended to redirect airflow and weren't true ailerons as Curtis created them... And it's last five flights proved them ineffectual.... It was also the first in europe to be considered as actually flown rather than lurching around in the air like a drunken pigeon....

 

There are many people who claim that he was the first to fly, but even he acknowledged that his inspiration to get into heavier than air craft, (and away from dirigibles) was the reports of the Wright's and what they were doing around Hoffman Prairie in 1906-07... (circles and figure eights and flights as long as 10-20 miles)...

 

When the Wrights finally went to Europe in 1908, it was Dumont who famously exclaimed, We Are BEATEN!!!! very loudly on the very field (Lemans) where the first demonstration flight took place...

 

Dumont understood that control in all three axes was the achievement and that no one in Europe had arrived there yet when the wrights first flew at the Paris Exposition...

[Egilman]

5 hours ago, Greg Davis said:

I have not seen a picture and / or diagram depicting the aileron control system. Like you, all that I have found is the verbal description of lines being connected to his coat and body movement would then translate into aileron movement. If I do locate additional information I will share!

Check this video out....

 

 

Has some very detailed views of the rigging and the control system.....

 

What I saw was a wire connected from the top wing to the aileron with a shrouded spring connected to the bottom wing... The cable runs vertical to the wing through a sheave then along the wing surface through guides to a point almost at the pilots position where it is connected to the ropes that the pilot looped over his shoulders....

 

And, as originally built, No Ailerons at all....

 

Edited March 4 by Egilman

[George Ramey]

Greg,

Ref Instruction page 36: can't seem to locate Tank supports Ta1 and Ta2. Are they wood, metal? Also Radiator Rad 1 and Rad 2 I don't seem to have. Can you take a photo of these so I can possibly reproduce them? Pretty much finished off the basic fuselage structure and rigging and will attack the canard controls next. I think I'll hold off on the landing gear apparatus until the very end.

On your complaint about the wheel tire combination; I wonder why more manufacturers don't just make wheels and use O-rings as tires. Would save carefully painting tires separate from the wheels. I've already painted my tires and already have hangar rash on the paint. I'm going to try Plasti-Dip rubber coating used for dipping tool handles next. That may be a bit more durable and the color is right

[Greg Davis]

4 hours ago, George Ramey said:

Greg,

Ref Instruction page 36: can't seem to locate Tank supports Ta1 and Ta2. Are they wood, metal? Also Radiator Rad 1 and Rad 2 I don't seem to have. Can you take a photo of these so I can possibly reproduce them? Pretty much finished off the basic fuselage structure and rigging and will attack the canard controls next. I think I'll hold off on the landing gear apparatus until the very end.

On your complaint about the wheel tire combination; I wonder why more manufacturers don't just make wheels and use O-rings as tires. Would save carefully painting tires separate from the wheels. I've already painted my tires and already have hangar rash on the paint. I'm going to try Plasti-Dip rubber coating used for dipping tool handles next. That may be a bit more durable and the color is right

George -

 

The tank supports and the radiators are laser cut on the same sheet of wood that the canard support attachments to the fuselage were - since you have the supports Sup1 and Sup 2 on your model, I'm sure you have the other parts. 

For me, the laser cutting of the radiators is a highpoint of the kit - I'm just hoping I can release them from the sheet without damage.

[Greg Davis]

19 hours ago, Egilman said:

Has some very detailed views of the rigging and the control system.....

 

What I saw was a wire connected from the top wing to the aileron with a shrouded spring connected to the bottom wing... The cable runs vertical to the wing through a sheave then along the wing surface through guides to a point almost at the pilots position where it is connected to the ropes that the pilot looped over his shoulders....

Do you think that this is true to the prototype or a more modern control solution? Before watching this video, I had conjectured that the original ailerons were connected to two cables opposed to one cable and a spring. 

[Egilman]

Good question...

 

The prototype didn't have them, the modified 14-bis did...

 

Greg, since none of the original drawings exist, it's a guess... It's one solution that results in what was described in the period literature, and it fits the materials and techniques of the period...

 

But was it "THE" solution there is absolutely no way of knowing....

 

Now the guy that's got one flying replica down there in Brazil, is using actual ailerons, which allows him to fly it as the ailerons do work as they are supposed to... Still herky jerky as that is the design limitations, but what he is showing is how close Dumont was getting to actually having a truly flying aircraft... I believe he would have sussed it out in a few months...

 

Period pictures do show the flat panel ailerons in it's later life, so they are period correct, but the film of the period doesn't pick up details very well... (it's why the Wright's painted their machine in cadmium paint before going to Europe, they knew that the monochrome film would not pick up the control setup against a silvery monochrome background) It's why there were a lot of copies of the Wright airplane built in Europe, (based upon the pics) but they couldn't get any of them to fly like theirs did so the design was rejected by the Europeans.... {chuckle}

 

Any way it turns out my friend, your building a beautiful model, don't let the vagaries of old history stop you...

Edited March 5 by Egilman

[George Ramey]

Thanks so much for my "missing" laser sheet I've already used. After some searching, found it had wedged itself between the back of my table and the wall.

George

[Greg Davis]

Yesterday I added numerous pieces of photo-etched brass to the wings. These pieces form anchor points for the bracing lines. Unfortunately, these pieces are not noted in the instruction booklet (they should have been noted on p32 within the 'Metal Parts List') nor are they drawn in the master plan. If you look carefully at the photos on Model Expo you will be able to find a few of them! There are 12 on each wing. They get bent over the wing panels as close to the inside of spars that can be achieved. At first I had some issue with bending them so the two holes would align. I solved the problem by making a starting bend of the piece, putting them over the appropriate rib, pushing a short piece of music wire through the holes to align them, and then pulling the ends together with pliers. 

 

 

Today I spent time getting a good start on the wing bracing. I was able to do all the bracing on the left wing.

If I keep focused on this project, it should be done soon. The remaining to-do list is just a handful of (hopefully straightforward tasks):

• Right wing bracing
• Wing landing skids and bracing
• Tail support skid and bracing
• Attach wheels
• Fuel tank and fuel line
• Radiators
• Propeller

I've made a final decision to not include ailerons on my model. 

[ERS Rich]

Beautiful job, thanks for posting.