STARTER KITS
HOLIDAY SALE CATALOG
BOTTOM OF THE BARREL CLEARANCE
HISTORY
Although a counter-intuitive design by today’s standards, fixing the propeller to a spinning engine on a stationary crankshaft simplified cooling, had an excellent weight to horsepower ratio and allowed greater flexibility in locating the aircraft’s center of gravity – affecting maneuverability -- over the in-line engines of the time. One drawback, however, was the pronounced gyroscopic effect that pulled the aircraft to the right. To fly in a straight line, pilots had to compensate for this by applying constant left rudder.
The Clerget rotaries provided improved speed control over the Gnome and Le Rhone rotaries by replacing the standard “blip” switch that temporarily grounded the magneto (killing the ignition) with a selector switch that restricted the engine to run on 9, 7, 5 or even 3 cylinders. Like the earlier rotaries, the Clerget spewed unburned castor-oil from the exhaust, adding to the pilot’s discomfort. Pilots were issued a small bottle of blackberry brandy to counteract the smoke’s laxative effect.
Instructions and prototype by Kenneth H. Goldman
MODEL KIT FEATURES
Scale: 3/4" = 1' (1:16)
Height: 3-3/4" (95mm)
Propeller Diameter : 6-3/4"(171mm)
