Pioneer (oz1618)

About this Plan

Pioneer (AKA the Loutrel Speedster). Parasol free flight gas model, by Ben Shereshaw. January 1938 Flying Aces.

Note this is not a full size plan. This is a zipfile of article pages, inc drawings.

Quote: "Shereshaw's Pioneer. She's easily built! She's sturdy! She's good-looking! And she'll fly swell! Yes, and Ben Shereshaw - who's long been listed among the leading gas designers of, the world - still considers the 'Pioneer' his favorite petrol plane. The ship is an eighty-inch wingspan job designed for a one-sixth horsepower motor. You'll find full plans for its construction on the pages immediately following.

Regardless of the fact that during the past several years I have designed and built scores of gas models of all shapes, sizes, and styles, none has given me greater personal pleasure and satisfaction than that derived while working on The Pioneer, which was the first real gas model that I made.

And even now, this ship remains one of my favorites. For she's comparatively foolproof, has excellent flight characteristics, is extremely sturdy, and is quite easily built.

But perhaps an additional reason for my liking The Pioneer is that she has served somewhat as a flying laboratory for my designing experiments, and many features now popular were developed upon this ship. Among these are piano wire landing struts,wood motor mounts, and other kinks too numerous to mention.

Incidentally, this ship was one of the very first gas models to make a sustained flight lasting more than thirty minutes.

So it can easily be seen that The Pioneer, while not absolutely the newest thing in gas jobs, is still one of the most dependable models for a chap who wants a ship which he knows will fly - and fly well.

In constructing the model, the first thing, of course, is the fuselage. Select a suitable flat surface on which to make the fuselage jig. The jig is constructed over a full size layout of the top and side views of the fuselage. In scaling the drawings (Plate 1 and 2) to full size, use a mechanical engineers' scale. Then tack the layouts to your flat working board.

Small blocks are then fastened to the board over the layout to accommodate the longerons and compression members. Blocks are not required for the rear diagonal members. Before assembling the fuselage sides insert the longerons in the jig and sight along the members to check for any distortion. Distortion can be corrected by relocating the blocks. In selecting the fuselage material be sure that the wood possesses uniform texture and grain structure throughout.

Assemble the sides first, and keep your eye on the correct alignment of the longerons. Use a good grade of model cement, and form a heavy gusset of cement at each joint. Be sure that correct butting of the joints is secured. Allow the sides to dry at least foUr hours before removing them from the jig.

The next step is joining together the fuselage sides. This step is also simplified by the use of a jig which may be constructed of wood blocks over the top elevation. The fuselage is assembled in an inverted position. Start by binding together the sides at the stern post.

The cross members around the cockpit section are then cemented in place and left to dry for several hours. After this you may resume completion of the fuselage by inserting the forward and rear cross-members.

The landing gear (Plate 2) is next. Scale the gear member outlines up to full size, and refer to them constantly while bending the wire. Do not form sharp corners while bending the wire, because this is apt to encourage crystallization and consequent weakness. Lash the wire struts to the cross-members of the fuselage with heavy linen thread, and then apply a heavy coat of cement.

The gear members are then joined at their outer ends with thinned wire and soldered with resin core solder. The forward member carries the axle, and the rear memo ber at its base should run parallel to the front member for 3/4 in to facilitate binding..."

Supplementary file notes

Planfile includes article.

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