Hughes H-1 Racer (oz2794)

About this Plan

Howard Hughes Racer. Hughes speedster. Scale rubber model. Booton and Pickard, Flying Aces Mar 1936.

Quote: "Fly the Howard Hughes Racer! Here's full instructions for building a model of the latest blue streak of the sky - the record-smashing Hughes speedster. And what's more, it's a FLYING model! One glance at the four swell 'shots' of the job on this page, and we'll wager you'll start work on it right away. Finish it, wind 'er up, and Z-z-z-z-z-i-p! There she goes! By Alan D Booton and Ralph Pickard.

DO you remember Hell's Angels, the first real aerial movie? Well, Howard Hughes, the pappy of that thriller, also fathered the new ultra-fast racing airplane which we draw upon for this month's feature model.

The Hughes Racer is the cleanest speedster ever built, in our opinion. Its cost approached the $100,000 mark. Powered with a Twin Wasp souped up to 1000 hp, the ship's top speed is approximately 355 mph. In the eyes of the Army, it's a potential pursuit ship.

The span is 25 ft, length 27 ft, and the tread 10 ft. The landing gear, of unique design, retracts fully, as does the tail skid, likewise. (Next thing you know, they'll be retracting the wings!)

Our flying model has been designed simply, yet like its big brother it also boasts plenty of speed. Your finished model should weigh about six ounces, including a .4 oz. weight in the cowl to hold the nose down on the race course.

WING PANELS: Cement the blocks for the fuselage together and while they are drying, start the all-balsa wing panels. The drawing in Plan 4 is arranged to show the bottom of the left wing panel and the top of the right wing panel. In this manner, the parts and lettering for both panels utilize one pattern. The workable aileron is on the left wing, so the parts demanded by the workable aileron may be omitted from the right wing construction, the 'flaps' on both wing panels are cut out after the panels are covered and hinged back on with tissue.

Cut the main ribs out of rectangular pieces of 1/16 sheet balsa barely large enough, and use the re-maining pieces to cradle the covering to the shape of the ribs while building the wings. Work on a soft board and use plenty of pins to hold the work. After completing the panels, cut the aileron out of the left one, attach the aileron as shown on the drawing..."

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