Sperry Messenger (oz5072)

About this Plan

Sperry Messenger. Rubber scale model biplane. All-sheet wings.

Quote: "Turn the clock back a few decades with a famous old bipe that's easy to build. Crank in 400 turns of quiet type power and the nearest clearing is all you need. 20 inch span, realistic and a good way to get a flyer started. Sperry Messenger, by John Blankenship.

In 1920 the Lawrence Sperry Aircraft Company won a US Army contract to build the 'Messenger', which had been designed by the Army Air Service Engineering Division. The Messenger was destined to be widely used for experimental programs and became a well remembered aircraft, representative of its era.

Some simplifications were made in the scale views to suit the type construction used on this model and dihedral was increased. The design is well suited for rub-ber powered flying, having simple lines and excellent Proportions for all types of flying scale models.

Fuselage: Trace the fuselage side outline onto a sheet of white paper for a pattern. Cut both fuselage sides from the same sheet of uni-form quarter-grained 1/32 balsa. Select the wood carefully to insure good fuselage alignment. Pin the two sides in position on the plan and glue the 1/16 square side stiffeners in place, using the marks on the plan for alignment. Glue the 1/8 balsa pieces P and the 1/32 rear motor peg reinforcements in place. The sides can now be removed from the plan and the side stiffeners trimmed. Cut the 1/16 sq and 1/16 x 1/8 fuselage cross members to length, using the fuselage top view as a guide, and begin assembly by pinning the inverted side pieces over the plan.

Building the basic fuselage directly on the top view allows frequent and easy alignment checks. Glue in the forward fuselage cross members and pin in place. After the forward fuselage has thoroughly dried, pull the rear ends together and glue, checking alignment carefully. A clothespin can be used to hold the rear ends together while the glue dries. Now glue the remaining cross members in place.

The landing gear struts and wind center-section struts should be bent and bound in place with cotton thread. Wrap the wire joints with fine copper wire..."

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