Chill31

@LesG I should have said it this way (I will go edit the post in order to reduce confusion for anyone who reads this later): each aileron is controlled by it's own independent circuit. On aileron or its controls can be shot away, and the other will still work. The ROF/FC 3D model of the wires coming from the control stick is inaccurate. There should be two wires coming from the stick. Here is a picture of how it should be: The replica you posted appears to be a Sands plans airplane. Some of the details I can see in the picture are inaccurate (normal if you build it strictly according to those blueprints), so I will be surprized if the aileron system is accurate.

@Cynic_Al the metal plate in beneath the pedals is diamond plate, so it is tough with plenty of friction. I don’t know if that is exactly how it was originally or why they put anything there at all. If it was to prevent wear, it is a pretty ambitious goal to have the plane last long enough during the war for wear to be a concern. When taxiing on on the ground, that is the most my feet move on the pedals/floor. In flight, I can get away with simply rocking my feet on their heels to have adequate control for basic flying. Some “extreme” maneuvers require me to move my whole foot, but it isn’t too often. When I have it flying again, I’ll try to get a video of the cockpit so you can see what goes in to controlling it.

@LesG The 3D animation is inaccurate. 2 wires came from the control stick. Each aileron ("wing rudders") was controled by a completely independent wiring circuit so that one could be shot away. Hope that helps!

This has been a long road! Finally starting to see light at the end of the tunnel.

I am nearing completion of the cockpit mods required for running the rotary. Most recently, I installed the fuel and along with the necessary fueltank and oil connections to the engine. For your viewing pleasure...

I would not get too excited about the Dr I yet. I think they are waiting for some real world data...I'm really looking forward to providing it.

Can anyone with their hands on the DVa say if it flies this way... by the way, 75 kts is about 140kmh

Haha, I thought the same thing. They are definitely referring to ground runs when factoring in wind. The next page explained it further...

This info is from my Clerget engine manual...

I have another friend who has 2nd hand knowledge from an Alb D2/D5a pilot who says the D2 is faster than the D5a. He is going to check and see if they have any specific numbers and can comment on the speed of these planes....of course, I will report back.

A friend who has flown the Old Rhinebeck Albatross DVa had this to say about it... The albatross is not a fast airplane at all. In fact it looks streamlined and smooth but it's rather doggy. Of course I have only flown the Aerodrome's albatross with a ranger engine but I test flew it with a newly overhauled 200 ranger and even then it was no rocket ship. The Triplane is faster and much more maneuverable.

typically, WWI planes we're minimally painted when they left the factory (on both sides of the trenches). The Pup and Camel were not even painted on the bottom surfaces...weight savings was definitely their highest concern. I get what you are saying though 😂

Haha, yeah. They do it all over the plane though. It adds up over the course of construction. Saving 5 pounds could be the difference between living and dying.

I finally got the stick throttle working on the Fokker. I think it may be the only one in the United States configured this way right now. Here's a short video showing its operation:

I've been hard at work on the Fokker. Sadly, no time for flight sims In the middle of all of this work, I did learn something interesting about rotary engines.... The 100 Gnome and Rhone engines use a single magneto for ignition. A single magneto makes it easy to rig your blip switch: you just ground it out with the button. However, the 160 Gnome and Clerget engines have dual ignition systems. For these engines, you take off on two magnetos, giving redundancy and more power. Upon landing however, you must select the "leading" magneto, which is connected to the blip switch, and land on a single ignition system. A quirk of using a blip switch with two magnetos!