Project : 1918230HPWnWDH91/32

[paddy]

This is an Airco DH9 from WnW. An odd choice for me as a car and motorcycle builder these days but I was inspired by sandbaggeruk on largescalemodeller and his recent Armstrong-Whitworth F.K.3 . I picked this up on EBay for £100. More than I wanted to pay but way less than anyone else it seems has to pay these days. I decided on WnW as I doesn’t look like I will need to break the bank on extras which can often cost more than the original kit if you start adding 3D decals, 3D engines and so on.

In the UK we have a pair of these, I think there are only 4-5 left in the World. Both the UK ones were found in a redundant elephant stable in India , one restored and the sole flying example and one static restoration for the imperial war museum hanger at Duxford
Powered by an ultra rare Siddeley-Deasy 230hp engine it was rather under powered The RAF experimented with a Napier Lion powered 430hp engine and broke the world altitude record of 30500ft which it achieved in 66 minutes for most of the flight the pilot was unaware his observer was unconscious as his oxygen had failed and both he and his pilot were hospitalised with frost bite on landing .Eventually by the end of the war the DH9-A used the American Liberty L-12 at 400bhp.
the Spanish fitted a 300hp hispano suiza engine and some of their aircraft were still flying in 1940.

There is an excellent article with everything you could ever need to know here

Airco DH.9 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

As found in India.
First thing I note was the frame was only braced where it was fabric covered.

 

[paddy]

A well trodden road. Parts sprayed with deck tan prior to oils

Looking at other builds people tend to do a light frame and darker panels behind however i think the frame would more likely be a hard wood with a lighter ply wood behind ?

As for this

where do you start ? the whole thing is small maybe 8mm , quite how i get a wood grain with black clock bezels will take a bit of working out.....any thoughts welcome
.

 

[moon puppy]

There will be a good bit of brass in there also Paddy. I agree with the hardwood frame.

 

[RichB]

Spruce and ash were the woods most used for airframe structure. Spruce for its strength to weight ratio and flexibility was used for spars, wing struts and fuselage frames. Ash was used for longerons and areas under high stress like landing gear attachment points and rudder posts. Spruce and ash could be laminated to get the best of both on some structural members. Birch or mahogany 3-ply plywood 1.0 to 1.5 mm thick was used for areas of fuselage skin, cap strips on spruce wing ribs and gusset plates. Maple was used for reinforcing blocks for fuselage frame and wing spar/rib joints. Hickory was used on engine mounts, tail skids and landing gear struts for its flexibility and impact resistance.

Cheers,
RichB

 

[Rhino]

 

[paddy]

Not a lot of brass Bob
But then you never really know with restorations but i think brass was more 1914 than 1918

also agree Rich, birch and mahogany ply would give it that light /dark sandwichSpruce is pretty much the same colour as birch which is a shame as it would be nice to have contrast. Any discerning pilot climbing aboard would be very disappointed in the interior decor of his office without a contrast

 

[RichB]

There could be some slight differences in colour depending on the varnish mix and how it was absorbed by the wood.

Cheers,
RichB