Davies-Charlton

[Erfolg]

I read the article with respect to D-C in this months magazine twice and do not seem to be able to find who Charleton was, nor their role.

Did I miss it?

More importantly, who were or are they?

[Pete B]

You'll find the answer here, Erfolg

Pete

[bouncebounce crunch]

I just finished reading that Pete and found that Mr Charlton was a very mysterious person and that his first name was never verified. great read though

[Erfolg]

I totally agree BBC!

You suspect that Mr Charlton undertook something like drafting work, or maybe, financial/tendering functions, customer interface type duties.

Where as Mr Davis undertook more of the manufacturing, sharp end duties. Particularly as you get the impression, that he may not respect his customers to the extent that they expect.

The quite disappearance of Mr Charlton, does suggest a more retiring personality.

[Steven Webb (Steve Webb Models)]

I read the DC Article in the most recent RCME - I've been a life long fan of Davies Charlton Diesel Engines. I cut some serious modelling hours on a DC Spitfire 1cc. The engine was in my KK Phantom and also my Picador , such a sexy looking control line model to a 10 year old. Later in life I started building a Sir Jasper but strayed from the design and made a two channel RC model coloured in HW Model Span Yellow tissue and flew it for hours and hours on the same 1cc Spifire. I should have worn the engine out many times and in the end it did start to suffer. I had gone to D3000 in order to ring a little more power out of it and the engine had a habbit of going lean and no throttle it stayed lean. I think that's what killed the engine in the end. But it went far past what it was intended to do. Many hours. I had a Merlin, but bent the rod on that. A Sabre in a Mercury Models Cobra , that was a good engine. The DC Dart in the Phantom Mite. Terrible aircraft, more power might have cured it. The Dart was not enough. The Dart also spent a few hours in a Cardinal. Free Flight. Burbling away slightly under compressed flying around and around the field while I sat in the grass watching it go around and around. I can almost smell the day.

 

DC were my introduction to diesel engines and my first ever model engines. I've been smitten ever since.

 

My introduction to glows were the Baby Bee engines I would pick up from discarded Plastic Cox Models. The first proper RC glow was an Enya 09 and many years later became the UK dealer... LOL. I was 15 when I purchased my 09. A pal broke it with an electric starter and my first ever contact with the wonderful John D Haytree was to get that fixed. 

 

Back to DC , I've said it many times and I still believe it. If it were not for DC Aeromodelling might have not been as popular in the 60's and 70's leading to the RC Boom of the 80's and very much the RC hobby / Aeromodelling Hobbies we all enjoy today. The Dc engine range was affordable and it worked. I know the range had its moments. Later engines production suffered and quality control and  was hit and miss. The same could be said about later Dav Cal engines. But perhaps those problems have been made bigger than they really were? Dav Cal Darts suffered brittle shafts. They were not hardened and a few broke I'm sure of it, but I have some Dav Cal Darts that run just fine. The 50's Allbon /Dc engines were magnificent. But there was issues with the Bambi. It came out as a .11, then became a .12 and then a .14 and I'm told one I have is a .15 . I was told that Bambi's were impossible to start. First one I ever got was off eBay and it started 3rd or 4th flick. I have another that needs to be sworn at more, but that also goes 'eventually'. The Bambi was of a different time. A small prop was not available and so they gave you a metal blank to sand and shape and twist into a prop for the Bambi. Yes a Metal prop.?

 

 

I'd love to see the DC range immortalized with a 1/2 size reproduction of the range. The Dart would be a .25 like Rustler did with the 1/2cc Frog. The .25 (1/4cc) Tadpole made in the Ukraine is a fantastic little engine. If anyone has a nice one, I'd be interested.  The Spitfire would be a .5 1/2cc and the Sabre a .75. I'm sure that a super little set could be made. There's probably not enough people to buy it , for it to work commercially , but I can dream!  I think someone like Alex at Red Fin could pull such a thing off. I have his ED 246 Mini's - The 040 and 060 . The O60 I have is in John Player Special Black and Gold Livery. It looks awesome.

 

I think the original Red cylinder Mini ED 246 040 version would be just the thing for a 30 inch span Junior 60. The Original was marketed with the ED 2.46 cc Original. We are so lucky to have someone like Alex putting the effort in an creating new Diesel Engines for us.

 

 

DC Engines Today

 

Up until the Lock down I was saying they were possibly the most undervalued treasure on eBay. I picked up a DC Sabre that was cosmetically challenged , some one had reworked the anodized head with pliers and drilled out the mounting holes. I honestly can not understand why people drill out mounting holes. If its an 8ba.. get some 8 ba bolts. So sad to drill out the lugs as in a crash the enlarged holes break off easier. Anyway £12 I picked up a Super Sabre enlarged holes, badly mangled head. It still needed running in! The abuser owner while trying hard to kill it had probably failed to get it going. It ran amazingly well. Imagine that a Diesel Engine swinging a 8 x 4 prop around without missing a beat for £12!  I've paid £15 for  second hand NVA before now. I got to buying cheap DC's to get hold of a tank or a NVA and some of the very badly mangled ones ran great. Proof they were off the people and for the people. They were and are robust.

 

My store ( SWM ) has never sold DC. It was all before the time of SWM. We did sell PAW ( Super British Engines)  at one time, but the classics like DC and ME and ED / Mills were all before my time in the trade. Oh... we had the Irvine Mills and AE Mill's in the 90's. I think they sparked off my interest in diesels again. I had sold off all my old engines when first starting out and so I've had great fun buying a few back. eBay, private sales. There's plenty of places DC hand out and others.

 

Having said that. You may have missed the rock bottom prices. Currently some eBay prices are very OTT. An indication of people locked in, bidding I guess. My own theory is that Gildings Auction was cancelled for a second time this last couple of weeks and that money is bidding on eBay.

 

Still there are bargains. If you have never tried a Diesel, you have to try one. I can guarantee one thing, if its a runner and it starts up, you will smile from ear to ear and carry on smiling and probably buy a lot more of them.

 

One Spitfire I won on eBay came with a modified tank. I think it would have run for over an hour... LOL... See Pic.

 

I picked up a Black Sabre and it came in a White Box - Dav Cal on it. But on a typed label. No image. Anyway I used the box to make a Nice Dart Box with a printed label. It was sort of a reproduction box label on an original box. Then I won a PK Sabre and to my surprise it came in the same box. I realized the one I re labelled just spoiled a very rare Dav Cal box. Damn. Even rarer now thanks to me.  I picked up a Bambi in a model on eBay. Because it was a model for sale there were not many bids. I did Ok.  I sold the model off and kept the engine and a Pal of mine has tidied it up for me as the head had a scratch on it. The Bambi runs fine. Tricky to start this one, but I think because its run a lot. The other I have starts in a few flicks. 

 

That's it for now. A few pics.

 

During the lock down, build a radio assist diesel powered plane... go on

 

Steve

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Steven Webb (Steve Webb Models)]

I found some pics of the pre revamped Bambi. On the model I got on eBay.

 

It was a good buy because often people look at it wrong, they think I don't want that model. So get it and take the engine out and bin the model.

 

As it was the model was not that bad and it resold for £20 or something on eBay. Another £20 off the Bambi.

 

I love the DC Bambi or Allbon Bambi

 

Find more about the Rise and Fall of DC here

 

http://modelenginenews.org/people/dc_ltd.html

 

Steve

[Dave S.]

The happiest time of my life was spent alone on Port Meadow in Oxford with a small free flight pylon model powered by a DC Dart. That was over 50 years ago - I still fly there occasionally, but am no longer able to chase models across the meadow!

On the rare occasions I hear and/or smell a small diesel running, I am immediately transported back to those magical days.

[J D 8]

  Just a small fact. Davies came from just outside the city of St Davids here in Pembrokeshire.

[Geoff Peacock]

Even more details about Davies Charlton and Alan Allbon (the designer) are to be found on

https://adriansmodelaeroengines.com/catalog/main.php?cat_id=56

I actually get a mention in the article!

Adrian's website is more than worth a look for all you i.c. guys -  more or less a continuation of the now defunct Motor Boys site.