David Davis Posted June 10, 2020 Share Posted June 10, 2020 Yesterday I was idly thinking about building a scale FE2b. This was a Great War maid of all work two seater which was la derier cri in 1916 but a bit of a death trap a year later. It was used for reconnaisance, photo reconnaisance, artillery observation, bombing and even as an escort fighter. For those unfamiliar with the aircraft, this is what it looked like. The original had a wingspan of 47' 9" (14.55 metres) so a 1/6 scale model would have a wingspan approaching 8 feet. I have David Hurrell BE2c plan and as the FE2's wings were simply extended BE2c wings it would not be too difficult to reproduce them. I had a look on The Outerzone and was surprised to find that there were no plans for the FE2b at all. There were four plans for the DH2 and two for the FE8, both WW1 single seater pushers. I saw a model DH2 fly back in the Eighties. It was powered by an Irvine 61. But then I reflected that the FE2 with twelve interplane struts to line up, miles of rigging and ailerons stuck way outside the prop wash would be quite a difficult proposition, then there is the difficulty of connecting the fuselage frame to the wings, transport etc, so I gave up on the idea. Anyhow, as I said, it was just a thought... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J D 8 Posted June 10, 2020 Share Posted June 10, 2020 That set up lends itself to leaving two sets of wing cell's assembled ready to slide onto the fixed centre section along with the tail frames being detachable. A few years ago a replica DH 2 was being restored at our local airfield so I went for a look. Although powered by a radial engine [ a Green engine ] not a rotary. One just had to be impressed with the construction and the attention to detail of this flying replica along with the courage of those who went into battle in such machines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Davis Posted June 10, 2020 Author Share Posted June 10, 2020 I know what you mean JD. The grandfather of one of my clubmates was killed at the controls of his Farman 11 when returning from a bombing mission in December 1915. In 2018 his grandson built a scale model of the aircraft and we organised a WW1 day where the model was flown. Like its full sized counterpart it was very difficult to fly! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.