Period Nanny State Reminders

[Penners]

Yes,I remember those! The fuse/gauze/gaskets and pellets,had a small motor, (50?) which my dad bought me in a tethered car which also saw duty in a hydroplane and a scale glouster with an "augmentor" tube.

Yes, I had a Jetex 50. I greatly coveted the more powerful Jetex 100, but could never afford one. I built a Jetex-powered Hawker Hunter, and had a car and a boat. The Hunter finally lost me my beloved Jetex when it ran out of fuel over a field of wheat, dived into the crop and was never found. I guess it went up a combine harvester later that year!

 

[wobs]

Do you remember Jetex model aircraft, Phil?

http://www.jetex.org/index.php

I built several, as a boy.

I had no idea such a wonderful thing existed.

A model shop has just opened near here (a shop that sells models, not a model of a shop). I took a brief look, and was immediately reminded of all those airfix models I built as a child. I may enquire of such a jetex system.

 

[Penners]

I'm not sure whether Jetex still exists - possibly killed by the dreaded elfin safety. There's lots of stuff on the internet about the system, but I can't actually see any motors for sale (except old ones on ebay, and I wonder whether their fuel pellets are still viable).

 

[Flyfisher]

Ahh, jetex motors - I remember them well, though I used them more on home made balsa cars than aircraft. I also remember our physics teacher using one to power a model car along the school corridor to the delight of the class. Would that be allowed these days?

The other good thing about them was that it gave us a legitimate reason to buy the fuses, which were ideal for letting off our home made fireworks, especially the bigger ones. You see, we weren't so daft that we wanted to risk lighting the things by hand and a jetex fuse gave us plenty of time to run to a safe distance.

Small rocket motors are still available though - or were about 10 years ago - and FF junior had a fairly impressive model rocket that was launched by electric fuse and would climb to at least 100 feet, probably more, and then parachute back to the ground. Great fun.

Another form of rocketry was to use a water rocket and compressed air. It's surprising how far a 2-litre drinks bottle can be propelled, especially when 'powered' by a compressor rather than the usual bicycle pump and the air/water mix has been optimised using simulation software.

 

[Penners]

Another form of rocketry was to use a water rocket and compressed air.

Ah yes - one my grandsons' favourite forms of amusement with Grandad (specially if the old chap gets soaked by the water jet)!

 

[philpjuk100]

As a lad I built a model three point hydroplane after seeing bluebird,it was powered by a clockwork gramophone motor that my dad had removed from a "wind up" to fit an "autochanger". The drive was taken from the govenor shaft and geared up using meccano gears,it ran quite well but I removed the brass balls from the govenor and it flew getting it and me banned from the park paddling pool!.As I grow older the toys just grow bigger,I now have a 14ft sailing dinghy powered by a coventry climax fire pump using it as a "jet drive" I moor it in the trent at the end of the garden.(it`s just ticking over in the pic).

 

[Flyfisher]

As a lad I built a model three point hydroplane after seeing bluebird,it was powered by a clockwork gramophone motor that my dad had removed from a "wind up" to fit an "autochanger". The drive was taken from the govenor shaft and geared up using meccano gears,it ran quite well but I removed the brass balls from the govenor and it flew getting it and me banned from the park paddling pool!.

Mrs FF used to play with hydroplanes, though not the model variety.



She managed to fly one as well. Unfortunately it was doing about 100mph on lake Windermere at the time.

 

[MatthewC]

Yes,I remember those! The fuse/gauze/gaskets and pellets,had a small motor, (50?) which my dad bought me in a tethered car which also saw duty in a hydroplane and a scale glouster with an "augmentor" tube.Times have moved on,I saw a chap at a local ex RAF runway with a model car powered by a minature gas turbine which had to be run up and shut down using a laptop!(never saw it run "sotware problems"!) never had that with jetex!.

Yes, my older brothers and I had a few of the little plastic hydroplane (was it blue?) with a small Jetex motor. We used to make our own lagoon across the sandy beach at Hope Cove in S Devon so that we had somewhere for it to achieve its full potential. I think it did about 50 yards at some enormous speed, and even then might carry on past the end of the lagoon.

We also tried the Jetex on aircraft but in general I think they were flying at a speed well above their designer's intentions. Consequently the stability usually left something to be desired, if the structure didn't disintegrate first.

Of course, Jetex was incorrectly named as it was a rocket not a jet engine, but that's something I learned years later. I also learned about aircraft stability and construction...

 

[Penners]

We also tried the Jetex on aircraft but in general I think they were flying at a speed well above their designer's intentions.

Very possibly true, but there were model aircraft that were specifically designed for Jetex propulsion. My Hawker Hunter was an example - it flew beautifully in a steep upwards climb while the fuel lasted, then glided down to earth very gracefully.

 

[MatthewC]

We also tried the Jetex on aircraft but in general I think they were flying at a speed well above their designer's intentions.

Very possibly true, but there were model aircraft that were specifically designed for Jetex propulsion. My Hawker Hunter was an example - it flew beautifully in a steep upwards climb while the fuel lasted, then glided down to earth very gracefully.

We couldn't afford the proper ones on our pocket money, and had to make our own !

 

[Penners]

Oh yes, I'm talking about models that you build - Keil Kraft kits... that sort of thing. I usually asked for one for my birthday or Christmas.

 

[philpjuk100]

The Eagle comic had a sectioned view of a V1 "doodle bug" one week. My mate "Bimbo" and I saw that and decided we could make a pulse jet motor that was used in it,the combustion chamber was made from a "brasso" tin,the tailpipe from some copper pipe,the "flutter" valve from some brass shim and the ignition from an old motor bike magneto,the fuel (petrol) was pumped in with a modified flit gun.The motor was screwed to his back gate post,some petrol was siphoned from his grandads car,With Bim on the flit gun and me winding a handle fastened to the mag it popped once or twice and then ran with a loud growling noise for a few seconds before the solder melted and it fell apart.A bigger one was then planned using a fire extinguisher and some car exhaust pipe but we were not allowed to weld it up in the metalwork class and could not afford to get the local blacksmith to do it for us,we had planned using an SU pump for the fuel and a car ignition coil in series with a buzzer for ignition! probably good that it was never finished!.

 

[LadyArowana]

Oh yes, I'm talking about models that you build - Keil Kraft kits... that sort of thing. I usually asked for one for my birthday or Christmas.

Maybe Santa might bring you the grown ups version this year, bet it would be fun to buzz the neighbours with this http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...A380-looks-realistic-mistaken-real-thing.html

 

[Penners]

I WANT ONE!

 

[LadyArowana]

I WANT ONE!

:lol: :lol: :lol: I thought you would.

 

[Flyfisher]

I wonder if there are any regulations about flying such things? I certainly wouldn't want anyone with my rudimentary RC skills flying such a large model!

 

[LadyArowana]

I wonder if there are any regulations about flying such things? I certainly wouldn't want anyone with my rudimentary RC skills flying such a large model!

Mr P will have to wade through quite a lot of rules and regulations..... http://www.caa.co.uk/default.aspx?catid=1995&pageid=11213

 

[Penners]

I'm not entirely sure that that thing qualifies as a Predator drone.

 

[Flyfisher]

Mrs FF used to play with hydroplanes, though not the model variety.

She managed to fly one as well. Unfortunately it was doing about 100mph on lake Windermere at the time.

Speaking of which, here's a friend of ours (Kim used to race with him many years ago) having a bit of excitement on lake Coniston last week. An annual water speed records week is held every autumn and was relocated to Coniston some years ago after Windermere introduced a speed limit and wouldn't relax it even for records week. Modern carbon/kevlar 'safety cells' make these sorts of things survivable these days.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-25003463

 

[Penners]

That story was reported on Radio 4 this morning. The guy didn't dare to tell his wife about the accident himself, so he got his son to do it!

We must therefore infer that telling your wife about your potentially lethal accident is scarier than having your boat flip at 130 mph.

I'll go along with that.