Post by Bruce on Apr 24, 2006 11:09:36 GMT 12
Over Easter I made a visit to New Plymouth and had a look through the excellent new Puke Arika Museum and also TATTM (Taranaki Aviation, Transport and Technology Museum). It wasnt all aircraft stuff, but I cant resist a good museum. Puke Ariki was also showing the Da Vinci models exhibition.
One subject that both museums covered that I found interesting was local eccentric Roy Brewster - see Puke Ariki web page: www.pukeariki.com/en/stories/inventions/roybrewster.asp
I was aware Roy had owned and flown a flying Flea in the 1930s and had carried out some interesting aerodynamic experiments, but I learned I whole lot more. It appears the beekeeper had developed an almost religous fervour for hexagonal honeycomb construction, claiming it to have special "spiritual" strengths. He built a house called Norian (No Right Angles) using hexagonal shapes for everything. He also was passionate about flying, and built many model aircraft. He tried developing the flying Flea tandem wing arrangement to its extreme, creating wings with the entire to surface made up of thin slats. In theory this would control the boundary layer, but must have created incredible drag. TATTM also has an unfinished homebuilt of his own design, incorporating the wooden honeycomb construction concept. Although a practical and good looking aerodynamic design, the construction looked incredibly complex and heavy. The component count must have been astronomical compared to conventional wooden construction. I am dubious about his claims of increased strength as all the wooden pieces are very small and rely on the glue strength, which in the days before epoxies could be variable. I actually found Leonardo Da Vincis designs more practical! Nevertheless I admire any Kiwi innovator who thinks outside the square (or Hexagon!) and I think that Mr Brewsters exploits need recognition outside of his home province.
Although due to flat camera batteries I was unable to get any photos, Phil Treweeks Kiwi Aircraft images has some at www.kiwiaircraftimages.com/mustatm.html
One subject that both museums covered that I found interesting was local eccentric Roy Brewster - see Puke Ariki web page: www.pukeariki.com/en/stories/inventions/roybrewster.asp
I was aware Roy had owned and flown a flying Flea in the 1930s and had carried out some interesting aerodynamic experiments, but I learned I whole lot more. It appears the beekeeper had developed an almost religous fervour for hexagonal honeycomb construction, claiming it to have special "spiritual" strengths. He built a house called Norian (No Right Angles) using hexagonal shapes for everything. He also was passionate about flying, and built many model aircraft. He tried developing the flying Flea tandem wing arrangement to its extreme, creating wings with the entire to surface made up of thin slats. In theory this would control the boundary layer, but must have created incredible drag. TATTM also has an unfinished homebuilt of his own design, incorporating the wooden honeycomb construction concept. Although a practical and good looking aerodynamic design, the construction looked incredibly complex and heavy. The component count must have been astronomical compared to conventional wooden construction. I am dubious about his claims of increased strength as all the wooden pieces are very small and rely on the glue strength, which in the days before epoxies could be variable. I actually found Leonardo Da Vincis designs more practical! Nevertheless I admire any Kiwi innovator who thinks outside the square (or Hexagon!) and I think that Mr Brewsters exploits need recognition outside of his home province.
Although due to flat camera batteries I was unable to get any photos, Phil Treweeks Kiwi Aircraft images has some at www.kiwiaircraftimages.com/mustatm.html
