tough little blighter! - light aircraft association test.pdf · 1946 luscombe silvaire 8e. photo:...

34 LIGHT AVIATION december 2008

> FLIGHT TEST

TOUGH LITTLE BLIGHTER!The classic Luscombe Silvaire was ahead of its time with a metal monocoque construction rumoured to have been ‘borrowed’ by Cessna. Many are still flying, more than 60 years later

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WHEN the Luscombe Model 8 was launched in 1937, it’s fair to say that it was a near revolutionary design.

With an all-metal fuselage and fabric-covered metal wings, it was light years ahead of the steel-tubed fuselage aircraft common at the time.

What’s more, Don Luscombe’s design could be made quickly and relatively cheaply. It was fitted with the then new horizontally-opposed Continental engine, perfect for small aircraft, and the Silvaire was soon selling well.

Production of the aircraft restarted after WW2, with metal wing skins replacing the fabric covering. The fuel tank shifted from behind the cabin to the wings, the engine was upgraded to 85hp, and Silflex landing gear was fitted. It was the perfect two-seat light aircraft... unfortunately, the timing was less than perfect. Sales slowed in the post-WW2 economy and the company went bankrupt.

However, thousands of Luscombe aircraft were produced and sold all over the USA. Because of the mainly metal construction,

many survived, often in the backs of hangars, to be discovered later and restored. For a short period in the 1990s, some of these aircraft made their way to the UK, imported by individuals and groups who found the idea of flying a tough, economical classic aircraft very appealing. The CAA decided enough was enough after about 70 were imported and placed on the UK Register, and that opportunity no longer exists.

For this month’s flight test, Stan Hodgkins flies one of the most well-known Luscombes in the UK, G-BRUG, a lovely example.

december 2008 LIGHT AVIATION 35

WORDS Stanley Hodgkins PHOTOS Howard Boylan


> FLIGHT TEST

MY first recollection of the Luscombe Silvaire is of a Keil Kraft model aircraft kit available when I was a schoolboy. It was one of many types on offer for about five shillings and I remember building the Hurricane and the Spitfire and possibly the Auster. The Luscombe was actually in production at that time, although I doubt whether there were any in the UK. Now, of the 5800 built, about 2800 are still flying and approximately 65 are in this country. Of those, some are ‘in storage’ and about 45-50 are flying.

In the last few years, I have noticed that when you see a Luscombe it is seldom alone – they seem to arrive and depart in flocks! A ‘lush of Luscombes’ could be the collective term. This is usually due to the activities of ‘European Luscombes’, a group of owners organised by Nigel Barratt who are very active both aviationally and socially.

Each year, they tour the country as a team, visiting interesting airfields and airstrips and generally having a spiffing time. They also have an Annual Rally, usually at Oaksey Park – unlike the LAA these days! It is truly wonderful to see folks having fun.

When I met Nigel and his Silvaire 8E G-BRUG at Conington, I could see where the enthusiasm comes from. We had arrived first and as we were walking into the clubhouse I looked over my shoulder and saw a shiny silver high-wing aircraft make a perfect three-pointer from a full-blown sideslip. Nigel had arrived too. He has owned ‘UG for 20 years and is responsible for 2000 of the 4000 hours in the logbook. That is a lot of time in one aeroplane; I insisted that he accompanied me on the air test so I could take advantage of his expertise.

CHERISHED POSSESSIONAlthough I could recognise a Luscombe when I saw it, I had never seen one close-up. Luscombes emerged from the Dallas factory in natural metal – polished alclad – hence the name Silvaire, I guess. Nigel’s is silver too, but painted for protection in our climate and with royal blue trim. The finish is immaculate in and out – ‘UG is obviously a cherished possession. The aeroplane is from an earlier time, with its tailwheel and dated interior. However, on closer inspection, it is extremely up-to-date compared with its contemporaries.

Straightforward layout: two control sticks, big rudder pedals, large central throttle.

Having fun chaps? It flies beautifully. Visibility is good front and sideways, but upward view’s obstructed.

‘A shiny silver high-wing making a perfect three-pointer

from a full-blown sideslip’

One of many evocative details, the marque logo.➽

➽ Flight test continues on p41 ➽

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Nigel Barratt’s immaculate 1946 Luscombe Silvaire 8E. Photo: Howard Boylan

L I G H T

L u S c o m b E S I Lv a I r E 8 E

54 LIGHT AVIATION month 2008


> FLIGHT TEST> FLIGHT TEST

The construction is all metal, stressed skin – monocoque as they termed it when most light aircraft were ‘pipe-and-rag’. The result was a lighter airframe and a stronger wing. Several safety features were built in, such as the V struts behind the windscreen giving nose-over protection and frangible undercarriage legs and wingtips. In the event of a savage groundloop, the undercarriage would fail halfway up the leg preventing serious fuselage damage and the removable, easily replaced wingtip would take the knock without damage to the wing-spars.

It is said that Cessna bought one or two, dismantled them, but found that there was little it could do to improve on the Luscombe design and construction. The control surfaces are of fluted construction for stiffness and weight-saving and are identical with those of the modern Cessnas. The engine, a Continental C-85 is enclosed in a ‘pressure cowl’, again another Luscombe first. Clearly this was a machine ahead of its time.

ATTENTION TO DETAILWalking around the aeroplane there are lots of nice little touches like the very fondle-able streamlined door handles, the polished nameplate on the rudder, and the 1940s-style wheel pants. Also the polished grills of the engine cooling intakes show attention to detail and style. Fuel is contained in two wing tanks of 47 litres each and is simply gravity fed.

Climbing in, I found that the fixed seat and rudder pedals meant that I needed a cushion behind me, but the beautifully leather-upholstered seat was comfortable and the sitting height was just right. I was expecting a yoke, but a conventional stick and rudder is provided for each occupant. For my short arms it was a bit further forward than ideal, but I suppose it was built in Texas!

The dual rudder pedals sprout from the floor

and the wheel brakes are operated by heel pedals on the left side only. To me, they seemed offset to the right with the left heel pedal being behind the stick, but you get used to it. All controls are cable-operated and the rudder pedals seemed totally frictionless – I wondered if they were connected! The ailerons were heavier than the elevators. No flaps are fitted.

In front of me was the gorgeous Art Deco dashboard with the moulded instrument surrounds and a ‘SILVAIRE’ logo across the centre. The instrument layout is fairly conventional with a central push-pull throttle with carb-heat, ignition, primer and other controls clustered around it. The radios are on the left, with the parking brake below, and there is a shallow glove box on the right.

Centrally between the seats is the

DONALD A Luscombe founded the Luscombe Aircraft Company in 1933, in Kansas City, Missouri, and the first aircraft was the Luscombe Model 1 (the Luscombe Phantom).

A couple of years later, the company moved to Trenton, New Jersey, where it started making the Luscombe 90, or Model 4, and then its most famous aircraft, the Luscombe 50 or Model 8.

But it was a troubled company and Don was forced out after a boardroom battle in 1938/39, and Austrian Leopold Klotz took over... but not for long. With the USA embroiled in WW2, Klotz was viewed as an enemy alien and the company was taken over by the government and produced military aircraft sub assemblies.

Klotz got the factory back in 1944 after a ruling that he was a resident neutral rather than an enemy alien, and moved it to Dallas, Texas.

As WW2 ended, with thousands of pilots returning to civvy street it was thought that they would all be in the market for an inexpensive private aeroplane, but the expected boom didn’t happen.

Despite Luscombe having invested in production tooling and having made many improvements to the aircraft, the numbers just weren’t enough to save the company. It closed in 1950.

The assets were purchased by a Luscombe dealer and the Silvaire Aircraft and Uranium Corp started up. It produced 83 aircraft from 1958 to 1961, from spares and parts

left over from previous production. That venture came to a halt when the FAA asked

for a detailed update to the specs, engineering drawings and manufacturing processes – it was deemed too expensive to comply.

In 1994, the Don Luscombe Aviation History Foundation (DLAHF) acquired the Approved Type Certificate for the aircraft.

The Foundation kept Luscombes going with spare parts and manuals, having some rare parts re-manufactured. However, another battle loomed, this time with Renaissance Aircraft who wanted to build a modern version of the Silvaire. Only the lawyers won that battle with both sides having substantial debts.

The Foundation restarted under a new name and continues to offer spares and advice.

The Luscombe Silvaire Aircraft Company of Flabob Airport, Riverside, California, is building all-new production Luscombe 8 aircraft. A special Light Sport version is now available, and a standard certified version is coming soon.

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TORRID TIMES FOR LUSCOMBE

‘In front of me was the gorgeous Art

Deco dashboard with moulded instrument

surrounds’

Gorgeous aeroplane over gorgeous English countryside!

Right: early publicity photo by the Luscombe factory with 28 staff sitting on the wing to show off its strength!


> FLIGHT TEST

elevator trimmer, which is of the crank-handle variety operating in no obvious sense. Forward of that is the fuel cock. Behind the seat-back is a small baggage compartment with a ‘hat-throw’ shelf (as they described it in the brochure) above – for your fedora, of course. Incidentally, that became available when they deleted the fuselage tank of the earlier models.

There is a starter motor, but Nigel prefers to hand-swing the prop. I rode the brakes and the Continental started on the second swing, needing no priming. We followed the Cessna cameraship out to the runway and I juggled with the heel-brakes – not my favourite devices, but I managed to maintain control.

The view over the nose while taxying was adequate, but I could see that because the leading edge spar is continuous, the view forwards and upwards would be restricted. With half fuel and two-up, Nigel estimated our weight to be about 1300lb. With a max permitted of 1400lb, there was 100lb available for baggage.

On take-off, I felt it was quite difficult to hold the tail-up attitude, but I was probably over-controlling due to the lightness of the elevator. The noise level in the cockpit was surprisingly low, unstick was 55mph and the initial rate of climb was about 500fpm at 70mph.

As usual, we had to get the pictures first. It

‘I juggled with the heel-brakes – not my

favourite devices – but I managed to

maintain control’

Right: Luscombe handling is positive and sprightly... but there’s not a lot of power.Left: Iconic Silflex undercarriage is strong but designed to ‘give’ in an extreme ground loop to save the fuselage.Below: Classic aircraft in a classic setting.


was a lovely day and we flew around Grafham Water for the scenic value. As I had thought, the poor forward and upward vision was a handicap when trying to position for the photographer – it being easy to lose sight of the cameraship while manoeuvring. Not recommended. I found myself flying out of balance in order to raise the left wing a bit for better visibility.

The aircraft was pleasant and responsive to fly and its low drag was apparent when trying to decelerate. On the other hand lack of power was apparent when catching up.

On completion of the photography we climbed at 70mph to suitable height for stalling.

The level stall occurred at 48mph and it was almost a non-event – no buffet, no wing drop, no drama. The ailerons remained effective throughout and there was just a gentle sink. The rate of descent seemed minimal and if you hit the ground you would probably walk away from it. Slow flight at 50mph produced significant adverse yaw and rudder was necessary to keep the aircraft in balance.

PLEASANT TO FLYIn normal operation, the aircraft is pleasant to fly with a light elevator and heavier ailerons. Trimming took some getting used to, being low geared; not obvious in direction and with some

backlash. The small central skylight is useful in steep turns, but only in the appropriate direction – that is to say in a right turn when flying from the left and vice versa. Stability proved to be positive in all three planes. Now the statistics: max level speed at the rev limit of 2350rpm was 108mph and normal cruise at 2250rpm gave 104mph and a fuel burn of 20 litres/hr. Vne is 145mph and a dive to 130 was achieved easily with the controls remaining smooth and responsive.

Returning to the airfield, I closed the throttle and glided at 70mph. This gave a rate of descent of 500fpm and, with the Continental engine, carb heat is essential. Below 75mph the

> SEcTIon HEad


aircraft could not be trimmed hands off, which is worth noting before making the final approach.

The circuit was joined on base leg and final approach was made at 65-70mph. There was a slight crosswind from the right and as it was a hard runway I was anticipating the dreaded swing after landing. It might have been beginner’s Luscombe luck, but after a nice three-pointer ‘UG went straight down the centreline! Of course, I then had to juggle with the heel brakes, but I’m sure you would soon get used to them. I would estimate that 10 knots across would be a reasonable limit, but Nigel says he’s seen considerably more and coped.

I can now see why the Luscombe owners are enthusiastic about their aeroplanes – they have the attraction of a true classic which is combined with the practicality of a modern alternative. These machines have character!

Not only that but you can join an exclusive club and see the world. Also, they are value for money. Nigel puts a value of about £25,000 on ‘UG, but she is pristine. He says that you could pick up a sound example in need of some TLC for £15,000-18,000. A lot less than most kits and you don’t have to build it. You just need the Fedora and Studebaker to go with it!

LUSCOMBE MAN: nigeL barratt

I first spotted a Luscombe up close and personal at Old Sarum with Dad back in 1989 and instantly fell in love with its clean, slippery lines – and that cheeky grin as she smiles at you, just begging to flown!

Looking into the cockpit, Dad and I knew it would be cosy, and when invited by owner ‘Dicky’ Bird to sit in her, we were right! Little did I know that this was to be the start of a long relationship…

Two thousand hours on, I still feel proud to own G-BRUG. If only

she could talk and tell you what we’ve been up to… er… maybe not!

The Luscombe, as Stan suggests in his report, is a rugged, slippery and elegant aircraft, semi-aerobatic, reasonable short field performance and, with those long high aspect ratio wings, speeds of up to 110mph can be achieved in the cruise.

The Luscombe produces an exciting low-level display with that all-powerful rudder and she picks up speed quickly for her next manoeuvre due to those elegant

clean lines. I’ve been displaying her for seven years, in the air and, unusually, on one wheel on the ground too – a rare dispensation by the CAA.

About five years ago I decided I needed to do more to ‘protect’

Luscombes. So I created the Luscombe website... then the Luscombe Rally at Oaksey Park, and finally the Luscombe and Friends Tour.

Slowly but surely, our membership has grown; more and more Luscombes have been brought out into the open and now, with a common base and infrastructure, we can share technical skills and hands-on knowledge – at least four Luscombes have been saved by our community!

Canada, USA, Argentina, Brazil,


LUSCOmBE SILVAIRE 8EPERFORmANCEVne 145mphCruise 110mphStall speed48mphTake-off distance 350mLanding distance 250mRate of climb 500fpm at 70mphFuel burn20litres/hrRange500 miles

DImENSIONSWingspan 35ftLength 20ft Height 6ft 3in

WEIGHTS & LOADSmtow 1400lb Empty 770lb

Useful load 630lbFuel capacity 2 wing tanks each 47 litres

POWERContinental C-85 with fixed-pitch two-blade metal prop

VALUEPristine: £25,000In need of TLC: £15,000-18,000

mANUFACTURERLuscombe Airplane CoDallasTexas USA

SPARES & SUPPORTDon Luscombe FoundationW: www.luscombe.org

Clockwise from above: full panel in Nigel’s aircraft, strong tail wheel, wind pressure flap over pitot tube, stylish wheel pants, heel brakes under left rudder pedals, cowling grilles.

LUSCOMBE SILvAIRE 8E

DEvIL IN THE DETAILS

Ireland and parts of Europe are providing support in all ways.

The Americans and Canadians are pleasantly surprised that we can produce 16 Luscombes on the ground at Sywell, 28 Luscombes on display at Oaksey Park and 17 Luscombes on tour.

The tour can be an organisational headache, but the grin on the pilots’ faces, many of them female Luscombe pilots, having flown into

small strips, is well worth the effort!

Now we have over 140 members with ‘hits’ running into the thousands per year, a library of threads on the website covering such things as sourcing a spare part to how to land a Luscombe!

Next year’s European Luscombe and Friends Rally will be on 7-9 August, while the Luscombe and Friends Tour will take place on 30-31 may.

EUROPEAN LUSCOMBEST: 01425 473406 or 07968 980624 W: www.europeanluscombes.uk

tough little blighter! - light aircraft association test.pdf · 1946 luscombe silvaire 8e. photo:...

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