L.Opdyke French Aeroplanes Before the Great War (Schiffer)

Jane's All The World Aircraft 1913

CAUDRON. Caudron Freres, Hue (Somme). Schools: Crotoy and Juvissy. Capacity, about 100-250 a year.

   M2 N. G.D.
Model and Date 1912-13 1912-1 1912-13 1913
   mono. mono. mono. mono.

Length.....feet(m.) 20 (6.10) 19? (6) 22 (6.75) 19? (5.80)
Span.......feet(m.) 31 (9.40) 26-1/3(8) 34 (10.30) 27-1/3(8.50)
Area...sq.feet(m.?) 151 (14) 108 (10) 268 (25) 118 (11)
Weight,machine...
   ........lbs(kgs) 518 (235) 496 (225) 386 (175) 490 (225)
Motor..........h.p. 50 Anzani 50 Anzani Anzani 50 Gnome
   or Gnome or Gnome
Speed....m.p.h.(km.) 71 (115) 84 (135) 75 (120) 84
Number built
   during 1912 ... ... ... ...

Notes.--Lateral control, warping. Wood construction. On wheels. Enclosed body.

Журнал Flight

Flight, May 11, 1912.

THE CAUDRON MONOPLANE.

   LOOKING at this diminutive monoplane, it seems really difficult to believe that such a tiny construction of wood, steel, fabric and wire could take Ewen through the air from Crotoy to Cap Grisnez at a speed of not less than ninety-five miles per hour, and could bring him safely across the Channel. Yet it did so. Compared with some monoplanes with which we are more familiar, the machine seems almost absurdly small, for each wing, detached, looks more like a spare tail than a major sustaining surface. But it has proved itself to be capable of doing the work, and so we can only look at it, marvel, and write down Caudron a very clever constructor.
   Its main body is totally enclosed with fabric, and for its length is unusually roomy. To avoid or minimise the edge disturbance that a purely rectangular body is known to set up when travelling through the air, each side of the body is belled out by light longitudinal formers of French poplar, over which the fabric is stretched. The fuselage proper is that type of structure now almost universally employed - a simple lattice girder of ash and steel wire, braced up together in exactly the same fashion as a Bleriot body. Capping the front end is a sheet steel plate to which the motor is bolted, a type of mounting which, both for rotary and stationary motors, has come into quite general use of late. As a subsidiary support steel tubes are carried from the fuselage to the front of the crank case. While on the subject of the engine, it may be interesting to mention that the motor fitted to this particular monoplane is the first of its type - a six-cylinder radial air-cooled engine of 45-h.p. - to leave the Anzani works. According to the pilot's testimony, the machine never faltered throughout the whole trip, and ran singularly free from vibration. The magneto and oil pump - the latter feeding the oil to the motor via glass inspection cap similar to those in the Gnome equipment - are fitted to the back of the steel engine plate; where they may easily be reached through an inspection door covering the front section of the left-hand side of the body.
   A 6-ft, 8-in. propeller of Messrs. Caudron's own manufacture, direct coupled to the engine crank-shaft, provides the thrust. It is cut from a single piece of wood on lines very like the Normale, but unlike that well-known make it is not covered with canvas.
   The landing gear, of ash and steel, must be immensely strong. It certainly is simple enough, effective enough, and presents little head resistance. It consists of two pairs of stout ash struts arranged V-fashion on either side. A steel bar unites the apexes of the two V's, and an inverted V of steel tubing completes the structure. The rods on which the wheels are mounted are hinged to the centre of the chassis, and extend to right and left-hand on either side. They pass under crutches integral with the bases of the two V's, and support the weight of the machine through rubber shock absorbers. A better grasp of this detail can be obtained from the accompanying sketch than could possibly be drawn from a mere word description.
   A curious point in connection with the wheels, a point on which, we are assured, Messrs. Caudron have been granted a patent, is that they are arranged slightly splay footed - if we may use a colloquial term. Both axles slope back slightly from the line at right angles to the rolling path - a feature which, it is claimed, renders the machine immune from a tendency to suddenly turn to right and left of its true path when rolling. Whether it does so or no is for practical tests to decide. We should think the tyre wear would be rather excessive if the machine were used for much school rolling practice.
   On the new military monoplanes that the Caudron firm are now turning out an all-steel chassis is employed, while some of those in commission over the sands of Crotoy are not provided with any shock-absorbing apparatus at all. It seems to us that, even for the rougher work that the machine will have to undergo in Britain, the shock-absorbing device - although excellent - could very well be suppressed if its place were taken by extra large diameter tyres. At the most, only two inches of upward travel is provided by the rubber shock absorbers, and this could very well be afforded by a tyre of increased dimensions. Not only for this reason should larger tyres be recommended - they would, in such a small machine as this one, help to a great extent to keep it afloat should it at any time have to alight on water. Two tyres of a tubular diameter of six inches, and of a rim diameter of 26 inches, will support something like 180 lbs.
   A peculiarity of the wing construction is that, roughly, two-thirds of the wing chord is extremely flexible. The two booms in front - they are essentially stout steel tubes, wood filled - are united by strong solid ash ribs and steel wire cross-bracing to form a girder of immense strength. The flexible trailing edge is formed by continuation of the ash strips applied to the underneath of the solid ribs. These are whittled away to round section, where they leave the back spar, and are enclosed, over the flexible portion, by fabric covering on the single surface principle. Double surfacing is used on the front section of the wing, and to further strengthen it to withstand the intensity of suction that must occur over that part in a wing travelling at something like 85 miles per hour, a wide strip of aluminium sheeting is applied. Both booms are accommodated by sockets in the side of the fuselage, the front one being quite a tight fit and, withal, pinned, while the rear one is a loose fit to allow for the warping deflection.
   So great a faith have the constructors in the strength of the girder construction of the wings, that they fit no drift wires. Two stout stranded steel cables on either side take the lift in flight, and the weight of the wings when stationary is supported by quite stout cables on top. So strong are they that they would absolutely preclude any suspicion of the wing failing through momentary top pressure. By the way, it would be interesting to know the effect of top pressure on the rear flexible portion of the wing. The warping, cables and their attachments are quite as stout as those taking front weight, for under ordinary level flying they must take almost as great a share of the load as those in front, while when in a climbing attitude it is quite conceivable that they may take more. One of our photographs shows the details of the warping control.
   Clamped to the rear of the fuselage by U bolts, and braced there by steel wire, is the horizontal tail surface. It is purely directional, and its rear two-thirds flexes on the same principle as the main planes. In addition to flexing up and down for elevation and depression, it, similarly to the tail of the Caudron biplane, warps laterally in conjunction with the wings. Direction control in a horizontal plane is obtained by a vertical rectangular rudder, balanced and mounted entirely above the fuselage. A small skid, the flexibility of which is provided by its laminated construction of wood, protects the tail.
   An interesting detail in connection with the control - all control wires are of Bowden inner cable, fitted everywhere in duplicate, and guided at necessary points by Bowden outer sheathing. Only in one point is this rule transgressed, and that is where the top warp compensating wires pass over the upper pylone. Here they slide through copper tubes, Nieuport fashion.
   The pilot sits extremely low in the body - just four inches off the floor, so that only his head emerges above the well-padded sides, lie grasps a single ash vertical lever that controls the elevation and warping, and operates the rudder with his feet. All his engine control and his instruments for cross-country flying are quite handy, and altogether he is very comfortably installed in a very excellent little machine.


Flight, February 8, 1913.

WHAT THERE WILL BE TO SEE AT OLYMPIA.

THE MACHINES.

The W. H. Ewen Aviation Co., Ltd.

   This well-known firm, with centres at Hendon, Lanark, and Glasgow. Will be showing two machines on their stand No. 47, a monoplane and a biplane. Originally they had made arrangements to exhibit a 50-h.p. Gnome-engined single-seater monoplane, and a 35-h.p. Y-type Anzani biplane, both brand-new and of Caudron design and manufacture. However, such has been the demand, that they have sold both these machines, the monoplane to a well-known English customer, and the biplane to Mr. A. W. Jones, who has despatched it to Australia, where Mr. Jones holds the agency for Caudron machines. Thus the Ewen firm have had to fall back on machines that they had already in stock, and for that the exhibit will be none the less interesting. In place of the 50-h.p. Gnome-Caudron monoplane, they will show the 45 h.p. Anzani-engined single-seater, of which Mr. Ewen took delivery at Crotoy and flew back to England in the early part of last year. On this same machine too, M. Guillaux flew in connection with the Aerial Derby last year. Although comparatively low-powered, such was the machine's speed that that excellent pilot would have probably won the race had he not, when quite near the finishing point, lost his way, and then run out of petrol. The monoplane is especially interesting for the fact that it is one of the smallest and speediest successful monoplanes built.
   For the biplane, Mr. Ewen is making an attempt to get delivery from the French Caudron works of a new 35-h.p. biplane. If he cannot get delivery in time, his firm will exhibit their brevet biplane, on which, at Hendon, something like 15 tickets have been taken inside seven months. Naturally it will not be a show-finished machine; it will be shown, taken direct from strenuous school work, in its natural oil and mud-bespattered condition.
   In addition, the Ewen Co. will have on their stand samples of Kelvin compasses, which have a reputation for being the most deadbeat instruments of their kind ever constructed. They will also be showing a range of Gremont propellers and a type of petrol motor of quite revolutionary design.


Flight, February 15, 1913.

<...>are hinged to the body of the machine by a steel joint that is shown in one of our sketches.
The landing gear carries two rolling wheels which are mounted on axles radiating on either side from the centre V of the chassis. Each axle is sprang at a point near the wheel by rubber cord which passes under a crutch formed at the junction of two ash struts in V. The illustrations we publish will make this point clear. A small tail skid is fitted. There is a curious point regarding the "set" of the rolling wheels. Their axles are set back at a small angle behind the line at right angles to the rolling path, a feature, it is claimed, by which any tendency of the machine to veer, when rolling, to either side of its straight path, is removed.
The tail has an area of 29 sq. ft., and is clamped to the fuselage by several U bolts. Its rear portion is flexible, and it is that portion that controls the attitude of the monoplane when in flight. The rudder is mounted wholly above the tail surface.
The pilot sits quite low in the body of the machine, so that his head alone emerges from the well-padded sides of the cockpit. He controls the elevation and warping by a centrally arranged universally-jointed lever. The rudder is manipulated by a pivoted foot bar.


Flight, September 20, 1913.

THE AERIAL DERBY.

PILOTS AND HOW TO RECOGNISE THE MACHINES.

No. 14. The Caudron Monoplane
   somewhat resembles the Morane-Saulnier monoplanes, but differs from those machines in several respects. The body is of a different form and the elevator and tail plane is much larger.


THE MACHINES, WITH SOME DETAILS.

   No. 14. The 45 h.p. Anzani-Caudron monoplane. - This is the same monoplane that Mr. Ewen flew over from France early in 1912. It is astonishingly small, and, considering the comparatively low engine power, surprisingly swift. The span is 25 ft. 6 ins., and the wing construction is the same as that employed in the Caudron biplane. It is altogether a startlingly efficient monoplane, its diminutive size and graceful lines tending to conceal its truly wonderful turn for speed: it has attained a speed of 95 m.p.h.