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Hikaro Takayama
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« Reply #100 on: June 25, 2009, 02:33:40 am » |
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since we're talking old German planes... Big picture: THAT has to be the diesel-punkiest WWII aircraft design I've seen YET!  @Sgt Major Thistlewaite: Yes, that is a cute little bugger, what was it supposed to accomplish? Fwd recon for the bomber?  |
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"It is by steam alone that I set my contraptions in motion.
It is by combustion of coal and boiling water that the engines acquire speed.
For protection, the eyes acquire goggles,
The goggles become a warning.
It is by steam alone that I set my contraptions in motion."
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Sgt.Major Thistlewaite
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« Reply #101 on: June 25, 2009, 02:52:20 am » |
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Actually, the '36 could carry three of these "pocket-fighters," each armed with four .50 caliber Brownings. The idea was that if the bomber was attacked by enemy fighters, it would release these little jets, they'd fight off the attackers, and then hook back into the bomber with that trapeze arrangement just forward of the cockpit. I don't believe they were ever actually used, but it's a pretty neat idea!  Thistlewaite |
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Yet well thy soul hath brooked the turning tide, with that innate, untaught philosophy,Which, be it wisdom, coldness, or deep pride, is gall and wormwood to an enemy.
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neon_suntan
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« Reply #102 on: June 25, 2009, 07:47:26 am » |
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since we're talking old German planes... -----edit------ Big picture: It really does look awesome, and reminds me of the reverse engineered planes in Philadelpia Experiment II, reminds me of the plane they use o transport the ark [and kill Pat Roach] in Raiders of the Lost Ark. |
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WickedPenguin
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« Reply #103 on: June 25, 2009, 12:27:00 pm » |
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You know, guys, this might hurt a little, but after some contemplation... if push came to shove... I might say that blimps are Steampunkier, while zeppleins are Dieselpunkier. Fits more with the history, and considering what materials make up each type of airship, rather apropos, wouldn't you say? Anyways, personally, I still want my zeppelin in my Steampunk, too.  I'd like to make an adjustment to that: Both Blimps and Zeppelins (as in, made by the actual Count Zeppelin) are dieselpunk. They really came into their own during and after WWI, although of course Count Zeppelin's inventions date back earlier. But... the earliest dirigibles - even if they're gasoline-powered - are truly steampunk in my eyes. Is there a more steampunk image possible than Albert Santos-Dumont flitting about Paris in his handmade dirigibles and stopping off on the Champs-Elysees to sip a cup of coffee? The man was a rock star in his day.  And, ladies, don't forget that Aida Acosta became the world's first female airship pirate pilot when she took the controls of Dumont's Dirigible No.9 in 1903. I love her silhouette in this photo: |
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« Last Edit: June 25, 2009, 08:18:32 pm by WickedPenguin »
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steamtastic
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« Reply #104 on: June 25, 2009, 09:44:33 pm » |
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do you think it's possible for me to travel the world in my own handmade dirigible?
That would be a dream come true...
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Each Man is in his Spectre's power
Until the arrival of that hour
When his Humanity awake -William Blake
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Atterton
Master Tinkerer
Only The Shadow knows
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« Reply #105 on: June 25, 2009, 10:17:44 pm » |
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Aviation rules would probably be the only thing preventing you. That and cost.
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In space, no one can hear you steam.
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Mister Atlas
Deck Hand
 Canada
Unrepentant scallywag.
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« Reply #106 on: June 26, 2009, 12:14:08 am » |
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do you think it's possible for me to travel the world in my own handmade dirigible?
That would be a dream come true...
If you did, you would be my hero. |
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Kittybriton
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« Reply #107 on: June 26, 2009, 12:17:23 am » |
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Identify the problems which have to be overcome, and first of all, assess the effort that will be needed to overcome those obstacles.
Then start planning the ways in which they will be overcome.
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Atterton
Master Tinkerer
Only The Shadow knows
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« Reply #108 on: June 26, 2009, 12:31:57 am » |
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Someone recently tried to cross The Channel in a pedal driven airship. That sounds like a rather good idea, since you won´t have to worry much about fuel.
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Arceye
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« Reply #109 on: June 26, 2009, 08:28:57 am » |
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Someone recently tried to cross The Channel in a pedal driven airship. That sounds like a rather good idea, since you won´t have to worry much about fuel.
Sadly such a craft is the victim of the slightest breeze. A friend finds that his model helicopter finds a spot in the hall where he flies, where the little buzzing beast finds such turbulence, it will go no further. A human generates about 200W of power as a cyclist, even this little helicopter produces that, and it weighs perhaps a couple of pounds. While the human powered airship as a concept is sheer poetry, it is not likely to fly very far. |
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There is nothing that cannot be made a little worse and sold a little cheaper
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Kittybriton
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« Reply #110 on: June 26, 2009, 12:35:54 pm » |
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The thing that bothers me, and has stuck in my memory since I first read it, is that bicycling is one of the most efficient mechanical uses of human energy. I can't help thinking that there may be more efficient ways to utilize the power of the leg muscles, but it's going to take some thought.
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Atterton
Master Tinkerer
Only The Shadow knows
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« Reply #111 on: June 26, 2009, 01:38:58 pm » |
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Someone also invented a pedal powered airplane once, but it looked bloody ugly.
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Kittybriton
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« Reply #112 on: June 26, 2009, 04:18:39 pm » |
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Tell me more! Also, I should look this up myself, but does anybody know at what point in the development of a potential aeroplane does the FAA and Federal law start to take an interest?
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The Abiliegh
Immortal
 United States
Wench with a Wrench
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« Reply #113 on: June 26, 2009, 04:21:49 pm » |
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I've got no answers for you, but i am listening. With great interest....
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Atterton
Master Tinkerer
Only The Shadow knows
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« Reply #114 on: June 26, 2009, 04:45:24 pm » |
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Well, you probably wouldn´t get very far in a pedal driven airplane. Not a good way for travelling the world. Also a pedal driven airship would as mentioned probably be quite useless if you have the wind against you. However an ultralight airplane could work. You can easily find plans for it, and there are precedents when it comes to aviation laws.
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Arceye
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« Reply #115 on: June 26, 2009, 07:31:51 pm » |
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Someone also invented a pedal powered airplane once, but it looked bloody ugly.
There's been several, perhaps the best known being Paul McCreedy's machine 'The Gossamer Albatross' which flew the English Channel, 22 miles. |
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Angus A Fitziron
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« Reply #116 on: June 26, 2009, 09:01:12 pm » |
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and the Albatross was rather beautiful in its own way, certainly not ugly at all.
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Airship Artificer, part-time romantik and amateur Natural Philosopher
"wee all here are much troubled with the loss of poor Thompson & Sutton"
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Sgt.Major Thistlewaite
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« Reply #117 on: June 27, 2009, 03:57:52 am » |
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Tell me more! Also, I should look this up myself, but does anybody know at what point in the development of a potential aeroplane does the FAA and Federal law start to take an interest?
An aircraft is classified as an ultralight, and is not subject to FAA regulation if, generally speaking it is; Single seat (solo only) Weighs less than 254 pounds Has a fuel capacity of 5 gallons or less Has a top speed of 63 mph (55 knots) Has a stall speed of less than 28 mph (24 knots) For a full treatment of this see-FAR Part 103. Technically, if your aircraft conforms to the above specifications, as far as the FAA is concerned, it is not an airplane, and they don't care...sort of the "moped of the air." Come to think of it, real pilots don't consider them to be airplanes, either...they call them "death-kites." Thistlewaite |
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von Corax
Immortal
Canada
Leverkusen Institute of Paleocybernetics
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« Reply #118 on: June 27, 2009, 08:13:23 am » |
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The ultralight is the product of mankind's ongoing quest to disprove the ancient theory that lawnmowers were not meant to fly.
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By the power of caffeine do I set my mind in motion
By the Beans of Life do my thoughts acquire speed
My hands acquire a shaking
The shaking becomes a warning
By the power of caffeine do I set my mind in motion
The Leverkusen Institute of Paleocybernetics is 5838 km from Reading
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darkshines
Rogue Ætherlord
 Wales
Miss Katonic 1898
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« Reply #119 on: June 27, 2009, 09:55:17 am » |
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Itried to cpy and paste the entiriety of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Balloon Hoax" (1850) but its too large, but anyone interested can read the whole article here http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/eapoe/bl-eapoe-balloon.htm It deals with the fictional account of a man who crossed the Atlantic ocean in three days via dirigible. Now we all know this never happened and its just Poe being a cheeky rabscallion, but the description of such a vehicle, in 1850, is surely noteworthy when considering our "airsips are dieselpunk/steampunk" debate. |
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neon_suntan
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« Reply #120 on: June 27, 2009, 10:04:56 am » |
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The Record for human powered flight is the MIT built Daedalus:- The MIT Aeronautics and Astronautics Department's Daedalus was a human-powered aircraft which, on 23 April 1988 flew 71.5 mi (115.11 km) from Iraklion Air Force Base on Crete, Greece, crashing in the sea just short of the island of Santorini in 3 hours, 54 minutes Which is quite awesome... The wikipedia entry |
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Kittybriton
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« Reply #121 on: June 27, 2009, 01:04:56 pm » |
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Tell me more! Also, I should look this up myself, but does anybody know at what point in the development of a potential aeroplane does the FAA and Federal law start to take an interest?
Come to think of it, real pilots don't consider them to be airplanes, either...they call them "death-kites." That's the bit that's holding me up more than anything. I can't even remember the movie it was included in, but I remember a scene with pilots singing something about having the medics ... take the piston rings out of my kidneys,
take the connecting rods out of my eyes... |
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Utilitarian Prototype
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« Reply #122 on: June 27, 2009, 02:52:39 pm » |
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As an owner-operator, not to mention mechanic, of my own Diesel Semi-Tractor, I can tell you from experience that anything that even gets near a diesel engine gets absolutely filthy in short order.
T.
I completely agree, however, as an operator and maintainer of a 10 storey boiler, coalfired steam tech (in this case mostly very fine coal dust) coupled with the various greases and oils needed to keep the moving parts moving is a wonderfully sticky mess too  Off course the lords and ladies that only use the steam and admire the polished brass in the salon of the airship don't see the gritty side |
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Marine Engineer 2nd Class STCW III/2 and V/1
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Phineas Lamar Alexander
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« Reply #123 on: June 27, 2009, 04:34:20 pm » |
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This seems to be quite a point of contention... Can't we all just get along?
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Kittybriton
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« Reply #124 on: June 27, 2009, 07:40:03 pm » |
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I suppose Steampunk in the purest sense is a good label for those of us rooted firmly in the reign of the late Queen, God bless her, but not on the mainstream timeline*. But if anyone really has to label me, I suppose I would be more anachropunk (not that you'd know it to look at me).
*and that's another thing altogether; why do we still refer to time-lines when the reality seems to be closer to a time-funnel-shaped-cloud?
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