Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

[speeddemon]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

Wha....huh???????

[Peashooter]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

Wha....huh???????

Following this thread, I went to basic principles underlying the discussion about Wildfire's perceived cooling drag issues: first the requirements imposed by the physics (thermodynamics & aerodynamics) of the situation to create a competitive racer leading to similar outcomes, i.e., Concorde and the TU-144; and, second the cause & effect relationship between design and function -- which led to the causality discussion.

Hey, you should'a seen me dancin' during my senior comperhensive review oral exam way back when before I really "got" this.

BTW, a very influential philosopher of science was Russ Hanson, aka the Bearcat Professor. (Norwood Russell Hanson) See Flying Mag., I think March of '66.

[jarrodeu]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

that just confused me. Most of that was over my head

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

As I was preparing Bill's story for publishing, I figured that the "wag's" here would have more than a few opinions about the Statler project..

While on first glance, she does look a *bit* ungainly in more than a few areas, what impresses me about the project are the pedegree's of the design team/crew....

These are not a bunch of shade-tree airplane builders who came up with something from far far left field, these guys are a bunch of savvy educated aero guys..

So... that said... who's to say that they haven't figgered it out a different way?

Standard whizdom at Reno is to leave as little spinner to cowl gap as possible, but then, take a look back at the Hughes Racer Replica (some photos and background here) and tell me there isn't more than a bit of similarity between the cowl design?

The Hughes, obviously, was built just at the start of man's really beginning to understand drag, but, they spent a ton of hours in the wind tunnel with that design and, that's what they came up with.

Anyway, I'm happy that Bill's article has sparked a lively debate, for the most part, I don't think any of the comments have been nearly as nasty as the snipes from the dark that have been said about this project prior to anyone knowing about it, I mean...*really* knowing about it...

I gotta tell ya, my hat is off to one Bill Pearce for taking the time to dig out the story... this was one that, to my knowledge, had not yet been told and.... we all owe Bill a special thanks for this and a look at the upcoming issue of Air&Space Smithsonian where he's got another little pat on the back coming!! (ok ok... I managed a piece of the action too )

Thanks Bill!!!!!!!!!

Wayne

[Shawn Aro]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

I Read with intrest your account and status report of the unlimited
Air Racer Wildfire but I was some what curious as to why no mention was made regarding Charlie Beck.

wasn't Charlie Beck involved in the orginal design concept many years ago?

and looking back in the National Air Racing Group News Letter the Nag Rag it was reported as the the Stater/Beck Racer

all the Best Shawn

[Shawn Aro]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

Yes i for got to mention the info i got was in the Nag Rag dated Jun of 1982 Shawn

[W J Pearce]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

Thanks for the comments about the article and thanks to everyone for the great discussion.

I've been gone for a few days and now am battling computer gremlins. I did not mean to seem unappreciative or not involved.

Shawn,

It is not my intention to omit anything and Beck's involvement with Wildfire is something that, until now, was not known to me. I will see if I can find anything out.

Bill Pearce

[speeddemon]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

The 'difinitive' article (at the time) on Wildfire was in the September 1983 issue of Air Classics. It had a color picture of Charile Beck sitting in the cockpit of Wildfire. He was supposed to be the primary pilot.

Charlie and Jim Modes were the principle owners of Candyman...the Mustang which was sold to finance the Wildfire project.

There is also a good article in an issue of the EAA's Sport Flying from the late '70's, early 80's that talks about the project.

[Peashooter]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

BTW, a very influential philosopher of science was Russ Hanson, aka the Bearcat Professor. (Norwood Russell Hanson) See Flying Mag., I think March of '66.

Here's a link to a photo of his Bearcat from the Flying Mag. article, Mar. '66 To my eye, the coolest civil paint job on a 'Cat. Peas

http://pictures.sprintpcs.com/share.jsp?invite=1EHJ7i70zzhAokFhokxL&shareName=Photo

[Kilo Hotel]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

BTW, a very influential philosopher of science was Russ Hanson, aka the Bearcat Professor. (Norwood Russell Hanson) See Flying Mag., I think March of '66.

I used to see this Bearcat on the ramp at Tweed/New Haven, just down from my parents' C172. I was about 10 and mightily impressed, and asked my dad (who was also a Yale prof) why we couldn't have a Bearcat, too.

Hanson at the time owned the time-to-climb record from a standing start to 10,000'. Can't remember what the record time was, but the number of seconds was a two-digit number, as I recall. Can that be right? I'd look it up, but I'm outa here shortly on a business trip for the rest of the week.

[Victor Archer]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

Here's a link to a photo of his Bearcat from the Flying Mag. article, Mar. '66 To my eye, the coolest civil paint job on a 'Cat. Peas

Did a little searching and found this:

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/f8fregistry/f8f-121589.html

What were the colors on this cat?

[Peashooter]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

Did a little searching and found this:

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/f8fregistry/f8f-121589.html

What were the colors on this cat?

As with any good philosopher, it was black & white! There might have been a trim line, but I haven't seen a color photo in ages so I don't know its color. Notice the prop trim stripes -- just like the Sanders like to paint 'em.

[Unregistered]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

There was no official time to climb to 10,000 feet for piston engine airplanes in the Bearcats class until Lyle Shelton set the existing record in 1972 in Thermal Ca. at 91.9 seconds. That record stands till this day. The Statlers while accomplished Lockheed engineers with much to their credentials do have experience in modern unlimited air racing, they were part of the team that put the gutted Constellation scoop on the Bearcat for Mojave in 1976, they also had some very strange and not effective ideas on oil cooling ducting on the Bearcat. Neither of these ideas are in evidence today. The opening on the Rare Bear between the spinner and the cowling is very small and it is quite adequate. During ground runs when the cowl was first modified it was quite aparent it was working when the engine would stay cool for as long as we wanted to run it. As for spilling out the front I won't go into details but there is evidence that doesn't occur. In my opinion if the Bearcat is running at it's absolute best it is still the fastest piston engine airplane running around the course today. May they have good luck.
John Slack

[Kilo Hotel]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

There was no official time to climb to 10,000 feet for piston engine airplanes in the Bearcats class until Lyle Shelton set the existing record in 1972 in Thermal Ca. at 91.9 seconds. [snip]
John Slack

I'm not going to say you're wrong, John, because memory is a tricky thing; all I can say is that I remember reading (I'm thinking it was in the Flying magazine article Peashooter mentioned; perhaps he'll look it up for us) that Hanson and the Bearcat owned that record at the time, in the mid-'60s. Maybe it was an 'unofficial record', for what that's worth.

[Unregistered]

Re: Will Wildfire Be ready for Reno 2005?

Regarding the record for the time to climb, No record for Class C1, piston engine aircraft existed prior to Lyle Shalton establishing that record in February of 1972. I am basing this statement on the NAA representative at the event telling us this information. Hanson may have done a maximum effort climb but not bothered to go through all that it takes to establish a record. It may also be noted that at a Post war show a stock Navy Bearcat made a display take off to 10,000 feet climb but no official attempt was made then either. As a side story during the Bearcat's attempts to set the 15 Km records at China Lake NAS during the air show there, the airplane was at the VX hangar hangar complex, along with a new Grumman Cat, the F-14. The Grumman engineer in charge of the test program had cut his teeth on the Bearcat program when just starting at Grumman and came over to talk with us about the Bearcat, he became especially interested in the fact that we he held the time to climb record with the Bearcat. As all young men will do I asked how fast the F-14 could climb, he told me that was "classified information but that it could climb!" Later that afternoon when it was time for the F-14 to make a test flight he came over and told us we should watch the plane take off, it soon became apparent he had briefed the pilot on our accomplishment. The F-14 was at a standing start at the end of the runway, it went to full power, started to move forward then bang went straight up in the sky. he couldn't tell us but wow they showed us!
John Slack