Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 1

Bleriot XI1909

Assembly Manual

for ARF stand-off scale model

in 1:5 scale.

Historical data and presentation.

Model design and drawing by

Göran Kalderén ©

1996-07-12

Early reproduction of documentary drawingof the airplane in a french magazine.

Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 2

The man and his aeroplaneLouis Bleriot was the first aviator that in 1909

successfully crossed the English Channel. The aero-plane was his model XI adapted for the flight, withan extra fuel tank mounted aft of the cockpit and thetail gear locked and braced in fixed position. Theengine was an Anzani 3-cylinder "fan-type", air-cooled with a rating of 28 hp. The plane was slightlyunderpowered and the flight in the early morninghours was executed sometimes only a few feet abovethe wet surface.

This aeroplane became very popular all overEurope and was used by flying schools for basic train-ing. More powerful engines were introduced and atthe time of the outbreak of the hostilities 1914 onemodel was equipped with a Gnome Monsoupape 50hp rotary engine. The centre of thrust-line was thenmoved up to the centre of the fire wall.As to the tail gear this was sometimes simplified totwo crossed bows of bent rattan appropriately fas-tened to the rear fuselage. The elevator was firstfitted as the outer sections of the stabilizer but on

later models as a separate stabilizer and elevatoralong the rear edge of the former. The planform wasalso altered.

The wings had fixed front spar and the rearspars attached with a joint to the fuselage. The wingswere rigged with 2,5 ° dihedral measured from thewing root. Wing warping was executed via a "doublecloche" the wires from the upper "cloche" were ledthrough pulleys in the lover wire pylon out to the rearspar and the under side of the wing. The control waswith a fixed wheel and could be moved forward - aftand left - right. The upper warping wires were runfrom the same positions on the upper side of thewings freely via pulleys on the upper wing supportpylon.Elevator wires were run via guide pulley straight aftto the elevator horn, located in the centre line of thefuselage at the elevator main spar. Rudder controlwires from the rudder bar to the rudder horn. Thepilot was seated in a comfortable chair in the opencockpit frame and he had on his left side a throttleregulator and a magneto switch.

crossed rattan bows. The latter model has also aturtle deck from the engine cowl to the cockpit.The upper winh support pylon is also reduced toa single inverted V. These aeroplanes wereregistreded in Sweden with numbers S-14 andS-15 and owned by baron Carl Cederström. Soldto the Swedish Army Airforce in 1913.

This photo shows Bleriot XI in two versions. Tothe left the original with tail wheel, outer elevatorpanels and a 3-cyl Anzani 28 hp engine. To theright, the 1912 model with enlarged rudder plan-form, stabilizer with elevator along the rear edgeand a Gnome rotary engine of 50 hp. Note alsothe substitution of the stearable tailwheel with two

Svensk Flyghistorisk Tidskrift

At the beginning of the war LouisBleriot joined forces with the wellknown S.P.A.D airplane companyand many of his designs were no-table developments of fighting air-crafts.

This photo shows Bleriot XI in the version 1912,registered S-12, with enlarged rudder planform,stabilizer with elevator along the rear edge and aGnome rotary engine of 50 hp.

Svensk Flyghistorisk Tidskrift

A recent stamp fromUSA celebrating pioneer pilots

Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 3

This 3-view depicts the Bleriot XI as it wasequipped for the crossing of the EnglishChannel. The construction drawing showsalternative stabilizer, rudder and tail skid

assemblies as well as installation of Gnome 50hp rotary engine, cowl and turtle decking fromengine to cockpit.

A

A

B C

C

D

D

E

E

E - E

B - B

C - C

D - D

A - A

Typical airfoil

Control column

B

Bleriot XI 1909

Control wires

Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 4

The photo above shows a Bleriot XI recentlyrestored and flown by Michael Carlsson in Swe-den. The tail skid is of later design as developedby Enoch Thulin on his licence built Bleriot XI.Also stabilizer has the later planform with ele-

vator along the trailing edge. Engine is Thuli A-1 that develops 65 hp. Note also the turtle deckand the engine cowl.The 3-view below shows the licence built Thu-lin A (Bleriot XI bis).

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vens

k F

lygh

isto

risk

Tid

skrif

t

Thulin A(modified, licence builtBleriot XI)

Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 5

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The photo above shows Bleriot XI owned and flown by the legendary baron Carl Cederström, hereat Malmslätt in Sweden 1911.Below is the model in 1:5 scale. Kit plane is supplied with spoked wire wheels. The "Louis Bleriot"pilot figure is not included.

The ModelI have chosen the scale 1:5, as it gives a

reasonable big airplane but small enough to handle in acar, easy to assemble at the airfield and above all, isrelatively forgiving to fly. The model can be converted tothe "Channel crosser" but we have chosen to build thesomewhat later and impoved version.

As you can see from the documentation thevariations of the Bleeriot XI are numerous and your choicecan be any one of the depicted aircrafts.

The airplane comes with the landing gearattached and it remains only to screw the stabilizer inplace and attach the and the rudder, control wires to therudder and elevator horns. The wings are pushed intothe fuselage in holes located on the sides and the wingsupporting wires attached with the kwick links"turmbuckles. It may be necessary to adjust the ten-sion of the wires.SpecificationWingspan: 1602 mm 63,2 inches

Length: 1366 mm 53,9 inchesStabilizor span: 667 mm 26,7 inchesWing incidence: 4 °Stab. incidence: 1 °Wing surface: 52 dm² 74 sq"Wing loading: 61 gm/dm² 19 oz/sq'Weight: 3200 gm 7 lbEngine: 40/60 2-stroke or 60/80 4-stroke

Engine installationThe engine is installed with the engine mount

attached. Upright or slanted as you desire. Drill holes inthe firewall to suit your engine and use 5 mm. screwsand blind nuts as supplied. Lead the throttle cable tothe servo through a hole in the firewall and connect thefuel tube from your tank to the carburator.

Radio/servo installationThe receiver and battery are located on the up-

per tray behind the fire wall alongside the tank.

Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 6

Front landing(upper) wires

Upper warpingwires

Lower warpingwires

Elevator wires

Rudder wires

Front flying(lower) wires areattached to the lowerlanding gear bar

Front flying(lower) wires

The location of the rigging wires.

The model has detailed reproduction of the empennage and the "tail skid" is made of rattan.

The servos for rudder, elevator and trottle areaffixed in the servo tray with special screws andgrommets. The wingwarping servo is affixed to thebracket below the rear wing tube fitting.

All rudder surfaces are controlled with pull-pullwires, which is scale and very reliable. The wires areattached directly to the servo arms.

FuselageThe fuselage is completely built up. This unit is

complete with wheels and all rigging wires attached.The stabilizer must be attached to the fuselage and thewing appropriately affixed to the fuselage. The fire wallshoul get engine mounts affixed with bolts through thefire wall.

If you have selected the ARF version you now have toattend to the finish. The allready covered model leavesonly insignias and markings to be applied.

RudderThe rudder with hinges is pushed in to the

fuselage and the hinges should be secured in position.The only remaining thing is to attach the rudder wires tothe rudder.

Stabilizor / elevatorThe stabilizer is attached to the fuselage at the

underside of the fuselage using supplied screws throughthe stabilizer into the holes with blind nuts attached onthe inside.

Aluminium stabilizer support struts supplied,are fixed permanently to the fuselage and the stabilizorwith sheet metal screws.

Attach the elevator wires from the elevator servoarm to the elevator horn. Note that the wires are crossedso that the lower wire at the servo attaches to th upperhorn on the elevator.

Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 7

WingsThe wings are pushed into the holes in the

fuselage. Start with attaching the upper front "landing"wires to the fittings in the wings.Next step is to attach the lower front "flying" wires to thefittings in the underside of the wings.Now add the upper wingwarping wires to the rear fittingson the upper side if the wings.Finally attach the warping actuating wires from the servoarm via the lower pulley out to the rear lower side fittings.When moving the servo arm the wing should now "warp".A deflection of ½" up and down at the wing tip isrecomended. Make sure that the warping correspondto what you expect from ailerons on a conventionalmodel.

RiggingWe will run over this step in condensed form

once again. Start with the front upper wires. Attach thewires to the pylon pemanently. Clip the kwick-link"turnbuckle" to the eylet in the wings. Leave the kwivk-link threaded half way on the screw. Insert the wire,stretch so that the wing tip gets the required dihedral2½° or 38 mm measured at the wing tip, and lock inposition. Fine adjustments can be made later on the"turnbuckle". Proceed with the lower front wires in thesame fashion. The wing is now locked in the properposition.

Add the upper warping wires by attaching thekwick-links in the same manner as before. Starting onthe outer rigging wire, fix it to the "turnbuckle", route itthrough the pulley in the rear upper pylon and then stretchit and fix it to the opposite wing panel. Make sure thatyou get the desired wash out at this moment. Proceedin the same manner with the inner upper warping wire,

The lower warping wires are attached in muchthe same manner with the only difference that you startat the servo arm in the fuselage and the wire is routedvia the pulley to the wing panel fixing point. Note thatthe wires are crossed from the pulley to the servo.

The rudder an elevator wires ar installed in thesame fashion starting at the servo arms. The"turnbuckles" ar located at the elevator and rudder horns.Route the wires straight to the respective ponts on therudder and elevator horns.

Finishing

Model of Bleriot XI at a scale meet in Sweden. Builder and pilot: Lennart Waltersson

We suggest that you paint all wooden surfaceswith 2 -3 coats of clear fuel-proofing. The wings and thetail feathers could also be given a coat of the same forthe weathered antique look. Shrinking airplane dope isnot recommended as you need the flexibility in the wingsto minimize the strain on the warping servo.

Dummy engineA dummy of the Anzani 3 cylinder engine is suppliedand has to be removed and replaced wiith your enginefor flying.

Scale propellerSupplied is the finished scale propeller with front

mounting plate. The hole is drilled for 6 mm propellers-haft and may have to be enlarged to fit your engine.

FlyingMake sure that you have set the elevator throw

as recommended. Check also that the wings have pro-per dihedral and wash out. The airplane should balanceat a point 25 - 30% of the wing cord from the leadingedge. Add weight at the front if required.

Take off with this airplane is straight into thewind only. Dont try to pull it of the ground. Let it lift offgently. Make the turns with wing warping and rudder/elevator. It is not a pattern plane! Enjoy cruising in theblue sky and feel the thrill of the early aviator.

Happy and safe landings!

Bleriot XI 1909 ARF 8

What is in the box:

The ARF kit contains the parts shown inthe picture below. All the rigging wires are

KK&&WW

ModelModelAirplanes Inc.Airplanes Inc.

P.O.Box 1229, Cebu City Centrl. PostofficeCebu City 6000, Philippines

Visiting address:3343 Gun-Ob, Kinalumsan,

Lapu-Lapu City 6015, PHILIPPINESPhone +63 32-340 7147, Cellular +63 917-3200 985

Telefax +63 32-340 7131, E-mail: kwmairpl@gsilink.com

10

1

7

4563

2

8

supplied in the correct lengths and need onlyto be clipped to their positions.

1. Fuselage with wing warping pylon andtail skid assy.

2. Landing gear3. Spoked wheels4. Rudder5. Elevator

6. Scale propeller7. Left wing panel8. Right wing panel9. Wires, turnbuckles and hardware forassembly (not shown)10. Assembly manual with scale documentation