My only rides in a Stearman were in the late 1940s, while in college,
and it was equipped with the 300, so I may be biased. The Aerophysics
Dept. had a contract with the US Navy to do research on wing tip
designs. They used gliders for this work, making flights in early
morning still air. An older classmate, who flew P-47s in the Air Guard
on weekends, was the tow pilot, using the Stearman. He would allow me to
ride along on the tow, and then fly the descent and drop the tow rope.
That was the first time I ever had my hands on the stick, and I really
enjoyed it.
Tragically, he lost his life in an accident while doing testing for Ryan
Aircraft.
Jim Nichols
Tullahoma, TN USA
On 8/21/2015 10:30 AM, ChrisB wrote:
Thanks for that, Jim.
I can imagine perhaps doing more checks on the takeoff roll once you have full power
established, but that might make keeping straight tricky. I’m sure that 300hp would
be more manageable and enough fun; I’d love to have one.
Chris
On 21 Aug 2015, at 16:28, Jim Nichols <jhnichols@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
From what I have read, with the 450, a normal runup can overpower the brakes,
so one must do checks at lower rpm than you would usually expect. Yes,
application of power during takeoff is a gradual thing with this machine.
The guy flying it, as well as myself, believe that the 300 hp Lycoming is a
better match for a recreational airplane. The 450 just eats fuel for little
additional benefit, unless one is doing aerobatics or crop dusting. And I
don't think there are any Stearmans remaining in the agricultural business.
They have been replaced by specially designed aircraft, many with turbine
engines, which make more sense economically.
--
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