Do you enjoy First World War aircraft? (Instalment 1)

[Allegra]

Good Evening / Morning Ladies and Gentlemen

I thought I'd take this opportunity to share some quite rare items that have arrived of late.

The first is a Bosch handcrank starting (Anlass) Magneto. It was fitted to most WW1 German and Austro-Hungarian aircraft. Turning the crank handle would generate a strong electrical spark to the ignition wires to 'boost' the engine start-up. [Edit: It weighs-in at a fairly hefty 2.65Kg] One needs to be mindful of the fact that Bosch produced a number of these magnetos that can be found on a variety of vehicles such as trucks and motorbikes and are often touted as being made for planes. This is simply not the case.

Unfortunately it does have some corrosion but it is still very solid and produces a good spark when the handle is rotated.

I have also included a wiring diagram so that you are able to have some idea on how it may function.



The second item is a pair of radiator pulls that were used in pairs in German aircraft. There was one on either side of cockpit so that the pilot could adjust the opening of the spring-loaded radiator shutters on many water-cooled fighters. Just look at the detail on those utilitarian items!



The final items in this post are acid etched placards for Oil and Air Pressure - very simplistic, not expensive, but I love them!



I do have another couple of pieces, but this post has taken ages to put together, so as all the best TV programmes say: stay tuned for the next episode!

Cheers
Tim

[BenVK]

Wonderful items!

I'm very interested in starting a collection of such items myself.

[Allegra]

Many thanks Ben - I hope this doesn't contravene the Forum rules, but you may be interested in another forum: theaerodrome.com

You will mainly find people intent on restoring / building WW1 aircraft, but the information that is available is truly amazing.

Cheers
Tim