Suggestions to Preston Briggs
This site was last updated on February 15, 2008.
The Son of Snort is intended for AMA Fast combat. Designed by Howard Rush, it sports a number of interesting features:
- a Nelson 36, with the radial-mount backplate,
- asymmetrical wings (inboard versus outboard),
- an O-beam spar, and
- a Rudner-style shutoff.
As befits its lineage (see the Snort), it uses some custom carbon-fiber parts, which makes the construction process an interesting study. In other respects, construction is perhaps typical of a high-quality foam-wing plane.
The picture above shows a Son of Snort from the first production run. Looking closely, you'll see that the inboard wing has more tip chord than the outboard wing (because the inboard tip flies slower than the outboard tip). You can also see a "shadow" of the black O-beam spar running from tip to tip, embedded in the foam wing. The spar is made out of carbon fiber and resists twisting as well as the usual bending forces.
The complete spar is assembled from three parts: two identical half spars and a joiner (the spiral lines are due to the way the half spars are molded, not the lay of the CF cloth).
Here's more detail of the center section. The engine is mounted to a carbon-fiber box that's attached to the spar. Notice that the bladder is contained inside the O-beam spar, which protects the foam in the event of a burst bladder and keeps the weight of the fuel at the CG. This version uses a swing-arm shutoff with a remote needle valve, available from Henry Nelson.
A Nelson with the optional radial-mount backplate.
