2010 July

Archive for July, 2010

O’ahu – Honolulu – Pearl Harbor: USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park – Ballast Control Panel

Submarine Models

Image taken on 2010-05-26 07:08:51 by wallyg.

Other Boat Scale Models Info

O’ahu – Honolulu – Pearl Harbor: USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park – USS Bowfin

Submarine Models

Image taken on 2010-05-26 06:55:53 by wallyg.

Other Boat Scale Models Info

Genesis of Henry Ford an Early Ford Motor Company History

In 1892 Henry Ford completed his first gasoline engine, born on a farm in the area of Dearborn, Michigan 29 years earlier Henry had just fulfilled his first vision. He had been experimenting with gasoline engines as a hobby in his spare time while working at the Detroit Edison Company. His engineering career intrigued him and he found great satisfaction in his accomplishment.

After spending “too much” time on the automobile the Detroit Edison Company felt it best that he resigned and perused his dream. He sold his fist car believing that he could build another lighter than the first. He used the proceeds to buy more materials.

Around 1899 he was later able to find private investors who were willing to spend their money creating the Detroit Automobile Company. He did like the fact that he was not a majority share holder of the company because he couldn’t make the final decisions. When ever he mentioned mass production and lower pricing in order to penetrate their target market he was out voted. So he left.

Ford Motor Corporation is Founded

Henry wouldn’t give up on his vision. He had come so close to seeing fleets of cars rolling out of the companies shop he was heart broken but angry. So he started work in a shed where he developed his four-cylinder 80-horsepower race cars. He named them the 999 and the Arrow. Through several victories Henry was able to spread the Ford name and new interest in his vision.

He raised $28,000 of capital from friends, family, and acquaintances and on June 16, 1903 the Ford Motor Company was born. Henry Ford started producing the Model A, a eight-horsepower two-cylinder automobile. 1,708 of these gorgeous Model A’s were made in just under a year.

Ford Gets Sued

Seeing the success of the Ford Motor business the giant consortium called the Licensed Association of Automobile Manufacturers file a law suit against the Ford Motor on the grounds that Ford was infringing on their rights which were pertect by their patent. The patent was issued to George B. Selden in 1895 and in Henry’s opinion it was void. He took the companies proceeds from the Model A and fought the battle out in court.

Ford Motor Expands

Despite the law suit the Ford motor business moves forward and moved to a bigger manufacturing plant on Piquette and Beaubien Streets still residing in Detroit. They also saw benefits in expanding yet a again in 1904 to a plant in Canada in Walkerville, Ontario.

Henry’s fascination with naming his cars after the alphabet grew, he and his engineers had a Model N, a Model K, a Model A, and a Model T. After Henry’s death naming the vehicles after letters in the alphabet ceased. However, at this time the Model N sold for $500 and was intended to be their high production low profit car. The Model K sold for $2,500 and was the six-cylinder luxury sedan of its day. The Model T had yet to be created.

The Model K was a sore subject for Henry Ford. Because it failed to sell in the numbers expected his partner Alexander Malcolmson resigned. Alexander had helped to found the company in 1903 and it hurt Henry to the core. Henry bought Alexander’s share in the company bringing Henry’s shares to 58.5 percent. What he had been dreaming of since he resigned form the Detroit Automobile Company. Henry then later replaced John S. Gray the president of the company with him self. Ford felt someone with the understanding of the cars and the people could be a better president and leader of the company than a Detroit Banker.

The Assembly Line is Born

By 1908 Ford released its Model T. After expanding his plant to meet production demands they were able to make more than 10,000 by 1909. More than 15 million Model T’s would be produced through 1927. With his controlling stock shares Henry Ford was able to vote all other plans of action down and put his Assembly Line idea into action.

Henry knew as a engineer himself and while watching the workers that there were specific tasks that need to be done, with each task using a specific tool. He then conceived that he each worker were to do one specific job using one tool in a consistent time frame he could increase efficiency. Or that was his hypothesis he was dying to test.

Automobile parts were moved along the line on a conveying belt with each worker doing his or her task to the part as it came to them on the belt until it came to the end of the line finished. This made slower workers have to speed up and gave better time estimates for completion dates by being able to control the rate at which the workers did their jobs. This moving assembly line was installed in the Highland Park assembly plant and made production of the Model T eight times faster than had been.

Ford Wins Patent Law Suit

After eight years of legal battling the Supreme Court in 1911 finally rule the Selden patent void and the way was open for many other automobile companies to compete for market share. The heavy weight that was on the Ford motor business of having to pay licensing fees to the Selden syndicate was lifted.

World War I

April 1917, Ford Motor gave its loving attention to the war effort. During World War I produced large quantities of automobiles, trucks, and ambulances, as well as Liberty airplane motors, Whippet tanks, Eagle submarine chasers, and munitions.

Henry Ford officially retired in 1918 and named his son Edsel president and gave him controlling interest in the company’s stock. Henry didn’t feel retired he liked to direct and give recommendations to Edsel about company market strategy. He also enjoyed creating a tractor he named the Fordson (thank goodness it wasn’t named Model Z). He apparently published a journal of sort called the Dearborn Independent.

Buy Outs and Greater Expansion

By the end of World War I Ford Motor Corporation was looking to expand and integrate many of its assembly plants; consolidating resources, lowering waste, and shipping prices. There was some disagreement with the other share holders and both Henry and Edsel decided to solve the situation with money. Again Henry found himself buying stock from his investors to further the vision he had passed on to his son. The multi-million dollar facility had an integrated steel mill of what was then considered to be of substantial capacity. The plant was named the River Rouge facility.

Bart Gibby has been fascinated by Henry Ford and the beginnings of Ford Motor Company. More information can be found at World History.com; founded by Paul Allen

Other Boat Scale Models Info

Radio Control Boats

Ships and boats, yachts and submarines have long been the subject of fantasies nursed by the young and the old. The waters of the seas and oceans hold many secrets which to the mind of the hobbyist were shared by the sea vessels that sailed on them. One yearns to be part of the mystery and adventure that surrounds sailing. A very select few can afford to own sea faring yachts and boats. The rest of us live our dreams by owning ship or boat models that are fashioned after the real ships and boats.

Made to scale boats can be made to sail with the help of radio control equipment with which they are fitted. Such radio controlled boats can be operated remotely with the help of a multi channel radio transmitter. The radio transmitter is in the hands of the operator while there is a corresponding receiver on the boat. Signals are sent to the radio receiver on the boat by changing the position of the two joy sticks on the transmitter. The receiver on the boat is connected to two battery operated electric motors. Signals received from the radio transmitter which is handled by the operator are translated into instructions to run the motors as per directions.

With a host of websites and companies now offering ship and boat models, they are able to offer exciting deals backed by comparative rate studies.

Models can be handcrafted and made of wood or acrylic or a little of both. But fact remains that astute care is taken to deliver a finished and aesthetically produced boat model since it can be expected that one who would want to own a boat model for the love of owning a near original piece would settle for nothing less than a near perfect look alike. Radio controlled boats however have to be treated with more care since one cannot have water entering the motors on the boat.

Although boats were considered a necessity for transportation until several years ago, today they are more a form of recreation and an indulgence towards a hobby. Granted that actually sailing on a boat is an experience an adventurous person would love above anything else, the technically oriented opt for the radio controlled variety of boat models to add to their collection of antique water-worthy artifacts.

Radio Controlled boats offer all the thrill of racing across the water, easy navigation and remote controls.

Other Boat Scale Models Info

Radio Control Boats

Ships and boats, yachts and submarines have long been the subject of fantasies nursed by the young and the old. The waters of the seas and oceans hold many secrets which to the mind of the hobbyist were shared by the sea vessels that sailed on them. One yearns to be part of the mystery and adventure that surrounds sailing. A very select few can afford to own sea faring yachts and boats. The rest of us live our dreams by owning ship or boat models that are fashioned after the real ships and boats.

Made to scale boats can be made to sail with the help of radio control equipment with which they are fitted. Such radio controlled boats can be operated remotely with the help of a multi channel radio transmitter. The radio transmitter is in the hands of the operator while there is a corresponding receiver on the boat. Signals are sent to the radio receiver on the boat by changing the position of the two joy sticks on the transmitter. The receiver on the boat is connected to two battery operated electric motors. Signals received from the radio transmitter which is handled by the operator are translated into instructions to run the motors as per directions.

With a host of websites and companies now offering ship and boat models, they are able to offer exciting deals backed by comparative rate studies.

Models can be handcrafted and made of wood or acrylic or a little of both. But fact remains that astute care is taken to deliver a finished and aesthetically produced boat model since it can be expected that one who would want to own a boat model for the love of owning a near original piece would settle for nothing less than a near perfect look alike. Radio controlled boats however have to be treated with more care since one cannot have water entering the motors on the boat.

Although boats were considered a necessity for transportation until several years ago, today they are more a form of recreation and an indulgence towards a hobby. Granted that actually sailing on a boat is an experience an adventurous person would love above anything else, the technically oriented opt for the radio controlled variety of boat models to add to their collection of antique water-worthy artifacts.

Radio Controlled boats offer all the thrill of racing across the water, easy navigation and remote controls.

Other Boat Scale Models Info

O’ahu – Honolulu – Pearl Harbor: USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park – USS Bowfin – Hatch

Submarine Models

Image taken on 2010-05-26 06:43:53 by wallyg.

Other Boat Scale Models Info

O’ahu – Honolulu – Pearl Harbor: USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park – USS Bowfin – Conning Tower

Submarine Models

Image taken on 2010-05-26 06:57:54 by wallyg.

Other Boat Scale Models Info

O’ahu – Honolulu – Pearl Harbor: USS Bowfin Submarine Museum and Park – 40 MM Quad Gun Assembly

Submarine Models

Image taken on 2010-05-26 06:28:37 by wallyg.

Other Boat Scale Models Info

USS Fulton (AS-11) submarine tender Display

Submarine Models

Image taken on 2006-08-01 02:04:13 by jacksnell.

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The Most Expensive Aircrafts Ever Made

If you consider yourself a self-confessed aviation aficionado, then welcome to the club! Airplanes, helicopters, rockets, jets… they name it, we know it. Most certainly you have already gone to numerous aircraft exhibits as well as international air shows and it has always been your dream to own at least one truly fascinating aircraft.
Now buying any aircraft is no joke. Owning one is a luxury you need to save up for, not unless you are a “billion-dollar baby”. But if you reckon you have saved up enough, here are the Top 10 of the most expensive, not to mention extravagant aircrafts that might interest you.
1. B2 Stealth Bomber – Northrop Grumman’s Advanced Technology ‘Spirit’ Bombers cost somewhere between $737 million and $2.2 billion with a cool $1.3 billion per aircraft, the most often cited figure. The B-2 is a low-observable, strategic, long-range, heavy bomber capable of penetrating sophisticated and dense air-defense shields. It is capable of all-altitude attack missions up to 50,000ft, with a range of more than 6,000nm unrefuelled and over 10,000nm with one refueling, giving it the ability to fly to any point in the world within hours. It has seen service against the mighty air defenses of Serbia, the Taliban, and Iraq.
2. Airbus A380 –designed to derive great economies of scale by transporting greater numbers of people than other planes for more or less the same cost in fuel, it costs $300 million. While most of the fuselage is aluminum, composite materials comprise more than 20% of the A380′s airframe. Carbon-fiber reinforced plastic, glass-fiber reinforced plastic and quartz-fiber reinforced plastic are used extensively in wings, fuselage sections (such as the undercarriage and rear end of fuselage), tail surfaces, and doors. From 2012, Airbus will offer, as an option, improved maximum take-off weight, thus providing a better payload/range performance.
3. H4 Hercules aka “Spruce Goose” – Built by the billionaire industrialist Howard Hughes, the world’s largest flying boat was actually made of birch not spruce. Costing an estimated $25 million at 1940s prices was the largest flying boat ever built with the widest wingspan. It was built after a U.S. government request in 1942 for a cargo and troop carrier that would not be susceptible to Axis submarines and not use critical wartime materials by substituting wood for metal in its construction.
4. VH-71 Kestrel – A high-tech replacement for the big green presidential ‘Marine One’ we often see lifting off from the White House South Lawn, the $241 million Kestrel was scrapped by Obama when he discovered it was running 50% over budget, but he was overruled. The total acquisition costs for the VH–71 Presidential Helicopter replacement program are projected to increase from $6.5 billion to $11.2 billion.
5. F22 Raptor – It was designed primarily as an air superiority fighter, but has additional capabilities that include attack, electronic, and signals intelligence role. Invisible to radar in stealth mode, it could shoot down cruise missiles and cover huge distances at supersonic speeds. The F-22 is highly maneuverable, at both supersonic and subsonic speeds. It is extremely departure-resistant, enabling it to remain controllable at extreme pilot inputs. . But a mere seven of these were to cost $1.67 billion.
6. P-8A Poseidon- ready your $290 million for this long-range anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft.
7. V-22 Osprey – Part-plane, part-helicopter, the $118-million Bell-Boeing tilt rotor takes off vertically but can fly further and faster than a chopper. It is designed to combine the functionality of a conventional helicopter with the long-range, high-speed cruise performance of a turboprop aircraft.
8. Gulfstream G550 – Nearly $60 million each, this is a strong aircraft with an international reach. Powered by enhanced Rolls-Royce BR710 turbofan engines, the G550 have a range of 6,750 nm at Mach 0.80 and a high-speed cruise capability of Mach 0.87. All this clearly appeals to its many celebrity owners who include Phillip Green, Greg Norman and Rush Limbaugh. Owners of the slightly less expensive G5 include Apple boss Steve software mogul Larry Ellison and Hollywood’s Jim Carrey.
9. Citation X – A cruising speed of Mach 0.92 or 607 mph means it’s not just the fastest business jet in history but now, the fastest civilian jet money can buy. A significant amount of effort throughout the design process was directed towards reducing the Citation X’s total drag. The resulting design includes an area-ruled fuselage for efficient transonic flight, and the aforementioned highly swept supercritical wing. The Citation X’s wing is slung below the fuselage rather than passing through it. This allows increased volume in the fuselage, a one-piece wing, and simplified wing-fuselage connections.
10. Pilatus PC-12 – Able to cover 2,239 nautical miles between refills, and at 310 mph, it’s as expensive as single-engine prop-jobs get at $3.5 million. Most PC-12s are used as corporate transports, but recent regulatory changes in Australia, Brazil, Canada, and the United States have cleared single engine turboprops such as the PC-12 for regional passenger transport operations in those countries.
While waiting for the day when you finally get one of these magnificent but rather expensive <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=”www.pacificaircraft.com”>aircrafts</a>, you can delight yourself by collecting <a rel=”nofollow” onclick=”javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview(‘/outgoing/article_exit_link’);” href=”www.pacificaircraft.com”>scale model airplane</a> replicas! That’s the next best thing to do, anyway! It is as close as you can get to the real thing (for the mean time), with a fraction of the cost! Have you picked one yet?