Patrolling the airspace above your layout .....Rittenhouse Aeroplane

I can't believe that unit is over a hundred years old and still works pretty well. Where do you find something like that?  It's really clever I think.  Is a transformer involved?

It sounds like some sort of maniacal finger removing device.

Any connection to the EVIL cabal, Rittenhouse, in the TV show, "Timeless"? 

That's pretty cool! 

  Small world, I literally just came from a vintage door chime site with Rittenhouse chimes; and along with a couple other new names, was about to hunt their overall products lists.

  I'm hunting Nu Tone, and lucky me (not), it seems to be a rare one. These are musical grade tube chimes 3' long and longer too, not just xylophone plates and a ding dong, some "play". They start at about $500 reconditioned for a simple ding dong in any brand. But it sure is a pretty tone; and all the tubes? looks outstanding.

Considering Rittenhouse was using low volt transformer motors and a.c. motors, I'd like to know how it is powered too. Also does it have reostat control, speed tap positions,  off/on, etc.

Brian Liesberg posted:

It sounds like some sort of maniacal finger removing device.

  With the electrical shock from the exposed wire, you don't feel a thing.

Thats why the 40s and 50s were so great. Natural selection had thinned the herd pretty well for decades previous to that.

  I had an early "muscle stimulation machine" that will give you the whole of the ac voltage if you let it. And I think it plays with the cycle by capacitence and wave chopping too. Earliest tube Ive seen outside of the Henry Ford/Greenfield Villiage Edison displays. I just powered it once and took some basic meter readings.

I'd run that plane in a heartbeat, the "health unit"; now that scared me.

Flies circles around my battery op. plastic helicopter on fishing line.

I was referring to the noise made by the propeller, I'm sure there isn't much torque behind it but it sounds mean.

Hello to those who look to the sky ...

Here is a link to some history about company 

http://www.knockdoorbells.com/history_rittenhouse.htm 

Earliest ad / mention of the plane I could find is 1913 ...and text reads as if it has just surfaced ... so online history may have some issues . 

I'm running the plane on a DC  power supply  12 Volts ..and 1 -1.5 amps ... seems to do the trick. .... Next experiment is to have long enough wire to set on floor ..and see if the little propeller can drag the plane around to obtain lift off .  

Below some pages from the original catalog ... claiming a 25' circle of flight ... my basement ceiling is 7' ...  so start out with 9'of wire and see if centrifugal forces work ? ...   for layout patrolling a shorter line will be needed as that is a lot of real estate to dedicate to a little  plane .  

Rittenhouse again advertised a plane in the early 30's ...using an airplane hanger as a base with a spring ? wire ? as a tither ...   no doubt Lionel saw this at some point before introducing their plane .  

Interesting that in 1913 Lionel comes out with the racing autos and Rittenhouse it's plane line. 

There are  at least two other planes out there in the world ...   ( that I know of..) .no doubt there are many more hiding in the wood work or circling over head ....

Judging from the basic "new" condition  of my plane ...and zero wear on the wheels ... I'd guess this plane has low air time ....big test will be if the propeller can move the tail dragger  and roll on the wooden wheels .

Some how I doubt the toy drones of today .....will be working 100 years from now where as the Rittenhouse has a good shot at celebrating it's 200th birthday up in the air . 

If anyone out there ....in the world ...has Rittenhouse plane please share your photos and flight experience 

Cheers Carey

Cheers Carey 

Fantastic find!  I wonder if the Rittenhouse company has any relationship to Navy Lt. David Rittenhouse, an early Naval Aviator, who won the 1923 Schneider Trophy in his Curtiss CR-3 racer.

Bob Nelson

Wow! That is an interesting history lesson.   That must have been quite an inspiring toy back in the day.

Where did you happen to find your plane?

-Greg

Brian Liesberg posted:

I was referring to the noise made by the propeller, I'm sure there isn't much torque behind it but it sounds mean.

 

• No way I'm testing the theory. Your first point was pretty valid. I had 60s outdoors versions in battery electric and Cox gas, and some bloody knuckles on occasion.
• The toy type is a lot of fun. 
• I wonder who made the very first one, Rittenhouse wasn't alone before Lionels, that's  for sure. I can't recall the name offhand, but another was made here in Mich. before Lionels too.

Wow!!!

Adriatic posted:  No way I'm testing the theory.

I've gotten my fingers in a few old brass fans (the switch is very close to the blades), it hurts a bit but the old AC brushless motors don't provide enough power to really do any damage (about equivalent to whacking your knuckle on a doorframe).

Granted they're almost dead silent, and what little noise they do make doesn't sound like a food processor  

Hello world ..

Bob I have not found a connection between  Arthur E Rittenhouse  his son Lloyd...and David the aviator .  

Shall I bring the Aeroplane with about 50' of line to circle over the SGMA layout in Milwaukee? ..... .maybe not ...

There are various hot air balloon type toys and  windup  planes for hanging ... .. but Rittenhouse is the only electric plane I've found during this early period .  

Cheers Carey  

Carey,

By all means bring it.  However, I am pretty sure Trainfest management will not let  you (us) run it above the SGMA layout particularly since the 50' of line will be "hot".

Bob

  I will hunt the other name down for you Carey, just for reference, there IS an old thread with mention of it. (in fact I think that was another item I was looking into when a thread started just a few days later)

I saw that 100' claim to fame; that would be impressive.

...but Bob, its only 12v dc exposed, (AND the command tracks are 18vac and often quite reachable.)......thats all I got "as is" 

Is that wire original? If not, some cloth covered wire might help ease the worry of the faint of heart.

  Perhaps adding a (plastic coated) steel saftey cable could provide enough "comfort" for managment. Half their hvac ducts might be hung with similar light gauge cable and suffer way more long term vibration for decades. ....1lb. 1.5lb, thats "nothing".

...hey, all they can really say is no.

Gee, Next the shows will pull live steam due to coal smell......oh wait, thats real.  

(Lucky us, the show nearest here has a garage area and can still open the doors for ventilation )

Hello Bob ..... the offer of having it fly over the heads of the public .... was a joke ....liability.... Milwaukee paper headlines ...WW1 areoplane bombs panicked  crowd at Model RR show ..stampede ...occurs ...........let's not go there 

Best flight for Rittenhouse plane in today's litigious world will be over my layout for guests to see ...

I'll post a video of future flights .... experiment to see if it will take off from floor ...and over the layout ...down the road . 

Yes a safety line will be run parallel with the hot lines ...  ...no need to test gravity encase of a break 

If you find more info about the Rittenhouse planes please share 

Thank you Cheers Carey 

United Electric, Spirit of St Louis Show Piece, Alden Mi. Late 1920s. Not older. Two planes on a tower.

There were two threads on it, both have been deleted.

Tinplate Times has covered it.

Hello Adriatic 

Thank you for pointing me in the direction of the United Electric "Sprite of St Louis " .....   hear are a few photos ..and a link t the article found on Tinplatetimes.com 

http://www.tinplatetimes.com/T...irplane/airplane.htm

Article describes how  the (powered) plane is suppose to take off from the ground and head to the sky ...but the author was unable to realize these claims ...so just the spinning around ... there is video...

neat but for my money get a Rittenhouse and spin from the ceiling ...  all fun toys for the layout 

Cheers Carey 

Hello to all who look up to the skies ....

Rittenhouse update .....  set up an experiment of having the Bleroit trying to take off from the ground ( runway ) ....no go....drag from tail , wood wheels, small prop , etc etc .....it tries to move forward but not enough momentum to circle and take off .....perhaps a the gravitation force was less in 1914 which allowed flight from the ground ?    

Update #2 ...Bleroit has a new friend little Scout #19 ....  ...also listed in the Rittenhouse catalog .... cute little plane ...much bigger motor in ratio compared to Bleroit ...  but still not enough thrust from little propeller to get enough ground movement to have ground take off ....once in air she circles ..... ..... so take a flight in a Scout

Cheers Carey  

either Rittenhouse plane will shot down cobwebs lingering over your layout 

So cool!

OMG too cool, oh what a temptation to build a cardboard Empire State Building and put a stuffed monkey on it and have two planes buzzing around it.

Deja vu, "Great minds think alike", ..

...ditto...

Send a couple my way and you can live vicariously without all the work