PART I

By S T E W A R T ROUSE

Man is fast becoming air-minded, and many are

experiencing a desire to own an airplane. This is a
very normal situation, for the airplane entered the
field of practical carriers at the close of the World
War, and since that time has gained public accept-
ance. Contrary to popular belief, flying is not pro-
hibitively expensive. T h e cost per passenger for any
trip in the average five-passenger monoplane is about
the Same as it would be for the Same trip in a large,
high-grade, five-passenger automobile.
During 1924-1928 airplane manufacturers built
a large number of very efficient two, three and five-

planes powered with the OX-5,90 hp training plane

motor. These airplanes sold for about the Same price
as a very good automobile. T h e supply of new war-
time motors is about exhausted now and the manu-
facturers are powering their products with excellent
new production motors, which, due to small produc-

The young man who wishes to build up the 200 hours of flying time
necessary to obtain a license as a transport pilot will find the building and
flying of a Heath Parasol a satisfactory means of acquiring the skill and
kmwledge necessary to become a skilled pilot. This plane contains practically
all the parts of a larger ship, and in building it the young pilot will obtain a
thorough knowledge of airplane anafomy. The Heath Parasol
is an unsually economical light plane to fly.
 Tom Nelson. Trans~ortPi-
nmate,
"Para-

tion, and strong demand, are so expensive that the

price of plane and motor together is a t least double
the cost with wartime motors of similar power.
This state of affairs has suddenly turned the at-
tention of the air-minded to light one and two-pas-
senger airplanes capable of flying with from 20 to 60
hp. Low power motors are comparatively inexpensive
due t o their small size and simplicity. There are large The purpose of this and the following two articles is
stocks of Anzani 30 to 60 hp motors available a t very to describe what is probably the most practical light
low prices. Several makes of motorcycle motors can plane yet built, and to present complete plans, details,
be converted into successful light plane motors cap- and instructions for its construction.
able of astonishing performance. A light airplane This light airplane is the externally braced, sin-
can be constructed quite inexpensively, and its cheap gle-seat monoplane, regularly powered with a Hender-
power plant makes the complete plane within the son "Deluxe" motorcycle engine, converted for air-
reach of the industrious man of average means. I t is plane use, which is known as the Heath "Super-Para-
probably better t o build a small airplane first, instead sol" Sportplane, after E. B. Heath, who, with Claire
of a large one, for it takes much better engineering Linsted, designed it. E. B. Heath built his first air-
t o make a large one strong; in fact, it is almost un- plane in 1908, and has operated a factory, building
heard of for a light plane to prove weak. A light planes to his own designs ever since.
plane of modern design is quite safe to fly and cer- His first light plane which could be considered
tainly a very inexpensive traveling machine, both to as of the modern series, of which the "Super-Parasol"
produce and maintain. monoplane is the latest, was the "Feather" built in
One strong objection to building a full-size plane 1918-1919, and powered with a 7 hp Thor Motor-
is the great number of hours of labor necessary for cycle motor!
completion. The author of this article spent three Considering its low horsepower this little biplane
years of his spare time, with the aid of an assistant, flew very well. Several other low power motors were
in building a five-passenger ,monoplane t o his own
designs. This included nearly all Saturday afternoons,
Sundays, and a t least one night per week. I t took
over 2,000 factory hours to build Lindbergh's "Spirit
of St. Louis." An interested handy man should be
able to build a successful light plane in a fraction
of this time, provided he has accurate and complete
plans, correct instruction and complete information.

tried in this plane with varying results. Using some
of the data gained in the experiments with the "Feath-
er", Heath designed and built in 1921-23 a biplane
known as the "Favorite", powered with an OX-5, 90
hp motor. This plane is still one of the most efficient
90 hp planes in the world, and carries four large pas-
sengers with ease.
I t created a sensation in 1923 by a flight with
four passengers from Chicago to St. Louis, where it
won all the races in its class for efficiency and speed
at the 1923 National Air Races. After this triumph in
low power weight carrying, Heath continued his light
plane researches, and in 1925 he and Claire Linsted
designed and constructed a new light plane, the "Tom-
Boy" (see Fig. 1 above and photo on Page 3 2 ) .
This was a full cantilever monoplane racer (by canti-
lever is meant that the wings and tail had no external
brace, wires or struts) with about 78 sq. ft. of wing
area; powered with a 32 hp Bristol "Cherub" motor,
and capable of an extreme top speed of about 103
mph. It won the light plane races of the 1926 Na-
tional Air Races at Philadelphia with great ease, un-
der the skilled guidance of Heath. The prizes won,
totaled $2,500.00!
In November, 1925, the first real " ~ a r a s o l "was
designed and built by Ed Heath and Claire Linsted.
It had a fuselage of small steel tubing, simple steel
fittings and aircraft wire. The wings were a pair of
Thomas-Morse Army Scout lower wings, externally
braced with steel tubes and bracing cables. The "Para-
sol" flew strongly with a Henderson motorcycle en-
gine, converted for airplane use. The flight testing
of this light plane was done by Thomas E. Nelson, a
transport pilot of the National Air Transport. He was
Lindbergh's roommate at Maywood, Ill., before the
latter's meteoric rise to fame. At that time he kept
a Henderson engine, which he was converting for
light plane use, under his bed. Subsequent work on
conversion methods by Heath refined this "Heath-
34
Fig. 1 of photos. This
shows the first of the pres-
ent day Heath string of
wonderful light planes.
The "Tomboy" is also
shown on Page 32 round-
ing the pylon at PiPila-
delphia i n the 1926 Nation-
al Air Races.
Henderson'' motor to an efficient little aviation motor,
and such motors are giving fine service as the stock
motor equipment of the present "Super-Parasol."
E. B. Heath decided to make a racer for the
1927 National Air Races a t Spokane. H e used just a
refined 'rParasol" with a modern wing, and a 32 hp
Bristol "Cherub" motor. This neat little monoplane
was known as the "Spokane Super-Parasol", and won
the light and sport plane races, and' $1,000.00 in
prizes, although its speed was not as great as the
"Tom-Boy's", being about 90 mph. However, the
"Tom Boy" is a true racer, while the "Spokane Su-
per-Parasol" is a practical plane and easy to fly. The
"Super-Parasol" is exactly the same as the "Spokane
Super-Parasol", with the two exceptions of having
a slightly larger wing area, and a "Heath Henderson"
27 hp engine, instead of the 32 hp Bristol "Cherub"
motor. The Bristol "Cherub", though a more power-
ful motor, is not recommended for installation in
homebuilt planes because of its cost and the difficulty
of obtaining Parts, which come from England.
In the spring of 1928 Heath designed and
built his "Baby Bullet." This is the smallest airplane
in the world, and certainly one of the fastest, as its
top speed, with pilot alone, is 150 mph when opened
up. Small size, a small frontal area, extremely refined
streamlining, and a light, reliable motor are re-
sponsible for this tremendous speed. The fuselage
is constructed of steel tubing and wire in the front
half, and duralumin tubing and wire in the rear. The
wings are of conventional constmction excepting for
the ailerons, the hinge lines of which are diagonal
to the rest of the wing structure. There are no shock
absorbers save the tires. The wing tmss is made of
eight streamline wires, the lower four of which pul1
directly from the Centers of the hubs. The hubs are
fastened together by a larger streamline wire in place
of an axle.
With this racer Heath won the light and sport
 Here she is! This shows
the p r o f i l e o f the Heath
Super-Parasol l i g h t air-
plane which Modern Me-
chanics is presenting its
"how t o build" fans! The
m e n are d r a w n to scale so
that a good comparison of
relative sizes can easily be
made. She's a fine ship!

Figure 4
. ..-C*---_...
...*.....-.. ..

iir ur iP'.iro*
"Si"0 ),>L <O(ll,

'SUPER PAWASOL
SCALE IN F E E T SWlPLANE

LIDE V l E W

Details f o r laying o u t the floor i i g f o r fuselage building are given here w i t h a l l necessary
notations and dimensions, together w i t h a scale b y means of which the sizes of parts not
clear may be readily deterrnined. Follow the plans carefully. Do n o t Change a Single thing!

Two m e n are here d r a w n t o scale and foreshortened

iust a b i t t o show how t h e "Super-Parasol" would
look f r o m the prop end of the ship. Note the splendid
visibility which the p i l o t has! Small frontal area,
weights hung low, and good t a i l length make t h e
"parasol" simple t o fly.
. . .
plane races a t the 1928 National Air Races a t Los
Angeles, California. The prize money amounted to
$1,500.00. The "Baby Bullet" was unofficially timed
about the five mile triangular Course a t 142 mph. Its
official time for the 50 mile race was 112 mph, car-
rying a weight of 75 lbs. in addition to the pilot. See
accompanying box for measurement data.
Parasol Easy to Fly
The "Super-Parasol", being easy t o fly and eco-
nomical in maintenance, is a n ideal plane to use in
acquiring the 200 hours flying time it is necessary
to have before one can become a tramport pilot,
which is the highest air license one can get. Possessing
practically every part found in a large plane, it is just
as educational to build. The safety factor is about
10 to 1; that is, all parts are about 10 times as strong
as necessary for level flight, making it very safe for
stunting if carefully assembled. In cross-country work
it is very economical, consuming but 1 t o 1 % gals.
of gasoline per hour and traveling about 60 t o 65
mph a t cruising speed. The cockpit is roomy and can
be upholstered to suit the taste. Visibility is very
good, the parasol type being the best ship obtainable
in this respect. The controls operate with ease, and the
ship is possessed of great inherent stability. I t is Safe
to fly in any weather that is Safe for a 90 hp JN4 or
Standard training plane.
Construction of the "Super-Parasol" should pre-
sent no difficulty for the practical man. Ordinary
hand woodworking tools are needed, as are a few files,
cold chisels, pliers, small end wrenches, hand drill,
punches, heavy tin snips, soldering material, small
dies, and a hack saw with plenty of blades! There is a
small amount of brazing to be done on certain joints,
which can be done cheaply in any locality. A small
machinist's vise is necessary. Follow the plans with
care, and remember that the structure must not only
look strong, but it must be strong. Put no unnecessary
scratches on any of the material for "Strength re-
sides in the surface." If any part is in any way imper-
fect discard it and obtain another.
How Motor I s Converted
The back end of the Henderson "Deluxe" motor
becomes the front in the airplane conversion. T h e fly-
wheel cover is sawed off ahead of the flywheel, and
the flywheel is removed from the crankshaft end. The
crankshaft extension is riveted on the crankshaft fly-
wheel flange, and the extension is machined integral
with the crankshaft according t o drawings in Part
11. The end of the crankcase is then faced t o make
a seat for the Heath-supplied cover plate. T h e cover
plate carries a ball thrust bearing to take the propeller
thrust. T h e propeller hub slides onto the extension
and is held in place by a key and an end nut. Closed
type engine bearings are used, instead of the regular
Open type Henderson engine bearings. This raises the
oil pressure to 75 or 100 lbs., instead of the usual 5
or 10 lbs. Heath Airplane Co., 1727 Sedgwick St.,
Chicago, Ill., is probably able to do the machining
better than other agencies, as they have special
equipment for this job.
"BABY BULLET" DATA
Span . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8 ft.
Length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 3 ft.
Height . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 ft.
Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 3 5 Ibs.
Chord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3 ft. 6 in.
Wing Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . St. Cyr 52
Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 0 sq. ft.
Landing speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 mph
Top speed (pilot only) . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 5 0 mph
Motor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 hp Bristol Cherub
Propeller-Heath . . . . . . . 4 ft. 4 in. diameter,
3 ft. 6 in. pitch
T h e propeller is designed t o utilize the 27 hp
available to the fullest advantage, and the maker's
price for it is so low as to make carving it almost
a waste of time.
The Fuselage
The fuselage is truly the backbone of the air-
plane. In the "Super-Parasol" the engine mount is the
nose of the structure, as shown in the drawing on
Page 35. Just back of this and just beneath the mono-
plane wing is the pilot's cockpit. At the extreme
rear of the fuselage, the .tail group or empennage is
attached. The landing gear is so attached that its axle
is almost below the leading edge of the monoplane
wing. T h e fuselage must be made very carefully, for
surprisingly great strains develop in a n airplane's
structure during landings. I t must be durable, as it
must stand years of Service.
As it is impractical to show all dimensions on
an airplane plan, it will be well to thoroughly ac-
quaint oneself with the use of the draftsman's scale.
You can obtain one of these little triangular cross-
sectioned rulers from anyone selling drawing ma-
terial~,and they or any architect or draftsman can,
in a few minutes, show you how to determine the size
of any Part in the plan. As these plans have been
greatly reduced in size for publication, it is best to
obtain a Set of the large blueprints from the manu-
facturer, as the large drawings make scaling accurate
and easy.
Floor Jig Required
T h e first operation is to draw, with chalk, a full
size, complete and accurate plan of one side of the
fuselage (See Figure 4-A) on a level wooden floor.
Use double lines to show the struts (the vertical
tubes) and the longerons (the main tubes running
fore and aft). Do not include the motor mount A C D,
as this is constructed separately, being detachable;
the wing supporting tubes, or the landing gear struts.
Now prepare a quantity of wooden blocks about 1 in.
by 1 in. by 2 % in., and nail these in pairs one on
each side of the outlines a t about 18 in. intervals. The
purpose of this is to make the floor jig in which long-
erons and struts can be placed in order to have every-
thing fit perfectly before the installation of strap fit-
tings, bolts, rivets, wire and turnbuckles. Shelby seam-
less steel tubing is used throughout the structure. The
longerons require a splice a t J and K (see Figure 4-B).
This requires the rear tube to be slipped into the
front tube about 5 in., and then held by three two-
penny shingle nails passed clear through both tubes
and riveted. I t is well to braze the end of the front
tube to the wall of the rear tube. Lay the top longeron
in the jig. I t will require no bending for it runs
straight from C to R. Next put the bottom longeron
in the jig. I t requires a slight bend a t K. Before this
bend is made, it is best to make struts b C , JK, stern-
post RS, and the necessary sheet meta1 fittings to
hold these struts in place.
With the hacksaw cut off the struts about i/8 in.
longer than apparently necessary. Slip a 21/q, in.
length of the next size smaller tube of the Same gauge
into the end of the strut. Heat the strut end cherry
red with a blow torch or gas burner, and squeeze the
last in. or so flat in the vise while red. All strut
and tube ends are prepared in this way. Do not flat-
ten the ends any farther than just past the end of the
sheet steel fittings, as further flattening would weaken
the joint. The reinforcement is absolutely necessary
(See Figure 4-C). Flatten both ends of each strut in
the Same way. Then lay the struts in their correct
places in the jig. They should just fit with each end
against a longeron. Correct the errors with hacksaw
and file.
T o make a typical 20 gauge sheet steel fitting to
clamp a strut to a longeron, cut with the tin snips
GENERAL SPEClFlCATlONS OF THE
"SUPER-PARASOL" SPORTPLANE
Span . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 5 f t .
Chord . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 ft. 6 in.
Angle of incidence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 deg.
Wing area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 1 0 sq. ft.
Aileron area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0 sq. ft.
Elevator area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.2 sq. ft.
Stabilizer area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.5 sq. ft.
Fin area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1.0 sq. ft.
Rudder area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3.8 sq. ft.
Length over oll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 ft. 9 in.
Height over oll . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 ft. 1 0 in.
Weight, empty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260 Ibs.
Useful load . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 0 0 Ibs.
Gas capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 gal.
Oil capacity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 qts.
High speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 mph
Landing speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 8 mph
Cruising radius . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 miles
MOTOR SPEClFlCATlONS
Type ............ 4-cyl., vertical air-cooled
Horsepower . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 a t 3,000 rpm
Oil pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 Ibs.
Gas consumption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Y2 gph
Propeller . . . . . Special Heath wood propeller
of 4 ft. 6 in. diameter
a rectangular piece large enough to encircle the long-
eron and then clamp flat, covering the flattened Part
of the strut end. Make it a little large; it can be cor-
rected with hacksaw and tin snips. Bend it around a
short piece of tube the Same size as the longeron,
put the free ends of the sheet steel in the vise with
the tube still in place, and then squeeze flat. A neat
fitting, only needing a little trimming and drilling
for bolts and rivets will result (see Figure 4-D, Fig-
Ure 3).
Now install struts CD and JK with their sheet
steel fittings and secure each fitting to its longeron
with a rivet made of a two-penny shingle nail
passed entirely through the tube and fitting. Now put
the bend at K in the bottom longeron very carefully.
Install the stern post. Next install all the other struts
according to Figure 1, Figure 3.
Next in order is the installation of the hard wire
and turnbuckles. This should be done with the frame
lying in the jig for easy accuracy. The method of
making hard wire ends is shown in Figure 4-T. Two
JA in. bolts are secured firmly in the vise, and the
wire is slipped through the space between them. Slip
two ferrules on the wire before bending, one for each
end. The wire is bent into an end loop as shown with
the ferrule to hold the end together. Never bend any
wire more than once in a place, and See that the wire
has no scratches or splits, no matter how small. The
shoulders should be rather' sharp, and the ferrule
slipped up snugly against them; finally the wire end
is hooked sharply to hold the ferrule in place, and
filed off. Each brace wire consists of two lengths of
hard wire with a turnbuckle at the Center. The wires
for the front Part of the fuselage, back to the strut JK
are 12 gauge plated hard wire, with No. 324 double-
eyed turnbuckles. Their ends are held in the fuselage
joint fittings by 3/16 in. machine screws passing
through the sides of the fitting and the loop end of
the wire. From the strut JK to the stern post, the brac-
ing is 14 gauge plated hard wire, with No. 322 double-
eyed turnbuckles, with the wire ends held in the fu-
selage fittings with yu in. machine screws.