It’ll be pneumatic.

Truckloads! I’d hate think how much now, but twenty years ago you were looking at about $50,000 for the prop and about $10,000 for a serviceable spinner and backplate. Blades were being made by Avia in the Czech Republic, but I believe their blade forge was recently decomissioned. Serviceable prop spiders and hub shells are getting scarce. Still, as proven by the Spitfire Mk 1 projects flying in the past year, if you throw enough cash at the problem, nothing is technically insurmountable.

JOE-FBS,

I think you have confused the DH-89 Rapide with the straight DH-84 Dragon. Yes, there are quite a few DH-89 Rapides, but it seems there are very few DH-84 Dragons flying now.

The poor little Gipsy Majors are doing their very best! 🙂
I didn’t stop to think how many Dragons have survived, but here in Oz, the two airworthy examples I have seen – one is no longer with us and the other stuck in a museum. 🙁
I guess I’ll have to go to NZ for a Dragon fix now…

Also fitted to Wirraways! 🙂

A number of companies are known to have microfilmed some or all of their surviving drawings back in the 50’s & 60’s, these included Hawker/Sopwith, Dehavilland, Airspeed, Handley Page, Avro, & Bristol. Whether all these microfilm/microfiche cards still exist is another matter.
I have never heard of Blackburn’s, General Aircraft, glosters, English Electric, or Armstrong Whitworth’s doing this, but we can all live in hope that they did.

Bob T.

I have been told that the Avro archives burned down at Chadderton in 1959 and all the early civvie aircraft drawings were lost. 🙁

No takers? This Wot is an Australian design and not very successful at all. Flew with three different engines.

Ok, bear with me boys and girls until I can get home to post the next Wot. 🙂