Taylorcraft Model B

Taylorcraft Model B
Restored BL-65
Type:	Light aircraft
Design country:	United States
Manufacturer:	Taylorcraft Aviation
First flight:	1938
Production time:	1938 to 1941, 1945 to 1992
Number of pieces:	2401 (until December 1941), 4520 (1945 to 1992)

The Taylorcraft Model B is a light aircraft made by the US manufacturer Taylorcraft Aviation (Taylor Young Airplane Company until February 1939) from the late 1930s.

history

1938 to 1941

At the beginning of 1938, the management of Taylorcraft realized that their previous Model A , equipped with a 40 hp engine, would no longer be competitive with the expected competition models in the 50 hp boxer engine class. The strongest, recently presented rivals on this market were the Piper J-3 Cub and the Luscombe Model 8 . In the spring of 1938, Aeronca also presented its Chief model.

The main aim of the new Taylorcraft model was to increase the engine power. The Taylorcraft BC therefore received the 50 hp A-50 from the same manufacturer instead of the Continental A-40 used in the Taylorcraft A. The BC (C stood for Continental) received its Aircraft Type Certificate (ATC 696) on August 24, 1938.

Soon an engine alternative was offered with the Franklin 4AC -150. The approval of this model with the designation Taylorcraft BF (F for Franklin) took place on September 19, 1938 (ATC 699). Shortly thereafter, on September 22, 1938 (ATC 900), the BL variant followed with a 50 hp Lycoming O-145 . The three versions were produced in roughly equal numbers.

The BC-65 with a 65-HP Continental A65 from 1939 and the BF-60 with a 60-HP Franklin 4AC-171, the BF-65 (65-HP Franklin 4AC-176-B2) and the BL-65 (65-PS-Lycoming O-145-B1) from 1940.

From September 1939 a training version was also offered, which was used in many flight schools as part of the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP, also abbreviated to CPT), which was launched in April 1939 . Its suitability as a training aircraft benefited from the fact that the Model B only had a low inherent stability, which came close to the properties of the agile military aircraft that the student pilots were to fly in the future. Within the CPT program, only the 50 hp Lycoming version with a blue-painted fuselage and silver-colored wings was used.

Around December 1940 Taylorcraft presented the B-12, a luxury version of the B-Model, which, in addition to an improved interior, was also given a two-tone paint job. The number 12 indicated the increased take-off weight of 1200 lb (545 kg). In addition to the BC-12 (with the 65 HP Continental engine), Taylorcraft also produced the BF-12 and BL-12 variants in smaller numbers.

After 1945

BC-12-D

During the Second World War, Taylorcraft manufactured not only components for the aircraft industry, but mainly the military version of the Model D , which the USAAF designated as the L-2 . The civil aircraft production was stopped during this time. But on August 30, 1945, the company celebrated the resumption of civil production with a ceremony with the roll-out of a BC-12-D. The BC-12-D (also BC-12D Twosome) received its type certification in November 1945. The improvements over the pre-war model included enlarged tail surfaces, a one-piece windshield and hundreds of other small improvements. By the end of the year the production number totaled 252 BC-12-D.

A stripped-down version of the BC-12-D was the Taylorcraft Ace, while the Taylorcraft DeLuxe was a revised and improved luxury version of the BC-12D. Other variants were the Traveler and Sportsman. The further developments F-19 Sportsman, F-21 and F-22, which were produced between 1973 and 1992, were the last Taylorcraft aircraft that were still based on the Model B.

construction

The main changes compared to Model A took place in the area of ​​the nose of the fuselage, as an increase in the flight weight was already taken into account in the design of the previous Model A. The wings, tail unit, fuselage and landing gear remained practically unchanged. The curb weight of the first model BC only increased from 595 lb to 640 lb, of which 26 lb was accounted for by the more powerful A-50 engine. In the cockpit, the switch from the Y-shaped control column to an H-shaped control unit, which became standard on all later side-by-side Taylorcraft models, was most obvious. The volume of the tank located in front of the cabin increased from 10 to 12 gallons (45.4 L), which allowed a theoretical flight time of 2.5 hours. As with Model A, the cylinders were located in a section of the engine cover in the air flow.

As with all pre-war Taylor designs, the fuselage structure consisted of fabric-covered welded steel tubes. While the standard B-model was entered via a door on the right-hand side, the B-12 had two doors. The braced wings had a NACA-23012 profile and a structure with spruce spars and aluminum ribs. The front edges were covered with metal, while the remaining areas were covered with fabric. The ailerons also had this design. The chassis had a split axle as well as rubber band suspension and damping. Additional equipment options included the use of Edo floats or runners, navigation lights, radio and dual ignition.

variants

Model B

BC-50: 50-horsepower Continental A-50, price: $ 1,765 (1938)

BC-65: 65-PS-Continental-A-65

BL-50: 50-PS Lycomin, Price: $ 1,665 (1938)

BL-55: 55-hp Lycoming with double ignition

BL-65: 65-PS Lycoming

BF-50: 50-horsepower Franklin 4AC-150, approximately 100 copies made until the outbreak of World War II, price: $ 1,665 (1938)

BF-60: 60 hp Franklin

Trainer model of the Civilian Pilot Training Program

BLT-65S: 65-PS-Lycoming, S stood for single ignition

BFT-65D: 65 HP Franklin, D stood for double ignition

BLT-65D: 65-hp Lycoming with dual ignition

BCT-65D: 65 HP Continental with double ignition

Model B-12 DeLuxe

BC-12, Price: $ 2,035 (1941)

BL-12 $ 2055 (1941)

BF-12, $ 2095 (1941)

Duotone color combinations of the B-12

upper torso	Dividing strip	lower hull
ivory	black	blue
yellow	White	black
ivory	black	chestnut
red	gold	black
yellow	black	blue

Post war pattern

Model BC-12D

Ace

BC-12D DeLuxe (65 PS Special DeLuxe, 85 PS Custom DeLuxe)

BC-12D Traveler

BC-12D-85 (F-19) Sportsman (85 PS), F-19 Sportsman 100 (Continental O-200 with 100 PS)

F-21 (Lycoming O-235 with 115 hp), F-21A (1500 lb all-up weight), F-21B (1750 lb all-up weight)

F-22 (flaps, nose wheel landing gear optional)

Technical specifications

Parameter	Data BC (in brackets)
crew	1
Passengers	1
length	6.71 m
span	10.98 m
height	2.03 m
Wing area	15.61 m²
Empty mass	(287 kg)
Takeoff mass	477 kg (500 kg)
Top speed	145 km / h (157 km / h)
Cruising speed	(140 km / h)
Landing speed	(56 km / h)
Climb performance	130 m / min (137 m first minute)
Service ceiling	(4570 m)
Range	380 km
Takeoff route	122 m
Engines	a Continental four-cylinder A-50 four-cylinder boxer engine with 50 hp (37 kW)

See also

• List of aircraft types

literature

• Taylorcraft - A Complex Classic . In: AIR Enthusiast Forty-Five, March to May 1992, pp. 52-55
• Chet Peek: The Taylorcraft Story , Aviation Heritage Library Series, 1992, ISBN 0-943691-08-7 , pp. 63-85
• Leonard Bridgman (Ed.): Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1945-1946. Samson Low, Marston & Company, Ltd., London 1946, p. 312c

Web links

Commons : Taylorcraft B  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Photos and data of a restored BL-65
• Restored BC-65 in the Port Townsend Aero Museum
• BC-12D equipped with floats on museumofflight.org

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ATC 696
2. ↑ ATC 699
3. ↑ ATC 700
4. ↑ Taylorcraft BC-12-D Ace in Flying Magazine December 1946, p. 123
5. ↑ AIR Enthusiast Forty-Five , p. 55
6. ↑ Chet Peek: The Taylorcraft Story , p. 71