Flight, October 1935

FOR the FASTIDIOUS
In the Air with the Latest Stinson Reliant: A Four-seater Cabin Monoplane with Unusual Refinements

   IT has always been maintained by Flight that an aeroplane designed expressly for the private owner should be not only easily handled, but finished, both inside and outside, in a style comparable with that of a good car. Solid fittings and familiar layouts will do more to make the new passenger at home in the air than anything else, and the aircraft manufacturers have not even yet tapped the prospective, but still largely uneducated, "luxury" market.
   The new Stinson Reliant, which is being handled in this country by Brian Allen Aviation, Ltd., of Croydon, has just that appearance of solidity and familiar comfort which calms the timid and is, withal, a comparatively simple machine in its handling. The word "comparatively" is deliberately used, inasmuch as no aeroplane is yet, or is likely to be completely foolproof. There are levers and switches to move and distances to be gauged when driving the most modern of easy-to-drive cars. Flaps have been fitted to simplify the handling of an already easily handled machine with an ordinary performance, rather than to make a very clean machine less difficult for the ordinary pilot.
   Every piece of mechanism which is not essential for actual operation has been tucked away out of sight; the immediately adjustable front seats and the wide rear seat are more comfortable than those usually found in cars; the windows can be wound down without a draught resulting; and the cabin is quiet and vibrationless even when the engine is being run at full throttle. The exterior finish is so good that the uninitiated would undoubtedly be surprised to learn that the fuselage is, in fact, fabric-covered. One could continue almost indefinitely in the description of small features which are, nevertheless, most important, but three of them might be given. In the case of all cabin machines the rearward view is necessarily poor, but a mirror-cum-ventilator in the roof can be adjusted so that either pilot at the moment of take-off may be sure that no machines are coming in to land; the main fuse is quickly removable in the event of a short in any part of the electrical installation; and the luggage locker has within a small electric light which is automatically switched on when the outside door is opened. Light luggage, incidentally, can be carried beneath or behind the rear seats.
   The 1935 model Stinson Reliant may be regarded as a development, by way of the 1933 and 1934 Reliants, of the Stinson "R," which, like the Reliant, has frequently been seen in this country. Welded steel tubular construction with fabric covering is employed for the fuselage, whereas the fabric-covered wings have solid spruce spars and metal ribs. The section is Clark Y. Metal construction is used for the pneumatically operated flaps. An undercarriage of the split divided type is used, each leg of which is hinged to a stub extending from the fuselage, with Aerol shock absorbers, low-pressure tyres and hydraulic brakes.
   The 1935 model has a slightly longer nose than its predecessors, its fuselage is rather more rounded, and the wing tips are "washed out." A 225 h.p. Lycoming R-680-4 radial is fitted as standard, and is housed in a full, quickly detachable N.A.C.A. cowling with scalloping for the valve gear. Either a Hamilton Standard or a Lycoming-Smith controllable-pitch airscrew may be used, though the actual machine was fitted with the latter.
   The new machine has control columns which protrude through the instrument panel, displacing the older Y-type and allowing more room for the pilot and the passenger or second pilot.
   The addition of a c.p. airscrew control to those already in use on a normal aeroplane might be frowned upon by the uninitiated, but, in fact, as a short flying trial proved, the operation of this control is simplicity itself, and any effort is amply repaid by an improved take-off. The Smith airscrew can be adjusted to suit the speed of climb to the best engine revolutions and it is only necessary to remember to "change down" to fine pitch during the approach to an aerodrome in readiness for another take-off.
   In both flying and taxying attitude the view from the pilot's seat is extremely good; at cruising speeds the top of the engine cowling is quite a long way below the horizon level and the glide, even with the flaps up, is sufficiently steep to ensure a good view of an aerodrome or field.
   Provided that conditions are not too rough the Reliant will fly at cruising revolutions hands-off and feet-off at the same time, and will turn accurately on the rudder alone. Gentle work with the rudder will bring it out of a turn and into one in the other direction without appreciable sideslip, the reversal of turn taking place with almost entire accuracy. Both rudder and aileron controls are light, while the fore-and-aft control is sufficiently heavy to prevent any of that accidental pitching which is so uncomfortable for passengers. It is, perhaps, a little unfair to criticise a feature to which one would undoubtedly become accustomed, but the tail-trimming handle in the roof appeared to be awkwardly placed and is rather too low geared for rapid work in an emergency. Although it would not be impossible to hold the nose tip in a glide without altering the trim the effort is quite considerable and is impossible to exercise with one hand while half-turned in the seat. In a comparatively large machine the tail-trimming gear is an essential and should be both quickly and easily operated.
   It would be difficult to imagine that anyone could misjudge his approach with flaps as effective and as quickly applied as those on the new Reliant. After closing the throttle the tail trimmer is wound until the speed is down to 80 m.p.h. or so, at which the glide is quite steep. As the aerodrome boundary is approached a little high the movement of a switch on the dashboard brings down the flaps, which have a strong and personally felt braking effect, and the note automatically drops. At the slightest suggestion of undershooting the flaps can be momentarily switched up again, while a little distance is gained. With the flaps down and the air speed below 60 m.p.hr, the angle of descent is extremely steep, and the flaps can, if a hurried descent is necessary, be put down at speeds as high as 120 m.p.h. without straining the structure. In the event of engine failure the accumulated depression in the vacuum tank is sufficient for three or four movements.
   On the ground the Bendix brakes can be applied hard without the slightest suspicion of tail-lifting, and the undercarriage is flexible and well damped. The differential braking effect for taxying is obtained by two heel pedals which are moved independently of the hanging rudder pedals.

Flight, April 1936

MODERN LIGHT AIRCRAFT REVIEW

FOREIGN MACHINES on the BRITISH MARKET

STINSON

   A YEAR or two ago certain of the more pecunious private owners in this country became highly enthusiastic over a four-seater Stinson Reliant monoplane imported from America. What appealed particularly to them was the high finish and the determined attempt which had been made to provide the "motor-car comfort" about which so much loose talk was rife at that time. Subsequently other Stinsons appeared over here and are still giving satisfactory service.
   The latest model of the Reliant differs in a number of important respects from these familiar machines. It is available in "special" and "standard" forms, incorporates a metal gull-type wing of unusual design, and has slotted vacuum-operated flaps. The Hamilton variable-pitch airscrew is specified both for the 225 h.p. Lycoming engine of the standard model and the 245 h.p. Lycoming of the "special" version.
   Certainly, in the form in which it has so far appeared in this country, the finish and general equipment of the Reliant should have given our manufacturers something to think about - though these features are not the be-all and end-all of light aeroplane design. Furthermore, the Reliant is not quite a "light aeroplane" in our sense of the term, and one can do a very great deal with a matter of 250 h.p. to carry four passengers and their luggage.
   In the air the 1935 Reliant was the most docile of machines, and it can only be presumed that the new model is even better.
   The flaps were efficient enough to allow the pilot almost to point the machine at the aerodrome boundary during the approach without gathering too much speed, and the v.p. airscrew - the only feature of the control system which was strange to British hands - was very easily managed. It goes without saying that the engine was smooth and the cabin quiet.
   The abridged specification of the standard Reliant (Model SR7-A) is: Weight empty, 2,260 lb.; disposable load, 1,115 lb.; span, 41ft. 7in.; length, 26ft. 8in.; maximum speed, 148 m.p.h.; cruising speed, 138.5 m.p.h.; landing speed, 48 m.p.h.; cruising range, 400 miles. The agents in this country are: Brian Allen Aviation, Ltd., Airport of London, Croydon, Surrey.

Flight, July 1939

THE NEWEST RELIANT
Detailed Improvements to the 1939 Model

   SOME of the more expensive American private-owner types, and, in particular, the Stinson Reliant, have reached such a pitch of luxury refinement that the makers must find it difficult to know what they can do for their next year’s models. That is, short of redesigning the whole machine to provide vertical ascent and descent or some other outstandingly new aerodynamic feature. Within present design limits the Reliant is already as safe as any conventional aeroplane can be, and all that the makers can do is to improve the details.
   The most noticeable outside difference between the 1939 and the 1938 Reliant is in the design of the cowling, which is now without the fillet excrescences and has a smaller overall diameter. It is horizontally hinged in sections to permit immediate access to engine incidentals, and the whole lot can be removed fairly simply for top overhauls. What the Americans call "styling" has also been changed and the cowling louvres redesigned. Otherwise, the only other exterior changes to be seen are in a slight increase to the area of the rudder horn balance, and in the fact that the steps on each side are now retractable.
   Recently we had a chance of riding in one of the new SR-10C models, with 260 h.p. Lycoming engine and two-position Hamilton airscrew. This machine was about to be delivered to Mr. Marshall, of Cambridge, by Brian Allen Aviation, of Hanworth, and is fairly adequately equipped with extras such as full free gyro blind-flying equipment, Grimes retractable landing lights, D/F radio, outside temperature gauge, and electrically heated pitot head.
   In the air the effect of the larger rudder balance area is noticeable. Not only is the rudder control lighter, but the machine has not quite the same degree of rigid directional stability. In other words, it is more practical now to turn on the rudder alone: previous Reliants would, after being yawed off by the rudder, return at once to their original course. Another little point is that the vacuum-operated flap lever, which is in the form of a knob on the dashboard tray, now has a little stop. This prevents the control from being moved completely from the "flaps down" to the "flaps up" position, and means that if the flaps are hurriedly raised their movement is very slow and is not likely, therefore, to alter the machine’s characteristics at a critical moment. In standard form, and ready to be flown away, the SR-10C costs £2,835 at Croydon.

Flight, September 1939

To-day's Light Aeroplanes
FOREIGN MACHINES on the BRITISH MARKET

STINSON

   THE Reliant is now well known over here, and the 1939 model is very similar to previous models, though it has been considerably cleared up in detail. It is a luxurious four-seater powered either with a 260 h p. Lycoming, 450 h.p. Wasp Junior. 450 h.p. Wright, 290 h.p. Lycoming, or 350 h.p. Wright - with varying performance accordingly. All models have c.p. or c.s. airscrews The price of the 260 h.p Lycoming-engined Reliant is £2,835.