The Hucks Starter

[Staggerwing]

Ever wonder how old-timey aircraft were started before starter motors? Well, you folks probably already know: some poor bastard has to stand in front of the aircraft and yank hard on the prop and hope that 2) the engine starts, and 2) that he doesn't lose his arm or other body part(s). Later there were hand crank levers similar to those used to start early cars but it was still difficult to get the timing just right and almost impossible when engines got very big. Enter the Hucks Starter:



Here's a great article about the Hucks and about building a functioning replica so restored Golden Era aircraft of the  Canadian Aviation and Space Museum can be reliably operated:

http://www.vintagewings.ca/VintageNews/Stories/tabid/116/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/381/language/en-US/The-Moment--First-Hucks-Start-in-70-Years.aspx

(Thanks to whomever forwarded this to my dad who sent it on to me.)

[TheCommandTent]

Very cool thanks for sharing Stagger!

[besilarius]

Thanks for sharing, that is pretty interesting, and brings back old stories I heard as a kid.

True story alert, my great-grandfather had a Model T in Colorado.  Starting it on really cold days was brutal.  And you had to be careful not to have the crank suddenly reverse and possibly break your arm.
My grandad recalls getting dressed, while his mom prepared breakfast.  His pa was trying to start the car, with no sucess.  His pa was used to working with horses, and was very creative in describing the stubborn creatures.  He learned a lot of new words that morning (some of which he says made his mom very pink in embarassment.)
Finally, his pa stepped back from the car, which refused to start.
"Allright, you blankety-blank so and so, I'll blind you!"  And he smashed in the headlights with the crank!