Burtonian Posted 11 November , 2004 Share Posted 11 November , 2004 Evening all. The clock which I have found is barrel-shaped, about 12" diameter and about 8" deep. The housing is of wood and appears to be made out of a propeller hub, it carries the stamped inscription 'DRG.T.28134 200.HP.HISPANO S (3:4)' on one side and 'D.2400 P.2900 G.119.N15' on the other. Hand-painted on the front are the RFC wings motif plus the motto 'Per Ardua Ad Astra'. The clock movement is very plain, circular in shape, about 5" diameter and carries no markings apart from the words '8 Day' and 'Foreign' on the face. Has anyone come across anything like this before? I assume it must be a WW1 artefact because it's marked RFC rather than RAF? Also, anyone got any idea what the cryptic inscriptions might mean? All the best, Nick Miller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pete Wood Posted 11 November , 2004 Share Posted 11 November , 2004 I can help a little. Hispano S is for Hispano Suiza - manufacturers of aviation engines (and some beautiful cars, too). How many bolt holes around the hub...?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redbarchetta Posted 11 November , 2004 Share Posted 11 November , 2004 Nick, This is a very nice example of what we call 'trench art' - making decorative items from the detritus of war. Prop hubs do lend themselves to clocks and barometers. Having the painted crest and motto sets this one apart, though. Very nice - wish I found stuff like that in my relatives' attics !!! Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burtonian Posted 11 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 11 November , 2004 Evening again folks. There are eight bolt holes round the hub, each plugged with a dome-shaped piece of turned wood. My mother-in-law has another clock very similar round the house somewhere but can't put her hands on it just at the moment. I guess they were obtained by my father-in-law, legally I hope! He was a Flight Sergeant, ground crew, and served in World War Two at Biggin Hill - my mother-in-law has a splendid photograph of him and his 'team' posed in front of a Spitfire. She also has a framed 'mentioned in despatches' certificate which he received during the war, although I've no idea what this was for, hoping I can get number two son enthused enough to go and find out! All the best, Nick Miller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grovetown Posted 13 November , 2004 Share Posted 13 November , 2004 DRG refers to the drawing no. for this propeller. T indicates that it was made by the Royal Aircraft Factory, and 28134 refers to the engine/ aircraft type. The nearest drawing no. to this I can find listed is T28137, also a 200 HP Hispano, for the SE5A. The majority of RAF(actory) numbers in this sequence are mostly either for the 150 or 200 Hispano, and again mostly relate to the SE5 or SE5A. D.2400 is the diameter and P.2900 is the pitch, both in MM. G.119.N15 tells us that it was no. 15 of production group 119 (which tells us not much, really). Rgds, Grovetown. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burtonian Posted 22 November , 2004 Author Share Posted 22 November , 2004 That's nice, thanks 'Grovetown', more info than I expected. All the best, Nick Miller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zephyr4 Posted 22 November , 2004 Share Posted 22 November , 2004 Royal Airforce motto. Per Ardua Ad Astra, translation Through Struggles to the Stars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salientguide Posted 2 December , 2004 Share Posted 2 December , 2004 Interesting thread. If you go to Tom Morgans Hellfire Corner site under war memorial section, RFC Burials and Memorials about half way through you,ll see a pic of a memorial cross to an Australian pilot, in a local church fashioned out of a first world war propellor. Beautifully done. SG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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