The BJ-1 Dyna Mite, or California Sailplanes Duster[1] was a sailplane designed by Ben Jansson in the United States in the 1960s for homebuilding.
| BJ-1 Dynamite/ BJ-1B Duster | |
|---|---|
| Role | Sailplane |
| Manufacturer | Homebuilt |
| Designer | Ben Jansson and H. Einar Thor |
| First flight | August 1966 |
| Number built | 70+ |
Design and development
editA conventional shoulder-wing design with conventional empennage, no component of the BJ-1 exceeds 18 ft (5.5 m) in length, in order to facilitate building and storage in a domestic garage. Construction throughout was of wood, apart from a few mouldings (like the nosecone) made of fiberglass. The BJ-1 Dyna Mite first flew in 1966.
The rough building sketches from Ben Janssons prototype design from 1963, were refined by Hank Thor and the BJ-1B Duster plans were released in 1971 featuring a lighter weight, extended wingspan and a lower canopy that required the pilot to fly it semi-reclined. By 1977, more than 200 sets of plans had been sold. In total 371 sets of plans were sold and DSK (Duster Sailplane Kits) sold about 169 kits.
Variants
edit- BJ-1 'Dyna Mite'
- BJ-1B 'Duster'
Aircraft on display
edit- US Southwest Soaring Museum - prototype[2]
Specifications (BJ-1B)
editGeneral characteristics
- Crew: One pilot
- Length: 20 ft 6 in (6.0 m)
- Wingspan: 42 ft 8 in (13.00 m)
- Wing area: 103 sq ft (9.6 m2)
- Aspect ratio: 17.7
- Empty weight: 350 lb (159 kg)
- Gross weight: 580 lb (281 kg)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 128 mph (206 km/h, 111 kn)
- Maximum glide ratio: 29
- Rate of sink: 148 ft/min (0.76 m/s)
References
edit- ^ Air Trails: 84. Summer 1971.
{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ US Southwest Soaring Museum (2010). "Sailplanes, Hang Gliders & Motor Gliders". Retrieved 26 May 2011.
- Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. p. 347.
- Hardy, Michael (1982). Gliders and Sailplanes of the World. Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 30.
- Coates, Andrew (1978). Jane's World Sailplanes and Motor Gliders. London: MacDonald and Jane's. p. 167.
- Simons, Martin (2004). Sailplanes 1965-2000. EQIP Werbung & Verlag GmbH (2004).
- Thor, Hank (1971). Building the BJ-1B Duster Plans Number 168. editions.