as it needs a lot of room to recover. It will take off in 300 feet and climb very well with this engine. The original power plant was a LeBlond 75 hp. It does have a lot of drag, so with power off it does come down.. There are no restrictions on the Davis except the rather low never exceed speed of 103 mph. With the 145 Warner I can exceed this speed on take off. New Super Cubs don't out climb it. My Davis is a 1929 Model V-3, NC848H , SIN 106, the sixth one built and I believe it's the oldest one flying. Two other V-3s are currently on the FAA Aircraft Registry: SIN 101 (the pro totype) owned by Morton Lester in Vir ginia and SIN 107 owned by Dick Geist in Kansas. There were about 24 V-3s built. The total number of Davis aircraft built was about 58, including models 0 1, 0-1-66, D-1-K, and D-1-W. In addi tion to the LeBlonds, original power plants included Kinners and Warners. NC848H was first sold to the Dayton Air Institute, Inc. on June 20, 1929. Its LeBlond 5-0-470 engine was later re placed with a 145 hp Warner. The first model V-3 was somewhat different from the others. Its cabane struts were 4" shorter, making entry even more difficult in already cramped cockpits. Also in later models the hori zontal stabilizer was enlarged to im-
Photo by D. A. Walker
The author's newly restored Davis V-3 performs very well with its 145 hp Warner engine.
prove the plane's spin recovery. Davis aircraft are not large, with a wing span of 30' 2" and a length of about 19' de pending on engine installation. Since the restoration of my Davis, several other interesting projects are awaiting attention in the shop including the second Cessna C-34 manufactured
(SIN 302) , a Funk, Beech Staggerwing and a Swearingen SX300. And Ole Fahlin called the other day asking if I wanted metal tips on the propeller for my Corben Baby Ace. You can imagine the fun I am having, especially since I acquired the Davis, now almost 10 years ago . •
Photo courtesy of the author
The Davis Aircraft Corp. plant in Richmond, Indiana in the early 1930s. The two aircraft in the background with tails installed are NC857N and NC855N. Wing construction is duralumin ribs on laminated spruce spars. VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7