Vintage Biplane, real photo 1 of 4

Vintage Biplane

A pocket biplane you wind by the propeller and launch from your hand.

How it flies

Made for open air.

A biplane 7.1 in from tip to tip and 1.6 oz in the hand. Scroll and fly in close.

The power lives in the body.

The fuselage is a hollow tube from the nose to the tail. A twisted rubber band runs inside it and turns the propeller.

Wind it by the propeller.

Turn the 2.4 in propeller with a fingertip. Every turn twists the band inside the fuselage a little tighter.

Let go, and it pulls.

The band unwinds through the nose and spins the propeller, which pulls the plane forward out of your hand.

2 wings, 4 struts.

The upper wing spans 7.1 in, the lower one 5.5 in. Each strut plugs into a seat on both wings and holds the pair parallel, 1.2 in apart.

The tail keeps it straight.

When the band has run down, the fin and the stabilizer hold a straight, level glide back to the grass.

Six kinds of piece, one airplane.

Laid out side by side at their true sizes, the way they sit in the plane. Pick one to see what it does.

Up close

6.1 in from the propeller to the tail, 7.1 in across and 1.6 oz: it fits on an open hand. Fly it on the lawn, then park it on a desk or a shelf until the next flight.

The biplane parked on a light oak desk between a laptop and a mug of coffee, red tail toward the camera
Parked on the desk between flights.
Head-on on a pale backdrop: the struts in a row between the yellow and purple wings, the propeller angled across the nose
Head-on, the struts stand in a row and hold the wings parallel.
Close on the tail: an upright red fin on a flat red stabilizer, seated on the square end of the orange fuselage
The tail is a single piece: an upright fin on a flat stabilizer.
The biplane on a white shelf in a child's bedroom, a potted plant beside it and a bed behind
On a bedroom shelf, it is a model you can take down and fly.
Three-quarter view from the other side, the blue propeller turned down and the orange, purple and blue struts in view
From the other side, with the propeller turned down: orange, purple and blue struts between the wings.

No batteries, no switch.

Everything that moves this plane goes in through your fingertip. Cut it down the middle and the whole drive is in view: a propeller on the nose, a hollow body behind it, a tail to steer.

Centerline cut of the biplane: propeller at the nose, a hollow fuselage, both wings in section and the tail fin propeller upper wing lower wing hollow fuselage fin
Cut along the centerline, nose on the left. The hollow inside the fuselage is where the rubber band runs.

Turn the propeller round and round with one finger. It sits on the fuselage's own centerline, so the twist runs straight down the hollow body.

Close on the nose: the round hub of the blue propeller on the front of the orange fuselage, the wings and struts behind
The propeller hub sits on the nose, right on the fuselage's centerline.

Vintage Biplane

Nine pieces in the box, one hand-launched flier.

1
fuselage, the hollow body the rubber band runs through
2
wings, the upper 7.1 in and the lower 5.5 in across
4
struts that hold the wings apart
1
propeller, 2.4 in tip to tip
1
tail, fin and stabilizer in one piece
Size
6.1 × 7.1 × 2.4 in, nose to tail × wingspan × height
Wingspan
7.1 in upper, 5.5 in lower
Propeller
2.4 in
Weight
1.6 oz
Power
A twisted rubber band, wound at the propeller
Material
PETG
The biplane from the side and slightly above, struts between the yellow and purple wings, red tail beyond
Wings, struts, fuselage, propeller and tail: the whole plane.

Good to know

Does it need batteries?

No. There is no battery, no electric motor and no switch. A twisted rubber band inside the fuselage turns the propeller: wind the propeller, hold it, and let go.

Where can I fly it?

On a park lawn, in a backyard or down a hallway. Launch it by hand, level, and let the propeller pull it into a short glide. Between flights it sits on a desk or a shelf as a model.

How big is it?

6.1 in from the propeller to the tail and 7.1 in across the upper wing. The whole plane weighs 1.6 oz.

What is it made of?

Nine pieces, all PETG: the fuselage, the upper and lower wings, the propeller, the tail and 4 struts.

What keeps it flying straight?

The tail. Its fin and horizontal stabilizer keep the glide straight after the rubber band has unwound.