Editing Hiram Maxim (section)

===Flying machines===
[[Image:maxim.gif|thumb|right|Maxim's flying machine]]
Maxim's father had earlier conceived of a helicopter powered by two counter-rotating rotors, but was unable to find a powerful enough engine to build it. Hiram first sketched out plans for a helicopter in 1872, but when he built his first "flying machine" he chose to use wings.  Before starting design work, he carried out a series of experiments on aerofoil sections and propeller design, at first using a [[wind tunnel]] and later building a whirling arm test rig.<ref>{{cite book |last=Penrose |first=Harald<!--Harald is not a typo--> |title=British Aviation: The Pioneer Years |location=London |publisher=Putnam |date=1967 |pages=22–23 }}</ref> Construction started in 1889 of a {{convert|40|ft|m|adj=mid|-long}} craft with a {{convert|110|ft|m|adj=mid}} wingspan that weighed 3.5 tons, powered by two lightweight [[naptha]]-fired {{convert|360|hp|0|adj=mid}} [[steam engine]]s driving two {{convert|17|ft|m|adj=mid|-diameter}} laminated pine propellers.<ref>{{harvnb|Penrose|1967|p=25}}</ref>

Conceived of as a test rig, the machine ran on an {{convert|1800|ft|m|adj=mid}} length of rail track which Maxim laid down for the purpose at his home, Baldwyn's Park Mansion, Baldwyn's Park in [[Bexley]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Baldwyn's Park Mansion|url=http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/bexley/322679.inventors_mansion_in_line_for_makeover/|website=News Shopper|date=11 February 2002 |access-date=23 February 2017}}</ref> The initial intention was to prevent the machine from lifting off by using heavy cast-iron wheels, but after initial trials, Maxim concluded that this would not suffice, and so the machine was fitted with four wheeled outriggers which were restrained by wooden rails {{convert|13|ft|m}} outside the central track.<ref>{{harvnb|Penrose|1967|pp=33–4}}</ref> In trials in 1894, the machine lifted and was prevented from rising by the outriggers.<ref>{{cite news | newspaper = The Times | date = 25 November 1916 | title = Death of Sir Hiram Maxim. A Famous Inventor, Automatic Guns And Aeronautics }}</ref> During its test run, all the outriggers were engaged, showing that it had developed enough lift to take off, but in so doing, it pulled up the track; the tethered "flight" was aborted in time to prevent disaster.<ref name=wragg>Wragg, D.; "Flight Before Flying", Osprey (1974).</ref> Maxim subsequently abandoned work on it but put his experience to work on fairground rides.<ref>{{cite book |last= Beril|first=Becker |title=Dreams and Realities of the Conquest of the Skies |year= 1967|publisher=Atheneum |location= New York|pages=124–125 }}</ref> He subsequently noted that a feasible flying machine would need better power-to-weight engines, such as a petrol combustion engine.<ref>{{cite book|title=My Life}}</ref>

====Captive Flying Machines====<!--Proper name -- capitalisation is correct-->
{{unreferenced section|date=January 2019}}
[[Image:Hiram Maxim Captive Flying Machines.jpg|thumb|right|The Sir Hiram Maxim Captive Flying Machines operating at [[Blackpool Pleasure Beach]] in 2006]]
To both fund his research into flight and to bring attention to the notion of flight, Maxim designed and built an amusement ride for the [[Earls Court Exhibition Centre|Earl's Court exhibition]] of 1904. The ride was based on a test-rig he had devised for his research, and consisted of a large spinning frame from which cars hung captive. As the machine spun, the cars would be swung outward through the air, simulating flight. The ride was similar to the later [[Circle Swing]] ride, made popular in the US by renowned roller-coaster designer [[Harry Traver]].

Maxim originally intended to use primitive aerofoils and wings to allow riders to control their flight, but this was outlawed as unsafe. As a result, Maxim quickly lost interest in the project, declaring the adapted ride as "Simply a glorified merry-go-round". Nevertheless, his company built several more rides of various sizes at [[The Crystal Palace]] and various seaside resorts including [[Southport]], [[New Brighton, Merseyside|New Brighton]], and [[Blackpool]], all of which opened in 1904. Originally, Maxim had intended to build only two, but a lengthy breakdown on the original Earl's Court ride forced him to build more to make the venture profitable. He had plans for further variations of the ride but his disillusionment with the amusement business meant that they were never realised.

Although he expressed regrets about the whole project, the rides were held in high regard within the amusement industry and the Blackpool ride still operates to this day as part of what is now the [[Blackpool Pleasure Beach|Pleasure Beach]] amusement park. Along with the same park's similarly historic [[river caves]], it is the oldest operating amusement ride in Europe. The Flying Machines has the distinction of being virtually unchanged from Maxim's original design. The Blackpool ride's name is now usually abbreviated to the "Flying Machine" or "Flying Machines", although the full name, "Sir Hiram Maxim's Captive Flying Machines", is given at the ride entrance.

In 2001, [[Disney California Adventure Park]] opened, featuring the [[Golden Zephyr]], a modern-day recreation of the Traver version of the ride. The ride itself is much smaller than the Blackpool version, with cars swinging out at a much smaller angle. Nevertheless, engineers from Disney visited Blackpool to inspect the Maxim ride (the only example of either version still standing) to help design their ride.