Re: was Car Craft Ramblings, now Alky fuel

[Tom Jennings <tomj@xxxxxxx>]

On Thu, 5 May 2005, Sandwich Maker wrote:

> " Hindenburg?
>
> remember also that all of the fire and nearly all of the damage was
> caused by burning -diesel-fuel- from the zep's engines.  h2 is lighter
> than air, superheated steam is lighter than air...  -that- fireball
> lifted up and away very rapidly.

I think the magic formula for the spectacularly foolish fire was
three fuels:

* nitrocellulose dope over the skin 
* the obvious fart bag of flammable H2
* magnesium frame once the fire got REAL HOT

The Germans weren't stupid, they knew H was flammable and took
reasonable precautions; I believe the airplane dope (thin! light!)
started the fire, probably ruptured the skin, gas leaked, fueled
the flames, that's the end of that.

If the dope was non flammable, or the aluminum bag was filled with
He, might not have happened.

Just proves my theory that most failures have multiple underlying
causes; car wont start because all your battery cables are bad, so
your battery won't charge. Carb fire because of leaky old hoses,
dripping carb, hot battery cables, etc.