[simon]

Flights of Fancy
Text and photo's by Stephen Saywell © 2002
South Coast Pigeon Federation Inc. of NSW



What is the best wing in a pigeon?
Does the distance or weather have anything to do with what wing performs best?
Who knows what to look for?
Better still who will tell you what to look for in a pigeon's wing?

These were a few questions that have been looked at previously by a number of flyers and wing theorists. At the 2001 Woonona-Bulli RSL Interclub Graham Davison was good enough to impart some of his knowledge and describe what he considers to be essential in pigeon's wings for different applications. Basically he described what to look for in a Sprint to Middle Distance wing and that for the Endurance or Extreme Distance.
Graham selected several examples from his loft. The first one he considers to be the "Perfect Wing" another was the "Power" wing and another was from his Bundaberg (1,000km) "On the Day" hen.


The Perfect Wing
This photo is considered by Davo to be the perfect wing.



Davo's Theory is that the Back Wing's width should be one third of the total wing length. The Middle Wing should be slightly stepped, lapped to provide air capture and the end flights should be well ventilated to control the venting of the captured air under the wing in a direction that will allow effortless propulsion. It is the ease and controlled venting of the air that will allow a bird to maintain speed over a long distance. It will tire at a slower rate as it is consuming less energy to maintain that speed.
The Power Wing
This wing has curves in all planes. It literally scoops the air in large volumes and propels it at speed through the air.



Essential for this bird to perform is that the bird must have the body/muscle to drive the wing. If the bird has the strength then it can take advantage of the power generated as the wing scoops the air.
Look at the middle shot and you can visualise how this wing captures the air and propels the bird forward. Graham is trying to produce this type of wing on a pigeon that can sustain an effort for a dawn to dusk flight. When that happens who knows what the limits will be - Rockhampton (1200 km) on the day?

The Distance Wing
This next example is Graham's Bundaberg "On the Day" hen. She has a strong body that is very light, even sitting in the stock box.
This wing is different to the straight out power wing. This wing is a lot flatter and has more ventilation in the middle wing and venting (end flight) areas.

[simon]

Very flat wing
The aim in this wing is to minimise energy loss and stay afloat in the breeze. Looking at the middle shot you can see how well ventilated the wing is. On the up stroke, air will pass through the ventilated middle wing and be trapped on the downward power stroke. This will produce an economy of energy and allow the bird to stay in the air (at speed) for periods required in endurance events.

This bird may not have the outright speed of the power wing but it will be able to maintain a constant high velocity over a long period of time. The only bird home on day (8:15 pm) is testament to a top distance wing and bird.


An example of a Fantails wing was shown to indicate why we don't race fantails - some may think they do!


The fantail wing is soft in texture, has a large gap between wing and body and the Back Wing is around half the size of the wing. There is no strength in the wing and as described is of the wrong proportion to compete with these other birds for speed over any distance.

A good example of what Graham looks for in a wing is described below in what Davo calls "the Inner Six".


This wing has the perfect middle wing where the first six primary flights have a lot of overlap and form a perfect straight edge that will capture air and provide propulsion for the bird. Also note the last four primaries. They step up, are of near equal length and are extremely well ventilated.
Davo refers to the blue bar in the first photo as having the perfect wing but if I had a few like this I would be more than pleased.

Two more examples were selected from Stephen Saywell's loft to indicate that these theories are not isolated to Davo's family of birds.

Millie


The wing on this hen has good attributes for on the day endurance - 10 to 12 hours flying. Her wing is of the right proportion, full in the middle with very good end flights. The end ventilation will allow this bird to fly with economy of energy and speed. Her performance? 3 club firsts to 600 km, 2nd James Crawford, 2nd SCF Young Bird Derby, 1st, 2nd and 3rd in Fed. She was either clocked or within 2 minutes of being clocked in 8 out of 9 starts.

The other selection was "The Fluke". While this bird has a family history of winners up to 500 miles (800km), he performed extremely well at the middle distance off the Northern Route. He was 1st club from Old Bar (200 miles) and 1st club 3 weeks later from Crescent Heads (250 miles), winning the Woonona-Bulli RSL Interclub by 20 minutes.



The Fluke's wing

Graham commented that this was a middle distance wing with a good middle wing and average ventilation on the end primary flights. The Back wing ratio is correct and time has proven that this cock has been excellent on the track and at stock.


So there you have it. The theories presented are an opinion that has been proven on the track and may provide you with an opportunity to evaluate birds in your own loft.

Plenty of flyers are ready and willing to give you their opinion on a pigeons worth. Some are right many are wrong. While they may do this in the safety of their back yard or club not too many flyers are willing to express and opinion in front of a packed audience. It was a testament to the appreciation that flyers extended us during this presentation in that they were quiet and attentive with many logical questions asked and satisfactorily answered.

Thanks are extended to Graham Davison for his assistance in presenting this information. This was an innovation from our club and by all reports was very well received by those lucky enough to be there on the night.

[simon]

這是澳洲一個網站介紹關於鴿子翅膀的文章...
有興趣的自己去看看吧!!

[東亞]

最初由 madux 發表
羽翼是我喜歡的類型.

厚！被我抓到了，還裝啊！

我也好喜歡the inner six 那型的翅膀.

[東亞]

英雄所見略同 ！

[新手笨笨]

的確不錯

[張翔]

我也喜歡 the inner six 的翅膀耶