This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 2/27/2015
Original nickel turnbuckle from the Wright Brothers' WWI airplane, the ''Wright Model B''. Designed in 1910, the Model B was the first-ever mass-produced airplane, a dedicated two-seater with the pilot and a passenger sitting side-by-side on the leading edge of the lower wing. While one version of the aircraft was sold to the U.S. Aeronautical Division and to the United States Navy, another version named the ''Vin Fiz Flyer'' underwent slight modification and became the first plane flown across the United States. This turnbuckle was likely part of the bracing for the wires between the biplane's upper and lower pairs of wings. Airplane piece measures 3'' at the center, with adjustable-length screws on either side. Tarnishing, else near fine. Originally from the estate of Louis Christman, who worked directly with Orville Wright, and with provenance from Cowan's.