vintage airplane - feb 2001

8/20/2019 Vintage Airplane - Feb 2001

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FEBRUARY 2001

TheMagazilleo the E · · ·

V I N T AG E A IR

C ,RAF 'f.'

A S S O C I

AT I o N


2/36

STRAIGHT ND

LEVEUButch]oyce

2 VAA NEWS

4 DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH/

Hiller

Museum

9 HIBERNATION/

BillAllen

12 P SS IT TO BUCK Buck Hilbert

15 KEEPING THE FAMILY WIDGEON/

H G

Frautschy

2

NEW WIDGEON/ H G Frautschy

25 WHAT OUR MEMEBERS RE RESTORING/

H G

Frautschy

26

MYSTERY

PLANE H G

Frautschy

28 CALENDAR

3

CLASSIFIEDS

www vintageaircraft org

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3/36

ST

EL

by ESPIE BUTCH JOYCE

PRESIDE

NT

, VIN

T GE

AIRCR

R

ASSOCIATION

For years I've kept an eye on

the

Beech 18, since it's

long been one of my favorite airplanes. I'd love to own

one, but like many of you, if I want one of

those,

I'd

have to give up

my

other going places airplane, my

Beech Baron. I really like my Baron-I've flown "Windy"

for nearly 1,400 hours and

enjoy

it very

much.

Fortu

nately, as I've kept

an

eye on the market for the bigger

Beechcraft, I've been able to point others to

some of

these great airplanes. It's always fun to see people realize

their dream of owning a particular airplane, knowing it

has been one of their goals.

Dreaming of a Beech 18 in

my hangar

has given

me

more than one sleepless night, and seeing Mike Green

blatt's

Beechcraft in last month's issue of Vintage

Airplane brought those feelings bubbling back up to the

surface. I saw Mike at the Beech gathering

that

takes

place

in

Tullahoma, Tennessee, each year. His family

enjoys the aircraft as much as he does. I can remember

seeing this Beech

when he

first

showed

up

at Tulla

homa. It's really come a long way I believe there were

24 Twin Beeches at this year's

gathering.

For

more

in

formation on the Beech 18, contact the Twin Beech

Society. They were

included

in last month's listing of

type clubs,

and you can

access this same list on

our

website at vintageaircraft org

One of the big factors in

the

popularity

of

certain air

planes

is a strong network of owners/operators.

The

type clubs who have strong leadership

and competent

technical gUidance seem to do the best. Having support

One

of

the EAA headquarters ' staff who

has

been a

great deal

of

help has

been

Earl Lawrence, vice presi

dent

of Government Programs. Earl

and

his staff,

including Randy Hansen,

Timm

Bogenhagen, Kerryn

Laumer, and Kathy Phillip, are on top of

many

govern

ment issues

at one

time,

and

a

number of items

that

concern us directly are on their plate. At this time, fuel

programs

and aging

aircraft

issues are

two

areas that

impact vintage airplane owners, and we can thank our

close

association

with EAA for

keeping it

in the fore

front.

As

we

add

to our

total membership,

we'll have

even more credibility with the

FAA.

Increasing our membership is

one

way you

can

di

rectly impact

our

ability

to

support

EAA

in

their

efforts

to work on our behalf. Each new VAA member you bring

into the fold is also an

EAA

member, and as a part of a

group

of

over 170,000

members

strong, the policy

and

rule makers will hear our voices.

We're always open to your comments

and

suggestions

regarding the operation of your VAA and your magazine,

Vintage Airplane We also welcome

your

article submis

sions (particularly technical "how-to" articles) to be used

in

Vintage Airplane

f you're a VAA

Chapter

newsletter

editor, please be sure to mail a copy of your publication

to H.G. Frautschy, our editor.

Many of you may have noticed that Steve Krog, one of

your VAA directors, is now heading up the Luscombe As-

sociation

and the

Cub Club. For more years than I can

remember,

John

Bergeson and his wife, Alice, were the

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4/36

VAA NEWS

compiled by H G Frautschy

FURTHER

WORD ON

AERONCA AD

The final version of

the

FAA s

Airworthiness Directive (AD) con

cerning spar inspections on Aeronca

and Champion airplanes has result

ed in a number of comments

and

questions regarding the inspection

methods. Group

1

airplanes are

these Aeronca models: 7

AC,

7

ACA,

S7

AC,

7BCM (L-16A), 7CCM (L

16BA), S7CCM, 7DC, S7DC, 7EC,

COVERS

F

RONT OVER .. .The Grumman

Widgeon

was

ordered

in quantity

by

the US.

Coast Guard to help defend the home shores

and rescue people at sea during World

War

II.

This

particular example

was restored by

Merrill Wien

and

is now owned

and

flown

by

his son ,

Kurt

Wien . EAA photo by

Mark

Schaible,

shot with

a

Canon EOS1n equipped

with

an

80-200

mm

lens

on

100

ASA

Fuji

slide film.

EM

Cessna

210

photo

plane flown

by

Bruce Moore .

B CK COVER

. Last

Tango

is the

title

of this impressive oil on linen painting by

Michael ONeal, 3

Woodland

Av. ,

North

Brunswick,

New

Jersey 08902. Specializing in

paintings

of

the

pioneer

era

through

World

War I,

his

art

graces

the collections of

many

private galleries and the group historian s

office at

Langley

Air Force Base. His paintings

have

also appeared in Over the Front, the

jour

of

the League

of WWI Aviation Historians.

Last Tango depicts the final fl ight and fight

S7EC, 7FC, 7)C,

llAC,

SllAC,

llBC,

SllBC,

llCC,

and SllCC air

planes. These airplanes have engines

that are 90 hp and lower (includes

60- to 90-horsepower engines).

You

must repetitively inspect airplanes

that are

modified

with

engines

greater than 90 horsepower. To

fur

ther clarify

the

FAA s

requirements

for Group 1 airplanes, remember

that

this

is

a one-time inspection .

Only

if

the

airplane wing is dam

aged subsequent to the inspection

is

a reinspection required within 10

days of the incident/accident.

Further reading of the AD reveals

that

the

FAA

does

not

require you to

install access panels on the top of

the wing. The AD requires the proce

dure be

Accomplish[edJ

in

accordance

with

the instructions in

ACAC Service

Letter

No. 406, R

ev

ision A, dated May

6,

1998. This

service bulletin

specifies

as

an

FAA-approved inspection option

using

a high-intensity

flex

ibl

e

li

ght

(e.g.,

Bend-A-Light ). A r

eg

ular flashlight

must not be

used for this portion

o

the

inspection. Alternative

FAA

-approved

inspection

options are listed

in

this ser

vice

bulletin.

The

ACA

service letter states that

additional inspection hol

es

may

be

necessary

to

do

a thorough

insp

ection.

Note

that

in any case, a complete

and thorough

inspection

of

the

entire length of the spar is required,

including the spar butt end. If only

Write to

them

for more details.

Along with the procedures shown

on the Citabria Owners Group web

site at www.citabria.com. I m sure

other resourceful mechanics and

owners will come up with an inspec

tion method that will meet with the

FAA s

approval.

We d also like to acknowledge the

huge effort expended by the leaders

and members

of

the National

Aeronca Club. After a mass mailing

to all registered owners, the NAA

task force created a comprehensive

response to the proposed

AD

which

gave the association

and

its mem

bers concrete information

that

could

be used by the FAA to modify th e

original

AD.

The split of the affected

groups of airplanes is a direct result

of

comments

made by

NAA

mem

bers

and many

others to

the

FAA

during the review process. In many

ways, this AD, while still generating

comments concerning its necessity,

is

a good example of how the FAA,

Vintage Aircraft Association, EAA

Government Programs office,

and

type clubs can work together to cre

ate an acceptable solution to a tech

nical problem concerning our vin

tage airplanes.

C E S

SNA CON

T R

O L

Y O

KE

P ROPO SED AD

98-CE-5 7

AD

would affect Cessna

Aircraft Company models 150, 172,

http:///reader/full/www.citabria.comhttp:///reader/full/www.citabria.com


5/36

incidents of control wheels cracking

or breaking on the above-referenced

airplanes. The

comment

period for

this proposed AD will end on April

4,2001.

You can review the complete text

of

the proposed AD at

www

vintageaircraft org Click on the

Vintage News link for the com

plete text of the proposed

AD.

NOMINATIONS

FOR EAA

DIRECTORS

Pursuant to the directive con

tained in the Experimental Aircraft

Association, Inc. Bylaws, as amend

ed, the President has appointed six

members in good standing to act

as

the Nominating Committee

to

receive nominations for Class

Directors

three-year terms) to

WI 53120;

lonnie

Fritsche, W6305

Peninsula

Court, Neshkoro , WI

54960; Robert

D.

Lumle

y,

1265 S.

124th Street, Brookfield, WI 53005;

Ray

Stits, 7340

Live

Oak

Drive,

Riverside,

CA

92509; Don Taylor,

6109 Copper Rose NE,

Albuquerque,

NM

87111; and Harry

leisloft, 2787 Leisure World, Mesa,

Al85206

Nom inations for

EAA

Directors

In

accordance

with

the

Association's Bylaws,

the

terms of

five Class III Directors and one Class

IV Director

as listed below will

expire at the 2001 Annual Business

Meeting held in Oshkosh,

Wisconsin, and successors to these

Directors

will be elected at that

meeting.

Such Directors

may

suc

ceed themselves.

Class Directors

Susan Dusenbury

William Eickhoff

Robert Gyllenswan

Leonard McGinty

Vern Raburn

Class

IV

Director

Louis Andrew J

According

to

the EAA Restated

Articles of Incorporation,

the

Class

IV Director must reside within fifty

(50) miles

of the location

of

the

Convention (Oshkosh, Wisconsin).

Nomination

for

these positions

shall be made

on

official nomina

tion forms

obtainable

from the

Headquarters of the Experimental

Aircraft Association, Inc.,

c/o Judy

Reader, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh,

and expiration date.

Nomination petitions must be

submitted to the

Chairman

of the

Nominating Committee, Ron Scott,

c/o

EAA

Headquarters,

P.O. Box

3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086, no

later

than

March

I,

2001.

Voting instructions an

d proce

dures will be published in a forth

coming

issue

of

EAA

Sport Aviation

Alan Shackleton, Secretary

Experimental Aircraft Association,

Inc.

The Annual Business Meeting and

Election will be held at the Theater

in the Woods at 1:30 p.m.

CDT

on

Sunday, July 29, 2001,

at Wittman

Airport, Oshkosh, Wisconsin, during

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh to be held

July 24 through July 30, 2001.

EAA

PROJECT

SEEKS OX S

PARTS

EAA's Swallow biplane (below)

is

in the

early stages

of

restoration,

and its lead

mechanic,

Gary

Buettner,

is

looking for some items

EAA needs to complete the project.

Built in 1928,

the

Swallow uses an

OX-5

engine,

and

EAA's Swallow has

most of the Miller valve gear parts,

but

it needs

various parts of the

valve train , including springs and

keepers, the water manifold, and the

magneto

drive cover. Any OX-5

parts would

be appreCiated, as

would be old instruments, either ser

viceable or

in need

of restoration.

We also need general information

about

the

Swallow, and

EAA's

New

Swallow. Anything you have to offer

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6/36

homebuilt pioneer era aircraft is restored by the

Hiller

Aviation Museum

Contr

ibut

ed

by

the Hiller

viation

Museum

Dominguez

Hills Los

Angeles

California.

January

1912

A homebuilt Curtiss-type aero

plane christened the Diamond was

entered

with

much controversy

in

the

third

and

last air meet

to

be held

at Dominguez Hills, California. Many

of the entrants did not want to com

pete

with an

unknown pilot ,

particularly one flying an amateur

some of the highest prize money.

Eleven days of flying saw

Weldon

B. Cooke triumphantly fly the Dia

mond

to

an altitude of 5,600

feet,

the record

for

the meet.

He

also

clocked over 18 hours

of

total flying

time to claim the endurance prize.

The air meet rules allowed two hours

of flying each day of the

II-day

meet, for a

maximum

accumulative

avia tion was running high as aero

planes were just beginning to appear

in th e skies over Northern California

and many

articles were being pub

lished

in

newspapers

and

periodicals

of

th

e time.

The actual da tes of the construc

tion are not precisely

known, but

a

short

article

in the Ant io ch Press

ta t

an

lan


7/36

The restoration

of the

Diamond

took place in the shops

of

the

Hiller Aviation Museum

Courtesy

of

Hiller Aviation

Museum

cause they were

both

boat

men, elected to put the wing

fabric

on

the under surface

of the wings rather than

on

the upper surface. Their ini

tial attempts to fly the plane

must have proved this to be

a bad decision, for the fabric

was soon removed and rein

stalled on

the

top of

the

wings. According to the date

on the photograph, the Dia

mond was actually

completed in 1910, so per

haps

the

referral

in the

Antioch Press to the comple

tion

of

the aerop lane and the

upcoming flight in midsummer of

1911 was due to this change in

the

wing fabric. In addition, that same

photograph

shows the

ailerons

mounted between the leading edges

of the wings, just

as

the 1910 Curtiss

construction

drawings call for,

but

all

other

photographs of the Dia

mond

show

the ailerons on the

trailing edge, just

as

Curti ss began

doing in 1911.

Abudding young aviator, Weldon

B. Cooke

had

become interested in

aviation in 1910 and had built

and

was

flying

a

Montgomery-type

glider. This type of glider, like many

other flying machines of the time,

used a combination of wing warping

and weight shifting for control. The

flying

their

aeroplane.

Maupin and

Lanteri gave him

the

chance,

and

Cooke,

proceeding cautiously by

taxiing back and forth across

the

field for several days, eventually got

it into the air.

He

flew th e machine

so well that he was invited to be

come the aviator of the Diamond.

By

September

20,1911,

he had

gained enough confidence to make a

flight of two miles over the city, and

the next

day he made a flight

of

14

miles. October 6

and

7 saw his first

public exhibi tion at Walnut Creek,

California, and on October 12 he

flew over Oakland, California, dur

ing

a Co lumbus Day celebration .

During

a flight from

nearby

Alameda he made a landing at Lake

Merritt

that

ended in the lake, but

Mount Tamalpais.

He

circled Mount

Tam at an alti tude of 5,000 feet and

returned to Alameda. A very daring

flight for a novice aviator in a home

built aeroplane

December 31, 1911,

and

January

1,1912, found Cooke and the Dia

mond

in Santa Rosa, California, for

more exhibition flying. This was fol-

lowed by preparations for the entry

of the aeroplane in the

Southern

California air meet to be held Janu

ary 20-28. At the end of

the

Dominguez

meet,

less

than

six

months

after

Weldon

B.

Cooke be

gan flying

the Diamond,

it was

dismantled,

crated, and

shipped

back to Pittsburg, California.

t

would never again be flown. The Di-

amond remained stored at the


8/36

1

The Diamond as it appeared at the Dominguez Hills air meet before the air meet at Dominguez Hills - you can see the ailerons still installed on

the

interplane struts between the wings. Also of note

is the

forward elevator control. Look at

the

top

surface of

the

elevator and projecting

from it

is

a long control horn. The elevator push/pull rod most likely made of wood runs aft

to

its attachment to

the

back of

the

control

wheel.Courtesy

of

EAA

Archives.

feature the

Diamond

as one of sev-

eral aviation displays. Arrangements

were made with Marysville

Union

High School,

which

had a very ac-

tive

aeronautics

program to

reassemble the aeroplane. s best as

can be determined they had only

two to three weeks to make the plane

presentable. Under the guidance of

Lan Maupin

and

with a lot

of

hard

work by the

students

and their

the shorter wing. The

original

wingspan including the ailerons

that

extended

four feet

beyond

the

wingtips, was 40 feet, while the aero-

plane displayed in Marysville had a

wingspan

of only

34 feet. But the

students and their teachers did what

they could with what they had,

and

the plane was put on display.

Oakland California 1933

nia, not to return for

SO

years.

Hiller Aviation Museum

an Carlos California 1988

The Diamond was

returned to

California, and the restoration direc-

tive from the National ir and Space

Museum

though quite detailed

about what was thought to be restor-

able, was

straightforward.

Restore

the aeroplane to the

1912


9/36

by metal fittings, the seemingly im

possible puzzle was pieced together.

Early

on

in the process, the decision

was made to replace all of the wing

structure, along with the canard and

tail assembly. Not only was the wood

too rotted to be of any structural use,

but also in the case

of

the wing

beams the wrong type of wood had

been

used

in

the 1930 reconstruc

tion. In contrast, the restoration

team decided

that

most of the origi

nal outrigger beams (the fore and aft

extensions

supporting the

canard

and tail surfaces) were usable. Most

of the outrigger struts were also

in

sound condition. Further examina

tion showed

that

many of the metal

fittings ,

along

with the

undercar

riage, were constructed of metal

water pipe, probably

from

the

Marysville Union High School recon

struction, and would have

to

be

replaced.

The actual restoration began with

the careful measurement of the as

sembled machine and

the

construction of a full-scale side-view

lofting, or drawing. This was invalu

able in the layout of the

undercarriage, engine bed, pilot seat,

canard support, and rudder. Many

other checks of angles and dimen

sions were also possible. Work then

began

on

the

wing

ribs and inter

plane struts, all being built with

laminated spruce over ash. The cen

ter-section wing beams are laminated

in the same way. The shaping of the

wing ribs was accomplished by glu

ing and forming the ribs

in

a special

fixture, a method very similar to that

used by

Glenn

Curtiss. The inter

plane struts also reqUired very careful

shaping, using specially designed fix-

tures

to assure accuracy.

The

four

outrigger beam units also had to be

replaced. Each

consisted of

1-1/2

inch diameter spruce poles that were

hollowed out

with

a

3/4-inch

core

router bit and then glued together. A

3/4-inch

diameter router bit

was

then used

to

finish the

outside

ra

dius, followed by enough sanding to

remove any tool marks.

All

new parts

were

then

stained to match the old

parts as closely as possible.

Assembly of the new parts began

with

the outer wing panels.

t

was

believed that the wings received

from the National Air and Space Mu

seum

were correct, so

wing beams

were

cut

to length and

shaped

ac

cordingly. Careful reference

to

the

original

photographs

was

continu

ally made to determine the wing rib

spacing, but the rib layout pattern

did not appear to be correct. This

was when it was discovered that the

wing panels received from the Na

tional

Air and Space Museum were

three feet short of what they should

be. After a second set of wing beams

was cut and shaped, the layout and

assembly continued with

no

further

problems.

As

work progressed some amazing

discoveries evolved.

A trip to the

Glenn

Curtiss

museum

in

Ham

mondsport, New

York,

brought back

a series of articles published

in

AERO-

NAUTICS,

dated

February through

May 1911

entitled

How to Build a

Curtiss-Type Biplane. A three-di

mensional

drawing published

in

1910,

which

included some con

struction details, was also discovered.

A comparison of these articles, along

with the dimensional draWing, not

only

proved to be a great help,

but

also confirmed

that

all the measure

ments and scaling of photographs

done by the

restoration team

were

correct.

One

question dogged the Hiller

team from the beginning: What hap

pened

to

the many original parts

that

never made it

to

Yuba

County

from Los Angeles

in

1930? Fully ab

sorbed

in

the mystery, Hiller's

Newton Craven

had

been

poring

over

old aviation

magazines,

and

among the

pictures

he

recognized a

familiar-looking control

column

in

the hands of Paul Poberezny, EAA s

founder. "My

God,"

said

Craven

,

That's the Diamond's steering col

umn "

The photo was part of an

article announcing

the

ac

quisition by

EAA

of the parts

of a pioneer-era homebuilt

airplane. Days later he

was

in

Oshkosh with Poberezny ar

ranging

for the reunion

of


10/36

front and rear forks of the undercar

riage, fittings,

compression

members, wheels ...

and

all of

them

in good condition Even a 1910 tire

was

still inflatable.

The story of how the parts came

to EAA managed to

fill

in a

few

gaps

in the Diamond's history. In 1964

Poberezny had received the missing

originals from a Texan friend, Neil

Carr, who had inherited the old Cal

ifornia

Airplane

Co. on San

Francisco's Gough Street. Along with

the company-for reasons un

known-came

the missing pieces of

the Diamond.

After negotiations

and

fundrais

ing, the parts were purchased by the

Hiller Aviation Museum and shipped

to

San Carlos, California.

The

restoration crew was astounded and

overjoyed

as

the parts

fit

into place.

Among the parts received were

much of the undercarriage (includ

ing the wheels), the control column

with

the

control wheel, and

the

aileron control system, which uses a

hinged seat back called a crotch.

This allowed the pilot to simply lean

left or right to control

the

ailerons,

which bank the aeroplane. Also in

cluded were wing compression ribs

and a bamboo control rod with fit

tings for

the

canard.

All

parts fit

as

though they had never left the Dia

mond. t is open to speculation as to

how these parts became separated,

but

it

is

believed

that when

the

Dominguez Hills air meet was over

and the

aeroplane was prepared for

shipment back to Pittsburg, Califor

through with brads, clinching each

tip, and then soldered. Again, those

original parts

sent from

the

Na

tional Air and Space Museum did

not

use

this technique and were

thought to be built by the Marysville

Union High School students in 1930.

Most of the metal fittings had to

be replaced, for corrosion had taken

its toll. Using the original examples

on

the plane, new interplane

strut

sockets were made, along with tabs

for attaching the wire cross bracing.

The wire bracing itself was

also

made, along with all turnbuckles.

Many of

the

wing rib front sockets

used to

attach the

ribs to

the

for

ward

beam were

in serviceable

condition, so they were cleaned and

reinstalled. The originals were made

of brass and had not corroded. How

ever,

the

hat-shaped brackets

holding

the

ribs to the rear

beam

had

to

be replaced. The "X" frame

supporting the canard was also fabri

cated by the restoration team, and

again, the full-size drawing

of

the

aeroplane proved invaluable. All

new

control

cables,

cable

guides,

and pulleys also had to be made, for

none had arrived with the shipment

from the National Air and Space Mu

seum. Though control cables were

acqUired

form

the

EAA

Museum,

none were serviceable, but they were

helpful as a guide in making the

new parts. The actual routing of the

control cables was determined by

re-

ferring to photographs and the

three-view construction drawings of

the 1910 Curtiss. The metalwork as-

brass upholstery tacks to fasten

the

fabric to

the

airframe, so a search

had to be conducted to find the cor

rect tacks. The tacks were

finally

located in Germany, and a shipment

arrived by post. A narrow cotton

webbing was used over each rib

to

reinforce the fabric under the tack

heads. Over 2,000 tacks were used to

fasten the fabric to the Diamond.

Some early plane

builders

used

fabrics such as rubberized

balloon

cloth and

even silk, while others

used raw

linen and

applied a finish

that

would make the fabric airtight.

The various finishes available

in

cluded a shellac, a spar

varnish,

linseed

oil,

and

beeswax

thinned

with turpentine. These were all tried

on

test panels, but in the case of the

raw linen covering the Diamond,

i t

was

found

that

the

only

type

of

modern day finish

that

would

tighten the fabric while making it

airtight

must

contain water. Four

coats of

brushed-on

water-borne

clear lacquer were used,

with

very

careful sanding between the third

and fourth coat.

The covering of the wings, stabi

lizer,

rudder,

and canard was

completed by the end of April 2000,

and reassembly was about to begin.

By this time

the

restoration

team

had received an original Roberts

4X

engine

from the

National

Air and

Space Museum, though several ex

ternal

parts were

missing. The

missing items included the water

manifold, water

pump, and

mag

neto. After relentless searching, only


11/36

I first

found out about

this little

bear

on

February 9 1996. I received a

fax from a friend advising me of

the

existence of five Piper

Super Cubs

languishing in an

ex t

.

ended

winter

slumber. The airplanes had been in

this suspended state for around eight

sleeDing

ub is revived

y

time

the

cache of aircraft and aircraft

parts stored there. Deep within this

mass

of

pieces lay

the heart of our

plane,

the

fuselage of N8994Y; what

had this Cub seen and done before

ending up in this den?

Super Cub PA-18-1S0, serial num


12/36

get there Based

on

the

published figures from

Piper, you

can

fly

the

Cub for 3.5 hours and

leave yourself

the

re

quired half an

hour

of

fuel when you land.

When

the U.S.

Bor

der

Patrol

decided

to

let

the

Cub browse, it

was

turned

in to

the

federal

government s

General

Services Ad

ministration. The next

agency to call on this

little bear was the U.S.

Forestry Service. Soon

after

the

U.S.

Border

Patrol

turned

it in,

they picked it up. The

aircraft

was

to

be

based in Columbia,

South Carolina, with

the South Carolina

State Commission of

Forestry.

The

aircraft

would spend

several

years in Columbia fly

ing many different

missions related to the

conservation of wood

lands.

The airplane

would use only a frac

tion

of its 17,OOO-foot

service ceiling during

these

treetop

opera

tions.

The

exceptional,

and

con

Above) The Super Cub in its uncovered assembled form

so

the wing and control

surface rigging could be checked. The

new

struts are

built

by Univair and comply

with AD 93-10-06. Below) Eric Lorvig dons a full-coverage, pressurized protective

suit and mask while using a high-volume, low-pressure

HVLP)

p int

gun

to apply

Cub Yellow Superflight polyurethane p int

to

the bottom of the

left

wing. The

white undercoat, which you

can

see on the fuselage in the foreground, enhances

the

yellow color.

servative, 760-foot-per-minute

advertised rate of climb provided

the

operators with an added sense of

se

head back

as

they were low

on

fuel,

but

soon the

engine

began

to sput

ter.

The pilot

switched to

the left

service headquarters

warehouse. That

was

the

beginning

of

an

eight-year hibernation

for this Cub.

We

found the

per

son in charge of

the

warehouse

and

drove

to the side entrance.

Upon entering the

warehouse, there were

old chain

saws, weed

eaters, tractors,

a

Cessna

180 I

missed

that

one),

and

the

remnants of five Super

Cubs. We learned

from our "guide" that

the plane

we

were

given

was

the least

damaged of

the

lot.

We inquired as

to

what

parts and acces

sories went with

which

aircraft.

After

hearing "Well, I guess

you need to pick

up

what

looks like a com

plete set of parts,"

we

started to load our van

and trailer. We took

notice

of a

crushed

vertical stabilizer,

missing radios, and a

missing engine cowl

ing. After loading the

collection, we headed

back

to

Tennessee,

where

we

displayed our spoils to col

leagues

and students alike. I took

inventory

and

found we

had

to pur


13/36

All

covered and painted, the fuselage is

at the gO

percent

done

, 50 percent left to

do stage

of restoration . The Cessna 150 Texas Taildragger

conversion peeking

out

of the hangar door was converted at MTSU.

He started

with the

still

and

video

camera work of documenting where

all of

th

e pieces

went

to ensure

that

he would n ot

have

any mystery

pieces left over.

He

stripped

th

e fuse

lage bare

and commenced

with

the

sandblasting and

priming

of all the

steel parts. We inspected

the

balance

of the parts and

made

almost daily

orders

to

Univair

and

Cub Crafters

searching for new and serviceable re

placement

pieces.

The plane saw

tur

e Oshkosh. When it came

tim

e to

register

this

well-rested C

ub

, we

wanted a

registration

number

that

fit this aircraft. We selected N147MT,

representing our FAR Part 147

sc

hool

and

MTSU. The airplane flew for

the

first time, again, on)uly 22,1999,

with

Eric at

the

stick

and

a newly

ove rhauled 150 Lycoming out front.

He told

me

he would

run it down

th

e runway a few times and see how

it felt. He gave it half power,

and

it

Oshkosh.

We made the

trip

on

the

Tuesday following

the

Friday test

flight, after building about six hours

on th e engine. Eric flew th e Cub

to

the fly-in, and I followed him in

MTSU's Beaver. Although we

took

different routes, we

arrived

in

Oshkosh minutes apa rt. The trip up

was uneventful as

the 6,700-hour

airframe performed flawlessly. Eric

made the

return trip

and was very

appreciative

for th e opportunity to


14/36

PASS IT

TO

BUCK

by E.E. Buck Hilbert

EAA

#21

VAA

#5

P.O. Box

424

Union, IL

60180

More

on

Engine Pre-Heaters

The response has been great.

r

hadn't

received

my

December

magazine yet when r had a call from

the frozen northern

regions. The

caller

adamantly

insisted that

up

there they couldn't live without their

heaters.

He insisted they plug'em in

the fall and

leave

them on

until

spring

and

there

ain't

no

other

way." He really took me to task.

Then the E-Mails came. One told

of a manufacturer's latest innovation

to carry off the accumulated internal

condensation. It's a mini-blower

that

forces air through the "slobber-tube,"

as the

rAC

guys call the crankcase

ventilation line, and out through the

oil filler hole with the cap left

open

or ajar.

Good

idea But the price,

near 300 bucks, sort of takes the fun

out of it, until you consider the cost

of an overhaul or a new engine.

The majority of the replies echo

the findings the article talks about,

and the summation is

that

for most

of us, use of

the

heater should be

cially in springs.

We also

talked

about

crankcase

ventilation

and how some

owners/maintenance people extend

the tube back to the tail to minimize

oil

on

the

belly. Taking

the

tube out

of the low-pressure area and the pos

sible sludge accumulation in the

long tube sure could affect ventila

tion

of those

condensation

vapors.

We also speculated some about the

oil separators being touted today and

what effect they might have on pas

sive

venting when the engine

is

at

rest.

We

further kicked around running

temperatures and why getting the

engine up to operating temperature,

and keeping it there, is so important

to efficiency and engine life. Why do

diesels have such a wonderful oper

ating history in trucks? Because they

hardly ever shut them off

and they

run at opt imum temperatures all the

time.

This led to even further discussion

courtesy or Wayne Spani:

Many substances can exist in three

phases or states-solid

,

liquid, or

gaseous. The phase

is

dependent

upon temperature and pressure, so

you can cause a substance to change

phases by

changing temperature,

pressure, or

both. Condensation

is

the name we give to the gaseous-to

liquid phase change. For water, we

know that it exists as a solid (ice) at

atmospheriC pressure

and

below 0°

C as a liqUid between 0° C and 100°

C

and

as

a

gas

(steam) above 100°

C.

Our atmosphere is a mixture of ele

ments

and compounds

(oxygen,

nitrogen, carbon dioxide, water, and

others) in their gaseous state. How

ever, for any

combination of

atmospheriC

temperature

and

pres

sure, there

is

a limit to the amount of

water (relative humidity) that can

exist in the gaseous state. When that

limit is reached at 100 percent, con


15/36

point (with heaters), condensation

cannot occur and liquid water would

not form the electrolyte-for-elec

trolytic corrosion.

Dear Buck,

I

had

a

similar experience

with

my '55 Cessna 180 to that described

by your friend s 210. I bought

the

plane

with 1200 hrs on the

0-470

and

thought

that I might be able to

get away with "topping cylinders" as

needed to get to 1500

TBO

etc. 470's

are

know

for having long-lasting

bottom ends.

Returning from Sun

n

Fun in '98,

a clatter commenced about S miles

from

home.

I figured t was a col

lapsed lifter (it was), but, when

the

I I P

pulled

the

jug,

the

lifter

and

the cam were severely spalled. I was

n t

expecting that The engine did

have a hotpad that I did use and the

plane

was bought from a guy in

Maine, so I'm sure he used the pad a

lot. We attributed

the

spalling to

lack of use of the plane (it

had

last

been majored in '83 - 15 years. We

moved to

Mattituck

that year and

had

them

put a ' new

remanufac

tured engine

in. I use a red

dragon

now for

pre-heat

because I

don t

have power at the tie-down. Of note,

the oil pan under the pad was rusted

through (pad was holding the oil in).

So your

AP

might

be

on to

some

thing.

Charlie Zaloom

Hello Buck,

I just read your piece in

the

De

cember 2000 Vintage

Airplane.

"Metal in the screen". While work

ing

as a mechanic at a shop

in

western New

York

we frequently ser

viced

a

1979 Cessna

210N.

This

company

refurbished

this airplane

two years previous,

including of

course, a major overhaul. After sale

to it's current owner it became based

at that field

in

a non-heated steel

hanger with blacktop floor and an

electric engine preheater left on 24-7

during the

cold

months.

Approx.

one year later it was discovered

that

the camshaft had become severely

pitted and

rusted.

After

the

TSIO

520-R was torn down for repair

owner was advised not to leave his

engine

preheater on

constantly

but

to instead arrive at the field early to

preheat engine on the day of flight.

Just like a glass of ice water on a

hot

day the inside of

the

engine was

most

likely

moist

all

the

time thus

causing severe corrosion of internal

engine parts. More than two years

later

this

very costly

condition

has

not been detected after operating

heater as instructed.

Sincerely, Tim Moore

.

Next it s my

fellow V

AA

board

member,

Bob

Brauer.

Hi Buck

I read the

part

of

your

article

in

December's Vintage Airplane with


16/36

much

interest regarding "Metal in

the Screen". In my opinion, the oil

pan type electric pad heaters

will

perform their intended task without

problems if they are used properly.

Within the past several years (af

ter the earth cooled), I recall reading

about this subject in 2 or 3 club mag

azine articles and member letters I

don t recall the dates) on the subject

of long term electrical type engine

oil pre heat. The point is that mois

ture can promote condensation.

This matches your mechanic's opin

ion.

The club s magazine articles

pOinted out

that

oil pan heaters will

very likely cause moisture to con

dense

in the upper and somewhat

cooler extremities of

the

engine in

ternals and promote corrosion.

As

a result

of

this

information,

I

plug in my oil heater within an hour

or two prior

to

engine start

up. A

conventional

hot

air

treatment

re

sults in

a

quick

and easy

start

up

with the all important rapid oil flow.

Of course, the colder

it gets,

the

longer the pre heat time. The manu

facturer of my

oil

heater

claims

a

generous warm-up in an hour, but I

tend to be conservative regarding

their claims. I've experienced a few

early morning

get-ups

at about 0

dark

thirty

to get to

the

airport to

achieve a good warm-up. During the

warm up, I

spend

that time in the

airport office

drinking

their

coffee,

so it's

no

big deal.

My oil is routinely

subjected

to

analysis and oil filter cut for inspec

tion upon every oil change with

no

Dear Buck

I enjoyed your article

in

the De

cember

issue

concerning metal in

the oil screen. Since we are the man

ufacturer

of

SAFE-HEET

engine

heaters, I would like to address your

question

as

to

the possibility of en

gine

pre-heaters

causing

internal

engine corrosion and related pitting

and metal failures.

YES, your perceptions are correct.

Engine heaters can cause damage.

We

were

in

the

engine

overhaul

business when we

developed

the

SAFE-HEET product. Our conclu

sions

from

observing

internal

engine corrosion damage while

comparing heater usage situations

are as follows:

All

pre-heaters will accelerate en

gine corrosion

if

they

are left

plugged in continuously and the air

craft is

not

used for several days.

Pre-heaters will not cause damage

if the airplane is flown regularly

or

the heater is only used before flight.

Rental and pipeline patrol aircraft

don t seem to have any

problems

with

the

heaters being continuously

plugged in because the engines are

run regular enough to keep the en

gine's internal surfaces coated with

oil and

the

normal moisture and

the

associated sulfuric acid in the oil can

be, to some extent, vaporized out of

the breather.

Using

the

heater

the

night

before

a

flight or an

hour

before

a

flight

causes no harm, as exposure

time

seems to be a large factor in the cor

rosion equation.

oil. Acids, by

their

very nature, are

temperature-sensitive when reacting

with

metals. They are dormant

at

cold

temperatures and

very

aggressive

at high temperatures.

This,

combined with

the fact that

oil is more viscous at low tempera

tures

and

takes

much

longer to run

off the oil-coated engine surfaces

than

warm

oil, makes a good case

for keeping your engine cold until

it is needed.

As

a manufacturer of pre-heaters,

I wish I

could

tell you

pre-heaters

are harmless

and

should be left on

all the time,

but

I would be lying if

I did.

The

root of this problem

is that

some of the pre-heater manufactur

ers

either don t fully understand

their product or

ignore

the

limita

tions

of their

product

to

further

sales. They continue

to

pump out

faulty information

about

the use of

their

pre-heaters.

Considering the

damage that can be caused by lack

of lubrication during a cold start-up,

pre-heaters are very beneficial and

well

worth the money when

used

properly.

My

hat

goes off to you

and the

readers of Vintage Aircraft for keep

ing

those

glorious old flying

machines alive, as well as

the

spirit

that created them. Future genera

tions will surely benefit.

Keep

up the

good work.

Sincerely,

David

A.

McFarianeGeneral

Manager, SAFE-HEET Division

McFarlane Aviation, Inc.

'. ",'".:;;


17/36

~ ~ ~ « ;t


18/36

still considered among the best-look

ing airplanes ever built.

Before the first production G-44

rolled

out of the hangar

doors in

Bethpage, Long Island, New York,

the company s sales office had 10 or

ders for the

model.

A total of 44

Widgeons were

built

before

the

buildup of the United State s military

air fleet resulted in an order for a sec-

ond

ba

tch

of G-44s, designated the

J4F-1. A few of the earlier Widgeons

would also be impressed into mili

tary se rvice.

Guard to score the first U-boat kill.

On

August

I,

1942, chief aviation pi

lot

Henry C. White, assigned to

Patrol

Squadron

212

of

Houma,

Louisiana, bombed and sank U-166

in the Gulf of Mexico, near the delta

of the Mississippi River. That air

plane, since

modified

with

the

installation of flat-opposed Ly

coming

engines,

is

on

display

at the

National Museum of Naval Aviation

in Pensacola, Florida.

Over its lO-year production life at

the

Grumman plant

, a total of 276


19/36

is that

the larger they are,

the

easier

they are to handle on the water. The

only

knock

on

the prewar

and

wartime Widgeons (besides marginal

single-engine performance with the

original 200-hp Ranger engines

and

fixed-pitch wood props) was their

tendency to porpoise if

the

nose of

the

airplane

was dropped

too

sud

denly while on the water. Kurt Wien

and his father Merrill both acknowl

edge

that the

airplane will oscillate

in pitch when operating on the wa

ter i

a

tten

tion

is

not

paid to the

correct attitude, but both will quickly

add that

with proper training and

practice, the Widgeon is a joy to fly

After V203 was sold on the civil

ian market, it bounced around for a

short while until George Lambros of

New Jersey put it into service as a

twin-engine seaplane trainer. Many

pilots who earned their twin-engine

sea wings did so

in

this Widgeon at

the famed Lambros Seaplane base

in

Ridgefield Park, New Jersey.

The

base, located on the Hackensack

River

, was just a

few

miles east-north

east of Teterboro

Airport.

Now

simply

known

as

Ridgefield, it's

listed as a private seaplane base.

All

that

training activity took its

toll on the airframe, and by the time

Merrill Wien was able to

purchase

the airplane

in

1981, the fuselage

had

become a flying project .

t

did

n't

look too bad when he first bought

it , but as so

often

happens, a closer

inspection revealed

some

work

needed to be done.

We

thought,

'It'll take some

work,

maybe

six months,'

Kurt


20/36

six years to complete.

Merrill Wien had owned one Wid

geon before

this

one, a Super

Widg

eon

equipped with geared Ly-

comin

g

engines.

t

had

also

seen

service with the government during

the war, serving

with

the Civil Air

Patro l. He

admits

selling it

was

a

mistake, for he

wanted another

one

to replace it almost right away

Merrill is the grandson

of

Wien

Alaska Airways founder Noel Wien, a

pione

ering

bush

pilot

who

put

to

gether one of

the most

well-known

airlin

es in

the

world, flying a mix

ture of aircraft

that

ranged from

the

Ford Tri-Motor to

the

C-46, with a

liberal sprinkl ing

of light

aircraft

in

the

middle.

He taught

his son Merrill

to

fly,

and

Merrill passed along the

tradition to his two sons, Kurt and

Kent. Both are airline pilots: Kurt a

767

captain

for American Airlines

and

Kent a pilot for American Air

lines. Their sister, Kim, is a flight

attendant for Alaska Airlines.

Merrill

and

his

mechanically

in

clined friend, Pat Prociv, did

the

restoration,

with grunt work help

from Kent

and

Kurt. Stripping paint,

unscrewing

this,

and

cleaning up

that were the fun parts the boys "en

joyed." But Pat, who holds an

A P

certificate with an inspection autho

rization,

and

Merrill did

the

bulk

of

the

work.

Since it was an original airframe,

Merrill weighed

the

pros

and

cons of

revising

the

engine installation. The

geared Lycoming engine conversions

were having their own set

of

prob

lems with parts availability, and the

more

he

looked at

the

original

Ranger engines,

the

more

he

realized

the airplane s performance wasn t

lacking because

it needed

more

horsepower.

What

it needed

was a

pair of constant-speed propellers

He

also points out that parts for

the

Rangers are not an

insurmountable

problem. One surprising detail

that

The early color schemes of the World War II era were pretty bright, with plenty of yellow to help identify U.S. airplanes. Soon after the United

States declared war, the schemes became much more subdued. Even the Coast Guard

schemes

which mirrored the Navy livery, changed over

time. Merrill Wien chose to paint his Widgeon

with

the same colors the airframe had when

it

was first rolled

out of

the hangar doors at

Grumman s Bethpage, Long Island, factory.


21/36

The famous Grumman landing gear

geometry proved itself

tough

over a

wide range

of

airplanes from

the J2F

Duck

to

the

F4F

Wildcat and a number

of other models as well.

In

different

sizes

the gear was common to all the

Grumman amphibious aircraft.

came to light during research on this

article

is

the number of G-44 and G-

44A Widgeons

that

are still registered

as

having the Ranger engine installa

tion. It seems as

though

you rarely

see

one, yet

the

FAA

registration

records show that of 72 G-44 air

frames

still registered, 26

show

Ranger engines, and of the 47 entries

for

the

G-44A, five

show

Rangers.

Certainly most of those aircraft with

Ranger engines are not flying at this

time , so

the actual number is

less,

but there s

still

a

number

of

Wid

geons

out there with the inline

engine installation. Kurt Wien men

tioned

that

he thinks there are about

four or five Ranger-powered Wid

geons actually flying.

Retaining the 200-hp Rangers, Pat

and

Merrill worked

on

getting a field

approval by

the

FAA

for

the

installa

tion of a pair

of

Hartze ll

constant-speed, full-feathering pro

pellers. Made of composite materials

with

a stainless steel leading edge,

the Hartzells are holding up ex

tremely

well,

with littl e wear

showing

on the

blades after 600

hours of operation.

One of the reasons

the

Wien s

Widgeon performs as well as it does

was

their

conscious

effort

to keep

the airplane light. t can be pretty

to allow

for a

higher

gross

weight,

but

Merrill chose to

keep

the ai r

plane at

the

original maximum gross

weight of 4,525 pounds. When they

completed

the

restoration, Widgeon

NC1340V

came in

with

an

empty

weight

of 3,300

pounds,

j

ust

a

hair

more than

th

e origin al

3,240

pounds.

A major part

of

t

hat

760

pound weight gain can be attributed

to the new propeller installation,

versus

the

original fixed-pitch wood

props.

With

its

completion

in 1988,

the

Widgeon was put on flight status

from its home base

at

Port Angeles,

Washington , averaging a little more

than

50 hours

of

flight ti me each

year. The

paint scheme on the

air

plane, identical to

the

paint it carried

in

the early stages

of

the war (later

during

its

military

servic

e

t

wore

dark blue paint), still

lo

oks great over

years later.

Both of Merrill s

sons, Kurt and

Kent, have flown and checked out in

the

Widgeon, with Kurt

checking

out

in

it over eight years ago, and

Kent

getting

his

checkout

in it, too

.

When

dad started makin

g

noises

about selling

the

airplane, Kurt heard

the wake-up call loud and clear.

He rearranged a few pri orities in

his life and bought

the

airplane from

Dad, moving it from its base on the

West Coast to near his

hom

e in West

Ossipee, New Hampshire, not too

far

northeast of Lake Winnipesaukee.

For now , it s based at th e former

Pease Air Force base in Por

tsmouth

until his

hangar

at Wind sock Vil

lage, a residential airpark, is done. To


22/36


23/36

MBERS WHO

HAVE

BEEN WITH

US

DUR-

_ ING THE PAST DECADE

WILL

RECALL

BEAUTIFUL CUSTOMIZED

GRUMMAN

G-

44A WE DETAILED IN THE FEBRUARY 1993J SUE

OF

VINJAGE AIRPLANE. JOHN

AND

liNDA

SCHWAMM WERE THRILLED WITH THEIR NEW

RESTORATION,

BUT

WHEN AN

OFFER

WAS

MADE

SOME YEARS

LATER

THAT WAS JUST TOO

HARD

TO RESIST,

JOHN LET

IT

GO,

AND, SURPRISE,

HE

INSTANTLY

REGRmED

SELLING

IT.

THE SEARCH WAS ON FOR

ANOTHER WIDGEON

(THIS

ONE

WOULD

BE HIS THIRD> HE

KNEW

ABOUT THE HISTORY OF THIS ONEPARTICULAR


24/36

A much lighter, more utilitarian interior

allows John and Linda to

use the

airplane

for camping trips and

other

excursions. The

F Atlee Dodge fol ing seats are lightweight

and stow easily. To help keep the

weight of

the airplane down, John had Boeing honey-

comb material used for the floorboards. The

cockpit carried

the

simple theme

as

well.

Isn t

it

great

how

so

much avionics capability

now takes up

so

little room?

floats, originally built in the factory

at Bethpage, using a s tretch press to

create a pair of skins

that

gracefully

curved from nose to tail.

While the Widgeon we wrote

about eight years ago was a very cus

tomized airplane, complete with

295-hp Lycoming

engines

and re

tractable-tip

floats,

John really

wanted this airplane to be closer to

the

original.

He

too

chose to

keep

the interior as light as he could.

One of the new materials he used

was Boeing surplus

honeycomb

ma

terial for

the

floorboards. Eschewing

the

retractable-tip float

conversion

that is one of the McKinnon conver

sion details, he stayed with the

fixed-tip float installation.

John

said

the speed cost

was

only

3-5

mph,

and the added 100 pounds of the re-

tractable floats just wasn t worth it.

The two other Widgeons he has

owned

had

an

empty

weight in

the

neighborhood of 4,200-4,300

pounds. He was

shooting

for 3,900

pounds for this airplane,

and

it s just

slightly over that.

The

F.

Atlee Dodge seats are very

lightweight as well. Designed for

Goose

and

Widgeon operators

who


25/36


26/36

successful flying other seaplanes first

before being trained in

the

little

Grumman, as he points out that the

airplane

behaves like nothing else

that

flies.

There really is

nothing

like it.

You

shouldn't start out in

a

Wid-

geon, in

the

water, period, he

mentions. ''It would be a lot easier, I

am sure,

in

a Goose."

The first time

he

flew a Widgeon,

he had 800 hours of floatplane time,

most of

it

in a

Helio

Courier on

John s second Widgeon

restoration, which we prof iled

in

the

February 1993 issue

of

Vintage Airplane. A very cus-

tomized airplane,

it

featured a

more luxurious interior,

retractable-tip floats and 295

hp Lycoming engines.

t now

belongs to an

owner

on

the

East Coast

of the

United States.

floats. The

float

experi-

ence

helped

a

bit with

water operations,

but

since

a

flying

boat is in

many

respects

nothing

like a float-

plane, an

entire transition

program

to the Widgeon was in order. Hav-

ing

flown three

of them as

the

owner/pilot,

John

says

that

each

one

has its own personality on the water

and that he

never

takes the air-

plane's handling for granted. The

airplane's ability

is

one

of a kind, he

points out.

"You start looking at

any

alterna-

tive airplane, and

there

is just

nothing

like it. And you .

can't

really

come close to what it

is!"

John adds.

The

paint scheme for

the

new

restoration is similar to the second

Widgeon, but with

much

brighter

colors. Echoing

and

embellishing

on

the

original Widgeon's scheme,

the

curved lines follow the smooth con-

tours

of the

airframe. He tried to

put

the original N number on the air-

plane,

but the

owner

of the

airplane

wouldn't take John's offer to pay for

a new

paint

job

in

exchange for the

number.

His

previous

airplane

was

N144GW,

so

he asked

the FAA for

N244GW [Should it

be

N244GW?].

Without the original

number,

he

didn't

feel particularly

bound

to keep

the

color

scheme

strictly

as it was

when

the airplane was first delivered.

Since John and Linda now split

their time between

Alaska

and

Ari-

zona, don't

be

surprised i f you see

the

airplane all over

the

western half

of North America. After all, there are

few places a Widgeon can't visit ......

The

Quality

Goes

In Before

The Tag Goes

On

Reduce Engine

Maintenance

Costs

RECONDITIONING AND

OVERHAUL

SERVICES INCLUDE:

CRANKSHAFT GRINDING

ROCKER

ARMS

STARTER

ADAPTERS

CRANKSHAFT

BALANCING TAPPET

BODIES

ULTRASONIC INSPECTIONS

CAMSHAFT GRINDING

COUNTERWEIGH

TS

CUSTOM

MACHINING

CONNECTING RODS

MAGNAFLUXING PLATING

Aircraft

Specialties

Services is

the

industry leader

for reconditioning

and

remachining


27/36

WHAT OUR

MEMBER

ARE

RESTORING

by H G Frautschy

DANISH PIPER L-4H

After five years of restoration, this 1943 Piper L-4H, OY-DHN,

serial number 43-29774, looks like a new aircraft. The restoration

was completed

in

Denmark by the

father/son

team of Henry

Schou (shown

in

the

cockpit), Esbjerg,

Denmark, and

Finn

Schou EAA 362178) of Heming, Denmark.

This

L-4H

was built at Piper's Lock Haven, Pennsylvania plant

on

December 10, 1943

and

delivered

to the USAAF on the

same

date. It departed

the

United States

in

January 1944 for service

with the 8th Air Force in England. t was dropped from inven

tory in May 1946, having never returned to

the

United States.

Congratulations to Henry

and

Finn on a beautiful job of

restoring a L-4H Grasshopper.

GRIGGS STINSON V-77


28/36

February Mystery Plane

This

month's

Mystery Plane

comes to

us

from

a batch of inter

esting and rare airplane photos

supplied

by Ralph

Nortell. The

jaunty-looking cabin

on

this smaller

monoplane

is

quite

unusual,

no

doubt

an attempt to give the pilot

good visibility over

the

nose.

Send

your answer

to: EAA Vin

tage

Airplane,

P.O.

Box 3086,

Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Your an

swer needs to

be

in no later than

March

15, 2001, for

inclusion

in

the

May issue of Vintage Airplane.

You can

also send your response

via e-mail. Send

your

answer

to

[email protected].

Be

sure to include both your

y

H G Fraut

schy

Yackey Monoplane

mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]


29/36

Above) Another view

of

our

Mystery Plane,

the

Yackey mono

plane registered

as

-1296.

It

was

one

of the two

Yackeys that were

civilian entries in

the

National

ir

Races

held September

19

-

25

1927,

at Felts Field, Spokane,

Washington.

Right) -672 was the

other

partici

pant

of

the National

ir Races.

Both Yackeys were powered by a

220

-hp

Wright Whirlwind

J-5

engine. Photos are courtesy

of the

Ralph Nortell collect ion .


30/36

Fly In

alendar

The fo

ll

owing

l

ist

of

coming even

ts is

furnished to our readers

as a

matter

of

informatio

n on

ly

and d

oes not

constitute appr

ova

l, sp

onso

rsh

ip,

involvement, con

tro

l

or

direction ofany event (fly-in,

seminars,

fly

market,

etc.) listed. Please send the information to

EAA,

Att: Vintage Air

plane,

P o

Box

3086,

O

shkosh,

WI

54903

-3086. Information sh

ou

ld be receivedfour mo

nths

p

rior

to the

event date

.

FEBR

UA

RY II -

Mondovi,

WI

-Ski

Fly -In at Log

Cabin Airport. Info: 715/287-4205 .

FE BR UARY

24

-25-

Riverside

(Rubidoux)

,

CA

-

EAA

Ch.

One 's

48th Annual Fly

-In.

F1a-Bob

Airport.

A tendees coming

to

this year s fly-in will

be

greeted

by anew

full-field-length

runway

, paved

ramp

and new

taxiway.

Info:

909/682

-6236

(Leave

name, phone

address.)

MA RCH 1

-3 -

Kalispell, MT

-

Montana Aviation

Conference at Cavanaugh s Outlaw Inn. Work

shops, seminars, national/y

recognized

speakers,

trade show. Info: Montana Aeronautics Div .,

406/444-2506.

MARCH

2-4-

Casa

Grande,

AZ - 43rd

Annual Cac

tus Fly-In at

Casa

Grande Airport, sponsored by

the

Arizona Antique Aircraft Association.

1nfo:

John Engle 480/987-5516 or www.

americanpilot.org cactus.

MA

RCH 4-

Santa

Paula , CA - Fl

y

n Swapm

ee

t, 9

a.m.

-

5

p.

m.

Sel/ or

buy.

Antique engine

auction.

Antique airplane

disp

lays.

1nfo: 805

/

525-5893.

APRIL 1- Santa Paula , CA - April Fools Day Re

gional Luscombe Fly-In sanctioned by Continell/al

Luscombe Association. I

nfo: 805

/

642-3315.

APRIL

8-14 -

Lakeland,

FL

-

Sun

'N

Fun EAA Fly

In,

Info: www.srm

-nfun.

org.

MA

Y5 - Wiscasset, ME - Katahdin Wings 99s host

Maine Poker

Run.

Info:

Ann

at 207-882-5475.

MA

Y

6- Santa Paula

,

CA

- Piper

Cub Fly-In,

in

con

junction

with Santa Paula Airport

First Sunday

of

the

Month Fly-ln. Info: 805

/525-708/.

8 a.m. - 5p.m. Pancake breakfast 8

a n1

- 11 a.m.

Static display

of

various aircraft;

airplane

and he

licopter rides available, demos, aircraft judging,

children s play area

and

ongoing

activities.

Con

cessions, souvenirs, and good food. Info: Ms.

Tangy Mooney

703

/780-6329 or EAAI86@

netscape. net.

MA

Y 20 - Niles, MI -

VAA Ch. 35 Hog

Roast Lun

cheon at Niles Airport (3TR).

Info:

616/683-9642

or [email protected].

MAY 20 -

Warwick

,

NY

-

EAA

Ch.

501 Annual

Fly

-I

n

at Warwick Aerodrome

(N72).

10:00 a.m.

-

4:00

p.m. Unicom advisory frequency

is

123.0.

Food

will be

available and trophies will

be

awarded for

the different classes

of aircraft.

Registration for

judging

closes at 2:00 p.m.

I

nfo:

Michael

Mani

atis, 212-620-0398.

MA

Y 20 - Romeoville,

IL (LOT)

-

EAA

Ch. 15 Fly- In

Breakfast, 7a.m . -

Noon

at Lewis

Romeoville

Air

port. I

nfo:

Frank,

815

/436-6153.

MA

Y

25

27

-

Watsonville, CA -

EAA Ch.

1

19 's

37th

Annual

Fly-In Air Show.

I

nfo: 831-763-5600.

MAY

26

- Zanesvill

e,

OH (Riverside Ai/port) -

EAA

Ch.

425

Annual Memorial Day

Pan

cake

Breakfast

Fly- In/Drive- In,

8

a.m. -

2

p.m. (Rain date, May

27.) Lunch items and

airplane

rides

available

af

ter

11

a.m.

Info

:

720/454

-

0003

JUNE

1-

2 - Merced, CA - 44th

Merced West Coast

Antique Fly-

In

at

Merced Airport.

Info: Virginia

or

Ed

Morford

209/383-4632

JUNE

3 -

DeKalb, L (DKB) - 37th Annual EAA Ch.

241 Fly-In/Drive-In Breakfast, 7a.m. - Noon. Info:

Breakfast,

8

a.m. -

2

p.m. Lunch items and air

plane rides available after

11 a.m.

Info : Don,

740/454

-0003.

JU

LY 24

-30 - Oshkosh, WI -A irVenture Oshkosh

2001 , Wittmall Airport, IlIfo:

920

1426-4800,

www.airvelltur

e. org.

JULY

27-

Oshkosh, Wl-

Stinson

Lunch at Oshkosh,

I

1:30

a.m. meet at the

Vintage

RedBamforafree,

short bus ride to GolfCentral Restaurant. Pay on

your own at the restaur

ant.

Sign

up in

Type

Tent

or call

630/904

-

6964.

AUGUST

5 - Queell

Ci

ty,

MO - 14th Annual

Water

me lon Fly- In at Applegate Airport. Info:

660-766-

2644.

AUGUST

11

- Cadillac, MI - EAA

Ch. 678

Fly

In/Drive-

In Breakfast at

Wexford County Airport

(CAD),

7:30a.m. -

Il :OOa.m. Info: 2J3/779-8Jl3.

AUGU

ST

I9 -Dayton, OH -

EAA Ch.

48 Pancake

Breakfast at

Moraine

Air

park.

Info: 937/

291-

1225

or 937/859-8967.

SEPTEMBER 1

- Zanesville

, OH (Riverside

Airport)

-

EAA Ch. 425

Ann ual

Labor Day

Weekend

Fly

I

II

/Drive-In, 8

a.m

. - 2p.

m.

Lunch items and

airp

l

ane rides

availab le after

1

I

a.m.

I

nfo:

SEPTEMBER 2 -

Mondovi, WI

- 1

5th

Annual Fly-In

at L

og

Cabin Airport. I

nfo:

J

5/287-4205.

SEPTEMBER

7-9 -

Sacramento, CA -

Golden West

EAA Fly-

In.

SEPTEMBER 9- Marion, OH - Mid-Eastern

EAA

Fly-

I

n

SEPTEMBER

14-16

-

Watertown

, WI

(RYV)

-

17th

http:///reader/full/www.srm-nfun.orghttp:///reader/full/www.srm-nfun.orghttp:///reader/full/www.srm-nfun.orghttp:///reader/full/www.srm-nfun.orghttp:///reader/full/www.srm-nfun.orgmailto:[email protected]://www.airvellture/http://www.airvellture/http://www.airvellture/http://www.airvellture/http:///reader/full/www.srm-nfun.orgmailto:[email protected]://www.airvellture/


31/36

- Diamond from page

mond. A propeller blank of ash was

BUILDERS

WORKSHOP

soon laminated

the propeller pro

files

at selected stations determined

Greensboro, NC

and the

carving began. After

untold

February 17-18, 2001

hours of handwork the raw wood

• Sheet Metal • What's Involved in Kit Building*

was turned into a beautiful example

• Fabric Covering •

Ga

s Welding

of a Paragon propeller the type used

• Electrical Systems • CompOSite Construction

on the Diamond.

The

replica prop

• Engine Installation and Avionics

even has

the

correct decal installed

• Introduction to Aircraft Building

on each blade. y this time the en

gine had been fitted to the airframe

and the

radiators

mounted to their

EAA MEMBER

209- 289

NON-MEMBER

234- 314

supports. Again all

parts

fit

pre-

*Saturday evening-Whafs Involved

In

Kit Building,$30

cisely the new with the old.

One of the innovative design fea-

tures of the Curtiss-Type aeroplane

is the

ability to remove and install

the outer wing sections as a com-

HANDS-ON

plete unit allowing

for

easy

transportation

and storage. The

WELDING

original builders had also incorpo

rated

this feature which may

be

WORKSHOP

seen in

an

old photograph in

the

Spend 2

1 2

days at our TIG

Griffin, Georgia

iamond design. The restoration

Welding Workshops.

team

was able to

make

use

of

this

March 2-4, 2001

feature and assembled the com-

EAA MEMBERS NON-MEMBERS289-$349 314- 374

pleted outer wing sections and

fine-tuned all of the wire bracing be

fore the wings were attached to

the

aeroplane. The entire center section

with the canard aft stabilizer and

BUILDERS WORKSHOP

udder was

complete

ly assembled

with all wire bracing fine-tuned. The

Pittsburgh, PA

final mating of the

outer

wing pan

March 3-4,2001

els including ailerons to the center

section would occur in the museum

• Basic Sheet Metal •

Wha

t'

s Involved in Kit Building*

• Fabric Covering

• Elect

ri

cal

Sy

s

tem

s and

Av

ionics

allery itself.

The Hiller Aviation Museum lo

• Composite Construct ion

cated on the San Carlos Airport will

• Gas Welding

• Introduction to Ai rcraft Building

ffiCially unveil the new

exhibit


32/36

VINTAGE TRADER

~

'* 7

Something to buy, sell or trade?

Classified Word

ds

: $5.50

per

10 words, 180 words maximum, with boldJace lead-in

onfirst

line.

Classified Display ds: One column wide

2.

167 inches) by 1,

2,

or 3 inches high at $20 per inch. Black and white only, and no Jrequency discounts.

dvertising Closing Dates: 10th ojsecond month prior to desired issue date (i.e., January 10 is the clos

in

g dateJar the March issue). VAA reserves the

right to reject any advertising

in

conflict with its polici

es

Rates cover one insertion

per

issue. Classified ads are not accepted via phone. Payment must

accompany order. Word ads may be sent v

ia

Jax (9201426-4828)

or

e-mail ([email protected]) using credit card payment (VISA

or

MasterCard).

Include name on card, complete address, type ojcard, card number, and expiration date. Make checks payable to EAA. Address advertising correspon

dence to EAA Publications Classified d Manager, P.D. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.

BABBITT BEARING

SERVICE

-

rod bearings

,

main

bearings,

camshaft beat

ings ,

master rods

,

valves. Call

us Toll

Free

1/

800

/233 -6934 ,

e-mail

[email protected]

Web site

www.ramengine.com

VINTAGE ENGINE MACHINE WORKS,

N.

604 FREYA ST

.,

SPOKANE

,

WA

99202.

AIRCRAFT FABRICS -

Imported Unen

, Certificated Grade A Cotton. Tapes - Straight and pinked . For an 18-18 sample , send 10.00. Contact for

price

list. Vintage

Aero Fabrics, Ltd.

,

18

Joumey 's

End

,

Mendon, VT

05701

USA Tel:

802-786-0705,

Fax

: 802-786-2129 .

E-mail

: www.avcloth.com

WANTED

-1950's era McCulloch radial two-cycle engines (aircraft), also known

as

Umbaugh autogyro engines. Radial design with

even

number of cylinders. Complete

engines or crankcase, and misc. parts . Send i

nfo

, or picture if possible, to Joe Hicks, P.

O.

Box 159 , Fisherville,

Y

40023 . 502-649-5833

WANTED

- Aviation magazines

from

1920s, '3

0s

&

'40s , Air News

or

similar types, single magazines

or

sets. Mail info or call, J. D.

Hicks

, P.O. Box 159, Fisherville, Y

40023.

502-649-5833.

TN'

GNLY n '

WAYTG

G ~

YG '

Of

course

i

you

plan

to

f ~

it

,

the etUiestway is

stiD

Poly-Ylber.

~ y P o l y f i b e r

Because for 30 years builders

have followed our

easy

steps and achieved safe,

Fly high with

a

quality Class

i

interior

Complete interior assemblies for dO-it-yourself installation.

Custom

qual ity at econ

omical

prices.

• Cushion upholstery sets

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33/36

Archie

and

Roberta Lane

Cypress CA

Archie:

Naval aviator

1952-1964

Engineering

test

pilot

1965-1981

Aerospace

program

manager, 1991-1995

Robbie

:

Homemaker

952-present

three children

We

are glad to give our endorsement

to your agency

in

light of both the

AUAis

approved

To become a

insurance you have provided at

reasonable cost and the way our claim

was handled when disaster struck.

"AUA's fair and prompt settlement

following an off-airport, night,

gear

-up

landing allowed us to rebuild our

Staggerwing to be an Oshkosh show

. "

AUA s xclusive E

intage Aircraft Assoc

Insurance

Program

Lower liabilitX and hull premiums

Medical

payments included

Fleet discounts for multiple aircraft

carrying all risk coverages

No hand-propping exclusion


34/36

VINTAGE

AIRCRAFT

M e m b e r s h i ~

Services Directon'_

Enjoy the many benefits ofBAA and the

BAA

Vintage Aircraft Association

ASSOCIATION

OFFICERS

Presi

dent

Vi

ce-Pre

si

dent

Esple

'Butch' Joyce George Doubner

P.O. Box 35S84 2448 Lough Lane

Greensboro. NC 27425 Hartford.

WI

53027

336/393-0344

262

/673-5885

[email protected]

antlque2@ao

vintage airplane - feb 2001

Documents