It's a neat look back at history, actually. The thing was put together before WWII - she showed me once the gap in the logbook after 12/7/41 - nation-wide groundings didn't start on 9/11/01. The wing ribs look for all the world like a '40's truss bridge in miniature. Our gracious instructor was describing the intricacies of the engine - how this part was from a contemporary car, that part from a tractor. Even the bracing and various bits and bobs filling the bins around the room were still for the most part hand-welded from raw stock, rather than pulled out as whole custom castings. Simpler times indeed. The whole creation feels so much more ... raw... than the glistening UAA Katanas or the polished Cessnas purring around the field. Not how I expected to spend the day, but it was sure an education - and fun, to boot!
Now to get those ribs done so we get 'em mounted - then the real fun starts putting the wings together. And one of these days, we'll actually get her bird in the air.
One piece at a time.
3 comments:
The nuts on the drag / anti-drag wires were designed for Harley Davidsons of the 1930's & 40's - I suspect, but cannot yet confirm, that the drag/antidrag wires themselves were modified from Harley-Davidson spokes.
Rebuilding the old airplane is as much an act of faith and dreams as it is of logic and work. Like a kitplane, nourishing the dreams of what I'm going to do with her when she's flying is as vital as the rivets that hold her repaired rib sections together. Even when doped on painkillers and watching my finances slip away in hospital bills, fairly certain I'd keep my leg but unsure if I'd keep any use of it, I knew that I was going to fly her to Talkeetna on a lazy summer afternoon to have brownies and a mocha next summer. I have faith that it will happen, and this faith helps me find other people who believe in the crazy and wonderful world of keeping antique aircraft flying, who teach the things we need to know. These friendships, dreams, and faith will keep us going through all setbacks and long drudgery until the wing actually starts to look like a wing, and then on through til we're sailing by the foot of Denali on a clear day, sliding into the traffic pattern to land.
Neat! So - the round stock there is the same stuff, cut longer? Were they produced in the Harley factory you think? Or a subcontractor maybe?
And gosh those trips sound fun - I can't wait to see Denali by air! Whee!
That's really cool.
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