STRAIGHT & LEVEL
like to encourage these people to start working on getting their aircraft up to show plane quality. Another major accomplishment by your Division for the membership is your group insurance program. This was achieved through the efforts of EAA Headquarters, the Antique/Clas sic Division, ADA, Inc. and the Home Insurance Company. (I got it right this time, Tim.) This program is tailored for our kind of flying and airplanes. It will also make your flying more affordable. All of your officers and directors are ~ .~ glad to have been of service to you this Should anyone have any ~ past year. ~ comments for the di vision, please do not hesitate to call or write me. Mr. John Fogerty, who has been an Advisor to the Board of Directors, has decided to retire from that post. I would by Espie "Butch" Joyce like to thank John for his past services and look forward to seeing him at EAA This past year for the Antique/Classic Oshkosh '92. Division of the EAA has been a very While talking to our Editor, H.O. successful year. Your Antique/Classic Frautschy on the phone the other day, I Division membership now stands at ap felt that the following matter was very proximately 7300 individuals and or important, so this month, I'd like to ganizations. give a bit of space to H.O., to explain a 1991 found a number of your Of recent development between the EAA, ficers, Directors, Advisors and mem FAA and the lightplane industry that is bers more directly involved with EAA important to all of us who fly . activities. Our participation with the In what may prove to be one of the Pioneer Airport was very rewarding for most important initiatives EAA has a number of our members. We enlarged ever been a part of, the FAA and EAA the Antique/Classic Headquarters in conjunction with lightplane industry building on the Convention grounds at leaders, have been working on a new Oshkosh and a large portion of this was procedure within the existing FARs accomplished with volunteers. Your that will begin to make it possible to A/C Division recognized the need to economically produce a two-place include a new category of aircraft into trainer in the United States again. An our group, those airplanes manufac article detailing the the Small Aircraft tured between 1956 and 1960. January Certification Compliance Program, 1, 1992 was the official recognition date written by Jack Cox, was published in for these aircraft and to all Contem last month's SPORT A VIA TION, and a porary Aircraft owners we heartily say, follow-up article will be published in welcome aboard! I have received a the January magazine. Why is this number of letters from individuals issue important to the owner ofa Clas thanking the Division for taking this sic, Contemporary or Antique step. This year we will be parking these airplane? It boils down to one simple aircraft in our show plane area for the fact ofthe marketplace. Without a new first time. aircraft manufacturing base to supply We look forward to having you in our parts to, the cost per unit for replace area. We will not be judging this class ment parts like brakes, tires, of aircraft this year, but will be judging propellers, engines, even nuts and them at the 1993 Convention. I would bolts, will continue to escalate, to the 2 JANUARY 1992
point where the manufacture of the parts may cease altogether as the price goes out of sight. Without ne w airplanes to support, our vintage airplanes will become even harder to maintain. It is hard enough tofind rare, out of production airframe parts, but can you imagine how difficult it would be to keep your fa vorite flying machine in the air if you cannot find a replace ment prop, or some other item that today is widely available, albeit expensive. One of the areas that can benefit the vintage airplane owner is the use of these new materials and parts under an Supplemental Type Certificate (STC). New engine installations, interio r materials, even seat belts, for example, may be more easily generated by some one holding an STC if the per unit cost can be held down, due to an increased volume of sales to the lightplane manufacturers. One ofthe highlights of this program has been the FAA 's will ingness and enthusiasm for this effort, right up to highest levels, and th e cooperation given to the team by many of the lightplane industry leaders. J urge you all to review Jack Cox's ar ticles concerning this very important issue. As Tom Poberezny explained recently, "Without trainers, there can be no new pilots. Eventually, civilian aviation as we know it will cease to exist. No threat could be more serious, and no solution more desperately - H.G. Frautschy needed. .. Thanks, H.O., and I agree this issue is critical to the survival of general avia tion. Well, here we are at the start of another year. It is not too early to start thinking about Sun 'n Fun 1992. We will have more on this in a future issue. As a final note, Jack McCarthy is Chairman of our A/C Photo Contest at the Oshkosh convention. Jack dropped me a note the other day asking me to remind those who entered the contest to submit their entry ASAP. Send them to Jack McCarthy, 14132 South Keeler, Crestwood, IL 60445; phone 708/371 1290. Thanks, Jack. Let's all pull in the same direction for the good of aviation. Remember, we are better together. Join us and have it all! ' "
PUBLICATION STAFF PUBLISHER Tom Poberezny VICE·PRESIDENT MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
Dick Mott
EDITOR
Henry G. Frautschy
MANAGING EDITOR
Golda Cox
ART DIRECTOR
Mike Drucks
ADVERTISING
Mary Jones
ASSOCIATE EDITORS
Norman Petersen Dick Cavin
FEATURE WRITERS
George A. Hardie, Jr. Dennis Parks
EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Isabelle Wiske STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS
Jim Koepnick Cari Schuppel
Donna Bushman Mike Steineke
EAA ANTIQUE/CLASSIC
DIVISION, INC.
OFFICERS
President Espie " Butch" Joyce 604 Highway St. Madison. NC 27025 919/427"()216
Vice·President Arthur R. Morgan 3744 North 51st Blvd. Milwaukee. WI 53216 414/442·3631
Secretory steven C. Nesse 2009 Highland Ave. Albert Leo. MN 56007 507/373· 1674
Treasurer
E.E. "Buck" Hilbert
P.O . Box 424
Union. IL 60 180
815/923·4591
January 1992 •
Vol. 20, No.1
Copyrig ht © 1992 by the EAA Antique/Classic Division, Inc. All rights reserved.
Contents 2 Straight & Level/by Espie "Butch" Joyce 4 Aer omail 5 AIC News
6 Vintage Literaturefby Dennis Parks 10 Flagship Of The Navion Fleetl
by H.G. Frautschy
14 Child Of The Fiftiesfby Nino Lama 18 Rudy Eskra's Stearmanfby Rudy Eskra 24 What Our Members Are Restoring! Norm Petersen
DIRECTORS Robert C. "Bob" Brauer John Berendt 9345 S. Hoyne 7645 Echo Point Rd. C hicago. IL 60620 Connon Falls. MN 5fiXff 507/263·24 14 312/779·2105 John S. Copeland Gene Chase 2159 Carlton Rd. P.O. Box 1035 Oshkosh.WI54904 Westborough. MAOI581 508/836·1911 414/231·5002 George Daubner
Philip Coulson 2448 Lough Lone
28415 Springbrook Dr. Hartford. WI 53027
Lawton. MI 49065 414/673·5885
616/624-6490 Charles Harris 3933 South Peoria P.O . Box 904038 Tulsa. OK 74105 918/742·7311
Stan Gomoll
1042 90th Lone. NE
Minneapolis. MN 55434 612/784·1172
Dale A. Gustafson 7724 Shady Hill Drive Indianapolis. IN 46278 317/293·4430
Jeannie Hill
P.O. Box 328
HaNord. IL 60033
815/943· 7205
Robert D. " Bob" Lumley Robert lickteig 1265 South 124thSt. 1708 Boy Oaks Drive Brookfield. WI 53005 Albert Leo. MN 56007 414/782·2633 507/373·2922
George S. York Gene Morris 181 Sloboda Ave . 115C Steve Court. R.R.2 Mansfield. OH 44906 Roanoke. TX 76262 419/529·4378 817/491·9110 S.H. " Wes" Schmid 2359 Lefeber Avenue Wauwatosa. WI 53213 414/771·1545
DIRECTOR EMERITUS S.J. Wittman
7200 S.E. 85th Lone
Ocala. FL 32672
904/245·7768
ADVISORS Jimmy Rollison
823 Carrion Circle
Winters. CA 95694·1 665
916/795·4334
Geoff Robison Dean Richardson 6701 Colony Drive 1521 E. MacGregor Dr. New Hoven. IN 46774 Madison. WI 53717 608/833·1291 219/493·4724
26 Pass It To Buck/by E.E. "Buck" Hilbert 28 Calendar 29 Welcome New Members
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30 Vintage Trader 32 Myster y Plane Page 18
FRONT COVER ... Lorry Woodfin collected two trophies in as many weeks this post summer with his sleek 1949 Ryan Navion. nicknamed 'Woodybird". Larry's airplane was awarded the American Nevion Society·s "Flagship OtThe Nevion Fleet" trophy. and a week later it was awarded on 'Outstanding In Type. Navion" eword at EAA Oshkosh '91. Photo by Cerl Schuppel. shot with a Canon EOS·l with on 80·200 lens. I /SOOth sec at f5.6 using Kodachrome 64. Cessna 182 photo plane flown by Buck Hilbert. BACK COVER ... "Chino Clipper" is the title of this acrylic on canvas pointing by EM member John Paul Jones. John Paul was awarded on "Excellence" ribbon for his work by the judges of the 1991 Sport Aviation Art Contest. He can be contacted at: 800 Cessna Drive. EI Paso. TX 79925. 915/751·5021.
The words EM. ULTRALIGHT, FLY WITH THE FIRST TEAM, SPORT AVIATION, and the logos 01 EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION INC., EM INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION, EM ANTIQUEJCLASSIC DIVISION INC., INTERNATIONALAEROBATIC CLUB INC" WAR BIRDS OF AMERICA INC. are registered trademarks. THE EM SKY SHOPPE and logos 01 the EM AVIATION FOUNDATION INC. and EM ULTRALIGHT CONVENTION are trademarks 01 the above associations and their use by any person other than the above associations is strictly p<ohiMed. Editorial Policy: Readers are encouraged to submit stories and photographs. Policy opinions expressed in articles are solely those of the authors. Responsibility lor accuracy in repor1ing rests entirely with the contributor. Material should be sent to: Editor, The VINTAGE AIRPLANE, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Phone: 4I 4/426-4800. The VINTAGE AIRPLANE (SSN 0091 -6943) is published and owned exclusively by EM Antique/Classic o;vision, Inc. 01 the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. and is published monthly at EM Aviation Center, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Second Class Postage paid at Oshkosh, WI 54901 and additional mailing offices.The membership rate lor EM Antique/Classic o;vision,lnc. is $20.00 for current EM members for 12 month period 01 which $12.00 is for the putJication 01 The VINTAGE AIRPLANE. Membership is open to all who are interested in aviation. ADVERTISING - Antique/Classic Division does not guarantee or endorse any product offered through our advertising. We invite constructive criticism and welcome any report of interior merchandise obtained through our advertising so that COfrective measures can be taken. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to EM Antique/Classic o;vision, Inc. P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.
VINTAGE AIRPLAN E 3
MAIL Dear Editor, As I was looking through my Novem足 ber 1991 copy ofVINTAGE AIRPLANE, I came upon the pictures on page 21 of the 1928 Waco 10 NC6513. It brought tears to my eyes as the bird in the bam was on my family's farm in Weirton, West Virginia. It resided there my whole life until I sold it to a group of gentlemen who were able to restore it. The Waco 10 was my grandfather'S, Lawrence Gullette. The Waco was landed in the comfield across from the main house, just before Thanksgiving, 1935. It snowed that night so he moved the plane to a corn crib where it stayed until the late 1940s. My grandfather found some kids playing on it, so he moved the plane to the inside of the barn. In 1979, when my grandfather passed away, my grandmother titled the airplane to me. My grandfather was a licensed inspector since 1927, and had already helped me restore a 1947 Piper PA-II. We both had the intention to restore the Waco 10, but as time marched on, it took my grandfather away , I went through a divorce, remarried, bought a new home and a new son was soon to be on the way, so in 1985 I decided to sell the bird. I don't think I could have sold the plane to a better group of people. The care and love they put into the rebuild of the plane makes my heart feel good. I am sure my grandfather is smiling, as he watches NC6513 bore new holes in the sky. Marv Easter has already promised a ride in the airplane for my Mother and myself. We had made several trips over to watch as the plane was being reas足 sembled, and my Mother shared her memories with Marv of her early flight training in the Waco 10. Please find enclosed $6.00 for three more copies of the November issue of VINTAGE AIRPLANE for a keepsake for my family . Sincerely, Terry L. Marsh (EAA 256794, A/C 9676) .... 4 JANUARY 1992
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Here are a couple more shots of the Waco 10 that used to belong to Terry Marsh's grandfather.
compiled by H.G. Frautschy
NEW CATEGORY FOR "HINTS FOR HOMEBUILDERS" Occasionally here in the pages of VINTAGE AIRPLANE, we include one of the winners in SPORT AVIATION's "Hints for Home builders" colullUl. Now, thanks to the generosity of the John Fluke Company, the world's largest manufacturer of digital voltmeters, monthly prize win ners will have the choice of entering their suggestions for consideration as an electrical innovation or device, or a mechanical device. Mechanical awards will continue to be sponsored by Snap on tools. For electrical prizes, a Fluke model 23-2 Multimeter with holster will be awarded . A Grand prize will also be awarded each year at Oshkosh for the best electronic hint during the last 12 months. Send both your mechanic al and electronic hints to : EAA Hints For Homebuilders, Att: Golda Cox, EAA Aviation Center, P.O. Box 3086, Osh kosh, WI 54903-3086. Please specify whether your hint is intended for the Snap-on mechanical competition or the John Fluke electronic competition. Nor mally, one award is given per month.
TAIL WHEEL INSTRUCTORS Everyone who owns a tailwheel airplane knows the value of a good tailwheel instructor. Thanks to a note placed in SPORT A VIA TION and EAA EXPERIMENTER, we now have a 'ist of over 60 names of tailwheel instruc tors all over the country, and the list is growing every day. If you are interested in tailwheel instruction, contact EAA Information Services, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086 for a copy of the list.
1992 EAA ADULT AIR ACADEMY The 1992 session of the EAA Adult Air Academy is scheduled for February 24-29,1992 at the EAA Aviation Center in Oshkosh. This year's theme is Basic Aircraft Maintenance, Building and Restoration Skills . The $650.00 registration fee provides accommoda tions, lunches, a banquet, supplies and materials. For more information, and registra tion materials, contact the EAA Educa tion Office, 414/426-4888 or write EAA Education Office, EAA Aviation Foun dation, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.
EAA REFERENCE GUIDE
STEVE PFISTER
Member John Bergeson, known to many for his outstanding work with the Cub Club, continues to offer his Refer ence Guide to EAA Publications. A handy guide to all EAA periodicals, the basic volume covers the years 1953 1989, and costs $18.00. Supplements for 1990 and 1991 are $3.00 each. These prices are U.S. funds, postpaid at the book rate, to the U.S. and Canada. If you need additional information, contact John B. Bergeson, 6438 W. Millbrook Road, Remus, MI 49340, phone 517/561-2393. John has copies of all EAA periodicals, and will make a copy of any article for .30¢ per page, with a $5 minimum order.
In the November 1990 issue of VINTAGE AIRPLANE, we had a news item related to the donation of Beechcraft Staggerwing Serial No. 1 by Steve Pfister to the Staggerwing Museum. On Wednesday, October 2nd, 1991, Steve passed away at his home in Santa Paula after a prolonged illness. Steve's efforts and enthusiasm related to the Staggerwings is being memorialized during the restoration of Serial No . 1 by the Staggerwing Museum in Tullahoma, Tennessee. Steve's time on Earth was short (he was only 34 at his passing), but his spirit and attitude will continue to touch those who knew him within the Staggerwing
community. Our condolences to Steve's wife Stacy and daughter Sara, as well as his many friends.
Serial No. 1 Beechcratt Staggerwing is now nearing the completion of its restora tion in member Jim Younkin's shop.
AIC PHOTO CONTEST Jack McCarthy, A/C Photo Contest Chariman, has asked me to remind all of you who signed up for the contest at the Red Bam during EAA OSHKOSH '91 to get your contest submissions in as soon as possible. As of early Decem ber, o nly two packages had been received by Jack, a response behind that of last year. Judging for the contest will take place in February. Please send in your contest submissions right away to: A/C Photo Contest c/o Jack McCarthy 14132 South Keeler Crestwood, IL 60445
ZIP GLITCH If you tried to send a SASE to me here at HQ for the Salvage Dealer Info Re quest, and you used the address listed in Buck's colullUl, you most likely got your letter back with the notation "Un deliverable, no such Zip code". Sorry about that. Here is the correct address and Zip code: H.G. Frautschy, Editor
EAA Aviation Center
P.O. Box 3086
Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086
Send your request again, and this time, just send a Self Addressed En velope - I'll pick up the postage. ...... VINTAGE AIRPLANE 5
VI~TAf3~ LIT~l2ATUl2~
by ()ennis Varks IA.A Library/Archives ()irect()r
Jackie Cochran's new Seversky racer is shown having its compass compensated at Floyd Bennett Field prior to leaving for the West Coast.
THE NATIONAL AIR RACES THE GOLDEN AGE (Pt. 12) END OF AN ERA The 1939 National Air Races were scheduled for September 2-4 in Cleveland again under the tutelage of the Henderson brothers, Clifford and Philip. The advertisement for the races that appeared in the August 15, 1939 issue of SPORTSMAN PILOT promised "A cavalcade of aeronautical progress - Everything from pulse throbbing high speed classics to quiet, yet daring, aerobatic exhibitions Concentrated into three days of intense activity - amid pomp and spendor parade and pagentry." No doubt there was a lot of pagentry in 1939. There were great demonstra tions by military flyers including the 27th Pursuit Squadron from Selfridge Field and the "Fighting Four," the U. S. Navy fighter squadron from the aircraft carrier RANGER. Sunday of the show also saw the arrival of the huge Boeing XB-15 bomber. There were many aerobatic perfor mances including Mike Murphy in his upside-down airplane, Leonard Peter 6 JANUARY 1992
son and Beverly Howard. The pagentry also included mass parachute jumps "Count 'em" - and cavalcade of American commercial aircraft. As for "Aeronautical progress," there were no new racers for 1939. With a few exceptions, most of the racers at Cleveland were the same that flew the previous two years. Also, the technology of production aircraft was surpassing that of the racers with all metal construction, retractable landing gear, flaps and variable pitch propellers. Though for a decade the Thompson racers had been the fastest aircraft in the United States, now production U. S. fighters were faster than the racers. Also, the Bendix competition had be come an arena for production aircraft. In 1939 there may have been "pulse throbbing high speed classics." But, unfortunately, in 1939 there were only two such closed course races for the public to see. The Greve Trophy race scheduled for Sunday, 3 September, and the Thompson scheduled for Monday, Labor Day, which was postponed by weather till Tuesday. All of the stock
type races had been eliminated by 1936 and the lower displacement races were last run in 1937. Besides the lack of races, money and new aircraft, the National Air Races faced a worse crisis in 1939. On Sep tember 1, the last day of practice before the event began, Poland was invaded when the war clouds gathering in Europe erupted into a true storm that would overshadow all civilian aviation activities in the United States for the next six years.
THE PILOTS TALK In 1939, three pilots gave their stories of air racing to POPULAR AVIA TION. These were, "Air Racing is Hell" in September by Roscoe Turner; ''I'm Through With Closed Course Racing" in October by Earl Ortman; and "Stop Picking On Us Racers" by Art Chester in December. Roscoe Turner's article about win ning the 1938 Thompson Trophy was similar to the article he had written in the November, 1938 issue of AIR TRAILS which was recounted in the last installment of this series.
EARL ORTMAN Earl Ortman, in his article, tells of his decision to quit racing and become an airline pilot, "Now - to get back to the original idea of this yam: Why did I quit this tremendously fascinating and al legedly profitable business of closed course racing for the salary and uniform of a first officer for Canadian Colonial Airways? "Comes a time, as the storybooks say, in every young man's life, when security looks attractive. I have made a lot of money; I've spent more. Prize money at air races looks big when it is in the catalog and probably you have envied the winner of the Bendix or Thompson for the big purse he took home. But listen to one who knows. "The biggest purse I ever won in one day's racing was $14,000. Quite a sizable sum for a few minutes' work, you say? Well, yes, but consider the initial cost of the ship I flew - a mere matter of $50,000. To this, for this par ticular race, I added $7,500 cash for preparation. Now, how much did I get out of that $14,000? "As first officer for Canadian Colonial I can see a definite future for myself in the industry I love. My ex perience as a racing pilot has made me, if anything, more conservative and less inclined to gamble and take unneces sary chances. When I flew my own ship I went over it carefully for flaws in the works; as a pilot for a great airline, this is done for me. I'm satisfied to take the word of the competent mechanics of the line. I never took anybody's word but my own. 'Tm not alone in deciding to become an airline pilot. Harold Neumann, one time Thompson Trophy winner, beat me to it by several years when he joined TWA. Shortly after that, Roger Don Rae joined the same outfit, and young Bob Buck who, although he wasn't a race pilot was a nationally known record flyer, decided he, too, would sit in the ri ght-hand seat of a transport cockpit. "Even the respl endent Roscoe has be come a businessman - a vice president in charge of something or other for Porterfield planes. He's going to race again, of course, but he's building up to a future." "My interests in experimentation will never cease. I'll always be interested in new aviation developments. My en gineering training and an inquisitive mind make that imperative. But my guinea pig days are over. Myoid Mar-
Art Chester and his mechanic, Lynn Coffold seem pleased with the Goon's prop pects.
coux-Bromberg racer, bless it, will be on the starting line at the 1939 Nationals in Cleveland and I honestly think it will win the Thompson this year. But my interests will be purely platonic. I'll be in the cockpit in spirit, helping whoever flies it with my subconscious support. "But me - if I 'm not in th e grandstand, I'll be somewhere between Newark and Montreal in the right-hand seat of a Canadian Colonial Airways DC-3. " Ortman's announcement of this retirement from air racing was prema ture as he did take his place in the cock pit of the Marcoux-Bromberg and placed third in the Thompson Race.
ART CHESTER In his article, Art Chester discussed the antagonism towards air racing. "First of all, why all this antagonism towards air racing? Is it true that the CAA looks with disfavor on racing? If so, why? We race pilots try hard to stay within the CAA rules and, to my knowledge, there have been no flagrant
or intentional violations of these rules. There has not been a si ngle spectator hurt by a civilian racing plane in years of racing. "Why are the commercial interests in aviation bucking racing? We are told that the manufacturers, and espec ially the airlines, would like to see air races abolished, apparently because of the un favorable effect a crash in full view of the public would have on their business. "It is my contention that the public is not so unthinking as to let a racing plane crash scare it out of flying the airlines. If seeing big headlines and pictures in the papers of an airliner splattered against a mountain top does not scare the layman from flying, the lines have nothing to fear from racing, even if all the race ships pile up in front of the grandstands. "Why must air racing just ify its exist ence by contributing something to com mercial aviation? Why can it not be conducted as an attraction or amuse ment, the same as horse racing, speed boat, auto or yacht racing? Many VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7
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thousands of dollars are spent in build ing yachts, for instance, to compete in annual yacht races and, although I fail to see where it contributes anything to cornmerical navigation or is of public benefit, it is looked upon as a perfectly good and sensible sport - which it is. "Air racing is certainly more spec tacular and thrilling and, with ever in creasing speeds obtained and with more ships competing, it will be even more so. If racing ship owners and pilots were not so harassed, there would be more of them, competition would be keener and the races better."
thanks to the rule that Bendix racers couldn't compete in the Thompson, none of the privately produced racers such as the Marcoux-Bromberg were in the Bendix. All of the aircraft entered in 1939 were factory production aircraft. Racing were: a Beech D-17W, pilot Max Constant; another Staggerwing flown by William Maycock; the Bellan ca 28-92 Trimotor flown by Arthur Bussy; a Lockheed Orion flown by Paul Mantz; a Seversky SEV -S2 flown by Frank Fuller and another flown by Jac queline Cochran; and, finally, a Spartan 7W flown by Arlene Davis. Departure was from the Union Air Terminal at Burbank on September 2. Frank Fuller was the first away at 3 A.M., his goal to become the first two time winner. Weather was marginal all that early morning but all got away ex cept for Jackie Cochran who declined to take off into the 800 foot ceiling. With Cochran out it would be a close race for second place as no one expected to best Frank Fuller in the Seversky . Fuller did arrive first at Cleveland after a fuel stop in Goodland, Kansas for an elapsed time of 7 hours 14 minutes, knocking 40 minutes off his 1937 record. This was good for a new Bendix record speed of 282.1 mph. Second place went to Bussy's trimotored Bellanca which nosed out Mantz's Orion by eight minutes. Max Constant came in fourth in Cochran's Stag gerwing Beech. Arlene Davis finished fifth, but was disqualified for the $2,500 bonus for being the fLrSt woman finisher because her passenger in the Spartan, Dale Meyers, was a licensed pilot. Fuller, flying on to Bendix, New Jer sey, set a new transcontinental Bendix Race record of 8 hours 58 minutes 8.46 seconds, averaging 273 miles per hour.
GREVE TROPHY RACE In what Cy Caldwell called "the ir reducible minimum of racing," three days at Cleveland - Saturday, Sunday and Monday - saw only one pilot in one airplane finish one closed course race. That race was the Greve Trophy Race on Sunday as on Monday the Thompson was called off because of weather. Though there were no new aircraft entered in the Greve, there were some exciting aircraft: Art Chester's "Goon," LeVier's "Firecracker" and the all metal Crosby racer, all powered by six-cylinder C-65 Menasco engines. With a few exceptions, the Menascos were the only engines in the 550 cubic inch class that had finished any Greve Races since their inception in 1934, the major exception being Michael Detroyat's Renault in 1936. The Menasco engine powered aircraft had seen a constant increase in speed since the 213 mph finish by Roy Minor in 1934. In 1938 LeVier in the "Firecrack er" ran a speed of 250.886 mph. Five racers were at the starting line for the 1939 Greve. George Byars in the Keith Rider "Eight Ball" failed to start; Lee Williams in the Brown B-2 stalled at the scattering plylon, spun in and was killed in the crash. Tony LeVier in the "Firecracker" led for 11 laps but was forced out by engine trouble and Harry Crosby, unable to retract his landing gear, was flagged out after 13 laps. That left Art Chester in his "Goon" to fly alone for the rest of the race. The loss of competition didn't slow him down and he continued on and set a new record of 263.390 mph.
THOMPSON TROPHY There were seven Thompson entries for the start of the 1939 race: Roscoe Turner, last year's winner, in his
BENDIX TROPHY All the entries for the 1939 Bendix had been entrants the previous year and 8 JANUARY 1992
Roscoe Turner's Twin Row Wasp-powered Turner-Laird Special.
a pylon again but for the last time. Having reflown the pylon, Roscoe put on an amazing show reeling in the other competitors one by one at speeds of over 300 mph until taking over the lead in the ninth lap. His lap speeds dropped a little after that, but by the end of the race he had managed to lap everyone again. Roscoe Turner had won the Thompson for the third and last time. END OFAN ERA More than the start of the war in Europe cast a pall over the National Air Races that led to the end of the Golden Age. Many announcements at Cleveland also put the stamp on the end of an age. Roscoe Turner announced his retirement, Earl Ortman announced his retirement from racing to become an airline pilot, and after 12 years of effi cient management, Clifford and Philip Henderson, the driving forces behind the National Air Races, announced their retirement. Cy Caldwell in the October, 1939 issue of AERO DIGEST stated that the races had lost their meaning. "In past years the National Air Races have un doubtedly performed a valuable func tion; they were truly "the proving ground of aviation." The production of such ships as the Gee Bees and Mystery S Travel Air, for instance, showed our
"Meteor," Earl Ortman in the Marcoux Bromberg (nee Rider R-3), Steve Wittman in "Bonzo," Art Chester in the "Goon," Harry Crosby in his all metal CR-4, and the, ancient by racing standards, 1932 Wedell Williams of Joe Mackey owned by Roscoe Turner. Reportedly pumping out 2,000 horse power, Turner's Meteor was the class of the act and if Roscoe didn't miss a pylon, a continual problem, he should have had an easy victory. Earl Ortman, as stated above from his article in POPULAR A VIA nON, believed the Marcoux Bromberg could win and with an all-up weight 1,500 pounds less than Turner's, that was a possibility. The "Firecracker" had shown great potential in 1938 having won the Greve at a speed of over 250 miles per hour. Steve Wittman won the race to the scatter pylon and was still in the lead at the end of the first lap with Mackey's Wedell Williams incredibly in second place. However, Tony LeVier was burning up the field and took over the lead on the fifth lap, Roscoe having cut
Roscoe polishes one of the pylons on his way to an unprecedented third win of the Thompson Trophy race.
(Continued on page 28)
Roscoe recieves the Thompson Trophy from Fred Crawford for the last time-Roscoe would immediately announce his retirement from air racing after his third win of the Thompson. VINTAGE AIRPLANE 9
by H.G. Frautschy Type club members are, as a rule, enthusiastic proponents of their respec tive aircraft, and amopg the most ener getic are those who call themselves "Navioneers". The American Navion Society (ANS) is one of the oldest Type Clubs in existence today, and within their ranks are some individuals who have become experts at modifying older aircraft. The Navion is one classic that with' at least a few
Larry Woodfin of Jarrettsville, Maryland is one of the nthusiasticANS members who travelled to Appleton, Wisconsin the week prior to the EAA Convention this past summer. 79 Na vions and their owners arrived to take part in the American Navion Society Annual Fly-In. Enjoying each other's 'c;(IlmplitlJ.y and flying Navions kept the m:'f:J-:c:fi8J~i:m~~roit si~~lt'1~N.·(n¢'1~;'<~::IDetllbci=t"SJt)uSy:;: with an ice cr~dJ$Oclal
mass, in-trail flight down to EAA OSH KOSH '91. Don Shoemaker, Co-Chair man >Uhis year's Navion Fly-'n, said "it was a lot of fun - the weather was great, so we just slipped right on in." Don was quite complementary concern ing the job the Oshkosh contollers did briefing and tben handling the group's arrival. With the distance between Osh k<$h ~nd..A.ppleton only 18 miles, as the fustaircraft were landing at Oshkosh, a _,~~,~i, O« NA,vit'ln!ll. were waiting for slot at Appleton. The
coordination between the two facilities was outstanding, according t~on. Once the Navions had arrived, they wer.<: all parked in e same section of the south end of the Antique/Classic aircraft camping area. For lovers of the marque, it was a sight to see. Larry Woodfm was one of the 49 "Navioneers" who made the trip to Osh kosh from Appleton. His Navion, N222LW, was on its first trip to the Midwest since it bad been totally res tored over a 4 year pel'iod. Larry fomid
the airplane in Pittstown, New Jersey. The previous owner had been working on the big Ryan for a year, when he passed away only 3 days prior to it's maiden flight. The airplane then be came a burden upon the owners widow, and her son, an airline pilot, had no desire for the big hulk, so he counselled his mother to sell it. Larry, dealing through the owners son, struck a deal to purchase the Navion. He was pleased with the planes structure, having deter mined that it was one of the "straightest" Navions that he had seen since his search began. Larry tnivelled to New Jersey to close the deal. When he ar rived, and the paperwork was to be signed, the widow simply couldn't bear to part with the airplane, and so Larry went home empty-handed. The widow's son, however, contacted Larry again, and told him that the deal could be closed. So, Larry headed up to New Jersey to retrieve the languishing Navion, only to have the same course of action repeat again. Larry patiently went home empty handed one more time. This would happen two more times! There was one additional item that added to the anxiety of the situation - the airport that the airplane resided on was scheduled to be closed, and the land used for part of an Interstate highway. Finally, with 4 days to spare, the deal was closed, the aircraft preflighted, and -Larry headed for home in what he felt was a basically airworthy airplane that still had quite a few items to be fixed or at least cleaned up, before a major restora tion would commence. As fate would have it, he did not have the luxury of a few extra hours to aquaint himself with the Navion after he got it home: After . arriving over his local area, ~ PQJl-.o
. tiu~ tbi Ql
.ar,g~
a;kit w~ fHf new
prize. He was iickied to deaffi'tha~'t 'f"'II e.........~1lI.II had been fortunate enough to buy the airplane, and he was enjoying himself. Then the bubble burst. On short fmal to his home field; the ~ quit;. He hac.L run out of gas. An ul1le~enttl!l~)ant!illng
on the··ail:poi~·;'~~·.n)a~r~i;t~,~ Navjonwas
~Wt$~JQf.>~,~ .~~
Navions, Navions, everywhere Navions! 49 Navions of one type or another came to EAA Oshkosh '91 from the American Navion Society Convention in Appleton, Wisconsin. A few others arrived, swelling the total on the ground in this photo to 56.
bell on the fuel pump stopped dinging far too early. The pump registered only 20 gallons, and the fuel was at the top of the filler neck. Something was dread fully wrong here! The normal fuel capacity was twice that amount. An investigation into the problem revealed the reason. The Navion had not been flown for 7 years prior to Larry's pur chase, having gone down in a forced landing. At that time, it was surmised, the fuel vent system had been plugged, so that as fuel was being drawn out of the fuel tanks by the engine driven pump, the tanks were collapsing. The fix for the fuel system problem was simple - the wing must come off! Right then and there, the serious restoration of the Navion began in ernest. The entire airframe would come under close scrutiny, as Larry wanted the safest pos sible airplane he could restore. His thoughts on the effort required to restore an airplane could apply to anyone: "The devotion you put into them, obviously you deprive a lot of family respon sibilities to do this, and a lot of grass cutting on Saturday to come up with one of this caliber, but it has been worth it, Compare the Navion in the photos with these two views from the 1947 Aircraft Yearbook . You can readily see the chan ges from the mod work done through the years.
12 JANUARY 1992
it's been a very nice airplane, a very safe airplane, and I think that's what we like about it." Larry has two teenage daughters, Erin and Tara, and his wife Debbie as cabinmates in the limousine sized cockpit of the Navion. "It will carry literally anything that you can get into it and with three females at home, that's usually what happens! They want to bring everything but the kitchen sink!" With his family his primary pas sengers, Larry wanted an airplane that was as safe as he could reasonably ex pect it to be. He likes the rugged build of the Navion, (after all, it was designed by the same folks at North American Aviation who brought us the P-51) and the reputation the plane has for being very strong. Aerodynamics seems to always be a series of forces in com promise, and the Navion is no excep tion. All that strength comes at a cost. With a maximum gross weight of 2,750 pounds, the Navion is not the fastest retractable 225 hp airplane around. The "Woodybird II", as Larry has named the Navion, will cruise at a reasonable 132 knots while burning about 12 gallons of
Avgas per hour. A little history on the Navion: First concei ved in the fertile mind of "Dutch" Kindelberger at North American Avia tion, the NA-143 was to be North American's entry into the what was ex pected to be the booming post-war civilian aviation market. When the first production NA-145 Navions hit the ramps in 1946, they were touted in ads as having been manufactured by the "Creators of P-51 Mustang . . . and Advanced Army and Navy Aircraft". Hoping to capitalize on name recogni tion by the military pilots who flew in combat, the Navion would remain in production at North American until April 15, 1947. With 280 of the 1,109 produced still unsold, the manufactur ing rights to the Navion were sold to Ryan Aeronautical in San Diego, California. They produced the airplane from 1948 until 1951, manufacturing 1,265 Navions before shutting down the line. Later versions of the plane were the D, E and F models, essentially remanufactured Navions with revised engine installations. In the 1960's and '70's, a version of the airplane known as the "Rangemaster" appeared. Sporting a full cabin instead of the bubble slid ing canopy, the Rangemaster looks markedly different than its older brother. Fewer than 300 of the
o
u
With just a bit of a crosswind, Larry, with his brother Jerry flying co-pilot, breaks ground with the immaculate "Woodybird II" from runway 18 at Oshkosh.
Rangemasters have ever been built. Many have noted that the Meyers 200 bears a passing resemblance to the Ran gem aster. The type certificate for the Navion is now owned by the American Navion Society . The "Woodybird" is one of the aircraft produced by Ryan in 1949. Like most of its breathern, Larry's Navion boasts a logbook full of modifications, including a new one piece windshield that features a sleeker profile. The windows have been changed, also. The side windows fea ture a sleek flush mounting, and the side windows are expanded in area, as well as being one piece. It really allows su perb visibility out of the cockpit. The other modifications include the "Palo Alto Tail", a revision to the incidence of the horizontal tail. The Navion originally had excessive incidence that caused too much drag during cruise flight. Aileron balance kits have been added, removing the "goose egg" bal ances from the ailerons and replacing them with an internal balance. One of the most noticeable changes to anyone who had seen the Navion when it was new is the revised cowling
on the Woodybird. The first Navions sported a rather ineffective updraft cooling system, with a prominent "chin" grille below the prop. Many early Navion owners would not have their engines reach TBO because of high oil temperatures. Most of these have now been changed to the standard pressure cowl seen on this Navion. About the only modification that he has not been able to add is an outside bag gage door. Unless you own the paper work for one of these doors, they simply are not available. The latest addition to the airframe Larry plans is the addition of a rear step, to make it a bit easier to climb into the cabin. The paint and trim on Larry's Ryan is Alumigrip, selected for its durability and high gloss shine. All of the paint and the prep work was done by a profes sional painter. One of the most striking aspects of the "Woodybird II" is the painted-to-match propeller. When he returned from Oshkosh one year, Larry
was all set to paint the prop black, with yellow tips, just like many of the War birds he had seen. His wife Debbie nixed that idea though. She talked him into doing something different. The idea came from the Lopresti Swiftfury project, which features a color scheme that includes a single color for all parts of the airframe. Maintaining a prop painted like this is an ongoing effort. Touching up the paint is a once a month maintenance item, but Larry it quite pleased with the way it looks, "It does add a lot of character to the aircraft." he noted. The "Woodybird" emblem on the side of the fuselage also adds a bit of whimsy to the sleek 4-placer. A neigh bor, Neil Kavanaugh, is a professional painter who is known around the country for his work in gold leaf, and well known for his artwork gracing a few yachts. In exchange for an "Osh kosh" hat, Neil applied the "Woodybird" to each side of the fuselage. The interior was d,pne in the third year of the restoration. A local shop that specializes in Ferrari's was interested in tackling the job, and Larry let (Continued on Page 23) VINTAGE AIRPLANE 13
Child Of The Fifties
by Nino Lama, Ale #12423 A year and a half ago, after earning my private ticket, I decided I wanted to own a plane. After discussing the idea with my precious wife, she said, "Well, O.K., so long as it doesn't cost any足 thing." To many people, that would have been the end of the whole thing. But a newly licensed pilot is a dangerous thing! I began to think. I looked around the house for anything that I could sell, barter or otherwise convert into a plane. Then, I saw it. The boat on a trailer out in the yard. What good was it anyway? It was winter! So I placed an ad in Trade-a-Plane. It ran like this: "HAVE BOAT, NEED PLANE. WANT TO SWAP?" Quite frankly, I was completely open to just about anything. When the deal was done, my boat was on its way to Missouri and I had a 1958 Straight Tail Cessna 172. It was a 14 JANUARY 1992
curious craft. Being new in the world of aviation, I had never seen a 172 that looked like that. I had trained in a plane called a Cessna 172, but it bore no resemblance to my new acquisition. As it turns out, what I had gotten in barter was something really special. It was my child of the fifties . To best understand why it's so special, we really
have to go back to the fifties . So let's go back to a special time in history. Even though we may say we remember those years, our memories tend to fade. Here's a memory jogger; we'll start with those people who flavored life for us - Marilyn Monroe, Willie Mays, "Ike", James Dean, Joe McCarthy, General MacArthur, Richard Nixon, VICE President, and Elvis . Elvis was a firey 19 year old when he recorded his first song. He made it big with his ducktail haircut and perpetual sneer. If you're not back in the fif足 ties with me yet, remem足 ber these: Hound Dog, All Shook Up, Don't Be Cruel and Burning Love. They were all on the album "Heartbreak Hotel," released in 1956. In 1958, Elvis married Priscilla Beaulieu and was drafted into the Army. If Elvis wasn't your thing, then maybe you'll
5 GREAT CESSNAS-THE COMPLETE AIR FLEET FOR :gVERY BUSINESS NEED
fast, 4·place business airplane. Top seller over 150 m.p.h. class. New "hush· flight" features-Hone striping. Agreat "float plane," too. $12,950 I.o.b. Wichita.
~ In
~
lowest· priced all·met~1 airplane. New interiors, new two·tone striping, for '56. Proved by over 5,000 owners-cruises over 120 m.p.h. $8,295 f.o.b. Wichita.
G
. Greatest single·engine business plane. land·O·Matic landing gear. Performance of airplanes costing much more. "Hush· flight" cabin. $13,750 f.o.b. Wichita.
~ ~
fLYING-May 1956
remember Patti Page and Peggy Lee, "The Music Man," West Side Story or Mack The Knife. The Top Hits of the Fifties read like this: 1950 - Good night Irene; 1951 - Tennessee Waltz; 1952 - Cry; 1953 - Song From the Moulin Rouge; 1954 - Little Things Mean Alot; 1955 - Rock Around the Clock; 1956 - Don't Be Cruel; 1957 - Tammy; 1958 - Vol are and 1959 Mack The Knife. While the Pentagon under Charles E. Wilson was undergoing the greatest build up of power in all history and the nation was in the grips of the peak of the Cold War, the kids wore Davy Crocket hats and bought 30 million hula-hoops.
~
.
~ ~
With land·O·Matic landing gear. Ideal for businessmen who want to learn to fly themselves. You simply drive it. Over 120 m.p.h. cruising. $8,750 fii.'D.Wrchita.
"Tomorrow's Twin Today" ••• years ahead in design, engineering. Safety proved by performance of more than 300 now in regular use. $54,950 f.o.b. Wichita. II
It was the fifties that saw us become a nation of surburbanites. Barbecues and the cocktail circuit were our escape. Some of us built bomb shelters. We fought in Korea. We watched Bogie and Bacall, Lucy and Ricky, George and Gracie, Sid and Imogene, Kukla and Ollie and Jack Parr. In 1958 and 1959, AlaskaandHawaii became our 49th and 50th States. Texans just had to cope with being the SECOND largest state in the Union. The Russians launched Sputnik, and then followed with a satellite "manned" with a dog. It was the 1950s that saw a brave black woman refuse to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery to a white
The large cabin of the four-place Cessna allows room for a well equipped panel.
man. Her arrest sparked the young and vibrant Martin Luther King into peace ful protest that changed us forever. If you were there but don't remember any of this, then you must have been a "Beat." The coffeehouses oozed with smoke and poetry to the sound of finger snapping and bongos. Slow blues, protest songs and Depression ballads were "cool." It was the era of cocktail circuits, baby-sitters and back yard barbecues. Cars were big, powerful and made of plenty of metal. Kitchens were jammed with chrome appliances and decorated in lots of bright reds, yellows and blues. Bicycles were sturdy with wide tires and built-in headlights. That was the Fifties. The world of aviation was pretty ex citing back then. There were a lot of "thinkers and dreamers." In the fifties, a dreamer wasn't just someone who thought that ten more knots or a little more range would be nice. Moulton B. Taylor of Longview, Washington was a 1950's dreamer. He builtthe AEROCAR. It was licensed in 1957. He envisioned one in every garage. A subcompact car pulling a small trailer that made up the conversion of the auto to a comfortable family airplane. That's thinking! Piper aircraft built and tested a twin engine Tri-Pacer. It had two engines on one shaft, turning a four-bladed propeller. VTOL (Vertical Takeoff and Landing) aircraft were seen as the future for military aircraft. It was a propeller driven plane that landed squarely on its VINTAGE AIRPLANE 15
Now! MET.CO·AIRE
Presents
The New
CESSNA 170
(Lett) Prior to the introduction of the "straight Tail" 172, Met-Co-Aire offered this nosewheel conversion of the standard Cessna 170. Nino's 172 sports the redesigned fin and rudder of the "true" 172.
tail with the nose pointed straight up. That's dreaming! Aviation was advancing. Lockheed built the first prop-jet airliner. The Douglas RB 66 twin engine jet reached the magic Mach 1. In the more mun dane vein, a man named Piper was president of Piper Aircraft. Richard Look al Ihis Nixon's brother-in-law, Tom Ryan, was a flight instructor and taught some of Hollywood's best to fly. The four en Note excellent visibility. the beauti gine Super Constellation airliner ruled ful lines. Engineered and designed the sky. They cost $2 million each. Air to increase the utility and beauty fare from New York City to Los An of your Cessna. A conversion that enhances the appearance and value geles was $160 round-trip. The of your airplane. Fully steerable Mooney Mark 20 hit the market. with rudder pedals. assuring safe. The fifties gave us a lot. Who doesn't quick stops with positive ground get a thrill at the sight of a candy apple control at all times. red '56 Corvette, or a jet black '57 T .Complete kit. furnished with all necessary Bird? And Rock and Roll, born of the assemblies and hardware for simple easy fifties; the more it changes, the more it Installation. stays the same! So now, let me tell about my "Child OTHER MET-CO-AIRE
of the Fifties." I believe it to be one of CONVERSIONS
the finest aircraft ever designed; the Straight Tail Cessna 172. Truly born of Tricycle Gear Conversion for the Cessna 180
the fifties, it's roomy, comfortable and will be available in the near future
made of plenty of metal. I'm going to Fuselages for Stinson & Piper
Metal Wings: Cessna-Stinson-Ercoupe
tell you about this aeroplane from the Auxiliary Fuel Systems
prospective of the era. In 1955, Dwane South American Distributor
Clearwater Flying Co.-Clearwater. Florida L. Wallace studied the plane and test flew it. Write Met-Co-Aire today for full
"The Businessmen have demanded a details. or see your nearest dealerl
low cost, easily handled plane to fly UP TO 100%
themselves. Cessna has responded with FINANCING AVAILABLE
a tricycle gear model." Although there may have been such a demand made, it's also likely that Cessna was respond ing to the competition of the marketplace. The Tri-Pacer with its Municipal Airport. Fullerton. California tricycle gear was sweeping the market LAmbert 5·6521 and giving the Cessna 170 taildragger a
TRICYCLE GEAR
MODERN 170
+
Met-Co-Aire
16 JANUARY 1992
run for its money. The Tri-Pacer ads of the time showed a young woman dressed fonnally at the helm and spoke of "flying ease, room and comfort." In 1957, even the guppy shaped Champ was fitted with a nosewheel and renamed the Tri-Traveler. The goal was to sell the public on the "ease of flight." The landing gear on the Straight Tail 172 was called "LAND-O -MATIC" landing gear. The ads of the time said that all the pilot needed to do to land was drive the airplane down and it landed itself! (And to think I took all those lessons!) When the 172 was introduced in 1955, it was meant to supplement the popular Cessna 170. Cessna said at the time that there was no intention to replace the 170, but rather to offer the businessman an easier to fly and more comfortable airplane. By 1955 there were 5,000 170s flying . The manufac turer also stated that the 172 was not a reworked 170, but a totally new design. The striking feature of the 172 is with no doubt, the prominent Straight Tail. Engineers found that with the raising of the tail with tricycle landing gear, a bigger tail and rudder provided better taxi, takeoff and landing performance. The newly introduced 172 boasted some special features including a low center of gravity, resilient spring steel main landing gear, and the same sturdy nosewheel as the big brother Cessna 310. The controls were not intercon nected and provided steering with the rudder or independent brakes, steerable nosewheel or combination of the three. Magazine advertisements said, "You drive it like a car!"
With it's "Land-O Matic" landing gear, and roomy cabin, the early 172 was the precursor of what would become the most popular light plane of all time.
C. L. Hamilton did the "check ride" for Flying magazine in November 1955. He calls the cockpit roomy, lower and level as compared to the 170. Since dual controls were sold only as an option, the test plane had only left hand controls. That made the cockpit seem huge. Taxiing the 172 was a revelation with the same feel and visibility as the Aero Commander. Hamilton wrote, "About the only chance for ground damage when taxi ing the 172 would be dropping the nosewheel into a hole." In the air, the 172 showed the same pleasant charac teristics of the proven 170 . . . except that the 172 is more stable. - You can slow down until the needle stops in dicating, and she just goes on, slow and steady." The landing approach differs from the 170 as the 172 uses a very steep nose down approach. Hamilton wrote: "With full 40 degrees on the paralift flaps, overshoot slightly, dump the flaps, touch down with brakes on . . . and you're in someone's back yard. We did it in 250 feet down and stopped. In an emergency, it no doubt could be done in less than that." An interesting contemporary
development was th e Met-Co-Aire Company's conversion of the 170 to tricycle landing gear (see copy of 1955 ad). Despite the statements of Cessna and the conversion by Met-Co-Aire, the 170 was doomed to be replaced by the easy to fly 172. If you fly a 172 that has a back window and swept tail, don't think you've experienced the classic 172 that changed the look and feel of light plane flight. You've only ex perienced a distant relative. The 172 of the fifties is not the same aeroplane as the modern version. Upon entering the Classic 172, one is immediately im pressed with the incredible visibility both overhead through the huge windscreen and forward over the cowl ing that does a great disappearing act down to the spinner. The pilot and com panion sit very high in the cockpit, adding to the feeling of openness and spacious ness. The engine seems to run smoother than the contemporary version, and it does. It is, afterall, a small six cylinder engine compared to the larger four banger in the modern 172. One of the greatest joys of flying the Classic comes when it's time to lower the flaps. Flaps are controlled by a great Johnson rod on
the floor between pilot and copilot. The bar clicks upward as the enormous para lift flaps drop from 10 to 40 degrees. On your first flight, it seems like you've just moved half the wing when you apply flaps. In the air, she's stable as a rock, and trims easily for hands-off flight. You won't set any speed records but you can count a solid 104 miles per hour burning about six gallons per hour. And oh, what a view! There 's a new type club called the STRAIGHT TAIL CESSNA CLUB. It was founded by my good friend and Straight Tail owner, Ernie Colbert. I've recently been honored with the title of President. The club currently has about 100 members, and is growing fast. Each member shares a great love for the Classic Straight Tail Cessna and knows that with change, improvement does not necessarily follow. I hope you've en joyed this article. The next time you see one of the Straight Tail Cessna's taxi by on its "Land-O-Matic" landing gear, think of Elvis, Bogie and me . Thanks to Richard VanEmerick, my good friend, for the classic Flying magazines used in this article .
.....
Rudy Eskra's Stearman
by Rudy Eskra ANTIQUE/CLASSIC GRAND
CHAMPION
MIDEASTERN REGION 1990
So much has been written about the Stearman, its characteristics and res toration, that it sometimes seems that everything that needed to be said about it has been said. Undaunted, Antique/Clas sic owners all like to tell their own stories. This is mine. This particular example was built for the Air Force in October 1944, thus being one of the last produced of a great series. In the ensuing years since it was manufactured, it has only been flown about 2300 hours. I acquired it in 1979. It was in very good condition then and to the best I can determine, it always has been. Rather than the owner, I look upon myself as a temporary custodian or caretaker, and very fortunate to be that. I hope that when it goes to the next owner it will be in better condition than when I got it, and that the next guys can keep it going for many years to come. It's equipped with the 225 hp Lycom ing, which, with its nine cylinders biting them off clean, sounds and runs 1B JANUARY 1991
smoother than some of the other engines with which Stearman were equipped. In 1989, my friends and I stripped it down completely, and replaced or refur bished everything we thought could be improved. We spared no expense, as a whole drawer full of receipts and a very patient wife will attest to. The engine was completely overhauled with cylinders chromed back to standard, new pistons, rings, valve guides, valves, bearings. The works. Of course, all parts were magna fluxed in the process. We found the wing woodwork in ex cellent condition, and just a few small corrosion points on the fuselage tubing. After refinishing the structure, we in stalled some new fuselage stringers (bird cage) which presumably had been broken when the airplane was pushed on its sides. These aluminum stringers tend to precipitation harden and grow brittle with age. We recovered all surfaces with heavy duty Ceconite. The final finish after the butyrate process on the fuselage, center wing section and fins was two part Ran thane polyurethane. The blue trim was DuPont Imron. However, we used Ran
dolph butyrate dope exclusively on the wings, aside from the trim. Our reason ing for doing this was because the polyurethane has less tendency to stain under the onslaught of engine emissions than dope and with its glossy surface, is a pleasure to wipe down . Gasoline dye, for example, can penetrate dopes and lacquer finishes clear down to the fabric. Since the wings are out away from this con tamination but subject to more hangar rash and might need occasional touch ing up, we felt that dope might be easier to touch up than the urethane. There has certainly been a lot of ex cellent information written about recovering and restoring Stearman aircraft, and probably done by people far more versed in the art than I. I got a lot of tips from reading and hearing them. Some of the really good ideas came not from the professional manuals but from nonprofessional restorers. We did do some of the things which we had developed on our own and felt improved the quality of the job somewhat. Many of them are minor but perhaps the really first-class jobs are a collection of fine
details. They have not been exhaustive ly tested in the laboratory but they worked for us. To the extent they are of interest, I'll pass them along here. Paints tend to grow more brittle with age and will crack from vibration where fabric stretches over sharp edges. Even though this plane was over 45 years old and must have been recovered several times, we were surprised to find a lot of sharp edges on many of the wood parts that come in contact with the fabric. These were sanded to a small radius . Ceconite reinforcing tape was applied on top of the fabric very liberally wherever the fabric laid over any edges and highly stressed skin locations, far more than on the original. This required a lot more painting and sanding between coats to hide the tape, but in the end I think we have a finish which is far more resistant to cracking. Aircraft material suppliers may recommend that you buy some of their "duct" tape to cover any seams in aluminum parts, such as on leading edges. Apparently masking tape was used in these places in the original process and we preferred that since the "duct" tape is too thick and protrudes through the finished fabric. In order to provide a smoother sur face over the aluminum D-section lead ing edges on the wings, we first covered and heat shrunk an extra layer of fabric over them. This tended to bridge over the seams and dimpled areas before in stalling the fmallayer of Ceconite. All the experts will tell you to brush on the first coat of fabric primer, such as Dacproof or whatever process you're using. This may be right but you can often sand about 15 or 20 coats before the brush marks disappear. I believe the reasoning is that brushing the stuff (which I suspect is really nitrate dope with a dye) will help you get it down into the fabric so it interlocks with the fibers. That's important because it al most must depend upon a mechanical bond to get it to stick to the dacron. We found we could get full penetration by spraying, so we sprayed and were satis fied with the result. It is important not to oversaturate the fabric, of course, since it will drip onto the opposite fabric, and these drops are very hard to hide. If you ever scrape or chip a doped finish, you invariably find that the separation occurred at either the top or bottom interface of the silver dope coat. We're convinced that silver dope has
less adhesion and a lower tensile strength than clear dope, since the aluminum particles are really impurities in the dope. For this reason we kept the aluminum coats down to the minimum required to pass the light bulb opacity test, thus providing the radiation shield for ultraviolet light. About two coats of silver seem to accomplish this. The rest of the many coats before the color was applied were clear butyrate, which seems to stay more strong and pliable throughout its life. It's not as easy to sand as the silver, but I suppose that's another testimonial to its physical properties over that of the silver. Our inspector insisted that all rib stitching knots must be exposed as in the original, rather than pulled under the skin as in Staggerwing Beech process. We located, aligned and perforated all the rib stitch holes with chalk lines snapped uniformly spaced across the length of the wing. Of course these knots were located on the bottom of the bottom wing and on top of the top wing. The result is a nice uniform appearance like lines of rivets, when sighted from the end of the wing. Some like to make pie shaped slits in the tape to take away excess material where it wraps around the wing and fm tips. There's almost no way of hiding these cutouts under the finish, so we didn't use that method. Instead, we heat shrunk the uncemented tape edges down after first cementing the tape on the ridge line of the bend only. The tape edges were then cemented after they lay nice and snug on the surface. This is not an original idea with us but the superior results make it worth mentioning.
Some experts, though not all, recom mend that when taping, both the tape and the fabric surface to which it is applied be first painted with cement. If this method is used, air bubbles are trapped under the wet tape and very hard to remove. We had better luck by ap plying a very wet coat of cement to the fabric only, and leaving the tape dry so that the air can be forced up through it. Then a thirmed coat of cement can be applied to saturate the tape after it's down smooth. Some cements as they come out of the can tend to dry rapidly or "rope" as you spread them. One old-time airplane maker suggested we mix the cement with 30 percent nitrate dope and 30 per cent nitrate thinner. This not only eliminated that problem but also seemed to make the cement stick better. We used a hot knife to cut all the fabric in order to produce a clean, sealed edge without the annoying ragged threads. To do this, we hammered and ground the copper tip of a forty watt soldering iron to a knife edge. On another iron, we rounded off the copper tip to a spherical radius and used it to hot pierce fabric drain holes, after the "lifesaver" reinforcements were ce mented in place. I haven't heard if anyone else uses this method but it real ly works slick, leaving a high strength fused ring on the hole perimeter. The stiff plastic life saver reinforcements that are available commercially often curl or warp somewhat due to the shrinkage of the cement. I believe that reinforcements punched out of leather stay flatter and more flexible while still strengthing the edge of the drain hole.
Rudy's pretty white with blue trim Stearman runs up on the ramp. VINTAGE AIRPLANE 19
At the points where the rudder cables exit through the fuselage fabric we heat formed little vee-shaped plastic fairings to cover these points. This produced a nice streamlined effect, I think, after covering them with another patch of fabric and ftnishing. When patches of fabric are needed, such as those used to cover the inspec tion rings, we found a way to make the fabric patch much more manageable. We stretched a piece of fabric over the open end of a small wooden box. This was given the fabric prime coat, shrunk with an iron and the required patches cut from it. These stay nice and flat when they're cut and cemented in place. Removing old paint from the cowling and other aluminum parts is no fun at all. In scraping it off you stand the chance of scraping through the grey anodized surface also. I gathered all of the painted aluminum pieces and took them to a furniture stripper who dipped and cleaned the whole works for $60, which I considered money well spent. These were sprayed lightly with two part Dupont Varprime primer, which I'm convinced is better than the old zinc chromate originally used. The finish resulting with the Ran thane polyurethane is superb, and in this particular project at least, seemed to be even more glossy than the Irnron we used on the leading edge trim. During the work, we had a lot of good consult ations and help over the phone with the Randolph people. We were also able to get a very good gloss in the white butyrate dope by keeping the wings flat and horizontal while spraying and float ing on a lot of dope. The final coat was thinned out more to give a good gloss. Although we have no proof, we suspect also that excessive thinning of the other coats of butyrate reduces the finished strength of the dope. And this was also the opinion of an old-timer who used to do fabric at the Naval aircraft factory . We used 3M tapes for the finish color stripes, in 3/4 inch and one inch widths. This seems to have excellent adherence in service, yet can be lifted off and retaped during the application, in places where you didn't get it quite right the first time. There is a thin, transparent membrane of protective tape on top of it which must be removed after installa tion, since this will yellow with age and will bake on permanently if it spends any time in the sun. It's hard enough to peel off when it's new. Taking a tip from the automobile 20 JANUARY 1991
The neat and tidy installation of the battery box and relay control panel mounted ott of the firewall.
body guys, we used nothing but 3M masking tape also, as some of the cheap brands can really give you trouble, either not sticking or sticking too hard. When taping over new paint, we first pressed the sticky side of the tape onto our work clothes to reduce the pos sibility of damaging the fresh surface with too much adhesion. One other problem can give you fits on a Stearman if you're not careful. When installing the bird cages (stringers) on the fuselage tubing struc ture, it's a good idea to temporarily in stall the cowling and tail cone fairing in order to properly position the stringer assembly, fore and aft. Finding out that the cowling doesn't fit after the fabric is finished could really spoil your day. It's always amazing to see vinyl material used around the cockpit coam
ings of some real prize winners. I found that nice glossy pieces of kid leather can be bought rather cheaply at places like Tandy Leather, providing an authen ticity that can be spotted a long way off. For the coaming padding, rather than layers of felt as used originally, I tried some foam pipe insulation, which is conveniently pre-slit, fits nicely and after lacing the leather with rawhide, seems to do a better job. During one of the routine magna flux inspections of the McCauley steel prop, one tiny bit of corrosion at the blade hub fillet officially ended its flying career. Although this was a devastating development, I reflected that pulling the prop and delivering it for inspection to a prop shop 80 miles away - this every 100 hours - was a nuisance. And I never could get through the hundred
Rudy Eskra and his prize winning stearman at the Mideastern Regional Fly-In in Marion, Ohio.
hour period without one protractor read justment of the blade angles, since both the centrifugal and aerodynamic forces tend to move the blades toward low pitch. I decided to try a new Sensenich wood prop. I was pleased to find that this yellow birch club is about 30 pounds lighter, produces markedly less noise and vibration, and seemed to result in no degradation in performance. I believe that there were three pitches available. I selected the middle one and I think I guessed right for operating in the low level elevation in the Great Lakes area. In reading about prop flight test com parisons, I'm always a little suspicious of conclusions drawn from airspeed data derived from a few test runs, given all the variables in atmospheric condi tions, instrument and observer error, so I didn't bother trying to get too technical about it. For what it's worth, my friend with a constant speed Hamilton on a 300 hp Stearman flys formation with me occasionally and seemed impressed with the airspeed of the lower-powered plane. When disassembling the wings, we backed all flying and landing wires off
exactly four turns. This permits reas sembly to its previous condition, whatever that was. However, we decided to go through the rerigging pro cedure anyway. In doing this we fol lowed the Air Force maintenance and erection instructions - all 11 pages. Dihedral and incidence boards were made up from the drawings and all dimensions and angles brought into tolerance. Here again it's my feeling that the plane is quite stable and per forms well. My airplane was absolutely standard when I got it, except for the usual re placement of the Bendix brake master cylinders. I didn't mind hand cranking the inertia starter, but there is no really safe and legal way to do that when going J out for a solo flight, as many have found to their horror. There must be a qualified pilot or mechanic at the con trols when you're out there turning the crank. I therefore decided to install an electrical system. Designing the electrical system, which incorporated a new alternator and rebuilt Bendix starter, was the easiest part of the job. Gathering all the documentation for application of all the
components and obtaining FAA ap proval took a great deal of time and effort. Since I do aerobatics I wanted a battery case and system which could withstand nine g. 'So None seemed available so I designed and built a sub stantial aluminum case with a separate battery hold down assembly built in. The Gil 35 battery manifold vent is con nected to a bicarbonate of soda bottle with a clear plastic hose, then down inside the landing strut fairing and over board. There seems to be a tendency for the brakes to grab, which can give the rear pilot a quick lift up about five feet in the air on first application. A lot of this low level aerobatics can be prevented by applying only one brake at a time, but the grabbing tendency can still be quite annoying. To combat this, I filed a chamfer about 1 1/4 inches by about 20 degrees from the leading edge of the primary shoe. This is the top of the front shoe which provides the servo forces on the secondary shoe. Brake operation is effective yet smooth. Of course the brake lining must be kept free of oil and moisture, and if they do get soaked, it's best to replace the friction material. VINTAGE AIRPLANE 21
The stainless steel exhaust manifold on the Lycoming 680 is also a challenge to ftnish. I suspect chrome plate would tum blue in places. I went through about ftve different high temperature silver paints, and the best one I've found is VHT 1200 degree paint made by Sperex Corporation in Gardena, California. But nothing lasts forever on that hot surface. If you have ever had a King KX145 NA V -COM radio, you'll probably agree it's not a technological miracle. When mine is working I get complaints from approach control that the transmis sion is weak and garbled when heading inbound at eight or more miles out. I noted that this improved if I turned and pointed the aircraft tail toward the air port. This led me to believe that the engine and other metal parts ahead of the antenna were blocking the antenna signal. I decided to move the antenna, which was mounted over the aluminum baggage compartment aft of the rear cockpit, to a position above the center wing tank, using the large aluminum gas tank as a ground plane. The antenna was mounted on an aluminum bracket attached to the center square tube brace above the tank. A short bonding strap was connected to the tank filler neck, providing a good ground. With the an tenna in this position, we have had no further complaints from the tower from the same distances out. In addition to an Omni in the transceiver, I bought a portable Loran which is small enough to carry in a coat pocket. This has not been entirely trouble free either, but the Ray Jefferson Company people have been very help ful. Although I don't do a lot of cross country, it has given me some very accurate guidance. It is basically a marine unit derivative and cost about $300. Although it provides ground speed and other data, I find the heading and DME are just about all I need, and often direct me right towards the exact center of the destination airport. In routine operation of a Stearman, there are two things which I regard as being just as critical as fuel and engine oil. One is keeping those big soft main tires properly inflated, and the other is to make sure the tail wheel steering as sembly is in good working order. These are very important for stability and con trol during roll-out, which I'll discuss later. Tail wheel lock mechanism 22 JANUARY 1991
should snap in place smartly, and the tail wheel steering cables must be snug. The tail wheel tire pressure needs a lot of attention also, but for a different reason. It carries a heavy load for its size and if it's run underinflated, you're looking at tire fabric in a very short time. There are at least three brands of tires available for the Stearman. One has a tread made up of rectangular blocks, another has concentric rings or grooves and the third is the classic Goodyear diamond tread. I found the block tread was good for about 500 landings on concrete, the grooved would do about 700. From a vintage appearance standpoint, I prefer the diamond tread, a pair of which I bought from Wilkerson Tire in Crewe, West Virginia. These Goodyear tires are produced in Sao Paulo, Brazil where the molds were ap parently moved to a number of years ago. In doing this restoration, I found it a very enjoyable experience. I got a tremendous amount of help from people like Glenn Gibbs of Stony Ridge, Ohio, who has become a very skillful fabric man, and indeed many of his ideas are included here; and from Frank Leffel who did much of the spraying; and Tony Eskra who sanded his share of it. Herb Wilford, Chief, Aircraft Maintenance at Dana Corp., was one expert who made sure we stayed in line, technically. Looking after a half dozen jet aircraft, Herb runs a very efficient operation with immaculate hangars and shops. There were many others, of course, and we spent a lot of enjoyable winter evenings working together and banter ing back and forth. It was a great escape from the demands of a corporate management position, and I slept most soundly during that period. I think the only real frustration, aside from the staggering prices, was waiting for delivery of parts and purchased ser vices. Delivery date promises were al most routinely ignored, thus running the total project time over one year. Ap parently keeping promises has gone the way of the 45 rpm record in this country. There are a few lessons which may seem obvious but I feel are worth restat ing. First of all, the investment in both time and money is extremely high, so it's worth doing right and this includes buying the best material available. In the course of the work, one can ftnd
a host of opportunities to take a shortcut and save some time or material. In general these temptations are best avoided. When the job is finished and it's almost good enough, no one will probably know the difference, except you, every time you look at that bird. If you're anything like me, you'll always see enough defects no matter how care ful you were. I remind myself if it's not quite right, tear it up and do it over again. I've never regretted doing that. If! may add a few observations to the myriad of information that has been written about the Boeing Stearman. I have owned it now for 12 years and I still get a great thrill flying it. Some say it's heavy on the controls but 1 don't agree. Solid, yes, but not heavy. If you properly coordinate rudder and aileron, stick pressures seem quite normal. It is very forgiving I think, with a good balance between responsiveness and sensitivity. In short, it's a real pussy cat in the air. Though it has a slow roll rate, it loops beautifully, spins easily but quits at the precise moment · when you've had enough. Strength - it's like a Sherman tank. Its solid feel derives from the lack of control-induced deflection, owing to the truss biplane structure, the use of control rods rather than cables and the basic rigidity of the tubular steel fuselage. Land.ing and roll-out is a little dif ferent, with the task of keeping things in hand left entirely up to the pilot. If ever there was a machine that's dynamically unstable in roll-out, this must be it. Response rate must be swift and instinc tive, so a bit of concentration is helpful. Over the years I've logged 1,430 land ings in this machine. Some of them would measure 5.8 on the Richter scale. As I said, it's a rugged beast, so the only damage was to my ego. A round, carrier type approach seems best, but you'd better have a softer im pact than the F-14 does, or you'll bounce 20 feet in the air. If it's done just right, those big balloon tires come into play, and nothing can match the soft, quiet touchdown of a Stearman. Most of the time it seems to land itself perfect ly, leading one to believe there's really nothing to it. OK, but I think Gordon Baxter, our foremost Stearman spokes man, had it right: when it's on the ground you can't trust it unless it's tied to something.
The E225 series Continental is enclosed in a very clean instal lation. The baffling is anodized!
(Continued from Page 13)
them have at it. The reclining seats are from the Rangemaster version of the Navion produced in the early 1960's. The Woodfins are very pleased with the results. The instrument panel and the overheard Osborne panel have been finished off in a very professional man ner. The panel is meant for strictly VFR flying, but is very well equipped, with a loran and nav-com pair. All the instru ments in the plane are brand new. To have as safe an airplane as he desired, Larry felt it was necessary to replace all the instruments, since some were 40 years old. "For all intents and purposes, the aircraft is a new, 'old' airplane. There's nothing, not a hose or fitting that has not been replaced or gone over," he remarked. Power for the "Woodybird II" is an E225 series Continental, built up of new parts, including the crankshaft. It was also carefully balanced throughout its assembly.
The sign and "Woodybird" emblem were both painted by Larry's neighbor, Neil Kavanaugh. Each emblem took 1/2 an hour for him to paint, freehand!
N22LW features this smart looking panel with padded "ram horn" yokes.
This is the second aircraft that Larry has restored. The first "Woodybird" was completed in 1978. Much later, he would sell the airplane during one of the Conventions at Oshkosh. He has some very interesting comments about that sale, now that some time has elapsed. "One of the things that happens when you restore things is the way it con sumes you, and after it's over, you be come a slave to it. The first time around, I had become a slave to the machine, and I wanted out. I just didn't want to do it anymore! Well, the smart thing to do is to sit on the side and let that pass. Well, somebody came along with a lot of money and wanted it, and I sold it." he recalled. "Two or three years later, all of the sudden I realized that I didn't have my airplane anymore, and I wanted it back, so that started the search for this one." Larry has been a motors ports en thusiast since his pre-teen years, when he tried to convince ills dad to buy him a'47 Mercury convertible, complete with a zebra skin interior. When his dad said, "You can't drive it for another 4 years, what are you going to do with it?" Larry
responded, "Dad, I'm gonna polish it!" To pacify his young son's enthusiasm, he allowed Larry to buy a go-cart. His family was not rich by any stretch of the imagination, but Larry's willingness to work hard on his projects would allow him to continue, and he would progress into racing cars at the dragstrip, then into sports cars, and finally into motor cycle racing. Larry and his wife Debbie began to fly simply as an expedient way to get to motorcycle races, since they had a few friends within the racing com munity that were making the same trips that they were, and did not have to con tend with a long arduous road trip. That sparked the interest that has become a wonderful way to travel. Motorcycles are still an important part of his life. One of his customers is a favorite of his - Harley-Davidson. They use the nails and pneumatic nail guns that Larry sells for a living to assemble the crates the big cycles are sillpped in. He is the proud owner of an "Ultra", equipped with just about everything you would ever want on a motor vehicle, including cruise control! He and Debbie plan to ride the cruising motorcycle from Maryland to Alaska on a long tour this coming sum mer. He has nothing but praise for the reliability the Harley now has, and is very pleased with both his sleek machines - his Harley Ultra and his Ryan Navion, "The Flagship of the Navion Fleet". ... If you would like more informa tion on the Navion, contact the: American Navion Society Box 1810 ' Lodi, CA 95241-1810 209/339-4213 The initial membersillp fee is $60, and then $45 per year for annual dues. VINTAGE AIRPLANE 23
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by
Davis DI-K, N158Y, SIN 508 Purchased as a basket case in August, 1958, Jack Gretta (EAA 19255) of Chester, CT, spent six years rebuilding this Davis and installing a 125 hp Con足 tinental engine under a one-time STC. In 1973, a friend(?) put the pretty
Piper J-3C-65, N6114H, SIN 19275 These photos were sent in by Robert T. (Bob) Hunt (EAA 165963, AIC 6123) of Hackettstown, NJ, who has been busy rebuilding this J-3 Cub along with George Burns (EAA 221818, AIC 10000), also of Hackettstown. The wood spar wings required new spars, all new bolts, drag wires, leading edges and attach fittings . The covering was done in Stits HS-90X and Stits Aerothane. 24 JANUARY 1992
parasol into the trees and four more years were required to return the Davis to airworthy condition. In 1991, another friend landed 01' N508Y in the trees while towing Jack Gretta in a Schweizer 1-19 glider. Jack ended up in the trees also, and admits it
A majored C-85 engine was installed along with a new Falcon wood prop (built on the Ole Fahlin certificate). Bob reports the engine started on the very
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is a long way to the ground as a "pas足 senger". It is expected the red and white Davis will again be ready for flight in 1992. This is the second Davis that Jack Gretta has owned, having owned Davis D1-K, N151Y, SIN 510, from 1947 to 1956. During those years, Jack rebuilt the airplane once and changed the en足 gine from a Kinner 90 to a Kinner 165. Jack belonged to EAA Chapter 1 in Riverside, CA, way back in the early fifties and joined EAA in the mid-sixties while living at Cucamonga, CA. He has been involved with Davis airplanes for almost 46 years and we happily extend to Jack "best wishes" for the next 46 years!
very first pull! The smooth 8.00 X 4 tires that came with the project were in serv足 iceable condition and re-instalLed on the completed airplane. This is the third airplane Bob has restored, the first two being a PA-12 Super Cruiser and a PA-22 TriPacer. Not one to up and quit having fun, he is now commencing the rebuild of a PA-ll Cub Special!
1952 Cessna 170B, N2650D, SIN 20802 This pristine 170B has been given the total "TLC" treatment since being pur chased in 1988 by its owners, Ken and Helen Cobb (EAA 182685), of Naples Florida. A new paint job in Alumigrip really improved the outside appearance, right down to the original metal wheel pants. Inside, a new interior was in stalled, including new seat coverings, and the panel was updated with all new radios and complete instrument over haul. Under the cowling, the Continen tal 145 was majored to "zero" tolerance with chromed cylinders. The original propeller and spinner were polished to a bright shine. As Ken says, "This project started as a 'replace all rusty screws with stainless screws' and grew into a very nice looking restoration!" The 170B has approximately 3100 hours on the airframe with no damage
Cessna 140A, N5300C, SIN 15420 Purchased in 1966 by John Lucas (EAA 370887) and Dave Emmett of
history, heavy gear, Cleveland brakes and original engine, prop and wheel pants. Although the pretty Cessna has scored well at every fly-in to date, Ken and Helen have yet to make the Oshkosh Fly-In. We all hope they will be able to
make the flight from Florida to Wiscon sin in 1992 so we can get a close look at N2650D. Congratulations to Ken and Helen Cobb on a nice job of "replacing rusty screws"! Your efforts show ex cellent results.
Emporium, PA, this particular 1950 Cessna 140A has been used for obtain ing STC approval for the installation of
a Continental 0-200 engine. The 0-200 engine was purchased from Lycoming in Williamsport, PA, who were using the engine for test pur poses! Installed in N5300C, the first Continental 0-200 STC was approved Dec. 1, 1967, with revised approval dates of March 12, 1980, July 2, 1980 and May 11, 1981. The first STC was sold on 12-4-78 and John reports they have been averaging about ten per year since that time. Apparently the extra 10 to 15 horsepower makes the 140A per form remarkably well, which explains the popularity of the STC. John Lucas passed his 80th birthday on July 23rd and has a new partner, John Richard Lucas (his son) to carryon the good work with the 0-200 Cessna 140A, N5300C. Long live the marque!
Taylorcraft DCO-65, C-FJLH From the far north comes this photo of a Taylorcraft DCO-65, C-FJLH, owned by Floyd Stromstedt of Box 296, Berwyn, Alberta, TOH OEO Canada. Lo cated in the northwest part of Alberta, almost at the beginning of the A\can highway, the DCO-65 is the only one in the area, in fact, it's the only one anybody in the area has seen! Floyd enjoys flying the 65 hp tandem on wheels, however, he is curious if anyone has ever put a larger engine in a DCO 65, such as a C-85, and if anyone has heard of such an airplane being put on floats? Any help would be appreciated. Write Floyd at the above address. . . . VINTAGE AIRPLANE 25
An information exchange column with input from readers.
by Buck Hilbert
(EAA 21, Ale 5)
P. O. Box 424
Union, IL 60180
Dear Buck, Ijust received the November issue of VINTAGE AIRPLANE and the portion of your column about Oshkosh being too big hit me right in the eye. Let me explain that I'm not the sort of person who calls radio talk shows or writes to newspapers. I'm more the sort who lis tens, reads and learns, but once in awhile something makes my ears stand up. Such was the feeling I got from your column. Let me give you a little background on myself. I'm forty-four years old and just celebrated the one year anniversary of my Private Pilots' license. It took me four years to earn my ticket because, frankly, I cannot afford to fly. I bought my 1946 Ercoupe 415C from Mr. Bob Washburn of Burlington, Wisconsin. Bob is a C.F.I. and I conned him into free dual through solo as part of the deal. That lovely old airplane taught me to fly, something it and its brothers had been doing for more years than I've been alive. It will probably be the only airplane I'll ever own and I'm not con cerned with any additional ratings. I joined EAA in 1981 and shortly thereafter became a Charter member of EAA Chapter 790 in Barrington, Il linois. I knew very little about airplanes, but ended up writing the Chapter newsletter for four years. My wife and I attended our first Oshkosh Convention in 1983. We have gone to Oshkosh ever year since. Oshkosh is our vacation. We save all year, just as you said. We hook up our used pop-up and camp at Camp Scholler for the en tire week. It's the only vacation trip we take. Yes, Oshkosh is too big, but oh what wonderful bigness!! In nine years I haven't seen it all. I doubt if I'll ever see it all. But the things I've seen and the people I've met are treasures I'll carry forever. Since we seldom get the same campsite each year, we always 26 JANUARY 1992
meet new neighbors at Oshkosh. One year I met a gentleman from Germany who had made his first trip to the U.S.A. just to attend Oshkosh. He was an aircraft historian and pilot and we talked until 4:00 a.m. At Oshkosh '91 I was slogging to the showers about 7:30 a.m. one morning. Along came a red VW with Paul Poberezny at the wheel. It was just he and I on that road. As he passed, I said "Good morning, Paul." He responded "Good morning." You see, he is still a greeter. Each year, I try to spend some time helping out at the Ercoupe Owners Club booth in the Type tent. I've heard the comments, ''I'm not coming back." "The lines are too long." "The prices are too high." Then for every sourpuss, along comes three or four super people just bubbling with enthusiasm and wonder. Sure the lines are long, but my wife and I talk to the other people in those lines while we wait. We've met so many interesting people that way. All of us are involved in small groups throughout the year. Our work place, church, social clubs, etc. And, face it, in each of those groups are people we don't really get along with. So, we spend part of our time trying to avoid contact with those people. Some of our good times are dampened by the loud mouth, the know-it-all or the gossip spreader. We don't have to deal with that at Oshkosh. If, for instance, I didn't agree with your attitude, I could attend Oshkosh the rest of my life and never have to cross your path. Oshkosh gives me that choice. To flip the coin, the bigness of Oshkosh has enabled me to run across more aviation greats than I would ever believe possible. As I stated before, I'm one who listens and learns. I've heard from or talked to Fred Weick, Gordon Baxter, Bob Hoover, WWII aces, pilots of Mustangs, jet fighters, airliners, Reno racers, homebuilts, antiques, classics and ultralights .
Living legends, the stuff I read and dreamed of. The stuff I still read and dream of! I'll probably never fly to Oshkosh. I'm low time and the traffic bothers me. My Ercoupe is nice, but not show quality. But I thank and admire the people who do fly in. And, I don't ever feel left out. I've found the words "Er coupe Owner," "Private Pilot," "EAA member" and "I love airplanes" are my ticket to the club. At least one day each year, I find myself out on the flight line alone. I usually just meander the entire line. I go to the Warbirds to hear and smell the power and money. I try to think of those metal monsters tamed by kids just out of high-school and wonder if I'd have had the guts to do what they did. Then I pass through the Homebuilts and admire the dedication of people who spend all those hours building an airplane just right. Next are the Antiques and Clas sics where I look at the planes I used to build models of as a kid. I spend the most time there . Last are the Ultralights. At six foot five and 250 pounds, I'm too big for most of them, but they fascinate me. So there I am, me and about 500,000 others, but I'm all alone in my thoughts and feelings. One year, as I strolled alone, I stopped at the point where Air Show center used to be. The ground seems to be higher there and as I turned I could see the entire flight line. The sky was blue and full of puffball cumulus. As I gazed over the hundreds of planes and thousands of people, a strange feeling came over me. I started to smile and said to myself, "Right here, right now, there is no place on this earth that I would rather be." That is what the bigness of Oshkosh means to me. That feeling wouldn't have happened if I were looking at a dozen planes and fifty people. That feeling brings me back each year. It's
adventure. Find the old friends; who will be the new friends? That's the chal lenge of Oshkosh for me. I admire and applaud every volunteer who makes Oshkosh what it is. I hope sometime I can afford to take more time off work and become a volunteer. I also hope those who feel Oshkosh is too big will look again. It's what you make of it. Make the bigness a positive. You know, in the years I've been attending, I've never found time to attend one of the workshops. I will, though. You can count on it. As I stated before, your article really stirred something in me. I want to thank you for your time and patience. If you want to print any of my comments you have my permission. Thank you, William L. Matuscak EAA 184868, AlC 14735 TO: Buck Hilbert Yes, the three EAAers do have a point. But, they have forgotten how fortunate they are relative to the EAA, en toto. I'm 63, retired and haven't flown a plane since 1949 (flew J-3s and Stinson 108). I got involved in work, family problems and part my own lazi ness, and then seeing most of our north ern Illinois airport fall to the developer's hammer just as I was getting ready to get my license. It just never happened. When a plane flies overhead, I still look up. I went to OSHKOSH '91 after a 12 yea r hiatus. I go to local fly -ins, including radio control models (lot of EAAers in this). Belong to EAA Chap ter 81 here in Tucson. Belong to the Puma Air and Space Museum and sup port the Arizona Aviation Historical Society. Because I now do not fly, nor am I in the process of building or restoring, I am not as fully accepted by the piloting community as if I did. You can "sense" this - and, because of and in spite of all this, I'm one of those endowment donors to the EAA for the reasons you spelled out in your column. Just maybe the endowment will someday help a youngster or two fly and stay with it! Maybe make a career in aviation, or if nothing more, keep an active interest; and, additionally, to support aviation! So, remind the three EAAers, and others of similar mind, that the day they "go West," they'll have had many hours and years of pleasurable flying, something I will never have had - and the EAA contributed to and helped
make it possible. If the three really want to help general and sport aviation, they should get involved politically to stop and ex terminate an intrusive, socialistic liberal Congress. That is your enemy! Keep at it, Buck, Roy Feher Maybe I'll get to meet you at OSH KOSH '92. Roy, You, my friend, are my kind of guy! I was a lucky one! A combination of being in the right place at the right time gave me a wonderful life. I got to meet some of the greats that were OUR boyhood heroes. I got to FLY some of the best equipment in the world military, civilian and airline - and best of all, I meet people like you who feel much the same way about EAA and all it stands for. Really, I wish I could tell the whole world about it, but to say anything at all to you, would be preaching to the choir! Thanks a bunch, Roy, for your letter and your support of EAA and the Foun dation, and YES, I'll see you at OSH KOSH '92. I'll be out there with the EAA photo ships. Look me up there! Over to you, Roy. Dear Buck, While I am not a bona fide classic-er, I have come to enjoy your column in VINTAGE AIRPLANE. In fact, I real ly am a classic-er since my factory built is a '57 172. I don '!think of it as a show plane but just a family flivver, but I recall many years ago when you and I sharted time around the EAA Directors' table and you once asked me, "Wouldn't you like to have your 172 qualify as a show plane one day?" This was back in your early efforts to ad vance the qualifying year for show planes. Your November column concerning the size of Oshkosh - I guess we have to roll with it. I started with EAA in 1964, which by today's standards, makes me an old-timer I guess. Like my 172, I don't feel that way, I just am. At least I can make the comparison with what EAA has become. Regardless of the size, what interests me most about EAA is the involvement that my entire family shares. Back in 1963 a friend loaned me some EAA magazines (I'd never heard of EAA). Mary and I traveled to Rockford as the start of our vacation the next year, and I
joined up. Mary was carrying our first child then, later to deliver our oldest daughter. Now that daughter has her own family, and though her husband cares not about aviation, she has brought them all to Oshkosh to "show them what she grew up with." She wants her sons to go with us (now grandpa and grandma) in the future. My son just received his private license last month and has transitioned to taildraggers, so he can be a "real pilot." His Christmas request? An EAA membership. I'm pretty proud! My youngest daughter is studying en gineering at Iowa State and her dorm room is under the final for the Ames airport. In weather when the windows are open it's hard for her to study. The airplanes overhead remind her so much of Oshkosh that her mind travels 400 miles away from the books to that air port by the lake, re-living the sights and sounds. There is glider activity at the Ames airport and her one desire some spring afternoon is to try soundless flight. That's three out of three. Although none will likely be in aviation for a career, each has had their life shaped by that one week each summer, and the ongoing chapter activities. The goals and ideals and wholesomeness which surround our EAA is a great part of that influence. As we get larger, I, too, have noted the fringe elements in the campground and on the flight line. I hope it is a long time before these folks have a significant impact on our or ganization, and it is up to the rest of us to slow their impact, as much as we can, and to preserve as much as we can for our grandchildren and others. New subject! Back in 1971, I sug gested to Paul that "someone" should tape record the forums at Oshkosh. He told me the idea had come up before but that what was needed was a volunteer. After kicking it around I borrowed a tape recorder and stepped forward . My first effort was at OSHKOSH '72. And faster than kids grow up, I have been at that for 20 years now. That's what Osh kosh has become for me, an effort to preserve history. I'm pretty single minded about it and only yesterday did it occur to me that on request I can deliver voices from 20 years ago. Words from some persons who are no longer living. The forums have expanded from 44 the first year to more than 300 now. (Continued on Page 28) VINTAGE AIRPLANE 27
~PA~SS~'T~T~OlJuck
That's how much Oshkosh has grown! Each year I lose a few for one reason or another, but I have learned to accept that. And I am pleased to be able to help out those folks to "hear it again," or for the first time . The Antique/Classic forums have been recorded since they moved to the Forums Plaza in 1982. My entire collection is nearing 2,000 titles. I am enclosing a complete list for your files and perhaps between you and I we can help someone else. There may be some information in my collection which is the answer for someone asking VI~TA(3~ LIT~I2ATUI2~ (Continued from Page 9)
Army Air Corps that their biplanes were outclassed and out-of-date. Air races in the past have helped to improve the design of engines; and many other im portant advances must be credited to them. But who can point to any real advance in the past few years?" The 1939 Thompson Trophy Race marked the abrubt end to an exciting, fascinating, progressive era in the his tory of aviation. Let the memory linger on. Here's to you: Doug Davis, Roscoe Turner, Charley Holman, Jimmy Haizlip, Benny Howard, Jimmy Doolittle, Lowell Bayles, Jimmy Wedel1 , Lee Gehlbach, Harold Neumann, Steve Wittman, Roger Don Rae, Lee Miles, Marion Mc Keen, Harry Crosby, Rudy Kling, Earl
you for information. From one old-timer to a longer old timer. Dave Yeoman Hi, Dave! No wonder I missed you! There you are down at the Forums tents soaking up all the lore and gore, glory and grime, while I'm at the end of the whip trying to satisify our EAA photographers. There ain't no justice. Bet the ones you missed were 'cause you fell asleep after doing Campground Security all night! Really, Dave, I had no idea those years back when you and I had time to talk, that the EAA Convention would reach the proportions it has. It has be Ortman, Joe Mackey, Louise Thaden, Jackie Cochran, Laura Ingalls, Frank Ful1er, Paul Mantz, Lee Miles, Art Chester, Tony LeVier and al1 the many, many others. GOLDEN AGE BOOK The past year in Vintage Literature we have taken a quick surface view of the Golden Age of Air Racing which so epitomized the rapid changes in American aviation during the 1930s. For those who wish to delve further into the era, its pilots, aircraft and races, there is a new edition of the EAA A via tion Foundation's book THE GOLDEN AGE OF AIR RACING authored by S. H. "Wes" Schmid and Truman C. "Pappy" Weaver. Long time members of the EAA may remember the two volume set previously offered. This new edition features additional new
The following list of coming events is furnished to our readers as a matter of Information only and does not constitute approval, sponsorship, involvement, control or direction of any such event. If you would like to have your aviation event (fly-in, seminars, fly market, etc.) listed, please send the information to EAA, Att: Golda Cox, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 53093-3086. Information should be received four months prior to the event date.
April 5-11 Lakeland, FL - Annual Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In. Make your plans to join us for the warm weather! for more information call 813/644 2431. May 23-24 - Decatur, AL (DCU) EAA Chapter 941 and Decatur-Athens Aero Service's fourth annual reunion and fly-in. Homebuilts, Classics, Anti ques, Warbirds and all GA aircraft wel 28 JANUARY 1992
come. Balloon launch at dawn. Camp ing on field, hotel shuttle available. Contact: Decatur-Athens Aero Service, 205/355-5770 June 7 - DeKalb, IL EAA Chapter 241 28th Annual Breakfast Fly-In. Info: 815/895-3888. July 8-12 Arlington, W A Northwest EAA Fly-In. Info: 206-435 5857.
come a panacea for many people - a vacation, a vocation, a place to dream about, to see, hear, listen and learn like no otherplace in the WORLD! But why am I telling this to you? You've been around just as long as I have, and you've done something I could never accomplish . I'm going to have H.G., our VINTAGE AIRPLANE Editor, take your list of Forum Record ings and if he would, keep it available so that anyone who wants to have a tape of a forum of his choice, can write or cal1, and then he can refer them to you. Dave, think you're the GREATEST! Do you stil1 play guitar? Over to you, Dave. .... material, as well as all of the previous editions material. Through their efforts and with the help of Weaver's extensive air racing photo collection, the era comes alive with the people and events that turned air racing into one of America's most popular sports. It is a comprehensive book of over 550 pages and includes tables of air race finishes and a chart of all of the Golden Age racers with registration numbers and race numbers, making it a valuable reference to tum to time and again. I consider this book a "must" for anyone interested in this era . THE GOLDEN AGE OF AIR RACING costs $29.95 (plus $4.50 shipping/han dling). Orders can be placed by calling EAA's toll free hotline, 1/800/843 3612 (outside of the U. S. call 414/426 4800). ....
July 25 -26 New Berlin, IL - Flying "S" Fa rm. Midw es t gathering o f Taylorcrafts. Contact: Al and Mary Smith,217/478-2671. July 31-Aug. 6 Oshkosh, \VI - 40th Annual EAA Fly -In and Sport A viati oll Convention. Wittman Regional Airport . Contact John Burton, EAA Aviati on Center, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086 , 414/426-4800.
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E. W. Albrecht Madison, MS Gregory J. Anderson Oshkosh, WI Peter Andrews Northridge, CA Tony D. Andrews Sevenoaks, Kent, England Cesare Arcari Corgeno Va, Italy Ted Bahl Fresno, CA James R. Baker Colorado Springs, CO James R. Barnett Niagara Falls, Canada Wayne Bausch Ames,IA John R. Beal Faribault, MN Carlo Berti Modena, Italy Bob G. Berwick Las Vegas, NV Harold Bish Hermann, MO Frank W. Blundell Lock Haven, PA Scott Boelman Rancho Santa Marga, CA Claude Brochu Prince, Cookshire, Canada W. J. Brockhouse Prairie Village, KS Wesley Brown Kailua Kona, HI (Sponsor: Arthur F. Stockel) Barry Burgoon Winter Haven, FL Frank Cella Park Ridge, IL Glen Childers Ada, OK Bernard W. Clayton Wolfe City, TX Chris Coios Haverhill, MA Charles Cole Brookneal, VA Steven E. Collins San Diego, CA William H. Cone, Jr. San Diego, CA Huntington Charles Conrad, Jr. Beach, CA John P. Coppolelli San Diego, CA Milton Crookston Santa Barbara, CA Robert Deleon Stafford, TX Richard Delmas St. Louis, MO Duane Dickson Belmont, CA Chuck Doyle, Jr. Minnetonka, MN Carl Driftmyer Port Clinton, OH Patrick J. Driscoll Caldwell, ID Harry Drover Ontario, Canada Larry Eberst Delaware, OH Bryon Engskow Pompano Beach, FL Leighton B. Ferguson Peru, IN Jeffrey H. Forrest Livonia, MI Douglas Freeman Farmington, ME Mary P. Gabriel West Wareham, MA Charles H. Gaffeney Wilmington, DE Victor Gaston Madrid, Spain Scott A. Gifford Safford, AZ Dean L. Gustavson Salt Lake City, UT Benjamin H. Hall, Jr. Tullahoma, TN Sherman W. Hallowell, Jr. Carmel, ME Aaron W. Hamel St. Charles, MO
William D. Hammond Littleton, MA John J. Hart, Jr. Wichita, KS James Hawks Beverly, MA Paul A. Hayes Phoenix, AZ Steven L. Hendrickson Everett, W A William N. Hester Reidsville, NC Bruce Hickle Crystal River, FL Richard Hilsinger Westfield, NJ T. C. Hoagland Port Orchard, WA Richard Hoffman Sherman Oaks, CA Rodolfo Hott Osorno, Chile Jim W. Howard Mc Minnville, TN Kenneth L. Howard Collinsville, OK Ernest D. Howes West Wareham, MA John V. Hufford Lexington, KY Joseph D. Jackson, Sr. Lockport,IL Robert R. Johnson Brooklyn, WI David J. Karl Carrollton, GA Fairmont, WV Dale E. Kennedy Scott Klein Farmington, UT Tim H. Klohn Hudson, Canada Larry Knechtel Seattle, WA Brian Koldyk Saskatoon, Canada George Kost Nome, AK Lois D. Kowalski Englewood, CO Joseph R. Kuth Duluth, MN Rene Lafreniere Calgary, Canada Don Lance Three Mile Bay, NY Clyde A. Laughlin Seattle, W A Bernard Leeward Chapel Hill, NC George Leighton Seattle, W A Michael Leighton Lantana, FL James W. Lobb Waxahachie, TX Clifton Lowe Cadiz, KY Anthony Maiuro New Albany, IN Marvin C. May Princeton, IL Robert F. Melillo Great Barrington, MA David A. Mihalic Mammoth Cave, KY Dion H. Miller Shady Cove, OR Douglas D. Miller Shreveport, LA Jerry Miller Vulcan, MI Gig Harbor, W A Price Miller (Sponsor: John Holmberg) Vern T. Miller Hillsboro, NC Columbus,OH William R. Miller Stephen Mitchell Castle Hill, Australia Karen S. Monteith South Milwaukee, WI Jeff Moody San Gabriel, CA Arthur M. Moose Mt. Pleasant, NC Patrick E. Morency Edmonton, Canada Kenneth D. Morris Plantsville, CT Troy Naber York, NE Steve R. Nagel Houston, TX Harold G. Nelson Crawford, TX
Michael F. Niccum Coon Rapids, MN Bobby Nichols Cove, AR Douglas L. Orme Ft. Collins, CO Bill Overcash Mocksville, NC Marlin Parrot Warrensburg, MO Laura A. Parzynsky Bloomfield, NJ Robin Pa~sley Andover, KS Nathaniel H. Perlman Oshkosh, WI Roger Posthumus Round Rock, TX Robert A. Powers Pound Ridge, NY Paul R. Prentice Denton, TX Frank Quigg Lions Bay, Canada James G. Ratliff Conyers, GA Burkhard Reinsch Germany James R. Rettick Bloomington,IL James J. Richardson Whittier, CA George H. Richmond Endicott, NY John T. Roscoe Albert Lea, MN Robert J. Rosen New York, NY Robert S. Ruffini Birmingham, MI Charlie Rugg Mesa, AZ Richard M. Ryan Yucaipa, CA Glen T. Scott Arlington, TX Robert A. Seemann Hamden, CT Ronald Sharp Florence, Canada William A. Sholar Richmond, TX Dr. Jack Shuler Londonderry, NH Vincent S. Simon Houston, TX Paul R. Smith, Jr. Derry, NH David D. Smith Arkansas City, KS Glenn Spencer Charlestown, IN E. Alan Springer Anchorage, AK Gene W. Steele Freedom, PA Randall J. Tait Breckenridge, TX Lawrence A. Tavernini Calumet, MI Lawrence A. Terrigno Placentia, CA Mark J. Tyoe Little Falls, NY Paul H. Vellinga Mesa, AZ Calvin Wagner Sarasota, FL Robert Wagner West Milton, OH (Sponsor: Ralph Orndorf) Robert T. Warner Leesburg, VA William E. Warren Parsonsburg, MD Mark A. Westall Sanibel Island, FL Gary S. Whittker Kingsport, TN Peter A. Wickwire Townsend, GA Carl J. Wilgosz Maple Heights, OH Richard S. Wilkins Port St. Lucie, FL Robert H. Williams Weil Am Rhein, Germany Robert Wood Cocoa, FL Saint Helena, CA Bill Wright Paul L. Yount, Jr. Houston, TX James L. Zale Elizabethtown, PA VINTAGE AIRPLANE 29
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MISCELLANEOUS: CURTISS JN4-D MEMORABILIA - You can now own memorabilia from the famous "Jenny", as seen on "TREASURES FROM THE PAST". We have posters, postcards, videos, pins, airmail cachets, etc. We also have R/C documentation exclusive to this historic aircraft. Sale of these items support operating expense to keep this "Jenny" flying for the aviation public. We appreciate your help. Write for your free price list. Vir ginia Aviation Co., RDv-8, Box 294, Warren ton, VA 22186. (C/5/92) SUPER CUB PA-18 FUSELAGES - New manufacture, STC-PMA-d, 4130 chrome moly tubing throughout, also complete fuselage repair. ROCKY MOUNTAIN AIRFRAME INC. (J . E. Soares, Pres.), 7093 Dry Creek Rd., Belgrade, Montana. 406 388-6069. FAX 406/388-0170. Repair sta tion No. QK5R148N. Parachutes - Toll Free 1-800-526-2822, New & Used Parachutes. We take trade-ins, 5-year repair or replacement warranty, many styles in stock. Parachute Associates, Inc., 2 Linda Lane, Suite A, Vincentown, NJ 08088,609/859-3397. (C/7/92)
VINTAGE AIRCRAFT AND ENGINES Out-of-print literature: history; restoration; manuals; etc. Unique list of 2,000+ scarce items, $3.00. JOHN ROBY, 3703V Nassau, San Diego, CA 92115. (Established 1960) (c-10/92) C-26 Champion Spark Plugs - New and reconditioned. New - $14.75, reconditioned $5.75 to $9.75. Eagle Air, 2920 Emerald Drive, Jonesboro, GA 30236, 404/478 2310. (c-10/92) GEE BEE R-2, MONOCOUPE 110 Spl., Hall "BULLDOG", top scale rated model PLANS used by Replica Builders. Plus others by Vern Clements, EAA 9297, 308 Palo Alto, Caldwell, 10 83605. Extensive Catalog $3.00 Now Available - 30-inch x 5-inch Golden Age smooth Aero Tyres and Custom Wire Wheels finished . Authentic Irish Linen Fabric Covering. Antique Instruments evaluated, repaired or completely restored . Vintage Aero, 518/962-2323. Send $3.00 for Catalogue. Rt. 22, Westport, NY 12993.
ANTIQUE/CLASSICS EAA Member - $20.00. Includes one year membership in EAA Antique-Classic Division. 12 monthly issues of The Vintage Airplane and membership card. Applicant must be a current EAA member and must give EAA membership number.
Non-EAA Member - $30.00. Includes one year membership in the EAA Antique Classic Division. 12 monthly issues of The Vintage Airplane, one year membership in the EAA and separate membership cards. Sport Aviation QQ1 included.
lAC
Membership in the International A erobatic Club, Inc. is $30.00 annually which in cludes 12 issues of Sport Aerobatics. All IA C members are required to be members of EAA.
WARBIRDS
Membership in the Warbirds of America, Inc. is $30.00 per year, which includes a subscription to Warbirds . Warbird mem bers are required to be members of EAA.
EAA EXPERIMENTER
PLANS: ANC-19 Bulletin - Wood Aircraft Inspec tion and Fabrication, 1951 edition, now available as reprint. Early aircraft Service Notes, rigging data, other titles available. Send SASE for listing and prices. John W. Grega, 355 Grand Blvd., Bedford, OH 44146. (c-3/92)
Membership in the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. is $35.00 for one year, including 12 issues of Sport Aviation. Junior Membership (under 19 years of age) is available at $20.00 annually. Family membership is available for an additional $10.00 annually. All major credit cards accepted for membership (FAX (414) 426-4873.
Great Lakes Trainer Guru Harvey Swack will help you buy or sell a Great Lakes Trainer or a Baby Lakes. The only source for CORRECTED and UPDATED ORIGINAL Great Lakes drawings. Welded parts avail able. Write to P.O. Box 228, Needham, MA 02192 or call days 617/444-5480. (c-10/92)
EAA membership and EAA EX PERIMENTER magazine is available for $28.00 per year (Sport Aviation not in cluded). Current EAA members may receiveEAA EXPERIMENTER for$18.00 per year.
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OSHKOSH, WI 54903-3086
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MYSTERY PLANE
by George Hardie
This close-up view offers a few details of this experimental aircraft designed by a famous aviation pioneer whose company became a leading manufacturer. The photo is from the EAA archives. Answers will be pub足 lished in the April issue of VINTAGE AIRPLANE; deadline for that issue is February 20th. Wayne Van Valkenburgh, Jasper, Georgia writes: "The crop duster mystery plane shown in the October, 1991 issue is one of at least two, N31237 and N31238, experimental ag aircraft built by Central Aircraft of Yakima, Washington. The aircraft was called "The Air Tractor." It was developed in a cooperative effort of Central Aircraft and Lamson Aircraft Company of Seattle, Washington. The companies combined to form Central Lamson Corporation. The planes were built in Central's hangar at Yakima. The plane was successfully tyst flown on December 10, 1953 at Yakima. It flew well. It was powered by a 450 hp 32 JANUARY 1992
Pratt & Whitney. N31238 had a more conventional type landing gear with a third strut on each side that had a shock device on it."
Francis W. Taylor of Missouri, Iowa
adds this:
"The wing panels, flaps and ailerons,
interplane struts, and some tail surfaces
Lamson Air Tractor
The Lamson Air Tractor going through its paces, laying a swath during its testing .
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The uncovered aft fuselage of the Air Tractor is quite apparent in this shot.
were interchangeable. The rear fuselage was uncovered for inspection and cleaning. Empty weight was 3200 pounds, loaded 5600 pounds, span 33 feet 7 inches, length 26 feet 5 inches, height 10 feet 5 inches and wing area 350 square feet." Scott E . Carson, Federal Way, Washington had a close relationship with the aircraft. He writes: "The October Mystery Plane stirred enough memories that 1 had to drop you a note. As you have probably heard from others, the plane is the prototype Lamson Air Tractor. What stirred so many memories for me is the fact that the man in the cockpit is H. D. (Kit) Carson, my father . As a young boy of eight or nine, 1 would often accompany him from our home in the Seattle area to Yakima where he worked as a test pilot for Lamson. That meant skip ping school, but is also meant poking around the shop all week long watch ing the airplane being built and meeting people like Dick Baxter, whose father operated Central Aircraft and was instrumental in the entire project. Other boyhood heroes of those days included Mira Slovak who flew crop dusters for Central. "1 recall that the prototype was quite tail heavy and that dad did not really enjoy flying it. He said it was work from the time you took off until you had it parked on the ramp again. The first prodoction variant was a much different machine . 1 remember the day of its first flight and, in fact, still have the movie that was taken that day. The chase plane was a Cessna 170, and I recall from the radio reports that they couldn't keep up with the Air Tractor because of its superior rate of climb. The company failed financially before the machine was certified, but the hulk of the # 1 Air Tractor still sits in a field at Richardson Aircraft in Yakima . "As a sideline, the plan was for this to be the start of a whole line of utility aircraft, all using the same flying surfaces. 1 clearly recall a Fleet 'Husky' fuselage in the Yakima jigs at the Yakima factory, and from models that dad still has, 1 assume it was the basis for a biplane freight hauler. It was a great looking machine on floa ts, with a rear cargo ramp, a la a C-130."
The fuselage in this view has been covered with aluminum. VINTAGE AIRPLANE 33
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