VA-Vol-23-No-7-July-1995

EDITORIAL STAFF Publisher Tom Poberezny

Vice-President

MarkeHng II< Communications

Dick M a tt

July 1995

Vol. 23, No.7

Editor"in"Chief

Jack Cox

Editor

He nry G. Frautschy

CONTENTS

Managing Editor

Golda Cox

Art Director

1 Straight & Level/ Espie "Butch" Joyce

M ike Dru cks

Assistant Art Director

Sara A. O tto

Computer Graphic Specialists

Olivia l. Phillip Jen nifer Larsen

Advertising

2 AlC News/ Compiled by H.G. Frautschy

Mary Jon es

4

From the A rchiveslDennis Parks

Associate Editor

Norm Pet ersen

7 Pass it to Buckl E.E. "Buck" Hilbert

Feature Writers

Page 4

.... - --

10 Type Club NoteslNorm Petersen

12 Neopolitan Float Caproni Ca.l001H.G. Frautschy

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16 Frank Warren's Thompson Trophy Paintings

18 Replica RacerslH.G. Frautschy

Page 12

Isabelle W iske

EAA ANTIQUE/ CLASSIC DIVISION, INC_ OFFICERS President Espie 'Butch' Joyce P.O. Box 35584 Greensboro. NC 27425 910/393-0344

Voce-President

Arthur Morgan

W211 NII863 Hilnop Dr. Germantown. WI 53022 41 4/628-2724

Secretory SIeve Nesse

Treasurer

E.E. 'Buc k' Hilbert

P.O. Box 424

Union. IL 60 180

815/923-4591

2009 Highland Ave.

DIRECTORS

Norm Petersen

25 Welcome New Members 26 Mystery PlanelH.G. Frautschy 28 Calendar 29 Vintage Trader 32 Antique/Classic Merchandise

Mike Stein e ke

Donna Bushman

Editorial Assistant

Albert Lea. MN 56007 507/373- 1674

22 Temco T-35 "Buckaroo"/

Dennis Parks

Staff Photographers

Jim Koepnic k C arl Schuppe l

8 What Our Members are Restoring!

Norm Petersen

George Hardie, Jr.

Page 22

FRONT COVER ... Delmar Benjamin and his Gee Bee R-2 Super Sportster replica hove been wowing airshow crowds and air racing fons for the past couple of years. Delmar ond master builder Steve Wolf of Creswell. OR built the R-2. which first flew in 1991. Look for this and mony other racer replicas at EM OSHKOSH '95 during the 'GoIden Age o f Air Racing" celebration, EM Photo

by Jim Koepnick. Shot with 0 Canon EOS-l equipped with on 8O-2ClJmm 12.8 lens. 1/500 at ili on Kodak Lumiere 100 film . Cessna 210 photo plane piloted

by Bruce Moore.

BACK COVER ... Aviation ortist Sam Lyons cap ture s the excitement surrounding Springfield. MA ond the Granville Bros. Aircraft Co. with his acrylic painting entitled "Gee Bee Sportsters: 24"xI8" limited edition prints are available of this painting - con tael S&V Enterprises. 4600 Kings Crossing Dr ..

Kennesaw. GA 30144. or call 1/800-544-4992.

Copyright © 1995 by the EAA Antique/Classic Division Inc. All rights reserved.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE (ISSN 0091-6943) is published and owned exclusively by the EM Antique/Classic Division. Inc. of the Experimental Aircraft Association and is published monthly at EM Aviation Center, 3000 Poberezny Rd., P.O. Box 30B6, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54903-3086.

Second Class Postage paid at Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 and at additional mailing offices. The membership rate for EM Antique/Classic Division, Inc. is $27.00 for current EM members for 12 month period of which $15.00 is for the publication of VINTAGE AIRPLANE. Membership is open to all who are interested in aviation.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to EM Antique/Classic Division, Inc.. P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. FOREIGN AND APO ADDRESSES - Please allow at least two months for delivery of VINTAGE AIRPLANE to foreign and APO addresses via suriace mail.

ADVERTISING - Antique/Classic Division does not guarantee or endorse any product offered through the advertising. We invite constructive criticism and welcome any report of inferior merchandise obtained through our advertising so that corrective measures can be taken.

EDITORIAl POLICY: Readers are encouraged to submit stories and photographs. Policy opinions expressed in articles are solely those of the authors. Responsibility for accuracy in reporting rests entirely w~h the contributor. No renumeration is made.

Material should be sent to: Ed~or, VINTAGE AIRPLANE, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Phone 414/426-4800.

The words EAA, ULTRALIGHT, FLY WITH THE FIRST TEAM, SPORT AVIATION and the logos of EAA, EAA INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION, EAA ANTIQUE/CLASSIC DIVISION, INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB, WARBIRDS OF AMERICA are ® registered trademarks. THE EM SKY SHOPPE and iogos of the EM AVIATION FOUNDATION and EAA ULTRALIGHT CONVENTION are trademarks of the above associations and their use by any person other than the above association is strictly prohibited.

John Berendt 7645 Echo Point Rd. Cannon Falls. MN 55009 507/263-241 4 Gene Chase 2159 Cartton Rd. Oshkosh. WI 54904 414/231-5002 Phil Coufson 2841 5 Springbrook Dr. Lawton. MI 49065 616/624-6490 ChOfles Harris 7215 East 46th St. Tuisa. OK 74145 918/622-8400 Dale A. Gustafson 7724 Shady Hill Dr. Indianapolis. IN 46278 317/293-4430 Robelt Uckteig 1708 Bay Oaks Dr. Albert Lea. MN 56007 507/373-2922 Gene Morris IISC SIeve Court. R.R. 2 Roanoke. TX 76262 817/491-9110

Robert C. ' Bob' Brauer

9345 S. Hoyne

Chicago.IL 60620

312/779-2105

John S. Copeland 28-3 Williamsbur8 Ct. Shrewsbury. MA 1545 fiJ8/842-7867 George Daubner

2448 Lough Lone

Hartford. WI s:!IJ27

41 4/673-5885

Stan Gomoll 1042 90th Lane. NE Minneapol~. MN 55434 612/784-1172 Jeannie Hill

P.O. Box 328

Horvard. IL 60033

815/943-7205 Robert D. 'Bob" Lumley 1265 South 1241h St. Brookfield. WI 53005 414/782-2633 George York

181 SlobodaAv.

Mansfield. OH 44906

419/529-4378

S.H. ' Wes' Schmid 2359 Lefeber Avenue Wauwatosa. WI 53213 414/771-1545

DIRECTOR EMERITUS S.J. Wittman 1904-1995

ADVISORS Joe Dickey 55 OakeyAv. Lawrenceburg. IN 47025 812/ 537-9354

Jimmy Rollison

640 Alamo Dr.

Vacaville. CA 95688

707/45l-{)41 1

Dean Richardson 6701 Colony Dr. Madisen. WI 53717 608/833-1291

Geoff Robison 1521 E. MacGregor Dr. New Haven. IN 46774 219/493-4724

STRAIGHT & LEVEL

by Espie "Butch" Joyce

This will be the last issue of VIN­ TAGE AIRPLANE you will see before the Oshkosh '95 Convention begins, and in a way it hardly seems fair that a com­ plete year has passed since the 1994 Con­ vention. There are a number of changes that have occurred to the grounds this past year. The most noticeable addition is the construction of two new commer­ cial display hangars. These buildings are located west of the new concrete taxiway where the heavies and military aircraft are displayed . Don't fret though - An­ tique/Classic Headquarters will still be located in the same place as it has been in the past. I encourage everyone to come by and visit with us and it's a good location to ask friends to gather for the air show. Your Headquarters (the Red Barn) offers the following services this year: a new full line of Antique/Classic logo merchandise that can be purchased at the Convention, and if space is limited for your return trip, shipment can be ar­ ranged. This merchandise will also be in inventory year 'round for your ordering convenience.

Through a new policy this year, we will have a list of aircraft that are for sale by different individuals located on the Convention grounds. If you see an air­ plane on the flight line that has the An­ tique/Classic " For sale" sign , you will be able to come into the Red Barn , ask to see the list and read information about the airplane. If you wish, you can come directly to the Red Barn and look at the list first to see if an airplane type you are interested in is for sa le. If you have an airplane to sell, we ask that you register the airplane for sale . Past com men ts from members about the manner in which some airplanes have been offered for sale on the flight line prompts this change.

To make your stay more fun, we will have a laminating service available, as well as the button machine to perform any special services that you may want done. At this time, we are planning to have Pat Packard displaying and selling

some of his artwork. Pat is a very tal­ ented artist and is responsible for a large portion of the art and design work in the EAA Air Adventure Museum. Pat will also be happy to talk to you about any specia l artwork you might want done. I plan on asking him to paint my Clipped Wing Cub on the back of my leather coat. The Red Barn will have a Steve Wittman area that I think that you will find of interest.

A popular effort appreciated by mem­ bers in the past is the information desk located on the front porch of the Red Barn, staffed by Jeannie Hill and her volunteers. The Barn sales area will be ably staffed by Kate Morgan, Ruth Coul­ son and their volunteers.

Because of the increased activities at Headquarters, additional volunteers will be needed . Your help as a volunteer is needed and appreciated in all areas. If you can stop and give some of your time at the volunteer booth located on the corner (out in front of the Red Barn) it will make your time spent at Oshkosh more enjoyable.

Here are your A/C EAA Convention Chairman: AlC Convention Management Espie "Butch" Joyce 910/393-0344 Antique Awards Dale Gustafson 317/293-4430 Classic Awards George York 419/529-4378 Contemporary Awards Dan Knutson 608/592-3712 Construction and Maintenance Stan Gomoll 612/784-1172 Data Processing Janet Bennett 616/684-8813 Flight Line Operations Art Morgan 414/628-2724 Flight Safety Phil Coulson 616/624-6490 Fly-Out Bob Lumley 414/782-2633 Forums John Berendt 507/263-2414 Hall of Fame Dean Richardson 608/257-8801 AlC Headquarters Kate Morgan 414/628-2724 Interview Circle Charlie Harris 918/742-7311 Manpower Gloria Beecroft 310/427-1880

Membership/Chapter Information Bob Brauer 313/779-2105 OX-5 Pioneers Bob Wallace 301/686-9242 Parade of Flight Steve Nesse 507/377-1400 AlC Parking George Daubner 414/673-5885 Participant Plaque John Copeland 508/842-7867 AlC Picnic Jeannie Hill 815/943-7205 Pioneer Video Jeannie Hill 815/943-7205 AlC Press Jeannie Hill 815/943-7205 Security Geoff Robinson 219/493-3360 Type Club Headquarters Joe and Julie Dickey 812/537-9354 Volunteer Host Judi Wyrembeck 414/231-4100 AlC Workshop George Meade 414/926-2428 AeroGram Bill and Sara Marcy 303/798-6086

The telephone numbers listed are ei­ ther the home number or work number for these individual Chairmen, should you need to contact them for any reason pertaining to the Convention.

We will have the new shower in place on the south end of the flight line. There have been a number of other improve­ ments made to the show plane and show plane camping parking area from air show center to the south end of parking.

I feel I should point out the official start date of the Convention is Thursday July 27. Each year people continue to arrive earlier and earlier to get a choice spot - that's fine, but members who ar­ rive early need to understand that all the services expected from Convention per­ sonnel do not go online until the official opening day of the Convention. If you wish to come early, you need to plan your campsite accordingly.

The officers, directors, advisers, chairmen and staff of the Antique/Clas­ sic Division stand ready to assist you in any way that we can, so please let us hear your needs and suggestions. Your Division is on the go, so ask a friend to join up with us. Let's all pull together for the good of aviation. Join us and have it all! ...

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 1

EAA OSHKOSH '95

C-=Wl

compiled by H.G. Frautschy

AlC HALL OF FAME

Ca.l00 RESTORATION BOOK

The selection of inductees into the EAA Antique/Classic Hall of Fame has been made . The outstanding individuals are:

If the story of the restoration of the Como Aero Club's Caproni CaJOO, as de­ tailed in the article starting on page 12, has you wishing for more information , you may wish to purchase a hard cover book published by the organizer of the restoration, Gerolamo Gavazzi. He de­ tails the history and restoration of this particular Italian pre-war sesquiplane trainer in an 80 page , full color book.

Modelers will be interested to know that a full range of detailed photos of the engine and airframe, and three-view outline drawings of both the engine and airframe are included. Numerous historical photos are also published in the book. It is pub­ lished in English, with the translation by Muriel Crawford. Unfortunately, it is not avai lable in the U.S. at this time, but for members in the United Kingdom, it can be purchased at "The Aviation Book­ shop," 656 Holloway Rd., London, Eng­ land N19 3PD-G.B. It can also be ordered directly from: "Caproncino S.r.I.," Via V. Monti 6, 20123 Milano, Italy. Phone is 02/48011456. Fax is 02/48008887. The price, if ordered di­ rectly, is a substantial $39.00, plus $13 for shipping.

Joseph P. Juptner, author of the "U.S. Civil Aircraft" series of books, a lifelong contribution on his behalf which docu­ ments the history of each of the type-cer­ tificated aircraft certificated up to 1958.

The late Cole Palen, whose efforts to preserve pioneer, WW I and the roaring '20s era of aviation at his Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome brought that time alive for hundreds of thousands of spectators to his weekend shows.

Kelly Viets, longtime EAA supporter, volunteer and antique airplane restorer.

A past Vice-President and Director of the Division, he has lent both his professional expertise in architecture and his talents as an aircraft restorer to EAA and its mem­ bers.

Congratu lations to each of the these men who will be inducted into the A/C Hall of Fame during ceremonies to be held in conjunction with the EAA and A/C Board of directors meetings Novem­ ber 10, 1995.

EAA AIR ADVENTURE WEEKEND Pictured above the the participants in the first EAA Air Adventure week­ end at Pioneer Airport, he ld May 27-28,1995 . From Left to right, they are: Kingsley Doutt, Dorris Doutt, lerry Pancoska, lanice Pancoska, Michael Dean, Capt. Vern Anderson (Ford Tri-Motor pilot and volunteer), layne Sangerman and Charles Sangerman. The weekend adventures, which include flights in a number of Pioneer Airport aircraft, have proven to be very popu­ lar. For more information, please call the EAA Aviation Foundation Flight Dept. at 414/426-4886.

2 JULY 1995

The weather has heated up, and the early volunteers have been busy with site preparations. The two new huge exhibit hangars are ready and waiting, and you will see many changes to the Convention gro unds, all designed to make getting to your favorite place a bit easier. There will be lots to see and do - if you were on the fence as to whether to hop in the car or plane and head on to OSH, perhaps this list of racers will help you with your deci­ sion. The following airplanes are sched­ uled to attend EAA OSHKOSH ' 95 as part of the "Golden Age of Air Racing:" DH.88 Comet "Grosvenor House" Brown B-2 "Miss Los Angeles" Miles and Atwood Special Howard DGA-6 "Mr. Mulligan" (2 each!)

Travel Air Mystery S Wedell-Williams #44 Wedell-Williams #121 Gee Bee Z "City of Springfield" Gee BeeY Gee Bee E (2 of them!)

Gee Bee R-1 Heath Baby Bullet Louise Thaden 's Travel Air Melba Beard's Bird biplane Wittman "Chief Oshkosh" 2 Clipwing Monocoupes Henderson's Scout Plane

There may also be last minute changes to this list, including the possibility of a second Gee Bee R-1!

Many personalities associated with the Golden Age will be there, including the children and grandchildren of many of the Granville brothers. Also expected is Gladys Granville Jones , the last of her generation who actually worked on the Gee Bee racers in Springfield with her brothers. Col. lames Doolittle, comman­ der of the U .S. Air Force Test Pilot's School and Gen. limmy Doolittle's grand­ son will be on hand, as will others. You 'll not want to miss this!

One of the highlights of the Conven­ tion 's tribute to the "Golden Age of Air Racing" will be a Gee Bee forum , to be held July 28, at 10:00 a.m . in forum tent #6. Ted B. Blakeley, P.O. Box 183, Bor­ ing, OR 97009-0183 is organizing the fo­ rum - if you have any information you think could be of use to him , please feel free to drop him a line.

FREE MUSEUM ADMISSION ­ Durin g EAA OSHKOSH '95, your pur­ chase of a flightline pass will also allow you free admission to the EAA Air Ad­ venture Museum. lust show yo ur wrist­ band at the door and breeze your way into EAA's world class facility. During the Convention, the museum Speaker Show­ case series will include presentations by aviation notables including aerobatic pilot Sean Tucker , master homebuilder and Sport Aviation columnist Tony Bingelis, Voyager pilot Dick Rutan, former Soviet

pilot Alexander Zuyev , Vi e tnam ace Steve Richi e, av ia tion writer Richard Collin s a nd man y others. New exhib its will includ e a tribute to " Women With Wings," the new Pioneer Airport ex hibit and perhaps a few added surprises.

WITTMAN HANGAR PLANS ­ Over a year before the untimely passing of Steve and Paula Wittman, plans have been und erw ay to build a hangar at Pio­ neer Airport which would house th e in­ credible artifact collection and aircraft of the Wittman legacy. The EAA Aviation Foundation is planning on e ntering th e next phase of those plans with the ground­ breaking ceremony schedul ed fo r Tues­ day , August 1, at 11:30 a .m. at Pioneer Airport, immedi ately following th e cere­ monies at the EAA Memorial Wall. T he plans call for a 60x60 foot hanga r in th e style of Steve's original hangar. Construc­ tion a nd finishing of th e han gar would take place over the fall and winte r, with completion in time for the 1996 season at Pioneer Airport. All interested individu­ als a re welcom e to atte nd the gro und­ breaking on August 1, and memorial con­ tribution s are welcome . For more informati on, contact th e EAA Avi ation Foundation D evelopment D epartment , P.O. 3065, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3065.

BEECH 18 COCKPIT DISPLAY The assistant museum director for the Staggerwing Museum in Tullahoma, TN, Bill McClure, has, through the generosity of D ave Warre n of Southwestern Aero Exchange in Tul sa, OK , acq uire d the cockpit and nose section of a Navy Beech 18. The museum hopes to set the cockpit up fo r di spla y in co mpl ete as poss ible conditio n and, to that end, th ey nee d some donor assistance. They are looking for (but are not limited to) an instrument panel , all main panel instruments, both the pilot's and co-pilot' s seats, cockpit lighti ng, floor boards, and panel placards.

The plan is to involve the students in the Aircraft Maintenance program at Middle Tennessee State University in the restoration of the cockpit, and will serve as a focal point in th e incorporation of the Twin Beech Association 's first dis­ play at the fi rst-class Staggerwing Mu­ seum. Call Bill at 615/895-6836 if you can provide any help with this worthwhile project.

AlC MERCHANDISE Be sure to stop by Antique /C lassic Headquarters (The Red Barn) and check out the new line of A/C logo wear, as well as many new shirts and sweats with color­ fu l airplane motifs. For a preview of some of the merchandise available, see the An­ tique/ Classic advertisment at the end of this month's issue of Vintage Airplane . ...

EAA®ON THE AIR

THE GREATEST SHOW IN THE AIR...

IS NOW ON THE AIR Did you know that over 27 million people attended aviation events in the U .S. last year? Did you know that makes aviation the second most popular in-person spectator sport in the country? It shows once again what many EAAers have understood for a long time: Fascination with flight is something people share al­ most universally.

We are pleased to announce one of the most ambitious programs to meet the needs of that market ever undertaken by our marketing and communications department. On July 15, at 12 noon EST, a one hour monthly television series, dedicated to covering all aspects of aviation will premier. It will be produced by EAA's Paul Harvey Audio/ Visual Center.

The production team is headed

by Dick Matt, Executive Pro­ ducerlDirector. Dick is also EAA's Vice President of Marketing and Communications. WriterIProducer Jon Tennyson will write and associ­ ate produce the series. Director of photography is Scott Guyette.

Other team members are Tim Kramer, editor and Jay Koepke, camera mount specialist.

The show is titled Ultimate Flights and it will appear on the cable sports programming network , ESPN2. A newly produced one hour show will follow in each succeeding month (check your local listings for show times). Ultimate Flights will follow a video magazine format similar to many popular news shows. Regular departments or "columns" will be augmented by fascinating features from all around the world of avia­ tion.

We' ll keep you posted on pro­ gramming plans for Ultimate Flights here in the pages of VINTAGE AIRPLANE. The premier show will feature stories of aerobatic champi­ ons; a physically challenged aviator;

women in aviation; Steve Wittman's last interview; a fascinating Young Eagle youth feature on the most re­ cent activities of "Father Goose," Bill Lishman, the man who trained wild geese to fly in formation with his Ultralight; a "What's Up" current af­ fairs segment hosted by EAA presi­ dent Tom Poberezny; coverage of air racing and other activities from the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In Convention; a segment on legendary homebuilder Ray Stits and more.

On-going contributors to the show, in addition to Tom Poberezny, will be international aerobatic cham­ pion Patty Wagstaff, who hosts " Women in Aviation"; John and Martha King of King Schools who will present "Let's Go Flying," a seg­ ment designed to teach viewers the basics of aerodynamics and flying; Sean D. Tucker, one of the true su­ perstars of the airshow circuit, who will present a monthly feature enti­ tled "Sky Dancing" and Ken Toson, the young star of the "Young Ea­ gles" motion picture, who will host a youth in aviation segment called "Young Eagles."

Ultimate Flights will represent far more than an entertaining hour. It will be intended as a forum of infor­ mation exchange for all who are in­ terested in the fascinating world of flight. From Warbirds to Ultralights; from hang gliders to tactical jets; from those who have only dreamed of piloting a plane to the most cele­ brated pilots in the world; it's our in­ tention to cover it all.

In a very real sense this show be­ lo ngs to all EAA members . Tell your friends about it. If you like it, support the advertisers. Write a let­ ter to ESPN complimenting them for recognizing the size and impor­ tance of the aviation interested community ... and don 't forget us.

Write us here in Oshkosh and let us know what you think.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 3

FROM THE ARCHIVES ...

The Israel Redhead Racer

by Dennis Parks

Thanks to the efforts of John Beetham, GORDON ISRAEL EAA Treasurer, the EAA photo archives was loaned an album ofair racing photos belong­ Gordon Israel, from Clayton, MO re­ ing to the family ofHoward Lyon. The photos ceived his first airplane ride in 1922 in the taken by Mr. Lyon are mainly of golden age Jenny of a friend . From 1928 to 1930, he worked as an instructor at the Von Hoff­ air racers. Ofspecial interest are the photos man School which folded up in 1930. Is­ of Gordon Israel's Menasco powered racer, rael was then approached by Benny the "Redhead." Mr. Lyon had attended the Howard, who wanted his assistance in de­ Von Hoffman Aircraft School in St. Louis, signing and building a Wright-Gypsy pow­ where Gordon Israel was a welding instruc­ ered racer. The airplane became know to tor. Later, Lyon would help Israel in the con­ the racing world as "Pete." At the time, struction of the "Redhead" racer.

Benny Howard was flying mail between St. Louis and Omaha via Kansas City.

The racer was constructed in a hangar at Lambert field that had been vacated by the Von Hoffman School, which came complete with full welding equipment.

In its debut at Chicago, during Sep­ tember of 1930, Pete won five firsts and two thirds out of seven starts! Quite a demonstration of the Howard-Israel the­ ory of design. Israel would also go on to help design and build the other Howard racers,"Ike," "Mike" and "Mister Mulli­ gan." Israel would co-pilot Mister Mulli­ gan to victory in the 1935 Bendix race. In 1932 Gordon Israel would design and build his own Menasco powered racer, the "Redhead." During his professional career, Israel would remain active in the aircraft industry, working for such compa­ nies as Curtiss-Robertson, Buhl, Stinson, Howard, Grumman and Lear Jet.

REDHEAD The Redhead design was conceived in January 1932. Design and construction would continue through July when it was ready to fly. It followed the same design principles as the previous single-seat Howard racers, using a steel tube fuselage and wooden wings. However the Red­ head had plywood instead of fabric cov­ ered wings . The Israel design was also Gordon Israel not only designed and unique in the use of the inverted gull wing. Redhead was powered by a super­ constructed his own racer the "Red­ charged Menasco "Buccaneer" C-6S six­ head" but also contributed to more fa­ cylinder in-line engine of 544 cubic inches mous Howard Racers; "Pete," "Ike," "Mike" and "Mister Mulligan." Along rated at 230 hp. Though a faster machine than Mike or Ike, the Redhead was with Benny Howard he co-piloted Mis­ plagued by engine problems throughout ter Mulligan to a win in the 1935 Ben­ most of its career. However, its first prob­ dix Race. lem was on the first flight, when the test 4 JULY 1995

pilot cracked it up on landing. The air­ craft and engine and had to be rebuilt. A new pilot was also needed and Israel found Lou Bowen, an American Airlines pilot, to fly the airplane.

RACES

1932: The Redhead's first racing ap­ pearance was at the National Air Races at Cleveland in September 1932 where it was entered as the "Gordon Israel Spe­ cial." Israel had high hopes for the ma­ chine as it was the only supercharged Menasco entered. It did well at the start, with Bowen well out in front by the sec­ ond lap, but the front bearing on the Menasco started seizing and the revs started dropping off. This happened in every race and Israel came back from Cleveland without earning a penny. A disappointed Gordon Israel sent the en­ gine back to Menasco to have the main bearing rebored.

1933: Los Angeles - At the Nationals in July, with Gordon Israel at the con­ trols, the Redhead fared much better than in 1932. Israel finished third three times in the 550 cubic inch events, and fifth in the 1,000 cubic inch event. For his efforts, Israel earned $250.

1933: Chicago - At the International races in September, Israel flew Redhead.

He placed second twice and third once in the 550 cubic inch events, which gave him a second overall standing , earning him $225. Roy Minor in the Howard " Ike" won each of the events. Israel ran 197.73 mph in his third event which would have been fast enough to have won the first two events, but Minor won at 201.8 mph.

1934: The Redhead" appeared at the Omaha races in August. Israel won the 50 mile free-for-all at a speed of 197.3 mph . Unfortunately, he damaged the ship very badly when he hit a bump on the field on landing after victory in the race. From all that we've been able to find, this was the last time Israel raced the Redhead.

1935: In 1935 Gordon Israel joined with Benny Howard in piloting the Howard "Mister Mulligan" to victory in the Bendix cross country race from Los Angeles to Cleveland.

(Above) This head-on view shows the inverted gull wing. This feature was used by Israel to reduce the wing-fuselage intersection drag. At the side of the fuse足 lage the airfoil had a 9 % symmetrical section set a zero angle of incidence to prevent any airflow separation at the junction of the center section and the fuselage.

(Below) The short wing of the Redhead had many ribs for strength, along with four compression bays. There appears to be a one piece laminated leading and trail足 ing edge on the wing. The elliptical plan form was se足 lected in order to reduce the cord at the side of the fuselage. Unfortunately, the airplane had miserable stall characteristics and would snap-roll if one tried to three-point it on landing.

(Above) The engine was a Menasco supercharged 544 cubic inch six-cylinder engine. The fuselage (below) was of welded steel tub足 ing, the turtle deck plywood covered. The center section where the wing panels were attached was heat treated.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 5

(Right) The Israel Redhead, like the Howard single-seat racers, was con­ structed very robustly. Howard and Israel were extremely conscious about incorporating enough struc­ tural strength. The Redhead and the Howard racers were stressed to a 9G limit. They were as strong as the Army pursuit planes flying at the time. Israel believed he had enough concerns about keeping the hopped­ up Menasco engines running without worrying about the airplane coming apart.

(Left) Because of the miserable low speed handling of the Redhead, when Israel flew it at the Los Angles races in 1933 he made only wheel landings to keep from rolling the racer up in a ball. In the two months between the Nationals in LA and the Internation­ als in Chicago, Israel took the air­ plane back to St. Louis and put a new center section on it, greatly improv­ ing the airplane's handling at low speeds.

(Above) After Ben Howard and Gordon Israel produced Pete, and prior to construction of Mike and Ike, Israel began work on his own racer. It was largely completed by the time the Howard racers were begun. Work on the Redhead apparently stopped while the two new Howard racers were completed. Israel's airplane was completed in the summer of 1932 after Ike and Mike took to the air.

6 JULY 1995

PASSd hBUCK

by Buck Hilbert EAA #21 Ale #5 P.O. Box 424 Union, IL 60180

I'm having a bad day! I just came back from a trip to purchase another load of stamps. The Post Office is be­ coming a major investment for me. I spend more money down there paying extra postage for information packets I send to people, parts I mail, and things I get that have postage due than I care to think about.

BUT ... I gotta start thinking about it. It is especially difficult to accept when I spend severa l hours each day here at my typewriter answering letters and trying to help people. I feel a need to answer each and every letter I get. I truly enjoy the sense of acco mpli s h­ ment I get whenever I am a ble to help people, eve n those who are not yet members of our Antique/Classic Divi­ sion.

What bothers me is that often, and I mean more often than not, I never hear back from the very people who I try to help. I send specifications, manuals, in­ formation, recommendations , refe r­ ences and in general do everything I can to help our members. Once in a while I even have to give advice to the lovelorn (aviation lovelorn - you know the type - " I really like this airplane ­ how do I find just the one that's right for me?").

I ask them to share with their fellow EAA and Division members when they have an especially interesting project, airplane or good idea. I meet and see many people all the time, who have great restorations and great ideas . In return, I often get a deluge of answers and help when I have a question or problem that I need advice to solve .

But it is frustrating when I don't hear back from those who I have sent mate­ rials to - I have no way of knowing if they found it useful, or if they thought I was blowing smoke. Feedback is im­ portant!

I'm sure many of you notice that I sign off my column and letters with " Over to You." Sure, it's an obvious reference to our aviation radio phrase­ ology, but it much more than that!

When I write you and sign off with "Ove r to You," it means I'd like and need a reply. How do I know I didn't say or do something that displeased you? C'mon guys and gals, we have a forum here with the EAA Antique/Classic Division's Vintage Airplane that can serve everyone of its members. H.G. and I need your help and your input, and we need feedback so we stay on track.

A good exa mple are my comments on the Aviation Rules Advisory Com­ mittee in a recent issue. I asked for in­ put on how you wanted to handle the revision of FAR parts 91 and 43 as per­ tains to Owner/Pilot maintenance. I explained that these rules had been in effect since 1938 and they could stand some changing to meet today's needs.

Care to hazard a guess as to how many people I heard from? Believe it or not, less than ten! That's ten out of nearly 10,000 members out there who took the time to express their opinion.

I know there is a silent majority out there. I certainly know it can be diffi­ cult to set your mind to it and actually get with it. But gee whiz, gang, we have until May of '96 to set in place re­ vised rules that could make it easier for us to own and maintain our airplanes.

Isn't that some incentive? Paul Poberezny can't do it all alone - nei­ ther can the other alphabet aviation or­ ganizations or type clubs. All of them need member participation, and they need it on a frequent basis.

This month's column isn't meant a to be sour grapes or browbeating - it's your wake up call and rallying cry. Re­ member, as volunteers we can't do

your bidding unless you make your views known. Write them down and send them back, and it you need more information before you can form an opinion, then all you have to do is ask.

It's why we are all here.

All is not gloom and doom - here's a humorous note H.G. and I received a cou­ ple of weeks ago . ..

Dear Buck, Could you possibly send me a copy of your April "Pass it to Buck" in Vin­ tage Airplane? My husband was inter­ ested in your discussion of the engine hour recorder that didn 't require an electric or mechanical drive. (I didn 't know that and gave the magazine to the recycler.)

I hope you'll be able to se nd this to me and restore our domestic tranquil­ ity. Enclosed is $5.00 which I hope will cover your expenses and a self-ad­ dressed, stamped envelope.

Thank you, Maskao Smith EAA87167 A /C4467 W e were able to send another copy of the April issue to Masako so her husband could order a "Running Time Meter" for his airplane. We were pleased to hear that everything worked out fine. Now if we can get Masako to hang onto her Vintage Airplane a few months longer before send­ ing them to the (shudder at the thought) recycler . ..

Over to you!

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7

WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE RESTORING

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - by Norm Petersen

Joe Gibson's Piper PA-ll Cub Special These photos of a Piper PAolI Cub Special, N4790M, SIN 11-439, were sent in by longtime EAAer, Joe Gibson (EAA 6748, A/C 16190) of Caroline, WI, who restored the airplane over a period of four years. The "basket case" Cub was purchased from Lowell Stephani (EAA 148825) of Black Creek, WI, who had started the restora­ tion. The airplane came with a Ly­ coming 0-235 engine of 115 hp and a set of Federal A WB-1500 wheel/skis.

Joe advertised the A WB-1500's for sale and the telephone almost jumped off the wall! (Apparently the demand ex­ ceeds the supply!) New wing leading and trailing edges were installed along with an 18-gal. tank in each wing. The entire airplane was covered with the 7600 Process and butyrate dope done up in the original Piper paint scheme.

The majored Lycoming is full electric with landing light, nav lights, intercom and all the goodies . A new cowl was

fabricated to go along with the original nose bowl. Original 8:00 X 4 tires, tubes and brakes are retained along with a Maule tailwheel. A complete set of new sealed struts from Univair was in­ stalled on final assembly. Joe reports the PAolI is a joy to fly and really per­ forms with a strong engine and metal prop. The pretty blue and yellow PA­ II has recently been sold to Johnny Johnson of Pound, WI. and Joe is now busy with a Piper PA-17 Vagabond.

Tony Morozowsky's Laird LC-lB The bare airframe of a 1928 Laird LC-IB , NC5793, SIN 161 , is pictured in the bright sunshine at

Zanesville, Ohio. Sent in by owner , Tony Moro­ zowsky (EAA 246668, A /C 15283) of Zanesville, Ohio, the Laird is slowly being restored to flying condition and will be powered by a Wright J-5 engine, its original powerplant. Note the many crossed wires used in the fuselage truss, a Matty Laird trademark. Visible also is the push-pull tube to the elevator and the slave struts between the upper and lower ailerons. (Hey Tony, those wheels are going to be awful rough on takeoff. Would suggest locating some with a wee bit 0 ' rubber on them!) Tony's entire family is heavily in­ volved with airplanes and they have enough projects to keep them out of mischief for years to come.

1955 Cessna 180 This photo of a 1955 Cessna 180, N3180D, SIN 31978, was taken at Gallatin Airport, Bozeman , MT, where the pretty airplane is based. Owners Alan Dvain and Steve Kleimer, both residents of Bozeman, were busy polishing the aluminum on the classic Cessna as I happened by. Present plans are to fly the 180 to EAA Oshkosh ' 95, so many more folks will have a chance to view the pretty bird. For many years, the Cessna 180 was owned by the Nash Bros. at Redstone, MT, in the far northeast corner of Montana.

8 JULY 1995

Sidney Heidersdorf's Piper J-SA Cub Cruiser This very pretty 1940 Piper J-5A Cub Cruiser, N31038, SIN 5-304, is the proud possession of Sidney Heide rs­ dorf (EAA 375615) of Juneau , Alaska.

This entirely original J-5A sports an original paint scheme of yellow with a "fish hook" arrow, open cowling around the cylinders of the Continen­ tal A-75 engine (complete with cast aluminum valve covers) and propeller spinner that flows into the lip on the front of the cowl.

The metal Sensenich prop is one of the very few changes from the original 1940 wooden propeller. Note the original 8:00 X 4 tires , tubes and brakes. This artistic photo was sent in by noted aviation photographer, Roy

Cagle (EAA 15401, A/C 1691) , for­ merly of Juneau , AK, and now of Prescott, Arkansas. Sid's J-5A , which bounced around the state of Washing-

ton for many years before moving to Alaska, is one of 375 J-5A Piper Cub Cruisers remaining on the FAA regis­ ter.

John Mark's Grumman Mallard

" --.~\

Framed in the left hand window of Bob Redner's Republic Seabee is the beautiful 1947 Grumman Mallard , N1888T, SIN 131, being flown by owner, John Mark (EAA 9866, A/C 8935) of Oshkosh, WI. Pictured over Lake Winnebago near Oshkosh, the pretty much stock Mallard has P & W R-1340 en­ gines and is kept in immaculate condition. While enjoying a ride with Bob and Kimberly Redner in their award-winning Seabee, John Mark formed up on us while over the lake. I leaned across Bob's lap and took the picture out the left window. We could plainly see John Mark 's big grin on his face as he pulled along side with the pretty Grumman, his right hand on the overhead throttles. Thirty-two Grumman G-73 Mallard's remain on the FAA reg­ istry today.

Douglas Solberg's Noorduyn Norseman These photos of a "civilianized " 1943 No­ orduyn Norseman UC-64A, NC55555 , SIN 228, were sent in by veteran photographer, Roy Cagle, now of Prescott , Arkansas. The especially rare (on wheels) Norseman was the pride and joy of Doug Solberg for many years at Juneau, AK where these photos were taken.

Powered with a 600 hp Pratt & Whitney R­ 1340 engine pulling a big three-bladed pro­ peller, the Norseman could haul a huge load

on wheels - up to 3400 Ibs. - and over a ton on floats.

Built in Canada in substantial numbers (over 700), only about 50 of the big, fabric-covered machines remain in service today. This particular Norseman is now in a museum in Fairbanks, AK.

(Note: The Norseman Floatplane Festival will be held at Red Lake, Ontario, Canada , on July 14 - 16,1995, and up to 18 "Norsemen"(?) on floats are expected.)

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 9

Type Club

NOTES

by Norm Petersen

Compiled from various type club publications & newsletters The Funk Flyer Ruth Ebey, editor and publisher

(619-466-1461)

A FunkL ... Fly-ln?

by Bob Richardson My young non-aviation neighbor asked me what I had planned for week­ end activity and I told him I intended to go to the "Funk Fly-In" at Coffeyville, Kansas. He looked askance at me and asked, " What 's a fly-in? " and " What's a Funk?" It really takes some doing to ex­ plain to an uninformed ground pounder, but to describe the remarkable charms of the Funk flying machine is even more dif­ ficult. My friend did not seem impressed with my dual explanations, shook his head and went on about his business mut­ teri ng something about " to each his own," etc.

After that exchange, I began to realize that there probably were a few av iation enthusiasts around who were not familiar with the grand old Funk either.

Here is a little background: the design, a two-place , side-by-side, high-wing monoplane originated with Joe and Howard Funk in the late '30s, with a few airplanes built in Akron, Ohio , in 1939.

(The CAA Type certificate No 715 was approved on August 22 , 1939.) These early airplanes were called the Model B and sported a 63 HP Funk Model E200 E4L, inverted, liquid-cooled engine (con­ verted automotive Model B Ford engine).

The Funk airplane project was moved to Coffeyville, Kansas, sometime in 1941 , but soon after the demands of WWII stymied airplane production and the Funks turned to the manufacture of mili­ tary par ts . The littl e monopl a ne , how­ ever, remained close to the hearts of the Funk broth ers, and by 1945 th ey were ready to come back with a postwar air­ plane, the Model 8-85-C. A numb er of refinements had been made to the after-war airplanes , but the big difference was the improved perfor­ 10 JULY 1995

mance and reliability provided by adding the Continental C-85-12 (85 HP) engine.

The Funk was typical of many airp lanes of the period with fabric-covered wood wings, steel tubular fuselage and conven­ tionallanding gear. Overall dimensions, performance figures and maximum weights vary with model designations, but , generally, the airp lan e has a wingspan of 30 feet, was 20 feet long, had a gross weight of 1350 pounds and cruised aro und 100 mph.

During those heady airplane building days of 1946, the sma ll Funk assembly line put out two airplanes a day and had an emp loyee force of over 100 people.

Things began to slow down in 1947, and as every airplane man of the time will teU you , things came to a screeching halt in 1948. The Funk brothers closed down the airplane business , regrouped, and went on to bigger and better things, but the lit­ tle monoplane remained the sentimental heart of Funk Manufacturing Corp.

The 8-85-C has been called a "gentle" airplane , others have called it " solid, " most just say "it's a good flying airplane" and "as good as you can get with 85 horse­ power. " Owners will tell you that they have never regretted taking a chance on the little Funk . The airplane was d e­ signed with the amateur pilot in mind.

Some were used as trainers, but the ma­ jority were valued as personal airplanes.

Over the years the stature of the little two-seater has grown , and nowadays the basic fifty-year-old design is very much in demand by buyers and airplane collectors around the country. Many of the remain­ ing airplanes have been rebuilt and recov­ ered several times , a few have been al­ tered with increased horsepower , but most remain very close to their original configuration. Usually they conform to th e early factory color schemes and are either blue with cream trim, red with black trim, or yellow with blue trim . The C-85 models are mostly two-toned yellow and maroon.

Funk airplane owners feel a special ca­

maraderie and have banded together in the Funk Owners Association, a type club that conducts a national fly-in annually at Coffeyville, Kansas, usually in the latter part of August (or the latter part of July).

Everyone is welcome to these affairs, and if any are curio us about this little air­ plane , they should plane to attend the next "Funk Fly-ln."

Ri ght now it is hard to pin down the exact number of Funk airplanes of all models sti ll flying, or how many were originally built, but one thing is notewor­ thy: everyone knows about a ll those small postwar airplanes that were built in Kansas, but at least 230 Funks were built in Oklahoma - South Coffeyville, that is.

(Ed. Note: 116 Funk aircraft remain on the FAA U.S. register today.)

National Stinson Club's Plane Talk Bill and Debbie Snavely, editors

High Cost of Maintenance Your maintenance bill depends on how much hide your mechanic loses when he is inspecting your engine. You know those pretty nylon safety wires you put on your engine to hold things neatly in place?

When you cut them with the side cutters (dikes) or your knife, they leave very sharp edges and get sharper as they get older.

To alleviate this problem , cut them with your sharp knife right at the clasp.

Then run your finger over the edge to make sure you got all the sharpness off.

If it is a little sharp, running a file over the edge will help (to dull the sharp edge).

Safety wire that is as sharp as any nee­ dle needs some attention to also. Cutting them with the side cutters (dikes) makes them very sharp.

File these edges smooth and then curl the edge back to the existing wire to help this problem. The same can be said for those nas ty little cotter keys. I have heard horror stories of mec hanics getting im­

paled with these wires as they run their hands into tight engi ne compartmen ts.

Usua ll y when no one is aro und to help yo u o ut is when this wi ll happen . T h e o nl y thing yo u ca n do is grit your teeth and pull the wire back out the way it went in. Very painful!

Blocked Exhaust A note from a member states that th e flame tube burnt out and blocked the ex­ hau st pipe o n his Stinson 108-3. Wh en this happens, you lose three cylinders on that side and abo ut 400 rpm . Of course, this happened when th ey had full tanks and two friends in the back. Make sur e that yo u check yo ur exhaust tubes o n a regular basis.

International Cessna 170

Association - The 170 News

Editor, Velvet Fackeldey (417-532-4847)

Rudder Cable Safety Check ­ Dick Klockner

Last month, as we touched down from a flight , I heard a soft ' ping. ' As I was wondering what the noise was, the plane began turning right. When I tried to cor­ rect with left rudder, nothing happened .

Then I tried left brake - nothing agai n.

By this time we we re heading for the woods lining both sides of our runway.

Since the plane wanted to go right and time was rapidly running out, I decided to try a ground loop. It worked and we sp un a ro und , just missing th e trees with o ur left wingtip.

Nothing lik e a n excitin g landin g to wake a pilot up!

A rudder cable had broken. It broke inside the las t compartment of the ta il cone. It is impossible to see in th ere a nd th e corrosion which was occurring went undetected over a period of time by many people - including myself. The rest of the cable was in fine shape, but that small sect ion insid e the cone and behind the last bulkhead had actually rusted in two.

Since one can' t see inside that section, I would suggest disconnecting th e cables and pullin g th e m out far e nou gh to in­ spect them . D on't forget this import ant checkup!

National Ryan Club Newsletter Bill Hodges, editor (501-268-2620)

Oil Leaks at the Head to Cylinder ­ Mike Wilson, Technical Director

Check for oil at the head gaskets, while doing the preflight. If oil is found coming out at th e gasket, have yo ur mechanic check the torque of the nuts; the engine must be cool. If you are not able to have

a mechanic do it, you can do it yourself for a temporary fix. It may not stop all the leaks , but at least the head will not come off. A severe leak could damage the head , cylinder, or piston and rings, due to excessive heat.

Use a 6 to 8 inch e nd wrench and start to tighten each nut. There are a total of 16 nuts (on a Kinner radial cylinder head), so tighten every 3rd or 5th nut, just a little , like 1I6th of a turn. This means yo u will need to go around the head sev­ eral times. Eve ry 3rd nut means 3 times aro und to do a ll stud s once . You may need to go around th e head several times to tighten all th e nuts ju st a littl e at a time. The reason why we do it this way: well, just take my word for it. Before yo u start to tighten the nuts, check to see if some of the studs show more threads be­ yo nd th e nut. This may be an indication of studs being pulled out of the h ead or stripped threads.

So if you just creep up on th e nuts a littl e at a tim e , you will be ab le to ge t your ship back home . D o n' t get carried away , and use a big lo ng wrench , like 12 in ches or more. If all yo u h ave is a 12 incher, then hold yo ur hand at the 6 inch position . There are many other things to co nsider when installing a (cy lind er) head . I always an neal the gasket before installation , also the surfaces mu st be checked for "true." More next time.

From the "International

180/185 Club" newsletter­

Johnny Miller, president (916-672-2620)

Landing Techniques The hi ghest pe rce ntage of acci den ts occ ur in the landin g ph ase of a flight (37%). There have been a couple of good articles in th e past discussing three point (full stall) landings. Club members have been doin g a good job kee pin g u s in­ formed about aircraft maintenance info r-

mation, but not much is said abo ut what yo u have to do every time you fly i.e. , land the airplane.

From the many pilots I've talked with (I have over 300 180/185's insured), most say they use a three point (nose high atti­ tude) full stall techniq ue for the majority of their landin gs . They indicated this is the way they were taught. Set up the air­ plane, pull power and flare a few feet AGL, hold the yo ke back until the air­ plane settles on the runway. For wheel landings, carry a little extra speed and pin it on th e runwa y. Nothing could be fur­ ther from the truth . Neither procedure is the " best" way to do it.

I be lieve many of yo u were never ini­ tially train ed to d o wheel la ndin gs the right way - I wasn ' t. Most are told you only do wheel land in gs in st rong cross winds. Some are afraid of them.

Except for soft field landings, I believe a wheel landing is act ua lly th e preferred way to land. It 's easy. I'll briefly discuss why. Man y of you know of the " MAF" Missionary Aviator 's Fellowship out of R e dland s, CA. For over 20 yea rs they have b ee n training th ei r pilots to fly Cessna 180/185's and 206's in countries all over the wor ld a nd sti ll have over 40 180/185's in service. Their training con­ sists of hundreds of classroom a nd flight hours with several trai ning flights to Idaho to fly the back co untry . They have in­ structors with over 10,000 hours of 1801185 time alone. I know there are other train­ ing facilities , but for my money, these guys are the real experts. They have to fly these aircraft for a living in all conditions.

Obviously they had to develop, standard­ ize an d use procedures and techniques to insure consistency and safety.

Guess what? They use the wheel land­ ing 98% of the time, except on soft sur­ faces.

Landings depend on feeling, reaction and response. You want each landing to

(Continued on page 26)

CRACKS €E;SNA PART # 041173 STRINGER ASSEMBLY o

From the International Cessna 120/140 Association

Bill Rhoades, Editor and Maintenance Advisor

Roy L. Farris writes: I called you recently to ask if you had any experience with cracked fuselage stringers, and you said that you had not.

You asked at the time if I wo uld send a description of the repairs.

While trying to find a small vibration in my (Cessna) 140A, I found the upper center stringer cracked over 60% of its width. It required removal of the windshield and several instruments in order to remove and buck the rive ts which were neces­ sary to replace it. We fabricated a new one, and used the old cast bracket which the upper center motor mount bolts to. Replacing the stringer solved the vibration problem. Enclosed is a sketch of the stringer and location of th e crack. I think these stringers should be checked at each annual. Thank you, Roy L. Farris #3445 VINTAGE AIRPLANE 11

eapolitan Float

by H.G. Frautschy with information supplied by Gerolamo Gavazzi and his book "Vintage Wings On The Lake"

The remarkable restoration of the last Caproni Ca. 100 still flying Certain aspects of antique airplane en­ thusiasts are universal, no matter where in the world they live or what language they speak. Gerolamo Gavazzi, AIC 15849 of Milan, Italy is one of us who simply couldn't bear to see an old aerop lane crumble into dust. His passion for the Caproni Ca .100 runs deep into his soul.

Before WW II, Gerolamo's father was the proud owner of a Ca.100, often referred to as a " Caproncino," and it was in this air­ plane that as a young boy Gerolamo was treated to an airplane ride. Later, he even managed to fly I-ABOU on a semi-regular basis after joining the Como Aero Club in 1962. His ties to the brigh tly colored sesquiplane were steadfast.

When Gerolamo's father gave him that ride after the War, the Ca.100 was al­ ready an old airplane. The Italian Air Force had replaced them in 1938 with the Breda 25, a more complex training air­ craft. To those who enjoy the history of various aircraft of the world, the Ca.100 might have a vaguely familiar look. An Italian Ministry of Aviation request in 1928 for proposals to build training air­ craft for the Italian Royal Air Force re­ quired the Caproni factory to work fast, so, in the interest of speed, they acquired a license to build the DH.60 Cirrus Moth from DeHavilland. The Caproni engi­ neers made a few changes to the basic DH design - the landing gear was redesigned , with a pair of oleo strut shock-absorbed landing gears, instead of the bungee corded straight axle landing gear on the DH.60. The vertical tail also underwent a profile change, but the biggest change to the DH design was a wing revision. A number of large Caproni bombers has used an inverted sesquiplane configura­ tion, with the longer wing as the bottom surfaces, and the smaller wings mounted above. The Ca.100 was given this same arrangement, resulting in an unusual look­ ing biplane . By 1930 the Ca.100 was in production , and it continued to be made until 1937. The in li ne upright Co lu mbo S.53 (four cylinder, 90 hp), S.63 (six cylin­ 12 JULY 1995

der, 145 hp) and 95 hp, 7-cylinder radial Fiat A.50 engines were used for power, with the 145 hp S.63 the favored engine.

Approximately 680 Ca.100 trainers were built during the 1930's, and it proved itself a very capable trainer. Before the war began, it was thought that nearly 300 of the aeroplanes still existed , but the war years took their toll on the survivors.

Many pre-war aircraft that served no mili­ tary purpose were converted to scrap and recycled, so few private aircraft survived the second World War. After the War, there were 15 Ca.l00's remaining, and three of them were f10atplanes that would come to operate at the Como Aero Club.

The Como Aero Club has a long and interesting history. Located on the shore of Lake Como in the city of Milan , in northern Italy , it was created in 1930 to serve as a base for local flight training as part of a nationwide encouragement of aviation by the Italian government. It opened in 1932, and was officially inaugu­ rated the next year with the arrival of the Dornier DO-X, the 12 engined German seaplane which stayed for 3 days.

A flying club was established at the Como water aerodrome, and was very ac­ tive until the start of WW II, during which each and every aeroplane owned by the club was destroyed. When the club was started again in 1946-47, the organizers had to start from scratch with an empty hangar.

The empty cove on lake Como in northern Italy began to hum again with aeronautical sounds, including a Macchi MB 308 (a high wing cabin airplane) and a SeaBee. Amazingly, a Ca.100 was located and purchased by the club. The first of three that would operate at the post-war Como Aero Club was as registered 1­ ABOU. Two more Ca.100's were added, I-COMA and I-D ISC. All three were in service and out of service at various times and of the three only two survive, I-DISC and I-ABOU. I-DISC was grounded after being damaged in a landing accident, and was later restored for static disp lay in the

Gioca nni Caproni Muse um in Trento. 1­ ABO U continued to fly un til 1968.

Macchi of Varese built SIN 3992 Caproni Ca.lOO during the late spring of 1932, comp leting the airframe in June.

Built as one of 36 seap lanes assigned to the R ome-Lido Aerobrigta operating as a pri mary flight school, it operated there until 1938, when the school was closed and the airplane was moved for a time to the town of Desenzano, on Lake Garda.

It remained in service as a training aeroplane until 1940, when it was then sold to a famous Ita lian powerboat racer, Samuele Silvani. The airplane was flown to Pavia water Aerodrome. It was regis­ tered as I-ABOU and kept there until grounded by the hostilities. Fortune smiled on the little biplane , for it's pur­ chase by a private individual just as the War was beginning would help ensure its survival. Stored out of sight from both the Axis and Allied military , the airplane would remain undisturbed in storage until 1947, when an agreement was made for the Como Aero Club to purchase the sesquiplane. The Ca.l00 was flown to Como in 1948 in less than airworthy con­ dition, but it did arrive and delighted club members began an extensive overhaul.

Along with the aeroplane came a spare pair of floats. I-ABOU has never had a wheel landing gear, having always been mounted on a pair of wooden floats. Five spare Columbo S.63 engines were bought surplus from the Italian military.

After it's first restoration, the Ca.100 flew until 1952, when a landing accident put it out of commission until 1957, and then again, it was damaged in 1963 and had to be repaired. As a training airplane, it is not surprising that the aeroplane had some hard use, and by 1967, the basic air­ frame and engine bad simply begun to wear out. It's airworthiness certificate ran out in 1967-68, and it steadi ly declined as it sat in the back of the Como Aero Club hangar.

I-ABOU has lost it's Airworthiness Certificate because the engi ne was usi ng

oil at a prodigious rate, and couldn't reach the rated power standards it needed to pass inspection. At some point after it was grounded, the Ca.100 was hauled out of the hangar and an attempt was made to run the engine and slide her down the ramp into the water. Before it could be pushed onto the lake, the Columbo ground to a halt, seizing after having sat for too long without proper care. The for­ lorn antique then sat in the humid lake air for quite some time, corroding and rot­ ting.

At one point, a businessman from the nearby town of Brianza was allowed to display the Ca.100 outdoors in his garden, and the elements further attacked the air­ frame and engine.

By the mid-1980 's, the airplane was back in the hangar at the water aero­ drome. 1985 proved to be a turning point in the history of I-ABOU. One day, as the old sesquiplane was being moved in the hangar, one of the floats cracked open.

It was obvious to all that I-ABOU had to restored soon, or it would be lost to his­ tory, becoming just another photo in so many picture collections. The Aero Club members began to show some interest in the old sesquiplane, and the Ca.100 was returned to the water aerodrome . Per­ haps it could be restored to its former glory . . .

(Above) The Caproni Ca.100 "Caproncino" captured over Lake Como in northern Italy after its six­ year long restoration. The sesqui­ plane is laid out with the shorter wing on top, and the entire struc­ ture, including the floats, is wood with metal fittings. The Ca.1 OO's basic design grew out of a licens­ ing agreement with DeHavilland to produce the DH.60 Cirrus Moth.

(Above, right) The instrument panel has been restored to its original configuration, no small task considering the rarity of pre-war instruments in modern Italy.

(Below) The 145 hp Columbo S.63 six-cylinder engine powered the majority of the Ca.1OOs built.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 13

(Left) Another shot of the Ca.100 serenely flying past the Italian villas lin­ ing the shore of Lake Como.

The projected costs were extraordi­ nary. Unlike the United States and other countries around the world where antiq ue airplanes not only existed but flew in ap­ preciable numbers, Italy simply does not have a cache of remaining antique air­ planes a nd spare parts to a ll ow the restoration of a fleet of antiques, such as we have here in the States. With that in mind , it's not hard to imagine the kind of responses Gerolamo Gavazzi got when he started asking potential sponsors if they were interested in joining him in a restora­

(Above) Gerolamo Gavazzi, the spark­ plug who organized the restoration of 1­ ABOU. (Right) The official rollout cere­ mony of the Ca.100 at the Como Aero Club was dramatic, compete with an "unveiling" of the old club aeroplane as the restored sesquiplane was moved out of the hangar.

14 JULY 1995

tion of the Ca .100. They loo ked at him with disbelief. R ebuild that?! To Fly? Sure .. .

T he few sponsors who expressed a cer­ tain amount of faith that it could be done wanted to impose their own will o n the project. Friends were also asked to join in the effort, but many simply said it couldn't be done. "Put in a mode rn e ngine, an d get a 'Special certificate of Airworthiness,' an d add some radi os," were the word s most often spoken to Gerolamo wh en he'd broach the idea to some of his friends.

Finally, it became clear that he was going to have to go it alone, a nd o rga ni ze the restoration of the "Capro ncino " on hi s own.

T he e nd of the year 1985, Gerolamo Gavazzi had organized "Caproncino Sri ," formed as an orga ni zation specificall y to restore th e I-A BQU . A pr oposa l was made to the Como Aero Club, which they accepted, opening the road to restoration for the old Caproni.

As is so typi ca l the world over, the restoration of the a irpl a ne depended most o n what was needed for the e ngi ne.

H av in g bee n wo rn o ut a nd th e n left to th e e le me nt s sure ly mu st have a lm ost co m p le te ly r uin e d it. G e ro la mo fir st went to each of the fl ying clubs th at still existed wh o in the past had operated the Ca.l00, but none could help with parts or any other in fo rmation. It was a longshot, but how about the Italian military? Since the a irpl a ne had bee n wid e ly use d as a military traine r befo re the war, pe rhaps the A e ron a utica Milita re still ha d som e lon g lo s t pa rt s th a t could aid in th e restoration . The uppe r level Italian offi­ cers who me t with Ge rolamo were inter­ ested in helping, but they could not offer any part s - inquir es by the staff came back tim e and time again with negative results. The parts simply didn't exist in the normal channels of supply.

Networking can often have unex­ pected results, and while conversing with the " Grupo Amici Velicoli Storici " (GAVS), or the "Friends of Vintage Air­ planes Group ," he was reminded that it was possible that a few of the aviation trade schools had older engines that were used as training aids.

A trip to R o me co nfirmed th at the Galilei In stitute had a Columbo S.63 in their collection , but the Institute's offi­ cials were not thrilled with the prospect of selling the engine. Gerolamo's enthu­ sias m mu s t have swayed the men, for they did agree to check into selling the e ngin e to him . They later came back with the startling news that they couldn't sell something that didn ' t belong to them - it was on loa n from the Aeronautica Militare!

An excited Gerolamo Gavazzi went right back to the officers who had tried to he lp him on his previous visit. They were incredulous, a nd they agreed to help. At a meeting with all three of the protagonists in this little play, Gerolamo agreed to provide the In stitute with a suitable e ngine for instruction , and the Aerona utica Militare would sell him the Co lumbo at auction . As all of the bu­ reaucratic wheels slowly turned (again , some t hings are universal!) before the deal was consummated , the engine was sent to a museum , where the curator de­ cided he wanted to keep the engine for display! Fortunately, the officers at the Aeronautica Militare did not want to break a promi se (how refreshing!) and so they prevail e d , and the engine wa s eventually sold to G e rolamo for use in the Ca.lDO. Anoth e r en gin e was eventually ob­ tained from a wind machine through a surplus deale r in on e of the seediest sec­ tions of Rom e . It involved the convo­ luted negotiations with a wily junk dealer and transporting the engine home in the

back of a little Fiat 131. For the full story, I strongly suggest obtaining a copy of Gerolamo Gavazzi's "Vintage Wings On The Lake," a hard cover book pub­ lished by Gerolamo. Details are included in A/C News on page 3.

Now he had three engines, and a luck would have it, he was able to obtain an­ other from the "Istituto Technico Malig­ nani " in Udine. Engine overhaul could now begin, with the original engine slated for overhaul, and a second engine to be rebuilt as a spare. The remaining engines would be used for spare parts.

After cleanup , the parts were in­ spected , including the multiple-piece crankshaft. The pistons were replaced and the cylinders cleaned up and chromed back to standard . The valve guides were bored out, and new valves installed. Once run, the first rebuild of the Columbo was disappointing - it would not produce rated power, and so a decision was made to have the engine re-overhauled by a differ­ ent shop. After another year, the engine ran up properly, and was made ready for installation in the Ca.100.

The airframe of the Ca .100 was sur­ prisingly sound , and mechanic Sergio Pinza, who did the restoration, under the direction of Felice Gonalba, found the fuselage, which is built up entirely of wood, was in reasonably good condition.

The tail surfaces were not nearly as good. Damage caused by careless move­ ment in the hangar had banged up the

rudder and elevator, and coupled with rot from over 50 years of exposure and use had ruined them beyond repair. A new set was built up. The wings didn't need much more than minor rib repairs and cleaning up , with a careful inspec­ tion of the entire structure . The wing struts were inspected and repaired, and the wooden float that had split open was fixed,with the other float inspected and cleaned up.

The airframe accessories, including the fuel tank, canopy frame and oil cooler took a bit more effort, and all of the metal fittings were x-ray inspected, sand­ blasted and pronounced fit for use.

The instrument panel had been cob­ bled up over the years, and so an effort was made to return it to it's previous glory. A Pezzani model 2 compass, built up from the parts of two units, is the cen­ terpiece of the panel, and other instru­ ments were found in the stores of the Como water aerodrome hangar. A clock was also built up from the remains of two non-working clocks. As the restoration progressed, parts and pieces from other Como warehouses were found , including a float and other airframe components.

A few spare propellers were obtained from the Caproni family, who had taken an interest in seeing the last Ca.100 take to the skies again.

After a six year effort, the Caproni Ca.100 was ready for its first flight, re­ splendent in its new green, red and white

Italian military color scheme. Test pilot Carlo Zorzoli, the last man to fly 1­ ABOU in 1968, was given the honor in 1991 of flying the newly restored sesqui­ plane from the Como water aerodrome.

The test flight was routine , and for the first time in 23 years, a Ca.100 was flying in Italian skies. At the conclusion of his book, Gerolamo's comments regarding his reason for passionately ensuring that the Ca.100 was restored as it was, in orig­ inal flying condition, were summed up as follows: "Static restoration can, of course, be done. While this too is auspicable (com­ mendable), it lacks the romantic touch.

A static restored plane is a piece of his­ tory, but it brings to mind dust, staleness and mold. However much it may evoke memories and emotions, it is a ghost of the past. But when one clambers into the cockpit of a plane that flies , from it em­ anates a fragrant mixture of oil, grease, petrol, rubber and leather.

"The hotted engine and the drop of oil on the floor are signs of life.

"When the engine is switched on , with its unmistakable throb, the vibrations shudder, and the instruments spring into action , the aircraft seems possessed of a soul."

Against monumental odds, Gerolamo Gavazzi and his friends and partners have breathed life into a part of Italy's recent history. Our congratulations of accom­ plishing such an extraordinary task!

*

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 15

Roscoe Turner: Three Time WInner of the Thompson Trophy ...

(Far right) Roscoe Turner fuels his racer, dubbed the "Pesco Special," during preparations for the Na­ tional Air Races in Cleveland during 1938. Roscoe won the race that year with a 283.42 mph average speed. The last National Air Races held before WW /I took place Labor Day weekend, 1939. Roscoe re­ turned with the same racer but with a new sponsor, Champion Spark Plugs (right). When the sun set on the races at the end of the holiday weekend, two momentous events had occurred - Roscoe Turner had won an unprecedented third Thompson Trophy race, and the Germans had invaded Poland, set­ ting the stage for the second world war. Roscoe announced his retire­ ment from air racing, and the world knew that future peace was uncer­ tain until Nazi aggression could be 16 JULY 1995

1939

THOMPSON TROPHY Painting by Frank Warren

The winners:

#29 Roscoe Turner - LTR-14 "Miss Champion" 282.54 mph #70 Tony LeVier - Rider R-4 "Schoenfeldt Firecracker" 272.54 mph #2 Earl Ortman - Rider R-3 "Marcoux-Bromberg Special" 254.44 mph Others in the race:

#52 Harry Crosby - Crosby CR-4 #4 Steve "WIttman - "WIttman "Bonzo" #25 Joe Mackey - Wedell Turner #5 Art Chester - Chester "Goon" DNF - Out lap 18, out ofoil

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 17

Repl ica

Racers ...

Recreating the Golden Age

by H.G. Frautschy

Jim Younkin of Fayetteville, AR has long been bitten by the racer bug, having built up repli­ cas of two of the most famous racers of all time. In the foreground is the replica of NR614K, the Travel Air Mystery S, winner of the 1929 Thompson Trophy race, which beat the military's best biplanes by a good 50 mph. In the center of the formation is Jim's replica of Benny Howard's DGA-6 "Mr. Mulligan," the only racing airplane to win both the Thompson Trophy race and the Bendix Transcontinental race in the same year (1935).

Budd Davisson and Jim Clevenger collaborated on the construction of a replica Wedell­ Williams #44, the winner of the 1933 Thompson. Nearly 15 years in the making, Budd did the engineering, and the remarkable team of Jim and his wife Liz put their heart and soul into building the airplane. Its first flight was July 3, 1987 with Carl Pascarell at the con­ trols. After suffering some damage during Hurricane Andrew, the airplane has been refin­ ished and made a bit lighter, with a goal of moving the CG forward a bit, making the racer handle better.

18 JULY 1995

As youngsters, they were the air­ planes flown by our heroes - Benny Howard cleaning up in the '35 Thomp­ son Trophy race with an airplane that look more like an executive transport instead of a speedy racer. Steve Wittman in his personally built racers , gamely keeping pace with the most ex­ pensive racers money could buy, and earning Steve enough money to grub­ stake him in the aviation business as a fixed base operator. Or Jimmy Doolit­ tle and Lowell Bayles, Gee Bee pilots who roared around the pylons at Cleve­ land, forever imprinting the vision of the stubby little racers as icons of the "Golden Age of Air Racing."

For many of us, the images we have of that time are those of black and white photos and newsreels. Devoid of color and sometimes grainy, the snapshots of past glory days left us younger race fans with a hunger for more. For those whose boyhoods were filled with a time when heroes put all their life savings into a race plane, unless they saw the planes in person, screened pictures and garish cover art on pulp magazines would have to make do to fill out their imaginations. For some, their talents at building models soon translated to adult vocations that allowed them to express their aeronautical desires. By the late 1960's and early 1970's, a few men be­ gan to wonder if it was possible to build a racer.

Questions began to be asked and , fortunately, some of the people in­ volved in the original construction of a few of the racers were still very much alive, and very enthusiastic about set­ ting the record straight when it came to their particular airplane'S reputation.

To whet our appetites for these rac­ ers of the past reincarnated, here are just some of the replica racers that should be on hand for the second "Golden Age of Air Racing" reunion at EAA OSHKOSH '95.

The start of the Gee Bee craze can cer­ tainly be traced back to the construction of Bill Turner's Gee Bee Z replica in the shops of Ed Marquart, built during the 1970's and first flown in November of 1979. Bill's flight, 'er, make that ground experiences with the "Z" were nothing short of wild, including an excursion from the runway at Half Moon Bay that re­ quired a 5 month rebuild. Bill will be the first to point out that the airplane was not at fault - a new set of brakes were to be fitted, but he was one landing too late in getting them installed. The "Z" replica is now owned by David Price and the Santa Monica Museum of Flight, who purchased it after the airplane was one of the aero­ nautical stars of the Disney movie ''The Rocketeer."

Jeff Eicher and Kevin Kimball (above) of Florida are busy putting the final touches on their Gee Bee Z replica. Jeff and Kevin are not plan­ ning on making Oshkosh this year, but when we visited the Kimball shops this past April, the project had moved to the stage you see here.

All the construction drawings and structural analysis were done using a computer, and many of the lessons learned by others over the past 25 years of racing replica building were incorporated into the details on this Gee Bee. (Left) Jim Jenkins' Gee Bee Ereplica over the skies of central Connecticut. A pains­ taking reproduction of the "E," Jim's air­ plane is powered by a 110 hp Warner, and he reports, as do the other Gee Bee replica pilots, that the airplane flies very nicely but that it can quickly become a handful on the ground during rollout. jim first flew the replica in September 1991. A second "E," built by Scott Crosby, has recently been completed, and it is also scheduled to be at EAA OSHKOSH '95.

(Right) The beautiful Gee Bee Model Y Sportster, built as a replica by Ken Flaglor, and now owned by Jack Venaleck of Painesville, OH. Only two of the "Y's" were built, and although both eventually crashed, the design has proven to be sound and a spirited airplane to fly.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 19

A snarl from the horizon, and a rotund shape takes form as it buzzes past the crowd and whips into a quick climb and roll. A rom! Then an inverted pass, followed by knife edge flight in front of a dazzled audience. Knife edge flight! From one end of the country to the other, Delmar Benjamin has been de­ bunking the myth that the Gee Bee R-2 Super Sport­ ster is a mean, nasty airplane, ready to bite at mo­ ment's indiscretion. Built by Delmar and master craftsman Steve Wolf, as well as others in Steve's Creswell, OR shop, the Gee Bee R-2 replica brought together the dreams of many Gee Bee enthusiasts around the world when it flew Monday, December 23, 1991. Since that time, the R-2 has proven to be a worthy airshow airplane, ably demonstrated by Delmar. Far from a completely docile airplane, the Gee Bee R-2 still requires the attention of the skilled pilot at all times. Referring to his preference for aerobatic airplanes, Delmar was quoted by Steve Wolf as saying, "Stability spells boring." The Gee Bee R-l replica fills the bill for Delmar!

During an East Coast tour, Delmar Benjamin and Steve Wolf were treated to a Gee Bee fam­ ily reunion of sorts. Here, Steve discusses the Gee Bee R-2 project with Howell "Pete" Miller, the chief engineer at Granville Bros. Aircraft when the R-l and R-2 were built. At the Concord, NH Air Festival, the Granville family members enjoyed a visit with the R-2 - from left to right are: Steve Wolf, Delmar Benjamin, Sherrelle Antrum, June Dakin, Paul Granville, Pete Miller, Matthew Jones, Barbara Haggerty and Tom Jones.

(Left) A portion of fabric from the original R-2 is held next to the R-2 replica by Delmar during the Concorde, NH Air Festival.

The perky Command-Aire "Little Rocket" was reproduced by Joe Araldi, who en­ joyed a close association and collaboration with Albert Vollemecke, the Little Rocket designer. The original was the winner of the grueling 5,541 mile All America Flying Derby in 1930, a race set up by the Ameri­ can Cirrus Engine company to promote their engines. The race was open to all air­ planes powered with either Cirrus or En­ sign engines. Joe's faithful replica has proven to be a reliable racer, giving Joe a taste of the "Golden Age of Air Racing."

20 JULY 1995

The resurrection of Benny Howard's Pete had long been a dream of Bill Turner's, one he gave up on before he built the Brown B-2 replica "Miss Los Angeles." Since Benny was small (just slightly over 5 feet tall and slightly built), Bill figured his 6'5" frame wouldn't fit. Years later, he was able to acquire what was left of the racer, which had been neatly rebuilt into a pretty little sportplane by a fellow from Mil­ waukee named Poberezny. Paul's "Little Audrey" used a pair of Luscombe wings and the remains of the fuselage of Pete, which had long since been modified from its original form. Restored to its former glory, with a complete new set of wings and a rebuilt fuselage, painted a gleaming white with gold and black trim, Pete looks ready to bring home the hardware from the races. Recently flown, it was piloted by Robin Reid. A replica Pete has long been the dream of engineer and aviation journalist Budd Davisson, who has been slowly making head­ way on his project over the years. "Pete's" stablemates, "Mike" and "Ike" also still exist, owned by Joe Binder over the past 30 plus years.

Bill Turner, EAA 26489, was one of the lucky men who grew up a teenager during the 1930's. He also had a father who was a Naval aviator d uring WW I and avid aviation e n­ thusiast for the rest of his life. Bill was fortunate enough that his dad made sure that he and his son wo uld head off to the National Ai r Races each year in e ither Los Ange les or Cleveland, and he was old enough to remember many of the details that made the racers so appealing. (Sitting in Benny Howard's Pete, making airplane noises until he was uncere­ moniously hauled ou t of the cockpit by Benny and Gordon Israel certainly did much to keep his recollections strong!)

As an adult, he couldn't shake the tho ught of flying one of the hairy chested raci ng beasts t hat had thrilled his chi ld­ hood. The few racers that remained were not for sale, so he was left with only one choice - build his own!

The Gee Bee sure had lots of sex appeal to Bill, but o h, its reputation. Perhaps something a little more easy(!) to fly. Here's how he described his search in the November, 1972 issue of Sport Avia tion:

Miss LA was bu il t by Bill and master restorer/custom builder Ed Marquart and his shop craftsman at FlaBob airport in Los Angeles. The racer showed u p to thri ll the crowds at EAA OSHKOSH '72, and its appearance seemed to spark a resurgence in interest in racing airplanes. Power was a Ranger engine, instead of the 6-cylinder Menasco - it was easier to find and much easier to get parts for the Ra nger than the 290 hp su­ percharged Menasco.

F lying Miss Los Angeles gave Bi ll q uite an education, one that has stuck with him as he and Ed Marquart have gone on to bui ld up more replica racers: the Gee Bee model Z "City of Springfield," and the Miles and Atwood Special. They've also restored Benny Howard 's Pete, with their most recent achieve­ ment the construction of a replica DH.88 Comet, " Grosvenor House. " None of the airplanes has been considered by Bill to be easy to fly - they require constant attention, and many have a particularly sharp break at the stall. Keeping in mind their primary mission, to go fast, helps keep their flight characteris­ tics in perspective. B ill is once aga in organ izing the Golden Age of Air Racing re union at EAA OS H KOSH.

For a list of events and special guests that are planning on at­ tending EAA OSHKOSH '95 as part of the "Golden Age of Air Racing" celebration, please see the Ale News on page 2. ...

"The image of one racer kept popping into my head. As a young boy I had taken a fancy to it because of its graceful lines.

It was a craft which was always in there performing year after year. It bore a strong resemblance to the famous Howards (Pete, Mike and Ike) but was bigger. Also, it had flaps to help bring the landing speed down to something less than the wild strafing run approach so common to most of its contemporaries.

Besides, it was crimson, with gold letters and I like any color as long as it's red. It was, of course, the 1934 Brown B-2, Miss Los Angeles."

VINTAGE AI RPLANE 21

TEMCO

"Buckaroo"

by Norm Petersen

Robert Dickson's

rare T-35 TEMCO Trainer

An old adage among airplane people goes something lik e this , "No thin g is prettier than someone else's polished air­ plane!" That ubiquitous thought kept goi ng through my mind as I quietly ap­ proached a gleaming, highly polished res­ ident of the Swift row at Sun 'n Fun '95.

Closer inspection revealed the ai r­ plane to be one of the rare tandem-seat­ ing TEMCO "Buckaroo" models that make your heart skip a few beats with jealousy, pitter-patter a few more beats with envy, then finally slow down to a normal beat as h ars h reality sets in.

There are only five T-35 Buckaroos o n the FAA register, three T-35 and two T­ 35A . Of these, only four are presently flying . Now you have a n id ea of how rare this airp la ne is and yo ur relative chance to ever own one. (But the beauti­ fu l taildragger st ill m akes the h eart thump! ) This gleaming aluminum , 1950 model T-35, N904B, SIN 6005, had been flown in from Charlotte, NC, by its owner and restorer, Robe rt Dickson (EAA 70408, AIC 22357) and hi s lovely wife , Ro ye Ann. The flight to Lakeland , FL, was the very first time that Robert had take n his wife alo ng in this particular airplane and they are most pleased to report tha t she loved every minute of it. Robert re­ ports the airpla ne fl ew grea t a nd made the trip without a hitch. (Have yo u ever noticed how much easier it is to own a n airplane that runs perfect when the Mrs. is riding along?)

The highly polished " Buck a ro o" didn ' t happe n overnight. It had bee n purch ased by Robert Dickson as a true " bas ke t case" in 1974, twenty-one years ago . How e ve r , the full story of th e Buckaroo goes back even farther.

R obe rt Dickson was born in Char­ lotte, NC, in 1943 and has lived his entire life the re except for a stint in college at Clemson University at Clemson , Sc. In 1961 , his aviation interest was coming to 22 JULY 1995

the fore as he started taking lessons in a Piper Colt and made his first solo flight in a Piper Tri-Pacer. However, as is so of­ ten the case, the funds dried up as school ex pe nses soo n took care of a ny loos e money.

Eventually, R ober t finished sc hool an d beca m e ga in full y e mpl oyed . B y 1968, the aircraft " bug" was gettin g to him once again , so he bought a Piper PA­ 12 Super Cruiser and soloed the airplane under the tutelage of CFI D o n Stewart eventually earning his Private license.

1969 was a banner year fo r Robert in that he marri ed hi s love ly brid e, Ro ye Ann , a nd in the sa me year , deve lope d this urge for a low-wi nged retractable air­ plane called a Swift! He fo und o ne fo r sa le at Waymon Lanford Flying Service in Greenwood, Sc. After a bit of negoti­ ati o n, Robert traded a boat that he had for the Swift - and drew a nice chunk of boot money, besides! (Now you really und ersta nd this happe ned a fe w years ago !)

Robert went down to Greenwood, SC, go t all checked out in th e retrac table Swift, and flew it home to Charlotte. A bit later, he was taking a fri end for a ride whe n his passenger volunteered to show him some excitin g loop s and rolls .

Ro bert respectfully declined and while tying down th e tailwh ee l, ha ppe ned to notice severe d e ter iora ti o n in th e aft fuselage and tail feathers! The airplane clearl y need ed res torati o n and Rob e rt felt a very shaky sense of reli ef that no aerobatics had been attempted.

Later, he flew the Swift into the North Wilkesboro , NC , Fly-In , wh e re he met th e Swift g uru , Charlie Ne lso n , and joined the Swift Association. Re turning home, the Swift was dismantled for a ma­ jor restoration that would take the next two years. Robert discovered two things that all aircraft restorers already know.

It takes lots of time to restore an airplane and secondly, it costs considerably more

money to complete th a n originally ex­ pected! However, all the effort was not in vain as Robert's newl y restored Swift ran off with the Grand Champion Award a t the Swift Fly-In at Ke ntuck y D a m State Park near Paducah, KY, in 1973.

Th e exce ll e nt qualit y of Rob ert ' s workman ship ca ught Charlie Nelson 's eye and in 1974, Charlie extended an of­ fer to Robert to come up to Athens, TN, and look at a TEMCO "Buckaroo" that the Swift Foundation had for sale. It was a true basket case and in dire need of ex­ pert rebuilding. Charlie felt that Robert Dickson was the man for the job.

After looking the entire pile of Bucka­ roo part s over, a d ea l was struck an d Robert purch ase d the airplan e and hauled the whole mess back to Charlotte, NC, in a truck. This was 1974 and Robert definitely felt he was almost in the air­ craft kit business - it was that bad! How­ ever, slowly but surely, each part and

(Above) "A Day at the Lake, high and dry as it should be." is the title of this photo of Robert Dickson (front cockpit) and Bud Brown (rear) in Robert's beautiful T -35 as they form up on Charlie Nelson's Buckaroo and photographer, Terry Heffield. Photo taken @1/250 @ F4 on Kodak VPS-160 film.

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Looking up into the left main gearwell gives us an excellent view of the really painstaking effort put into the long restoration. Note the micarta block used to convey the four pressure lines through the wing rib.

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The fully instrumented front panel, complete with full avionics, is shown with the lights on and everything lit up.

The rear instrument panel has been rebuilt to original config足 uration and includes the origi足 nal " Radio Call, N904B " en足 graving from back in 1950.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 23

(Above) Three and a half-year-old Robert Dickson, Jr., sits in the newly acquired T -35 project shortly after the long restoration period began.

(Above right) Now an accomplished pi­ lot and CFI, Robert Dickson, Jr., sits in the front cockpit of the totally restored T-35 Buckaroo and readies for a flight.

(Amazing the difference twenty years can make!)

piece was separated from the pile and re­ turned to new condition.

Perhaps the first item learned was that very littl e of the original Swift airplane was used in the manufacture of the T-35.

They were different as night and day.

About the only recognizable feature common to the two airplanes is the wing slot ahead of the ailerons on the leading edge of the wing. When Robert would become stuck on a part, he would solicit help from th e people at JAARS (Jungle Aviation Air Rescue Service) who were exce ll ent craftsmen and could lit era ll y build any piece and part required. In ad­ dition , he wou ld often call EAA in Oshkosh and end up with the answers to his many questions. As Rob ert says, "More EAA members should realize that EAA is more than a magazine. For me, it really paid off."

The original engine that came with the project was a 165 hp Franklin that needed a great deal of he lp. Only the crank was airworthy! The rest had to be replaced as the necessary parts and pieces could be located (Spell that $$$$$). The years of drilling rivets, clea ning and priming, re­ riveting, fixing, rebuilding and general restoration went by rather quickly. The light at the end of the tunnel was starting to show and by 1990, some sixteen years into the project, the old (new) T-35 trainer was ready for her first flight.

Robert was pleased with the overall han­ dling of the airplane. The controls are positive in their actions and it was easy to see (and feel) that the airplane was built for pilot training.

In 1990, Robert flew the T-35 to its first Swift National Fly-In in Athens, TN. The trip proved one thing - the e ngine was not in good shape and somet hin g needed to be done. About this time, Sea­ 24 JULY 1995

planes, Inc. of Vancouver, WA , came up with a freshly majored 220 Franklin with a constant-speed McCauley propeller.

Robert swallowed hard and decided to go for it. The installation , which was quite a substantial amount of work, was handled

by Don Maxfield at his Kearney, Ne­ braska, operation. The physical size of the 220 is almost the same as the 165, however, a new engine mount was re­ quired along with all th e different hookups to the engine. New baffles kept the air going by the cylinders and the new fully controllable prop was installed to make use of all that horsepower. Robert was especially plea sed with Don Maxwell's work and the result was a "real hotrod" of a T-35 Buckaroo. The take­ off was much shorter , the climb was something out of Star Wars and the cruise was now in the 160 to 165 mph bracket at 65% power. The 34 gallon fuel capacity makes for about a three hour range (at 10 to 12 gp h) which Robert says is almost beyond his kidney range.

In 1990, additional work was com­ pleted on the wings, control surfaces and the tail surfaces. All aluminum that was replaced was carefully chosen for even­ tual polishing, so the surface was closely checked before installation. Needless to say, Robert and crew became experts in the fine art of riveting without leavi ng tell-tale marks and "sm iles. " The rear instrument panel has been redone to original condition while the front panel (where all solo work is flown) has been rebuilt to a mode rn , fully instrumented panel for use in the Charlotte TCA. This wou ld have to be called a modern neces­ sity.

In 1994, the entire wing center section was re-skinned with " beaded " skins that were made with a special jig. Again, ma­ terial was selected that would polish well.

Incidentally, when the T-35 was origi­ nally built, it could be fitted with dual .30 cal. machine guns , one in each wing, along with at least 100 rounds of ammu­ nition for each, an e lectric gunsight and 16 mm camera. The in s tallation was unique in that the machin e guns were mounted on the torsional axis of the wing to provide fighter plane accuracy. At the time (early 1950's) the airp lan e was la-

beled as a "Cub Killer" in reference to its machine guns. Apparently the designers had Third World countries in mind at the time.

In 1951 , the designers added ten 2.75 inch rockets (five mounted below each wing) complete with a fire control sys­ tem, to make the T-35 a formidable fight­ ing machine . The evaluation of the T-35 was cut short by the Korean War and eventually, the jet engine powered Cessna T-34 won the competition for the new Air Force trainer.

Having committed to a polished air­ plane, Robert has become the residen t guru on how to make an aluminum air­ plane shine. The results of his work are really outstanding and if you look at the T-35 in the bright sunshine, you will have to be prepared to shield your eyes! At Sun 'n Fun '95, the pretty little tande m trainer drew more than its share of envi­ ous looks. Apparently we all have some "Walter Mitty" in us and would like to fly a small fighter one day! It surely attracts a crowd!

Perhaps the best part of the Buckaroo story is that Robert 's entire family has become aviation minded. Their son , Robert , Jr. a nd his wife are presently both in advanced flight training at Lake­ land, FL (both are CFI's). In addition , their daughter, Lisa, wants to learn to fly in the family Super Cub, N3681Z, this summer and is unsure whether to have her brother teach her - or her sister-in­ law! (How's that for neat options?)

Robert says they plan on several trips with the T-35 this summer including a trip to Denton , T exas, for the 50th An­ niversary Reunion of TEMCO employ­ ees. They fully ex pect to visit with folks who actually built their airplane way back in 1950!

Perhaps the funniest happening in the T -35 saga came at EAA Oshkosh last year when Robert quietly stood by as a group of younger folks came up to look at the brightly polished airplane. One said, " Gee, I didn ' t know they could chrome plate airplanes." To which a sec­ ond member of the party answered, " It 's not chrome plated, it's polished stainless steel!"

Robert just sat and quietly smiled.

*

New Members

Charles O. Allen Greenwood, MS Riverside, CA David Almy Ian Archibald Marion, TX Houston , TX Richard Balfour Chico, CA Robert B. Barnes Watauga, TX Joe Bauer St. Charles, MN Archie F. Beighley Greensboro, NC Marion A. Bell Holt, MO Michael D. Berry Bron., France Alain Bliez Aptos, CA Richard R. Borg Carleton , MI Paul C. Brent Andy Brinkley Hickory, NC Crockett, TX Harvey L. Bruner Long Beach, CA John P. Callos Grosse Pointe, MI Michael M. Carey William Castleton Irving, TX William J. Clifford Williston Park, NY St. George, UT Douglas L. Cline Lake City, MI Larry N. Collins Philip H. Colmer Chelsea, MI Sebastian, FL Clarence S. Conove r, Jr. Richard W. Cooper Sonoma, CA Rosedale, IN Robert J. Cox El Paso, TX Col William T. Creech Lloyd A. De Bock Stockton, CA H. E. Delker Frankfort, MI Luthersville, GA Wayne K. Dickson Glendale, CA Doll Electric Corp Houston , TX Jesse K. Douglas Pasadena, MD Jeffrey R. Dwye r Fayetteville, NC Lloyd W. East, Jr. San Antonio, TX Roger A. Edgington Theo Embry Clebuerne, TX Kingsville, Ont., Canada Dennis Enns Trempealeau, WI Scott E. Erickson Lake Havasu City, AZ Burt Faibisoff Alsea, OR Mike Farmer Springs, TX Jonathan D. Frank Rudolf A. Frasca Urbana, IL Joe B. Gamertsfelder Tinker AFB, OK Richard A. Garrett Detroit, MI Brazori a, TX Garvin H. Germany, Jr. Chicago, IL Winfred E. Gerth San Mateo, CA Le Gray Leesburg, VA James E. Greer Petersburg, AK John Grogan Terry J. Groom Chilton, TX Double Oak, TX Gary G. Grubb Wichita, KS Wilmer W. Grundeman West Lafayette, OH Robert J. Guilliams Mora, MN Milton Gunderson

Westlake, OH Carl E. Halasy Boulder CR, CA Bill Hardin Whittier, CA John Healis Dallas, TX Jimmy Heisz Thomasville, NC L. E. Hiatt Buena Park , CA Charles W. Hibbard Troutdale, OR Herbert E. Hill Camarill o, CA Bryce B. Hunt Algonac, MI Paul P. Ivan Steve D. Ivan St. Clai r Shores, MI Nashville, TN William Ivey W. Tom James, Jr. Melbourne, FL Livermore, CA Thomas M. James St. Charles, IL Phillip R. Johnson William J. Johnson Woodstock, GA Arthur, Ont., Ca nada Harold N. Jones Fritxh, TX Darrell K. Keesling Lyndhurst, OH Ted Kelley William Kineyko Jackso n, Nl East Taunton, MA Everett King Belvidere, IL Richard L. Kluver Hartford, WI W. Robert Koch Chicago, IL Karl A. Kopetzky Rockford , IL Frank H. Krause Kewaun ee, WI Robert D. Krauss Shreveport , LA Jakob Kubli Knoxville, TN Bill Kulibert Pembroke Pines, FL l ohn J. Kupka Otpington, Kent, England Dr. A. Lagoa Cy Lambird Sacrament o, CA Francis S. Le Blanc Stuart , FL Oxnard, CA l ose ph B. Lee Capt. Raymond J. Leewa rd Mi ami Beach, FL Lancaster, CA Oscar A. Levi Easley, SC Charles Lewis Los Altos, CA Lyle T. Lindsay Mystic, CT William A. Loweth Kent T. Lyford St. Paul, MN Peter B. MacMurray Humble, TX Reston, VA Kenneth A. Maiden Al amo,CA Ian L. Marsh Studio City, CA John Marshall Joe J. Mason Woodland Hills, CA Sun Valley, NV Ronald E. McConnell Baden, PA Daniel E. McLain Verne Menzimer Vista, CA Placerville, CA Wayne H. Mikel Ca nandaigua, NY Paul Moore Goodhue, MN l ohn B. Neal William G. O'Keefe Grand Forks, ND Conway, AR Bryant C. Otto

Hayward, CA Randolph Parent Calga ry, Alb., Canada P. Mark Parso ns Jim M. Patterson Stone Mountain , GA Don B. Perrine Miami, FL Terry M. Peters Okeechobee, FL Dale C. Peterson Fayetteville, GA Don E. Petty, Jr. Saticoy, CA E. L. Pfeiffer Fremont, CA James E. Polen Murrysville, PA Frank 1. Prinz Santa Ynez, CA Steve W. Pugh Saugus, CA Lagun a Niguel, CA David S. Rado Dennis Radwanski Justice, IL Walter F. Ramseur Millbrae, CA Thomas J. Reddeck Gold Hill, NC Fred H. Reed San Antonio, TX Colorado Springs, CO Dewey Rei nhard Greg A. Repimski Wisconsin Rapids, WI Lester Paul Reynolds Jackson, MI Roland P. Rippon Rockford, IL Markus Ritz Zurich, Switzerland Houston, TX Steven L. Robbins DeRidder, LA Wade M. Roberts Bob D. Rodgers EI Campo, TX Peter T. Rogers Marion, WI Heinz Roth Merrill, WI Claude S. Royal Linchburg, V A Wayne E. Rumble Marmora, NJ Oviedo, FL Kenneth W. Saravanj a Pat B. Sauriol Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Anchorage, AK Thomas Schrader Thomas Sereno Modesto, CA Shingle Springs, CA Rodger W. Shartle Mark W. Skowronski Braidwood, IL Echteld, Netherlands B. B. E. Slikker R. Michael Stevens Seguin, TX Bowie, MD Burt Stimson Larry F. Stoffers San Marcos, CA Rochester, NY Robert S. Storms lohn T. Strong Ranger, TX David Sturges Downsview, Ont., Canada Mission Viejo, CA Bernard Sturmak A. J. Tagga rt Pontiac, IL Peter Tallarita Hudson, WI lohn Iver Theilmann Petawawa, Ont. , Canada Brian D Thomas Loveland, CO Morganton, NC Joseph C. Thomas Ellenton, FL John E. Thomson Long Beach, CA Thomas E. Timmerman Georgetown , OH Rollin D. Tomlin Thomas H. Trent Durham, NC Michael Turner N. Ft Myers, FL Bedford , VA Harry Veith Gary S. Velligan Granada Hills, CA Carl Vickers Corpus Christi, TX W. Coas t Propeller & Accesso ries Van Nuys, CA Mesquite, TX R. C. Wade John W. Walker Beverly Hills, CA Olympi a Fields, IL Larry K. Warren Cupertino, CA Raymond S. Watts Rio Vista, CA LeRoy Weber, Jr. John B. Wells Austin, TX Temecula, CA Terry Whitington Ernest Wickersham Plainfield, IN Fred J. Wilder Belleair, FL John D. Wilson Goleta, CA Geoffrey Roy Winch Wilmslow, Cheshire, England Mary Ann L. Winter Belmont, CA Springfield, MO K. A. Wiseman Thomas 1. Witt Doylestown, PA Mike J. Wittmann Santa Cruz, CA Santa Clara, CA Byron J. Woodruff Wraalstad.G ary Bryans Rd , MD Joseph Zito Perry Hall , MD Dorin Zohner Waterville, ME VINTAGE AIRPLANE 25

size to the Culver "V"; the cabin, however, was 48 inches wide.

Wings folded upward for storage. Construction was largely 24ST aluminum alloy. The targeted selling price was an­ nounced as $2,500! Flight testing was done by Ross Holdeman and famous race pilot Earl Ortman."

by H.G. Frautschy Here 's a fun looking little amphibian that should inter­ est any of the web-footed pilots out there. The answer for this Mystery Plane will be published in the October 1995 issue of Vintage Airplane. Answers for that issue must be received no later than August 25, 1995.

The April Mystery Plane prompted a surprising number of answers, considering the relative obscurity of the sub­ ject. Both the photo published in the April issue and on this page were supplied by Earl Stahl of Yorktown, VA, who visited the Jamison factory in D e land, Florida one winter's day in 1949-50. Earl described the Jupiter:

"The plane is the "Jupiter," built by Jamison Aircraft, De­ land FL in 1949. Designed by CM. Jamison who previously worked as an engineer for Beech and Culver. It seated three.

With a Lycoming 0-235-C1 engine of 115 hp, it was said to cruise at over 150 mph and land about 40 mph. With a wing span of 19 feet and length of 20 feet, 10 inches, it was similar in 26 JUNE 1995

During EAA Sun ' n Fun '95, an elderly gentleman came up to me with the April issue in his hand an said "This air­ plane's no mystery - I designed it! " He then introduced himself as Charlie Jamison, still of Deland, Fl. Charlie, it turns out, is the chairman of the Sun 'n Fun Corn Roast, an event that is growing in popularity each year.

Char li e gave us some additional insights about the Jupiter and himself. After graduating from Parks Air Col­ lege in East St. Louis, IL in 1938 with an engineering de­ gree and a mechanic's license, he went to work for Dart Aircraft. His first assignment was to get the CAA ap­ proval of the 90 hp Warner in the Dart. He then worked on the design of the Culver Cadet with Al Mooney, staying with C ulver to extend the Cadet work into the PQ-14 pilot­ less aircraft. After the war, he started work on his own de­ sign, originally planning a "V-tail" (as depicted in the pho­ tos) . After analyzing the loads imposed on the aft fuselage and thinking though other considerations about the stabil­ ity of the V-tail in the event of structural damage, Jamison redesigned the tail to a conventional horizontal stabilizer and vertical fin.

Charlie mentioned that the biggest roadblock to the production of the Jupiter was lack of capital, the eternal bugaboo of so many promising d esigns. He still has all of the data and a remaining airplane. After production plans fizzled, Jamison turned to earning a living as a fixed base operator, rebuilding airplanes. He has also been an active technical/engineering writer over the years, putting to­ gether proposals for businesses wishing to do business with the government. A second attempt to put the airplane (by

TYPE CLUB (Continued/rom page 11) be as " predictable" as possible and a wheel landing is the most "pre­ dictabl e ." Landing on wheels allows you to (1) better see the approach , touchdown and rollout, (2) puts all the weight on the main wheels for most ef­ fective braking (a three-point landing puts 500-600 pounds on the tail , this weight is now " fr e e wheeling") , (3) eliminates more lift because the angle of attack is less, keeping you on the runway , (4) there is less chance for floating or drifting in cross winds, and (5) better directional control on a bounced or a bad landing.

Misconception: Wheel landings are done at a higher approach speed.

Truth: A typical good wheel land­ ing approach is at 60 kts lAS unless conditions require differently. Yes, you saw it correctly, 60 knots . Re­ member a 10% increase in approach speed equals a 21 % increase in land­ ing roll! That's a lot folks!

Misconception: You should "pin it on" the runway at touchdown .

Truth: If done correctly, you never

pin it on , you fly it until the whe e ls touch , the n chop the power and apply the brakes and there is very little or no bounce. With this approach, you have to resist cutting power until the wheels touch . It takes practice.

Here ' s the technique: Get e stab­ lished on final. At one mile out , you should be at 60 kts lAS (depending on wind conditions), 500 feet above the runway and descending at 500 FPM carrying about 13 " -14 " MP with the full flaps. Trimmed to hands off. The aircraft should com e over the thresh­ old almost level. Do not flare and do not pull your power until you 'feel' the wheels touch (resist the temptation) .

This has to be learned because your natural instinct is always to pull power.

Almost simultaniously when you pull power at wheel contact, come on with as much brakes as you need and hold neutral yoke. The torque from brak­ ing will help keep the tail up. Then as the speed is reduced and the tail set­ tles, come back with the yoke. Power controls rate of descent, if you reduce your power, your descent rate will in­ crease (even at 2'), then you will have to flare to compensate and you'll be chasing the airplane. You want as few changes to correct as possible. This

then designated the "J-4") into production in the early six­ ties also ran into financial difficulties.

Both Charlie Hayes, New Lenox , IL and AAA Presi­ dent Robert Taylor, Ottumwa, IA recall seeing the Jupiter at the Oskaloosa, IA airport in 1950. Charlie even got to fly the airplane during a demo flight.

Other answers were received from Jim Borden, Menahga , MN ; Larry Knechtel, Seattle, WA; Roy Cagle, Prescott, AR ; R.G. Beeler, Lakeland, FL; Bill Rogers, Jacksonville, FL; Frank Strnad , Long Island, NY ; and Roger Johnson, Houston, TX. ...

technique takes out the guess work - if you 're low, add power, if high, reduce.

Never change attitude or trim, it's sim­ ple.

A full stall landing has everything changing at th e same time which in­ cludes: power, speed , attitude, yoke, visibilty and pitch. This is not as pre­ dictable because you're waiting for things to happen , you're chasing it.

This wheel technique is near bullet­ proof if le arned correctly. It is being used all over the world by pilots much more knowledgeable than I. " MAF" uses wheel landings at all airports in Idaho they fly into. That includes Sol­ dier's Bar, Allison Ranch, Bernard, Krassel and more. All you do is cut power, brake and turn off the runway.

Until you learn it correctly, stay with the technique you ' re most com­ fortable with if it works for you. I rec­ ommend you practice this with a CFI that really knows the technique . He can see your mistakes. I took several hours of training from "MAF" a few years ago. It really improved my pro­ ficiency. Once correctly learned, you'll wish you had known this years ago.

Happy flying!

Bill White

(Left) Charlie Jamison, Deland FL stands by an earlier air­ plane he did design work on - the Culver Cadet.

(Above) The Jamison Jupiter in its original configuration, sporting a "V-tail" and showing off its folding wings. It was later certified with a conventional tail.

Send your Mystery Plane Replies to EAA Headquarters:

Vintage Airplane Mystery Plane

P.O. Box 3086

Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 27

JULY 15-16 - DELA WARE, OH - Central Ohio. 14th Annual EAA Chapter 9 Fly-In. Young Eagle flights , BBQ, Food. Delaware Airport. Contact: Walt McClory 614/363­ 3563.

J ULY 23 - MARSHFIELD, WI - EAA Chapter 992 Fly-In pancake breakfast.

715/223-6679.

JULY 24-26 - LACROSSE, WI - (LSE) An­ nual convention of the Short Wing Piper Club. arrive 7123, depart 7127. Convent ion HQ - Midway Motel. For info, contact the SWPC president, Steve Mars h, 816/353-8263 or th e SWPC News, Bob or Elinor Mills , 316/835-2235.

JULY 24-26 - LA CROSSE, WI - Short Win g Pip er Club Annual Convention.

507/238-4579.

JULY 26-AUGUST 3 - VALPARAISO, IN - EAA Chapter 104 of NW indiana l1th an­ nual food booth at Porter Co. Airport (VPZ). 8 a. m. to 6 p .m. daily during th e week of Oshkosh. For more info, call Barb Doepping , 2191759-1714 or Alex Ko­ morowski,219/938-5884.

JULY 27-AUGUST 2 - OSHKOSH, WI ­ 43rd Annual EAA Fly-In and Sport Avia­ tion Convention . Wittman Region a l Air­ port. Co ntact John Burton, EAA, P.O. Box 3086 , Oshkosh , WI 54903-3086 , 414/426­ 4800.

AUG. 5 - LAKE ELMO, MN - Lake Elmo airport (21 D) Annual Aviation Day s, Rotary Pancake brea kfast. Wings, wheels and whirlybirds. For info call 6121777-9142.

AUG. 5-6 - RICHMOND HEIGHTS, OH Cuyahoga County airport. 25th Anniversary Crawford Meet. Wings and Wheels, with a number of exciting events on the ground and in the air. For info call the Crawford Auto Aviation Museum , 2161721-5722.

AUG. 20 - BROOKFIELD, WI - NC Chap­ ter II 10th annual vintage airplane display a nd ice cream social. noon 'ti l 5 p.m.

4141781-9550.

AUG. 25-26 - COFFEYVILLE, KS - Funk Owners Assoc. Reunion. Contact Gene Ventress, 9131782-1483.

AUG. 25-27 - SUSSEX, NJ - Sussex airport.

Sussex Airshow '95. Gates open at 8 a.m. , show starts at 1 :30 p.m. For info call 20 I /875-0783.

SEPT 2 - MARION, IN - 5th Annual Fly­ In/Cruise- In breakfast sponsored by Marion Hi gh School Band Boosters. Antiques , C lass ics, Homebuilts , as well as Antiqu e/C ustom cars welcome. For infor­ mation contact Ray Johnson, 317/664-2588.

SEPT 8-10 - VALPARAISO , IN - EAA Chapter 104 of NW indiana hosts th e Tri­ motor Stinson for rides durin g Popcorn fest at Porter Co. Airport (VPZ). Winamack , In­ diana Old Antique Car Club display a nd pancake breakfast on Sunday. For more info call Pau l Deopping, 2191759-1714 or Rich Lidke,219/778-2709.

SEPT. 9-10 - MARION, OH - MERFI (Mid­ Eastern Regional Fly-In). 513/253-4629.

SEPT. 9-10 - HAGERSTOWN, NJ ­ Washin gton County Airport. Fairchild Homeco ming and airshow. Gates open at 9 a.m., airshow at Ip.m. Join Fairchild own­ ers, emp loy ees and fans to celebrate Fairchild's contributions to aviation. For info call 3101745-5708.

SEPT. 9-10 - SCHENECTADY, NY ­ County airport. Northeast Flight ' 95 28 JULY 1995

Fly-In ---------­ Calendar The following list of coming eVe1lts is furnished to our readers as a matter of information only and does not constitute approval, sponsorship, involvement, control or direction of any event (fly-in, seminars, fly market, etc.) listed Please se1ld the information to EAA, A tt: Golda Cox, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Information should be receivedfour months prior to the eve1l1 dale.

Airshow - Sponsored by the Empire State Aeroscience Museum .

SEPT. 10 - MT MORRIS , IL - EAA Chapter 682 and Ogle County Pilots Assoc.

Fly-In breakfast. For info call Bill Sweet at 8151734-4320 or the airport at 8151734-6136.

SEPT. 10 - VALPARAISO , IN (VPZ) ­ EAA Chapter 104 4th annual Fly-In/Drive­ In pancake brea kfast. Call 219/926-3572 for info.

SEPT. 14-17 - CODY, WY - International Cessna 195 Fl y-In. For info contact Springer Jones, 50 Schnieder Rd , Cody, WY 82414.

Phone 307/587-8059 or Fax 307/587-8061.

SEPT 15-17 - URBANA , IL - The Byron Smith Memorial Stinson R e union Fly-In, Frasca Field. Call 3131769-2432 or 708/904­ 6964.

SEPT 16-17 - ROCK FALLS, IL - North Centrral EAA "Old Fashioned" Fly-In, Whiteside Airport. Contact Gregg Erikson 708/513-0641 or Dave Christianson 815/625­ 6556. Pancake Brea kfast on Sunday, 0700 to 1100 local.

SEPT. 16-17 - ROCK FALLS , IL - North Central Regional Fly-ln . 708/513-0642.

SEPT 22-23 - BARTLESVILLE, OK - 38th Annual Tu lsa Region al Fly-In , co-sponsored

by EAA A/C Chapter 10, EAA lAC chapter 10, AAA Chapter 2. For info, call Charlie Harris, 918/622-8400.

SEPT 22-23 - LODI , CA - The Great West Coast Waco and Trave l Air Fly-In , hosted

by Precissi Flying Service. Flying events, memorabilia auction , and grea t food. Con­ tact s: Frank Rezich , 805/467-3669 or Jon Aldrich , 209/962-6121.

SEPT. 22-23 - MOCKSVILL E, NC - Tara Airbase. 10th annual " Anything That Flies" Fly-In. Early arrival o n the 22nd , Big Day on 23rd. USO styl e bi g band party Sat. night, awards, military vendors. 2100x80 sod strip - private field - operation and atten­ dance is at your own risk . Call Novaro or Jan Nichols, 7041'284-2161 , Or 910/650-8021.

SEPT. 23-24 - LUMBERTON, NJ - South J ersey Regional airport. Air Victory Museum Air Fair, 10 a. m. -5 p.m., air shows at 12 and 3 p.m. Call 609/486-7575 to volun­ teer, or 609/267-4488 for info and directions.

SEPT. 23-24 - ALEXANDRIA , LA - Gulf Coast Regional Fly-In. 504/467-1505.

SEPT. 28-0CT. 1 - CAHOKIA , IL - Parks College reunion for WW II Army Air Force cadets trained by Parks at Sikeston, Cape

Girardeau , Tuscaloosa or Jackson , MS.

Call Paul McLaughlin 618/337-7575, ext.

364 or 292.

OCT. 6-8 - PAULS VALLEY, OK ­ Antique Airplane Fly-in. Contact Dick

Fournier 405 /258-1129 or Bob Kruse

405/691 -6940.

OCT. 6-8 - EVERGREEN , AL - South­

east Regional Fly-In. 2051765-9109.

OCT 6-8 - WILMINGTON , DE - New

Castle Airport. EAA East Coast Fly-In

25th anniversary. " A Gathering of Ea­

gles" WW II victory airshow and Fly-In.

Special statue dedica tion in honor of the

WASP 's of WW II. For pilot 'S info pack,

contact EAA East Coast Fly-In Corp.,

2602 Elnora St., Wheaton, MD 20902-2706

or phone 301/942-3309.

OCT. 6-8 - HARTSVILLE, SC - Annual

Fall Fly-In for Antique/Classic aircraft,

sponsored by EAA A/C Chapter 3.

Awards in all categories. For info call or

write R. Bottom, Jr. , 103 Pwhatan Pky.,

Hampton , V A 23661 Fax at 804/873­ 3059.

OCT. 7-8 - RUTLAND , VT - Rutland air­

port. Annual Leaf Peepers Fly-In , 8­ lla.m . Sponsored by EAA Chapter 968,

the Green Mtn. Flyers and R.A.V.E.

(Rutland Ar ea Ve hicle Enthusiasts).

Breakfast both days, Fly-Market. Call

Tom Lloyd for info: 802/492-3647.

OCT. 8 - TOMAH, WI - Bloyer Field. 8th

Annual Fly-In breakfast sponsored by

EAA Chapter 935. Flea market, static dis­

plays. Call John Brady for info: 608/372­ 3125.

OCT. 12-15 - PHOENIX , AZ - Copper­

state Regional Fly-In. 6021750-5480.

OCT. 12-15 - Phoe nix, AZ - William s

Gateway airport. Luscombe Foundation

Southwest gathering. For info, call th e

Luscombe Foundation at 602/917-0969.

OCT. 12-15 - MESA , AZ - 24th Annual

Copperstat e Regional Fly-In . Call

800/283-6372 for info pack, or if you wish

to commercially ex hibit, call 5201747-1413.

OCT 14-15 - SUSSEX, NJ - Quad-Chapter

Fly-In, Flylflea-market sponsored by A/C

Chapter 7, EAA Chapters 238, 73 and 891.

FOr info, ca ll Herb Daniel, 201/875-9359

or Paul Styger (Sussex airport) 2011702­ 9719.

OCT. 20 -22 - KERRVILLE , TX ­ Southwest Regional Fly-In. 915/651-7882.

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ANTIQUE/CLASSIC Something to buy, sell or trade? An inexpensive ad in the Vintage Trader may be Current EAA members may join the Antiquel just the answer to obtaining that elusive part. .40; per word, $6.00 minimum Classic Division and receive VINTAGE AIR­ PlANE magszIne foran additional $27 per year. charge. Send your ad and payment to: Vintage Trader, EAA Aviation Center, P.O. EAA MemberIhip, VINTAGE AIRPlANE mag­ Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086, or fax your ad and your VISA or MasterCard azine and one year membership In the EAA number to 414/426-4828. Ads must be received by the 20th of the month for AntiqueICIIJssIc DIvision is available for $37 per insertion in the issue the second month following (e.g., October 20th for the year (SPORrAIRATlON magezIne not included).

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WARBIROS

AIRCRAFT 1939 STINSON SR-10 (Reliant) - 10434 n, 598 SMOH, 265 SPOH, KX175B Trans, KI208 OBS, KT-76A Xponder, ELT. Call John Hopkinson 403/637-2250, FAX 403/637-2153.

(7-2)

Current EAA members may join the EAA WW II Warbird - BT-13 trainer 1942. P&W Warbinfs of America Division lind I8C8iwt WAR­ engine. Kept inside, $35,000. Call Robt.

BIRDS magezIne for an additional $30 per year.

Pearson, 414/691-9284, Pewaukee, WI. (7-1) EAA Membership, WARSIRDS magazine and one year membership in the Warbinfs DIvision is 1936 Aeronca C-3 Master - 15 hours since available for $40 per year (SPORT AVIATION total restoration. Perfect. E-113C engine. 15 magazine not included).

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EAA Membership and EAA EXPERIMENTER magazine is available for $28 per year (SPORT AVIATION magazine not included).

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MISCELLANEOUS GEE BEE etc. - Model plans used by Benjamin, Eicher/Kimball, Turner, Jenkins.

52 plans , 1/3 smaller.

Shirts , etc . !

Catalog/News $4.00, $6.00 foreign. Vern Clements, 308 Palo Alto, Caldwell, ID 83605, 208/459-7608. (9-3) SUPER CUB PA-18 FUSELAGES - New manufacture, STC-PMA-d, 4130 chromoly tubing throughout, also complete fuselage repair. ROCKY MOUNTAIN AIRFRAME INC. (J. Soares, Pres.) , 7093 Dry Creek Road , Belgrade, Montana 59718, 406/388-6069, FAX 406/388-0170 . Repair station No .

QK5R148N. (NEW) Thi s & That About the Ercoupe, $14 .00.

Fly-About Adventures & the Ercoupe, $17.95. Both books, $25.00. Fly­ About , P .O . Box 51144, Denton, Texas 76206. (ufn) FREE CATALOG - Aviation books and videos. How to, building and restoration tips, historic, flying and entertainment titles. Call for a free catalog. EAA, 1-800-843-3612.

Wheel Pants - The most accurate replica wheel pants for antique and classics avail­ able.

100% satisfaction guaranteed.

Available in primer grey gelcoat. Harbor Products, Co., 2930 Crenshaw Blvd. , Suite 164, Torrance, CA 90501 , phone 310/880­ 1712 or FAX 310/874-5934. (ufn) Ultraflight Magazine - Buy, sell, trade, kit built, fixed wing, powered parachutes, rotor sailplanes, trikes, balloons and more. Stories galore! Sample issue $3.00. Annual sub­ scription $36.00. INTRODUCTORY OFFER OF ONLY $24.00 . Ultraflight Magazine, 12545 70th Street, Largo, Florida 34643­ 3025.

Curtiss JN4-0 Memorabilia - You can now own memorabilia from the famous Curtiss "Jenny," as seen on "TREASURES FROM THE PAST." We have T-shirts, posters, post­ cards, videos, pins, airmail cachets, etc. We also have R/C documentation exclusive to this historic aircraft. Sale of theses items supports operating expenses to keep this "Jenny" flying for the aviation public. We appreciate your help. Send SASE to Virginia Aviation, P.O. Box 3365, Warrenton, VA 22186. (ufn)

WANTED Wanted - Heath Parasol parts (any condi­ tion) or registration papers. Dennis, 614/876­ 0932.

Wanted - 3 .125" & 2.25" Consolidated instruments; 26 x 5 wheels & Brakes or simi­ lar size; Kolisman or Star Pathfinder com­ pass with fish bowl face and bezel; Triumph Magnetic fuel gauge, model 122 or similar; looking for anything Gee Bee, brochures, parts, etc.; Ted B. Blakeley, P.O. Box 183, Boring, OR 97009. (7-1) Wanted - Eclipse Hand Crank Starter for Kinner K-5. Consolidated Mfg. oil pressure gauge. 516/785-1037.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 29

YouCan ..~~...

An Airplane.

AEROPLANE

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Aug 12th & 13th: Jackson MI

• UNMANNED AIRCRAFT • RDTORCRAFT & EXPERIMENTALS

Two hands-on days of theory and practice.

Aug 26th & 27th: Introductory Course - $ 149. Excellent North Hamploo NH overview of designs, materials, & basic skills.

Se~~~~~s~ 1Z1h : Intermediate COurses - $199 each.

Oct 21st & 22nd: Fabric Coverin$: Cover an actual wing.

Tulsa OK Composite Bastes: Fabricate a real part. Reservations & Information Sheet Metal: Assemble a rypical piece.

800-831-2949 Welding: Learn how to handle a torch.

• MAINS. Aux & FERRY CELLS

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• Homebuilts • Ultralights • Warbirds

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• Antiques

Kit Plane Co. 's •

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• Camping

Workshops • Airshow • Fly-Bys • Awards •

• Vendors

Forums •

EAA FLY -IN

• Auto Engine Round-up

Military Aerial Demonstrations •

October 12 - 15, 1995 • Williams Gatewa v Airport

Mesa, Arizona • '-800-283-6372

Nitrate/Butyrate Dopes From An Old Friend

Fly high with a

quality Classic interior

High-tech, wet-look paint just doesn't look right on a classic airplane. Return with us to those thrilling days of yesteryear. .. back when airplanes had a satin­ smooth fini sh that looked a foo t deep.

You can still get that gor­ geous finish with Classic Aero nitrate/butyrate dopes. We use only the very finest u.s. components, and our fonu ulas follow the original Mil Specs

to the letter. Classic Aero is kind to the environment and has been exhaustively tested both in the air and on the ground.

Classic Aero dopes are made in America by Poly­ Fiber, whose only business is making aircraft coatings.

The icing on the cake is that the best costs less than other similar products.

Classic airplanes deserve Classic Aero dope finishes.

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800-362-3490 • FAX 909-684-0518 PO Box 3129 .

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ARIZONA

Rivers i de, Cal i fo r nia 92519

Complete interior assemblies for do-it-yourself installation .

Custom quality at economical prices.

• Cushion upholstery sets • Wall panel sets • Headliners • Carpet sets • Baggage compartment sets • Firewall covers • Seat slings • Recover envelopes and dopes Free catalog of complete product line.

Fabric Selection Guide showing actual sample colors and styles of materials: $3.00.

Qil1:~RODUCTS,

INC.

259 Lower Morrisville Rd ., Dept. VA Fallsington, PA 19054 (215) 295-4115

JohnA. Best first soloed in 1957 with a 1946 Aeronco Champ Right instructor 1959 - 1962 pilot for Piedmont Airlines 1962 - 1990 retired in 1990 with 23,000 hours Rying time

3 years Indiana Tech in aeronautical engineering

"AUA Inc. has offered and given my wife and I the best rates on our

Ale insurance over the

AUA's Exclusive EAA Antique/Classic Division Insurance Program

years . My wife and son also have pilot's licenses. They both have low time, yet AUA is

La er liability and hull premiums Medical payments included

able to give us very reasonable rates. A few

To become an

years ago they were very instrumental in

Fie t discounts for multiple aircraft carrying all risk coverages No hand-propping exclusion

EAA Antique &

helping me find hull insurance for a month足 No age penalty long 10,000 mile trip to Alaska and back ."

- John Best

No component parts endorsements Discounts for claim free renewals carrying all risk coverages

AUA will go the extra mile to give you the best possible rates and service. Reach for the phone and give them a call - it's free!

Remember,

We're Setter Togetherl

800-727-3823

Fly with the pros...fly with AUA Inc.

AVIATION UNLlM/rED AGENCY

Get Your Official

ANTIQUE/ CLASSIC Division Merchandise To order or for more information call:

1-800-843-3612

(Outside the US and Canada 414-426-4800)

24 hour FAX: 414-426-4873 or write EAA, Dept. MO, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086 Major credit cards accepted. *WI residents add 5% sales tax. *Plus shipping and handling.

Show your Division Colors Proudly! Present your A/C Membership card At EAA Oshkosh '95 in the Antique/Classic Red Barn and receive a 10% discount!

(Above, Left) You'll be warm and toasty around the fly­ in campfire with your fleece shirt/jacket, trimmed with the NC logo . 100% polyester Polartec® inside and out, it has zippered slash pockets and a zippered cowl neck.

It's avai lab le in navy blue.

Sizes M-2Xl ..........................$52.95*

(Be low) Ju st what you need while cruising along in your airp lane, this sturdy natural cotton duck baseball cap has a brown leather brim and the co lorful (blue, hunter green or maroon) NC logo. One size fits all, adjustab le leather strap . ....•.••.....•••..$12.00*

(Left) The Antique/Classic sport shirt looks great whether at the air­ port or the golf links. Made of 100% combed colorfast cotton, it is ava ilabl e in royal blue with teal trim, fuschia with blue trim and black with fuschia trim .

Sizes M-2Xl ..........................••........$28.95*

32 JULY 1995

(Above) You' ll be cove red fro nt to bac k with yo ur favorite Antiqu e, Classic or Contemporary airpl anes on th ese bright 100% pre-shrunk cot­ ton T-s hirts. Eac h is topped off with th e A/ C logo o n th e sleeve.

Avail able in th ese pastel colors: cream, fuschi a, blue, green and orange.

Sizes S-2Xl ...............•............•••.......•$15.95* (Above, left) Keep warm with thi s thi ck fleece-lined sweatshirt neatl y embroidered with the Antiqu e/Classic logo . Made of a 70/3 0 cotton/poly blend . Cowl neck, w hite w ith bl ack and gold logo, grey trim .

Sizes M-2Xl ....•.•.••••...........•...............$33.95 * (Left) Just right for those warm summer afternoons spent at th e airport, th e scoop neck 100% pre-shrunk coHon tee features th e embroidered Antiqu e/Classic logo in the shirt color. Available in light green or cranberry .

Sizes Sol .....•..•...•......•.••.••.....•••..$12.95* (Below, ri ght) If you need a little more warmth (say, when you' re doing a little open cockpit flying!) you' ll need the Antique/Classic hooded sweatshirt . Availabl e in oa tmeal fl eece with accent stripes of burgundy, navy blue and forest green on the shoulders.

M ade of a 70/30 cotton/ poly blend. Blue and burgundy NC logo.

Sizes M-2Xl ........••••.........•••.......••$38.95*

(Ri ght) Th e 100% pre-shrunk cotton ribbed scoop neck tee is feminine yet casual. It also fea­ tures th e NC logo embroidered in a glossy thread in th e sa me color, and is ava il ab le in blue or rose.

Sizes S-l ..........$12.95*

(Ri ght) The Antique/C lassic D ivision's co lors have never been bri g h ter! Made of 100% pre-shrunk cotton, the NC golf shirt is avail able in jade gree n, turquois e, navy b l ue and cranberry, with matching color logo.

Sizes M -2X l 26.95*

ORDfRNOW! VINTAGE AIR PLANE 33