Va vol 46 no 5 sep oct 2018

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018

2018 VAA

AWARD WINNERS

THE WINNER TWO YEARS RUNNING. AND HAULING. AND TOWING. Last year, Super Duty.® This year, F-150. Ford F-Series is proud to score back-to-back Golden Calipers.

FORD F-SERIES. 2017 & 2018 MOTOR TREND TRUCK OF THE YEAR. ®

The Privilege of Partnership EAA members are eligible for special pricing on Ford Motor Company vehicles through Ford’s Partner Recognition Program. To learn more about this exclusive opportunity for EAA members to save on a new Ford or Lincoln vehicle, please visit www.eaa.org/ford.

Message from the President

September/October 2018

SUSAN DUSENBURY, VAA PRESIDENT

Vintage Volunteers — A Job Well Done!

WOW! AND I MEAN WOW! EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2018 was great — an

actual record-breaking year for the entire event, including the Vintage area.

I remember those times that I flew into Oshkosh for the show long before I started volunteering, and I think about the excitement I felt as my plane got closer and closer to Oshkosh. I remember the anticipation of the glorious week ahead filled with friends both new and old, and, of course, the most beautiful and fascinating airplanes in the world. At first, I didn’t think about the logistics behind such a magnificent operation as AirVenture, but as time went on I began to think about that and the behind-the-scenes planning and operation of this remarkably well-run event.

Today, I received some of the final Vintage area statistics for AirVenture 2018, and I thought that you as members would find them as interesting as I do. I’ll focus on the behind-the-scenes operations with regard to parking of aircraft on the Vintage flightline. So here goes!

More than 600 Vintage volunteers provided a total of 32,000 hours of volunteer service in 2018 with an average of 53.3 hours each. The majority of these volunteers are on the flightline. A number of these flightline volunteers arrive the week before the show to get things organized, handle the early arrivals, and attend the required flightline training class. To provide the best service that we can for our members and guests, Vintage uses both Gators and scooters on the flightline. These vehicles are a must for our operation as the Vintage flightline is 1.46 miles long.

Unlike other areas on the convention grounds, the Vintage showplane area has five point-of-entry taxiways from the main taxiway paralleling Runway 36/18 (Taxiway Papa). Three of the five points of entry allow access to aircraft parking west of Wittman Road — one of AirVenture’s most active pedestrian walkways — which runs in front of the Red Barn in a north/south direction. Each of these taxiways requires crossing guards, additional bikers, and wing walkers (the flightline parking variety). In addition, temporary taxiways must be positively controlled for Vintage in Review, the Red Barn, and aircraft repair, all of which are west of Wittman Road and have extra personnel requirements. The aircraft repair facility, by the way, is for all aircraft from the entire convention grounds.

At one time this year, there were 1,105 Vintage aircraft on our flightline.

This does not include the Valdez planes or the amphibs that chose to park at Wittman Regional Airport rather than the EAA Seaplane Base. The range in size and power of vintage showplanes (from DC-3s/C-47s to the typical two-seaters such as Cubs and Champs) requires creativity and extensive planning for which we have a special aircraft parking chairman. For example, this year we had seven DC-3s/C-47s in the parking mix.

Owners of very rare and fragile early antiques often require a hangar at night and hangar space to place them in (usually not in the convention area) so that maintenance personnel can reconstruct them after transport to Oshkosh by truck. Such was the case with the seven World War I aircraft that CONTINUED ON PAGE 64 were on display at Vintage this year.

STAFF Publisher: Jack J. Pelton, EAA CEO and Chairman of the Board Editor: Jim Busha / jbusha@eaa.org Vintage Aircraft Association Executive Administrator: Jan Johnson / jjohnson@eaa.org / 920-426-6110 Senior Copy Editor: Colleen Walsh Assistant Copy Editor: Katie Holliday-Greenley Proofreader: Jennifer Knaack Graphic Designer: Cordell Walker

ADVERTISING: Vice President of Marketing and Business Development: Dave Chaimson / dchaimson@eaa.org Advertising Manager: Sue Anderson / sanderson@eaa.org Mailing Address: VAA, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903 Website: www.vintageaircraft.org E-Mail: vintageaircraft@eaa.org

Visit www.vintageaircraft.org for the latest in information and news and for the electronic newsletter: VINTAGE AIRMAIL

Current EAA members may join the Vintage Aircraft Association and receive VINTAGE AIRPLANE magazine for an additional $45/year.

EAA Membership, VINTAGE AIRPLANE magazine and one-year membership in the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association are available for $55 per year (SPORT AVIATION magazine not included).

(Add $7 for International Postage.)

Foreign Memberships Please submit your remittance with a check or draft drawn on a United States bank payable in United States dollars. Add required Foreign Postage amount for each membership.

Membership Service PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086 Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM—6:00 PM CST Join/Renew 800-564-6322 membership@eaa.org EAA AirVenture Oshkosh www.eaa.org/airventure 888-322-4636

www.vintageaircraft.org

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Contents F E AT U R E S

14

An Ephemeral Fleeting Flitfire The 2017 Silver Lindy winner

By Sparky Barnes Sargent

24

Straight Tails Forever!

A classic C-150 lives on

By Budd Davisson

30

Waco IBA: A Sole Survivor Finds a Good Home The Harter family’s new addition

By Budd Davisson

38

From Rescued Relic to Regal Rearwin One rare Sportster 7000

By Sparky Barnes Sargent

48

The Family Amphib Steve Hamilton’s Grumman Widgeon

By Budd Davisson

2

July/August 2018

September/October 2018 / Vol. 46, No. 5

C OL U M N S Message From the President

01

By Susan Dusenbury

06

VAA News

10

How To? Install Stressed Plywood Skin

By Robert G. Lock

12

Good Old Days

58

The Vintage Mechanic Invention of the Magneto

By Robert G. Lock

62

VAA New Members

C OV E R S Front The Antique Reserve Grand Champion-1 1936 Aeronca LB rests on the grass at AirVenture 2018.

Photo by Lyle Jansma

QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?

Back

Send your thoughts to the Vintage Editor at: jbusha@eaa.org

A ultra-rare Waco IBA is captured at sunset.

Photo Jim Koepnick

For missing or replacement magazines, or any other membership-related questions, please call EAA Member Services at 800-JOIN-EAA (564-6322).

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN BRUEGGEN

www.vintageaircraft.org 3

C A L L F O R V I N TA G E A I R CR A F T A S S O CI AT I O N

Nominate your favorite vintage aviator for the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association Hall of Fame. A great honor could be bestowed upon that man or woman working next to you on your airplane, sitting next to you in the chapter meeting, or walking next to you at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. Think about the people in your circle of aviation friends: the mechanic, historian, photographer, or pilot who has shared innumerable tips with you and with many others. They could be the next VAA Hall of Fame inductee — but only if they are nominated.

The person you nominate can be a citizen of any country and may be living or deceased; his or her involvement in vintage aviation must have occurred between 1950 and

the present day. His or her contribution can be in the areas of flying, design, mechanical or aerodynamic developments, administration, writing, some other vital and relevant field, or any combination of fields that support aviation. The person you nominate must be or have been a member of the Vintage Aircraft Association or the Antique/Classic Division of EAA, and preference is given to those whose actions have contributed to the VAA in some way, perhaps as a volunteer, a restorer who shares his expertise with others, a writer, a photographer, or a pilot sharing stories, preserving aviation history, and encouraging new pilots and enthusiasts.

To nominate someone is easy. It just takes a little time and a little reminiscing on your part.

•Think of a person; think of his or her contributions to vintage aviation.

•Write those contributions in the various categories of the nomination form.

•Write a simple letter highlighting these attributes and contributions. Make copies of newspaper or magazine articles that may substantiate your view.

•If at all possible, have another individual (or more) complete a form or write a letter about this person, confirming why the person is a good candidate for induction.

We would like to take this opportunity to mention that if you have nominated someone for the VAA Hall of Fame, nominations for the honor are kept on file for three years, after which the nomination must be resubmitted.

Mail nominating materials to: VAA Hall of Fame, c/o Jan Johnson VAA

PO Box 3086

Oshkosh, WI 54903

E-mail: jjohnson@eaa.org Find the nomination form at www.VintageAircraft.org, or call the VAA office for a copy (920-426-6110), or on your own sheet of paper, simply include the following information: •Date submitted.

•Name of person nominated.

•Address and phone number of nominee.

•Email address of nominee.

•Date of birth of nominee. If deceased, date of death.

•Name and relationship of nominee’s closest living relative.

•Address and phone of nominee’s closest living relative.

•VAA and EAA number, if known. (Nominee must have been or is a VAA member.)

•Time span (dates) of the nominee’s contributions to vintage aviation.

(Must be between 1950 to present day.)

•Area(s) of contributions to aviation.

•Describe the event(s) or nature of activities the nominee has undertaken in aviation to be worthy of induction into the VAA Hall of Fame.

•Describe achievements the nominee has made in other related fields in aviation.

•Has the nominee already been honored for his or her involvement in aviation and/or the contribution you are stating in this petition? If yes, please explain the nature of the honor and/or award the nominee has received.

•Any additional supporting information.

•Submitter’s address and phone number, plus email address.

•Include any supporting material with your petition.

Friends of the

RED BARN

2018

IN THE FALL OF 2001, two of the Vintage Aircraft

Association’s most effective officers created a program with the goal of having dedicated members support improvements to the Red Barn and all that the Red Barn represents. These two individuals were then-president Butch Joyce and VAA treasurer Charlie Harris. The idea behind the program not only included physical improvements to the Red Barn, but also offered a means to support and expand VAA’s programs for members and their guests during the EAA convention.

Over the years the Friends of the Red Barn has enjoyed a high level of success, which has allowed us to make muchneeded structural repairs to the Red Barn itself while developing and expanding programs for our guests at Vintage Village. As our flagship building, the Red Barn has served us well as a meeting place where old friends meet to renew their friendship and as a gathering place where you are certain to make new friends. The Red Barn is the home to Vintage hospitality and now houses an area depicting the very interesting history of the Red Barn. New to the Red Barn

This is the new north entrance to our iconic Red Barn. At the opening of AirVenture 2017, we rededicated our expanded Welcome Center and also dedicated the Stadtmueller Patio to the original family who farmed this land for more than a century.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CONNOR MADISON, STEVE MOYER

in 2018 will be a tribute to our Hall of Fame inductees and to those individuals who were so instrumental in the founding and early success of our organization.

Interestingly, a large majority of the Red Barn’s supporters have been involved since the very first year of the Friends of the Red Barn program. Vintage is extremely proud of these dedicated members and supporters. They are at the very foundation of what we are working towards in the vintage aircraft movement. These donors are directly responsible for the Friends of the Red Barn’s success and for making the Red Barn the focal point of Vintage Village, with all of the gracious hospitality that the Red Barn is so famous for.

We are very proud of the fact that this VAA treasure — the Red Barn — was member created and is member maintained, principally through our Friends of the Red Barn fundraiser program. Our Vintage area has over the years grown from one dilapidated and abandoned barn into an entire village filled with interesting and fun places to visit. And yet, there is much, much more to be done. With your help, every year we will provide our members and guests with an ever more broadened fun-filled and interesting experience.

All of the supporters’ names are listed annually at the Red Barn and in the pages of Vintage Airplane magazine.

Please stand tall and join us in Friends of the Red Barn. You will be forever proud and happy that you did.

SUSAN DUSENBURY, PRESIDENT VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

www.vintageaircraft.org

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VAA News 2018 AIRCRAFT AWARD WINNERS ANTIQUE (THROUGH AUGUST 1945) World War II Military Trainer/Liaison Aircraft Runner-Up Benjamin Redman Faribault, Minnesota 1941 Waco UPF-7, N32093

Transport Category Runner-Up Bill Liimatainen Monroe, Wisconsin 1946 Fairchild 24W-46, N81369

Customized Aircraft Runner-Up Benjamin Redman Faribault, Minnesota 1941 Waco UPF-7, N32063

James Callis, 1931 Waco QCF

Bronze Age (1937-1941) Runner-Up

Transport Category Champion - Bronze Lindy

Richard Martin Sonoma, California 1939 Douglas DC-3, N341A

Brandon Jewett Brighton, Colorado 1943 Douglas DC-3C-S4C4G, N25641

Silver Age (1928-1936) Outstanding Open-Cockpit Biplane

Customized Aircraft Champion - Bronze Lindy

Richard Zeiler Thousand Oaks, California 1929 Travel Air D4D, NC162V

Paul Carmichael Ellicottville, New York 1941 Waco UPF-7, N32079

Silver Age (1928-1936) Runner-Up

World War II Era (1942-1945) Champion - Bronze Lindy

Glenn Peck Maryland Heights, Missouri 1931 Curtiss Wright Sedan 15-D, NC436W

Thomas Morris Sonoma, California 1943 Howard DGA-15P, N68231

World War II Military Trainer/Liaison Aircraft Champion - Bronze Lindy

Bronze Age (1937-1941) Champion - Bronze Lindy

Stephen Zoerlein St. Charles, Illinois 1941 Waco UPF-7, NC32091

Steve Marini Danville, California 1940 Spartan 7W, N17662

Silver Age (1928-1936) Champion - Bronze Lindy Richard Zeller, 1929 Travel Air D4D

James Callis 1931 Waco QCF, N2091S

Antique Reserve Grand Champion - Silver Lindy Jim Hammond and Kate Tiffany Yellow Springs, Ohio 1936 Aeronca LB, N16262

Antique Grand Champion - Gold Lindy Greg Heckman Polo, Illinois 1928 Lincoln-Page, N5735

6  September/October 2018

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ED HICKS, CONNOR MADISON

CLASSIC (SEPTEMBER 1945-1955) Outstanding Aeronca Champ - Small Plaque Richard Haldeman Mount Juliet, Tennessee 1946 Aeronca 7AC, N83729

Outstanding Cessna 120/140 - Small Plaque

Greg Heckman, 1928 Lincoln-Page

David Freeland Leawood, Kansas 1946 Cessna 120, N77475

Outstanding Cessna 170 - Small Plaque Olan Hanley Bellevue, Washington 1952 Cessna 170B, N2538D

Outstanding Cessna 190/195 - Small Plaque Curtis Simonye Fishers, Indiana 1951 Cessna 195A, N1082D

Outstanding Luscombe - Small Plaque Robert Flannery Durango, Colorado 1947 Luscombe 8E, N2953K

Outstanding Piper J-3 - Small Plaque Jeffery Nelson Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin 1946 Piper J-3C-65, NC88462

Outstanding Piper Other - Small Plaque Don Jordan Midlothian, Texas 1946 Piper PA-12, N7585H

Outstanding Swift - Small Plaque Mark Holliday Lake Elmo, Minnesota 1948 Temco GC-1B, N3860K

Outstanding Taylorcraft - Small Plaque Scott McFadden Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada 1946 Taylorcraft BC-12D, CF-CLR

Outstanding Limited Production - Small Plaque Simon Drouin Saint-Georges, Quebec, Canada 1954 Helio Courier, CG-OOI

Custom Class A (0-85 hp) - Small Plaque Otis Lokken Madison, Wisconsin 1946 Aeronca 7AC, N84614

Custom Class B (86-150 hp) - Small Plaque Windle Henry Searcy, Arkansas 1946 Piper PA-12, N92754

Custom Class C (151-235 hp) - Small Plaque Thomas Morris, 1943 Howard DGA-15P

Jim “Frog” Jones Madison, Georgia 1948 Temco GC-1B, N3824K

Custom Class D (236-plus hp) - Small Plaque Dwayne Clemens Benton, Kansas 1954 Cessna 180, N180XR

Best Customized Runner-Up - Large Plaque Eric Medsger Wichita Falls, Texas 1955 Cessna 180, N9177C

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRIS MILLER, CONNOR MADISON

www.vintageaircraft.org

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VAA News Class I (0-85 hp) - Bronze Lindy James Steed Bryant, Arkansas 1946 Piper J-3, N70935

Class II (86-150 hp) - Bronze Lindy Suzy Kryzanowicz Bay City, Michigan 1948 Aeronca 15AC, N1003H

Class III (151-235 hp) - Bronze Lindy Carl Geisert Chandler, Arizona 1953 Cessna 180, N1564C

CONTEMPORARY (1956-1970) Outstanding Beech Single Engine - Outstanding in Type Robbie Wills Conway, Arkansas 1969 Beech E33A, N2939A

Outstanding Beech Multiengine - Outstanding in Type Ken Huffine Oak Island, North Carolina 1968 Beech D55, N433K

Outstanding Cessna 170/172/175/177 - Outstanding in Type Lynn Dawson Madison, Virginia 1957 Cessna 172, N7928B

Outstanding Mooney - Outstanding in Type Suzy Kryzanowicz, 1948 Aeronca 15AC

Class IV (236-plus hp) - Bronze Lindy Robert Wiplinger Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota 1944 Beech C18S, N6047V

John Breda Needham, Massachusetts 1968 Mooney M20F, N954N

Outstanding Piper PA-24 Comanche - Outstanding in Type Brian Fogleman Stonewall, Louisiana 1958 Piper PA-24-250, N5287P

Champion Customized Classic - Bronze Lindy

Outstanding Piper PA-28/PA-32 Cherokee Outstanding in Type

Ryan Salahi San Diego, California 1949 Navion F, N4892K

James R. McMaster II Bath, Pennsylvania 1965 Piper PA-32-260, N3359W

Reserve Grand Champion - Silver Lindy

Best Continuously Maintained - Outstanding in Type

Ryan Harter Greenfield, Indiana 1946 Aeronca 11AC, NC3175E

Donald Bartlett Carterville, Illinois 1957 Piper PA-22-150, N7409D

Grand Champion - Gold Lindy

Most Unique - Outstanding in Type

Charles “Rusty” and Mark Morris Fort Worth, Texas 1955 Cessna 170B, N2935D

Robert Sabbatino New Milford, Connecticut 1969 Beech E33C, N544ST

8 September/October 2018

PHOTOGRAPHY BY LYLE JANSMA

Ryan Harter, 1946 Aeronca 11AC

Preservation Award - Outstanding in Type Kevin Mayer Lima, Ohio 1958 Beech J35, N76J

Class I Single Engine (0-160 hp) - Bronze Lindy Marr Olsen Kelseyville, California 1959 Piper PA-18A-150, N9460D

Class II Single Engine (161-230 hp) - Bronze Lindy Brian Locascio Orland Park, Illinois 1966 Mooney M20F, N9550M

Outstanding Customized - Bronze Lindy Chris McGough Lakewood, California 1964 Piper PA-24-250, N8345P

Outstanding Multiengine - Bronze Lindy Ken Hoffman Punta Gorda, Florida 1962 Beech D50E, N123TC

Reserve Grand Champion Customized - Silver Lindy Adrian Eichhorn McLean, Virginia 1962 Beech P35, N1733G

A Legacy for Aviation Enthusiasts

E A A AV I AT IO N F OU N DAT IO N

Marr Olsen, 1959 Piper PA-18A-150

EAA® members are more than pilots — they are passionate aviation enthusiasts. When EAA members are ready to plan for their aviation legacy, they often choose to make a commitment to the EAA Aviation Foundation.

Gifts to the foundation typically support the following activities: • EAA Excellence Fund • Scholarship Fund • Educational & Safety Programming Fund • EAA Aviation Museum and EAA AirVenture Oshkosh Ground Fund • Experimental Programs To learn more about how you can make a gift that could benefit the future of aviation: www.EAA.myplannedgift.org

www.vintageaircraft.org

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How To? ROBERT G. LOCK

Install Stressed Plywood Skin

Figure 3

BY ROBERT G. LOCK

IN THIS ISSUE WE will learn the specifics of installing

stressed plywood wing skin. I first learned how to do this task back in 1958 when I was restoring my Fairchild PT-19 as an aspiring 19-year-old future aviator and mechanic. It was a great learning experience, and my friend George Adams (of Stolop-Adams fame) was one of my mentors. My other mentor was Elmer Ruzicka who owned Elmer’s Wing Shop in Waukena, California, not far from the Hanford Municipal Airport and my uncle’s crop dusting and spraying operation. Elmer taught me many secrets of aircraft woodworking.

In Figure 1, the left side of the PT-19 center section with new skin glued in place with nailing strips to apply pressure to all the glue joints. When the glue has cured the nailing strips are removed and all nails pulled from the wood.

These nail holes will be filled with a thinned wood filler wiped on with coarse cloth or burlap.

Figure 2 shows the center section before all the plywood is bonded to the structure. The inboard section of plywood has been steamed to fit using a wallpaper steamer that my father rented. It worked! The leading edge had 45-degree grain plywood, but I did not know that you could buy 45-degree grain plywood in the 4-by-8-foot sheet at the time, so I cut two pieces from a regular 90-degree grain sheet. It was a lot of extra work because the two pieces, when Figure 1 joined, have to be scarf cut, which was a real pain.

But, let’s leave my early years of learning how to work with wood and proceed to much later when I was a little smarter. The task at hand is to cover the top and bottom leading edge with 1/16-inch birch plywood, so how is that done? Well, you should always bond the lower skin on first because if any moisture gets into the structure, it will be on Figure 2 the bottom skin, so you want a good

10 September/October 2018

and complete varnish seal on the wood. This is how it is done.

Cut the upper and lower skin to size and soak and bend if necessary. Fit the upper plywood in place, driving 3/4-inch nails in each end to hold the material in place. Next, mark all the locations where the plywood will be glued to the structure using a pencil.

Draw a circle around the nails so the holes can be located, cut the heads off the nails, and remove the skin. (See Figure 3.)

After this task is completed for all the upper skin, the lower skin can be glued into place. I always use nailing strips to apply pressure to the joint and then remove after the glue has cured. Purchase some good knot-free 1-by-4-inch soft pine, rip it into 1/8inch thick strips, and you have your nailing strips. The upper skin is masked off using a good grade masking tape and adequate varnish applied to thoroughly seal the wood. The inside of the lower skin and surrounding structure is thoroughly varnished, but should all areas to be bonded should not be varnished. Filler blocks between ribs should not fit tightly to the ribs but should have an open space Figure 4

Figure 5

of 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch to allow moisture to drain out if any accumulates from condensation. This eliminates the need to drill drain holes in the lower skin.

Plywood comes in standard 4-by-8-foot sheets and therefore will require a scarf joint somewhere along the leading edge. Both pieces of skin are scarfed to a slope of 12-to-1 prior to applying varnish. Therefore, 1/16-inch thick plywood would have a scarf of 12/16 inches or 3/4 inch in length. The scarf should be located over a nose rib, and an additional shim can be bonded to the rib to make it 3/4-inch wide to accommodate the scarf.

After all this preparation is complete, the upper skin can be glued into place. It might be necessary to have an extra person or two to hammer nails into the nailing strips because it is a slow process and, depending on outside air Figure 8

temperature, may need to be completed in a hurry.

Figure 8 shows an upper skin varnished and ready to be glued into place on the upper leading edge of my Command-Aire wing. I glued the inboard section first, then aligned the scarf joint and glued the outboard section. This is the outboard section. The plywood skin securely attached using pine nailing strips.

When the glue has cured, break off the nailing strips and pull out all the nails.

There does not need to be any nails holding the leading edge plywood in position now. Any nails that are left in the joints will eventually try to back out, causing lumps in the fabric covering. Don’t be tempted to leave any nails in this structure once the glue has cured. They are not needed — remove them all.

What does the scarf joint look like after removing the nailing strips, you ask? See Figure 9

Figure 6

figures 9-10 showing the joint before sanding it smooth. Scarf joints, when properly done, give 100 percent strength through the joint, give grain continuation, and are perfectly smooth and flush.

Compare the unfinished scarf joint (Figure 9) to the finished joint (Figure 10). It should not take too much sanding to make it smooth — just basically removing the excess glue that has squeezed out from the joint when a nailing strip applied pressure.

The final step is to smooth the plywood along the leading edge strip using a disc sander, then hand sanding with a sandpaper block, and finally using an emery cloth sanding strip.

And that’s all there is to it folks — a quick lesson on how to apply stressed plywood skin.

Finally, a quick review of aircraft plywood.

Figure 10

Figure 7

Common types are mahogany and birch. Mahogany will bend easiest when dry, and while both are identified as hardwoods, birch is denser and more difficult to drive nails through, especially in the thicker five-ply material. I still have some brass nails that were originally used, and it is almost impossible to drive a brass nail into 3/16inch or 1/4-inch wood that is used for wing-walk areas. All modern nails that appear to be brass are really steel wire nails that are brass-coated to prevent rusting and discoloring the wood. I use common steel nails that are about 1/2inch long that can be purchased from almost any hardware store to secure the nailing strips in place.

They are going to be pulled out anyway, so why incur the added expense of using brass-coated nails.

Figure 11

www.vintageaircraft.org

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Good Old Days

12  September/October 2018

From the pages of what was ...

Take a quick look through history by enjoying images pulled from publications past.

www.vintageaircraft.org 13

14  

September/October 2018

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM KOEPNICK

An Ephemeral Fleeting

THE 2017 SILVER LINDY WINNER

BY SPARKY BARNES SARGENT

UNBEKNOWNST TO ROD MCKENZIE of New Fairfield, Connecticut, there was a silver lining to the old yellow Cub he bought in 1992.

For decades, NC37916 had been quietly masquerading in its fading paint scheme, its true identity waiting to be discovered.

“It was on a ranch in Montana, and I flew it back home to Connecticut. I flew it for a

while, and unfortunately, it was tied down on a grass strip in 2002 when a big hailstorm came along and beat it up pretty bad,” Rod said. “I talked to the insurance company, and they gave me some ridiculously low price to total the airplane so I decided to just keep it.

It was actually still flyable, but it needed new fabric because of the hail damage.” www.vintageaircraft.org

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An Ephemeral Fleeting

R

od, Vintage 23975, kept the Cub in storage for a while and went to the Sentimental Journey Fly-In at Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, to have a look-see at some nice yellow Cubs to glean ideas about features he’d like to include in his own Cub’s restoration.

He happened to notice a rather unusual Cub there — it was silver with Royal Air Force (RAF) roundels and fin flash.

“I looked at it and thought, ‘What is this, somebody’s wannabe warbird?’ About a week later, I got a letter in the mail from somebody in Belgium who was doing research on the elusive Piper Flitfire Cubs, and he wanted to know what the status of mine was,” Rod said. “So, my first thought was, ‘What the heck is a Flitfire?’ That started my education process, and sure enough, Clyde Smith’s records show that this was one of the original Flitfire Cubs.”

WHAT’S A FLITFIRE?

The impetus for the fundraising Flitfires arose during 1940, when the Battle of Britain was raging, and the United States started providing military supplies to the Allies.

William T. Piper wanted to help in some way, so he decided to donate a special J-3 Cub as a raffle prize. Piper Aircraft dealers were encouraged to sell tickets for NC1776, with the proceeds going to the RAF Benevolent Fund to benefit the widows, orphans, and disabled pilots of the Battle of Britain.

“In making this donation, Piper set aside 20 minutes’ manufacturing time in the plant, which was sufficient to build one ship,” an article in the July 1941 issue of Flying and Popular Aviation magazine stated. “Aircooled Motors Corp., of Schenectady, New York, donated a Franklin 65-hp engine.”

With a benevolent effort swirled with a touch of patriotic philanthropy and gilded with persuasive marketing magic, a Piper Aircraft Corporation document dated April 3, 1941 — complete with a beguiling photo of NC1776 — promoted the special Cubs to dealers who were enticed to place orders for similar Flitfires. Dealers were offered their choice of a 65-hp Lycoming, Continental, or Franklin engine and could order “one or more” of the ships.

“NC1776 is to be officially turned over to the RAF, at a huge party at LaGuardia Field, April 29,” the document stated. “Nationally known persons will participate in this

Flitfire Franklin NC1776 in 1941 .

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September/October 2018

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF PIPER AVIATION MUSEUM

T H E 2 0 1 7 S I LV E R L I N D Y W I N N E R

ceremony. Tremendous publicity will result. As a feature of the donation, we are planning a mass delivery of 48 Flitfires from LaGuardia Field to distributors and dealers, who want to cash in on this.

“The Flitfire model is a J-3 Trainer, painted silver, with simulated RAF insignia,” the document continued. “While this is an additional expense to us, we will make no extra charge provided delivery is made from LaGuardia Field April 30. (The planes will be delivered there by factory pilots, and deliveries from there can also be arranged on regular delivery system.) Each ship will be named for a state in the Union, and a mass christening by socially prominent people is planned for news reel benefit, plus a mass takeoff and flight over New York. … Only 48 of these ships will be built, and we have to move fast.”

Piper’s shimmering silver ships were apparently dubbed with the name Flitfire as a lighthearted contrast between the Cub trainer and the British Supermarine Spitfire fighter.

The NC1776 registration number was imbued with patriotic overtones; 1776 was, of course,

“I couldn’t let something like this just go back to being a yellow Cub and deny its history.”

— Rod McKenzie www.vintageaircraft.org

17

An Ephemeral Fleeting

SPECS Manufactured under ATC-698.

Eligible to be flown by a sport pilot.

ENGINE: GROSS WEIGHT: EMPTY WEIGHT: USEFUL LOAD: WINGSPAN: WING CHORD: WING AREA: LENGTH: HEIGHT: BAGGAGE: FUEL: OIL: MAX SPEED (CLIMB): MAX SPEED (DIVE): CRUISE: LANDING: STALL: TAKEOFF RUN: CLIMB: CEILING: CRUISING RANGE:

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65-hp Lycoming 1,100 pounds 640 pounds 460 pounds 35 feet, 3 inches 63 inches 178 square feet 22 feet, 3 inches 6 feet, 8 inches 20 pounds 12 gallons 5 quarts 90 mph 122 mph 82 mph 50 mph 35 mph Less than 600 feet 575 fpm 12,000 feet 250 miles at 4 gph

when the American colonies declared their independence from Great Britain. Additionally, in early 1941, Congress passed House Resolution 1776, known as the Lend-Lease Act, which was then signed into law. In another patriotic gesture, arrangements were reportedly made to have NC1776 given away on Flag Day. “FLITFIRE BRIGADE”

Elaborately detailed plans were made for the fleet of Flitfires to fly en masse from Lock Haven to New York. It was a historical flight, and as such, the “Flitfire Brigade” is best described through the media lens of the era. Piper Aircraft’s hometown paper, The Lock Haven Express, published an account on April 23, 1941.

“The 48 Piper Cub Trainers which make up the Flitfire Brigade will leave the airport Sunday in the largest mass fly-away of Piper Cubs ever staged,” the article stated.

“Seven Squadrons will take off one after the other under the direction of squadron leaders. … The flight will proceed from here over Williamsport and thence to the AllentownBethlehem Airport for refueling. … After a mass takeoff from Allentown Airport the planes will fly in rigid formation over the entire New York metropolitan area. … The flight will first be seen over Staten Island from which point it will dip in salute over the Statue of Liberty, proceed over Central Park and Manhattan to the George Washington Bridge. A wide swing to the left will bring the brigade over Jersey City and then east over Brooklyn and into Flushing Airport where the ships will be parked until Tuesday when they will be taken to LaGuardia Field for the christening ceremonies of each ship.”

Historical photographs show seven Flitfires with a red stripe around the aft portion of the fuselage; the stripe may have been applied to distinguish the squadron leaders’ ships for the en masse flight of look-alike silver Cubs.

When the Flitfires landed at Allentown for refueling, several thousand people crowded onto the grounds to see the ships, according to the April 28, 1941, edition of The Morning Call.

“Pilots, including one woman, were all employees of the Piper factory,” the article stated. “Among them was W. T. Piper, president of the firm, and his son, Tony, who led the mass flight. … Landings and takeoffs were without incident … it was a real exhibition of safe flying in view of the strong winds that prevailed. The planes took on an estimated 300 gallons of gasoline.”

The Flitfire Brigade’s next stop that day was Flushing Airport where the Brooklyn Eagle published its account of the arrival.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY SPARKY BARNES SARGENT, JIM KOEPNICK

“Landing with the exact precision of highly trained army fliers, pilots of a group of 42 light cabin monoplanes … alighted in the space of 12 minutes at Flushing airport yesterday,” the article stated. “The first plane touched its wheels to the ground at 2:48 p.m., and the last at 3 p.m. … The flight left Lock Haven Pennsylvania, under the leadership of W. T. Piper, president of the Piper Aircraft Company, flew directly to New York City, cruised over the city in what was said to be the largest light aircraft maneuver ever held, and then headed for Flushing airport.

Each of the ships, silver-painted, is named for one of the 48 States of the union. Five others are expected to arrive at Flushing airport today. One other plane — the 48th of the group — arrived earlier in the day. This plane [NC1776] is to be disposed of in a lottery for the benefit of the fund. … The entire group of 48 planes will take off from Flushing airport tomorrow morning for a one-mile trip to LaGuardia Field.”

Aeronautics, Volume 8, 1941, reported that, “The usual $2.50 landing fee at LaGuardia Field was waived, and forty-eight portable radio receivers, required by Federal law, were lent the fleet by William P. Lear, president of Lear Avia, Inc., and a member of the NAC Editorial Board.” The May 15, 1941, issue of Sportsman Pilot featured a photo of a smiling W. T. Piper and a Lear Avia representative posed with a Flitfire and a neatly stacked group of the box-sized radio receivers.

Photographer Hans Groenhoff captured the now-iconic photos of NC1776 as it flew over the Statue of Liberty; his photos were used on the covers of Air Facts in May 1941 and Flying and Popular Aviation in July 1941.

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www.vintageaircraft.org 19

An Ephemeral Fleeting

On May 12, 1941, Life magazine published an article and photo spread of the event in which one of the photo captions described the Flitfire christening ceremony at LaGuardia. “Each plane was christened with air. Pretty models pricked balloons so that escaping air gushed over the propeller hubs,” the caption read.

When the Flitfires flew away from LaGuardia and began travleing to their new homes in different states, they were again highlighted by local media. Richard Bonhurst, guest columnist for The Niagara Falls Gazette described the arrival of one Flitfire for the May 17, 1941 issue. “Niagara From the Air acquired a significant airplane last week, a Cub trainer called a ‘Flitfire.’ …

Tentative plans are afoot to raise more funds for the Royal Air Force by selling tickets on this airplane, prizes ranging from a Cub Trainer to Flying lessons and rides.”

The Muncie Evening Press on the same day mentioned that one Flitfire was bought by John Rusicka in Peru, Indiana, and another by Bob Shank at Hoosier Airport.

The Times and Democrat on May 14, 1941, announced a visit by Flitfire Maine as it winged its way to Orangeburg, South Carolina. An advertisement for New Jersey’s Basking Ridge Fire Company’s 32nd Annual Carnival in the Bernardsville News on August 7, 1941, featured a photograph of a Flitfire as the grand prize. The Tampa Bay Times on July 24, 1941, noted that flying instructor Jimmy Johnstone was using his Flitfire to train Civil Aeronautics Administration student pilots for the local junior college.

Jerry Truesdell of the Illinois chapter of the NinetyNines shared her Flitfire experience in their October 15, 1941, newsletter. “Our last meeting was held September 21 at the Chicago Municipal Airport,” she wrote. “We had special permission from the CAA to fly in with our little Flitfires without radio and it was great fun.”

But the special silver Cubs that Piper so famously promoted began fading into the pages of history by the end of 1941, as the United States became embroiled in World War II. FLITFIRE NEW JERSEY

Remarkably, though, the Flitfires haven’t completely receded with the tide of time. Seventy-seven years later, some are still flying.

Factory records reveal that NC37916 (serial No. 6698) was manufactured on April 17, 1941, as an RAF Cub with silver paint. FAA registration records show that the first bill of sale was for the sum of $1,570 on April 24, 1941, to Bennett Airplane Sales in Hightstown, New Jersey, which in turn sold it on October 30, 1941, to Cahill Flying Service Inc. in Bridgeport, New Jersey.

“I’m the 23rd owner, and as far as I know, I’ve probably owned it longer than anybody,” Rod said. “The fact that it initially went to New Jersey is about all the evidence I have indicating that it was named for New

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM KOEPNICK

T H E 2 0 1 7 S I LV E R L I N D Y W I N N E R

Jersey, so barring some new evidence to the contrary, that’s the most logical scenario.”

Through the years, NC37916 slowly evolved from its original configuration. In 1943, the Lycoming was removed and a Franklin was installed, and three years later in 1946, the Franklin was removed and a Continental was installed.

In 1955, the Cub was converted to an ag sprayer while it was in South Dakota. In 1966, the Cub incurred substantial damage during a landing in North Dakota and was repaired. In 1980, it was finished as a yellow Cub in Montana, where Rod later bought it.

LIFETIME PILOT

Rod started flying when he was 15 and has logged 22,000 hours as a corporate and charter pilot. His safe flying record earned him the FAA’s Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award in 2015. “I flew 14 years for Paul Newman, and that was the greatest job in the world,” Rod said. “Paul was a gentleman, and we became good friends; he treated me like his family. He was low-key and didn’t want to be ostentatious, and had a Sabre 65. I loved that airplane; it just never let you down.”

Rod, a congenial and soft-spoken man who is passionate about aviation, still loves flying lightplanes as well. He’s a current flight instructor and has a Stinson L-5 in addition to the Cub. “Paul Newman has flown in this Cub with me,” Rod said. “When I first started working for him, he knew I

had this Cub, and he kept bugging me, ‘When are you going to take me up?’ I just kind of blew it off until I realized he was serious. So one day we flew around in the Cub, and I let him try to fly it.”

RESTORATION

When Rod discovered his Cub’s true identity, its restoration became a historical preservation mission. “Of course I had to restore it back to its original colors,” he said with a smile.

“I’ve always said I was an aviation historian, and I couldn’t let something like this just go back to being a yellow Cub and deny its history.”

Clyde Smith Jr. and his Cub Restoration Services business began the restoration in 2008. Opting to use a Univair fuselage frame to replace the old one, which was in bad shape, Clyde did a minor rework of the upper cabin superstructure to give it the 1941 model year “cathedral ceiling” configuration. A new boot cowl and stainless steel firewall were fabricated, along with a period-correct instrument panel, and the instruments were overhauled by Keystone Instruments Inc. Myriad new components were used throughout the restoration. New floorboards were fabricated from five-ply birch plywood, and Univair rudder and brake pedals were installed.

New Airtex seat cushions, slings, and a baggage compartment were used, and all new LP Aero side windows and windshield were installed. A Univair vertical stabilizer was installed, along with new trim pulleys and aft trim system components. www.vintageaircraft.org 21

An Ephemeral Fleeting

“Mark Baxter of Corvallis, Oregon, made new control cables using the five-tuck type cable splice ends. He did a great job, and the roundels on the wings were done by AeroGraphics of Colorado,” Rod said. “Bob Hunt of Hackettstown, New Jersey, did the wing work, landing gear, and all the painting.”

The wings were completely rebuilt using new wood spars, new Dakota Cub ribs, Wag-Aero leading edge sections, Univair false spar sections, and ailerons. New ash wingtip bows were made by an Amish company near Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The landing gear legs were reused, and Univair cabane struts and shock strut assemblies were installed. The airframe was covered and finished with the Poly Fiber system, culminating with a Poly-Tone Nevada Silver topcoat.

“My friend Dan Fogle, who owns a J-4, finished up the engine, panel, and windshield installation. The windshield is one piece, but is made to look like three,” Rod said. “The first five years of the restoration went at a fairly sedate pace, but the last year of the restoration was going great guns. We finished it in June 2015.”

MODS

Rod knew he “wanted a flyer, not a museum piece,” so he decided to stray just a bit from the original 1941 configuration. Seeking a bit more horsepower, Rod had a zero-time since major overhaul Continental C90-8 engine installed on an engine mount, which was rebuilt by Kosola and Associates of Georgia. An Aero Fabricators 8-gallon fuel tank was installed in the left wing to supplement the 12-gallon fuselage tank. Just a quick flip of the new Sensenich (W72GK-48) wood propeller brings the C90 to life.

Safety mods include Grove disc brakes (which allow the original size 8.00-4 tires and tubes to be used), inertia reel shoulder harnesses, and an ELT. A comm antenna is neatly concealed in the fuselage.

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Part of the 48 Piper Cub Flitfires, each one named for a state, that were flown from Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, to La Guardia Field for the demostration on April 29 on behalf of the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund Campaign. Another Franklinpowered Flitfire, donated by the Piper and Franklin companies, to be given away in a scheme to raise money for the fund, has been on view in front of La Guardia Field administration building.

FLITFIRES TODAY

Since an aircraft’s registration number may change through the years, the secret’s in the serial numbers when it comes to deciphering which prewar Cubs were Flitfires. Clyde (aka The Cub Doctor) is a helpful resource for Flitfire identification. Also, with the exception of NC1776, which was built in March 1941, all Flitfires were built within a span of 12 days in April 1941.

Flitfires have bubbled up now and then through the decades as their identities have surfaced. The first Flitfire, NC1776 (serial No. 6600), was flown by Orville Wright in 1943 and now resides at the North Carolina Aviation Museum and Hall of Fame next to the Asheboro Regional Airport. Steve Rubino owned this Flitfire during the 1980s and was well aware of its unique history despite its then-traditional Cub yellow scheme. In 1988, he flew NC1776 for an Independence Day celebration in East Hampton, New York.

T H E 2 0 1 7 S I LV E R L I N D Y W I N N E R

The Wisconsin Flitfire underwent restoration from 1988-1991 by Dick Wells and Scott White of Ohio for then-owner Jay Rodgers of Texas. NC37905 was a noteworthy visitor at Sentimental Journey and EAA Oshkosh in 1991.

The first Flitfire seen by the author was at the 2002 Sentimental Journey Fly-In, when then-owner Mike Nolan of Maryland had his award-winning Flitfire Indiana (NC37931, serial No. 6717) on the flightline.

His Flitfire was also displayed during the Centennial of Flight celebration at Kill Devil Hills in 2003. Years later, Mike became a helpful resource regarding some details for the restoration of Rod’s Flitfire.

“Dave Henderson of Delaware was rebuilding NC1776, and he told me about a Cub for sale in Kentucky,” Mike said. “So I went out there with my friend Paul Ennis, who had more time in a Cub than I had total time. It was a good-looking yellow Cub, and I bought it. After Paul and I flew it home, we discovered it was the Indiana Flitfire when Dave asked about the serial number. In the early years, it was in the Civilian Pilot Training Program. I was able to contact the first owner’s widow, Mrs. Rusicka, who sent me historical pictures of it. I used those to return it to its RAF colors, and went into much detail as to size, location of writing, interior color of plane, and how it was painted. I spent time with Rod on the phone when he was restoring his Flitfire and shared detailed information with him.

I’ve seen his after restoration, and can say that it’s painted correctly and accurately.”

In the absence of an original, Cubs have occasionally been made into faux Flitfires to pay homage to their history. As of May 2018, the FAA registry lists 14 original Flitfires with current registrations.

“I know of four authentic ones, including mine, which are currently painted in Flitfire colors and flying, or in flyable condition,” Rod said.

Flitfire New Jersey is a pleasure to behold and has garnered awards since it first came out of restoration in 2015. Two of those were won at Sentimental Journey: Best J-3 Cub in 2015 and Best Warbird in 2017. “It’s almost a stretch to say it’s a warbird,” Rod said. “It’s really more of a war-effort airplane.”

At EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2017, NC37916 received the Antique Reserve Grand Champion Silver Lindy. “The Silver Lindy and the other awards belong as much to all those who contributed to the successful rebirth of Flitfire New Jersey as to me,” Rod said. Perhaps the most significant personal reward for Rod was simply discovering that his old yellow Cub had a rather unique historical niche — and he’s happy that he’s able to preserve it with flying RAF colors.

The largest fleet of light planes ever seen in New York was christened on behalf of the R.A.F. Benevolent Fund, and will make barnstorming tour of the country to raise funds for the families of England’s air defenders. The fleet was inspected by these models.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY SPARKY BARNES SARGENT, JIM KOEPNICK, THE SPORTSMAN PILOT, THE DANBURY REPORTER

www.vintageaircraft.org 23

STRAIGHT TAILS A CLASSIC C-150 LIVES ON

The straight tail and 140 fuselage lines overpower the presence of the nose wheel in identifying Joe Smokovitz’s c-150 as a true vintage airplane.

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN BRUEGGEN

BY BUDD DAVISSON

HERE’S A SHOCKING FACT: If you were born the same day that Joe Smokovitz’s straight-tail C-150 rolled off the production line, you would be 56. How did that happen?

The C-150 is the fifth most produced aircraft in the world with nearly 24,000 made, which is the basis for a thought that is common to longtime vintage airplane folks: Why should we care about an airplane that was as common as dirt? The operative word in that sentence is “was.” Cessna 150s used to litter airports everywhere, but it is now worth making a comment when one takes off. This is because of another surprising fact:

The 150 went out of production in 1977, so the youngest one is 41 years old! The oldest is 61 years old! The official Vintage Aircraft Association categories define Contemporary Vintage as 1956-1970 so tens of thousands of 150s fall into that category.

The first roughly 15,000 had the so-identifiable “straight tail” that defines them as something special. And that is just one of the many reasons people took note of Joe’s airplane at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2017. Joe, Vintage 10879, selected a C-150B to restore, although saying it was “restored” isn’t entirely accurate. www.vintageaircraft.org

25

STRAIGHT TAILS

FIRST

“

,

I don’t see this as a true restoration,”

Joe said. “I have no interest in creating a perfect jewel. It’s an airplane, and I want to keep it in the air as much as possible and in the shop as little as possible. I see it as a flying rehabilitation project with the goal of giving me and my family — which includes my seven grandkids — a terrifically functional, safe airplane to fly. Two of my grandkids have already gotten their certificates in it.”

He didn’t pick a 1962 B model by accident. He had his reasons.

“The ’62 and ’63 B’s were the lightest, fastest, and generally best-performing of the 150s. Plus, they were the last of the fastback models that used what was basically a C-140 fuselage. The ’64s and ’65s still had the straight tail, but they had the cut-down rear fuselage with the wraparound ‘omnivision’ rear window as on all later Cessnas.

They lost a lot of the vintage look with that change. The ’66s were the first with the swept tail so they are ‘modern’ by comparison.”

By the time Joe bought N7393X in 1992, he was already an old hand in airplane maintenance. In fact, he received the reward for Michigan Mechanic of the Year in 2017. He’s always gotten his hands dirty and started doing it almost at the beginning.

“I found this airplane on a private strip not far from Detroit,” he said. “Even though it had been out of annual for three years, it was hangared and not in bad shape. I’d rate it ‘fair.’ In fact it had only 4,200 hours on it, which is low time for the type. It has 5,400 hours on it now. In its early life, it had been part of several flying clubs. One in Virginia and another in Oklahoma. At the time, it was the most common training plane on the planet and was the fifth most produced airplane in history behind the C-172, the World War II Russian Ilyushin Il-2, the Messerschmitt Bf 109, and the Piper PA-28 series.

“Because the 150 was such a popular trainer, some of them lived a hard life,” Joe said. “In fact, the logs show this one appears to have had at least one very hard landing because the nose gear and prop were replaced and a wingtip damaged.”

When an airplane lives as long as this one — much of that time being manhandled by students — it can safely be assumed that it spent a lot of its time tied down outside in all kinds of weather. Exactly where an airplane is located has a lot to do with how much corrosion it’ll accumulate. It is axiomatic that airplanes tied down next to any coast will have more corrosion than one tied down

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A CLASSIC C-150 LIVES ON

in rural Arizona, but even that isn’t guaranteed. It’s not unusual for aircraft tied down in big, inland urban or industrial areas to develop corrosion because of the acid content of the rain. N7393X is one of the lucky ones.

“I crawled all over the airplane before I bought it and the only corrosion I could find was around the battery box, and almost all early 150s have the same problem in the same spot. But, it wasn’t so bad that I had to replace metal,” he said. “One of the other areas you need to inspect for corrosion is behind the baggage area. Plus, all Cessnas are famous for their corrugated control surfaces being kinked and dinged up. Those on the 150 seem to be a little stronger because they hold up well in a training environment. Mine needed only a little work and, although most folks just replace the skins, I found it wasn’t difficult to straighten out the few dents they had.”

The 1950s-era Cessna interiors were all a combination of simple upholstery and lots of plastic components, like window frames, that invariably crack with age and do a lot to slowly make an interior look tired.

“Here again, I lucked out,” Joe said. “The plastic had a few cracks but nothing like I’ve seen in other airplanes of its age. It was a fairly simple task to fiberglass them together on the back and repaint them. When I got them all in place, it was amazing how much better the interior looked. Cockpits have a tendency to get worn around the edges, and because it happens so slowly, we don’t notice it until we refurbish part of it and it suddenly looks so much different.”

Fortunately, the instruments were all, as Joe puts it, usable if not pristine. However, the more he flies it, the more instruments become suspect so he knows he’s going to have to do something about them.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN BRUEGGEN

www.vintageaircraft.org 27

STRAIGHT TAILS

Joe painted the airplane himself and says he’s ‘proud to show off every single run.”

“The radios were ‘modern,’ but in 1999 they were about worn out so we put in a new KX 125 and a transponder,” Joe said. “We haven’t done ADS-B yet, but we will.”

As a flying restoration, Joe said he made a promise to himself that every winter he’d do something to the airplane but definitely didn’t want to put it down for any length of time. However, in 2004, he did have to ground it for a while.

“The paint had never been great, but it finally reached the point that I knew I had to do something about it,” he said. “So, we put it down. I myself stripped and painted it, and I am proud to show anyone every run in the paint job — it just gives the paint job character. Nothing was farmed out. We did it in the 1962 scheme using Regal Red and white.”

One of the big worries in any airplane, whether it’s project or not, is dealing with an aging engine.

“When we bought the airplane, the engine was mid time, but now it has 2,300 hours on it, and I’ve done a top overhaul,” Joe said. “It runs great but it’s starting to use oil, so in the not-too-distant future, we’re going to overhaul it.”

As a breed, the Cessna 150 is known for reliability, although as with all airplanes, it has had its share of ADs and known problem areas.

“While the O-200 is a great engine, the airplane does have some weak points, including some of the engine accessories,” Joe said. These “weak points” include keeping up the mags and developing cracks in the exhaust system. He said that one AD states that the muffler has to be pressure tested for fume leakage every 50 hours.

“When I was a kid, I was always told it was better to buy than rent, and I’ve tried to do that and stay within our budget.”

– Joe Smokovitz

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September/October 2018

“Oddly enough, you also have to keep an eye on the seat pans — the bottoms,” Joe said. “They have a tendency to crack over time. The straight tail airplanes have one less AD than the more recent ones. All 150s have an AD about inspecting the vertical tail attach bolts. But, where electric flaps have an AD having to do with the jackscrew motor, the early airplanes, like mine, have mechanical flaps, so no AD. “When I was a kid, I was always told it was better to buy than rent, and I’ve tried to do that and stay within our budget,” he said. “The 150 is ideal for that, and it’ll stay in the family.

Which one of the kids or grandkids gets it, however, will be a problem. But a good one.”

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN BRUEGGEN, JOHN M DIBBS

A CLASSIC C-150 LIVES ON

Joe and his grandson, Tyler, who received his PPL in the C-150, as did many others in the Smokovitz tribe.

www.vintageaircraft.org 

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IBA T H E H A R T E R FA M I LY’ S NEW ADDITION

BY BUDD DAVISSON

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September/October 2018

The Harter family considers Ryan’s IBA to be “their” airplane. Left to right, it’s mom Brenda, Ryan himself, daughter Aubrey, son Michael and wife Brandy.

H

ere’s a combination you don’t see every day: a 41-year-old student pilot flying a hyperrare 1932 Waco IBA. But then, that pilot, Ryan Harter, Vintage 722230, of Greenfield, Indiana, isn’t your average student. He’s the product of the kind of family that EAA would like to put on posters that say, “This could be you — happy, creative, fulfilled.” If Norman Rockwell had been an EAAer, this is the family he would have painted.

The Harter family is EAA. Aviation runs through just about everything they do. Ryan is a third-generation pilot and his son, Michael, who will likely have soloed the Harter family Cub and Champ by the time you read this, will be the fourth.

step in my life,” Ryan said. “While this was going on, we were building an airstrip on our place. Dad flew the YOC in for the first time one afternoon, and the next morning, when he took off, the engine quit cold and he put it into a cornfield that was standing tall. The airplane was pretty much destroyed, but we’d had it a few years and it really had an impact on me.”

AVIATION IS WHO THEY ARE

“There have been airplanes in this family farther back than I can remember. Dad and Granddad had a number of Champs, then branched out into C-140s,” Ryan said. “Dad got a little crazy for a time and had a Bellanca, which he traded for a Bamboo Bomber and some cash to boot. The old Cessna needed just about everything, so we restored it in an open-sided hangar on our little country airport. We even took it to Oshkosh to be part of the 50th anniversary of the T-50/UC-78.”

Then the Harters discovered Wacos.

“Dad bought a flying YOC, and that was my first introduction to the Waco association, which was an important

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM KOEPNICK, TANDESS O’NEAL

Ed Lachendro rescued the IBA from obscurity and allowed Ryan to buy it from him.

www.vintageaircraft.org 31

32  

September/October 2018

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM KOEPNICK

www.vintageaircraft.org 

33

IBA ENTER THE WACO

DESPITE GROWING UP SURROUNDED BY AVIATION, Ryan didn’t start flying him-

self until well into adulthood.

“I can’t explain why it took me so long to start learning to fly,” he said.

“Part of it may be because I was always surrounded by airplanes. They were just part of the woodwork and weren’t anything unusual. It wasn’t until I was 31 and started to fly that I realized how important airplanes are and why my dad and granddad were so drawn to them. My interest had been in cars, specifically a bunch of Mustangs I owned and a Dodge Viper.”

Ultimately, Ryan learned to fly in the family Cub and got his sport pilot certificate.

“Later, sticking with light-sport aircraft, I started restoring the Aeronca Chief that had been sitting in the corner of Dad’s hangar forever,” he said. “He and I spent a lot of time on it, but we lost him a few years ago, and I now look at the Chief as a monument to him.”

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September/October 2018

About that time, Ryan decided to upgrade from a sport pilot to a private pilot certificate and bought a 172 in which to learn. Then the Waco IBA entered his life.

“I’d known about Waco IBAs for a long time, but never once thought I’d ever get the opportunity to buy one,” Ryan said. “I’ve been into antiques forever, and when I was growing up, I’d see a photo of an IBA and flip out every time. They are unbelievably beautiful! Just what I want to see in an airplane. But, since only one had survived, when I started thinking about getting a Waco, I was mostly thinking about cabin jobs.”

Then, Ryan met Ed and Luke Lachendro from Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, who rescued the sole surviving IBA from storage in California. “[They] had the Johnson brothers, Ryan and Cory, in Lone Rock, Wisconsin, patch it up and bring it back to life,” Ryan said. “On a whim, via Facebook, I asked Ed if the IBA was for sale, and he said, ‘Maybe. Someday.’ And I told him in no uncertain terms that I wanted first rights, if he ever decided to sell. Shortly after that, I got a note from him asking if I was still interested, and he said he’d give me the friends and family price. I didn’t ask how much. I simply said I’d take it, and he said, ‘Don’t you want to talk it over or anything?’ and I said, ‘No, where do I send the money?’

“At the same time I said that to Ed, I asked myself, ‘Ryan, where are you going to get the money?’ I immediately sold the Viper and put the 172 up for sale, but it wasn’t going to sell quickly and I needed to finish my certificate,” Ryan said. “So, a very close family friend, Steve Givens, suggested he become a ‘temporary partner’ until I could get the 172 sold. So, we went up and brought the IBA back.”

AIRVENTURE AND THE HARTER FAMILY

WACO-SPEAK

There’s something to be considered, when talking about Wacos and their seemingly indecipherable three-letter designations (at least to those outside of the Waco circle). Waco designations are “ordered combinations” so the basic concept of Waco-speak is straight forward: The first letter denotes the engine type, the second is a recognized type of Waco wing design, and the third letter indicates the fuselage type. So, in the case of the Waco IBA, the I indicates a 125-hp Kinner B-5 engine, the B means it has the same wings as the Waco F-2, and the A indicates that it is a two-place, side-by-side, open-cockpit design.

Now all we need to do is remember what each of the dozens of letters stand for. However, it is the A that marks Ryan’s airplane as being truly unique, which is part of the reason he lusted after it for so long. The A-fuselage airplanes were different in that the pilot and passenger sat side by side. Twenty-two of those fuselages were built, but only one left the factory with the Kinner B-5 making it an IBA.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY EAA ARCHIVES, JIM KOEPNICK

A SURVIVOR’S TALE

Going back to the beginning, the IBA has been dogged by bad luck. One was wrecked by the factory so N12453 was the only one to leave the factory. Then, in 1945 the owner, who was a fur trader, had a rocker cover come loose, and he landed in a field to fix it. When he took off, he hit a hedgerow and flipped the airplane on its back causing extensive damage. He sent it back to the factory where they used the remains of the one they had wrecked a decade or so earlier and built one airplane out of the two. The serial number that had been on N12453 was retained.

According to Ed, in 1950 the airplane was fully restored and spent most of its time in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio. Ed Packard owned it for decades and had it rebuilt again in 1964. It was under his ownership when the Kinner B-54 replaced the original B-5 and the PT-21 compound curved forward sheet metal was fitted, making it a stunningly attractive biplane. It had experienced a few minor accidents, but then a landing Luscombe ran into it, and in 1976 Packard

TO THE HARTER FAMILY, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh is more than just a place to play with airplanes; it’s a critical part of their existence.

“First, it’s worth mentioning that I’m 41 years old and have been to Oshkosh 38 times,” Ryan said. “My kids and wife, Brandy, whom I have been with since we were juniors in high school, see the fly-in as ‘our special place.’ It’s more than just a vacation; our year begins and ends there.

Dad has a brick in the Brown Arch, and it’s our home away from home and has so many memories attached to it; we can’t imagine not being there.”

Ryan points out an episode a few years ago when it looked as if they weren’t going to make it to Oshkosh.

His daughter, Aubrey, was 2 and had to go through dialysis daily before having a kidney transplant (from her mother).

That required an electrical hook-up for their campsite, which weren’t normally available.

“I called up to EAA and asked if there was any way we could get a hook-up, and almost instantly they said they’d figure out how to make it happen,” Ryan said.

“There wasn’t any question in their minds that we wouldn’t be able to keep Aubrey taken care of. When we’re up there, we feel as if we’re visiting family, and that episode clearly shows that EAA sees it the same way.”

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IBA decided to go through the entire airplane once again. The fabric that’s on the fuselage is what was applied during that restoration.

The A-series Wacos had a unique optional “cabin” that could be bolted to the top of the fuselage, completely enclosing the cockpit. It was a tubing structure covered in Plexiglas, very rectilinear in shape, with windows and doors in the sides. With that cockpit cover in place, it has a very different look.

Kinner engines of the period were progressively modified to eventually eliminate the need to hand grease the rocker arms, but the 125-hp B-54 in the IBA is one of the earlier Kinners.

“When he sold me the airplane, Ed told me that the gentleman who last overhauled the engine, Brad Ball, said

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that it’s imperative that you grease the rockers every two hours,” Ryan said.

“So, even though you have 32 gallons of fuel and are only burning about 8 gallons, your range is actually dictated by the greasing requirement. So, you pogo stick your way across country.”

Ryan said that with the upgrade to the B-54 engine, the airplane was categorized as experimental until the 1960s, when an A&P/IA returned it to standard category.

“Essentially, Waco used F-2 wings and landing gear and designed a new fuselage,” Ed said. “They wanted a lighter, longer range cross-country airplane for the 1932 Depression era marketplace. The front pit area became a baggage compartment capable of holding 81 pounds and the main cockpit was widened for two people.

Two skinny people! The usual sitting position has the passenger putting one arm around behind the pilot over his shoulders to give more room. Also, the throttles protrude into the cockpit space from each side and look unusual. This is because they move fore and aft as throttles normally do, but they also pivot toward the center of the airplane to apply the mechanical brakes. Not a totally unique arrangement for the time.”

Despite the strange, if not uncommon, cockpit setup, Ryan said he fell in love with the IBA at first sight.

“On my first flight in the airplane with my instructor, Bob Snider, I immediately recognized that this was the best airplane I had ever flown,” Ryan said. “It was instant love, although I have to admit to being a little

intimidated by it. It was much larger than anything I’d flown, and I was, and still am, very conscious of flying the only airplane of its type in the world. It’s a serious responsibility.”

Ryan said his first flights in the IBA were off grass, but he knew eventually he would have to put it down on pavement.

“I was a lot more than a little nervous on those first hard surface landings,” he said. “However, I was totally amazed at how forgiving and controllable it was. It even does a decent job in crosswinds.”

Although the airplane, and Ryan, are ready, he said their annual trek to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh won’t include the IBA in 2018.

“We won’t be taking the IBA to Oshkosh until next year,” Ryan said. “My kids, Michael, 17, and Aubrey, 12, want me to take the Chief we just finished. The whole family sees the Chief as Dad’s/Granddad’s airplane that we worked so hard on together, and they want the world, and the judges, to see it.

But, the IBA will make it next year.”

Ryan summed up his feelings about the IBA succinctly. “I just couldn’t imagine it being this good,” he said.

It looks as if the IBA has found the perfect long-term home.

Struttin’ its stuff at the Mt. Vernon fly-in in 1989.

The compound curved forward metal panels from a Ryan PT-21 do wonders for the airplane’s profile.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY EAA ARCHIVES, JIM KOEPNICK

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From Rescued Relic to Regal

ONE RARE SPORTSTER 7000

BY SPARKY BARNES SARGENT

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM BUSHA

www.vintageaircraft.org 

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From Rescued Relic to Regal

E

Below: 1935 Rearwin Sportster 7000

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d Kling, Vintage 20282, of St. Charles, Illinois, was delighted that his 1935 Rearwin Sportster 7000 had a successful flight to Oshkosh last summer.

That’s because flying behind an antique LeBlond radial can sometimes be an adventure. “My buddy Joe Dougherty and I did rock, paper, scissors and he lost, so he flew it up here to Oshkosh and I followed in our Piper Clipper!”

It was the second time this Rearwin had been on the flightline at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. NC14486 made its debut at AirVenture in 2002, just after a restoration by Richard “Dick” Weeden, Vintage 27954. If it weren’t for Dick’s tenacious determination to breathe life back into a relic, Ed wouldn’t have had the joy and tribulations of owning and flying a Rearwin. One of only eight Rearwin Sportster 7000s listed on the FAA registry today, it’s an exquisite treat to see this breed still flying.

While the idea of restoring, owning, and flying the LeBlond-powered Sportster may conjure a nostalgic appeal, very few aviator/mechanics possess the requisite knowledge and skills to keep one airworthy. Ed rose to the self-appointed challenge and became one of them.

The aviation bug bit Ed when he was very young. He was influenced by his father’s interest in naval aviation and also

September/October 2018

by hearing the family lore about Rudy Kling, the “Speed King,” who was his father’s uncle. In September 1937, Rudy flew his Folkerts SK-3, Jupiter Pride of Lemont, to first-place finishes in the Greve Trophy Race with a speed of 232.27 mph, and the Thompson Trophy Race with a speed of 256.91 mph. “I grew up seeing pictures of Rudy’s SK-3 on the wall, and read about him,” Ed said. “So I’ve liked airplanes since I was a little kid, and when I was about 5 years old, my uncle Ron gave me a ride in his J-3 Cub.” When Dick decided to sell his Rearwin, Ed thought it was a great deal, and bought it in May 2010. “It’s a pretty plane; I like its art deco look, and I thought the windshield was the coolest thing, kind of like a mini-version of the Lockheed Vega that Amelia Earhart flew,” he said. “It’s funny, after I bought it one of the first things Dick said to me was, ‘I spend most of my time looking for a place to land it!’ I’ve had it for seven years, and my longest cross-country was flying it home from Brodhead to DeKalb, Illinois. About the time I got to DeKalb, I thought, ‘I should land this thing; there’s a lot of oil on the windshield!’ The other long flight was bringing it from DeKalb to Oshkosh. We have enjoyed flying it and giving rides, but the real story is Dick and his restoration on it.”

That restoration story started more than 40 years ago, when Dick decided he wanted a radial-powered airplane.

But before we get to that, let’s take a brief look at this Sportster’s early life.

CHAIN OF OWNERS

Powered by a 70-hp LeBlond 5DE, NC14486 (serial No. 406) was manufactured on June 27, 1935, by Rearwin Airplanes Inc. at Fairfax Airport in Kansas City, Kansas.

Earl M. Hoaglin of Minneapolis bought NC14486 on August 17, 1935. Earl was apparently rather pleased with his choice, because a Rearwin ad in the April 1937 issue of Southern Flight featured his jaw-dropping testimonial

Checking the fit of the new wings, which were built by Bill Amundson, to the fuselage.

about the airplane. It was Rearwin Airplane’s “ninth continuous successful year,” and the company touted the airplane’s sturdy construction in the ad: “The “Rearwin can ‘take it’: Read the Evidence – ‘Soon the wind was blowing a gale and we saw trees being uprooted below us. The air was very rough and the jolts were so forceful that we sustained severe physical shock. Between terrific blasts the gusts shook us with great force. (We could see this cyclone raze buildings and trees in its path.) We rode this storm out for an hour. Upon landing, we made a careful examination which revealed no damage from the stress and strain of the encounter.’”

Not long after that harrowing experience, Earl sold the sturdy Rearwin to Harold A. Erickson of Minnesota. The Rearwin bounced in fairly quick succession from owner to owner in Minnesota and then Wisconsin — sometimes it bounced hard. In July 1940, thenowner Lyle Bobzin of Wisconsin reported that he had a forced landing due to “motor failure, which resulted in a crack-up in which the ship nosed over. … The fuselage was sprung in many places, the wings suffered broken ribs and one broken spar, the propeller also was broken.” The Sportster was repaired by March 1941.

Nicholas Stahl bought the Rearwin in June 1943 and took it to Kansas City, Kansas. He had Hayes 701-A wheels and brakes installed, along with a full swivel tail wheel in place of the original tailskid. The airplane changed hands again and went briefly to Arizona, and then back to the Upper Midwest in 1945.

By December 1946, Andrews Flying Club of Bay City, Wisconsin, had the airplane undergoing a “makeover” by rejuvenating its finish and applying fresh coats of dope, as well as installing a new windshield and windows. They

PHOTOS COURTESY OF PAT WEEDEN

“It always seemed to draw a crowd because not many people had ever seen a small airplane like that with a radial engine.”

— Dick Weeden Dick Weeden completed his restoration of NC14486 in 2002.

even tried it out on A-1850 Federal skis that winter, but by September 1947, the Rearwin had apparently suffered another nose over, which resulted in the wings being repaired and re-covered. The airplane was registered to the club until its registration was canceled in 1956. It languished for two decades, eventually winding up in a shed next to Bernard Pietenpol’s shop in Cherry Grove, Minnesota.

RESCUING A RELIC

In 1976, Dick and a friend of his, LeRoy “Bud” LaBarre, were looking for an airplane project and found the Rearwin. “It was owned by Vi Kapler, who was an old mechanic for Bernie Pietenpol,” Dick said. “Vi had a Funk project and this Rearwin project in the shed, and said, ‘$1,200, take your pick.’ I wanted a round engine, so we picked the Rearwin. It was missing a wing and many small parts and was in need of an extensive rebuild.”

It wasn’t surprising that Dick was drawn to the idea of restoring the Rearwin. He’s been actively engaged in numerous facets of aviation, as both a pilot and a mechanic, for 70 years. “Dad has always had aviation in his blood; his

first entry in his logbook was when he was 16,” said Dick’s son Pat. “He lived down in Beloit, Wisconsin, and he used to ride his bike out to the South Beloit, Illinois, airport. He was a lineboy, and when the Korean War came he joined the Air Force so he wouldn’t get drafted in the infantry.

He was a mechanic in the Air Force for four years.”

Dick became a charter member of EAA Chapter 431 and is synonymous with Brodhead Airport’s (C37) evolution into a haven for antique and homebuilt airplanes. As the years went by, Dick never gave up on his restoration of NC14486. He slowly began working his way through myriad tedious challenges, including tracking down the previous owner, Roland Andrews of the old Andrews Flying Club. Fortunately, Roland was willing to execute a bill of sale for the airplane, which was essential in establishing continuity in the chain of ownership.

“It took me the next 18 years to restore it: There was a lot of stuff missing, and I had to do a lot of scrounging,” Dick said. “I had to get some certification drawings from the FAA to build new wings, and it took www.vintageaircraft.org 41

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PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN BRUEGGEN

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From Rescued Relic to Regal

SPECS Manufactured under ATC 574.

Not eligible to be flown by a sport pilot.

ENGINE: 70-hp LeBlond GROSS WEIGHT: 1,410 pounds EMPTY WEIGHT: 853 pounds USEFUL LOAD: 557 pounds PAYLOAD: 220 pounds WINGSPAN: 35 feet AIRFOIL: NACA M-6 LANDING GEAR TREAD: 5 feet, 10 inches WING AREA: 166 square feet WING LOADING: 8.5 pounds per square foot POWER LOADING: 20.14 pounds per hp LENGTH: 22.3 feet HEIGHT: 6 feet, 9 inches BAGGAGE CAPACITY: 50 pounds FUEL: 24 gallons OIL: 2 gallons MAX SPEED: 110 mph CRUISE: 98 mph LANDING SPEED: 35 mph RATE OF CLIMB: 625 fpm RANGE: 475 miles SERVICE CEILING: 13,000 feet LENGTH OF TAKEOFF RUN: 280 feet

about two years of stop-and-go work to build them. The wings were built by Bill Amundson in his Stoughton, Wisconsin, shop. About that time I had a heart attack and subsequent bypass surgery, and it was now 1996, and I was 64 years old. So, I retired and went to work on the Rearwin in earnest about that time. By then I had also bought out Bud Labarre’s half, and I continued working on it slowly and doing something every day. I had help from a lot of people at Brodhead, as well as my wife, Polly, who sewed the fabric for it. Finally, in May 2002, it was completed.”

Dick replaced tubing that had been damaged by rust and bullet holes in the fuselage, and used Rearwin drawings and an old wing as a pattern to construct the new wood wings. Fortunately, the old fittings and compression struts could be reused, and he installed new cables, pulleys, fairleads, and turnbuckles.

Incorporating modern technology and materials, Dick installed an Ameri-King emergency locator transmitter in the Rearwin, and covered the airplane with Poly Fiber fabric. He also installed a Curtis quick drain valve in the lowest point of the fuel system, and installed heel brakes in place of the original suspended toe brake pedals. He retained the cable operated mechanical brakes and installed a Lang model 501C tail wheel on the existing tailskid spring.

Knowing that the five-cylinder LeBlond 70-5E had some valve issues, Dick methodically went through the steps to accomplish a Continental valve conversion using Continental O-200 valve springs in place of the original LeBlond volute valve springs. The Rearwin was issued a special airworthiness certificate in the experimental category for research and development until the required hours were flown, and the airplane was then issued a standard airworthiness certificate.

REGAL REARWIN

“I made the first flight, which went perfect,” Dick said.

“I took it to Oshkosh, and they parked me beside the only Pasped Skylark, which had been restored by Tom Brown.

So naturally there was a big crowd around the Skylark and some of them filtered over to the Rearwin. Then I took it to Blakesburg, Iowa, [for the annual AAA/APM Invitational Fly-In] and my son Mike and I gave about 20 rides during the fly-in. It won the Texas Chapter Choice, Wisconsin Chapter Choice, Rearwin Family Award, and the Antique Sweepstakes Award. I had a backseat of trophies to bring home!”

The Rearwin garnered favorable press coverage as well, gracing the cover From left to right, Ed Kling, his son Max, and Pat Weeden with the Rearwin at AirVenture 2017.

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of Vintage Airplane in January 2003 with a feature article by Budd Davisson.

The Rearwin was also featured on the cover of the Rearwin Register (published by the Rearwin Club, January 2005), accompanied by Dick’s short article about his restoration.

In 2003, Dick opted to remove the original Goodyear model 31M9M 3-inch wheels, brakes, and 18-8-3 tires and tubes, since replacements were hard to find. He machined adapter/spacers to install Shinn 6.00-6 model 6E wheels, Shinn brake assemblies, and Goodyear 6.00-6 tires and tubes.

Overall, Dick was quite pleased with his relic-to-regal Rearwin Sportster. “I’ve gone to a lot of fly-ins with it and taken numerous people for rides, including my grandchildren,” he said. “It always seemed to draw a crowd because not many people had ever seen a small airplane like that with a radial engine. But I got to the point where I could not get in and out of it due to my bad back, so I sold it and Ed Kling bought it. I’m glad he’s happy with the airplane and flying it.”

LEBLOND RADIAL

Pat, Vintage 723633, who literally grew up with his father’s Rearwin project (and is now executive director of the Kelch Aviation Museum at Brodhead), was checked out in the airplane by his flight instructor brother, Mike. “I remember when we were flying it, Dad would say, ‘When you go to full throttle for takeoff, as soon as you’re safe, back it off. Do not run that engine at full throttle for more than 16 seconds. It’s just the way LeBlonds are — if it’s running good, you fly it, but like Dad says, always have a place to land.”

“Dick told me to pull the wheels off the ground and throttle it back in 16 seconds, and climb out slow,” Ed added.

“That was his rule; you don’t want to break it. The LeBlond is a problematic engine, and even though it’s had a valve conversion, it still sticks valves.”

One of Ed’s memorable experiences with the LeBlond occurred when he was flying a short distance from DeKalb to Naperville. All seemed well until he heard nothing but an alarming silence. “That was when I first got the fear of God. Fifteen seconds can feel like 15 hours, and I thought, ‘Oh man, I’ve read about this!’” Ed said. “I found my spot to land, got it all set up, and then I started playing with the carb heat. I got it back to about 70 percent power and I wasn’t losing altitude, so I’m like, ‘Oh, I can make this field over here … oh, I can make that field.’ Then all of a sudden the airport’s in sight, and between me and the airport is a little town. Oh, now this is bad! I was starting to lose altitude and barely cleared the fence at the airport. I stopped in the grass, and my knees were knocking when I got out of the airplane. It was a valve problem, and after we got it going again, I had the same thing happen. So the last three years, the Rearwin has been relegated to flying the pattern, which is

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN BRUEGGEN, SCOTT PELKOWSKI, SPARKY BARNES SARGENT

why we’ve only put about 40 hours on it since we’ve had it.”

In 2014, Ed decided he needed to have a second engine on hand, just in case the 70-5E gave up the ghost entirely. “Erik Dienst has helped us do a lot of maintenance on it, but Dick is the only one who really knows the LeBlond motor,” Ed said. “And Dick built a 90-hp LeBlond 90-5F with a starter for me. That was Dick’s last engine rebuild, and he did the Continental valve conversion on that one, too.”

The rarity of LeBlond engine parts is a real concern when it comes to ongoing maintenance. Ed scrounged parts and cylinders for several years, but said the sources are drying up now. Even when Dick was working on the restoration years ago, he found it challenging to find engine parts. “The LeBlond was designed in 1928, and there was some inventory of parts at Blakesburg,” Dick said. “But some of the major interior parts like the crankshaft, connecting rods, and all the moving parts are all pretty much extinct.” www.vintageaircraft.org 45

From Rescued Relic to Regal

SPORTSTER FLYING

Despite the sometimes unpredictable nature of the LeBlond — or perhaps because of it — flying the Rearwin Sportster is an experience resplendent with an almost palpable golden age nostalgia. The Sportster cruises about 82 mph and has a “pretty narrow flight envelope.”

“Stalling speed is around 50 mph, and the difference between cruise and landing speed is about 10 mph,” Ed said.

“So you bring it in about 70 mph, and it slows down real quick; three-point landings are fine on grass — but it can get real squirrely on pavement.”

Even just flying around the patch during nice summer days equates to cherished and memorable experiences for pilots and passengers. “When we’re having fly-ins, people will line up just to wait for a ride in this airplane,” Ed said.

“It’s been really cool to have, and we’ve given about 50 to 60 rides in it over the years at different fly-ins. The Rearwin is a neat airplane to fly; it’s not like a modern airplane where it’s stable and coordinated. It’s inherently unstable: You let go of the controls, and it wants to peel off somewhere, which kind of keeps

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you awake. If you’re not worried about the engine, you’re constantly flying the airplane, so it keeps you alert.”

After seven years of owning and flying the Rearwin, Ed finally decided to relinquish it, and placed a “for sale” sign on the airplane during AirVenture 2017.

“It’s been a fun airplane, but I’ve had all the excitement I need,” he said. “I had a Model A Pietenpol that gave me plenty of excitement for a while, this Rearwin gave me some excitement, and now I’m liking the Piper Clipper — I’m moving up into the modern era!”

Kevin Kirk, Vintage 721626, an airline pilot nearing retirement, became smitten with the Sportster during AirVenture 2017. Shortly thereafter, he became its new owner. With a twinge of mixed emotions, Ed watched the regal Rearwin fly out of sight, heading eastbound. It took Kevin six hours to fly from DeKalb to Grove City (29D) in western Pennsylvania, where he keeps his other airplane — a Stearman.

“I’m kind of an old-soul person; I like antique stuff, and I like the antique look of the Rearwin — I love it! I didn’t even fly it before I bought it,” Kevin said. “I had a friend fly me to Illinois, and I jumped in the Rearwin and flew it all the way home that day. I flew it for about 20 hours that fall, until I parked it for the winter in November. I haven’t taken anybody up with me because I’m still a little apprehensive, but I haven’t had an issue with the LeBlond since I’ve owned it — I do have the spare engine on hand, though. My plans are to fly it a lot this summer and just enjoy it!” And so the saga of a rescued relic continues on in regal Rearwin fashion.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ERIN BRUEGGEN, JIM BUSHA, BRIAN WIERZBICKI

AD AIRCRAFT SPEC

The Family

Steve Hamilton owns several Grumman amphibs and views his G-44A Widgeon as a magic carpet that can take him and his family places no other airplane can.

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S T E V E H A M I LT O N ’ S G R U M M A N W I D G E O N

BY BUDD DAVISSON

PHOTOGRAPHY BY SCOTT GERMAIN

www.vintageaircraft.org

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The Family

Is this a happy man or what?!

I

’m certain everyone who talks with Steve Hamilton says the same thing: His almost boyish excitement and enthusiasm for vintage/antique airplanes bubbles to the surface and makes every conversation fun — and more than a little inspirational.

Also, before we get another sentence further into this tale, we should make something very clear that sets Steve apart from some others with the same interests: Although he’s financially capable of owning and flying more aircraft than many aviators, he has as much grease under his fingernails as any of the mechanics and restorers who have worked on his airplanes. His love for vintage machines of all kinds starts with the tiniest bolt and carries through to the creation of a running, breathing artifact of a time long gone. Part of that love includes being part of the process of re-creation.

A VERY APROPOS START IN AVIATION

Steve’s involvement with exotic machinery goes back to his post-college years and started with European automobiles, but that interest intersected with aviation at about the same time as he graduated from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.

“I knew very little about airplanes other than knowing I liked them,” he said. “With very little cash, I went out to the airport to see if I could snag a ride — and because airports were fun places. One of the first planes I fell in love with was this old Stearman. At this point I knew nothing about antique airplanes, but something about the Stearman seemed really romantic. I loved it! I liked its lines and, beneath the grime, saw its greatness. So, I asked the guy what Stearmans were for sale and could I get a ride in one. He looked at me as if I were crazy. I took that as an unequivocal no. However, I couldn’t just turn my back on that beautiful old airplane and walk away.

After some conversation, I traded my equally as decrepit Aston Martin DB4 that I had been wrenching on for some time for a Stearman that had never been a duster. So, before I had taken my first flying lesson, I was the owner of a gigantic, oil-dripping biplane that needed re-covering (but only in a few places — what a sales guy!). It was still flyable, so at least I got a great ride in it before I started working on it.”

Steve put three years of restoration work into the Stearman and got it back to flying condition. But there was still one hiccup: He still didn’t have his private pilot certificate.

“I ran across an ex-Army World War II Stearman instructor, and I started learning to fly from scratch in the airplane. To say I was mesmerized by the process is an understatement,” he said. “Every flight was, and still is, an absolute adventure.”

After 46 years, Steve still hasn’t tired of the Stearman. “Although many other airplanes have come and gone, that was my first restoration and its part of the family,” he said. “I got my PPL in it, and my oldest son learned in it as well. It had a 300-hp R-680-13 Lycoming on it, which worked out well for our field at 4,700 feet. My kids all thought having a biplane in the family was normal. To us, I guess it is.

Certainly there was no substitute on a Saturday morning for flights. My son keeps trying to tell me that the Stearman likes him best, but that’s not working. I know better.

“It was fun to watch the FAA designee that gave me my PPL checkride in it. I think he was just looking forward to getting a Stearman ride. He pushed me into all the corners, and it was a lot of fun,” Steve said. I think he was also glad to be alive when it was all over.

As Steve’s business grew, he had a little more flexibility to engage in restoring the things he loved the most.

“Basically my initial interest when young was in archeology. I loved old things, but I also knew that would be a difficult way to make a living. Then I discovered cars and found the same historic passion in dissecting and reviving cars, especially European models. Older American cars, for the most part, were utilitarian, while Europe had a larger cash availability that paid for, and valued, the much higher design efforts going into the luxury cars of the time. Many had a high level of artistic talent involved, both visually and mechanically. Older aircraft are also very much the same, and it’s hard to avoid loving either of them.”

His problem with falling in love has resulted in him owning a number of “interesting” aircraft. Among

PHOTOGRAPHY BY SCOTT GERMAIN, CHRISTOPHER MILLER

others, they include a Staggerwing, Gullwing Stinson, BT-13, Grumman Duck, and a pair of Fairchild F-24Rs, which he rates as being 100-point restorations. He also owns a 4E Stearman that was owned and operated by Standard Oil back in the day. “On that one, I went so far as to have the instrument needles reproduced to be totally original,” Steve said. And of course the grande dame is a Grumman Mallard.

“Life is an adventure for all of us and airplanes enable dreams to take flight,” Steve said. “A love affair with old things is sort of like a disease, but my wife says poverty will eventually cure my disease and I trust her.

Fortunately, she loves and shares in the adventures. They’ve added a wonderful dimension to our life.”

ENTER THE WIDGEON

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2017 wasn’t Steve’s first time coming to Oshkosh in a web-footed Grumman.

In fact, we did an article on his Mallard that won Grand Champion Classic in 2001.

“Grumman amphibians are marvelous machines,” he said. “They are magic carpets that can take you almost anywhere in the world and find a beautiful place to land. They open your world up to an endless series of expeditionary adventures. And the Grumman G-44A Widgeon is one of the best of that breed. They are big enough that, with the right engines, you can safely carry four people and their camping gear and move along at 145-150 knots at altitude. These are known as Super Widgeons. The original Ranger engines handicapped the airplane tremendously, and at least 95 percent of the 50-60 still flying have been re-engined to the more modern postwar powerplants.”

Right after the war two things happened that spurred the interest in upgrading the breed with more power.

First, surplus G-44s became available at good prices while, at the same time, bigger flat engines began production.

The Widgeon at the Beginning THE ORIGINAL WIDGEON ENGINES, the 200-hp Rangers, were the same engine that was in the nose of Fairchild trainers.

An inverted, in-line, air-cooled six, it was a heavy, not terribly powerful engine. The result was that a Widgeon was actually a three-place airplane and had marginal performance. Initially, it had fixed-pitch, wooden props, so if one engine quit, all the other one did is flatten out your glide.

Originally designed for the civilian market and introduced in 1941, the airplane was quickly snapped up as a utility bird by most of the services. It was known as J4F-2 to the U.S. Navy (131 aircraft) and J4F-1 to the Coast Guard (25 aircraft). The U.S. Army Air Corps/U.S. Army Air Forces knew it as the OA-14 (15 aircraft).

After the war, in addition to the 76 G-44As produced, 41 aircraft were built under license to metric standards by the French company Société de Construction Aéronavale (SCAN). Some of those were brought back to the United States and converted. “The SCANs, as we called them, were not really a Grumman in that they were built differently than a Grumman, meaning metric, heavy, and utilizing aluminum that was more affected by corrosion,” Steve said. “Also, Grumman parts, not being metric, had problems being installed on a SCAN.”

Most amphibs have overhead throttles to keep the control cables/rods short.

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The Family Although at least a few Widgeons had R-680-13 300-hp Lycoming radials mounted, this mod yielded a negative improvement due to the extra weight and drag. However, where prior to WWII almost all horizontally opposed flat motors were in the 65-110 hp category, right after the war both Lycoming and Continental designed and produced six-cylinder flat motors in the 260-295 hp range. By the early to mid-1950s, this lead to two major companies that did STC’d conversions on Widgeons. The conversions were applied to both military and civilian-only Widgeons that Grumman produced after the war and designated as G-44A. These featured a slightly redesigned hull for better water handling, seating for six people, bigger fuel tanks, and other small improvements that were based on the airplane’s military experience. Both the earlier Widgeons, known as straight hulls, and the A models turned out to be great planes after the powerplant changes.

Those enabled careers in either the oil industry or backwoods flying that could never have happened otherwise. Imagine, rather than taxiing into a transient parking area, taxiing into your favorite cove in a magical lake for a swim or a few days of camping and fishing. I’m not so sure transient parking wins out.

“McKinnon conversions use geared GO-480 six-cylinder Lycomings that put out either 270 or 290 hp, depending on the version,” Steve said. “The McDermott conversions feature much sleeker cowls that enclose IO-470 Continentals, essentially Cessna 310 engines, that put out 260 hp. These were the two most successful conversions created, and lovely airplanes by any standard. My Widgeon, which is my second, is a McDermott conversion on a postwar G-44A of which 76 were built. There were 200 of the straight hull Widgeons built. I have IO-470-Ds that put out 260 hp.”

Steve said he chose not to use the traditional three-blade propellers used on Widgeons because testing by Todd Petersen found that similar aircraft performed better with two-blade propellers at less than 265 hp.

52

September/October 2018

“A key to performance in restoring any airplane, but more importantly a Widgeon, is keeping it light,” Steve said. “This is especially so when talking about water flying. The new avionics helps in that area because they are a fraction the weight of what was installed in the ’40s and ’50s. I followed through with the lightness theme in doing the interior and the paint. The upholstery is as light as I could make it and still have it look good and feel grand. I built this airplane to perform well.

When taking off on a short lake, performance really matters followed by careful assessment of the wind and terrain. I always allow a big safety margin. After all, this is supposed to be fun. Installing the 1/4-inch thick, single-piece curved windshield may be a little heavier but offers much more protection and a little more of a streamlined look.”

Steve said the process of restoring this Widgeon was easier partly because it was his second, but also he said that the aircraft was already in great condition.

“It had been operated by Gulf, and then Chevron, Oil for over 20 years, and they took extremely good care of it,” he said. “Plus, much of its time was spent in the relatively freshwater bayou country of Louisiana.

Then it sat at a guy’s house for 10 years so it was not an abused airframe.

“I always tell people that the things that airplanes fear most is pilots, but corrosion is what kills most Widgeons. To be strong enough to operate off less-than-smooth seas, Grumman built them like tanks so there is a lot of structure that creates all sorts of nooks and crannies in which corrosion can form. Plus, many of them were operated in saltwater environments, which isn’t good for anything made of aluminum,” Steve said. “It’s a borderline impossibility to prevent corrosion so lots of Widgeons have died simply because the corrosion got ahead of the owners, which required so much reskinning to get at the corrosion, which it was not financially viable to try to save them in the past. Thankfully, that is not true today because they are now much more valuable.”

What better way is there to arrive at AirVenture?

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRISTOPHER MILLER

Steve’s Widgeon was restored by Arnold Peterson in Minden, Nevada, but, as we know, Steve likes to get hands on with his restorations, too.

“Arnold, did the restoration on this machine for and with me. He knows the airplanes well, and this airplane was so good to begin with that the only reskinning we had to do was because of making improvements and fixing old patches, etc.,” he said. “If you’re going to do something, you should do it right.

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Steve’s Widgeon is a McDermott conversion on a postwar G-44A, so is powered by 260 hp IO-470-D Continentals.

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September/October 2018

PHOTOGRAPHY BY SCOTT GERMAIN

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55

The Family

The finished airplane weighs right at 3,800 pounds empty, so with its 5,500-pound gross, I can carry 150 gallons of fuel and four people with their gear. And with that weight and those engines, I can go for five or more hours, 750-800 nm. It also is a plane that flies well on one engine in most situations. The wonderful thing about amphibs is that, if you lose an engine and need a place to put it, between lakes and airstrips you have a lot more choices.”

FLYING IT

Steve has nothing but good things to say about how the airplane handles in the air, on the ground, and in the water.

“There are lots of twins out there that are faster, but none that can do what the Widgeon can and are as fun to fly,” he said. “First, the controls are tremendously smooth and reactive. Most people don’t expect an amphib to be so sporty feeling, but this one is. Also, it has such good manners that, with some good instruction, you don’t have to work hard at flying it. Still, there is no substitute for good judgement.

“A lot of people look at it being a twin-engine, tailwheel airplane and assume that makes it more critical on landing. However, it actually only takes about 15 percent of the skill required to land most other taildraggers. It is even good in a crosswind with lots of good sail area in its design,” Steve said. “When I have paid attention to the things important to all pilots, the airplane has never scared me in any situation.”

We all know getting a checkout is important before flying a new type, but Steve reiterated that it’s especially important when that type is an amphib.

“The best guy in the business for advanced training after the rating is Fred Ball, in Walla Walla, Washington.

He has been checking out Grumman

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September/October 2018

owners for years,” he said. “One of the areas that he stresses is to be smooth and gentle with the airplane. This is especially true on takeoff where the Widgeon, if abused, can porpoise. …

Power feeds into this because the engines are high, and the low point of the airplane, the keel, has a lot of drag on it. If it starts to porpoise, which always starts under 20 mph, just apply the porpoise recovery action of nosedown input with bow going down and nose up input when bow is going up.

[It’s] very surprising how quickly the plane will recover. If it does not, then just get the power off and hold the nose up slightly and let it settle back down and then resume the takeoff.

Porpoise correction is actually very easy, and they all happen at low airspeeds on takeoff. Under no circumstances should you be in your third porpoise with full power on.”

To avoid going into a porpoise on takeoff, Steve recommended a short checklist of steps.

“On takeoff, with full aft elevator and left down aileron to fight the torque and P-factor, the power comes in slowly and, when the nose pitches up slightly, you feed the rest of the power in, letting it climb on up over the hump, where you keep a slight nose-up attitude but ease off the back-pressure letting it down gently onto the step,” he said. “It normally stalls around 55 knots, so at 60 knots

you let her fly off with a little aft pressure and, once clear of the water, you start easing off the back-pressure to increase airspeed to above blue line, then resume your climb-out.”

PUTTING IT BACK ON THE WATER

Steve says the landings are essentially like a wheel landing to some degree, with the airplane being flown down to the surface. But there’s one major reversal from landing on a runway.

“The big thing is remembering that water landings are made with the gear up, not down. Forgetting this has torn up more than one dear sweet Widgeon,” Steve said. “So, on downwind, I’m at about 100 knots and verify that the gear is indeed up. The max flap extension available is 45 degrees, but I only use 25 degrees for a lot of reasons, but mostly because you get 80 percent of the flap effectiveness at half-flap and you do not load the horizontal tail as much. I slowly bring the speed down by a combination of attitude and power control. I want to level out 1 foot over the water at around 60-65 knots. Then I let the plane settle bringing the nose up just a little, letting the speed slowly bleed off for a sweet-spot landing at 55-60 knots.

Nothing feels better. On touchdown I am ready to increase back-pressure slightly when the drag on the keel wants to pull the nose down.”

PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRISTOPHER MILLER

Once he’s landed on the water, Steve said he brings power back up to maintain 55 knots to taxi.

“However, now it is flaps up, boost pumps off, reset the trim, and 50 to 55 knots to stay on the step with good control effectiveness,” he said. “When I’m about 150-200 yards out from where I want to beach the airplane, I reduce power to the stop and hold back-pressure to keep the props out of the spray. She is easy to control with differential power when taxiing on the water. I put the gear down, which gives me some drag and also something to act as a bumper should anything be in the way. I also unlock the tail wheel lock.”

AND THE REWARD IS …

“You only have to enjoy the silence that envelops you after beaching on a seldom or never-before-visited lake one time to know why the Widgeon is the ultimate magic carpet,” Steve said. “It’s a difficult feeling to describe, but my wife, family, and friends have had so many magical trips with us into pristine places. Climbing out of the rear hatch onto a deserted beach, the only thing you hear is the musical tinkling sound of two engines beginning to cool. The background sounds include the water lapping on the beach and surrounding birds doing their thing. That’s it! The feeling is that yet another adventure is beginning and the Widgeon got us there. It’s a feeling I wouldn’t trade for the world! It’s not available to be found in any other kind of flying but water flying. It’s magical.”

The bow doors let Steve step onto the beach or dock without getting wet.

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The Vintage Mechanic ROBERT G. LOCK

Invention of the Magneto

BY ROBERT G. LOCK

MY GOOD PAL FRANK Rezich asked me to pen a column on the Bosch magneto that was used on the Navy Wright R-760-8 engines. Since I am familiar with the Bosch SB9RU magneto that was installed on the Pratt & Whitney R-985 engines, I thought it might be interesting to delve into history a little to find out just who Robert Bosch was and from where he came. So here it is — enjoy.

Bosch was born in Albeck, a village in southern Germany. He was the 11th of 12 children; his parents were from a class of well-suited farmers from the region. From 1868 to 1876 Bosch attended the Realschule, the secondary-technical school in the city of Ulm; then he took an apprenticeship as a precision mechanic. After his school and practical education, Bosch spent an additional seven years working at diverse companies in Germany and England, where he worked for Siemens Industries. While in the United States, Bosch worked at the lab of Thomas Edison.

On November 15, 1886, he opened his own Workshop for Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering in Stuttgart, Germany. A year later he made a decisive improvement to an unpatented magneto ignition device made by the engine manufacturer Deutz.

Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach, two brilliant engineers who refined the Otto four-stroke internal combustion engine. Their refined engine used a Bosch ignition system, complete with magneto and spark plug. (Figure 2)

58 September/October 2018

Robert Bosch at the age of 27 years.

Nicolaus Otto (1832-1891) had invented the four-cycle internal combustion engine in 1848, and with his partner Eugen Langden, Otto set up shop to market his invention. Otto’s technical advisor was a familiar name in the engine business, none other than Gottlieb Daimler. Daimler’s assistant was another talented inventor, Wilhelm Maybach. While Daimler wanted to utilize the newly invented four-stroke engine in an automobile, Otto was more interested in the manufacture of stationary engines. Daimler left the company in 1890, taking Maybach with him to form the Daimler Motoren-Gesellschaft to manufacture his designs (Figure 2).

Eleven years later, Maybach designed the Mercedes automobile. A few years after that, Maybach left Daimler to set up his own factory to manufacture engines for Zeppelin airships.

Figure 3

Otto’s internal combustion engine invention used a crude device to cause a spark that ignited a fuel/air charge inside the cylinder. It was this device that Bosch modified and perfected; work that would make him famous. The magneto refinement of Bosch and spark plug invention of Gottlob Honold made Otto’s internal combustion engine a product that would change the world.

This gave Bosch his first business success. The purpose of the magneto device was to generate an electrical spark needed to cause the fuel/air mixture in a stationary combustion engine to explode. And in 1897 Bosch was the first person to adapt such a magneto ignition device to a motor vehicle engine. But only the invention of the first commercially viable high-voltage spark plug by Bosch’s engineer, Honold, in 1902 made possible the development of the internal combustion engine. With the invention of the high-tension spark plug, the Bosch magneto-spark plug combination became the standard for the automotive industry and was quickly adapted to the aviation world.

Even before the 19th century came to an end, Bosch had expanded his operations beyond Germany’s borders. The company established a sales office in the United Kingdom in 1898, and other European countries soon followed. The first sales office and the first factory in the United States were opened in 1906 and 1910, respectively. By 1913, the company had branch operations in the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Australia, and was generating 88 percent of its sales outside of Germany. In the 1920s the global economic crisis caused Bosch to begin a rigorous

program of modernization and diversification in his company. In only a few years’ time he succeeded in turning his company from a small automotive supplier founded on the skilled trades into a multinational electronics group. The face on the poster in Figure 3 became a Bosch regular, known as “Fritz the Flyer.”

Bosch opened a factory in the United States and manufactured magnetos under the name American Bosch (Figure 4). By 1920, the Bosch Company had sold more than a million magnetos. Bosch’s U.S. operation was taken over by the U.S. government’s Alien Property Custodian in 1918 as a consequence of the U. S. government’s declaration of war against Germany. After the war, Bosch re-entered the U.S. market under his own name and a 10-year legal battle ensued. In 1930 Bosch entered into an agreement with the U.S. Bosch Company, which would market the products of the German Bosch Company in the United States.

The Bosch magneto was manufactured for aircraft use in two distinct types: base–mounted, as used on the Pratt & Whitney engine, and flange-mounted, as used on the Wright engine.

They were also produced in unshielded and shielded versions.

Although heavy when compared to other Bendix and Scintilla magnetos, the Bosch product was very stout and quite reliable.

Figure 4

Figure 5

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59

The Vintage Mechanic ROBERT G. LOCK

The Bosch SB9RU magneto as used on Pratt & Whitney R-985 radial engines is shown in Figure 5.

The series of photos in Figure 6, taken from a Pratt & Whitney overhaul manual, show the method of setting E-gap for the magneto (81).

The center photo shows the method used to couple a magneto to an engine — a rubber disc with serrations that engage into drive on an accessory case (82). This type of magneto is base-mounted and requires some expertise to install.

First the E-gap is set up by using a straight edge across the shaft to align with scribe marks on the case.

Figure 6

60  September/October 2018

It will be necessary to hold the shaft in this position so the E-gap will not change. Next the magneto is placed next to the engine drive, and the rubber coupler is moved until it lines up perfectly with the drive.

The magneto is then placed on the mounting pad, and a large drift is placed through one of the screw holes. An aft pull is exerted to compress the rubber drive and allow the magneto to slide down over dowel pins in the base. When this is completed, rotate the engine and check the point opening with piston location on the No. 1 cylinder. When the point opening coincides with the piston at 25 degrees BTC (before top center), insert the cap screws through the base and into the magneto.

Complete the job by safety wiring the three screws together (83).

The sketches in Figure 7 show, using a Time Rite instrument, the proper method of setting the piston position in the No. 1 cylinder on compression stroke. The prop is turned in the direction of rotation until the beginning of compression is felt coming from the spark plug hole. Insert a Time Rite in the front spark plug hole (84). Align the cap of the indicator so that the slide slot lines up with the vertical axis of the cylinder. Push the slide pointer up close to the pivot arm (85). Turn the prop shaft in the direction of rotation until the pivot arm pushes the slide pointer to its farthest point (86). Turn the prop shaft about 90 degrees in the opposite direction.

This will return the pivot arm to the top of the slot. Adjust the proper engine scale (the scale numbered for R-985/R-1340) so that the 0-degree mark on the card aligns with the reference mark on the pointer (87).

Move the slide pointer up to align with the 25-degree mark on the card (88). Turn the prop shaft in the direction of rotation until the pivot arm just contacts the slide (89). At this point the piston in the

Figure 7

No. 1 cylinder is now positioned 25 degrees before top center, and the magneto can be engaged to the drive on the accessory case. The two magnetos must synchronize; that is, both sets of points must open simultaneously so that the timing of the two magnetos is identical. A timing light must be used to assure proper synchronized timing of the magnetos to the engine.

The Time Rite instrument is a very handy device for setting the piston position in the No. 1 cylinder.

I have used this device for my entire career as a mechanic.

During World War I, a group of engineers in Switzerland developed an outstanding magneto. After the war, a Chicago promoter, Laurence R. Wilder, obtained the American agency and brought the magneto to the United States in 1921. Scintilla was located in New York City at the time. Meanwhile, Sidney, New York, had recently lost its big manufacturer, the Hatfield Automobile Company, as it just couldn’t compete with Detroit. A former Hatfield official, Winfield Sherwood,

volunteered without pay to search for a new industry for the village.

Sherwood hit pay dirt in 1924, as he invited Scintilla officials to Sidney, convincing them to bring this superb magneto manufacturing line to the Tri-Towns. In 1925 the Scintilla Magneto Company bought the old Hatfield building and began manufacturing magnetos. By 1928, Scintilla had a much better factory and was purchased a year later by Bendix Aviation Corporation. Somehow, the company survived the Great Depression, and by 1939, it was filling orders for airplane magnetos for the Allies in Europe.

Scintilla produced magnetos for aircraft use, their coding being VMN, in both base- and flange-mount configurations. The magnetos were both unshielded and shielded. These magnetos were produced for many five- and seven-cylinder single-row radial engines. VMN-7D was a basemounted unit, while the VMN7DF was a flange-mounted unit (Figure 8).

Scintilla also produced a VMN7DFA magneto that had an automatic advance feature for easier starting. All magnetos of this series were driven at 7/8-engine crankshaft speed.

Figure 8

The VMN7DF magneto was popular for installation on Continental W-670 and R-670 engines producing 220-hp. In 1929 the Bendix Aviation Corporation bought Scintilla Magneto Company, which became Scintilla Magneto Division, the manufacturing facility being retained in Sidney, New York. All subsequent magnetos were known as BendixScintilla products.

Vincent Bendix (1881-1945) was an industrialist and inventor, and founder of the Bendix Corporation of Chicago in 1907 with the intent of manufacturing automobiles he called Bendix Buggies. After producing only 7,000 automobiles, the company failed in 1909, but Bendix went on to invent and patent the Bendix drive, a motordriven gear that could engage an engine’s ring gear at low rotational speed and then fly back to disengage automatically at a higher speed. This drive made it possible for the installation of an electric starter on internal combustion engines for automobiles, aircraft, and other motorized vehicles.

The Bendix drive is still in widespread use, so much so that mechanics often refer to the mechanism simply as a Bendix. Bendix founded the Bendix Brake Company in 1923 and started the Bendix Aviation Corporation in 1929. In 1930 Bendix invented the pressure carburetor. The corporation sponsored the Transcontinental Bendix Air Race in 1931. Bendix Aviation and Bendix Brake would later be renamed the Bendix Corporation.

The Bendix Corporation manufactured a competing magneto to the VMN model, known as the SF7 (Figure 9). It, too, was approved for several small radial engines but particularly was popular on the Continental W-670 and R-670 series. The SF7 was a flange-mounted unit and had the same tapered shaft dimensions as the VMN series. In order to fit the magnetos to different engines it was necessary to change the drive coupling.

Figure 9

The Bosch, Scintilla, and Bendix magnetos could be made to rotate either right-hand (clockwise) or lefthand (counterclockwise) simply by internal timing. The direction of rotation of magneto drives is determined by the engine manufacturer and is based on rotational direction of magneto drive gears in the accessory case.

Drive direction of a magneto is determined by holding the magneto so as to view it from the drive end. If the drive turns to the right, it is clockwise, and if the drive turns to the left, it is counterclockwise.

Both the Bendix and Scintilla magnetos adapted to shielded and unshielded harness assemblies. All the early installations were unshielded harness and spark plugs.

REFERENCES: www.OldEngine.org/members/diesel/Magnetos/ BoschManMenu.htm Overhaul Manual, Pratt & Whitney Wasp Jr. (R-985) and Wasp (R-1340) Overhaul Manual, Bendix-Scintilla Aircraft Magnetos, Type SF7RN-1 Overhaul Manual, Bendix-Scintilla Aircraft Magnetos, Types VMN7DF and DFA

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61

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MONTANA Douglas Phair (Vintage 726447), Miles City Michael Vivion (Vintage 726511), Bozeman

IOWA Jeff Claypool (Vintage 726430), Ottumwa Grady Marx (Vintage 726532), Sioux City James Masterson (Vintage 726426), Fairfield Matthew Ridge (Vintage 726478), Clarinda Kenneth Rizer (Vintage 726432), Marshalltown Jim Skadal (Vintage 726371), Eldridge Michelle Warin (Vintage 726441), Pella KANSAS Thomas Deutsch (Vintage 726510), Shawnee Michael Hilleary (Vintage 726588), Bonner Springs KENTUCKY Beth King (Vintage 726439), Louisville William Pickett (Vintage 726380), Versailles David Woosley (Vintage 726465), Hartford LOUISIANA Barry Camp (Vintage 726496), Lafayette Barbara Sullivan (Vintage 726425), Bossier City MARYLAND Benjamin Anderson (Vintage 726404), Havre de grace Richard Batdorf (Vintage 726525), Annapolis Jonathan Brossart (Vintage 726519), Mount Airy Steve Duckson (Vintage 726546), Manchester Linda Gousing (Vintage 726443), Riva Elvin Hirtle (Vintage 726442), Riva William Merritt (Vintage 726397), California MASSACHUSETTS Joseph Baldwin (Vintage 726491), Stow MICHIGAN Kevin Mazer (Vintage 726442), Kalamazoo Eric Schlanser (Vintage 726456), South Haven Robert Sprik (Vintage 726450), Hamilton Harold Yenson Jr (Vintage 726377), Goodrich MINNESOTA Ronald Becker (Vintage 726467), Fergus Falls Wayne Flury (Vintage 726561), Buffalo Christopher Keenan (Vintage 726484), Eagan Denise Sandager (Vintage 726493), Albert Lea Robert Schafer (Vintage 726489), Staples Sean Schimmelman (Vintage 726402), Cottage Grove Phillip Sorom (Vintage 726559), Dover Doug Taylor (Vintage 726494), Backus MISSISSIPPI George Valle (Vintage 726581), Hernando MISSOURI Brian Crum (Vintage 726500), Warrensburg Jesse Darden (Vintage 726417), Nixa Emory Darden (Vintage 726418), Nixa Ava Darden (Vintage 726419), Nixa Valerie Darden (Vintage 726420), Nixa William Mac Varish (Vintage 726385), Kansas City Bill Runyon (Vintage 726501), Centerview Robert Snouffer (Vintage 726521), Plato

NEW JERSEY John Lewis (Vintage 726539), Mickleton NEW MEXICO Phillip Nuckles (Vintage 726529), Stanley Lawrence Shapnek (Vintage 726516), Cedar Crest NEW YORK Linda Cioffi (Vintage 726498), Rensselaer Shaun Harkins (Vintage 726399), Kerhonkson Robert Mesmer (Vintage 726543), Grand Island Stephen Nocita (Vintage 726414), Coram NORTH CAROLINA Gene Batten (Vintage 726530), Angier Robert Belville (Vintage 726531), Morganton Corey Bodenhamer (Vintage 726413), Mocksville Cecil Bradford (Vintage 726453), Huntersville Joey Edwards (Vintage 726436), Gibsonville Cedric Pearce (Vintage 726458), Chapel Hill Jerry Stadtmiller (Vintage 726449), Hayesville OHIO Thomas Schulze (Vintage 726497), Bloomville Joey Shreve (Vintage 726488), Liberty Township Richard Stansley (Vintage 726375), Sylvania Matthew Tomsheck (Vintage 726573), Seville OKLAHOMA Stephen Barnes (Vintage 726518), Yukon George Durning (Vintage 726401), Oklahoma City Coby Hughes (Vintage 726554), Collinsville Tim Jarrett (Vintage 726381), Collinsville Bruce Korn (Vintage 726451), Grandfield Dorman Morsman (Vintage 726468), Oklahoma City Sheryl Morsman (Vintage 726469), Oklahoma City Van Stumpner (Vintage 726569), Mustang Floyd Wininger (Vintage 726541), Duncan OREGON Harold “Butch” Hunting (Vintage 726386), Mount Hood Parkdale Robert Madsen (Vintage 726509), Hood River Mark Stanfield (Vintage 726395), Hood River Richard Stangel (Vintage 726470), Enterprise PENNSYLVANIA John Bailey (Vintage 726583), Lancaster SOUTH CAROLINA Daniel Rohe (Vintage 726435), Seneca David Wright (Vintage 726572), Hilton Head Island TENNESSEE Daryl Addison (Vintage 726487), Bristol Brad Haslett (Vintage 726586), Collierville TEXAS James Austin (Vintage 726565), Fort Worth Lorne Cleveland (Vintage 726582), Tyler Phil Davis (Vintage 726517), Temple Eric Dreasher (Vintage 726584), Farmers Branch Charles Etheredge (Vintage 726394), Austin Kevin Fruehwirth (Vintage 726557), Spring Edward Germann (Vintage 726390), The Woodlands Michael Harms-Zumbraegel (Vintage 726429), Wichita Falls Lee Jordan (Vintage 726526), Houston Brian Matthews (Vintage 726372), Corsicana Sam K. McGill (Vintage 726391), Midland Paul Metzger (Vintage 726520), McKinney Robert Moore (Vintage 726513), Kingwood

Charles Morris (Vintage 726538), Fort Worth Hunter Neucere (Vintage 726499), Grapevine Dustin Newton (Vintage 726547), San Angelo David Oliver (Vintage 726475), Midlothian Gary Payne (Vintage 726540), Cedar Park Sean Roth (Vintage 726558), Montgomery Sarah Rovner (Vintage 726406), Houston Larry Schleinat (Vintage 726514), Denton Robert Spain (Vintage 726590), Houston Marc Stevens (Vintage 726376), San Angelo VIRGINIA Rodney Hall (Vintage 726393), Portsmouth Robert Metcalfe (Vintage 726536), Flint Hill W. Spencer (Vintage 726373), Martinsville Karl Stoltzfus (Vintage 726593), Bridgewater WASHINGTON Wayne Landis (Vintage 726548), Bellingham Dan Roach (Vintage 726560), Seattle Eric Roberts (Vintage 726403), College Place Thomas Scheler (Vintage 726502), Bothell Jon Schmitt (Vintage 726508), Ryderwood Christine Stoecklein (Vintage 726379), Stanwood WISCONSIN Charles Adam Andre (Vintage 726421), Elkhorn Elizabeth Cywinski (Vintage 726474), South Milwaukee Mike Gauthier (Vintage 726416), Krakow Ben Gultch (Vintage 726464), Beaver Dam Kenneth J. Hewitt (Vintage 726481), Oconomowoc Eric Jones (Vintage 726568), Elkhorn Amanda Langman (Vintage 726461), Manitowoc Karalynn Langman (Vintage 726462), Manitowoc Alex Langman (Vintage 726463), Manitowoc Todd Littfin (Vintage 726566), Eleva Scott Ney (Vintage 726473), Oshkosh Jennifer Pulvermacher (Vintage 726576), Nekoosa Grant Pulvermacher (Vintage 726577), Nekoosa Ethan Pulvermacher (Vintage 726578), Nekoosa Dell Pulvermacher (Vintage 726579), Nekoosa Susan Wadel (Vintage 726396), Winneconne AUSTRALIA Craige Bryson (Vintage 726424), Windella, New South Wales John Eastwood (Vintage 726383), Eltham North, Victoria CANADA David Allen (Vintage 726486), Sioux Lookout, Ontario William Bowden (Vintage 726422), Bloomfield, Ontario Paul Clements (Vintage 726374), Toronto, Ontario Scott McFadden (Vintage 726528), Thunder Bay, Ontario CHINA Cheung Wing Hing (Vintage 726587), Kwun Tong, Hong Kong JAPAN Mutsuo Kobayashi (Vintage 726407), Tsukubamirai Ibaraki NEW ZEALAND Bruce Govenlock (Vintage 726440), Havelock North Tony Wytenburg (Vintage 726567), Blenheim NETHERLANDS Dick De Ruiter (Vintage 726384), Wolphaartsdijk PORTUGAL Antonio Sousa (Vintage 726437), Odivelas SWEDEN Sten Svensson (Vintage 726408), Eslov SCOTLAND Robert Lugtenburg (Vintage 726427), Kintore

STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, AND CIRCULATION (Required by 39 U.S.C. 3685). 1. Title of Publication: Vintage Airplane. 2. Publication No.: 062-750. 3. Filing Date: 08/01/2018. 4. Issue Frequency: Bi-Monthly. 5.

No. of Issues Published Annually: 6. 6. Annual Subscription Price: $42.00 in U.S. 7. Known Office of Publication: EAA, 3000 Poberezny Road, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Contact Person: Randy Halberg, Telephone: 920-426-6572. 8. Headquarters or General Business Office of the Publisher: Same address as above. 9. Publisher: Jack Pelton, EAA P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Editor: Jim Busha, c/o EAA, 3000 Poberezny Road, P.O.Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Managing Editor: None. 10. Owner: Experimental Aircraft Association, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. 11. Known bondholders, mortgagees, and other security holders owning or holding 1 percent or more of total amounts of bonds, mortgages, or other securities: None. 12. Tax Status: Has Not Changed During Preceding 12 Months. 13. Publication Title: Vintage Airplane. 14. Issue date for circulation data below: Sep/Oct 2018. 15. Extent and Nature of Circulation (Average No. Copies Each Issue During Preceding 12 Months/ No. Copies of Single Issue Published Nearest to Filing Date): a. Total No. of Copies Printed (6773/8858) b. Paid Circulation (By Mail and Outside the Mail): 1. Mailed Outside-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541 (Include paid distribution above nominal rate, advertiser’s proof copies, and exchange copies) (5483/5495). 2. Mailed In-County Paid Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541 (Include paid distribution above nominal rate, advertiser’s proof copies, and exchange copies) (0/0). 3. Paid Distribution Outside the Mails Including Sales Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors, Counter Sales, and Other Paid Distribution Outside USPS (327/318). 4. Paid Distribution by Other Classes of Mail through the USPS (e.g., First-Class Mail) (39/37). c. Total Paid Distribution (Sum of 15b (1), (2), (3), and (4)) (5849/5850). d. Free or Nominal Rate Distribution (By Mail and Outside the Mail): 1. Free or Nominal Rate Outside-County Copies Included on PS Form 3541 (0/0). 2. Free or Nominal Rate In-County Copies Included on PS Form 3541 (0/0). 3. Free or Nominal Rate Copies Mailed at Other Classes Through the USPS (e.g. First-Class Mail) (0/0). 4. Free or Nominal Rate Distribution Outside the Mail (Carriers or other means) (0/0). e. Total Free or Nominal Rate Distribution (Sum of 15d (1), (2), (3), and (4) (0/0). f. Total Distribution (Sum of 15c and 15e) (5849/5850). g. Copies Not Distributed (See Instructions to Publishers #4 (page 3)) (925/3008). h. Total (Sum of 15f and g) (6773/8858). i. Percent Paid (15c divided by 15f times 100) (100%/100%). 16. Publication of Statement of Ownership: Publication required. Will be printed in the September/October 2018 issue of this publication. 17. I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete. I understand that anyone who furnishes false or misleading information on this form or who omits material or information requested on the form may be subject to criminal sanctions (including fines and imprisonment) and/or civil sanctions (including civil penalties). James Busha, Editor, 08/01/18. PS Form 3526, August 2018.

62 September/October 2018

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Message From the President SUSAN DUSENBURY, VAA PRESIDENT

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

THESE AIRCRAFT WERE DISASSEMBLED

at their home base, trucked to Oshkosh, and put back together for the week of AirVenture. The WWI airplanes were a big hit at AirVenture this year. Everyone loved to watch and hear those rotary engines run!

Behind the scenes each one of those airplanes required a crew of experienced and specially trained tug drivers from Vintage who towed the aircraft to and from Basler every morning at 6 and every evening at 7:30. I volunteered as a tug driver. It was fun, but I realized just how fragile those planes are and towed accordingly! This year seven WWI airplanes were towed back and forth across Runway 36 every day for display on the flightline and for overnight storage, requiring a special dedicated team of volunteers.

The Rose Plaza Interview Circle had a different Vintage in Review show every day beginning at 10:45 a.m. with an OX-5 and rotary engine run. At least six planes had to be moved each evening in preparation for the next morning’s program, again requiring the presence of aircraft owners and a dedicated Vintage flightline team (crossing guards, bikers, handlers, etc.). This job was always done later at night

after the daily air show to ensure that the planes were in place for the next morning’s program.

Along with all of the special parking that I have just mentioned, remember that more than 1,100 “normal” arrivals also require the assistance of our very capable flightline parking volunteers. As you all know, it gets really busy out there at times.

The volunteers are the people that set the stage for our members and guests.

This glimpse into our flightline operations at AirVenture is just the first story about the extraordinary talents and dedication of all of our Vintage volunteers.

COPYRIGHT © 2018 BY T HE E AA VIN TAGE AIRCR AF T A SSOCIAT ION. ALL RIGHT S RESERVED. VINTAGE AIRPLANE (USPS 062-750; ISSN 0091-6943) is published and owned exclusively by the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association of the Experimental Aircraft Association and is published bi-monthly at EAA Aviation Center, 3000 Poberezny Rd., PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54903-3086, email: vintageaircraft@eaa.org. Membership to Vintage Aircraft Association, which includes 6 issues of Vintage Airplane magazine, is $45 per year for EAA members and $55 for nonEAA members. Periodicals Postage paid at Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54902 and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Vintage Airplane, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. CPC #40612608. FOREIGN AND APO ADDRESSES—Please allow at least two months for delivery of VINTAGE AIRPLANE to foreign and APO addresses via surface mail. ADVERTISING — Vintage Aircraft Association 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: Members 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 with the contributor. No remuneration is made. Material should be sent to: Editor, VINTAGE AIRPLANE, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Phone 920-426-4800.

EAA® and EAA SPORT AVIATION®, the EAA Logo® and Aeronautica™ are registered trademarks, trademarks, and service marks of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. The use of these trademarks and service marks without the permission of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. is strictly prohibited.

64 September/October 2018

DIRECTORY OFFICERS President Susan Dusenbury 1374 Brook Cove Road Walnut Cove, NC 27052 336-591-3931 sr6sue@aol.com

Secretary Steve Nesse 2009 Highland Ave. Albert Lea, MN 56007 507-373-1674 stnes2009@live.com

Vice-President Tim Popp 60568 Springhaven Ct. Lawton, MI 49065 269-760-1544 tlpopp@frontier.com

Treasurer Jerry Brown 4605 Hickory Wood Row Greenwood, IN 46143 317-422-9366 lbrown4906@aol.com

DIRECTORS Dave Clark 635 Vestal Lane Plainfield, IN 46168 317-839-4500 davecpd@att.net

Ray L. Johnson 347 South 500 East Marion, IN 46953 765-669-3544 rayjohnson@indy.rr.com

George Daubner N57W34837 Pondview Ln Oconomowoc, WI 53066 262-560-1949 gdaubner@eaa.org

Dan Knutson 106 Tena Marie Circle Lodi, WI 53555 608-354-6101 lodicub@charter.net

Jon Goldenbaum PO Box 190 Warner Springs, CA 92086 951-203-0190 jon@conaircraft.com

Robert D. “Bob” Lumley 1265 South 124th St. Brookfield, WI 53005 262-782-2633 rlumley1@wi.rr.com

John Hofmann 548 W James St Columbus, WI 53925 608-239-0903 john@cubclub.org

Earl Nicholas 219 Woodland Rd Libertyville, IL 60048 847-367-9667 eman46@gmail.com

Joe Norris 264 Old Oregon Rd. Oshkosh, WI 54902 pilotjoe@ntd.net 920-688-2977

ADVISORS Paul Kyle 1273 Troy Ct. Mason, OH 45040

Kevin McKenzie 40550 La Colima Rd Temecula, CA 92591

DIRECTORS EMERITUS David Bennett antiquer@inreach.com

Ronald C. Fritz itzfray@gmail.com

Robert C. Brauer photopilot@aol.com

Gene Morris genemorris@charter.net

Phil Coulson rcoulson516@cs.com

S.H. “Wes” Schmid shschmid@gmail.com

John Turgyan jrturgyan4@aol.com

Š 2016 Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc.

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