April1998 Vol.26,No.

4
CONTENTS
I Straight& LevellEspie"Butch"Joyce
2 AlC News
4 AlC Volunteers/TrishDorlac
8 It'sNotTheDestination,
It'sTheJourney/KentTravis
II FromJetstoJennys/David Fortuna
13 Culver Cadet/Norm Petersen
17 StanDol\en'sMeyersOTWIH.G. Frautschy
21Bendix/Stomber gCarbs/
BobHollenbaugh& H.G. Frautschy
22 WhatOurMembersAre
Restoring/NormPetersen
24 Pass itto Buck/BuckHi lbert
26 MysteryPlanelH.G. Frautschy
28 MembershipInformation
29 WelcomeNewMembers
30 Calendar
Page 17

..
FRONT COVER...GeneDeruytterbankshisawardwinningCulverLFA Cadet
overa centralFloridaorangegrove,showing offthebeautifullandinggear
doorsbuiltbytheairplane'srestorer,thelateRobertE. Lee.EAAphotobyJim
Koepnick.shotwitha CanonEOS-1n equippedwithan80-200mmlens. 1/125
@ f9on 100ASAtransparencyfilm.EAACessna 210photoplaneflownby
BruceMoore.
BACKCOVER..."NewLondonSkydivers" is thetitleofDavidFortuna'sacrylic
paintingofa hardworkingstraight-tail 1958Cessna 175. David' sartwork.so
reminiscentofthetechnicalstyleofKennethMunson' s"PocketEncyclopedia
ofWorldAircraftinColor" seriespublishedin the 1960sand70s.wasawarded
a Meritribbonduringthejudgingforthe 1997 EAASportAviationArt
Competition.DavidlivesinEvington.VA.
Copyright 1998bythe EAAAntique/Classic DivisionInc.All rightsreserved.
VINTAGEAIRPLANE (ISSN 00916943) is published and owned exclusively by the EAA Antique/Classic Division.Inc. of the Experimental
AircraftAssociation and is published monthlyat EAA Aviation Center. 3000 Poberezny Rd., P.O. 80x3086, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54903-3086.
PeriodicalsPostagepaidatOshkosh,Wisconsin54901 andatadditionalmailing offices.ThemembershiprateforEAA Antique/ClassicDivision,
Inc.is$27.00forcurrentEAA membersfor12monthperiodofwhich$18.00isforthepublicationofVINTAGEAIRPLANE. Membershipisopen
toallwhoareinterestedinaviation.
POSTMASTER:Send address changes to EAA Antique/Classic Division,Inc., P.O.Box 3086, Oshkosh,WI 54903-3086. FOREIGN AND APO
ADDRESSES- Pleaseallowat leasttwomonthsfordeliveryofVINTAGEAIRPLANEtoforeignandAPOaddressesviasuriacemail.
ADVERTISING- Antique/Classic Division doesnotguaranteeor endorseany productoffered through the advertising.We inviteconstructive
criticismandwelcomeanyreportofinferiormerchandiseobtainedthroughouradvertisingsothatcorrectivemeasurescanbetaken.
EDITORIALPOLICY:Readersare encouraged tosubmitstoriesand photographs. Policyopinionsexpressec in articlesaresolelythoseofthe
authors. Responsibilityforaccuracyinreportingrestsentirelywiththecontributor.Norenumeration ismade.
Materialshould besentto: Editor, VINTAGEAIRPLANE,P.O.80x3086, Oshkosh,WI 54903-3086. Phone920/426-4800.
The words EM, ULTRALIGHT,FLYWITH THE FIRST TEAM,SPORT AVIATION,FOR THE LOVE OF FLYING and the logosof EM, EAA
INTERNATIONALCONVENTION,EAAANTIQUE/ClASSICDMSION,INTERNATIONALAEROBATIC CLUB,WARBIRDSOFAMERICAare
registered trademarks. THE EAA SKY SHOPPE and logos of the EAA AVIATION FOUNDATION,EAA ULTRAlLIGHT CONVENTION and
EAAAirVenturearetrademarksoftheaboveassociationsandtheirusebyanypersonotherthantheaboveassociationisstrictlyprohibited.
EDITORIALSTAFF
Publisher
TomPoberezny
Editor-in-Chief
JackCox
Editor
HenryG.Frautschy
ManagingEditor
GoldaCox
ArtDirector
MikeDrucks
ComputerGraphicSpecialists
NancyHanson OliviaL. Phillip
PierreKotze
AssociateEditor
NormPetersen
StaffPhotographers
JimKaepnick LeeAnnAbrams
KenLichtenberg
Advertising/EditoriatAssistant
IsabelleWiske
EAAANTIQUE/ CLASSIC DIVISION,INC,
OFFICERS
President Vice-President
Espie 'Butch'Joyce GeorgeDaubner
P.O.Box35584 2448LoughLane
Greensboro.NC27425 Hartford.WI53027
910/393-0344 414/673-5885
Secretary Treasurer
SteveNesse CharlesHarris
2009HighlandAve. 7215East46thSt.
AlbertLea.MN56007 Tulsa.OK 74145
507/ 373-1674 918/622-8400
DIRECTORS
JohnBerendt GeneMorri s
7645EchoPointRd. 5936SteveCourt
CannonFalls.MN55009 Roanoke.TX 76262
507/263-2414 817/491-9110
PhilCoulson RobertC.' Bob'Brauer
28415SpringbrookDr. 9345S. Hoyne
Lawton,M149065 Chicago.IL60620
616/624-6490 312/779-2105
JoeDickey
JohnS.Copeland
55OokeyAv.
1 ADeaconStreet
Lawrenceburg.IN 47025
Northborough.MA01532
812/537-9354 508/393-4775
DaleA.Gustafson StanGomoll
7724ShadyHillDr.
104290thLane.NE
Indianapolis.IN 46278
Minneapolis.MN55434
317/293-4430 612/7841172
RobertLickteig JeannieHill
1708BayOaksDr. P.O. Box328
AlbertLea.MN56007 Harvard.IL 60033
507/ 373-2922 815/943-7205
DeanRichardson RobertD.' Sob'Lumley
6701 ColonyDr. 1265South 124thSt.
Madison.WI 53717 Brookfield.WI 53005
608/833-1291 414/782-2633
S.H.'Wes' Schmid GeoffRobison
2359LefeberAvenue 1521 E. MacGregorDr.
Wauwatosa,WI 53213 NewHaven.IN 46774
414/771-1545 219/493-4724
GeorgeYork
181 SlobodaAv.
Mansfield,OH44906
419/529-4378
DIRECTORS EMERITUS
GeneChase E.E.'Buck' Hilbert
2159CarltonRd. P.O. Box424
Oshkosh.WI 54904 Union.IL60180
920/231-5002 815/923-4591
ADVISORS
SteveKrog RogerGomoll
1002HeatherLn. 321- 1/2S.Broadway
Hartford.WI53027 Apt.3
414/966-7627 Rochester,MN55904
507288-2810
David Benne"
403TannerCt.
Roseville.CA95678
916-7827025
STRAIGHT&LEVEL
by ESPIE "BUTCH" JOYCE
W
e have printed an additional
500 copies of VINTAGE
AIRPLANE this month, and
we'll be using these extras during the
kick off to the Fly-In season, Sun 'n
Fun. New and prospective members
will get a copy. If you know someone
who is not yet a'member, and is headed
to Sun ' n Fun, point them in the direc-
tion of the AlCHeadquarters, which is
most capably run by A/ C Chapter I .
Jane Kimball and her volunteers will
give a copy of the April issue to each
new member when they join up. People
who will visit the EAA building during
this fly-in will also be given a copy of
Vintage Airplane when they join up at
this location.
In the "B" building, AVA, Inc. will
have their booth. They, too, will have
copies and applications for membership
in the Antique/ Classic Division. You
can have your friends visit any of these
locations to join up or renew their mem-
bership. It is because of the support of
the membership that the Antique/Clas-
sic Division is able to provide:
Twelvecolorfulissuesof VINTAGE
AIRPLANEmagazine, the leading
sourceof informationof theair-
planesofyesteryear, techni cal
information, membersexperiences,
vintageairplaneactivities, vintage
airplanesafetyinformation, mem-
bersprojects, andadvertisements
byvendors whosupportyourtype
ofaircraftandflying.
The exclusivemembersonlyAn-
tique/ Classicinsuranceprogram.
Thisprogram is insurancecover-
agetailoredto addresstheneeds
andcoverageconcernsof those
whooperatevintageairplanes.
Thisprogram is administeredby
AUA, Inc.
Anareareservedforqualifiedair-
crafton thegroundsoftheannual
EAA Convention, theEAA Sun 'n
Fun Fly-In, andmanyotherEAA
fly-ins acrossthecountry.
The opportunityto enjoythefel-
lowship and camaraderie that
surroundsthe vintageairplane
community, bothon thenational
levelas wellas localairplaneac-
tivities around the USA and
internationally.
By being a member you can
proudlyflythemembershiplogo
andpromotewithyoursupportof
the vintageairplanemovement
themembership.
You can increase your enjoyment at
different events by being a volunteer.
There are all sorts of activities avail-
able. At EAA AirVenture Oshkosh,
Sun 'n Fun and local functions, almost
all of the people who run these events
are volunteers.
To underscore the contributions the
volunteer makes to each of the events,
we've been featuring articles highlight-
ing the various areas people give of
their time and talents. You will find an
article by Trish Dorlac that will en-
lighten you about the judges who make
all of those hard decisions as to which
are the best airplanes at EAA Oshkosh.
There are days these judges put in some
long hours in an effort to come up with
the right award winner. Speaking of
award winning, take a look at the article
on the beautiful Culver Cadet that be-
longs to Gene Deruytter, which was
restored by the late Robert E. Lee. I
have had the privilege of flying one of
these beauties in the past- it is a great
flying airplane.
As I had mentioned to you last month,
I have pursued an 8-E Luscombe. The
N# is 2628K and the aircraft has been
owned by Mr. Ken Woodard since
1973. Ken is a retired mechanical engi-
neer and lived in Indiana until his
retirement brought him to be a resident
of Greensboro, North Carolina. Ken has
been maintaining his aircraft for some
time as most of us do and had collected
a number of spares over the years, as
well as information relating to N2628K.
As each day passed Ken would show up
at my office with another item that he
had found in his garage; he might even
be able to get his car back in the garage
by now! I have a feeling that there may
be some other projects around the cor-
ner for Ken. The other day I returned
from lunch to fmd that Ken had been by
and had left me a two page, typewritten
note on some of the experiences that
N2628K had endured in the past . I'll
share these stories with you in a future
"Straight & Leve1." This month I will
just include the first part of Ken's note
to get you interested.
Here's what he wrote.
"I wish that a 50-year-old airplane
such as your Luscombe could relate the
colorful history of its life. Since it can't,
I thought you might appreciate a few of
the anecdotes I know about 2628K. I
may have already mentioned some of
them the day you were first looking the
airplane over-I am not sure. So I
thought I'd write it anyway and put a
copy in my pilot's logbook in case my
memory about these incidents becomes
more foggy." Now that I've teased you,
I'll share more in a month!
See you all at Sun ' n Fun. Let 's all
pull in the same direction for the good
of aviation. Remember we are better to-
gether. Join us and have it all! ....
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 1
A/CNEWS
compiled by H.G. Frautschy
NEW MEIGS FLY-IN DATE
In last month's issue of Vintage Air-
plane, in the article about Meigs Field,
mention was made regarding "Museum
Campus Day." Shortly after we went to
press, we learned the "Friends of Meigs
Field" were asked by the city of Chicago
to change the date of the fly-in and sta-
tic airplane display. Why? It seems
there is a large convention and trade
show scheduled for McCormick Place
that weekend, and a large number of
corporate aircraft are expected at Meigs.
Not bad for an "underutilized" airport!
EAA's Ford Trimotor will al so make
an appearance at the rescheduled event,
and rides will be avai lable for purchase.
How often do you have an opportunity
to enjoy an air tour of the Chicago sky-
line in a Ford Trimotor?
The new date is June 13. If you
need more information, please contact
Steve Whitney, FOMF, 847/470-9300
(w) or 773/ 465-6396 (h) or E-mail :
fromeigs@aol.com
AERONCA SPAR AD
We have not heard any official word
from the FAA regarding the final dispo-
sition ofNPRM 97-CE-79-AD, which
would have required the addition of
nearly 20 inspection holes and a larger
rectangular inspection panel on the top
of the wings of Aeronca and Champion
7 and 11 series airplanes. As soon as we
receive official word, we ' ll publish it
here in Vintage Airplane.
By the way, two ofour members have
written to point out an error in the failure
rate as stated in the article in the Febru-
ary issue - it should have read 0.03075
%, not 0.0003075 as was published.
Stated in words, the failure rate is just
slightly more than three hundredths of
one percent. Thanks to Chuck Forrester
and Hugh Loewenhardt for pointing out
the misplaced decimal point!
MAGNETO GEARS ALERT
If you have a Continental C-75, C-85,
C-90 (except the C-90-8F and C90-
8F J), 0-200, and 10-240, as well as the
2 APRIL 1998
same models manufactured by Rolls-
Royce, and you've had magneto gear
maintenance done between December
1993 through December 1997, you
need to pay heed to FAA Special Air-
worthiness Information Bulletin
No. ACE-98-21.
Fresno Airparts Company (formerly
known as Fresno Airmotive Company)
has been selling magneto drive gears
for the above engines that do not meet
airworthiness standards, according to
the Information Bulletin issued by the
FAA. A long list of those individuals
and FBOs who purchased gears from
Fresno is published in the bulletin, but
the gears may have been resold or oth-
erwise moved from the purchaser.
According to a letter sent to the Cessna
150- 152 News, Curtiss Aldrich, an
A&P from Jamestown, CA, says he un-
derstands there may be as many as
2,000 of these gears sold by Fresno.
The alert was prompted by the failure of
a gear in a engine, in which the gear
cracked in half during operation with
about 100 hours TIS.
The FAA recommends the following
action be taken:
NOTE 1: (a) If no work was per-
formed on the magneto drive gears
during the time period Dec. 1993 through
Dec. 1997, no further action is required.
NOTE 2: A check of engine mainte-
nance records or engine log books for
the above time period may help deter-
mine if any work was accomplished on
the magneto drive gears (invoices may
be necessary to determine exact ly
what work was completed and what
pa11s replaced.)
(b) If work was performed on the
magneto drive gears during the
above time period, accomplish
the following:
(I) Remove from service all magneto
drive gears distributed by Fresno
Airparts Company (formerly
Fresno Aim10tive Company) and
replace with serviceable parts.
(See Note 1) (This note refers to
the list ofpurchasers who took
delivery ofthe suspect drive gears.
and is not published here due to
space constraints. Ifyou believe
you magneto might be affected.
you must obtain a copy ofthe Bul-
letinfrom the FAA -HGF)
NOTE 3: The suspect parts have an
ink stamped PIN 36066 and were usu-
ally shipped in a plastic bag, which, in
turn, was placed in a brown box and
marked only with the PIN.
(2) If the origin of the magneto drive
gear installed cannot be deter-
mined, remove the magnetos in
accordance with the appropriate
maintenance manual, then re-
move the magneto drive gear
from the magneto, and either:
(i) Remove the magneto drive gear
from service, and replace with a
serviceable part; or
(ii) Perform the following Rockwell
hardness test on the gear. Test in
a minimum of two of the follow-
ing three locations; on the back
of the gear, on a gear tooth end,
or on the central boss. The type
design specifies a Rockwell C
scale value of 38 - 42. Any gear
that does not meet this specifica-
tion must be removed from
service and replaced with a ser-
viceable part.
(c) A serviceable part may be de-
fined as a new or used magneto
drive gear which successfully
passes the Rockwell hardness test
specified above or was not dis-
tributed from Fresno Airparts
Company (formerly Fresno Air-
motive Company).
Operators are requested to report any
occurrences of magneto failures, engine
failure or aircraft incidents that were
found to be due to failure of the mag-
neto gear.
For further information, contact:
Jerry Robinette, Aerospace Engi-
neer, Atlanta Aircraft Certification
Office, FAA, Small Airplane Direc-
torate, 1895 Phoenix Blvd., One Crown
Center, Suite 450, Atlanta, GA 30349;
telephone 770/703-6096 or FAX at
7701703-6097.
TWO-PIECE VENTURI REVISITED
The FAA has superseded Airworthi-
ness Directive AD 93-18-03, Amend-
ment 39-8688, the AD that required the
replacement of a two-piece venturi in-
stalled in various models of the
Precision Airmotive Corp. (formerly
Facet Aerospace Products Corp. and
Marvel-Schebler Corp.) MA-3 and
MA-4SPA series carburetors installed
on various Continental engines. Boiled
down, it allows those aircraft sti ll
equipped with the older model two-
piece venturi too be inspected on a
regular basis for venturi integrity, in-
stead of requiring the replacement of
the two-piece venturi with a one piece
venturi. It also requires the installation
of a new fuel nozzle for those aircraft
carburetors modified with the installa-
tion of the one-piece venturi after the
effective date of the AD.
The new AD is NO. 98-01-06 Preci-
sion Airmotive Corporation: Amendment
39-10270. You can obtain a copy of the
full text by calling Precision Airmotive
Corp. , 206/ 353-8181 or by FAX at
206/348-3545.
pmLLIPS YOUNG
EAGLES PROGRAM
Great news for those of you who
give your time and talents to the EAA
Aviation Foundation's Young Eagles
Program. The Phillips 66 Company has
agreed to extend their fuel rebate pro-
gram for an entire year, beginning on
April 15, 1998 and continuing through
April 14, 1999. That includes 1998 In-
ternational Young Eagles Day, on
Saturday, June 13. Eligible pilots who
apply can receive a $1 rebate on each
gallon of aviation gasoline used for
young Eagle flights. To qualify, pilots
must purchase aviation gasoline at a
Phillips 66 FBO with a Phillips 66
credit card. Rebates are available only
for purchases of Phillips 66 100LL
aviation gasoline.
"The Young Eagles program has
grown beyond expectations," said Tom
Poberezny, EAA Aviation Foundation
President. "This is partly due to the sup-
port of Phillips 66. With the fuel rebate
being offered for a full year, pilots can
fly more young people. That makes us
even more confident that we will reach
our 2003 goal of flying one million
young people."
Young Eagles is dedicated to flying a
million young people by the end of the
year 2003 - the 100th anniversary of
powered flight and the 50th anniversary
of the Experimental Aircraft Associa-
tion (EAA). Through Jan. 1998, more
than 365,000 youngsters age 8-1 7 have
received a free demonstration flight
through the Young Eagles program.
In 1997, volunteer pilots flew more
than 95,000 Young Eagles, a 25 percent
increase over 1996. With the year-long
rebate program, EAA predicts that
number will increase in 1998.
"Participation in the Young Eagles
Program has grown each year since
Phillips 66 started the avgas rebate pro-
gram," said Mark Wagner, Phillips 66
aviation manager. "We're pleased to of-
fer the rebates for a full year if it helps
increase participation in this important
program."
Any EAA member, pilot or Chapter,
or pilot from partner organizations autho-
rized by the EAA Aviation Foundation,
can participate in the rebate program.
Fuel receipts or copies must be
mailed, along with a signed statement
confirming the fuel was used for the
Young Eagles Program, to:
Young Eagles Rebate Offer
Phillips 66 Company
617 Adams Building
Bartlesville OK 74004
Only Phillips 66 issues the fuel re-
bates, not individual FBOs. Pilots may
apply for the Phillips 66 credit card by
calling 1-800-DO-APPLY (800-362-
7759) from 9 a .m.-5 p.m. (Central
Time) Monday through Friday, or by
accessing the Phillips 66 Aviation web
site (www.aviation.phillips66.com).
EAA JUNIOR Am ACADEMY
A week-long summer program spon-
sored by the EAA Aviation Foundation
is again offering a unique chance for 12-
to 14-year-olds to discover more about
the world of flight in a fun setting.
The EAA Junior Air Academy is a
residence camp held at the EAA A via-
tion Center in Oshkosh. Separate
sessions are offered on June 19-24 and
June 26-July 1.
"The wonder, excitement and possi-
bilities of flight are all explored during
the Junior Air Academy," said EAA
Aviation Foundation President Tom
Poberezny. "The young people who
participate may have sparked an avia-
tion interest through the Foundation's
Young Eagles program or are simply
fascinated by the world of flight. The
Junior Air Academy mixes aviation dis-
covery with recreation for a fun and
rewarding week like no other for
young people."
The EAA Junior Air Academy in-
cludes hands-on activities, aviation
skills and experiments, flying history
sessions, as well as field trips to a num-
ber of aviation facilities. Instructors
include knowledgeable staff members
and aviation celebrities. Special activi-
ties such as orientation flights and other
EAA Aviation center programs may
also be included.
Other specific activities include
aeromodeling; model rockets; construc-
tion of airplane parts, a number of tours,
as well as skydiving demonstrations
and ultralight flying showcases.
This year's Junior Air Academy par-
ticipants will also be among the first
people to enjoy accommodations in the
new Air Academy Lodge, a full-service
dormitory on the Aviation Center
grounds . The campus-type facility al-
lows even more access in participation
in the world of flight at EAA.
"The Junior Air Academy is more
than ajust a week of flight discovery,"
said Scott Cameron, the academy's di-
rector. "These young people will learn
more about their own abilities, work
with others and enjoy themselves in a
lot of fun activities."
Camp registration is $400. Trans-
portation costs are the responsibility of
individual campers and their
families/guardians. For more informa-
tion and registration material, contact:
EAA Junior Air Academy
EAA Education Office
POBox 3065
Oshkosh WI 54903-3065
phone: (888) 322-3229
toll-free or (920) 426-6815
fa.x:: (920) 426-6560
Internet: www.eaa.org
e-mail: education@eaa.org ...
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 3
ANTIQUE/CLASSIC
OurAwesomeJudges
by PATRICIA "TRISH" DORLAC
Just what DOES it take to become
a judge in our Antique Classic Divi-
sion? First of all I would have to say
incredible dedication, faithfulness
and a REAL love of airplanes. One
cannot just walk up to a judge and
say,"Hey, I have always wanted to
be ajudge, can I start tomorrow?!"
While you would be warmly wel-
comed, it would be as an apprentice
judge, more than likely. These ladies
and gentlemen do not simply drive
up and down countless rows of air-
craft noting personal preferences and
favorite paint schemes. Their job is
much more technical, thorough, and
professional than that. Of course,
you must realize that this IS another
one of those VOLUNTEER articles,
so we all realize that these fabulous
folks are not making minimum
wage! I just want to express my grat-
itude and admiration to this group of
people who do such an outstanding
job year after year.
One constant that I noted with
each of the judges I spoke with was
the pride they exhibited when speaking
about their team of judges. There is a
great deal of experience among this
group of individuals. Most of them are
pilots and many of them have com-
pletely restored at LEAST one aircraft.
Many of our judges are A&Ps and AIs
and use that knowledge all of the
time.. . not just at Oshkosh!
George York leads our Classic
judges and is also on the Antique/Classic
Board of Directors. George was a Navy
pilot and flew PBMs. His expertise in-
cludes restoration of several Beech
Staggerwings, Aeroncas, and Taylor-
crafts. He is also Secretary of the
Staggerwing Association and a Board
Member of the Staggerwing Museum
4 APRIL 1998
The Classic Judging gang during the 1997 event were (front row, left to right) Joan Steinberger, Jerry Glppner,
Kevin Pratt, John Swander and Frank Moynahan. In the back row we have: Clyde Bourgeois, Larry Keitel,
Frank Bass, George York, John Womack, Carol Womack, Steve Bender, Dean Richardson, Chuck Johanson,
Paul " CQ" Stephenson, and Shy Smith.
in Tullahoma, Tennessee. His co-chair
says that he is a great leader of the
group and that his knowledge has
helped them aU! Paul Stevenson, the
co-chairman, has 38+ years' experience
as an Air Traffic Controller and has
worked restoring a Staggerwing and
Model 7 Fleet. Paul is one of the origi-
nal "airport kids." He used to hang out
at Drew Field, which later became
Tampa International Airport, wiping off
airplanes in exchange for rides! Dean
Richardson brings the THOROUGH
knowledge of 1950's . .. he restored a
195 with a military paint scheme that
was an award winner at Oshkosh! John
Womack is a retired Navy man with
Staggerwing and N3N restoration ex-
photos by JACK MCCARTHY
perience. His wife, Carol helps by or-
ganizing all of the paperwork ... no small
feat, and it reaUy aids the judges! Shy
Smith is a pilot and mechanic from
California and Joan Steinberg is an
A&P from California as well. Larry
Keitel is restoring a Staggerwing and
John Swander has a beautiful 195 and
WACO. Paul was so enthusiastic about
the group as a whole... this is a great
example of how much knowledge is
encompassed in these groups! Not only
are the judges knowledgeable, they are
more than happy to share it with you!
A little known fact about the judges is
that they sometimes see a safety viola-
tion that may have been overlooked.
They are quick to let the owner know
so that it can be resolved.
The judges in this
group average at least 10
years judging experience
and are teamed up to look
for the best maintained or
restored plane on the
flight line. The Classic di-
vision tends to have a
large number of aircraft,
especially during the years
where there are type club
fly-ins! 75-80 Navions
one year, 150 Bonanzas
another ... you can imag-
ine the frantic pace the
The Contemporary judges during the 1997 Convention were Jeff Anderson, Tim Greene, Becky Greene, Rick Duckworth,
green machines and their
Dick Knutson, Dan Knutson and Art Anderson.
operators must maintain
to take advantage of the
daylight and complete their judging!
The Chairman of the Antique Judges
is Dale "Gus" Gustafson, a retired US-
Air Captain. He was hired when being
hired by the airlines was not quite the
same as it is today. He worked at an
FBO and heard that an airline was hir-
ing. He and a buddy took the day off,
drove to Indianapolis, walked in the
Chief Pilot's office and was simply
asked "When can you start?"!!! Two
days later he was flying the line. Gus
refers to that time as "OJT" or on the
job training. I wo nder if it was not
more li ke baptism by fire ... especiall y
when he said the first week he was
night flying! Gus has flown the DC-3,
C-46, T-34 .. . where he was in the sec-
ond class and on ly 8 hours were
required to solo ... the F -86, Convair
580, and he fl ew the DC-9 until retire-
ment. Gus says that his favorite plane is
probably the J-3 Cub, "the best little
toy there is!". His experience includes
work ing on the Fairchi ld 24, Piper
Colt, as well as the Stearman and J-4 he
has undergoing restoration. He also has
a Cessna 150 and 177 Cardinal that he
flies. Gus has been judging since the
new system was implemented in 1975
and has only had one year off!
Some of the other judges and their
flying machines include Phil Coulson,
President of the American Waco Club
and Jerry Brown, Treasurer, both Waco
experts and owners. Phil and hi s wife
Ruth fly a 1940 UPF-7 and have a 1930
INF which is currently on loan to the
Museum of Aviation History in Kala-
mazoo... referred to by some as the
"AIRZOO" because of its extensive
collection of Grumman Cats. Jerry has
a past Custom Champion Waco UPF-7
and is worki ng on another. Don Cole-
man of Erie, CO. is the speciali st in the
Fairchild. Gene Morris has a former
Grand Champion Eaglet and his wife has
an Ercoupe. They also fly a Bonanza.
(Front row, left to right) Bob Wilson, Don Coleman,
Steve Dawson, Gene Morris, Xen Motsinger, Jerry
Brown, and in the back row, Dale Gustafson, Bill
Johnson, Dave Clark, Dave Morrow, Ken Morris,
Phil Coulson and Dave Anderson were our Antique
judges during last year's Convention. The hat in
front is Mike Shaver'S, since he was unavailable
for this shot.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 5
Classic judges Larry Keitel and Frank Bass are out In the bright Wisconsi n sunshine perusing the Classi c ranks for
nice airplanes. A special t ip of the flying helmet to the generous people of John Deere Company' s Horicon, WI
Works for the many John Deere Gators ("Green Machines") t hey lend to the EAA Convention every year. Covering
the hundreds of acres of flight line grounds Is made much more efficient with the four and six-wheeled machines
Deere supplies.
Dave Morrell and Dave
Clark, "Dave Squared," have
been judging for about 10
years and share their experi-
ence in the Taylorcraft and
Aeronca Chief. Mike Schae-
fer is an airline mechanic and
also does custom aircraft
restoration professionally.
Kenny Morris is Gene 's son
and an American pilot. He
and his wife, Lorraine, (an
airline pilot for United), fly a
Bonanza. Bill Johnson has
restored a Taylorcraft and
Xen Motsinger brings a good
overall knowledge to the
group. John Pipken was not
at Oshkosh in 1997, but is a
long term judge and he
should be at this year's show.
Gus commented that his
group of judges is very well
trained and warned that "the
only way to get out of their
jobs is if they die!". Although
this is not all inclusive of all
the fabulous judges you see in the pic-
ture, again you can see for yourself the
VAST diversity of experience this
group brings to the flight line when it
comes to their outstanding ability to
judge all of the various aircraft.
Our Contemporary Judging division
began in 1993 when Dean Richardson,
Classic judge and NC Advisor at that
time, was asked in the Spring of 1992
by the A/C Board to put together a
judging staff for the new judging cate-
gory. The Contemporary category had
just been added to the Division by a
Board vote. In 1992, they were invited
to do a "dry run" and the rest is history.
Dan and Dick Knutson co-chair this di-
vision of judges and are well qualified
to be doing so! They currently have
eleven airplanes, including two J-3s, an
Aeronca Champ, P A-II, 3 P A-12s, a
PA-22 TriPacer, Cessna 170B, Stinson
108, and (whew!) a Comanche 250B.
They are doing their TWENTIETH
restoration... three of those were second
restorations. Dick commented that he
really enjoys the way people take the
time to share their planes and their
pride in accomplishment. Joining Dan
and Dick are Art and Jeff Anderson,
who specialize in Beechcraft airplanes.
Rick Duckworth and Tim Greene have
a great knowledge of the Piper and
6 APRIL 1998
Cessna airplanes. The judges all bene-
fit from the great assistant they have in
Becky Greene who does all the clerical
and paper work. Although a newer
team, there is a great deal of experience
and enthusiasm in the inclusion of the
Contemporary plane as a group to be
judged. Every year the quality has in-
creased and the division continues to
grow. This past year 78 planes were
judged and you can see for yourself the
wonderful examples if you refer to the
September 1997 VINTAGE AIRPLANE
and read about the 17 aircraft that re-
ceived awards. There were three that
went unclaimed this year. Maybe you
want to see if your aircraft falls into
that category and get busy so YOU can
bring home the award in 1998!!
As I look at the amount of awards
given out, I am really awe struck that
the judges are able to look at each plane
that is registered and requests to be
judged! This year there were 987
showplanes registered in the Antique/
Classic and Contemporary parking ar-
eas. Starting on opening day and
working practically non-stop in true
postman fashion ... neither wind or sun
or lots ofrain ... until midday Sunday.
By this time they have narrowed the
field down and prepare to hand out the
awards on Monday night in the Theater
in the Woods.
Have you been considering how you
are going to bring home that award for
the years of painstaking work you have
put into your "it's almost finished" air-
craft? Simply fly in the plane that looks
the most like it just rolled out of the
factory! Don't worry if you have one
of those super duper fancy planes
though ... there is even an award for you
in the custom aircraft category!
Whether it classifies as an Antique,
Classic, or Contemporary, all the
judges I spoke to agree on the same im-
portant issues. First of all, get a Judging
Standards Manual (PLU# 11-50446) ...
you can buy it from EAA (The cost is
$2.00, plus shipping and handling. Call
EAA's Membership Services at 1-800-
843-3612 to order.) With that in hand,
you can look at things yourself and con-
sider what you can or want to change.
Originality seems to be a real key word
and OVER restoration is something to
watch out for! The exception to this
statement would be safety additions
that have been added since the aircraft
was produced (new brakes, and shoul-
der safety harnesses, for example). The
plane has to fly while at Oshkosh. That
means that it has to be proven airwor-
thy. Each plane starts with 100 points
and then deductions are made ... or
(Below) Xen MotSi nger exami nes an
excellent resource, U.S. Civil Aircraft ,
before retuming to work.
not. .. in the areas of general appear-
ance, cockpit, engine, landing gear,
fuselage, wings and tail, presentation
book and difficulty. If you have the
Judges Manual, you know exactly what
they are looking at. Second, avail your-
self of your TYPE CLUB! If you are
not sure if there is one for your plane
type, find the December 1997 VIN-
TAGE AIRPLANE for the most recent
compilation of Type Clubs available.
The list is also available in the Divi-
sion's web page at EAA's Web site at:
http://www.eaa.org.Click on "Specialty
Groups" for the AICWeb site. These
clubs provide invaluable information for
all. From an annual newsletter to a
monthly magazine, each group provides
information about their particular air-
craft from technical tips to classified ads
if you are in need ofparts... or an entire
project! Third, VINTAGE AIRPLANE is
a wonderful resource for anyone work-
ing on or thinking of working on a
project. There are always pieces of in-
formation in AeroMail, AICNEWS,
and Pass it to Buck that might relate to
you. If you need encouragement and
motivation, there is always a wonderful
section by Norm Petersen, "What Our
Members are Restoring." Norm in-
cludes pictures and information about
beautiful restorations done by other
folks in our organization. As you leaf
through past issues, you might fmd what
you are working on and locate someone
else who can be a resource! As you are
working toward your end goal using the
aforementioned suggestions, take the
time to RECORD your labor! Not only
is it a great way to share what you have
accomplished, it is actually worth points
when your plane is judged! You can re-
fer to the August 1994 VINTAGE
AIRPLANE for a thorough lesson in the
Presentation Book written by H.G.
Frautschy. The Presentation book is an
excellent tool for showing the restora-
tion process that has occurred. The
judges' manual states:
"G. PRESENTATION BOOK
Proof of authenticity contained
within the Presentation Book should be
judged on details of the contents rela-
tive to the authenticity of either a
continuous ly maintained or restored
aircraft and NOT on the beauty or artis-
tic quality of the book itself."
H.G. recommends that you include a
general history of the aircraft, factory
brochures, color scheme documenta-
tion, history of your particular airplane
and the restoration of the airframe and
engine. Include CLEAR photos and
typed or neatly printed captions. Put it
all together in a 3-ring binder. .. taking
great care to protect your photos and
brochures. This book alone may not
win the award, but it will help and will
allow you to pass on your knowledge
to the person who wants to know how
hel she can create a GRAND CHAM-
PION .. .just like yours!
Our judges are more than willing to
share their knowledge and much of
what I have referred to I learned from
the different judges. I am in no wayan
authority on airplane restoration, but
speaking with the different judges did
get me excited to get busy on our own
project. Good luck with yours! ...
If you' d like a photocopy of the
"What the Judges Are Looking for"
and "The Presentation Book" art!-
cles, please send a legal size Self-
Addressed , Stamped Envelope
(SASE) to:
Editor, VintageAirplane,
P.O.Box3086,
Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.
Just include a note requesting the
"Judging articles, and I'll be happy
to drop one in the mail.
-HGF
(Below) Antique judges Steve Dawson and Mike Shaver flip through t he judging presentation book of Stephen Johnson's
Beech Staggerwing.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7
It'sNot TheDestination,
by KENT TRAVIS, Ale 23449
F
riday afternoon, April 25, 1997, we are
beginning an adventure. We are flying
my 1947 Stinson 108-2 to San Antonio,
Texas to attend a Stinson Fly-in and cele-
brate the airplane's 50th birthday. The
fly-in is being put on by the Southwest
Stinson Club and will be attended by many
other Stinsons.
Friday is a beautiful, clear day (the first
really nice day in about two weeks). We
meet at Portland's Troutdale Airport for a
short hop to spend the night in Bend, Ore-
gon. A day of addressing the persistent oil
leaks and a minor problem with an audio
plug results in a "Go" for about 3 p.m. Af-
ter loading about 300 pounds of camping
gear, video equipment, a borrowed GPS, a
laptop computer to keep a journal, all the
necessa ry tools and equipment for the
plane, and two weeks of clothes, etc. for us,
we take offfor Bend. About 45 minutes
into the flight (abeam Mount Jefferson),
there's a very fine spray of oil building up
on Bill's windshield on the right side of the
plane. Having experienced this problem in
the past and knowing it is a leaking crank-
shaft nose seal, we press on to Bend. After
landing, I contacted my daughters, who
happen to live in Bend, for a ride from the
airport. Then we verified the nose seal prob-
lem. A call to our mechanic in Portland,
Ron Coleman of Troutdale Aircraft Ser-
vices II, results in something that I cannot
even put into words. How many mechanics
would drive all over town to find the nose
seal, then call and say, "Stay there, I'm on
my way." Ron, who is also a student pilot,
and Brian Goss, an instrument pilot work-
ing on his commercial, then got into an
airplane they call "The Gutless Cutlass"
and proceeded to fly to Bend to perform the
necessary repairs.
Shortly before their expected arrival
time, I tum on the plane's radio and say "Is
AAA out there?" The radio crackles its
singing reply in the best Mighty Mouse tra-
dition: "Here we come to save the day!"
Ron and Brian landed in Bend about 8:30
p.m . We had already taken the prop and
nose bowl off while we were waiting for
them. We all worked until about midnight
and then retired to our motel room. The
sleeping arrangement provided more than
one joke about "snuggling" and "spoon-
8 APRIL 1998
ing," and Brian was left with an image
burned into his brain after waking the next
morning to see me walk to the bathroom in
my colored underwear. After waking at 5:00
a.m., we went back out to the airport and
finished the job, with Ron and Brian only
accepting an Egg McMuffin in payment.
We departed Bend about 8:30 a.m. and re-
ported "no oil on the windshield" to Ron and
Brian, who were headed to Portland in the
"Gutless Cutlass." About two and one-half
hours later, we landed in Alturas, California.
After stretching our legs and getting fuel,
we departed for Hawthorne, Nevada, about
another two and one-hours away.
Hawthorne was chosen as a fuel stop be-
cause its location (in the middle of nowhere)
resulted in maximum safe distance between
fuel stops. If you are ever going to fly over
Hawthorne, Nevada, by all means make
sure you do just that. Stop in Yerington or
Tonapah, anywhere but Hawthorne .
Hawthorne is apparently embroiled in a
small town political game (probably be-
cause they don't have anythi ng else to do).
If you land there, you' ll be informed in no
uncertain terms by a "colorful local" that
the county has closed the fuel service on
weekends and they require a $20 fee to be
called out to the airport. (A good reason fo r
calling ahead to your planned destination.)
The welcome at our initial arrival from this
"colorful local" and his son, who lived in
their hangar, was not very cordial, to say the
least. After waiting about one-half hour, a
very ni ce person arrived to fuel our plane
where she was also accosted by this same
cranky man and his son. She, of course, rep-
resented a different point of view of the
situation, but she very graciously agreed to
let us split the cost of the "call out" with an-
other plane that had landed right behind us.
As it turned out, that plane was northbound
to his home base just outsi de Portland, so
we shared some camaraderie and he even
gave us his Grand Canyon Chart for our
next day's flight, after he, too, had paid hi s
"verbal toll" to the guy living on the airport.
All turned out okay, and after about an hour
delay, we once again reembarked on our
most excellent adventure. God smiled on us
and provided us with a generous tail wind
and nice controllers.
Since leaving Bend, Oregon, I had been
plagued by allergies including laryngitis. Bill
not only provided great navigation, but also
took over the radio work for the entire trip.
We actually arrived slightly ahead of
schedule at North Las Vegas Airport. Fi-
nally, after almost eight hours in Stinson
N9842K, we tied her down and were in-
formed that our ride to "Arizona Charlies"
Hotel and Casino would be about an hour
late from the scheduled pickup time. Hum-
mmm, sounds like it's Miller Time at the
outside lounge and watch all the "Grand
Canyon Tour" planes try to match the
"squeaker" landing of the "mystery khaki
and burgundy taildragger. " Another nice
feature there, that we later would find to be
rare, was the availability of 80 octane fuel.
Day three dawned beautiful and calm,
so after a nice walk to "Starbucks," and a
bowl of oatmeal at the hotel , we got a ride
to the airport by the shuttle bus. Upon ar-
riving at N9842K, what did we find? It had
only taken two days for us to organize our
baggage so that whenever something was
needed it wasn't always on the bottom of
everything else! You don' t have to hit us
with hammers to get us to figure something
out (although Bill's constant head-banging
into the flap hinges might have contributed
to the soluti on). "WATCH YOUR HEAD,
BfLLl"
A busy departure from North Las Vegas
(between frequent changes, runway changes,
and getting some "wake turbulence" due to
our departure behind an arriving plane on
an intersecting runway), a very breathtak-
ing flight over Lake Mead and the Grand
Canyon left both of us with a sense of awe
over the beauty of Mother Nature.
Flight-Following and GPS is the only
way to negotiate all of the restricted air-
space in the Grand Canyon. Another
new-bee Grand Canyon pilot, upon calling
Grand Canyon airport for assistance in ne-
gotiati ng the restricted airspace, was told
by the nice controller that the best advice
he could give would be to land and figure it
out on the ground at Grand Canyon Air-
port. Good idea!
After a nice lunch, an exciting high-den-
sity-altitude, 20+ mph quartering crosswind,
takeoff from Grand Canyon (pucker factor
of 9), Bill proceeded to navigate me not
only to the largest ridge that dominated the
horizon, but also the highest point on that
ridge. In spite of my laments over the size
of the ridges, Bill's only comment was
"You ain ' t seen nothin ' yet." Great! The
desert scenery was beautiful and we were
vectored by controllers right over down-
town Phoenix where we began our descent
into Casa Grande, Arizona.
Using Flight-Following is great, but
controllers could use a little updating as to
what a Stinson 108 is. Flying over Phoenix,
a reoccurring situation takes place. After
repeated inquires as to "type of aircraft,"
the controller usually gives up and enters
anything into the computer that comes
close. Obviously, when the controller
looked under "ST" for STinson, she gave
up and just hit "enter." We were quite flat-
tered when the Southwest Airline pilots,
ignoring their passengers comfort, and
climbing over each other for a better view,
asked us over the radio, "What color is the
STaggerwing Beech?"
After the night in Casa Grande, Ari-
zona, we had another beautiful day of
flying with me telling Bill he could take a
break from navigating - I would just aim
for the biggest point on the horizon since
that was where he seemed determined to
have us go anyway!
The tail winds persisted. We averaged
an indicated airspeed of about 105 to 110
mph for most of the trip. Add to that an av-
erage tail wind of 20 mph and the
groundspeed picked right up. At one point
over New Mexico we were indicating a
groundspeed of 153 mph.
We refueled at Demming, New Mexico,
then landed for a nice night in Fort Stock-
ton, Texas. Our motel in Fort Stockton had
a very nice little restaurant in it with a very
cute, elderly lady with a nice Texas accent
for a waitress. When Bill asked her to rec-
ommend something for dinner, she replied,
"Well, ah guess that depends on whut y'all
like." Bill thought he would try again when
she came by to see if we wanted dessert.
She replied, "Well , the phas are niace,
peach is good, apple is good, cherry is
good; it just depends on whut y'alllike."
We had a delightful dinner of BBQ brisket
and a big slice of "pah" for dessert.
Refueling the next morning brought a
pleasant surprise when two very nice Stin-
sons, one a -2, the other a -3, with two nice
people in each plane, landed for fuel on
their way to San Antonio. We exchanged
pleasantries and agreed to see each other at
Stinson Field.
The flight into Stinson Field not only
had the tail wind, but also the smoothest air
of the entire trip. I touched the yoke maybe
twice the entire trip. I told Bill it was too
bad we didn't have a deck of cards; we
could have played cribbage. We calculated
our fuel bum and distance and decided to
skip our planned fuel stop at Midland,
Texas, shorten the angle, pick up more tail
wind, and head straight on in to San Anto-
nio. After meeting people and looking at
Stinsons, Bill and I hitched a ride into town
for some R & R. 1 had a warm feeling in
my heart knowing that N9842K was
"home" for its 50th birthday.
The fly-in itself was less than expected
and more than expected. For a first time
fly-in, the organization was just ok. On the
positive side, and there was plenty of posi-
tive, the airplanes were beautiful , the
people were some of the most gracious,
nicest people you would ever want to meet,
always willing to help one another- and
heaven knows, they had a lot in common to
talk about. The forums were fun, informa-
tive and very worthwhile. I learned about
Stinsons, Franklins, and general informa-
tion that was very helpful. The lunches
were delicious, and the shuttle vans were
always available to take us to the hotel. San
Antonio is a beautiful city. We took advan-
tage of our hotel's location and walked the
"Riverwalk" every night and enjoyed many
lovely dinners wishing for the company of
our wives and thinking about how much
they would enjoy being here.
Saturday a friend of Bill's came out
to Stinson Field and I gave her a quick
ride south of San Antonio. Bill then
went on a sightseeing tour of the city
while I went to the banquet/ dance/
awards ceremony at Brooks AFB. At the
dinner I was presented with the "sore
butt" award for the longest distance
flown by a Stinson safely to the fly-in.
That was definitely the high point of the
fly-in for me and quite an honor.
Sunday morning we skipped the pan-
cake breakfast and took off about nine
a.m. Once again, much to Bill ' s amaze-
ment, a prevailing tail wind pushed us
north to Gainesville, Texas, but first Bill
needed to make an "emergency" landing
at Clark, Texas where he set a new record
for exiting the plane. After draining his fuel
sumps, we flew on to Gainesville where we
were picked up by Tony King who sold
N9842K to me about three years ago. After
a very nice lunch with Tony and some of
his nice family, we took off for EI Dorado,
Kansas. Upon landing in EI Dorado, a very
nice FBO offered us the use of the courtesy
car. They said bring it back whenever, and
no need to put gas in it. Unbelievable! The
only oddity was that it was an ex-police car
and had a "City of EI Dorado" emblem on
the door. It also made an assortment of
whirring, growling noises, but I found that
other cars were reluctant to run stop signs,
pass or speed whenever I was driving it.
After checking into a motel , and dinner, I
went over to visit with my brother and sis-
ter-in-Iaw, Bob and June. The next morning
we went back over to their house for break-
fast, dinner, lots of hospitality, conversation,
and overall just a very nice time of relaxing
and resting up. Not enough can be said for
the "Red Carpet" treatment my brother and
sister-in-law showed us.
Tuesday found us getting up about
seven a.m., rested, refreshed and ready to
go. After a nice breakfast at my brother's,
we took off about ten a.m. and flew to
Kearney, Nebraska, once again with a very
nice tail wind, although we had to divert
around a couple of rainshowers (one of
which was demonstrating its ability to have
lightning). At Kearney, while getting fuel, I
dropped in on a maintenance facility called
"Little Red Arrow" run by Don Maxfield.
Don works on Stinsons and Franklin en-
gines and had a display at the fly-in. I had
asked Don questions on several occasions
at the fly-in and he was always very helpful
and informative. He was happy we stopped
in to see him on our way home and he very
proudly showed us his Gullwing Stinson he
had been unable to take to the fly-in, and a
Bellanca Cruiseair he had just finished
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 9
restoring. Very nice!
Bill is thinking of nicknaming me "Tail
Wind Travis;" he kept saying how unusual
it was to have a tail wind every day and
eventually we would have to pay the price.
Finally, a solution to the age old ques-
tion "say type of aircraft. " A very helpful
controller at Denver Center, upon asking
again what the identifier for a Stinson 108-2
was, and us saying we didn' t know, said,
"Just a minute, I have a great big magic
book and I' ll look it up for you." Bill
replied, "When you find out, let us know
because we would like to be able to tell
other controllers." He came back after a
few minutes and said, "Are you a Voy-
ager?" We said, "Yes," and he said "Your
identifier is ST-75." We thanked him and
wrote it on the panel of the airplane. After
that we proudly told the other controllers
what our identifier was. Too bad we fmally
learned what it was about three-quarter of
the way through the trip.
After refueling, we took a more northerly
route to Rapid City, South Dakota, again
with a tail wind. I especially enjoyed the
flight over South Dakota. The terrain was
fairly flat , but strewn with tree filled gul-
lies. I could easily see where wagon trains
or cavalry troops could be camped a stone's
throw from 2,000 Native Americans and
never even know it. We decided to spend
the night in Rapid City and see Mt. Rush-
more, the Crazy Horse Memorial , and
possibly Devils Tower the next day before
fl ying on to Billings, Montana. After a light
dinner of appetizers and pie, we took a nice
walk and retired for the night.
The next morning brought a different
twist with the weather. After watching the
Weather Channel and deciding on the route
north, we ca ll ed for the courtesy van to
take us to the airport. Upon arrivi ng at the
airport, Bill discovered his jacket had inad-
verte ntl y been left at the motel (when I
loaded up the van while Bill was getti ng
our weather briefing). While Bill went back
to the motel, I "explored" the "DUATS"
computer at the FBO and found that rain
and even some snow was on our planned
route north, whi le a more southerly route
through Wyoming seemed much better
weather-wise. Although the southerly route
definitely contained more tall ridges, when
Bill got back from the motel and called for
another briefing, we agreed on the more
southerly route. Meanwhile, the wind at
Rapid City had picked up to about 30 mph.
Taxiing out to the runway was very inter-
esting, to say the least. I'm wondering if
it's worth having the wind aloft if I have to
fight with it on the ground. Upon taking
off, we headed for what we assumed to be
10 APRIL 1998
Mt. Rushmore. Lo and behold, there were
the four Presidents heads sitting on the side
of the mountain. After some excellent pic-
tures of the site, we headed off to see the
Crazy Horse monument and Devils Tower.
We never did see Devils Tower and are un-
certain if what we saw was the Crazy Horse
monument, but it was on to Casper,
Wyoming for fuel and what is that, a head
wind? Yes, it 's time to pay the piper,
80-85 mph tops for groundspeed. Good
thing for the planned extra fuel stops at
Casper, Wyoming and Rock Springs. High
density/altitude, high temperature and high
wind made for interesting landings and
takeoffs at Casper and Rock Springs,
Wyoming, but after the Grand Canyon, we
just took it in stride.
While flying over Big Bear Lake right
on the Idaho-Utah border, which is a beau-
tifullooking place nestled in the mountains,
a friendly controller with not much to do at
Salt Lake Center carried on a nice conver-
sation with us about our plane and hi s Piper
Clipper. He also verified a groundspeed of
74 knots. My only comment was "I didn't
realize Wyoming was bi gger than Texas! "
Bill said, "It's not, it's just slower!" I was
constantly amazed during the trip at the
way the wind updrafts and downdrafts
would make us climb and descend. I can
see why pilots get in trouble in IMC flying
by what they "feel." While at about 9,000
feet, I would hear the engine rpm pick up,
notice the nose pointing down, so I would
come back on the throttl e and notice we
would still be climbing at about 1,000 feet
per minute. At Big Bear Lake, while Bill
was at the controls, he set the new altitude
record for us in N9842K by riding the ridge
lift to over 12,000 feet.
Just outside Burley, Idaho we were at
7,000 feet and I could see the airport (field
elevation about 4,000 feet). I started our
descent with only a small ridge between us
and the airport. As we go t close to the
ridge, I noticed the "reverse" feeling. We
were in a "climbing" mode but we were
losing about 500 feet per minute. The
"small " ridge was gradually getting larger.
I came in with full throttle, pulled back on
the yoke and we were still barely maintain-
ing altitude. A lot of options were available
to us (a 90 degree tum or ever a 180 degree
tum), but it looked like we would clear the
ridge ok. Well, when we cleared the ridge
by only what seemed like a couple of hun-
dred feet , [ told Bill to "pick up your feet! "
He repli ed, "[ had to; I've got sagebrush
between my toes!"
[ enjoyed very much having a flying
partner on this trip who not only had a
good sense of humor but appreciated my
sense of humor as well. While on the sub-
ject, I think when two virtual strangers are
together almost constantly for almost two
weeks, somebody is bound to get on some-
body else's nerves. If I got on Bill' s nerves
(coughing, etc.), he never once let on. He
was always the best traveling companion
anyone could ask for (except for my wife).
His disposition blended well with mine and
I not only thoroughly enjoyed the enti re
trip, but I feel very lucky to now count Bill
as a good fri end.
We finally landed at Burley, Idaho and
once again were greeted by some very nice
people at the FBO. They brought out the
fuel truck, called and made reservations at
a nice motel in town, and then drove a de-
cent courtesy car out to where N9842K
was tied down. Then they recommended
several nice places to eat in town. After
checking into the motel , we took them up
on their suggestion and had a great Chinese
dinner at "George K's" in Burley, Idaho.
The next morning found us anxious to
start what was to be the last leg home. After
a nice breakfast at another recommended
place called "The Cube," we took off for
Bums, Oregon via Boise, Idaho and 10 and
behold, the tail wind was back. Upon land-
ing in Bums, we were once again treated to
a courtesy car that made strange noi ses and
seemed to be mi ssi ng more than a few
parts. [t did, however, provide transporta-
tion into Bums for a nice lunch at a place
called "Ye Old Castle."
After lunch we climbed aboard N9842K
for the last leg into Portland. A prearranged
arrival time of four p.m. had been agreed
upon so that our wives, Linda (mine) and
Mardee (Bill's), co uld be there for the
grand arrival. A ni ce fli ght , with that ever
present tail wind, culminated with the ar-
rival at the initi al check-in point for
Troutdale Airport. The moment we had
been waiting for. Bill announced on the ra-
dio, "Troutdale tower, Stinson 9842 Kilo
HEA VY, at Crown Point inbound from
San Antonio, Texas for a full stop land-
ing." Without missing a beat , tower
replied, "Roger, 42Ki lo HEAVY, make
straight in for runway 25, cleared to land,
and by the way, what's next, Oshkosh?"
Bill replied that either that or a trip to the
North Pole might be in order, but we were
going to take a littl e break and think it
over. After landing at exactly 3:59 p.m .
(one minute ahead of schedule) and greet-
ing our wives, taking pictures, unloading
and expressing gratitude to everyone for
their contributions, two well-worn travel-
ers found our way to our respective homes
to rest up and reminisce about our "Most
Excellent Adventure." .....
fromJETS toJENNYS
Just after the first World War, a new
era in aviation had begun. Returning
from the service were thousands of pilots
who were restless and searching for new
adventure. They quickly began buying up
the war surplus aircraft which were plenti-
ful and cheap. As gypsies of the air, their
needs were simple and their possessions
few. The airplane, in essence, became
their home. Across America they flew,
where a cow pasture became an airfield.
Through their efforts, aviation was intro-
duced to America.
Of all the aircraft that helped foster
aviation, few contributed so much as the
immortal Curtiss IN-4 Jenny. The Jenny
proved ideal for these early pilots. Built
of wood and fabric, the aircraft was slow
and rugged. It wasn ' t what you would
call a beautiful aircraft - functional
would be more accurate. With large
wings and a maze of flying wires, it re-
sembled a flying bird cage.
Like other aircraft of the period, forced
landings were commonplace. But, due to
its slow landing speed and strong con-
struction, forced landings were taken in
stride, often with little damage. On-the-
spot field repairs became commonplace.
Some repairs were rather crude, such as
replacing a broken flying wire with one
procured from a farmer's fence-but the
Jenny flew on.
by DAVID FORTUNA
Those days are gone now and so are the
aircraft, except for a treasured few. Across
the gently rolling countryside of Warren-
ton, Virginia, that nostalgic time has been
recaptured. On calm afternoons, an OX-5
can once again be heard as a gracefully
lumbering biplane slips over a carpet of
green. Through the untiring efforts of Ken
Hyde, just such a piece of aviation history
has been painstakingly restored.
In the quiet village of Airlie, Virginia
is a hangar with large "CURTISS" letters
across the front. Nestled securely inside
is a Curtiss Jenny in pristine condition.
From jets to Jennys, Hyde has come full
circle in aviation. His aviation interest
grew from Manassas. He obtained hi s
private and commercial licenses from
Charlie Kulp, internationally known as
the "Flying Farmer." Hyde is currently a
captain for American Airlines.
Hyde 's real passion seems to be in
restoring old aircraft. He is currently
working on a Wright Model B. The Model
A was accepted as a flying machine for
the Army Signal Corps. Delivered at Fort
Myers, Virginia on June 28, 1909, it was
given the serial number one.
Hyde is reconstructing his 1910 Model
B from photos and copying original parts.
The only one in existence is owned by the
Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Penn-
sylvania, which provided much research
data. Six months of hard work was spent
assimilating the data.
Working in a well equipped shop with
several employees, the Wright B shows
excellent workmanship throughout. The
engine is being made in the shop, while a
radiator and wheels are currently being
sought after.
Hyde was impressed with the Wright
brothers workmanship. They were skilled
craftsmen who showed a lot of ingenuity.
Their real fault lie in the fact that they
were unwilling to change. Much of their
time and energy was consumed in costly
court battles on patent rights. Had they
used this energy on aircraft design and
improvements, their impact on aviation
would have been much greater.
The original B Model was strong but
lightweight. The wing was a good exam-
ple. Uncovered, each wing panel weighs
only 17 pounds. Hyde stated that even to-
day engineers would find it hard to
duplicate such a feat. Using engines that
averaged only 36 to 38 hp, light weight
was essential.
Hyde was able to contact Glenn
Messer who actually learned to fly in the
B Model at the age of 15. Messer still re-
membered that the airplane flew well, but
he was always looking over his shoulder
at the chain drive which drove two
counter-rotating propellers from a single
Ken Hyde's Curtiss IN-4 Jenny rests
outside ofIts hangar near Warrington, VA.
engine. It turns out that Messergave
Lindbergh fli ght instruction in the Jenny.
Restorationofthe Jennywas a lot
morecomplexthan the Wright Model B.
Muchmoreworkwas requiredon forgings,
castingsand weldments. Approximately
12,000 hourswas spenton restoration.
Hyde'sinterestin the Jennycamefrom
his father, who'sfirst rideand flying les-
sonwas mone.
Hyde acquired the Jennyfrom Cole
Palen. It waspurchased by Palen in the
1950s from the Garrison estate of
Scottsville,Virginia. Mr. Garrison had
spun it in during the early 1920sand had
it storedsincethen. Theaircraftwasorig-
inally built in January of 1918 and
deliveredto the military in Montgomery,
Alabama in the same year. It was then
sold in July 1919 to the Danville Air-
planeCompanyofDanville,Virginia,
minus the engine. Atthattime the aircraft
had 174hourson it.
Hyde rebuiltthe left lowerwingand
replaced the landing gear, centersection
struts and longerons,and crosspieces in
frontofthe fuselage.The rest ofthe air-
craft was repaired. The aircraft was
purchasedwithoutan engine,which Hyde
picked up from Trade-A-Plane.Hyde's
Jenny is 90 percentoriginal, but he did
use modem pi stons,valves andbearings,
makingthe enginemore reliable.Hyde
explained that modern valveshave a
thickerlip and dissipate heat betterthan
the original ones,which were ofbadde-
sign and quality compared to the
materialsnow avai lable.
TheOX-5 enginehad areputation of
beingunreliable.Thiscame from the way
in which it was operatedand the attitudes
ofthe mechanics. Hyde related,"Me-
chanicsdid littlepreventive maintenance;
theyjustwantedto keep it running.Gaso-
line used backthen was notfi ltered as
well andcontainedimpurities. Onesource
ofproblemswasin the rubberhose used (3
on engineand radiatorfittings.Theywere ffi
madeofpuregum rubberand didn'tstand
up to the heat. Anotherproblemwas in
the waterpumppacking,which leaked
water. With thewaterpump locatedover
the carburetor,aleakcouldquicklycause
anenginemalfunction."
TheJennyrequiresa lotofmainte-
nance, much ofit preventative.This is
due largelyto the single ignition system
and havingawater-cooledenginewhich
has alot ofplumbing.Every houroffly-
ing requires two to three hours of
maintenance.
Hyde commentedthatthe Jennyisa
good trainer; it flies aboutCub speed, but
isheavier. It weighs 1,900 poundsand
hasonlya90 hp engine. The engineturns
1,400rpm, which is reason for the large,
wide prop.
The Jenny does nothandlevery well
in acrosswind.Hyde explained, "You
run outofaileron control with itand have
to getthe wingup. Itwasn'tdesignedfor
crosswindand gustyconditions. Back
then they used bigfields.Ilimitcross-
windsto IS knots."
He has neverdone aerobatics, as he
explained,"A lotofthe original wood is
still in the Jenny.Idon'tlike the idea of
doingaerobaticswithwoodfrom 1918."
Hydeonlydoesthreeorfour airshows
ayearwith the Jenny, due to the lackof
time. He flew itto Oshkosh in 1987 and
1989,and won Grand Champion Antique
at the 1987 Convention.He stated,"You
need to pickyourdays and take your
time.It'shard to find grass runways(the
Jennyhasatail skid); westofOhiothey
preservethem, butnot in the east." He
prefers runways 75 to I00 feet wide and
1200 feet long.He has operatedoutof
600 feet ,butthat'snot comfortable.
His Jenny has been featured in
severalprograms. In 1986- '87,National
Geographic did a
program,"Treasures
from the Past"fea-
turinghi sairplane.
It was also used in
an EAA documen-
taryon Jennys"Its
Gotta Be AJenny!"
and in aYoung Ea-
gles program with
CliffRobertson.
Hyde believes it
is bestto keep the
Jenny the way it
originallywas. He
remarked,"It'shard
to improve on it.
Ken Hyde in the cockpit of the Jenny during EAA
Oshkosh ' 87, when the it was chosen as the
Grand Champion Antique.
Theyflew forthousands ofhoursand
were very dependable.They trainedan
awful lotofpilots. The accident ratewas
onlytwo and ahalfpercent,the sameas
in WW II aircraft.
"In keeping it all original,it'sfinished
in Iri sh linen with no silveroverthe fab-
ric. Withoutthis UVAprotection,the
fabric deterioratesquickly ifleftexposed
to sunlight."
He goeson, "TheJennytaughtguys to
fly in the war, then they broughtaviation
to thepublicafterthe war. Justbefore
and afterWW I,there was ahugegap in
aviation; few peoplesaw an aircraft.
Then in the late I920sand '30s,theIN-4
introducedpeople to aviation. They were
availableand cheap,agood aircraftfor
barnstorming.Lateraircraftcameout
with atwo-placefront cockpitand the
Jenny couldn'tcompeteagainstthem in
makingmoney.
"AtOshkosh,peoplewould walk up to
youwithatearintheireyeas theysawthe
Jenny. It broughtbackalotofmemories.
"TheJenny is averyhistoric and valu-
able aircraft,butitis hard to place a
dollarvalueonthem.AfterWW Ianice
Jenny could be boughtwith instruction
for $300.00. Anew one still in the box
onlycost$600.00 to $700.00."
In justafew decades,aviationhas
taken giantstrides. From the first short
hopes in frail aircraft,to traveling into
outerspace, the IN-4hascontributed
much and hasearned itselfalasting place
in aviationhistory.
Thanks to men like Ken Hyde,future
generationswill beableto seethatpartof
historycome alive. ...
12 APRIL 1998
Jim Koepnick
Thirty-eight Years in the (Re)Making-
JoeDeruytter'sCULVERCADET
S
eldom does the world of antique air-
planes get invited to look at the
results of a man's 38-year effort at per-
fection. However, that "once in a blue
moon" opportunity came about at the
1997 Sun ' n Fun Fly-In at Lakeland, FL,
when Joe Deruytter (EAA 449094, AIC
26742) of Lake Placid, FL, flew his
bright yellow 1941 Culver LF A Cadet,
N37828, SIN 328, to the big fly-in. In the
brilliant Florida sunshine, it was hard to
miss such a brightly colored speedster.
The Culver Cadet sprung from the
fertile mind of designer, Al Mooney,
who has left quite a legacy in high-speed,
efficient airplanes! To add to the mys-
tique, the manager of the factory that
built the Culver Cadet in Witchita, KS,
was a gentleman named Walter Beech.
Sound familiar? With names like these in
by NORM PETERSEN
its lineage, the Culver Cadet has to be
quite an airplane - a special, all-wood,
retractable geared, machine.
Our subject airplane was built in 1941,
before the war (that's about six wars
back!) and managed to accumulate about
600 hours of flight time before it was
damaged in an accident and put into stor-
age. In 1952, a Culver enthusiast named
Robert E. Lee, bought the remains of the
Culver and eventually moved it to
Prescott, AZ, in 1964 where he began the
38-year restoration project.
A man of exceptional woodworking
ability, Robert Lee completely rebuilt the
beautifully shaped eliptical wing which
features three tiny leading edge slots for-
ward of each aileron. The wing is entirely
cantilever with no external bracing, fin-
ished in plywood with fabric over the ply
for long term protection. Wooden ailerons
with fabric covering were next on Mr.
Lee's work program.
The wooden fu selage was the next
item which required Robert Lee's atten-
tion. The spruce longerons and many
plywood gussets were all rebuilt from
scratch and the final covering was done
in thin plywood. Again, Mr. Lee ' s fan-
tastic woodworking ability is most
evident in the reconstruction. All joints
are tight and the gluelines are straight.
The tail surfaces were completely rebuilt
of spruce and plywood and finished off
with fabric over the plywood.
Perhaps the crowning achievement of
Robert Lee was his ability to make brand
new doors (the original ones were lost)
for the Cadet and then carefully fit them
to where they close like a bank vault!
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 13
This is normall y unheard of in Culver
circles. From the factory they were noto-
riously poor fitting and leaked air, water
and small bugs. However, N37828, has
the most beautiful doors you have ever
seen and they work like a charm - with
no leaks! Now we are beginning to see
how Robert Lee cou ld spend so many
years in the rebuild.
Itwas in the area of metal fairings
that Robert Lee absolutely outdid him-
self. The original Culver Cadet had factory
Aft fuselage detailing is so typical of Robert Lee's
workmanship. Take a look at the original Grimes
tail light with white lens, and the sharp aft fuse-
lage fairing that moves with the elevator.
main landing gear fairings, however,
these were not included in the airpl anes
that were sold to the public. Somehow,
Robert was able to duplicate these fairings
plus add a wheel fairing on each side. The
result was that the entire landing gear,
including wheels and brakes, was cov-
ere d wit h aluminum fai rin gs. When
combined with sq ueaky clean wheel
well s, the ent i re bottom side of the air-
plane caused the judges to shake their
heads in utter amazement.
These landing gear fairings are Robert Lee's trade-
mark, lovingly fabricated and functional as can be.
From this angle you can see the inside wheel cov-
ers that meet the landing gear fairings to enclose
the entire gear on retraction.
Jim Koepnick
Along the taillfuselage junctures,
Robert was able to fabricate the most in-
tricate fairing strips imagineable that fit
like the proverbial glove. Each piece is
delicately fitted until it is perfect and re-
(1st Picture Below) One almost needs dark glass-
es to view this englne compartment! This may be
one of the lowest time Franklin engines you will
ever see. The STC'd alternator is visible on the
rear accessory case. Robert Lee's work is most
evident in this photo.
(2nd Picture Below) Straight forward and func-
tional instrument panel is richly woodgrained and
even features a glove compartment. The gear
retraction wheel is right between the two seats
and requires two hands to operate! (You hold the
stick with your knees to bring up the gear.)
14 APRIL 1998
flects many hours of dedicated work.
Up front in the nose section, a small
miracle took place. During the many
years of restoration, Robert was on the
lookout for a good 90 hp Franklin en-
gine to power the Cadet. Perhaps his
most fort unate day was when he lo-
cated a person with four surplus 90 hp
Franklin engines - brand new in the
factory cosmoline! Needless to say, a
quick purchase was made and the
brand new engine was cleaned up and
readied for install ation. Again, all an-
cillary connections and hook-ups were
also brought up to new standards in-
cluding polished aluminum baffles and
chrome plated valve covers. Believe
me when I say this is a sharp looking
engine compartment.
An entire new cowling was fash-
ioned from many parts and pieces of
aluminum. The compound curved lower
cowl alone was made from 33 pieces
of aluminum, each one curved and
welded to the next, with the final fin-
ishing removing all traces of welding.
The dual engine exhaust exits on both
sides of the lower cowl, the absence of
mufflers being quite noticeable to any-
one standing nearby when it starts up. A
new Sensenich wooden propeller adorns
the end of the crankshaft with a neat
pointed spinner adding the fmal touch.
By 1984, Robert Lee had completed
his masterful job of reconstruction and
he managed to fly the cute little speed-
ster some 16 hours. However, Robert's
heath was failing and during the next six
years, the Culver was only run by the IA
Coming almost directly at you is Joe Deruytter in his brightly painted Culver Cadet. Jim Koepnick
doing the Annuallnspection once a year.
In 1990, the Cadet was sold to Joe Lively
of nearby Skull Valley, AZ, another Cul-
ver Cadet aficianado. Joe fl ew the Cadet
to the 1990 AAA Cactus Fly-In at Casa
Grande, AZ, and ran off with the Grand
Champion award!
Joe Li vely enjoyed the Culver Cadet,
flying it some 175 hours over the next
six years, cruising along at 120 to 130
mph at about 4 gph.
About this time (1996), Joe Deruytter,
of Lake Placid, FL, came across an ad
for a Culver Cadet that was for sale in
Arizona. Always on the lookout for one
of his favorite airplanes, Joe had his sis-
ter in Arizona go and take a good look at
the airplane. She reported back that the
tires were flat , the airplane looked to be
in poor condition and the engine condi-
tion was unknown. Joe Deruytter then
contacted the Culver Club, who put him
in touch with Joe Lively to have a second
opi nion on the sadly rundown Cadet. Joe
Lively said, "If you want to buy a Culver
Cadet, why don't you buy mine?" Right
then and there, the fun began.
Pictures were exchanged, details were
discussed and negotiati ons were com-
menced. It wasn't long before Joe
Deruytter was on hi s way to Prescott,
AZ, to fly a beautiful ye llow Culver
Cadet home to Florida. Joe liked what he
saw and admits he was taken aback by
the beauty of the workmanship on the
Cadet. The engine ran we ll and Joe
Lively carefuly checked him out, adding
many wise words of experience. "Watch
the directional stability on rollout so it
doesn't get away from you. It 's qui ck!"
he said. Joe Deruytter listened carefully,
noted all the details and headed east.
The first day's flight ended at Amarillo,
TX, where the airport manager pushed
the Culver under a shade roof- only to
bang the wing trailing edges into two
posts! The manager fe lt terrible about
the damage and the next day saw to it
A polished aluminum spinner adoms the neat wood Sensenlch propeller on the nose of t he Culver. Both
exhaust pipes have their own fairing while the rectangular engine air Intake has a filter Installed. Not e
small cross-sectional dimensions of the airplane, another aid In the speed department. H.G. Frautschy
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 15
The rear view really shows how AI r : : - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~
Mooney put the wing, fuselage
and tall feathers all together to
form the distinctive lines of the
Culver Cadet. Note how the eleva-
tor Is entirely behind the rudder.
Look at how beautifully the doors
fit that were built by Robert Lee!
that they were fixed up and
ready to resume the flight
east. Joe took off, only to
catch up with a front that
was ahead of him. He
spent three days waiting in
Shawnee, OK, which was
followed by three very
quiet days in Paris , AR,
where he was treated like a
king. The only pay the man
would accept at Paris was
a high speed pass over the
runway on departure! Joe
delightfully obliged.
A one day stop in Al-
abama and then it was on
to Lake Placid, FL. The
Swanville, MN, just down the
Culver cruises at an easy 120 mph on
road from Lindbergh's home
just over 4 gallons per hour. Joe says it is
town of Little Falls, MN, ran
fun to fly and only needs two fingers on
the Harley-Davidson dealer-
the stick. He did note it was sometimes
ship in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, for
hard to keep it straight on landings, but
twenty-five years. In 1990,
the brakes seemed to help. Sometimes a
they turned the business over
sharp turn at the end of the runway would
to their son, and retired. Joe
cause difficulty. He would get out of the
took up with his aviation
airplane, lift the tail around and then pro-
hobby again, owning several
ceed. Enlisting the help of his mechanic,
airplanes including a mint
they checked the tailwheel, the rudder
Luscombe Model II Sedan.
and steering mechanism. To their sur-
prise, the found the rudder was moving
When the Culver Cadet en-
left-right only two inches! Looking fur-
tered the picture, Joe was
ther, they found the main rudder post
completely enamored with the Mr. Joe Deruytter, Culver aficianado and retired Hartey dealer.
was completely frozen in a long bronze
cute little speedster. The old
bushing hidden in the tail. (It is sus-
done solo and Joe gets a kick out of the
Genave 360 radio, which had been in-
pected the airplane was flown for nearly
stalled behind the seat because of its
crowds that the airplane draws every-
200 hours with the rudder frozen in place
length, was replace with a German-made
where he takes it.
- all without damage to the aircraft!)
Becker 760 channel radio that is only 7
At Sun 'n Fun ' 97, the Culver ran off
Using a large hydraulic press, they
inches long and will fit in the panel. It also
with the Best Antique Monoplane award
includes a two station intercom for talking
and Joe was well pleased. He has flown
were able to break the rudder post free of
in the cockpit during flight. A transponder
the Cadet about 100 hours to date, so the
the bushing, clean both parts, install a
Zerk grease fitting and reassemble the
and encoder were also intalled. Out front, engine has about 320 hours since
the old Dodge car generator on the engine
new and the airframe has about 920 hours
entire tail unit. Now the rudder easily
swings through its normal arc and the
was replaced with a new lightweight since new- truly a low-time antique
Culver is a pussycat on ground handling.
STC'd alternator. (The engine starter is airplane.
identical to a Dodge car starter.)
Joe Deruytter grew up in Sioux Falls,
A very special congratulations to Joe
SO, and soloed an Aeronca Champ in
Joe admits all this custominzing adds
Deruytter and his beautiful Culver Cadet
1947 at age 18. After five years in the
a certain amount of weight and the empty
which he has continued to improve. We all
military, he fini shed his license on the
weight of the Culver is 950 Ibs., notice-
know that the late Robert E. Lee, who put
Korean GJ. Bill. Eventually, Joe and his
ably above the factory original of 720
his heart and soul into the airplane over a
lovely wife, Irene, who grew up in
pounds. However, most of his flying is period of38 years, is up there smiling...
H.G. Frautschy
@ld?
16 APRIL 1998
StanDollenDiscoversthejoysofOpenCockpitFlying
by H.G. FRAUTSCHY
Never underestimate what the love
of a woman can do for a man. When
speaking with Stan Dollen (EAA 553718,
Ale 27556) of Windermere, FL about
his wife Sheree, he'll be the first to tell
you that the Meyers OTW he is proud
to fly came about after his wife encour-
aged him to learn to fly. Why wou ld
she have done that? Because Stan
needed the encouragement after a life-
altering experience.
Stan Dollen has long been a me-
chanical fellow. As a young man, he
really enjoyed the feeling of being on
the open road riding a motorcycle. All
that ended one day when a drunken dri-
ver slammed into Stan and his bike,
crushing his left leg.
Seeing her husband so physically in-
jured was jarring enough, but his
attitude had suffered a hit as well. Both
Sheree and Stan knew he needed to be
looking towards new goals, and Sheree
thought back to all of the things that in-
terested him throughout the years.
Powerboats, sailboats, motorcycling
and the like had all been explored at
one time or another, but what else got
his motor running? He knew one thing-
it wasn't motorcyc les any more. The
bikes didn't cause him any worry, but a
drunken auto driver sure did.
Stan had a lot of fun as a four- or
five-year-old youngster building pretend
airplanes that were hammered together
out of scrap wood. He says there was a
lot of parachute throwing off of the bal-
cony, too. Later, as he grew, flying gas
powered free flight model airplanes
kept his growing mind entertained, as
did flying rubber-powered stick and tis-
sue jobs. But as he matured and started
working to earn a living, he never gave
a second thought to flying full size air-
planes. "Just too expensive," he thought,
without really ever exploring the real
costs involved.
One day during his convalescence
from the surgery following the accident
(he lost his left leg below the knee as a
result of the car/motorcycle crash), Stan
heard a light plane fly overhead and casu-
ally remarked how nice it must be to fly.
Sheree picked up on his attitude
right away. She recalled the joy he had
felt when he spoke of his earlier times,
and while she really didn't know how
strongly he felt about aviation, Sheree
encouraged him by saying, "Why don't
you take flying lessons?"
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 17
"Yeah, yeah, sure," was Stan's
pessimistic reply.
All he could think about at the
time was the pain in his leg and in
his pinned together hip. And besides,
he remembers thinking, "Don't you
have to have perfect eyesight, too?"
At that time, he was the furthest
from a perfect human specimen he
could think of, and his wife was
telling him to go fly.
"Heck, I can't even walk right
now, " probably crossed his mind
as well.
But Sheree saw something in hi s
response to that airplane engine
sound, and she called around to
check and see if it was possible.
Thankfully, the people who she
talked to were very encouraging (is-
n't that why we stick around this
avocation?) and simply pointed out
that many had done it before, and as far
as the FAA was concerned, all he had
to do was demonstrate his ability, and
he could earn his pilot's wings.
Sheree and Stan picked off his prior
misconceptions one at a time. Expen-
sive? Compared to what? Power
boating? Sailing? Cruising bikes, motor
homes? Just like any recreational activ-
ity, it took more cash to get started and
get beyond the learning curve, and
there were all sorts of levels to explore
when it came to airplane capabilities.
The eyesight question was easily
handled, in the same way the tens of
thousands of pilots who wear glasses or
contact lenses do - by passing an eye
18 APRIL 1998
exam, one hardly more difficult than
the test they'd been getting from their
eye doctor for years.
But the handicap. HOW?
The clutch on a Corvette gave him
so much trouble that he couldn' t drive
one using his left leg, so how was he
going to handle an airplane's rudder
pedals? Everyone he and Sheree talked
to said it could be done, so he decided
to just give it a shot. He couldn't really
think of any more reasons he couldn't.
When Sheree took him out to the air-
port one sunny Sunday afternoon, he
decided to start right away- no demo,
no toe dipped in to see if he'd like it. It
Builtas SIN 49 out of102built, NC34304was restored In the shops ofRoss
Aviation In Minden, NV beforeBill'suntimelydeath. Stan boughtairplaneas his
firstopencockpitbiplane.
time to jump in and get used to the
water!
Starting his basic training in a
Cessna 150, Stan found that he had
enough strength and control to operate
the left brake pedal and apply the brake
on that side. Initially, he didn't plan on
buying an airplane real early on in the
program, but Sheree suggest they
should at least go look at one.
Once again, he heeded some sound
advice. He' d been told that often, peo-
ple tended to underbuy their first
airplane, buying an airplane that lacked
the capabilities they were really want-
ing. Wanting an airplane with a decent
The only change Stan had to make to make his cockpit controls to accommodate his handicap Is the
additionofahandbrakelevertothecontrolsticktoactuatetheleftbrake. ARNOLD GREENWELL
crui sing speed as well as good cross-
country range, he looked at a
Comanche 250. The low wing speed-
ster with four seats was just right to fly
up to a summer home he and Sheree
had just bought on Beaver Island, MI
(up at the north end of Lake Michigan,
west of the Mackinac straits). Stan's a
native Michigander, and he decided to
move to Florida as soon as he could
when he was younger, after getting fed
up with snow and cold. There he met
Sheree and they were married. A trip to
Michigan did it for Sheree- she fell in
love with northern Michigan, and
searched for some time before finding
property on the island. At least Stan
doesn't have to go in the winter!
Continuing his pilot's training, he
completed the work towards his license
in the Comanche. The toe brakes in his
Comanche have not presented any in-
smmountable challenges for him at all.
For a few years, Stan and Sheree en-
joyed the Comanche, but, well, we all
know how the next step goes. A going-
places machine is great, but how about
something with a little more pizzazz?
A little more ramp appeal. A crowd
gatherer at the fuel pumps. Something
that took more of a challenge.
A ride in a Pitts was a real hoot, and
the open cockpit was really great.
While on vacation, they were watching
some two-place ultralights cruise up
and down a Venezuelan beach. That
looked like a lot offun, so Stan decided
to go for a ride. That iced it. He had to
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 19
fly it home. Handicap or
no handicap, Stan knew
he didn ' t have the back-
ground he needed to fly
the OTW. There would be
plenty of time left for that
later, after the OTW was
home. But he couldn' t let
an adventure like that pass
him buy, so he rigged up a
block of wood on the left
pedal so he had some brake
control, and headed off
from Minden with his tail
wheel competent co-pilot
towards Florida.
JIM KOEPNICK
have something with an open cockpit!
One of his early flight instructors
heard he was looking for something with
an open cockpit, and showed him a pic-
ture ofa Meyers OTW. Up to that point
in time, he'd never even heard of one.
Why would he have? But as soon as he
saw it, he knew that was what he wanted.
A trip to Sun 'n Fun was spent look-
ing for an OTW, but you don't always
find what you're looking for, even at as
large an EAA fly-in as Sun 'n Fun .
Later, Sheree had a nephew getting
married in Sacramento, CA. That
worked out great for Stan- Minden,
NY was only about 5 hours down the
road from there, and an OTW was there
waiting for him to check out. He fig-
ured he could pop on down for a look
at an OTW down there . No harm in
looking, right?
When he came back to Sacramento
to tell Sheree he had put a deposit down
on the biplane, Sheree wasn't sure what
she had wrought a few years earlier.
She made him take her back down to
Minden to look at the OTW. Stan
says she didn' t ever say yes, but she
didn't say no either, so he figured he
was okay. He was right!
This OTW, SIN 49, NC34304, was
restored by Ross Aviation, the com-
pany owned by the late Bill Ross (of
P-38 fame in the mid-1970s) . Al
Meyers test flew the airplane on June
2 1, 1941 . This example is powered
by a 165 hp Warner, and a low time
Warner at that. At the time of the air-
The OTW's construction was an all wood wing
structure, and a steel tube frame forward fuse-
lage covered In sheet aluminum. The fuselage aft
of the cockpit Is a full monocoque aluminum
structure, with a full aluminum fln and rudder,
and a welded steel tubular horizontal tall. Early
models featured aluminum covered ailerons, with
the later versions having theirs fabric covered.
plane's restoration, it was assembl ed
from all new, zero-time parts.
The OTW was a good choice as a
first open cockpit biplane. Designed by
Al Meyers as a primary trainer, it saw
its heyday in the Civilian Pilot Training
Program CPTP during WW II. 102
OTW's were built, the last, SIN 102 be-
ing built by Pard Diver at Meyers
Aircraft as the special mount of A l
Meyers himself. It remained there until
it was donated to the EAA Aircraft
Foundation, where it was displayed and
flown at EAA's Pioneer Airport. After a
landing accident, it was lovingly restored
by members of EAA Chapters 159 and
1093 with assistance from Keith Diver,
Pard's son. It is now on display in the
EAA Air Adventure Museum in Oshkosh.
The restoration of that OTW is a story
that will have to be told another day.
But how was Stan going to get it
home? By full y understanding his cur-
rent limitations and having someone
who was an experienced tail wheel pilot
JIM KOEPNICK
Once home, Stan and
tail wheel CFI Richard Billton, Yustus,
FL, got to work and brought the Co-
manche pilot up to speed on the
vagari es of flying a lightly loaded bi-
plane with a feather bed soft landing
gear. With over 130 hours in his log-
book in the OTW since he purchased it,
Stan's just now beginning to feel com-
fortable with it.
One reason it has become a bit more
comfortable to fly is the brake modifi-
cation added to the left brake system.
Si nce the brakes are cable actuated, a
simple addi ti on was made to pull on
the left brake cable - a motorcycle style
hand brake lever is added to the control
stick, so Stan can add a left brake with
his control grip hand whenever he
needs to do it.
Whatever it takes. That's how Stan
Dollen approaches his life and his avo-
cation. The help and support of a bright,
shining woman sure doesn't hurt either.
Thanks, Sheree! ...
20 APRIL 1998
TheBendix(Stromberg)
NA-S3Carb
by H.G. FRAUTSCHY
NOTE: The manufacturing rights to
the Bendix-Stromberg line ofcarburetors
is now owned by Precision Airmotive,
Everett, WA. Any questions, or comments
regarding Bendix service bulletins or ser-
vice parts should be directed to Precision.
They can be reached at 415/353-8181.
Antique/Classic Member Bob Hollen-
baugh was kind enough to point out that
there is still some confusion regarding the
change of the needle and seat used in the
Bendix NA-S3 series of carbs that are so
common on Continental A-65 through
C-90 engines. Specifically, there is a re-
quirement for a slight modification to be
made to the float lever when the Delrin
needle is installed.
When you buy the EAA Auto Fuel
STC, included in the package of data you
receive from EAA is a letter detailing field
experience regarding those needles. Basi-
cally, here's what we know.
We have had an incident reported to us
involving a Cessna 120 which had a new
carburetor float needle installed in 1983.
However, the needle used was the obsolete
part with the neoprene rubber tip. The
swelling of the tip eventually increased to
the point where the fuel /air mixture sup-
plied to the engine was too lean to operate.
One ofthe dangers is that a continual lean-
ing can be taking place without knowledge
of the operator. This could lead to engine
damage from excessively lean operation.
Checking with a carburetor overhaul shop
reveals that this had been a long standing
and continuing occurrence prior to the ap-
proval of autogas.
The above mentioned engines are fitted
with Bendix NA-S-3 type carburetors
which have been subject to two Service
Bulletins pertaining to the float needles
and the float needle seats. The first Bul-
letin is Bendix Aircraft Carburetor Service
Bulletin #71 issued in April 1945. It points
out that a sharp-edged needle seat is to be
used with all steel needles and a round
edged seat is to be used with synthetic
rubber tipped needles.
Bendix Service Bulletin ACSB-84,
revised July 15, 1972, refers to the replace-
ment of the float needle valve with the
synthetic rubber tip. The reason for the
Bulletin, which was issued initially in June
of 1964, is "to provide a float needle made
ofDelrin, an ivory colored plastic, in lieu
of the rubber tipped stainless steel needle."
The material change was made to remove
the rubber age control requirement, reduce
cost and provide an improved service life
material. The reason for the revision in
July 1972 was listed as "to add instructions
for float lever weight," and to add seat part
number under application. Delrin valves
are a direct replacement of the neoprene
tipped valves and require no seat change if
the condition of the seat is satisfactory.
As was indicated in the November 1983
edition of Hotline in EAA's Sport Aviation
magazine, the Bendix carburetor alert ad-
vised that the neoprene tipped needles had
not been manufactured by Bendix for more
than 20 years. (Now over 30 years!) Ben-
dix advised EAA that the neoprene
material used on those valves were of a
higher grade than the material used in their
automobile carburetors and they should not
be affected by the higher aromatic fuels
such as 100 LL avgas or approved automo-
bile gasoline. They also highly recommend
the use of the new Delrin valve.
From trustworthy suppliers, only the
Delrin needle is available at time, and is
the only needle produced since the early
1960's. Neoprene rubber tipped needles
that may still be found occasionally must
be viewed with skepticism even if they are
certified by the vendor as genuine Bendix
parts. After all, would you put a 30 year
old tire on your car? Since Bendix made
those parts, they have sold the Stromberg
carburetor line to Precision Airmotive of
Everett, W A. Precision has never made
the rubber tipped needle.
If the valves claim to be of new manu-
facture, Bendix, nor Precision, has any
knowledge of them, and unless they are
manufactured under a heretofore unknown
PMA, no one knows the type of synthetic
rubber used and its compatibility with ei-
ther 100LL avgas or autogas.
NOTE: ALCOHOL IS NOT COMPATI-
BLE WITH MATERIALS IN PRESENT
AIRCRAFT FUEL SYSTEMS. DO NOT USE
GASOLINE CONTAINING ALCOHOL. AUTO
FUEL CONTAINING ALCOHOL IS NOT AN
APPROVED FUEL UNDER EAA 'S STC.
Another reason to question the authen-
ticity of these rubber tipped needles is the
question regarding the selling price of
these valves. 30 years ago, the valves sold
for $35.00, and in the mid-1980s they were
being retailed in the $14.00 price range.
If you have been operating successfully
with 100LL avgas (we're not taking into
account the lead fouling issue in this state-
ment) or autogas, the need for changing
parts is not indicated. When you do over-
haul the carb and the float needle and/or
seat require attention, the safe and conser-
vative way to go is to change to a Delrin
valve in accordance with Bendix (Preci-
sion Airmotive) Service Bulletin 84,
revised July 15, 1972.
As pointed out by Bob Hollenbaugh, the
Service Bulletin for the Delrin needle (PIN
2523047, listed at $83.86 as of3/16/98) re-
quires that a weight be added to the float
lever. The S.B. states that any of the seats
may be used. Service experience has shown
the seat PIN 383911 works the best. If your
carb had the neoprene or Delrin needle in
the past, the seat does not have to be re-
placed, but if the stainless steel needle was
installed, and a sharp edge seat is installed
and is damaged, it must be replaced.
- Continued on page 32-
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 21
WHATOURMEMBERSARERESTORIl'IG
by NormPetersen
MARK WADE'S GRAND CHAMPION
AERONCA SUPER CIDEF
These photos of the Grand Cham-
pion Antique at the 1997 Southwest
Regional EAA Fly-In at Kerrville,
TX, were sent in by owner Mark
Wade (EAA 203592, NC 12010) of
Mesquite , TX. The airplane is a
1941 Aeronca 65LB Super Chief,
NC36692, SIN Ll7501, powered
with a Lycoming 0-145 engine of
65 hp . Mark reports the Aeronca I i i R ~ ~
was purchased from a salvage dealer
in 1984 and totally restored over a
period of years. Many parts and
pieces were remanufactured from blue-
prints supplied by John Houser, a retired
service engineer with Aeronca. The air-
frame was finished with epoxy chromate
before being covered with the Stits process
using HS-90X fabric and Polydope. All
coats were progressively sanded with the
fmal coat finished with rubbing compound
for that hand rubbed finish-which was a
factory option at 35% extra cost. The re-
suits are quite striking and caught the
judge's eye at Kerrville.
Mark reports the Super Chief cruises
at 93 mph at 2450 rpm and the empty
weight of the airplane is 752 Ibs. It has
been confirmed that this particular
Aeronca served with the Civil Air Patrol
during WW II and the Wades are now
trying to document the exact areas in
which it served. Special congratulations to
Mark Wade and family for restoring a re-
markable airplane and running off with
the Grand Champion Award at Kerrville
against some strong competitors.
GOLDEN OLDIE-WACO YKS-7
ON FLOATS
This photo from the late 1930's ofa bright
red Waco YKS-7, NC17463, SIN 4607,
mounted on a set of Edo 3430 floats, was
sent in by Holland "Dutch" Redfield of
Cutchogue, NY , who flew this airplane
commercially in upstate New York in the
late 1930's. Powered with a Jacobs L-4 en-
gine, the Waco featured doors on each side
of the fuselage for float use and the extra
long rudder and ventral fin for stability on
floats. Note the Grimes taillight on the top
of the rudder and the fact that the water rud-
ders are down for slow speed maneuvering.
Holland Redfield went on to become a Boe-
ing 747 check pilot for Pan Am.
22 APRil 1998
PETE BRUCATO'S STINSON 108-1 ON SKIS
---
---
--- ___---""1
BOB REICHEL'S AERONCA CHIEF
(Above) This recently completed Aeronca Chief,
N86115, SIN 11AC-546, is the pride and joy of Bob
Reichel (EAA 402136) of Madison Lake, MN. Com-
pletely rebuilt over quite a span of time, the Chief
features doors with clear Lexan windows that are
hinged at the top to swing up out of the way. This
makes entrance and exits noticeably easier for pilot
(Above) This photo ofa very nice Stinson 108-1, N8874K, SIN and passenger (also very handy when mounted on
108-1874, mounted on a set of Federal A-2500 skis was sent in by floats) . The propeller appears to be a brand new
owner, Pete Brucato (EAA 224457, Sensenich mounted
AlC 14719) of Kensington, NH. Peter ....-----------------------,
on the business end
reports the ski flying conditions have of an A65-8 Conti-
not been the best these past two years, nental. Congrats to
however, on January II, 1998, he was Bob on a dandy
able to make ten takeoffs and landings restoration. The
with the four-place Stinson. Note that photo was con-
he is usi ng a tailski, which really helps tributed by Floyd
in the smooth ride department. Backst rom of
Mankato, MN.
A SENIOR PIETENPOL WITH A front seat passenger, 94-year-old Ray
SENIOR PILOT Hegy of Marfa, Texas. Powered with a
Model A Ford engine, the RudolfPieten-
(Above right) These photos of the late pol has recently been totally rebuilt by
Allen Rudolfs Pietenpol, NX13691, were volunteers working at Oshkosh and Brod-
sent in by Tom Hegy of Hartford, WI. It head and is a prime example of the original
has attended more EAA conventions than Pietenpol Air Camper. Ray Hegy is the
any other airplane, and is being flown at "Iii' 01' prop maker" from Marfa, TX,
Brodhead, WI, by Ted Davis, with a noted who has built Hegy propellers for years.
PIPER SUPER CUB IN
SOUTH AFRICA
This photo of a Piper PA-18A-150 Super
Cub, registered ZS-NEA, SIN 18-1798, was
presented to us by the owner, Chris Amstutz
(EAA 262459) ofVryheid, Natal, South Africa.
Chris was in Oshkosh to attend the Adult Air
Academy when he handed us this photo, ex-
plaining that the four people in front of the
Super Cub were tea pickers, ready to pick tea
leaves in the field behind. Chris has owned the
Super Cub for many years and has flown it
many hundreds of hours around South Africa.
It was such a pleasure to make his acquain-
tance at Oshkosh and we wish him the very
best with the pretty red and white PA-18 with
the South African registration.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 23
byE.E. "Buck" Hilbert
EM #21 NC #5
P.O. Box 424, Union, IL60180
I' m very fortunate in that I get many of
the Type Club newsletters. At times I feel a
little guilty - the effort that goes into these
newsletters, the expense of mailing and the
wealth of technical and practical operating
information is astounding. I can' t say enough
in praise of the newsletter editors and their
efforts to keep their "Types" flying.
Once in a while, though, a gem of infor-
mation comes along that really turns me on.
On the other hand, sometimes there is some-
thing in a newsletter that makes me cringe.
Charlie Nelson of the International Swift
Association just turned me on. He writes
about Scud Running.
"We do hereby declare all Scud Running
tickets to be canceled, null and void, no longer
usable," he writes. And then he goes on to cite
a few instances where he's ridden with folks
who did the "Scud Run" and made it despite
scaring the wits out of the passengers, reading
highway signs en route and otherwise engag-
ing in the worst possible way to get there.
Charlie then implores people to LOOK
and SEE how many towers , TALL TOW-
ERS to be exact, that are popping up all over
the area. They are coming so fast that the
charts can't keep up with them. After all , a
publishing schedule of every 156 days just
can't catch up, let alone forecast where and
how many. He cites a Chattanooga area news
publication as stating that between 60 and
100 NEW towers will be built within the next
year! Most of these range in height from 400
to 2000 feet. Many are unlighted!
He further states that missing towers is
similar to being a fighter pilot. There are no
points for second place. A voiding 999 out of
a thousand doesn' t work. He also rightfully
wonders if the present FAA legal" 1 ,200 and
three" is always safe. Will you bet your life
that the chart maker got 'em all?
In closing he makes real sense by saying
24 APRIL 1998
PaSSitto
Buel{
Scud Running is a "Thing of the past! "
I agree with him, completely! We flew on
skis this winter here in northern Illinoi s.
Most of the flying was 500 feet or so, and we
had a lot of fun . On thing became quite no-
ticeable , though, and that is the sudden
proliferation ofTOWERS around here.
At the Vintage Aero Club meeting Sun-
day, a conversation tinged with alarm at just
how many of these towers are cropping up
around here was a big topic. There was a lot
of gnashing of teeth and bewilderment as to
just what could be done about it. All came
away with a resigned attitude, and maybe
rightfully so.
FCC is issuing permits without any notifi-
cation to FAA or any interested or concerned
parties. Seems like the tower people just find
a high piece of ground, offer the owner a siz-
able rental dollar and throw up a tower before
anyone notices.
What can we do? I sure don't have the an-
swer, but I'm sure going to be a lot more
wary and cautious flying these days. That old
way of jumping up to 400 feet and dead reck-
oning with an occasional glimpse of the
ground is GONE! GONE forever, I'm afraid.
Pay real close attention to the minimum safe
altitudes, and REPORT all uncharted TOW-
ERS to the map makers, your friends and all
who should be aware.
Then today comes Skip Carden's Coupe
Capers. "Skip" puts out the Cessna 150-152
Newsletter as well as this Ercoupe Owners
Club monthly. He does a great job. His mem-
bership would do real well to absorb all the
really good information he puts out.
This February 1998 issue has in it a reprint
from the "Super Cub" Newsletter. The title,
VFR NOT RECOMMENDED. This is rec-
ommended reading, a perfect example of
HOW NOT TO FLY! The author has gotten
away with Scud Running for many years and
gives the excuse that he is a lot safer in mar-
ginal VFR with his Super Cub because of its
slow speed and his ability to fly 20 feet
above a road with assurance be can turn
around anytime. WOW!
Don't try that around here. Many of our
State Troopers are well aware of weather
minimums and FARs. You may be scudding
along one of the tollways or super highways
at 300 feet in marginal VFR (in your opin-
ion) and a trooper wi ll spot you. He won't
even try to get your number; he' ll just radio
down line to the next trooper to watch for
you and then they'll get your number.
The embarrassment of having to explain
away the letter you can and will get from the
FAA is no fun, and neither is the risk of find-
ing one of these new unchartered TOWERS
unexpectedly in your way. Maybe not the
tower either, but one of the guy wires.
Not the way, guys and gals. Maybe Flight
Service is overly cautious on little airplanes
and VFR flying. We have all experienced a
dark and dire forecast that was busted wide
open or was overly pessimistic, but keep
your cool and if you can't do it VFR, stay on
the nice comfortable ground, take up Gin
Rummy, or read a good book. (Vintage Air-
plane?) There is always another day!
On to the letters:
Dear Buck,
The note about the "Gooney Bird" stories
in your recent column jogged my poor mem-
ory, so I dug into my aeronautical library and
retrieved my copy of "Grand Old Lady"
which was co-authored by Lt. Cols. Carroll
V. Glines, Ir. And Wendell F. Moseley. This
book contains accounts of incidents which
are quite similar to the one you related, so I
am enclosing copies for you.
I flew the C-47 for about eight years be-
ginning in June 1952 at Brookley AFB,
Mobile, Alabama and later at Albrook in the
Canal Zone. I flew the VC-47A, C-47D, VC-
47D and C-47E. The very rare E models
were equipped with the P&W R-2000-9 with
two speed blowers as used on the C-54, and
were primarily for use at the high altitude
places such as Bogota, Quito and LaPaz
(13,400 feet). 1 have seen density altitudes
approaching 16,000 feet at this place and the
runway was unpaved at that time, so you
know we couldn' t haul much out of there.
The C-54 was my primary aircraft during
those years, but in addition to the C-47s, I
also flew the Convair which was the personal
VIP aircraft for the Air Force Commander.
We initially had an A model (240) which
was later replaced with a C-131 D. This was
an off the shelf executive 340 which the Air
Force didn't manage to screw up with a lot of
military avionics and stuff. It was a real plea-
sure to fly. For the Army Caribbean Command
chief (3 star), we flew a very plush VC-54E.
We always had excellent in-flight meals
cooked on board by a master chef, never a
cold box lunch. Got the red carpet treatment
at all our overnight stops, too.
At Albrookr was one ofahalfdozen
"professional" transportpilotsassignedto
theoperationssquadron.Wehad no copilots;
thatposition wasmannedby staffpersonnel
from Caribbean AirCommand headquarters.
Col. Moseleywas oneofthosewith whom I
flew afew trips and he was prettysharp,but
asyou might imagine,theproficiency level
ofsomeofthedeskjockeyswas nottoo
good and this sometimes created problems
thatwewon'ttalkabouthere.
The Glines/Moseley team wroteat least
twootherbooksandCol. Glinesturnedout
about20 others. He was aguestspeakerat
the national OX-5 AviationPioneersreunion
atElmiraacoupleyearsago. His subjectwas
aviation historyandheremindedusthatatthe
conclusionofhis presentationhewouldas
somequestions. The first personwith the
correctanswerreceived acopyofoneofhis
books.Ihad acoupleofrightanswersbut
wastoo slow responding. Thefinal question
as"Has anyone here flown around the
world?" Lookingaroundthe large room full
ofold-timers,manyofwhom wereretired
airlinepilots, Iwas surprisedto find Iwas
the onlyone with ahand raised. My door
pri zewas acopyofhis latesttitle"Round-
The-World-Flights." Thisexcellentbook
documents27 events includingthe Voyager
and Ann Pellegrino'sflight in 1967.At
Oshkoshlastfall shewasseatedatatablead-
jacentto ours and Bobgothersignaturein
herbook,"WorldFlight;TheEarhartTrail."
My globecirclingtrip took place in June
1971. We took aC-141 to Little Rock,
Arkansasandpickedupabigloadofsupplies
for deliveryto flood victimsin Gauhati,In-
dia. Originatingat McGuire AFB, New
Jersey,the route was LittleRock;Madrid;
Adana,Turkey; NewDelhi;Gauhati;Utapao;
Thailand; Kadena, Okinawa; Elmendorf;
Dover;and back to McGuire. Fivedaysen
routeandabitover51 hours in the air. Ihad
previouslymade many tripshalfway around
and return,butthiswas the onlytimewe
keptgoingandcompletedthecircle.
[have not made any plans for Oshkosh
thisyear.However,wedo planto be at Mid-
dletown for the Aeronca reunion and will
look for yourthere. Meanwhile, fly low and
slowand keepyournose up inthe turns.
Sincerely,
C.H.Armstrong,NC#746
Rawlings,MD
P.S.With reference to "ProperlyProp-
ping," I agree completely with Steve
Wittmanand Gene Chase. [have ascaron
myrighthandwhich constantlyreminds me
thatamagcan beoperativeevenwithswitch
off;all ittakes is abrokenorpoorlycon-
nected"P"lead.Here is an excellentAir
Forceprocedure learnedmanyyears ago:
Priorto shutdown,at idlespeed,run briefly
on eachmag an then go to OFF momentar-
ily.[ftheenginecontinuesto run you have
anopen"P"lead and you need to do some
workon it.
One final note- when Iam on theprop-
pingend ofan aircraftand the PIC is ready
for theengineto make some noise, theonly
thing Iwantto hearfrom him is "Brakes,
Throttleset,CONTACT."
Neveruse the word"Hot"since itsounds
an awful lot like"Not"or"What?"and this
is one time when you wantto be dam sure
whatis what. Nuffsed!
DearBuck,
Yes,you and Idiscussedhand propping
some time ago and Isaid then Iwould write
up somethingonthesubject. So here itis.
Handproppingairplanes is notsomething
one treats lightlyoreven casually. An air-
plane'spropellerjustmight"smitethee."
Takeitfromsomeonewho knows,as Ifound
outthe hard way.
My experiencegoes backtojustafterthe
closeofWW II, in the springof1945.I
workedasa"lineboy"atTweed-NewHaven
Aiport,New Haven,Connecticut. [would
ride mytrustybicyclefive milesaftergetting
outofschool (high) eachday and work
till the wee hours. Lots ofrib-stitching,dop-
ingand "packing"airplanes in the hangar
eachevening.
TheFBO (Reynoldsand laterUsher) had
three J-3 Cubs on line then, and that is what
weall took dual in. [was paid in flighttime
unless [needed acoupleofbucksfor adate
on the weekend.Partofthestandardlearning
processwas to hand propthe Cub before
eachandeveryflight. Theyhadthe65 Conti-
nental. Threeex-WW II fighterpilotswere
our instructors- Wayne Tarbox, Bill
Williams,and Art Schiebel. We were taught
by feel,smelland sound. Ourheadsnever
stoppedrotatinginall directions,all thetime.
No time to look inside(noGPS, eh?)except
to quicklyscanthegauges.
Theproppingcommandswere simple,
positive,and to thepointfor hand starting
the engine.Switch off,throttleclosed,fuel
on.Whenthepropperfelt itwasgettingjuice
(viathedrippingon theground)andthatsuc-
tion noise, it was ready to fire up.The next
command from the propperwas- brakes,
throttlecrached,"CONTACT."The pilot
would repeateach command verbatim. With
thatthepropwas pulledthroughto start.And
we did putour right leg up to "our"left,to
come down with the pullon the prop as a
counterweightto "pull"ourbodyoutofthe
wayastheenginestarted.
There was noneofthis businessof"ok."
"I'mready,""yup,"or"goahead."Yes,Ihave
heardtheseremarks latelyfrom the guyin the
cockpitas rhandpropped theirairplane.And
someofthem hightimeATPs.Unbelievable.
Guys, thingshavenotchanged in 1998.If
you own orfly an antiqueorclassic, it' sstill
thesamedeal. IfIwere in thecockpitand the
guy proppingdid notuse thestandardcom-
mands, and ifIcouldnotsee him, Iwould
refuse to go fly the airplane,especiallyifI
was not the owner. Iwouldcertainlynot
wantto know Icausedsomeguy to getall
choppedupoutthere. Notaprettysight.
HavingbeentoOshkoshandotherfly-ins
aroundthecountrythe past few years,Ihave
had the opportunityto observeall kinds of
peopletryingto getan airplaneengineto fire
up. It'sareal eyeopener. Thereare excep-
tions,ofcourse, and thosepeople Ihighly
admire. Theoldwayworked;leave it alone.
When Iwasworking that flight lineasa
kid, Igotthe opportunity(which Ivalued
veryhighly) to startall kindsofairplanes,
underall kindsofconditions. Worstsituation
was in the winter. AT -6,twin Beech,even a
Staggerwingortwo, wouldcome in with a
dead batteryorsomeotherproblem,and
would have to be propped.r lovedevery
minuteofit. [grewup an"introvert,"butbe-
causeofalotofthisvaluableexperience,
made it to extrovertstatus. Iabsolutelylove
to handprop oldairplanes,and even"some,
but not many"new ones. One learnsto re-
spectmothernature,crankyengines,weird
aviators,and sandyground.Hand propping
isasmuch ofaconfidencebuilderasunusual
flyingattitudes.
Within two months1 had the following
experience,whichtaughtme to NEVERtrust
the pilotofan airplanewhojustcame in and
"shutdown." One was aStinsonStation
Wagon. ACAPColonel hadjustcome in and
it was lateand he tookofffor home. We had
to packthe 30airplanes(all tail wheel air-
planes) in the big hangar. And that wasa
pieceofartIcanassureyou,butfun. [needed
to movetheColonel'sproponlyafew inches
to getawingoverso we couldshutthe bi g
hangardoors. Imoved itand"va-voom,"the
enginestartedand clippedthe knuckles on
my right hand. Nothingbrokeon the hand
butIran clearacross theoldairportbefore I
calmeddown.We found the magswitchstill
in the "ON"position.Therewasjustenough
fuel leftinthelinestogettheenginetofire up.
My nextbad experiencewasunderthe
samecircumstances,attheold BethanyAir-
port,not far from New Haven.Thosewere
the lasttimes thathappenedto me, over50
yearsago.
Ournew generation should bewillingto
learn from us olderfolk,to respectourback-
grounds in this business. Then maybe they
will reach "old-timer"statustoo.This could
alladdtothe"furtheranceoftheirlongevity."
Otherswill lookatus with theirthousandsof
hours in heavy iron andperhapssay,"Who
are you to tell me how to operatethis old
bird?" Well ,like Isaid,respect for those
who have and those who will. It works the
samebothways.
CONTACT!
EvCassagneres,
NC13785
Cheshire,CT
It'sOver Toyou,
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 25
April
Mystery
Plane
JANUARY MYSTERY
Our January Mystery Plane was recog-
nized by a number of members, including
H.N. "Dusty" Rhodes, Aurora, Co:
"IbelievetheMysteryPlaneappearing
in theJanuaryissueofVintageAirplaneis
aWatkinsSkylark.
"IfI'm correct, thepicturedoesnotdo
theairplanejustice.
"EnclosedisapictureofaSkylarkthat
usedto beintheDenverarea (below).Asa
youngster, Ithoughtthis Skylarkwas the
James Rezich, (EAA 19677, Al e
8348) Winnebago , IL was kind
enough to send us this month ' s
Mystery Plane, a pretty two plane
cabin job that looks like a few other
airplanes from its day. Your answer
needs to be at EAA HQ no later
than May 20, 1998 for inclusion in
the July issue of Vintage Airplane.
Good luck!
by H.G. Frautschy
Watkins Skylark
mostbeautifulairplaneIwouldeversee.
The owner, Eddie "Ace"Brittain, had
purchasedtheshipin Wichitaareaand
had "spifJeditup"substantially. Itwas a
beauty, asyoucansee.A70hpLeBlond
wasmounted,ifIremembercorrectly."
Verytrulyyours,
DustyRhodes
From Lennart Johnsson, Elds berga,
Sweden we have this word:
"TheJanuary 1998 MysteryPlaneis a
Skylarktwo-seater, builtby Watkins Air-
craftCo. in Wichita, KSanddesignedby
Wallace C. "Chet"Cummings, who was
also involvedin thedesign ofMohawk
RedskinandOverlandSport.WatkinsAir-
craft Co. builtsixorsevenSkylarks, or
ModelSL, duringitslifetimewhichlasted
from 1928to 1930. Mostofthem were
26 APRIL 1998
equippedwitha60or85 hpLeBlondra-
dialinsidean NACA cowling, buttwo of
them hada55 hp Velie, atleastwhen they
leftthefactory.
"Span: 37', length23 '6", weightempty
8851bs,gross weight 1350lbs,topspeed
(60 hpj 103 mph,cruising80mph,climb
725fpm.
"Theairplane inyourpicture, 460W,
hadcln 106andwas builtin 1930withan
85 hp LeBlondandmodeldesignation
SL-2. It was purchasednew by O.E.
Clancy, Garden City, KSwhoflew itfrom
Wichita to hishometown, whereheover-
shotthelandingandbrokethepropeller.
Atthis, Mr. Clancygotsofedup withfly-
ingthathesoldtheshipto Norman F.
Kramer, Syracuse, KSwho installeda
newpropellerandusedtheshipforsev-
eralyearsbeforehesolditin late 1935 to
P.o. FisherandK.L. Brown,Ogallala,
NE. By1938 Mr. Fisherhadleftthepart-
nershipandtheairplanewasownedsolely
byKenneth Brown. That'swhattheregis-
terssay, exceptthe brokenpropeller
about which Ireadaboutin theAAA
News, July-August1967. "
Sincerely,
LennartJohnsson
- Continuedonpage28-
'.
VINTAGE TRADER
Something to buy,
sell or trade?
An in expensive ad in the Vintage Trader may bejust the answer to
obtaining that elusive part . . 50 per word, $8. 00 minimum charge. Send
your ad and payment to: Villtage Trader, EAA Aviatioll Cellter, P,O.
Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086, or fax your ad and your credit
card number to 920/426-4828. Ads must be received by the 20th ofthe
lII onthfor insertiOIl in the issue the second month/allowing (e.g. ,
October 20th for the December issue.)
MISCELLANEOUS
BABBln BEARING SERVICE -rod bearings, main bearings, camshaft bear-
ings, master rods , valves. Call us Toll Free 1/800/23 3-6934 . e-mail
ramremfg@aol.com http://members.aol .com/ ramremfg/home/sales.html
VINTAGE ENGINE MACHINE WORKS, N. 604 FREYA ST., SPOKANE, WA 99202.
(1440)
FREE CATALOG: Aviation books and videos. How to, building and restoration
tips, historic, flying and entertainment titles. Call for a free catalog. EAA,
1-800-843-3612.
National Aircraft Finance Company. We finance most types of aircraft including
experimentals. No aircraft age limit. Call 1-800-999-3712, Fax 941 -646-1671 .
Email-nafco@airloans.com Homepage http://www.airshow.neVnafco
New video - Hand Propping! $24.95 plus $3 s&H. FREE BROCHURE & CATA-
LOG! 800/296-1147. Visa/MC/check. Larry Bartlett Aviation Videos, P.O.Box
1197, Stevens Field , Pagosa Springs, CO 81147.
RESTORATION CRAFTSMEN - A&P, I-A, over 35 years experience. Tube, fab-
ric, sheet metal, custom wood wings our specialty. Reasonable shop rate. Phone
for information. Avondale Airmotive, 740/453-6889, 740/455-9900. (0088)
WANTED CURTISS JENNY CANUCK PARTS - Stabilizer, elevators, fuselage
controls, tail post frttings; also instruments. Anything for the Canuck, what have
you,740/453-6889. (0089)
PLANS FOR CLASSIC AIRPLANES (SUN 'n FUN BLDG D BOOTH 40) - TRAVEL
AIR 2000 $350 .00. PARAMOUNT CABINAIRE $350.00. CURTISS JENNY
$275.00. Fabricated parts available for experimental aircraft only. Experimental
"TRAVEL AIR 2000" completed 40 hour test program. Original OX-5 Curtiss
Wright replaced by Chevrolet 350 V-8. Gear reduction by THRUST INC. Model
200. Information kit including video $30.00. Contact THRUST/ BUD ROGERS,
2764 Navigator Avenue, Sanford, Florida 32773, Phone 407/324-9433, Fax
407/324-1233.
Dixie magneto switch (dual), $395 - Curtiss magneto switch, $445 - Heath-
Henderson engine and prop, $1950 - Brass 2' Venturi , $125 - American Optical
"pursuit" flight goggles, $195 - "Gnome" overhaul manual, $195 - Consolidated
tachometer, $185 - Lindbergh style 1920's flying suit, $325. 01' Jon Aldrich,
209/962-6121 .
CASTINGS: Stock and custom manufactured, exhaust manifolds, heads, water
pumps, pulleys, air intakes, brackets, cylinder sleeves, blocks. Wax investment,
plaster and dry sand molding. Complete tooling and machining. MOTOR
FOUNDRY & TOOUNG, INC. , 1217 Kessler Dr., EI Paso, TX 79907 USA, Ph. No.
915/595-1277, Fax 915/595-3167. ATTN: Valor D. Blazer. (0144)
Storage Surplus - 6' Maule tail wheel , fibergl ass battery box, Cub/Aeronca
engine mount, unused. Call for info. 8031797-1877 after 6:00 p.m.
Aeronca Chief - Good nose bowl and spinner, new McDowell starter. Mike
Ri card, 978/692-1738.
ARLINGT
The West's Premier EAA Event
HOMEBUILTS ANTIQUES
ULTRALIGHTS
CLASSICS HELICOPTERS
WARBIRDS
AIRCRAFT FLYBYS &AIRSHOW
EVERYDAY
EXHIBITS - FORUMS
FLY MARKET
AIRCRAFT
JUDGING &
AWARDS
FAMILY ACTIVITIES -
CAMPING
OUTDOOR RUNWAY THEATER
EACH EVENING
HOT AIR BALLOON RALLY
HOME BUILDERS WORKSHOP
COMPLETE FOOD SERVICE
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 27
MysteryPiane
-Continuedonpage28-
WaltHouse,ofWichita,KShadplenty
to addtothestory:
"...Thereweresixbuilt,serial1and
101 through 106, with theexception of
104. There is no recordofit, butaDr.
Donald0. Howardherein Wichitasaid
heandhisfriend, Glenlorlam owned
onewhichhesayswasneverregistered.
It maybethemissing No. 104.Hesaid
theyassembleditoutofacratein 1933.
Forsomereason it was neverassembled
atthefactory."
"E.A. WatkinshiredChetCummingsto
design itandis why itlookssomuchlike
theMohawkPinto,whichhealsodesigned.
"TheSkylarkwerecertifiedon CAA
Group2approval, 2-182issuedFebruary
21, 1930.The companywasclosedin 1930
liketheotherdozen orsoherein theAir
Capitalduringthedepression. Thefactory
wasat2300E. Douglas. TheKansasAvi-
ation HistoryMuseum woulddearlylove
to haveaSkylark. Whereis460Wtoday?"
Regards,
WaltHouse
Othercorrectanswerswere received
from: Bill Ewertz, Sonoma,CA; Remo
Galezzzi,Petaluma,CA; Vic Smith,
Uxbridge,Middlesex,United Kingdom;
RobertEvans, Allentown, PA and Roy
Cagle, Prescott,AZ.
SendyourMysteryPlanecorrespondenceto:
Vintage MysteryPlane
EAA
P.D. Box3086
Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086 ....
AIRCRAFT INSURANCE
Insureitasyourestoreit!
TailfeatherstDnosegear,
welovevintageaircraft!
USandCanada
800-276-5207
www.avemoo.oom
InJlCandQuebec
ffiWliCiIl
CAVEMCO
INSURANCE COMPANY
28 APRil 1998
Services
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Anne Anderson ..... Santa Barbara, CA
William L. Barger .... ... . Sonoma, CA
George J. Barker. .... . .. . Leesburg, FL
Thomas C. Bartholomew .. Stanwood, W A
Richard Bayley ....... . Truensville, WI
Ronald D. Black ... . . Valley Center, KS
James A. Blackwell ..... Tylertown, MS
Roger Bond........... Lecompton, KS
Stephen T. Booth . . . .. . Blacksburg, V A
Warren Art Campbell . .. . Fullerton, CA
John Carl ..... .. ...... Louisville, KY
Eugene A. Clark ..... . . . Cedar Hill, TN
Dwayne L. Clemens . ..... . Wicruta, KS
John Critenden . . . .... . North Hills, CA
Doyle W. Curti s . ....... .. Verona, WI
Harry E. Dawson, Jr. ... ... . Rome, GA
E. Dickens ... . . . .... ... ... Ocala, FL
John Stephen Dunn .. . . Panama City, FL
William Eddy ............. Tulsa, OK
Charles Feltman ........ Oceanside, CA
Robert F. Forest .... . ... . St. Pauls, NC
Joe Frigo, Jr. ... . ... . .. Cullowhee, NC
John H. Garrett ... ... . Costa Mesa, CA
Ed Gelvin . .. . .......... . Central, AK
Walter Glenna..... . . Chisago City, MN
Sean P. Gonia . ..... . . . . Princeton, WI
Lee Granberry ..... . ..... Portland, TX
Jeffrey Greenawalt .. ..... Fairfield, PA
Kurt F. Gubert . . .. ....... . Ashley, MI
Jerald L. Hanson ...... . . Yorkville, IL
Gary G. Hill .. .. . .. .. . . .. Seattle, W A
Michael Hillman ........ Lafayette, LA
Donald W. Hinds .... . . Woodstock, GA
Martin G. Hockett ... ... Richmond, V A
Douglas Hormann . ..... . Hillsboro, OR
Eddie Howard . . ... .. . ... St. John, WA
Jim Howe ........ .. . Georgetown, CA
Grey Herman Huxter
. . .. ...... . .. W1Utby, Ontario, Canada
Lynn N. Ista . . Inver Grove Heights, MN
Sam J. Jacobsen . .. . Incline Village, NY
Allan E. Johnson .. . .... Stillwater, MN
E. H. Kirby .... . ......... Panacea, FL
Dan Lakeman .. . . ..... . Haleyville, AL
Jim Lang .... . .... . . . ... Buckley, WA
W. R. Langston .. . .. ...... Kemah, TX
Paul Leugers ... . ..... . Cincinnati, OH
Ron Lowe ... ....... .. .. Pali sade, CO
Russell Megee . .. . . Edgewater Park, NJ
Myron Mitchell ... ... North Scituate, RI
JeffM. Montgomery ..... . .. Kent, WA
John F. O' Brien .. Westlake Village, CA
Bill Ogletree . . ......... St. Helena, CA
Mike Osborne ........ . ... Benson, NC
Garland S. Paulk ... . . .. ... Apopca, FL
John M. Pepple .. .. . ..... Mohnton, PA
Charles B. Perkins ..... .. . Newark, DE
James Perrotti . . ..... Londonderry, NH
Michael 1. Pomovets ... Jacksonville, FL
Gretchen C. Prendergast . . Charlotte, NC
Terry L. Presley ...... Ri sing Fawn, GA
Peggy Raduenz ........ Watertown, WI
Jennifer Raduenz ... . . . . Watertown, WI
Sara Raduenz... ... . . . . Watertown, WI
Ernest R. Raffield
.. .. .. . ...... . Panama City Beach, FL
Peter B. Reed .......... . . Goshen, OH
William M. Rentz . ..... .. . Orlando, FL
James H. Replogle.... . . Las Vegas, NY
Guillermo E. Rios .... . .. . . . Ponce, PR
R. Vincent Santorelly
.. ........ . ... New Smyrna Beach, FL
Brett A. Scheidel .. . . . .. . Nicolaus, CA
Charles Scrusler. ..... Westminster, MD
Charles E. Selsor ..... . Schaumburg, IL
William J. Shults . . Sun City Center, FL
Stephen Smith ... .. .... Crestwood, KY
Bruce E. Smith ...... Battleground, W A
James F. Sprague ......... .. Craig, AK
John Tempest
... . . . . Shoreham By Sea, Great Britain
Larry D. Todd ... . .... ... Wasilla, AK
Richard Wells . ....... . ... Tempe, AZ
Irwin Whittemore, Jr.. ... .. Sarasato, FL
Todd T. Wilkinson .... . Rosamond, CA
Mark A. Williams ..... Mt. Pleasant, SC
David Wittenmyer. ... .. Waterville, OH
Walter Yankauskas ... . . San Diego, CA
Fly-In Calendar
The following list ofcoming events is fur-
nished t o our readers as a matt er of
information only and does not constitute
approval, sponsorship, involvement, control
or direction ofany event (fly- in, seminars,
fly market, etc.) li sted. Please send the
information to EAA, Au: Golda Cox, P.O.
Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Infor-
mation should be received four months
p rior to the event date.
APRIL 16-1 7 - ST. AUGUSTINE, FL - Fifth East
Coast ILPA Gathering. Info: Hamilton Upchurch,
9041797-7557, FAX 9041825-4862
APRIL 18 - HUNTSVILLE, AL - Moontown Airport.
EAA Chapter 190 Fly-In sausage, egg alld pan-
cake Eat 'Em Up Breakfast. 205-852-9781.
APRIL 19-25 - LAKELAND, FL - 24th AII/Illal
EAA Fly-In & Sport Aviatioll Conventioll.
9411644-2431.
APRIL 25 - LEVELLAND, TX - EAA Chapter 19
Fly-In Breakfast. 8-10 a.m. Info: 8061794-5961.
APRIL 25-26 - SPRINGFIELD, IL - 5th Annual
Charlie Wells Memorial Fly- In B fast.
2171483-3201.
APRIL 28 - HALF MOON BA Y, CA - 8th Annual Pa-
cific Coast Dream Machin es, to benefit the
Coastside Adult Health Center. Info: 6501726-2328.
MAY 1-3 - ROANOKE RAPIDS, NC - Spring EAA
Fly-In sponsored by EAA AIC Chapter 3. Vintage
videos, barbeque, major speaker, awards in all
categories. EAAfellowship. Fax to Ray Bollom:
7571873-3059.
MAY 1-3 - CLEVELAND, OH -14th Annual Air Rac-
ing History Symposium. 2161255-8100.
MA Y 2 - NORTH KINGSTON, RI - Quonset State Air-
port (former Quonset Naval Air Station). Annual
Pancake breakfast, 8 a.m. - I p.m. No rain date.
MA Y 3 - DAYTON, OH - EAA Ch. 48 Fly-In B 'Fast.
Moraine Airpark. 9371878- 9832.
MA Y 9 - ENGLEWOOD, CO - Centennial Airport.
Just Plane Fun For Kids airport open house. Info:
Mall GrolV, 3031790-0598.
MAY 16 - HUNTSVILLE, AL - Moontown Airport.
EAA Chapter 190 All Day Annual "Old Fash-
ioned Fly-In. " Info:2051852-9781.
MAY 16 - TRENTON, NJ - Chapter 176 Young Eagles
Fly- In, rain date 5117. Call 6091895-0234 for
location.
MAY 16 - WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI - EAA Chapter
706 Pancake BreaAfast Fly-In. 715/435-3644.
MAY 16-1 7- HICKORY, NC - 6th annual Warbirds
over Hickory Fly-In. 9:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. Info:
7041437-0541.
MAY 16-/ 7 - MEMPHIS, TN - EAA SportAir Work-
shop. 8001967-5746.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 29
MAY 17 - WARWICK, NY - Warwick Aerodrome
(N72). JO a.m.-4 p.m. Food, trophies, Judging reg.
closes at 2p.m. Info: Harry Barker, 973/838-7485.
MAY 23 - FREDRICKSB URG, TX - Gillespie
County airport (T82) EAA Chapter 1088 brunch
and fundraiser for A WOS. Info: Stan Shannon
830-997-8802 or shannons@jbg.net.
JUNE 4-7 - JACKSONVILLE, IL - 1998 Ercoupe
National Convention. Everyone welcome. Info:
John Wright, Jr. 217/698-8243.
JUNE 5-6 - MERCED, CA - Annual Merced West
Coast Fly-In. 209/383-4632.
JUNE 5-6 - BARTLESVILLE, OK - Frank Phillips
Field - 12th Annual National Biplane Convention
and Exposition. Biplane Expo '98. Biplanes and
NBA members free - all others pay admission.
Info: 918/622-8400 or 918/336-3976.
JUNE 5-6 - MERCED, CA - 41st Merced West Coast
Antique Fly-ln. Info: Virginia or Ed Morford,
209/383-4632.
JUNE 6- 7- MEDFORD, OR - EAA Chapter 319
Rouge Valley Family Fly-ln. Info: Cindy Walker,
541/855-9036.
JUNE 7 - JUNEA U, WI. - EAA Chapter 897 's an-
nual Fly-In Breakfast, 8 a.m. - I p.m. Dodge
County Airport, Juneau, WI (920) 885-4035.
JUNE 12-14 - MA TTOON, IL - Luscombe Fly-ln. Coles
County Memorial Airport (MTO) 217/234-7120.
JUNE 13 - INTERNA TIONAL YOUNG EAGLES
DA Y. Contact the EAA Young Eagles office,
920/426-4831.
JUNE 13 - TRENTON, NJ - ChapTer 176 Young Ea-
gles Fly-In, rain date 6/14. Call 609/895-0234 for
location.
JUNE 13 - ANDOVER, NJ - Andover-Aeroflex Air-
porT, 12N. Olde fashioned fly-in sponsored by
EAA A/C Chapter 7. Old birds, Young Eagles,
Flying Start, Penny-a-pound flights, good eats.
973/786-5682, 973-361-0875. Rain date 6/14.
JUNE 13-/4 - FR EDERICK, MD - EAA SportAir
Workshop. 800/967-5746.
JUNE 13-/4 - GAINESVILLE, TX - 36Th Annual
Texas AAA Chapter Fly-in. Info: 940/668-4564.
web site: hrtp://www.coke.neti-airport
JUNE 14 - FULTON, NY - Oswego County Airport
(FlY) EAA Chapter 486 Pancake Breakfast fea-
IIIring biplanes. Awardfor Best Biplane. Info: Ken
Graves 315/466-6928.
JUNE 18-21- CRE VE COEUR, MO - Creve Coeur air-
port. American Waco Club Fly-ln. Info: Phil Coulson:
616/624-6490 or Jerry Brown: 317/535-8882.
JUNE 20-21 - LACROSSE, WI - AirFesT '98 Two day
airshow. Info: 608/781-5271. Check NO TA MS for
field closure.
JUNE 20 - HUNTSVILLE, AL - Moomown Airport.
EAA Chapter 190 Fly-In sausage, egg and pan-
cake Eat 'Em Up Breakfast. 205-852-9781.
JUNE 20 - COOPERSTOWN, NY (NY54) - EAA Ch.
1070 Fly-In B'Fast. 607/ 547-2526. Rain: 6/21.
JUNE 20 - LAGRANGE, OH - EAA Ch. 255 Fly- In
Breakfast. 440/355-649/.
JUNE 20-21 - RUTLAND, VT - EAA Ch. 968 "Tail-
dragger Rendezvous " Pancake B 'jast.
802/492-3647.
JUNE 20 - MOOSE LAKE, MN - Lake Air Flying
Club Annual FZv-In breakfast. 7:30 - 11a.m. Info:
Larry Peterson 218/485-4441.
30 APRIL 1998
JUNE 20 - GA YLORD, MI - Otsego County Airport
(GLR). EAA Chapter 1095 Pancake BreakfaST
Fly-In. 7 a.m.-noon. Rain date: 6/21. Info: Tom
Lesinski, 517/786-4908, Phil CurTiss, 517/939-
8715, pcurtiss@bigfoot.com
JUNE 20-21 - BARABOO, WI - Baraboo-Dells Airport
Times. Breakfast served by the Optimist Club from
7:30am to 12pm, RA IN OR SHINE! $4.50, Chil-
dren 6-10 $3,5 & under free. Info: Joe Canepa,
608/356-6822 (W), 608/356-0429 (H), 608/356-
7558 (FAX) or email at jcanepa@midplains.net
JUNE 21- SCHAUMBURG, IL - Schaumburg Re-
gional Airport (6C) - EAA ChapTer 153 Pancake
breakfast, 8 a.m.-noon. Info: 630/830-0559.
JUNE 25-28 - MT. VERNON, OH - Wynkoop Air-
port. 39th Annual National Waco Club Reunion.
Info: Andy Heins, 937/866-6692 or email at waco-
club@aol.com
JUNE 27-28 - DENVER, CO - EAA SportAir Work-
shop (Covering/Composites). 800/ 967-5746.
JUNE 27-28 -PETERSBURG, VA (PDA) - VA State
EAA Fly-In. 804/358-4333.
JUNE 27-28 -LONGMONT, CO - 20th Allllual
Rocky Moulltaill EAA Fly-III. 303/798-6086.
JUNE 28 - ANDERSON, IN - EAA Chapter 226 Fly-
In breakfast.
JUNE 28-JULY 3 - LAKELAND, FL - 30th Annual
International Cessna 170 Assoc. convention. 1nfo:
Dale or Marty Faux: 941/646-4588.
JULY 3-5 - CREVE COEUR, MO - Creve Coeur air-
port (I HO). Great War Fly-In. Info: Don Parsons.
314/397-5719, PlsurFlyin@aol.comor Tim Adcock,
314/861-0183 ADFEST@aol.com
JULY 4- FREDRICKSBURG, TX - Gillespie County
airport (T82) EAA Chapter 1088 4th ofJuly
parade. Info: Stan Shannon 830-997-8802 or
shannons@jbg.net
JULY 8-12 - ARLINGTON, WA - Northwest EAA Fly-
In. 360/435-5857. Web site: Wlvw.mveaa. org!nweaal
JULY 10-12 - LOMPO C, CA - 14th annual West
Coast Piper ClIb Fly- In. Info: Bruce Fall,
805/733-1914.
JULY 10-12 - ALLIANCE, OH - Alliance-Barber
Airport (2Dl). Taylorcraft Owners Club and Tay-
lorcraft Old-Timer's 26th Annual Reunion. 1nfo:
330/823-9748,823-1168 or email attcraft@al-
Iiancelink.com
JULY 10-12 - PITTSFIELD, IL - Pitrsfield Penstone
Airport - July 10-12. Gathering ofEagles. Fly-In
breakfast on Sunday. Camping on field, motels
and transportation available. Info: 217/285-4756.
JULY 11 - FREDRICKSBURG, TX - Shannon ranch
fly-in. Info: Stan Shannon 830-997-8802 or shan-
nons@jbg. net
JULY 11 - PUNTA GORDA, FL - EAA Ch. 565 B'-
fast. Y. Eagles. 941/575-6360
JULY 11-12 -ATLANTA, GA - EAA SportAir Work-
shop. 800/967-5746.
JULY 12 - RENSSELAER, IN - EAA Ch. 828 Fly-In/
Drive-In Lunch. 219/866-5587.
JULY 12 - NAPLES, FL - EAA Ch. 1067 Pancake
Breakfast. 9411 261-5701.
JULY 13-16 - MIDDLETOWN, OH - Short Wing
Piper Club Convention Fly-ln. 513/398-2656.
JULY 18 - HUNTSVILLE, AL - Moontown Airport.
EAA Chapter 190 Fly-In sausage, egg and pan-
cake Eat 'Em Up Breakfast. 205-852-9781.
JULY 18 - COOPERSTOWN, NY (NY54) - EAA Ch.
1070 Fly-In B'Fast. 607/547-2526. Rain: 7/19.
JULY 24 - COFFEYVILLE, KS - Funk Aircraft
Owners Assoc. Reunion. Info: 302/674-5350.
JULY 24-26 - MERRILL, WI - Hatz CB-I Anniver-
sary Reunion. 715/536-3197.
JULY 26 - BURLINGTON, WI- 6th annual g.roup Er-
coupe fly-in to Oshkosh. Wheels up at 1p.m.
Everyone welcome to join. Info: Syd Cohen,
715/842-7814.
JULY 29-Aug. 4 - OSHKOSH, WI - 46th
Annual EAA Fly-In and Sport Aviation
Convention. Wittman RegionalAirport.
Contact EAA, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh,
WI 54903-3086, 920/426-4800.
JUNE /4 - FULTON, NY - Oswego County Airport
(FlY) EAA Chapter 486 Pancake Breakfastfea-
turing vintage aircraft, cars and motorcycles.
Awards. Info: Ken Graves, 3151466-6928.
AUGUST 9 - QUEEN CITY, MO - Applegate Airport
11th annual Fly-In. Everyone welcome.
660/766-2644.
AUGUST 9 - MENDOTA, IL - Grandpa 's Airport.
EAA Chapter 263 Fly-In breakfast, plus trans-
portation to the Sweet Carll Festival that
afternoon. Info: 815/539-6815 or -5378.
AUGUST 15-16 - KANSAS CITY, KS - Downtown
Kansas City Airport (MKC). Kansas City Expo
'98. Young Eagles rally.
SEPT. 6 - NA PPANEE, IN - Fly-In/Drive-In Ice
Cream Social. 1-4 p.m. Info: Fast Eddie Milleman,
219/773-2866.
SEPT. 12 - TRENTON, NJ - Chapter 176 Youllg Ea-
gles Fly-In, rain date 9/13. Call 609/895-0234 for
location. Sept. 12-13 - MARlON, OH - Mid-EaST-
ern EAA Fly-In (MERFI). 513/849- 9455.
Sept. 12-13 - MA RION, OH - Mid-Eastern EAA Fly-
III (MERF/). 513/849- 9455.
SEPT. 12-13 - HAGARSTOWN, IL - EAA Chapter
373 Fly- l n. Cook out and camping Sat.
aft.levening, breakfast Sun a.m. Info: Marvin
Stohler, 7651489-4292.
SEPT. 19-20 - STERLING, IL - Sterling-Rock Falls
Whiteside Co. Airport (SQI). NCEAA Old Fash-
ioned Fly-ln . Info: Dolores Neunteufel ,
630-543-6743.
SEPT. 25-2 7 - ATWATER, CA - Castle Airport (for-
merly Castle Air Force Base) Golden West EAA
Regional Fly In. Info: Lela Edson, 530/626-8265
or email: edson@foothill.net
SEPT. 26 - OLATHE, KS - Olathe Executive Airport
(OJC). Annual EAA/FAA Partnership Fly-In and
Young Eagle Rally.
Oct. 8-11 - MESA, AZ - Copperstate EAA Fly-In.
520/228-5480.
Oct. 9-11 - EVERGREEN, AL - Southeast EAA F1y-
111. 334/765-91 09.
Oct. 10-11 - WILMINGTON, DE - East Coast EAA
Fly-III. 302/738-8883.
OCT. 10-1 I - FRANKLIN, VA - 28th Annual EAA
Chapter 339 Fly-ln. Ultralights to Warbirds. Info:
757/486-5192 or 460-3680.
OCT. 17 - TRENTON, NJ - Chapter 176 Young Ea-
gles Fly-In, rain date 10/17. Call 609/895-0234
for location.
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TheBendix)(Stromberg)
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-Continued/rom page 21-
The weight itself is locally made made out of 3/32 brass
sheet, and is soft soldered to the end of the float lever op-
posite the float. Normall y, this would only be done at the
time of overhaul by an overhaul facility. Since the Delrin
needle is lighter than the older steel or neoprene tipped
needle, it is imperative the 4 gram weight be added.
As a matter of interest, the folks in the accessories de-
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enough to point out that even with a new Delrin needle, 15
to 20 minutes is about the longest one can expect before
the needle wi ll begin to leak sli ghtly (a drip every so of-
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sli ghtly when at rest, and turning the fuel off is the only
sure way to be certain no fuel wi ll dribble out of the carb
air box and only the ground.
If you're planning on a carb overhaul, be certain to ob-
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