Photos and info from NASM

[Taigh Ramey]

Hello,

I believe JohnS was asking about the HE-219 project at Hazy. Here are a few shots that I took on a recent visit.




What I like about this shot is the paint that was under the wing fairing is factory original. You can see how they repainted the fuselage to match the pattern that was on the fuselage and how they tried to blend it into the original paint.



Here are the wings in the restoration shop. You can see the condition of the original paint which is what necessitated the restoration.


This is one of the engines from the HE-219


Here is a close up of the same engine showing the quality of the restoration. Some is original factory finish and some has been restored. I like how the emphasis is on preserving the original finish as opposed to stripping and repainting everything which is a common practice at many museums.


Here is a shot of the P-61 cockpit that I took in August of 2005 before the clean up.


Here is the same view as she is today at Hazy. They intend to keep her as she was modified for NACA service hence the configuration differences in the instrument panel.


I recall someone asking about The Swoose. Here is a shot of her cockpit.


The Swoose really does need to be put through the restoration process and brought to Hazy. She is a true diamond in the rough. She looks real good and in my opinion is in great shape. Her "executive" interior is all there and even though it is falling apart it will provide all of the information needed for her restoration. Hopefully some day she will be put back together along with Flak Bail and all of the other awesome birds waiting in the wings...pun intended.


I recall John Peters asking about the 4 gun ball turret:

"I remember seeing a photo of a 4 gunned ball turret which I believe is kept in storage at the NASM (don't quote me on the museum). Apparently this was strictly a prototype and never saw service. Either way it was a mean looking S.O.B. and would've packed quite a punch. However, I still can't figure out how they could've stuffed four .50 cals when there was hardly room for two? If anybody out there has any pictures of this I'd love to see it again. John"

Here is a shot of the experimental 4 gun ball turret at Garber:


Here is how the guns were fit into the end bells:

The guns were tilted and their position changed to accommodate the vertical stacking. On the one shot you can see what looks like weld beads around one of the gun ports.

It must have been fun to charge the guns by reaching across your chest.

Talk about a tight fit. Firing two 50's next to your ear is bad enough but sitting between 4 of them at 450 rounds per minute must have been unbearable!

[PhantomAce08]

Great shots! Do you have anything else from the restoration shop we can see?

[Taigh Ramey]

Here are some more photos:









Here is the center section of Flak Bait


Flak Bait's right outboard bomb rack


Her tail gun compartment


Flak Bait’s right side aft fuselage. You can see the right waist gunner's opening at the bottom. Note on this and the wing photo how the red border on the star and bar from 1943 has been painted out by hand with a brush. Too cool!


Here is one of her wings. You can see how she earned her name. Look at all of the patches on this one section. She has these patches all over! I was fascinated to see that the patches were painted over with thick zinc and a brush.


A beautiful un restored Jenny


An un restored P-63A-10BE serial number 42-70255

[APG85]

Great pictures! Nice shots of the Swoose. Wonder what happened to her instrument panel?
I've said this before...put them together and put them on display despite their current condition - "store them on display at the Hazy center". Then as time and money permits, cycle them into restoration. This way the general public gets to see them even if they are in "rough" shape...

[Richard W.]

Great shots, Taigh.

Thanks for posting them.

[slinky]

Taigh, those are some great pics, thanks so much for sharing. There are so many gems that are truly time capsules waiting their turn in the shop. It's a shame they don't have the backing to do more, but what they do with what they have is just amazing. These pics and those that others take will show those in the future just what these machines were like prior to the life being breathed back into these treasures. Thanks again for sharing....

[Scott Rose]

Great stuff Taigh, mind if I grab some for the registry?

[Kaigun Fan]

Hello,

I absolutely love your pictures! Great details on some rare warbirds. Do you have any pictures of some of the rare Imperial Japanese Navy warbirds in storage at NASM (like the Shinden ot Tenzan)?

Thanks,

Ron W.

[Pat Carry]

Very nice photos of the collection at Garber! thanks

[Former Member]

Taigh,

Thanks for pics of the experimental 4 barreled ball turret. One can only imagine the noise and the kick from those four .50's blasting away.

John

[lmritger]

The Ta 152 instrument panel... it's green! That's not 66, folks... man, this is AWESOME stuff. Thank you sooooo much for these pics!

(That P-63 cockpit is nothing short of AMAZING... and note the interior color of The Swoose, Dull Dark Green... all kinds of cool crap for us modelers!)

Lynn

[peter]

The HE219 Why did they use lighter colors than the original colors that are showing?

[Django]

Wow, I wish some more would be displayed originally, like Flak Bait. 10 times more interesting as it was than it would be restored!!

[Taigh Ramey]

Hello Scott,

You are most welcome to use my photos for your registry. If you could; please credit Taigh Ramey www.twinbeech.com.

I would like to personally thank you for putting together this forum. It is a great asset to the Warbird community and certainly helps to promote aviation history. Well done!

The staff and the volunteers at the National Air and Space Museum are doing a masterful job. They are hurting by severe budget cuts and other political problems. They need our support now more than ever. I wish we could convince congress to increase their budget to help our nations awesome treasures get out on display quicker.

My hat is off to all of you at the NASM for your amazing work.

Here are some more shots as requested. I love the authenticity on display here.

Personally I would rather see a scrappy, original and authentic aircraft more so than I would a fresh restoration which usually lacks authenticity. It takes about the same amount of work to do the restoration and just a little research before you begin to recreate what was done originally. If anyone needs help with making a restoration more authentic just call me. I love to see history come alive!










This looks like a Guillows kit that I once built...

[gary1954]

I am in awe, I would love to just touch and smell these babies