fabric for b-36

bryang · **Joined:** Tue Aug 09, 2005 12:16 pm **Posts:** 45

I work at the strategic air and space museum in nebraska, restoring aircraft.
We are restoring the interior of the b-36, I was wondering if anybody knows
where we can get the vinyl that covers the inside, side of the aircraft, or somthing close to it. its vinyl with a rubber back, and kind of od green.
If anybody knows of supplier or company i would sure appreciate it.
thanks
bryan

N3Njeff · **Posted:** Sat Apr 12, 2008 3:47 pm

how much of it are you looking for?????? You might try some of the military vehicle dealers....................sounds like the same stuff that MV vinyl tops are made from...................if you found a deuce & half vinyl cargo cover, you may get enough material.

Eric Friedebach · **Posted:** Sat Apr 12, 2008 6:00 pm

Bryan, do you mean “SkyFelt” with the diamond stitching pattern?

bryang · **Joined:** Tue Aug 09, 2005 12:16 pm **Posts:** 45

yes, I believe thats the name of it, it was put up on the inside of the aircraft in the crew compartment, basically isulation that was riveted into place usually

tom d. friedman · **Posted:** Sat Apr 12, 2008 10:44 pm

let's see some pics please!! your a lucky dog to be working on such a rarity!! where did it come from??

6trn4brn · **Posted:** Sun Apr 13, 2008 7:50 am

Hey there bryang...could you help tom and I out here...sure would be great to see some pix of the inside of that wonderful bird!!! The more the better

bryang · **Joined:** Tue Aug 09, 2005 12:16 pm **Posts:** 45

i should make it clear i'm not the main person working on this project, i do help but the credit goes to many other very skilled people. that said, if i can get some pics of the main cockpit thats been done for a little while, I would be happy to post them. We had a guy come take pictures that designs flight simulators, he was shocked at the quality of the restoration of the main flight deck, a true testament to the guys that did it. We, they are working on the crew compartment right now, with plans to do the lower flight deck as they progress. I will be there next saturday and will try to get and then try to figure out how to post them. What i have mainly been doing is helping to put new fabric, done the right way instead of aluminum, on the control surfaces of the b-29, I'm trying to learn since this art is king being lost, but there again, I'm helping and the credit goes to the guy heading that up. lots of work to do this, very time consuming, if you would like pictures of that I'd be happy to get them

6trn4brn · **Posted:** Sun Apr 13, 2008 9:35 am

bryan...thanx for any and all pix that you can get of inside the Big Stick or anything you may be working on. A lot of us here on WIX are just plain strange in our wanting to see the insides and outsides of old airplanes, especially something as rare as the B-36! Any other photos you can take of any of the aircraft in that collection are always welcome here.

As far as posting the pix here...ummm...if you are anywhere near as technologically challenged as I am, it takes a while to figure it out, but I found that the photobucket instructions will get ya posting pix. Take a look at the main page here in the hangar for how to set it all up.

Thanx in advance for your future pix

Second Air Force · **Posted:** Sun Apr 13, 2008 11:12 am

Darrell,

You just jogged a memory in my rusty old brain---my wife (girlfriend at the time) and I spent almost six hours in the SAC Museum B-36 in 1977. I took several rolls of film of the interior that day with my little Instamatic camera. I was starting a 1/48th scale model of the '36 at that time, and asked the lady at the desk if there was any way we could get inside. She happily marched us down to the Director's office and sat us down in front of his desk. After visiting for a few minutes, he picked up a keyring, we went out to the display area, he unlocked the airplane, and told us to lock the padlocks when we were done! I was able to tour the entire airplane, from bombardier station to tail cone and out into the wing maintenance access bays. At that time, the navigator's last log, aircraft log, and other paperwork still sat in their normal stowage spaces. With some cleaning and dusting, the airplane would have appeared to be fully operational on the inside. There were a couple of missing instruments and two or three knobs were gone off of some radar equipment, but that was the extent of "damage".

I will make my best effort to find the photos I took that day, they aren't good by today's standards, but I think I still have them.

Scott

6trn4brn · **Posted:** Mon Apr 14, 2008 4:56 am

HOLYMOLEE Scott! You lucky dog!!! Man, that must have been awe-inspiring to say the least! Can't imagine them letting anyone have free reign like that these days

The closest to that would have to be at the NMUSAF where you walk under the bomb bays and can see some of the millions of miles of wiring and piping and such. Nothing close to what you got to do! You lucky dog

Second Air Force · **Posted:** Mon Apr 14, 2008 9:45 am

That was (and still is) a great museum. At the time when we "got the keys" to the B-36, the collection was still on an unused runway/taxiway stub at Offutt AFB. It was a Monday or Tuesday if I recall, so there weren't many other folks there.

Even though the aircraft suffered from being on outdoor display, the collection was huge before the move to the new museum. I especially loved the C-124, '133, B-52B, B-58, etc. It's great that the planes they still have are getting the attention they deserve and indoor display, but, on a nice fall day, it was a great experience walking among the behemoths parked on an actual runway.

Still haven't found my photos!
Scott

Second Air Force · **Posted:** Mon Apr 14, 2008 10:31 am

Second Air Force · **Posted:** Mon Apr 14, 2008 10:34 am

Well, I found one photo. That's Ellen sitting under the #4 inlet duct and me at the tail of the SAC Museum B-36J. The photo was taken in July of 1976 by my brother. Wow, I had hair then.

Scott

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fabric for b-36

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