Warbirdnerd wrote:
I spent the day at Tri State yesterday.
John may have a full report tomorrow, but I'll post a couple of pictures first:
Mark and Dave putting the trim jacks back in the horizontal.
A lot of the cockpit is back in place
John and Tim braved temps in the 30's to put Little Horse through her paces:
Hi guys,
Bryan thanks for posting the pictures. The project is coming along slowly...slower than most of us would prefer (Including myself). Aside from the major structural work that was completed by the Tri-State crew, the rest of what you see (And a lot of things you can’t see) have all been done by skilled volunteer labor which has helped to stretch our very minimal funding as far as possible. In spite of that, materials still cost money and unfortunately we are very near the point of having to stop work because of funding issues. In the beginning I was very optimistic about major sponsorship coming through to support this very important project however, it has not come as of yet. We will continue to hammer away on the project until the bank account has been exhausted and even when the lights go out in the shop for this project, we will continue to seek sponsorship to start things back up (Gary Austin….you have no idea how envious I am of your success in getting a major underwriting sponsor for FiFi in such a short time). I challenge anybody to stretch a buck farther than this crew and end up with the same top notch results!!! That is not an egotistical remark about us or a damning remark about anybody else…just very high praise for those involved with this project.
We are far enough along with the fuselage to begin to buttoning it up from back to front. That means the unfinished rudder will return to the jig in the very near future. It's already very close but needs a few more parts before it's ready for fabric.
The horizontal's right hand end cap was fitted and mounted this past weekend and the installation of the trim jacks is almost completed. We ran into a few minor complications but should be able to finish up with that next trip.
The elevators were installed for their final fitting to the horizontal however, they still need their end caps installed (the left cap is good but we still need to fabricate the right side). Once they are finished they too will be ready for fabric.
The radiator mounts were inspected, repaired and partially assembled this weekend. A few small parts were identified that will need to be replaced. They were put on the "to be machined" list along with a one of the connecting arms for the flap torque tube. We also found some steel parts in the radiator mount that will need to be replated. Those were sent out today. Once we can hang the radiator that will open the door to begin repairing and fitting the aft duct if funding can be found.
The replacement fuel cells are coming along. One is finished and the shop in Tennessee is waiting for the unserviceable “donor” cell we found and we’re hoping the flanges we intend on harvesting from it are serviceable.
As mentioned some time ago we have struck a deal to trade one of our right hand upper strut tubes for the lefty we will need. That assembly was taken apart and the tubes will be swapped this week. That completes everything we need for a complete set of gear legs. The left wing trunion casting still needs some minor repair.
Over the last few trips there was so much wiring work going on up front, I decided to temporarily postpone work on the windscreen and canopy because it was getting a little crowded with two people in such tight quarters! That’s alright though since progress on the wiring is continuing to move forward at a nice pace and so far has cost us nothing except for materials (mostly just wire).
We are in a critical situation financially and the thought of having to stop is particularly frustrating to me because of how far we have come with such great results on so little funding. It is equally painful to think about given the importance of the projects mission. It really hits home each time we hear about the passing of another Tuskegee Airmen. This project is for them…to honor their achievements 65 years ago and to convey their moral character and determination to today’s younger generations. If you would like to see this airplane back in the sky and at an air show near you, please contact me if you would like to help or know of somebody who would like to. With our values and morals remaining intact, we will entertain all legal offers.
John
CC P-51C
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
