PV-2D Harpoon 84062 (Tanker 101) comes back to life

[ktst97]

Very pleased to see you guys at Topeka. Congratulations for OSH !!

[Tom Moungovan]

Great going Taigh, all of you most be really proud of what you've accomplished so far. Keep up the fine work and enjoy that aircraft.

[A26 Special K]

I'll add to the long list of congratulations for winning "Best Bomber" at OSH. While I didn't get to see the airplane as I had hoped at Topeka, some of our A-26 restoration team guys did and they reported what a great job ya'll are doing on it. They were very impressed with the interior work especially. Set the bar kinda high for the rest of us!! Looking forward to seeing -062 at the next Topeka or OSH show!

Best regards to the restoration team!

Jim R
Special Kay A-26
Ft Worth

[mike furline]

What kind of performance numbers did you see on the trip? Speed, Altitude, fuel burn, etc..?

[Redtracer]

A little video you guys might like. Shot from the tunnel gun position of the Harpoon. When you're jumped by a Zero, thank goodness Conrad was there to save our bacon!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtqOfC4UcY4

[LadyO2Pilot]

A little video you guys might like. Shot from the tunnel gun position of the Harpoon. When you're jumped by a Zero, thank goodness Conrad was there to save our bacon!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtqOfC4UcY4

[cooper9411]

Nice!

[slinky]

Well, I stopped by and talked a bit to TBDude and Redtracer at Topeka for a bit. They were doing an interview inside so I didn't get to check her out closely. The pics of the outside do not do her justice.
She is beautiful....Congrats to ALL!!!!!!

[Taigh Ramey]

Oh my. What an experience and just where do I start...

First off thanks for the kind words from you all and for the wonderful support. Wixer's and many others showed up in great numbers to help us out all around the country while we were on our journey and for that we all are beyond grateful. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I guess i'll try to catch up with what was going on just to get the old gal ready to go on this trip and try to bring this thread up to date. Quite the mad dash for many of us to get it all done. Or at least the more important things anyway.

After installing the fuselage fuel tank it was time to secure it to the floor/bomb bay structure and to plumb it. Here is Sydney helping to secure the filler neck which is made up of the cap, neck, tube, couplings, clamps and flanges. We had made some fo the parts a while ago so we only had to make one flange and fit it all up.



Here is the tank after the filler neck is in place and the vent tube was fabricated and run to its original outlet tube



Ricky finished up the oil tanks which was one big job



then he went on to many others like installing the left pylon adapter bracket.



Then Daniel did the final install the pylon that he built as well as the original one we got from from Dave. Time to get the tanks fitted, installed and plumbed



Here is James with the tank that came from Pat who said he got from a guy on Craigslist. James did a masterful job of taking out the dents and making it look beautiful. Well done James!



Steve, our machinist, dropped by for a visit. We hadn't actually met before so it was great to meet face to face with him and his kids. Here he is with the fork bolt he made for the pylons. Thanks Steve!



With the rocket rails installed the rockets clamps are mounted on the tubes and they are hung on the rails. Daniel welded up the fins and then Bill and Ken secured the warheads and fins.







Here is Daniel making the four missing gun ports. The gun ports are instrumental to the D model with 8 50 cal guns in the nose





Russ takes some great photos for sure the 5 above and this one are his

[Taigh Ramey]

What kind of performance numbers did you see on the trip? Speed, Altitude, fuel burn, etc..?

We climbed out over the Sierras to 11,500 feet and stayed there until we let down for Wendover. We were doing 180 knots across the ground without much in the way of winds. She is a good cruiser at 30 inches of manifold pressure and 2050 RPM.

Our average fuel burn was 165 gallons per hour at that power setting which included takeoff and climb.

Our oil consumption was way up which was a surprise for sure. It's looks like it is all upper end with some leaks thrown in so the quest for major engine rework funding has jumped to the top of the priority list. Thankfully the good folks at Wendover had some oil for us as did Basler at OSH and Topeka. It was a "top the oil and check the gas" kind of thing. She certainly marked her territory wherever she stopped. The seal in the recently worked on gun bay retract cylinder also refused to contain its 5606 hydraulic fluid so that contributed to our spotty behavior.

The great folks at Wendover Tom's airport (Kenv) gave us a good Warbird discount on fuel that was the cheapest gas on the trip. We also stopped at KYLV or Quentin Aanenson Field in Luverne, MN and met some great folks who took wonderful care of us. Very EAA/Oshkosh bound friendly stop who honored a low fuel price even though it had changed a few days before. They also had pulled pork sandwiches for us too. A great place to stop for sure.

We went low from there to Fond Du Lac to avoid winds at altitude but that was a mistake as the Harpoon seems to prefer the less dense air. We only did 143 knots or so at the same burn rate. Besides the oil thing the engines ran beautifully and are some of the smoothest radials I have ever flown with. Gotta wonder if it is a factory balance thing as they sure were smooth. Did I mention smooth?

We did some air to air with Conrad's FM-2 and the Zero at OSH as Ken's video shows but we are still waiting for copies of the pictures. I didn't get to see any of it as i was looking at a T-6 the whole time but i am told that it was pretty cool.

More air to air at Topeka so as soon as I get permission I will post some shots of that flight that were taken by john mcCullagh. Awesome shots for sure.

More to come...

[Chappie]

Can't wait to see the A2A photo Taigh. The video was cool.

The Harpoon is really looking great. Will the fuselage tank and drop tanks be functional when all is said and done?


Chappie

[Taigh Ramey]

Still trying to catch up...

Scott did a great job of making some fins for our 1000 pound bombs and Bill took on the challenge of fitting and bolting them on.



At this point we were out of time so we were not able to paint the bombs or gun ports or a lot of other items. Not enough time in the day. Here is Gregor installing the other fin group to the forward bomb and then the guys hung the aft 1000 pounder. The PV-2 can hold four of the 1000 pound bombs in the bomb bay and up to six 500 pounders or less.



Ricky checked out Gregor in the proper servicing of the tires



The rockets and drops are in place thanks to Ken and Bill but we didn't have time to paint the warheads or apply the stamps. The fuses are not correct but look good and will work until we can find or make the right ones. Any MK-149 fuses available anyone? Early Christmas gift ideas?





With all of the major items all set we are ready for engine runs and a bath so out she goes







That is Russ, fellow Wixer, in the blue. Russ is responsible for these great photos and a lot of other good things for 062. When we are hard at it I often forget to take photos so we were lucky to have Russ's artistic eye shooting some great pictures.



Its pretty late in the day but with the Harpoon all ready, we still have a shot of making it to Wendover and getting some miles behind us. I don't really want to mess with the Sierras in the dark with the PV-2 so we need to go soon otherwise we will wait until the morning.

Now for the final gas and oil





Here is the motley crew all ready to head off on our great adventure...



And we did with one small problem. After takeoff, during the 'check the wings to be sure they are clean' my side wasn't so clean. We over filled the oil tank on the left engine and some of it wanted to go outside and play elsewhere. back around for landing to be sure it wasn't something more serious. This little problem made the decision easy that it was too late to make it to Wendover today so it was going to be a Monday departure for points east. Warbird time you know...

[Taigh Ramey]

So we got up early on Monday morning to head East. The plan was to stop in Wendover first to check the fuel and oil consumption and have a Warbird friendly place in case we needed to fix anything. Wendover gives a great discount on fuel for Warbirds.

Here we are on our way over the Sierras around sunrise





Ooh the new drop tanks and rockets are flying along nicely, or so I am told, as I can only see the rocket warheads from the cockpit.



The view out of the tunnel gun which also doubled as the...



sleeping quarters



Walter manned the radar ops station looking for Bogies...and Bacalls



We landed at Wendover and added fuel and oil. Much to our surprise was the amount of oil we consumed. About twice what we had been seeing. It was quickly apparent that we didn't have enough oil for the whole trip. The kind folks at Wendover had two partial barrels left over from an air show so we tanked up as much as we could carry and then some.



Off we went on our longest leg from Wendover to Luverne, Minnesota. 5.5 hours. Everyone got to fly if they wanted. Here is Russ taking his turn at the wheel



Then we cozy up to the pump at Aanenson Field in Luverne where it became apparent that we were not going to make it in to OSH before the field closed at 8pm so plan B, or z19 at this point, was to make for Fond Du Lac where we would hitch a ride up to get the cars at OSH. We would then fly the Harpoon into OSH the next morning.

Here is Kenny with his soon to be untrusty ladder. The poor guy came off that ladder about killed himself in the process. I watched it and I am amazed that he didn't break some bones. It was nasty but besides some skinned parts and bruises he came through okay. A little stove up for a few days but 'ol Kenny is a tough little guy (most are little when next to me!) and always has a smile and positive attitude going. That's just one of the reasons why we like having him around. Its going to be a good day if Ken is there guaranteed.



And Gregor topping off the fuselage tank



And flying off some of that gas



We made a night landing at Fond Du Lac and parked next to the CAF's SBD. Just a cool preview of awesome Navy things to come



We were ready to make the short hop from Fond Du Lac to OSH in no time and off we went



WE MADE IT! Just a few microseconds after landing we were greeted by many friends old and new. Ray Stinchcomb met me as I came out of the door which was a nice surprise and then I turned around and Met Glen from Hot Stuff. Glen gave me the sad news that Hot Stuff was not going to make the get together at Topeka because of some outstanding maintenance issues. Dang! Well maybe another time we will get all three together.

It was great talking PV-2 with Glen





We set up the table and started selling T shirts and PV-2 books. Sales were good and it all helped to buy more oil and gas!





We couldn't wait to walk around and look who we came across



What a beautiful bird. Well done Conrad. The coolest part of this encounter for me was that a young man has the passion and drive to turn out such a beautiful restoration to great standards. It is the guys and gals like Conrad that make me feel great about the future of the Warbird movement. Authenticity rules and will only get better because of their passion and endless pursuit to make it better. Well done!

Ken tried on the FM-2 for size and it fit nicely.



I absolutely love the exhaust streaks and original look that the FM-2 has. Oil and exhaust looks great on flat paint. Gotta love the drops too. Lets go flying together!

Last edited by Taigh Ramey on Thu Aug 08, 2013 10:30 am, edited 2 times in total.

[Russ Matthews]

Will the fuselage tank and drop tanks be functional when all is said and done?

They are fully functional already!

[Chappie]

Will the fuselage tank and drop tanks be functional when all is said and done?

They are fully functional already!

Yeah! I've noticed that question was answered in some of the recent photos. Awesome!

Chappie