2024 Restorations

[kalamazookid]

Warbird Aero Restorations in Pearland, Texas has a B-23 Dragon under restoration. Started several months ago, looking a two-three years.

Awesome news! I'd love to see a B-23 in the air some day. Any idea what airframe it is?

[Chris Brame]

Warbird Aero Restorations in Pearland, Texas has a B-23 Dragon under restoration. Started several months ago, looking a two-three years.

Awesome news! I'd love to see a B-23 in the air some day. Any idea what airframe it is?

Probably ex-Hughes 39-33?
http://www.warbirdregistry.org/b23regis ... 90033.html

[JohnB]

This restoration was finished in late 2023...I include it because when finished it was on wheels, not the rare float configuration seen here.
The 18 month restoration was done by Addison Pemberton in Spokane.

Interesting story: it was sold surplus in '46 and disassembled. From then until late 2021, it bounced around sever owners, never being finished, or I understand, reassembled.
It was in very good condition, it needed cleaning, painting and new fabric.
Remember, unlike the Stearman, aside from the cover, the N3N is all metal.
It was restored to stock except for the avionics, brakes and service items.

Addison will fly it on floats in the summer from the river adjacent to Felts Field. Pemberton and warbird owner Charlie Goldbach designed a unique ground handling dolly for the aircraft when it is on floats.
It joins Pemberton collection which includes a Grumman Goose in 1943 Navy colors.

The photo is by Moose Peterson and is from EAA's Sport Aviation magazine...my recent photos are in a format not supported here. If anyone has an issue, I will remove it.
The aircraft was also recently on the cover of Air Classics.

Attachments

[LegendaryWings]

Lewis Air Legends have posted a video on Facebook of their Hellcat at Ezell Aviation. It looks like it is nearly complete and I'm really looking forward to seeing it fly again!

[Mark Allen M]

Lewis & Yanks Hellcats in same paint scheme?
Oh well! unfortunate and fortunate at the same time.
And to think my dad’s Hellcat schemes were still available


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[C VEICH]

Lewis & Yanks Hellcats in same paint scheme?
Oh well! unfortunate and fortunate at the same time.
And to think my dad’s Hellcat schemes were still available


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Both aircraft contain parts of Vraciu's wartime mount Bu 40467 and are painted accordingly. Having said that, 40467 was built as a -3 Hellcat so the Yanks machine is more accurate in terms of configuration.

[Mark Allen M]

Ok, I guess I can understand that, sorta! …… Although this would be a rare time I’d vote for a different scheme on one of the two. Not my planes or money though, so they become what they become.
It’d be interesting to know just how much of Vraciu’s F6F are actually attached to each aircraft.

[Chris Brame]

Ok, I guess I can understand that, sorta! …… Although this would be a rare time I’d vote for a different scheme on one of the two. Not my planes or money though, so they become what they become.
It’d be interesting to know just how much of Vraciu’s F6F are actually attached to each aircraft.

IIRC one has the center section and the other has the aft fuselage? When Earl Reinert got it from the Chicago vo-tech school there wasn't much more than a fuselage, center section and landing gear; no fin/stabilizers plus the last three feet or so of the aft fuselage had been deskinned.
Edit: Just found a couple Photobucket-watermarked shots posted by WIXer garbs in a thread from 2008:





I recall Earl telling me the engine mount was actually from a B-24?