Warbird Information Exchange

Stress?

You need some of this:

Are y'all ready for another update? Well, here's one anyway .........

Progress is moving forward, albeit slowly. Dave Miller was able to get the tunnel gunner's windows installed, along with four windows for the cockpit greenhouse. He did all of this in three days worth of work! John Flynn has been working steadily on our engines and will be here for another week or so. He has already replaced one cylinder (has a couple more to go), and has taken care of some smaller discrepancies. I've been bouncing from one project to the next, ordering parts, etc., and haven't gotten much done in the big scheme of things.

Here's John while working on some little oil leaks........





In the mean time, Dave got working on the greenhouse windows. This was pretty much the same process as the installation of the tunnel gunner's windows, which I posted in detail a few days ago. The following pictures are sort of a very basic step by step of how it went.......

The location of the window frames had been determined and clecoed to the outside of the skin so that the area to be removed could be marked...



Once the skin was marked, the holes in the corners needed to be cut out...





Then Dave just used the saw blade on the die grinder to remove the center portions and smoothed them out with the flap wheel to leave a nice and smooth end result.....



It was the same process for the other side. Long hours of work can make mechanics a little loopy and think they're comedians. "Don't worry folks, he'll be here all week....and don't forget to tip your wait staff."



And here's how the windows (with their protective coating still on) look from the ground........



I had been working on the tailgunner's doors, but got to where I was doing nothing but making mistakes. It got to a point of diminishing returns, so I shifted to another project to clear my mind. I started back on that stinkin' entry door on the fuselage and started making the hand rail/door holder-upper-thingys. I forgot to take pictures while I was making these first brackets, but here they are after I got the basic shapes done......





As a matter of fact, I'm noticing that while typing this update, I didn't take as many pictures as I'd thought while making pieces for this project. There is a thick angle arrangement in the lower corner of the door that has a u-bolt going through it to hold the chain to the end of the door. This is all just my initial setup, as I wanted to make sure it would all work before building a bunch of parts. There will be more bracketry, doublers, and so on before it's completed......







I'm going to use portions of the old door's inner skin to help with strengthening up this door. I had to do some trimming and whatnot, but it should work out quite well. I'm currently stripping the old paint off of it before I continue (yes, I'm doing it...I don't leave all of the crap work for the volunteers ).



So anyway, that's where we're at for now. I'll get y'all another update as more progress continues.

Gary

The eventual plan would surely be to put a more original greenhouse on the airplane. But I don't have the time, money, or parts to make that happen this year. I knew that when I had Dave install those two windows per side, it wouldn't make everyone happy that wanted the original greenhouse installed, but it's just going to have to work for now. I'd say that it looks at least a little closer to the original (at least from the ground) than the RY-3 configuration that it's had for so long.

By the way, where is that one greenhouse section located that you've posted a time or two now? And is it for sale?

Gary

Thanks for the info. I'll look into it.

And I know you aren't nit-picking. However, I also know that there are lots of sticklers out there for originality. Occasionally, I'm one of those. It's sometimes tough putting some of these little things together, knowing that's not how the factory did it. I just have to make it all look as close as I can with the materials and equipment we have here.

I don't mind the questions at all. I just knew the one about the greenhouse was coming.

Gary

Well the way I see it is one does what one can do with the stuff at hand...

If the "sticklers" complain about anything you are doing tell them to come up with the funding and the people and you'll do it to their specs...
If "they" want a B-24A nose on the bird then as long as the time, money and talent are there...cut the cockpit and nose off and put on a new one.

(Sorry if this seems like a rant...but I saw someone bashing this project on another website...don't ask...and it made me mad)

Gary, I support what ever you want to do.

Z

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There I was at 20,000 ft, upside down and out of ammunition.
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Really? I'd be interested to see that. Could you PM me the info where you found that?

Uhhh...might this be our buddy Dik Shepard who got booted off this site awhile back? He's been busy posting inflammatory threads on the Aero Vintage forum

http://aerovintage.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=175

The quote below shows just how much class this guy has...none!

John


DIK SHEPHERD wrote:

"Note: Not all of the people that use the WIX forum are as useless as the groundpounder, but a good number are, especially at the top."

Oh the memories

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Don't touch my junk!!

thanks for dragging me into it! seriously though i couldnt read that b.s. he posted and not say something. 'nuff said! . once again gary, GREAT JOB!!!!!!!!!!!

Why is there one of those on every forum? There's a guy who's been blocked from most of the modeling forums because all he did was insult and belittle people..even those who asked simple, freindly questions.

I suppose the downside of the internet is that it gives such anti-social types an outlet, since most have a hard time making or keeping freinds in real life.

Keep up the great work, Gary..Lil is really looking good! (Oh, and I vote for the either "Neutrality Patrol Scheme" or bare metal. Heck, even if you have to paint her silver, that would still be fine.)

Oh, and here's where that greenhouse ended up. It's part of a B-24L nose section bolted to the wall of the Michigan Historical Center in Lansing (looks a bit like a trophy buck) as part of a display dedicated to Michigan's production for the war effort. It's basically an empty shell, and the bombardier's windows are painted black. Sorry about the poor quality..they're scans of some old prints taken six or seven years ago. I've got to get back up there and shoot some better digital pics.

Cheers!

Steve

Boy, wouldn't that nose turret look good on LIL...................

Did A models even have turrets?

I don't think that the A models had any nose turrets. Those came along much later... i.e., post D model.

Different question- did that nose come from the group of B-24s that were salvaged from Canada but sadly saw their aft sections and wings scrapped?

kevin

You are correct the A models never had turrets of any kind, the first B-24 to get the nose turret from the factory was the G model which was built by North American and the H model built by Ford, but numerous D-models were converted in the field by intrepid ground crews who managed to weld the Emerson A-6 powered tail turret in to the nose. The 90th Bomb Group in the Pacific is generally credited with coming up with the idea, which acording to the book I have about them, Colonel Art Rogers came up with the idea way back in late 1941.

Interestingly, only nine of the original 38 B-24As were made as A models, nine were converted and upgraded to become the only C models (basiclly prototypes for the D model) and the remaining 20 became Liberator Mk 1s, i.e. LB-30s

Gary

The image I posted of the B-24 Liberator greenhouse canopy (above) is actually the restored unit now installed on the Liberator being restored "Dow'Nunda" (Austrailia for those of you who didn't get it.)



I mentioned the forward fuselage and canopy on display in Michigan as a possible source for a canopy for AM927 through maybe a trade with the museum for AM927's current canopy seeing as it is a Ford style unit.

Just try'n to help the cause brutha

Shay
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Semper Fortis