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Post by Dave Homewood on May 11, 2019 19:48:02 GMT 12
Wow!!
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Post by TS on May 11, 2019 20:35:23 GMT 12
Bloody Brilliant!!!! :-)
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Post by planewriting on May 12, 2019 7:54:33 GMT 12
May 11, 2019 19:35:42 GMT 12 kiwi285 said "Having a look round we have actually finished most of the main jobs on 2539 and are really awaiting a prop and exhaust sections so that we can start up the engine. Other than that it is all small fiddly little jobs now and making some more of the fittings for the rear compartment. As a consequence of that, some of the team have made a start on pulling the Vampire, NZ5751, out of the hangar and started cleaning it. I understand that Dave is going to open a new thread for this and I will start posting photos on there as we progress".
On Friday, 10th May, the above work started on NZ5751.
I decided to take some pictures to begin the restoration journey, just as I did for the Avenger. Dave Homewood has created a thread, so check out “Classic Flyers NZ Museum Vampire Restoration”.
NZ5751 has featured on the WONZ forum before. Have a look at “Vampire Taking Off from Wellington Wharf”. The occasion was in the days leading up to the official opening of Wellington International Airport.
It is an interesting thread and now with work commencing on NZ5751 emphasises why we should take opportunities to upload and share information, as it readily illustrates a little bit more of the aircraft’s history. More of its history will, in time, be uploaded.
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Post by kiwi285 on May 12, 2019 16:28:46 GMT 12
Dave, I notice your comment about the cowls and I agree that they look fantastic but Alan and Dion keep mentioning that everything has had to be bent by hand and only in a single plane as we don't have access to an English wheel or even a reasonable bender. In spite of that I agree that they have made a great job.
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Post by Dave Homewood on May 12, 2019 16:38:50 GMT 12
Wow, that makes them even better! I'm surprised someone in the team had not built an English Wheel for the workshop.
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Post by kiwi285 on May 16, 2019 10:22:48 GMT 12
Yesterday Des and I gave the control surfaces another coat of dope and a second one on the rib stitching so that they are now ready for painting and hanging. Cal and I made a start on the next section of the bomb bay doors having found a couple of benches that we could use and have set up on there. Hopefully we can make some good progress so that Colin, when he arrives back, won't think we have left them all to him. As we get closer Ian wants to become involved so that we can co-ordinate the front section where the pickup arms will be attached to drive the doors. I see Richard and Bob have a collection of brake units from the garage next door and are measuring up for some mounting plates so that we have brakes when we commence engine runs. Some members of the team went up to Auckland on Tuesday and started a search for any more Avenger and Vampire parts. Dave found most of the major items of radio and radar equipment there and quickly packed it into the van. Some of you might have noticed that I have put a link up to this page onto the Warbirds Information Exchange Facebook page to see whether anything might come out on the woodwork. 150519 019 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 150519 007 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 150519 008 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 150519 010 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr
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Post by kiwi285 on May 17, 2019 16:54:29 GMT 12
Des, Cal and I spent some time this morning making up a proper jig to build the doors in. We feel a lot happier that we will get straight doors now that the whole affair is sitting on an angle iron frame. We ended up with Dion joining us, so it was almost like a production line as we cut, shaped, fitted and riveted in the ribs that make up the framework of each door. Virtually everyone else was working on the Vampire or doing R and M.
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Post by kiwi285 on May 22, 2019 16:24:03 GMT 12
There were three of us working on the first bomb bay door today and we have all of the ribs installed and have started drilling off the skins and riveting them in place. We are going to leave a small section at the forward end so that we can get our heads up inside to check the action of the control arms thru their working cycle. Hopefully we should have a full size pattern next week for the arms and Ian can make a start on producing these. We will make a start then on the extension of the other door so that both are ready to start hinging onto the outer doors and can then check the fit. (No photos as Yahoo and Flickr are having one of those days)
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Post by kiwi285 on May 24, 2019 16:03:08 GMT 12
We finished the first bomb bay door today, as far as we can go and are now ready to start the extension of the second one. Ian has taken his measurements and has gone away to draw up some templates so that he can get the operating arms profile cut. 220519 001 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 220519 002 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr
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Post by agalbraith on May 27, 2019 9:46:53 GMT 12
Well done gents!!
Glad you made them from allu instead of wood.....they look awesome
Keep up the great work Anthony
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Post by kiwi285 on May 29, 2019 16:10:58 GMT 12
Obviously a bit of experience helps when you have to do a job a second time. We started on the second bomb bay door today and by the end of our time we had most of the frame work assembled. First job this morning was the place the completed door into place and try it for size and to figure out the rib positions down at the rear main hinge point. It was out by about 4 mm so we will have the shift that rib which should be relatively easy. Whilst we are working on the second door we will shift that one too. We also positioned the two sections of door into place and amazingly they were close to the required fit which is pleasing. Ian should be in on Friday with the profile cut hinge points so that will be interesting to put together. Photos of the second door being worked on. 290519 001 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 290519 002 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr
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Post by kiwi285 on May 31, 2019 16:14:27 GMT 12
Well the bomb bay doors are virtually complete now until we can get the profile cut actuating arm pick ups to fit in place. Ian was in this morning and tells me that he will have the arms next week for us to check and test fit. He also tells me that he has started making the actual arms themselves that connect to the hydraulic rams so June will be an interesting month. We need to shape the rear of the doors where they meet the 45 degree slope of the rear bomb bay fuselage former and there is some structure to re-enforce the whole area. Lance was in a position to finally fit the cupola onto the turret base in the aircraft itself. I had visions of this being a bugger of a job because of the very tight fit of the turret against the cockpit glazing. With a bit of juggling and moving the turret base around it slipped into place quite nicely. Getting the gun back into place might be a headache but next week will tell. Thats it - I don't fancy trying to get the cupola off again - its there to stay. One of the senior people from the museum arrived in today after a trip to the US, part of which was a side trip to Chino to look for R2600 Cyclone exhaust pipes and a prop. I am pleased to say that we appear to now have both of those items which should be making their way south from the US in the near future. Hopefully now we can start thinking about an engine run date and some testing of the various systems. 310519 008 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 310519 003 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 310519 004 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 310519 005 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr
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Post by kiwi285 on Jun 5, 2019 15:34:33 GMT 12
We managed to place both doors into the bomb bay area and am glad to say that they fit with a bit of joggle room which I would rather have than being too tight a fit. The hinge lines on both doors look good and we are doing some cosmetic work now, waiting for the control arms. The gaps in the outer skins have been left off at this point so that we can get our heads inside the bomb bay to see what is happening when the doors are moved between open and closed. Colin made an excellent job of getting the curves correct as it certainly look okay from all the angles I have surveyed them from. The port door is held in place with a couple of G clamps but the starboard door is just propped into place hence the gap down the hinge line. It sounds like we will have some exhaust pipe sections and a dis-assembled prop on its way to Tauranga in the near future. Alan and Richard have been working on the brakes and are having a few headaches trying to get them to work properly and didn't look much happier when we knocked off so I gather there is more work to do on Friday. You have days like that. 050619 002 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 050619 003 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 050619 004 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr 050619 006 by Mike Feisst, on Flickr
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Post by Mustang51 on Jun 5, 2019 17:05:34 GMT 12
That is a bloody fantastic job !!!!! Tea and medals all round !!!!
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Post by planecrazy on Jun 5, 2019 18:34:51 GMT 12
This project amazes me every time I look, well done to all.
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Post by skyhawkdon on Jun 5, 2019 19:44:18 GMT 12
Stunning result on the bomb bay doors!
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Post by Dave Homewood on Jun 5, 2019 19:49:56 GMT 12
Simply brilliant! They look like factory-new items!
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Post by Venomnut on Jun 6, 2019 6:35:39 GMT 12
Fantastic result with those doors guys, well done!!
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Post by kiwi285 on Jun 6, 2019 7:32:28 GMT 12
Thanks for the kind comments guys. Colin did the initial setting up of the project and figured out how it would go together and certainly got it right. And Cal made a stack of the ribs required plus all of the fish plates required to fasten the ribs in place. Dion has been a big help lately with access to a roller and helping to skin the doors and get them straight.
I am looking forward to seeing Colin's face when he gets back from his trip and sees the doors completed and in place. I have learned a few things myself from carrying this on and seeing another way of putting these panels together.
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Post by tbf25o4 on Jun 6, 2019 10:29:09 GMT 12
Congratulations to the team for an outstanding project on the inner bomb bay doors. The complexity of shaping the curves and alignment has been overcome and the end result is a credit to all. Look forward to seeing pics of the doors when finally hinged (bxxxxdy great long piano hinges to be rivetted!
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