MOTAT

[ErrolC]

Very sad.

i.stuff.co.nz/national/131094049/auckland-floods-transport-museum-volunteer-killed-in-landslide-at-remuera-house

One of the men killed during Friday’s extreme flooding was a much-loved volunteer at the Auckland transport museum Motat.

Dave Lennard is one of four people confirmed dead during the devastating flooding.

[Dave Homewood]

My condolences to his family and friends.

[Antonio]

A genuine 2 (F)OTU finish for NZ3039?


AFMoNZ:  MUS090043.

Love the roundel on the nose..

[TS]

Jan 29, 2023 16:15:32 GMT 12 madmax said:

Very pleasing to learn that the valuable collection has come through relatively damaged

Ummmm, un Damaged...

[Dave Homewood]

Feb 4, 2023 18:00:56 GMT 12 Antonio said:

A genuine 2 (F)OTU finish for NZ3039?


AFMoNZ:  MUS090043.

Love the roundel on the nose..

This aircraft was with No. 15 (Fighter) Squadron, as JZ-A, which is what is seen here. Not No. 2 (F) OTU.

[Antonio]

Ahhh, of course.
Thanks for the correction.

[madmax]

Yes, UNdamaged- another senior moment, becoming all too frequent these days

[TS]

Feb 5, 2023 17:18:54 GMT 12 madmax said:

Yes, UNdamaged- another senior moment, becoming all too frequent these days

Don't worry I know the feeling...

[emron]

Start of a new month and there was a small group back to the Workshop on Sunday, picking up where we’d left off before the bad weather. The team is concentrating on the DC-3. The propellers have been repainted and the right-hand undercarriage is being cleaned ready for paint, repairs to the aileron attachment points are progressing well. Down the back, the last rivets to complete the rebuild of the structure around the rudder post will soon be driven. That will allow us to refit the rudder, fin tip, elevators, tail-cone and stabiliser fairings when the time is right. Several inspection panels have been made to replace missing ones around the tail.
Elsewhere, on the Hastings job the new set of floorboards for the crawlway space is almost done. I dragged out a ladder from storage that I thought was the one for crew entry through the nose hatch and cockpit floor of the Hastings. But comparing photos later I now think it may be instead the one for the main door at the rear. I’ll find out for sure when I’m next back. In either event it needs rust treatment and once one locking pin is removed it will fold down as designed.
In the week prior to the big rain, I picked up the new bearings and circlips for the Sunderland turret. They’ve all now been pressed and secured on their supporting shafts and ready to be fitted to the bowl when time permits.

[skymaster73]

Looking forward to my first trip back to the Aviation Hall since 2019. As it’s been a while, excuse me asking the Forum but what day(s) is the blister restoration hangar now open for visitors? I’d love to see the Dak is progressing since my last trip. Thanks everyone.

[ErrolC]

Everyone note that parking is paid from March 8th

aucklandunlimited.com/western-springs-accessibility-project
More parking choices
Parking is currently free of charge at MOTAT's Aviation Hall new car park, at Auckland Zoo's car park, and the Zoo car park outside TAPAC. However, these parking areas will all become paid parking from 8 March 2023.

Parking will cost $2 per hour and will be capped at $8. This reasonable charge will cover the cost of ongoing maintenance of the car parks and any surplus will go directly to MOTAT and Auckland Zoo to help support the great work they do.
There will be some unrestricted on-street parking on Old Mill Road, Motions Road and Great North Road.
For the paid car parks, there will be electronic signage to let visitors know where paid parking spots are available. Availability of car parking will be visible via the Auckland Transport App.
Some of the on-street parking will be P180 time-restricted, to make sure there is turnover of car parks and availability.

[emron]

Mar 2, 2023 10:02:33 GMT 12 skymaster73 said:

Looking forward to my first trip back to the Aviation Hall since 2019. As it’s been a while, excuse me asking the Forum but what day(s) is the blister restoration hangar now open for visitors? I’d love to see the Dak is progressing since my last trip. Thanks everyone.

The restoration hangar is open to the public on Live Days only (usually third Sunday of month) Please check direct with MOTAT to confirm upcoming dates.

[hardyakka]

Mar 2, 2023 10:15:55 GMT 12 ErrolC said:

Everyone note that parking is paid from March 8th

Parking will cost $2 per hour and will be capped at $8. This reasonable charge will cover the cost of ongoing maintenance of the car parks and any surplus will go directly to MOTAT and Auckland Zoo to help support the great work they do.

Parking for $2 an hour in Auckland? Absolute bargain!
I might go and park there just to luxuriate in the glow of reasonable rates.
Worth it to give a middle finger to the raging pirates at Wilsons Parking.

[emron]

Despite interruption by the Cyclone, we managed to make steady progress on the tasks sheet last month. Repairs to the two fairings that wrap around the DC-3 stabiliser were completed. They were test fitted and new screw holes aligned and drilled in the replacement sections. They are held on by about 150 8-32 screws attached to rows of rivnuts on the stabiliser and anchor-nuts inside the fuselage. During the decades out in the weather many of the nuts were damaged or broke loose, so we have been progressively replacing them. Yesterday was the chance to finish off the last 10 or so that were in the hard-to-reach places. Steve drew the short straw and managed to crawl into the narrow space in the tail beneath the stabiliser. The riveting was promptly done, and he had already clambered out before I noticed we’d missed one on the other side! Anyway, that was soon done too.
The Hastings’ ladder turned out to be the one for the rear door. I’ve treated the worst of the rust and got it folding, so further work on it can be done in spare time.

[emron]

It’s satisfying to see some of the long overdue repair jobs on the DC-3 nearing completion.

Rex and Peter have reinstated the ten brackets with hinged covers on the trailing edge of the wings and these are now ready to attach the ailerons to them. This job had been on the waiting list for 30 years or more before they tackled it.

DC_3_bracket1 by Ron Wilson, on Flickr
DC_3_bracket2 by Ron Wilson, on Flickr
DC_3_bracket3 by Ron Wilson, on Flickr

Earlier in the week Steve drove the last of the rivets to rebuild the tail compartment that encloses the rudder crank. Today, I re-attached loose fittings and secured the control wires onto the crank arms. Probably the first time in fifteen years that these parts were together again.

DC_3_tail by Ron Wilson, on Flickr

[emron]

Now that the structural repairs to the DC-3’s empennage are done I’ve taken a break to help Brian finish the fit-out of the Sunderland rear door. The door lock had taken a beating over the years. At some stage the inside handle had sheared off the end to its shaft, so I swapped out the shaft with a better one. The correct outside handle was missing and unable to find a spare I machined up another one. Of course, it was only after I’d trimmed it to fit that I found a genuine NOS one in the bottom of the spares bin! Both handles are now painted and ready to fit next time. We finished tightening up the small screws and bolts around the fire extinguisher and axe compartments. That just leaves some touch-up paint, and the door will be ready to go back on display. Once I’ve trimmed the handle of the replica axe it will slip into the clip and that will complete the set up.

Meanwhile the DC-3 hasn’t been forgotten. Now that Grant has finished repairs and strengthening in the right-hand wheel bay, some of the newer members of the team have been sanding and scrubbing the undercarriage legs and they’ve already had a fresh coat of paint. I know I was involved in at least two earlier attempts to paint them only to be undone by a prolonged spell outdoors. But I’m confident that this time it will be an enduring fix.

[emron]

We re-hung the Sunderland’s rear door today. I noticed it was binding a little on the frame, we’ll make some adjustments next time, so it swings freely and latches tight. We’re working through the set of external doors and hatches to paint the interior side of each. Next on Mike’s paint bench is the second waist gunners hatch, followed by the access hatch in the tail. Once we’ve got a temporary replacement ready, we can swap the front door out too and that will soon also be in the queue.