1940 Stearman restoration (moved from Triumph forum so all can enjoy)

[CJD]

The finished ailerons.

The finished stabilizer

The finished elevators

The timeline is to finish the wings and fuselage covering by the end of the year, and start the engine rebuild in January.

I can't remember if I posted or not about the cause of the crash in 2019?!? When I bought the wreck the story was that the engine failed and the plane stalled and crashed. I pulled up the NTSB final report, and it turns out the engine was brand new, with only 1.6 hours on it since rebuild. It was "screaming" all the way through the crash. The pilot was entirely at fault. He took off and started a turn too soon. When he realized that he was not going to clear the trees along the airfield, he yanked the stick and stalled the plane into the trees.

So...the engine should not need all new parts, since it only had 1.6 hours of time on it. This could save as much as $30k...woo hoo! After any prop strike the FAA requires the engine to come apart for inspection, but a set of gaskets could very well be all it needs. Wouldn't that be a nice break!!

 

[Popeye]

Thanks for the update!!

 

[Hamish Racing]

darn it all your hard work and I can’t see the pictures here in the uk

 

[2002S2000]

Fantastic "travelogue"! Thank you for the postings.

JS

 

[Nivens]

Next, the curved tips go on. I had to remove the aileron to install on it's wing, so that the tip will match the curvature of the wood wingtip built earlier.

Now she's ready for the covering that goes around the leading edge...with...868 rivets!?! The sheet covering forms the closed "D" section which gives the aileron stiffness from twisting. That is very much like the Triumph's fully boxed frame! Or...very unlike the Model "A" Ford frame which was an open "C" frame that twisted easily.

I am sure the scorching on some of the ribs bothers some viewers. Those are ribs that were mangled and had to be straightened. With aluminum, you must anneal it before doing any major bending or straightening. If you try to straighten a bad bend, the thin sheet will crack...and that's the end of the road for that rib. They are much too thin to repair by welding. A trick is to mark the aluminum with a sharpy. Then when you heat it, you know to stop heating when the sharpy mark just disappears. If you heat any more, you end up with a small puddle of aluminum that used to be your part, LOL. Once it air cools you can do some more straightening without cracking.

That's it for now...

Hope everyone is taking advantage of the nice Spring weather to get the cars out for a ride!

Once the part is annealed and straightened, is it treated to harden it again? If so how?

 

[waltesefalcon]

Your work continues to impress me. I am very much looking forward to seeing this plane assembled.

 

[Low'n slow]

Very nice. Im throughly impressed.

 

[charlie74]

Amazing. I wondered about how you did the stenciling as soon as I saw the pics. I’m sure many wouldn’t have bothered after reading how you did it and the amount of time it took but your patience and attention to detail are inspiring. Does it replicate the original on that particular airframe?
Good luck with the engine rebuild, I hope you find it to be undamaged…too bad about how it got there; airspeed and altitude are your friends!

 

[CJD]

Hamish, sorry the pics are not viewable in the UK. I am going through Imgur. If you know of another service, I can try posting through them instead. Photobucket is still holding all my older pictures hostage.

Nivens, I have not gone as far as heat treating after straightening crumpled parts. I know from experience that the metal must be annealed or it will crack when straightening. Heat treating in my area starts at $250 per small batch, and goes up from there. I've used them a few times, but the cost is just to high for every part. Ribs are lightly loaded, so likely a good compromise. I do not compromise on highly stressed parts...and the blueprints spell those parts out.

Charlie, I considered using the date codes for this rebuild, but decided it would make more sense to replicate the codes for the original build in 1940. Of course I have no idea what the original dope codes were, so I used dates that would be plausible for the known final build date of 21Nov1940. Since we're not using dope anymore on covered planes...for safety and longevity...that just made sense?!?

This week I took a step backwards, when I assembled the rudder to the fin...I failed to allow for the covering thickness...Bummer!! The rudder would hit and not move through the neutral position. After a day of cussing and swearing, I bit the bullet and removed the fin covering to cut, reweld, and recover the fin. It'll cost me about 3 days work...for the lesson that not every fit should be precise!?!

 

[PAUL161]

I owned a Stearman once, back in 1964, and there's nothing like them! Been flying since 1957, many different types, even a B-25, but the Stearman was always my favorite! You will love it! Nothing like the fresh air, the smell, and the sound! Good luck with the build. PJ

 

[CJD]

I am looking forward to it, Paul! I am getting close enough that I need to find someone to give me Stearman lessons. Insurance now days wants you to have 25 hours in type...regardless of how many hours you have total!?! Next summer I plan to visit family around the country...a bit of a "barnstorming" trip.

 

[PAUL161]

John, they are the sweetest AC to fly, but with the tall and slightly narrow landing gear, they can be a little tricky in a crosswind landing. When the Military bought them new, most of them had bald tires so they would slide on the grass or dirt runways. The tires with tread on them, as we use today, won't slide sideways so easily, so the reason crosswinds are tricky, especially on asphalt. Have fun and enjoy, which I'm sure you will!