It's So Old!
But it still smells fresh.
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With all this old stuff sticking around, you have to wonder how we keep it
smelling so fresh. Ha! I've got quite the secret up my sleeve.
You see, my wonderful wife makes candles. Not just any candles, but
soy candles. Highly scented, and at a price anybody can afford.
Even me.
So, cruise on over to Skyline Candle
Company, and pick yourself up a candle or twelve. I recommend the
Waterfall Mist. Smells so good. Way better than all these moldy
old headlines.
FMI: Skyline Candle Co.
Taildraggers, Inc. Archives - January 2011
These are our top stories and links from January 2011. They're still cool,
but we gotta keep the home page clean and quick to load! Enjoy the
Archives!
And as always, if you have a link or photo to share, we'd love to
hear about it, and hopefully add it to the site. We are also looking
for guest writers and photographers to submit content. If you would
like to write an article or a photo essay, shoot us an email. We
won't pay you (we don't even pay ourselves), but we will give you full credit for any contributions.
Drop us a line anytime:
webmaster@taildraggersinc.com
Paragliding
in the United Arab Emirates
Bjorn Moerman is a pilot for Emirates airline in Dubai, and is also a
self-taught freelance photographer. He recently posted on his
blog about a trip he took to
The
Empty Quarter, one of the largest sand deserts in the world.
Bjorn's
blog is a bit different from what I normally post about. He
doesn't focus on General Aviation. A large number of his aviation
shots are of corporate and commercial jet aircraft. However, his
photography is very good, and worth having a look at. Not all of his
subjects are airplanes, so be prepared to go back through the archives.
If you enjoy exceptional photography, then a visit to Bjorn's blog is well
worth your time.
Link:
Bjorn Moerman Photography
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Vintage Video :: The Rutan Defiant
I'm not personally in love with the Defiant, it's not necessarily my cup
of tea. That, and I think it's ugly on the outside. However,
this video absolutely gets my juices flowing. Watch all 9 minutes
and 27 seconds of this one. The intro is great if for nothing other
than Burt's awesome sideburns (although I miss seeing the parrot).
The flying in this video is fantastic. Low level through the desert,
with a little acro thrown in for good measure.
Enjoy!
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Moving
at a Snail's Pace
January is just dragging by this year. Not so much in my personal
life, but the website is in need of some serious time and attention.
Nothing's wrong or broken, but I've just been neglecting it lately.
I'm such a bad webmaster. Ready for an excuse? Here you go:
On January 10th, I started a new work schedule at my "real job". I
work for Lockheed Martin
as a Flight Service Specialist at the Washington Hub in Ashburn, VA.
Lucky for me, I get to work the area I'm most familiar with, which is the
DCA Area Of Responsibility (AOR). I grew up in Herndon, VA, and
learned to fly at the Warrenton-Fauquier Airport in Midland, VA (KHWY).
I've also flown from Manassas (KHEF),
Winchester (KOKV) and
Leesburg (KJYO). Last
year I worked the evening shift, and was able to stay up late after the
kids went to bed on my days off to find good stuff for the website, and
then get it all typed up and ready to publish in the mornings before work.
Well, this year, I'm on a 6AM start, which means I'm a zombie past about
8pm, which is, coincidentally, the kid's bedtime. So instead of
working on the website, I'm normally crashed on the sofa watching mindless
reality shows, or PTFO in the bed.
Believe it or not, putting this site together for you to read is a fair
amount of work. I envy the folks who are natural writers, and can
whip up a story in a short amount of time. I'm also envious of those
who get to work on their sites full-time (are you reading this,
Doug Reeves?).
In the last year, Taildraggers, Inc. has increased our monthly traffic
nearly 275%. That's a huge jump, and I owe you all a debt of
gratitude. Thank you. I have high hopes for the site for the
future, and I've yet to get any hate mail, so I know you're enjoying what
I've put on the site so far.
Here's
a muted cry for help. If you enjoy the site, please tell your
friends. If you don't have any friends, tell random strangers you
meet, preferably those who like airplanes. In addition to that, I
want to hear more from YOU. Send me an
email, and tell me what you're up to, aviation-wise. Include a
picture or two of your airplane or project, and I'll try to get it on the
homepage. Instant fame for you! Also, don't forget to register
in the Forum.
It's still free (and always will be). You can start a thread about
your airplane, project, recent flight, or just about anything that's on
your mind. You can also upload as many pictures as you'd like.
The Forum is here for
us all to share, including you. Finally, if you like to take
pictures or write about aviation and airplanes, I'd be more thrilled to
have the opportunity to read what you've got and see your pictures.
If I can use them, I'll put them here on the site for everyone to see.
Add that to your resume!
Thanks again to everyone who has helped to make the site a success in
2010, your daily visits keep me motivated to crank this thing out as often
as I can. Keep coming back, and I'll keep digging for more content.
-Wayne Bressler
Shoot me an email
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N71370
:: Krier Cub
It's like this: Aviation is a small
world. Especially on the internet. I was looking for more
information on Jim Younkin's Mystery Pacer, when Google sent me to Adam
Smith's blog, "The
Invisible Hand". Adam owns a replica of Harold Krier's
Clipped-Wing Cub, N71370. What's the connection? I'm not
really sure, but on 10/01/06, he
posted pictures of the Mystery Pacer on his blog, which is why Google
sent me his way. Being the type to get easily sidetracked, I began
reading Adam's blog (the Clipped Cub in the picture next to the Mystery
Pacer caught my eye). So on it goes.
Adam
has built a website for N71370,
ClippedCub.com, and
while there's not much content there now, it's one of the only websites
out there with any Clipped-Wing Cub information at all.
Adam's Cub was built by Harold Krier's nephew, Marc Krier in 1989 when he
was unable to buy either of his uncle's original airplanes from their
current owners. The airplane is a combination of the best features
of both airplanes, and is painted to resemble Harold's second airplane.
The airplane won Best Custom Class B (81-150hp) Classic at OSH 1999.
In looking for more information on Adam's Cub, I found a
nice
video of flying the Cub that Adam has posted on YouTube. I was
also able to find some
photos that Chad Vavra took while flying out of OSH with Adam in
N71370 on flickr.
Hopefully Adam will continue to update
ClippedCub.com with
more information about N71370. It really is a beautiful airplane,
and a stunning example of the type.
Oh, and Adam; If you ever decide to sell N71370, give me a call.
Thanks.
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New
Flight School Added 1101091530
Tailwheels
Etc, Inc.
Instructor:
Jonathan R. Amundsen
Location:
Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport
Winter Haven, FL (KGIF)
Telephone:
(863) 412-7865
Email:
Click Here to Send a Message
Website:
www.TailwheelsEtc.com
Aircraft:
Aeronca 7EC Champ
Taylorcraft BC-12D
Citabria 7ECA
Stearman
Rental Rates: 7EC,
7ECA, BC12D $130/hr Dual
Stearman $350/hr Dual
Instruction Rates: $50/hr
Solo Rentals Available: No
Additional Information: Experience
in most types of tailwheels: Aeronca, Cessna, Piper, Stinson,
Stearman, Pitts, many Experimentals.
Also Certified A&P/IA. Spin training, basic Aerobatics. We're a
fun, family run business with friends
all over the world.
If you operate a flight school, or offer training in tailwheel
aircraft, please let us know. We would love to add your
information to our CFI / Flight School page. It's getting
harder and harder to find good tailwheel airplanes to rent, and just
as hard to find competent tailwheel CFI's. Our hope is to
connect as many students and renters with as many CFI's and flight
schools as possible. Let's all work together to keep the art
of tailwheel flying alive and well!
Visit our
CFI / Flight School page for all of our listing, and to
learn how to get yourself or your school added.
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The
Bosman RV-3 - New Year's Resolution...
This year, I pledge to work on the
plane more and veg on the couch less. This might help a bit --->
Ha! Nothing like watching your 2 favorite teams play in the Rose Bowl and
working on the plane at the same time!! And NFL Playoffs... and NASCAR...
hee hee.
Anyway, while Ben stripped his newly-acquired engine of junk and
accessories, I cleaned & primed my forward horizontal stabilizer spar
(after buffing out that horrible score mark from the brake) and then
pre-drilled two holes in each outboard end for the end rib rivets. We took
half an hour set up the air compressor in its temporary location, and then
I went to work riveting. It took a few head scratches from both of us to
remember that you need 80 lbs on the regulator to squeeze 1/8" rivets,
however after I screwed up 2 and drilled them out, we turned up the air
and I finished what I could reach with the pneumatic squeezer. I drilled 2
more rivet holes in the upper row near the centerline of HS-308 to replace
the single rivet shown on the plan. I guess Van had a one-piece front spar
web at one point, because a single rivet between two butting sides of the
spar web won't do much of anything.
Those
holes couldn't be reached with the pneumatic so the man came over and
squeezed them by hand. The hand squeezer has a longer yoke.
Then I set up my two center nose ribs. First I set the stab skin on the
jig table and set the center ribs in place between the spars, making sure
they were parallel to the inside edge of the skin to get the proper angle.
I fluted and filed one of them, tweaked the flange til it sat in line with
its its center rib partner, and clamped it in place. I tweaked the flange
of the other one, clamped it in place, then measured between the two
forward ends. Exactly 8.5" as drawn on the plans. Yippee!
-Katie Bosman
The Bosman RV-3
Blog
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I'm
a Young Eagle
At age fifteen, I attended the EAA Air
Academy in Oshkosh, WI. I was one of the lucky kids who got to spend
a whole week immersed in all that aviation and the EAA has to offer.
I didn't just stumble into aviation. My father earned his Private
Pilot's License a few years before I was born, and after my arrival, I was
often the third person riding along the back of a 150 or Cherokee.
My early aviation adventures didn't last long for many of the reasons
we've all heard before. It's just too expensive to fly and raise a
young family. This is a familiar theme, and one that I'm currently
battling myself with two small children of my own.
Through the years, my family attended local airshows, and my passion for
aviation grew. When I was fourteen, I took a part time job, and
began building remote controlled model airplanes. A family friend
introduced me back into full-scale aviation, and told me about the Air
Academy. I was very lucky to have attended, and couldn't have done
it without the support of the local EAA Chapter.
The photo above was taken at Pioneer Airport on the EAA grounds.
This was my official Young Eagles flight, even though I had been in a few
airplanes before this trip. Click the photo for an enlarged version.
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The
Bosman RV-3 - Christmas Break - 15 Hours
Back at it again, finally! We spent last weekend organizing the garage,
building workbenches, repurposing old cabinetry, building a tail jig, and
getting Cruella from the airport. The garage looks spacious now that all
the crap is put away.
Stopping for 5 months and then starting again is tough. Even for small,
simple parts like the tail feathers. Throw in some carpentry, and suddenly
there is a huge potential for frustration. This weekend was frustrating
just because every single thing I did, I had to figure out how to do it. I
don't know what I'd do without Ben and his ideas. Wait, yes I do. I'd have
sold the -3 project and bought a pre-punched, idiot-proof RV-12 tail
instead!!!
The Bosman RV-3
Blog
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AirplanePorn Gross Weight Loss Competition
My friend Chris over at
AirplanePorn.com has set out to lose few pounds.
He's inviting you and everyone else to join in and increase your "useful
load". As he says, it's time to trade burgers for fuel.
Here's the skinny from
AirplanePorn.com:
"Ok, we’ve all got a few pounds to lose. Some pilots have more than a
few pounds to lose.
AirplanePorn.com’s “Gross Weight Competition 2011”
will help me and some fellow pilots (well ok mechanics, engineers and
anyone else that loves or hates airplanes) go from sloppy fat boy/girl
pilot to hot stud/babe. The competition starts Jan 17, 2011 and the grand
finale will be during Oshkosh 2011."
If you want to join in the competition, please visit the official
AirplanePorn Gross Weight Loss Competition web page.
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Looking for some more Aerotainment? Go to December 2010 :: OR :: Check out the Archives!
