Re: Restorations

[paul pinato]

'Hello Fairchild lovers

After been reading the group mails since the beginning finaly we have come to a real point of discussion. I am been working on my UC 61 A Forwarder ( F 24 W ) for twelve years.
When I started I said that I was going to just put it in the air. But then came a strange feeling. How did it look when it was servig during the WW 2 ? I changed idea in a year.

I can agree that some aircrafts are not as they left the factory. They are over done and some times far from original. Some owners like to have them perfect and others like to keep them as used during the years. Well, the first category often starts with a basket case or just junk. They have no alternative to redo evrything. With that comes the joy to do something to show the effort you spent to do your plane.
The second category yust live along with their plane and for the moast of them the plane slowly deteriorates to a basket case and it starts all over again.

We are talking about planes built in a average 60 years ago, three man generations. So realize that your plane is going to survive you in one way or the other
.
I agree fully with Jamie.
Safety first, regulations second and then the originality of the plane ( If I like it so ). I have used slotted screws were they are visible because I wanted so, not do to the fakt that in the future some judge comes along and gives me minus points. I have used Seconite and buterate. Have you seen a cotton nitrate doped plane burn? It takes thirty seconds.

If you read AAA instructions, judges have to disregard to detaljs like this and only se to the over all condition with the originality in mind. The plane still has it life in real time..
I just returned from a small fly in were two L 4 were sitting close to eachother. One just restored and the other one in mint condition and to my eyes they were nice the same but in different ways, and best of all, the owners enjoied to show their planes together.

Friends we do this for fun and spend a lot of money for it to, so please let me have those Diamond cut tyres. My plane had Oval patch Bf Goodrich tyres. Close to one tousend UC 61 A sent to Europe in the war had those tyres. Of them, only a handful planes survived. Here in Europe many of us se those restored planes as a tribute to what happened here 60 years ago.
So my Fairchild UC 61 A 314840 will fly again after forty years, in USAAF colors, slotted screws, old tube brakes and the 60 year old overhauled fire extinguisher ( internaly modified ). Were the Bendix radio was installed there is new stuff to comply to regulations, but the old one is still there in the show beside the plane.
Lets have fun and if I win an awarde in the future lets all be happy as it was the plane to win not me.
Paul

PS
Earl you are still my Fairchild friend


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]'

[Karl Saenger]

'Dear Paul,

I like your words. This is the spirit.

Karl (UC61K 43-14927)'