This Is One Bizarre #SNF13 Post! No Airplanes??

Close-up of my detail work with 12" x 24" porcelain tile with glass/stone deco inlay

click any pic to enlarge

 No airplanes? Well, no airplane pictures in this post... but there are plenty of them down in Lakeland Florida as Sun 'n Fun 2013 has been underway since Tuesday April 9th. I had planned to either be on the way by now or maybe even already on-site to bring you some AirPigz coverage of the Spring Break for Pilots, but my day-job as a self-employed ceramic tile installer has gotten in the way. I'm currently on week #6 of a huge installation job that's 45 minutes away from my home that includes tile on several walls, above a curvy drywall soffit, on several floors, and even includes an extra large shower with an 11 foot ceiling and lots of cool details! It's a rather upscale job that has consumed my life lately and will continue to do so for another couple weeks.

All of the deco bays were cut by me, they are not pre cut!

 
 So, while many of my avgeek friends are gathered in the campground and are enjoying sunshine and airplanes at SNF13, I'm crawling around on the floor and up and down a ladder. I'm happy to have the work tho, no doubt about it. I've actually had a significant increase in my tile installing work in the last 18 months which has definitely made keeping things fresh on AirPigz quite a challenge, but I've been doing pretty well all things considered. However, this big job that's kinda far from home anyway has worn me down quite a bit and made it really tough these last few weeks. I'm at least hopeful that the increase in income from all this work will finally get me current once again as I plan to trade some cash for a flight review in a J-3 Cub up in Hartford Wisconsin before long. WooHoo! #LoveToFly

13" x 19" floor tiles with some artsy curves cut in... it's harder to do than it looks!
 

 I've  included some pix of my tile work from the last few days. This is only a small part of what I've been working on, but I thought some of you might find it interesting to see both what I do and the level of quality that I strive to achieve. I'm very pleased with the attention to detail that these samples show. I work alone, so everything you see in the tile work (not the stonework) is done by me... and the level of quality that I'm able to crank out these days is the greatest evidence I have that I should be building a flying machine! And yes, it's true that I still have a modified Volksplane (Project VP) out in the garage, but I have had neither the time nor the money to move that project forward. Sigh. It looks like one more year of slowly digging out from the financial devastation of 2008 and I will finally have myself in a position to be a real airplane builder once again.

Close-up of the tight tolerance between the edge metal and tile in the curve - nice!

 I sure hope everyone who was able to make the trip to SNF13 has a great time and I'll set my thoughts on visiting with you all at OSH13 : )

Video: FIFI B-29 Ride Over Southern California - Wow!

 Youtuber octane130 has posted a fabulous collection of warbird videos over the last several years and this one of a recent ride in the B-29 FIFI over southern California is extra special. The views from inside looking out are fantastic! And while it's amazing to realize that you can ride in FIFI in 2013, I can't help but hope that people today somehow have a better understanding of the extraordinary people that fought in World War II when they see this B-29 fly.

 The generation of Americans that rose up to support the war effort and to directly participate in it are nearly gone now, and they take with them an American spirit that sadly seems will never be seen again. Our continued freedom was bought by their blood, sweat, and tears... and by the lives they sacrificed. How I wish that we as a nation were living up to their incredible accomplishments from 70 years ago.

 

Poll: Awesome Or Ugly? Ed Lesher's Record Setting 1960's Era 'Teal'

The late Professor Ed Lesher in his early 1960's record setting homebuilt 'Teal'

 I have a pretty long list in my head of aircraft (and the people behind them) that I hope to do in-depth postings on at some point in the future. That'll most likely happen after I become somewhat wealthy and have lots of extra time - obviously, don't hold your breath! Anyway, Professor Ed Lesher (1914~1998) and his 'Teal' are definitely on the list.

 The all-metal homebuilt Teal that he designed, built, and first flew in 1965 was a significant part of my early years of Oshkosh from 1970 thru 1975. Seems like the airplane was always on display out on the flightline, and as a kid who really enjoyed unusual aircraft design, I spent a lot A LOT of time looking the airplane over. I'll say it right now, I love this little airplane and think it's off-the-scale awesome!

 Not only did the Teal look different, but it was quite effective in accomplishing the goals that Ed had for it: setting records. With its Continental O-200 100 hp engine, it was built to compete in the 500kg (1,102 lbs) class, and by 1968 Ed had captured the records for fastest speed over the 500 km (181.55 mph), 1,000 km (169.20 mph), and the 2,000 km(141.84 mph) distances.

Ed Lesher's Teal, part of the EAA Museum collection, on display at Oshkosh 2012

  Ed and his homebuilt Teal represent the amazing bridge between a talented tinkering man and expanding the envelope of aerodynamic knowledge that the EAA and the 60's and 70's embodied. I wish we could go back to that era right now, I miss it. (don't misunderstand, there's plenty of that going on today, but it was different back then, and I'd say it was better back then)

  So anyway, you know how I feel about the Teal, but what do you think? Is is Awesome or Ugly?

Caption Contest #81 - Encouraging A Winner!

 WooHoo! Long time AirPigz follower and all around good-guy 'seerjfly' has finished out front (hehe) in caption contest #81. His short and sweet Forrest Gump throwback was well done and very popular. I smell bacon in his future!

 In case you're wondering what was going on in this pic, the skydiver worked his way to the nose of the pink Skyvan and then jumped off with his feet at about the top lip of the mouth. I assume he actually ran down the windshield and nose. This pic is just right tho to give the appearance that he was actually flying in front of the Skyvan. See the pic sequence on this Lienbacher facebook page post. Those skydivers, they're crazy, crazy people : )

 Thanx to all who played this time around... more avgeek caption fun before long!

Video: Seven Seven Seven - Up Close And Beautiful

I like this. A lot : )

 
Video screenshot of the very big and very beautiful Boeing 777

CoolPix: Jimmy Doolittle And The Gee Bee R-1 Race Past The Bendix Pylon! (1932)

(click pic for hi-res)  The iconic Gee Bee R-1 at 1932 Cleveland National Air Races

 (check out the Gee Bee category on AirPigz)

 This is actually a picture of a picture... the enlarged photograph is on the wall at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC and I captured a picture of that photograph during the NASM AirPigz MeetUp back in late January 2013. I was spending quite a bit of time channeling Howard Hughes in the presence of the Hughes H-1 racer, and this photograph was on the wall nearby along with other interesting items from the golden age of air racing. I went ahead and took the pic knowing that one day I'd wanna post it here. I really like how the off-center Gee Bee helps relate the speed that the racer was traveling - probably around 250 mph, but maybe more. Be sure to click this CoolPix to open it up hi-res.

 There's a similar picture viewable on the net (sample here) but it shows Jimmy and the Gee Bee going from left to right. After studying the two pix a bit I realized that the signboard in the pic here says 'Event L Lap' while the other pic says 'Event R Lap'. I haven't done the research to know for sure what that means, but I would assume that, for whatever reason, the airplane was flying the race course in opposite directions. One of these days I'll take the time to understand the meaning... but for now I'm content just imagining what it would have been like to be there in person (and in color) as this amazing aircraft and amazing pilot ripped a streak in the Cleveland sky. Seriously, if you do more than just look at this image, if you make a specific effort you can let your mind take you back to 1932 and a world that is so far away from the one we live in today. And yet there they were, less than 30 years after the Wright Brothers, and the Granville Brothers had a race airplane that could easily exceed 250 mph. (Jimmy set a world speed record in the Shell Speed Dash during the 1932 races of 296 mph!)

 So there you have it, my Gee Bee obsession remains intact. More to come : )

No Joke! Caption Contest #81 - Ends Wednesday 4.3.13 At 9PM EDT

 If I wasn't so buried in my regular day-job work I'd have some clever April Fools' gag for you today, but I've only got the time and energy for a new Caption Contest to throw at ya. However, it's a really awesome pic to flex your captioning skills with, so I'm looking forward to some great avgeek fun!. Best of all, if you come out on top at the end of the game, you'll snag a bacon sandwich at Oshkosh 2013 : )

 So... you've got til Wednesday evening at 9pm EDT to submit your clever/funny/cool captions. Then, I’ll pick the best 5 and put ’em in a poll for everyone to vote on for all day Thursday and Friday so we can find the winner. 

 The Rules: 

1) Max of 3 submissions per person

2) Submissions go in the 'comments' area 

3) Game ends Wednesday at 9pm EDT 

4) Keep it clean!

 Then, anyone can cast their vote starting Thursday morning and running thru til 9pm EDT Friday. The winner will be posted Saturday morning 4-6-13. And remember... whatever you do, don't look back!

Poll: Which Triplane Trips Your Trigger? (Sopwith, Fokker, Or The Armstrong Whitworth Quadruplane)

Replica 1916 Sopwith Triplane in flight  (photo: davy59.deviantart)

 I think I already know the answer to the question but I still felt I should ask : )

Replica 1917 Fokker Triplane in flight  (photo: wiki)

1916 Armstrong Whitworth F.K.10 Quadruplane!

Video: This Is The Way To Start Your Day! (F-18 Cat Launch From Cockpit!)

 Seriously, if I had it to do all over again, I'd be chasing Navy jets... no doubt about it.

 

CoolPix: Closer Than You've Ever Been To The B-17 Yankee Lady!

(click pic for hi-res) Prop hub on #1 engine of the B-17 Yankee Lady at Oshkosh 2012

 I woke up to about 3 inches of snow in northern Indiana this Monday morning! Isn't it actually Spring now?? Hmm, global warming just isn't what it used to be (hehe) - no worries tho, I've got a couple unique CoolPix images from a warm and sunny day at Oshkosh 2012 for ya here. I admit that this ultra-close view is a little odd, but I thought being pulled in really close on the prop hub of the B-17 Yankee Lady (which I also got an amazing ride in back in 2010) was a nifty view of both the head on that bolt and the other aircraft parked on what we used to call AeroShell Square at Oshkosh. I think we call it ConocoPhillips Plaza, or Conoco Plaza, or Phillips Plaza, or something like that now. Anyway, in the reflection you can see the B-17, the Orbis DC-10, a C-5 Galaxy, the colorful stripes of a Southwest 737, and there's even a DC-3 in there but it's a little hard to make out.

 The image below is the one that I cropped from and it gives a little better perspective on the prop hub. This was a very happy moment for me when I captured this pic... I was both re-living my ride experience in Yankee Lady and I was on the best place on Earth, Oshkosh during Oshkosh. Wow : ) 

(click pic for hi-res)  The wider view of Yankee Lady's #1 engine prop hub