Warbird Heritage Foundation A-4B inspection to Airworthy

[henning]

Nice job there dave,

Great work being done there! Thanks for sharing! This is very interesting stuff.
Hope all goes well getting it back together.

henning

[Sabremech]

Hey Henning, when will we see you down towards Waukegan? Thanks for checking in on our new project. Lot's of little stuff going on all the time on the A-4. Vince and his crew in Oshkosh are working hard on the inspection changing hydraulic and fuel filters, removing heat shields to inspect the tailpipe, and general visual inspection. Wheels are out for overhaul and new tire installation. Most all of the engine components are shipped out for inspect/repair as necessary. We're also working on the possibilty of converting the starting system to a DC start so we can take the airplane anywhere with minimal ground support equipment. There's a group of outstanding folks in Jackson Hole Wyoming who've helped us out quite a bit already on the wiring, by providing diagrams to model our system after. A great big thanks to them if they're watching our progress on WIX. Check back soon, as I hope to be past my computer woes and post some new pictures.
David
WHF Maint
www.warbirdheritagefoundation.org

[Sabremech]

Made it up to Oshkosh yesterday and we finished removing the engine componenets that need to be inspected or repaired. The last parts we needed to remove are the fuel distribution blocks. Here's one of them.

We set the tail on the ground off of the trailer that we need to put the engine on.

Here's a picture of the fuel control that we had removed a couple of weeks ago and is out at the engine shop.


I made a list of the hydraulic leaks we have and the parts we may need to fix them. I didn't find anything unexpected but will share this next photo which is most likely what we will be finding, cracked fittings.

I thought I would leave this next photo up to those following our work and have a photo caption contest!


Hopefully the next photos I'll have to post will be of the engine removed and getting some pictures of it and the inside of the fuselage.
David
WHF Maint
www.warbirdheritagefoundation.org

[peter]

I just came across this as I used to see the A4's at hamilton and london airshows in the 80's. She looks in really great shape and wish you well on her progress to return to flight.

[JetStarMech]

Photo Caption
"Sir I think I've found out the problem why you can't start your' engine, IT'S GONE!!!..."
Or
"Typical spot to find a Union mechanic taking a nap..."

Great to see that the A-4B is on the "Events" schedule to appear at Oshkosh and at Thunder Over Michigan. Can't wait to see it in action.

[TimAPNY]

Very cool to see another A-4 on the airshow circuit! I love the scooter! I can’t believe this thread escaped me until now.

This makes me very glad I'll be at Thunder and I hope you guys put it in the air for everyone.

I so wish I could get my hands dirty helping you get it back into the air.

Tim

[Sabremech]

We're working hard towards having it ready for the Airshow season. Hope we get it done and make Osh and Thunder. If all goes well the engine will be out next weekend and we're pretty much done tearing it a part. We should start to see some engine components showing up in the next 30 days or so. We have one more major hurdle to overcome and then we should know if it will make the season or not. Check back for updates and glad to have you checking on our progress.
David
WHF Maint
www.warbirdheritagefoundation.org

[Rod Schneider]

Just trolling for any new updates!

[Sabremech]

Sorry for the delay in updating this thread. Lots of exciting things happening with the Foundation. I'll post some pictures this weekend if all goes well with the engine removal.
We have some new pictures of the Skyhawk on our website from when it was flying in the early 90's. Check them out and let us know what you think.
David
WHF Maint
www.warbirdheritagefoundation.org

[David J Burke]

There is a very old Skyhawk under rebuild at Sanford - it might be worth speaking to the guys down there as they seem good at tracking spares.

[Sabremech]

Always good to make contact with others who are working on these great old machines. Any other information on how and who to contact? We have worked hard on increasing our spares for this airplane and will have some more updates in the near future. I hope to post some pictures tomorrow of the engine removed and our first good look inside the fuselage. The project is coming along nicely and the airplane is in really good shape. Still on track for making the Airshow season as of right now.
Here's a picture of the tail section and how clean it is.


Here's another photo of our engine fixture being built.


David
WHF Maint
www.warbirdheritagefoundation.org

[Hal B]

Interesting engine stand you're building. What are you using for rollers/clamps (or whatever they are) that ride on the rails?

[Sabremech]

Hi Hal,
Those are roller adapters and are made for this trailer to mount different fixtures for all kinds of engines in military service. I bought these surplus to make my fixture.
We made good progress today and the engine removal went remarkably smooth. No problems which was good considering it's our first time doing this on an A4. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.







We have the airplane as far apart as we need to finish the inspection and fix squawks. We'll start to go back together slowly now in anticipation of operational and leak checks.
David
WHF Maint
www.warbirdheritagefoundation.org

[RickH]

That sure looks familiar. Interesting doodad to hang the engine from. The J52 gets supported from the bottom when you pull it.