B-26K Counter-Invader Restoration ("Special K")

[A26 Special K]

Ed and JR got busy installing the engine accessories that have come back from overhaul by our friends at S & T down in New Braunfels. This engine is about ready to hang on the airplane!!! Whooo hooo... then the other one goes out for overhaul. Light at the end of the tunnel and it is not a train this time! The Other JR

[A26 Special K]

Tim, Rand and JR had their hands full with the zippers on the gap seal after hanging the aileron. There is no room for hands behind the aileron to zip the two pieces of the gap seal together. Instead, they had to use some safety wire on the zippers and pull them closed thru the inspection ports on the bottom of the wing as seen here. It took a couple of tries to get the geometry right, but Tim finally got it figured out. The zippers slid right up like a prom dress on our ol gal K. Congrats to the team who made it happen. May you have even better luck on the other side! The other JR

[A26 Special K]

Meanwhile, work continues on the cockpit. Rand got the insulation installed awhile back, but here Jim S is putting on some flat black to touch up the sides before we place the quilted material over it. So now, that leaves open the question of why we used flat black there instead of primer so go ahead and ask, Duck Drivin Lady! We know you are dying for the answer.... JR

[A26 Special K]

Arnold, with his able assistant, Inu, has been checking out our ground power unit to make sure it is putting out the right voltage for the avionics guys to run tests, etc. It appears that the line voltage coming into the hangar changes from 240 down to 236 v as the day goes on with the all the air conditioners kicking on with the heat of the afternoon. The hangar floor area is not air conditioned but we do have a large number of big fans around to try to cool things a little bit. Anyway, he just about has a handle on it so we can continue with electrical checks. The guys are just about ready to start with the engine instrumentation among other things. Thanks Arnold!! JR

[LadyO2Pilot]

Meanwhile, work continues on the cockpit. Rand got the insulation installed awhile back, but here Jim S is putting on some flat black to touch up the sides before we place the quilted material over it. So now, that leaves open the question of why we used flat black there instead of primer so go ahead and ask, Duck Drivin Lady! We know you are dying for the answer.... JR

Well, because black (on planes) is beautiful, of course

[A26 Special K]

Aw c'mon, Duck Drivin Lady, you know you want to... go ahead and ask. Ober and I can't wait forever..... JR

[A26 Special K]

Tim, Rand, JR and Mac had better remember how they put the right aileron up because we hope they can repeat the feat next Saturday on the left side. This means that all of the control surfaces will now be mounted and ready for rigging. Besides the usual activity around K, this is going to be a very busy day. Buba may take to the skies once again for the airshow at Cedar Creek Lake and if so, I am supposed to be on the crew. The DC-3 is available to book fireworks flights on Friday and Sunday evenings. Contact Dana at greatestgeneration@yahoo.com for info. Saturday night, our volunteers have a DC-3 flight over the Six Flags area to watch their fireworks display. Talk about a ringside seat. It is a "thank you" for helping out so much on the airplanes. Incidentally, we have a new webmaster and want to welcome Jeff on board. The A-26 website is under construction and already has a new look. Try http://www.gga1.org and click on the picture of the A-26. Or use http://www.thormeyer.net for the direct link. We are excited about these new changes. Stay tuned for more. The other JR

[A26 Special K]

More of the guys hanging the right aileron. It really did take all four of them to get it lifted and held while the free hands put the bolts in. Then the gap seals had to be zipped together which took a great deal of coordination. Kudo's to the team on this one. BTW, that tail in the background is of the Navy A-3D that was brought in from the outside while the B-29 and B-24 are gone on tour. The former A-3 Navy guys are working to restore it cosmetically and will place it on display as a memorial. This was the largest aircraft ever to operate routinely from a carrier deck. To lighten the weight, the ejection seats were removed. Some jokester then came up with the phrase for the A-3D as meaning "all three dead" if there was a problem. Actually, the aircraft sometimes had more than three. It was similar to the B-66 that was depicted in the movie "Bat 21" when doing Intel or recon work. Others were used as tankers because of the load they could carry since they were originally intended to be bombers. It has quite an interesting history. Drop by on Saturday and talk to the Navy guys about it. They would be happy to tell some sea stories... and some of them might even be true!!! JR

[A26 Special K]

Ray finished up the nacelle repair with his usual metal magic. It was a complex curved part he had to fabricate, fit and get heat treated. Then shoot the rivets to hold it in place. Hard enough to do, but he was wrestling with a back problem at the same time. Talk about dedication! Can't say enough about his contributions to our project. Thanks Ray! JR

[A26 Special K]

As we come up on America's birthday party tomorrow, it is time to reflect on how we got here. There were a lot of people who had to sacrifice to make it happen, not the least of which would be our men and women who served in the armed forces. In WWI, this soldier, of the 29th Infantry Division, went thru the Meuse-Argonne offensive in October of 1918 and barely survived a gas attack. It's a good thing he made it home though because he had a family that later produced our very own JR. This is JR's grandfather. We are indeed especially grateful to have JR leading our team thru the restoration of K. Many of our team members served in the AF or Navy, only in this case, they get along with one another!! Guess age and maturity has something to do with that maybe, but I think they just generally enjoy each other's company and comradeship. They also see our purpose in educating those who are growing up now to understand that freedom isn't free. Happy Birthday America!! The other JR

Last edited by A26 Special K on Thu Jul 03, 2014 6:59 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[A26 Special K]

Not everyone made it back home to raise families though. JR's brother took this shot recently at Arlington. My uncle Grady Springfield was one of those who didn't. He, too, was in the Meuse-Argonne offensive. Grady was killed in action on his birthday, Nov. 5th 1918, just six days before the end. The offensive was moving so fast that mass graves were dug and the dead buried oftentimes without identification. When the graves were exhumed a year or two later, it became even more difficult to identify them. So the family only received the "missing in action" telegram from the War Dept. It was not until 1923 that they received a letter from another soldier who was with Grady when he was killed that they knew for sure what had happened. The war graves unit buried many of the unidentified in the Meuse-Argonne battlefield cemetery in France. Fittingly enough, several of the bodies chosen for examination for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier came from that cemetery. For all the family knows, Grady could be the one in that sacred tomb which represents all who were lost. For that reason, even if today's DNA analysis could prove it, we would not want to have it tested. It is what it is and shall stay that way forever. One day, I will visit France though, find that battlefield cemetery with his name on the tablet of the unknowns there at the chapel and try to honor his sacrifice by remembering a man who was long gone by the time I came along, but who was never far away in the memory of my mother. Today, July 3, would have been her 105th birthday. One of the things she most wanted was to know where her brother was. When I finally located the most probable place in France in 2000 she was so greatly relieved. How many others are going thru the same thing today. Remember the KIA's and MIA's and their families. Thank you! JR

[A26 Special K]

Lots of great things happened yesterday, July 4th, and among them was the most important first step for a fledgling aviator... the first solo!! Instructor Rand on the left and Denis, the soloee on the right are wearing big smiles. They used the group's 1940 Porterfield for the event. Denis is our crew chief on the GGA DC-3 and has been helping with K, also. Meanwhile, Arnold had a great burger and hotdog cookout last night at his place. On the way home, a lot of communities around were holding fireworks displays. Gosh, they are so beautiful!! They commemorate the Battle of Baltimore with the Redcoats in 1814. Seems a famous poem was written about that event that has some phrases about the rockets red glare. Well, our area of Texas was surely trying to recreate the scene last night!! And a grand sight it was, too!! But work goes on at the hangar today. Drop by and see us! Say howdy! JR

[LadyO2Pilot]

CONGRATS, Dennis !!!!!!!!!!!!

[woodie]

Jr:
In the cockpit picture where the insulation is going in on the right side, are the two vertical tubes sticking up there connected with the entry ladder that pulls down on the right side? Woodie

http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh5 ... 1684af.jpg

[A26 Special K]

Jr:
In the cockpit picture where the insulation is going in on the right side, are the two vertical tubes sticking up there connected with the entry ladder that pulls down on the right side? Woodie

http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh5 ... 1684af.jpg

Woodie, that's right... part of the entry ladder system. This will be covered up when we are done with the cockpit. There is a release from inside the cockpit to extend the ladder. Could come in handy if we can't get the bomb bay doors open for some reason. I suppose us old guys can go down it even if we can't go up so easily. Hope I never have to prove that!!! JR