Bacon super 6

[Tim Savage]

I fail to see how with an extra retractable landing gear it could have flown any better than the T-6 it was made from. They must have moved the wing forward to accomodate the weight and balance because of that nose gear unless they put a lot of lead in the tail. I suppose you could move the battery and oil tank in back, but that creates some other challenges.

I wonder where the fuel is now? Tips only? It looks like the gear retracts right into where the fuel tanks normally are. Question for BDK as our resident aeronautical engineer...wouldn't compromising the stress door structure have an adverse effect on the center section's strength?

[bdk]

...wouldn't compromising the stress door structure have an adverse effect on the center section's strength?

Certainly. My guess is that the rear spar was beefed up and another spar was added just forward of the gear. The stress door/fuel bay would then be narrower and attach to that more central spar. They could then make up the difference in lost fuel volume using the tip tanks.

From the location of the scissors, it looks like the gear was moved straight aft. Moving the mains back overcame some of the weight of the nose gear when retracted, but the entire nose gear remains ahead of the front spar. Also, without the tailwheel that's even more nose heaviness that needs to be overcome with lead.

If anyone happens by Whiteman please take some detailed photos of the underside of the wing center section.

Does anyone know the source airframe? It has a rectangular baggage door.

[k5083]

Does anyone know the source airframe? It has a rectangular baggage door.

I have seen T-6F 42-82028 quoted.

August

[Tim Savage]

Thanks Brandon. I have always been curious how that thing was put together.

The original airframe was an AT-6F, I believe, which had the square door like the Harvards.

Here is a book about the owner of the airplane:

http://www.amazon.com/Murderer-Badge-Se ... 0451404025

[EDowning]

Here is a book about the owner of the airplane:

http://www.amazon.com/Murderer-Badge-Se ... 0451404025

NOTE TO SELF:
Try not to engage in any activities that might lead to people finding me by entering: "Murderer-Badge-Secret-Rouge-Crime" in a search engine.

Ah, yes, another thing I have to keep track of now. But I am kind of partial to the "Rouge" part.

[T J Johansen]

Just wondering. Did anyone do a pilot report ala Mike Dillon, Budd Davidson etc. when the a/c was flyable? That would have been fun to read.

T J

[sledge39]

____

...It's in the registry here.....

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/texanreg ... 82028.html


____

[sledge39]

___

...anouther from 1967...



___

[famvburg]

Thanks for all the neat pics. Someone asked about the canopy & it does look kinda like a T-33 canopy. How about the nose gear? Looks kinda like what the tri-gear Beech 18s used. ISTR somewhere that it has a Wright R-1300 on it. Is the R-1300 heavier than an R-1340?

[famvburg]

Disregard the engine Q. I just counted the cowling bumps & I think I counted 18, not 14.

Thanks for all the neat pics. Someone asked about the canopy & it does look kinda like a T-33 canopy. How about the nose gear? Looks kinda like what the tri-gear Beech 18s used. ISTR somewhere that it has a Wright R-1300 on it. Is the R-1300 heavier than an R-1340?

[stumac]

I was at my hanger at Whitman (with the doors open) over the weekend and Bill Reedy showed up. Bill owns the T-6 that is rotting into the ground on his private ranch in Ramona (he wants to sell it). Bill has flown the Bacon T-6 quite a bit and was talking to me about it this weekend. He said it was a good flying airplane. It came up because the Bacon T-6 sits right out in front of our hanger. That guy Bill is a wild ex-Air America pilot. This weekend was also a first because Bill was wearing rattlesnake boots that still had the head and mouth of the ratlesnake as the tips of the boots. Yeah!

[RMAllnutt]

Here is a book about the owner of the airplane:

http://www.amazon.com/Murderer-Badge-Se ... 0451404025

NOTE TO SELF:
Try not to engage in any activities that might lead to people finding me by entering: "Murderer-Badge-Secret-Rouge-Crime" in a search engine.

Ah, yes, another thing I have to keep track of now. But I am kind of partial to the "Rouge" part.

Very funny Eric... I nearly fell out of my chair laughing.... you have a wonderfully wicked sense of humor.

Cheers,
Richard

[Chunks]

stumac wrote

That guy Bill is a wild ex-Air America pilot. This weekend was also a first because Bill was wearing rattlesnake boots that still had the head and mouth of the ratlesnake as the tips of the boots. Yeah!

I met Bill a little over a year ago, same boots. My son was 4 then, and he just couldn't take his eyes off of those snakes! Bill is an interesting man to say the least. I would love to hear some more of his experiences.

Chunks

[gale_dono]

So they wanted a COIN aircraft, and the best they could do was to convert a T-6 into a T-28?

[Mark Allen M]

Found a few more "Bacon Bits" on ebay ... these photos look to be taken when this thing was newly created.