The old girl finally comes home... | FerrariChat

The old girl finally comes home...

Discussion in 'Aviation Chat' started by dmark1, Dec 28, 2016.

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  1. dmark1

    dmark1 F1 World Champ
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    #1 dmark1, Dec 28, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    This Christmas was quite a special one for me. Let me explain. I learned to fly 41 years ago (gulp) when I was 16 years old (do the math) falling for the avocation after reading "Anyone Can Fly" by Jules Bergman when I was in Junior High school. In this book the former ABC science commentator describes his enjoyment of learning to fly in the late 1950's in what was then the modern trainer of the era, a 1958 Piper Tri-Pacer. The book was a turning point in my life at that time and so I naturally fell in love with the thought of purchasing one. 3 years later, while a junior in High School I did for $5,000.00 (didn't have a car at that time yet though). After learning to fly in my 1958 Tri Pacer I sold her in 1977 for faster and higher things...

    I always followed my old flame through the years, from California to Florida back to South Texas, even calling one of the owners to see if he would sell, to no avail.

    Now on to this Christmas EVE. Apparently one of the previous owners of the airplane had put a note in the logbooks about my interest and the present owner of the airplane, who had just received bad medical news, called me to gauge my interest in purchasing my old bird. Does a bear **** in the woods?

    I bought her sight unseen, no pre buy, no nothing. I brought her home yesterday (my first flight in her in over 40 years!) to my hangar to share with her sexy faster younger sister Citation Mustang. Guess which one means the most to me?

    Going to send her off next month for a complete and total restoration back to factory new standards. New fabric, new engine, new instruments, new radios, new glass. I will own the most expensive Tri Pacer in the nation bar none. I don't care because she is never leaving my side again.


    Here is a picture of her when I picked her up at the old grass field in Tyler, Texas and upon her arrival home back at my hangar. Merry Christmas indeed!

    EDIT : Will someone PLEASE tell me how to rotate images arghhhhhhhh!
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  2. sigar

    sigar F1 Rookie
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    That is a great story, all the way from buying her while in high school (!) to the reuniting. Enjoy!
     
  3. bball16

    bball16 F1 Rookie
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    Great story. We've all tried to do that with cars too.
     
  4. TheMayor

    TheMayor Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    Vegas baby
  5. joker57676

    joker57676 Two Time F1 World Champ

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    You bought a plane that wasn't a Pilatus????? Is that even legal?
     
  6. donv

    donv Two Time F1 World Champ
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    That's really cool!

    I read that Jules Bergman book as well, at about the same age (but about 10 years later).
     
  7. dmark1

    dmark1 F1 World Champ
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    #7 dmark1, Dec 28, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    A picture of me off of Facebook about to leave on one of my first cross country flights with my Dad after receiving my PPL. My very supportive but non pilot Dad stands at the wing. He has been deceased now for 16 years but this airplane stirs warm memories of that wonderful time. I sit in the cockpit all of 17 years old about to take my parents from Dallas to Anderson, Indiana to visit my grandmother. Trusting parents!
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  8. GuyIncognito

    GuyIncognito Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    great story! congrats on finding her :)

    and flying from TX to IN solo as a 17 year old...damn...impressive. my parents wouldn't have let me drive that far at that age (for good reason :eek:)
     
  9. joker57676

    joker57676 Two Time F1 World Champ

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    I got my license at 17 too. I was on quite a tight leash driving, even down to what route I could take to the airport, but flying was a different story. Total freedom.



    Mark
     
  10. airborne

    airborne Karting

    Feb 19, 2013
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    Northern VA
    Great story and photos!
    Did your Mom have her hand on the dash board constantly saying "Slow down, slow down..."?
     
  11. GuyIncognito

    GuyIncognito Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    interesting.

    I guess you can't buy beer with your friend's older brother's ID while in a plane... ;)
     
  12. wizzard

    wizzard Karting

    Nov 9, 2014
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    Like you I also learned to fly in a Tri Pacer. Interestingly I have also recently flown a Mustang. The Tri Pacer was fun and a great airplane to learn in-much better than the 150 which I later instructed in.
     
  13. solofast

    solofast Formula 3

    Oct 8, 2007
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    That plane looks to be well cared for and in very nice shape...

    The biggest thing to be careful about old tube and rag airplanes is if they've been kept outside (remember that hangars were rare until recently and since the TriPacer wasn't a real expensive airplane most of those years hangars weren't always available) is corrosion inside the tubes.

    Airplanes that are kept outside get bigger temperature swings and condensation inside the tubes can be an issue.

    Since you're planning on stripping the covering I'm sure they'll do a careful inspection and that's a good thing.
     
  14. Bob Parks

    Bob Parks F1 Veteran
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    Good advice! Rag and tube airplanes can pick up a load of sneaky corrosion and it isn't always on the outside, especially in sea planes or those machines near water. I spent a day one weekend in years past flying with a friend in an 85 HP Cub and we were trying some aero stuff to see how good we were and the following weekend it went into a 100 hour inspection and they found that one of the lower ends of a lift strut tube was almost rusted through from the inside. It was an ex-seaplane and carried some of its history with it. I know that many owners of airplanes with a steel tube frame have injected hot Lion Oil into the interior of the tubes and rolled the frames around to make certain that it was properly spread around to combat interior corrosion.
     
  15. CavalloRosso

    CavalloRosso Formula 3

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    Great story Mark. Enjoy her in good health.
     
  16. killer58

    killer58 Formula 3

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    What a fantastic story. Congratulations!!

    I wish I could have my first bird. Sadly, she's on static display in a museum!
     
  17. GatorFL

    GatorFL Moderator
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    Very cool story Mark, congrats. Make sure you post pictures after the restoration!
     
  18. Tcar

    Tcar F1 Rookie

    More info, pls.
     
  19. GrigioGuy

    GrigioGuy Splenda Daddy
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    Make sure your heirs have my contact info :D :) ;)

    Neat story
     
  20. NürScud

    NürScud F1 Veteran

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    Great story and congratulations on find her!
     
  21. kylec

    kylec F1 Rookie
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    What are you going to do for avionics?
     
  22. GordonC

    GordonC F1 Rookie
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    Mark, congrats on re-acquiring the Piper, that's a fantastic story!

    :D I started lessons at 15, solo'd on my 16th birthday, had my license at 17. When training, I had to ride my bicycle out to the airport a few miles outside of town, since I couldn't drive yet.

    The (Canadian) PP license I got at 17 didn't list my birthday anywhere... I only tried this when already 18 and legal, but in a bar one night when asked for ID I showed them my pilot's license. They correctly noted that my birthday wasn't listed, and I replied "That's OK, because you have to be 18 to have a PP license to begin with". They believed me!
     
  23. dmark1

    dmark1 F1 World Champ
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    #23 dmark1, Jan 7, 2017
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  24. dmark1

    dmark1 F1 World Champ
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    Well since I had to serve a 3 month ban for insulting Flash (!) I was able to get a lot done. After her disassembly in Sulphur Springs my Tri Pacer has had her entire frame gone over with replacement of several bad tubes, a new coat of zine chromate and all new pulleys and floorboards installed. The wings were disassembled, fully checked over, new leading edge metal, new wing bows and new false spar installed. These were primed and painted with Daytona White paint (the original 1958 from the factory color) and set aside. New landing lights and new wing tip strobes are installed. Every single metal piece on the airplane was disassembled, inspected, replaced with new if necessary and then repainted with the original Santa Fe Red. New windshields, new instruments, new control cables, etc were purchased. All control surfaces were disassembled, inspected and covered and repainted in Daytona White. A brand new Lycoming engine was purchased and sits in the crate ready to install. I have located the original Narco Superhomer and LFR-3 radios that came in the airplane originally in 1958 and are building up a mock panel with their faces for the show. New avionics will be installed to include a Garmin GTN-750 and 345 Transponder with full ADSB- in/out capability. The interior is being produced by a local shop that specializes in Ferrari interiors and is being constructed with Connolly Leathers of beige and burgundy to match the interior. All this in three months. Three months to go until Oshkosh and hopefully a Grand Champion in the Contemporary Category!
     
  25. 88Testarossa

    88Testarossa Formula 3

    Sep 25, 2012
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    How'd I miss this thread? I started flying in a Piper Colt and Tripacer at age 13. Soloed 16, licensed at 17, MEL at 18, rotary/instrument rated at 21. Paid for all my lessons from sheer hard work (except Uncle Sam paid for the helo ratings).

    Mark's pics, story, and many of these replies brought back fond memories.

    I always liked flying the TriPacer. My buddy landed one on a convertible on the Baltimore Washington Parkway (fuel starvation).

    That's a rugged little plane.


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
     

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