replaced the gunpods with the bomb racks today and test fit two 100 lb bombs. next come the rockets. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Yeah.... When you get pulled over, on that highway in the sky, by a Raptor....with stingers.... just remember: NEVER ARGUE with an officer that carrying a big weapon... hee hee hee! Russ, (with all Sincerity) You're MY kind of nut! Charlie
Armament panel pedastal now installed between the pedalswhich controls the WORKING N-9-1 gunsight. All weapons circuits have been removed. Once the engine is broken in well, will probably run with gun pods. Lemme tell you, the reflector gunsight is very cool with the lighted reticle and dot Image Unavailable, Please Login
Traded out the bomb racks for the gun pods today to see how it handles. Will wait till a cool morning to fly. It looks cool. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Thanks to my WIX O-2 buds, I've found someone who already fabricates the two shot 2.75" FFAR rocket pods which were used on the later A models. These look to be similar if not the same 2 shot pods in the -1 and MM, and will fit the existing bomb pylon as they are supposed to. I think these may be a very good XC display option, for as good as the 50 cal pods look, they really slow the little plane down. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Great stuff, Russ. You're having fun and keeping history alive. I wish someone had done this sort of thing after WW2 and kept more of the equipment alive and on display in the air but as I remember it, everybody wanted to "get out of uniform" and throw everything away. Thanks . Switches
An old friend of mine who recently passed away told me about owning a P-51 in the early 1950s. He was happy to trade it straight across for a Beech 18-- as he said, he needed something which he could use to make money with! And, at the time he was also flying airshows in a T-6, and spraying with a Grumman Avenger.
The 0.50 gunpods were quite heavy and draggy, so today we test fitted the prototype relica 2.75" two tube MA-2a rocket launchers as shown in the T-28A manuals. These seem promising to have a lot of 'impact' with the least amount of drag. should be finished up in about a week or two. Also installed a nifty little back up aviation GPS for $350, which I like to think of as my 'targeting computer'. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I applaud the way you are restoring this airplane, Russ. First class throughout. I couldn't help noticing the configuration of the leading edge root extension and the change in leading edge contour. The sharper radius appears to be an inboard stall producer that is concurrent with North American wings. The Navion has 2 or 3 degrees of twist at the tip plus an under-cambered airfoil that will keep lifting at lower speeds preventing tip stall. The AT-6 had the same thing. I believe that is why they are so nice to fly. The Ryan PT-22 was just the opposite and was wicked at low speeds and careless flying. Switches
Thanks, Switches and Rob. Today we had the final fitting for the 2.75" rockets. I think these will look good and have the least drag penalty of the armament options so far. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
MA-2A Launchers and 2.75" rockets mounted. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
No argument from me, the guns do look great - if they weren't so dang draggy. Perhaps the fact I was flying with them on 100 degree plus days accentuated the feeling... The kind-of joke is that the pods turn it into a T-6 cruise-wise. It takes almost a good hour to swap the pylons for the gunpods, all safety wired, etc. Of course it takes about 5 minutes to swap between pylon ordinance - bombs, dual 2.75" rocket launcher or triple 2.25" SCAR rocket rails. Now if I had a later Aero 15D pylon, then I could really start packing heat (and slowing WAAAY down)... but then I might as well get a D model which brings more cost...
Russ, I thought we had a chat about not strafing the neighbors. Remember? It's antisocial and hurts property values. c'mon, now; repeat after me. "I will not strafe my neighbors." now say it again like you mean it. seriously, that is wicked cool.
Well the same guy that made the 2.75" pods also has the more commonly seen 7 shot pods, which do fit the standard pylon. Would expect the weight drag similar to 100# bomb. So far, on my two A model hardpoints, I can mount: two .50 cal gun pods two 100lb bombs two x 3 three 2.25 rockets two x 2 2.75" FFAR rockets Here is the 7 shot pod as mounted on a O-2: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I figured it out, Russ! They wouldn't let you play soldier when you were a little boy . And now...... Are you hav'in fun or what ? That is a beautiful airplane and I enjoyed the video with the sound of that R1820 running. I can almost hear again the sound of a bunch of 50's going off. Wicked good weapon then and still is now. Goes along with that Wright up front. SWITCHES
It's too bad that I couldn't keep the remnants of the WW2 days when the P-40's would come over our house on simulated strafing runs and fire their 6 50's into the Gulf right over us. It rained links and brass and sounded like monster hail hitting the roof. I collected the " hail" and had belt of empty brass that was probably 20 feet long. If I was outside when they fired I could feel the muzzle blast very effectively.I can't imagine anything like that happening now. SWITCHES