Super Guppy Restoration

[Gaz]

Great stuff!

My mate, Stu, is in that video

[Dan4th]

WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!!

That was FUN !

D.

[Gaz]

Finishing touches being applied to MASSIVE new rudder gust locks. Permission to use the telehandler and man basket granted.

Gonna fix that rudder, tomorrow, or die trying!

[Gaz]

I'm still alive!

[Dan4th]

WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!

Looks like you even painted the
trim tab while you were up there

Great Work, O Gazzy One

Danf.

[RLN]

Hope they work, Gaz.

[Gaz]

Hope they work, Gaz.

Well, the one at the top is the one that was at the bottom. Gives you an idea how big we've made the new one. Fingers crossed!!

[Dan4th]

Tell us, Gaz, what's on the "To-Do List" for
the rest of the year?????

Danf.

[Gaz]

Tell us, Gaz, what's on the "To-Do List" for
the rest of the year?????

Danf.

Height!!!

We're trying to source a lift so we can finish the painting. DW has said that he'll get me signed off to use the site's platform, BUT, DW says A LOT of things. Now, he doesn't lie, he genuinely means everything he says, BUT, he's so incredibly busy, he just forgets stuff. You have to catch him on a day off, which is rare.

Other than that. Got these new tyres to put on, the restoration work on the MLG nacelles, the cockpit seats will need refitting when they come back from the upholsterer, the underside of the fuselage needs sanding and acid etching prior to painting, the skin on the rudder needs repairing............

My list is long and distinguished

[Dan4th]

Well, all of that ought to keep you and
your cohorts off the streets and out of
trouble for a while !

Wasn't there also something about a
nice, new spot for the Guppy to sit?

What's up with that?

Danf.

[Gaz]

Well, all of that ought to keep you and
your cohorts off the streets and out of
trouble for a while !

Wasn't there also something about a
nice, new spot for the Guppy to sit?

What's up with that?

Danf.

Gotta get the NLG fixed first. NASA have asked for photos of the data plates, so, there may be some movement there.

[Mackrick]

That wil. Stop it causing any damage.

[Gaz]

Eyes down for the April update:

10th April

Been a productive start to April. Neil's been doing a great job in the MLG nacelles and our tyres arrived from NASA, last week.

So today, the tyres completed the final leg of their journey prior to fitting. They were moved from the main hangar into our LVRE hangar:



Thanks to GJD for the use of the lorry.

We unpacked one of the pallets. BY CRIKEY THEY'RE HEAVY!! Gonna be a helluva job to fit them! Still, for now, they're here and under cover so I'm happy.

We've been having discussions about the noseleg. Stu, expect to get your ear bent in the next 24hrs or so!

The other woman:




13th April

Productive day, today. Neil set too in the MLG Nacelles:



Seeing as it's that time of year, again, I started work on the prop tips:

Before and after:





Now, after I sprayed and varnished them, almost, 12 months ago, they stood up to the elements quite well, but, this time, I'm actually brushing the paint on and it's gloss so, hopefully, it'll last a lot longer.

Also, after soaking the nuts, on one of the brake units, with WD-40, A LOT, over the last few weeks, I decided to try cracking them today and, to my surprise, it actually worked! It took a lot of effort but they will come off.

AND ALSO: I started to shift some of the bags of rock salt into the aircraft. I moved about 300kgs. She's still not level, but, there's no weight on the tail jack now so it's moving in the right direction!

All good!


17th April

On the drive to the airfield, today, I was thinking "What a lovely sunny day! Get plenty of painting done today". However, the wind on the airfield had other ideas! Windsock fully horizontal and staying there! It was blowing and, absolute, hoolie. Any paint I may have tried to put on would have quickly vanished towards the LPG's Q-shed!

So...

I moved another couple of hundred KG's of ballast into the aircraft. She's almost level now. For the time being, the weight is definitely shifted back to the front which is the main thing. The tail jack was actually off the ground today.

Then I helped Gregg and Graham with some prep/painting on a trolley acc we've been restoring.

Back on Saturday


20th April

Got there today, expecting to be working on the rudder, to find that Ash and Dave (Sea Vixen fame) had beaten me to it!



She looks great, locked off again. But, having it centered has revealed the extent of the damage:



Trying to decide how to repair it. She's not got to fly anywhere, so, we'll probably just put a scab patch on it.

Emma and I also tried to get the NLG off the ground using the cargo jacks. We've done it before, but, we both forgot, last time we did it there WASN'T 4 tonnes of ballast in there. Back to the drawing board on that one


24th April

Spent a little while on 900 today, helping out with the hydraulic issues. Think we're getting there now!

I had time to do a little bit on the Guppy. More prop tip action. I wouldn't bore you with another set of photos but the before and after is quite dramatic:

Before:



and after:



I also did a bit of de-mossing, not that you'd notice, but, a few panels are a lot less green now

[RLN]

Thanks, Gaz. Looking forward to seeing her (and you) at CWJ. Still got the Vulva? What happened to the Yankmobile?

[Gaz]

Thanks, Gaz. Looking forward to seeing her (and you) at CWJ. Still got the Vulva? What happened to the Yankmobile?

Took stock, decided there was NOTHING wrong with the XC90. No actual point changing it. Still think I'll get a GV when the time comes, although, I do keep looking at tripped out Defenders

[Mackrick]

Nasty bit of damage there Gaz, that will take a while to sort out.

[RLN]

Get a Disco.

[Gaz]

Nasty bit of damage there Gaz, that will take a while to sort out.

Yeah, the height doesn't help either. Like I said, we'll probably just scab it. She's not flying anywhere any time soon

[Gaz]

#2's Silver paintwork done!




They did it overnight, too.

Oh, for an A380 paint shop!

[Mackrick]

I'm sure you could convince them to do No 1

[Gaz]

Forgive my tardiness!

May update for you:

1st May

Glorious weather today, got a lot done.

Few more prop tips are a bit more orangey.

I did some assessment of, what we've always considered, the worst patch of corrosion on the aircraft. It's not good, but, not as bad as I feared. Trying to decide what can be saved and what will need replacing. Some fairly serious metal work on the horizon though.

Also, the first of the refurbished seat cushions went back into the cockpit. You'll have to use your imagination a bit, but, it's gonna look great!



They'll all be in by the open day!


8th May

Quiet one today, mostly due to our summer coming to an end. I did get another restored seat cushion fitted:



It's gonna look really good!

Also, I had a tip off about some chemical or other that can peg back and treat aluminium corrosion. Gotta look in to it, but, might be worth a look.

I also swapped two fully charged aircraft batteries for an, almost, flat one. I'll get that one done for the weekend.

Quiet, yet, productive


22nd May

Busy busy busy!

A before and after of, the white bit, on a prop tip:





By the time I'd finished, I'd done the white bits on 7 props, front and back.

Both these lower two have been done:



Also, got another seat cushion into the cockpit:



We're really thrilled with how these are turning out!!!

Also, did a bit of housekeeping in our unit and got the aircraft battery, almost, fully charged.

All whilst fixing Emma's computer


23rd May

Outdoor work was halted today due to the, not so much, rain, more of a small monsoon, that swept the airfield. We even had SNOW today! With thanks to global warming!

I was saving the awful job of cleaning the cockpit floor, for Ollie's return, but, with the weather what it was, I had little else to do. Took me over an hour and I'm still not done. It is looking good in there now, though.

Got another seat cushion in:



Only two more to go now!

I tested the electrics today and it's a good job I did. One of the floodlights in the hold is out, so, I'll pick one up when I do the open day shopping, tomorrow.

Also going to pick up a set of headsets for the cockpit. I don't think the radio/intercom is working yet, but, people seem to like putting them on for photos.

So I probably won't get to the airfield tomorrow, but, I'll be prepping all the same.


[color=#0040FF]27th May

Well, what an interesting, entertaining, sometimes frustrating, and, utterly, rewarding weekend we had.

Pretty much all day on Saturday was spent on 900. Going to the effort of changing the nose wheel, finding the rim on the new one was dud, changing the good tyre on to the good rim, then actually fitting the wheel again. Only for the old girl to develop ANOTHER hydraulic issue. Brakes, this time. It never rains with these old jets!

Here's some of us working on the NLG:



So first thing Sunday I got on to the Guppy. Got the last of the cockpit seats fitted:



I got my brother to fit a new bulb in the hold, I popped all of the emergency hatches (It was pretty hot, even at 08:00), Emma and my Mum sorted out a couple of health and safety issues and Ollie fetched the battery and installed it.

We then opened the door to the masses:



It was hectic at times, but, thanks to having a great crew and an extra person (Cheers Mum!) we were able to work in shifts so all of us, even me, got away from the aircraft at some point.



It was a great day, the weather was perfect, we had a much needed boost to the coffers and we got to meet the niece of the guy who designed the aircraft!

Thank you to everyone who came to see us![/color]


[color=#FF0000]29th May

Talk about the storm after the calm!!

It was hammering down at the airfield, today!

But, whilst trying to avoid the rain, Gregg and I made a start on 900's brakes. Nothing much, due to the rain, but we found the diagram in the manuals then traced the line in the aircraft. Pretty sure we know what to do, just need the weather to pick up.

I had three, almost new, 12v batteries donated to me at the open day. They'll do nicely in our trolley acc. I moved them into our container.

And that was about it, just avoided the rain for the rest of the time.[/color]


Busy month, all told! It's quietened down quite a bit, now.

Four of us are off to Toulouse in a few weeks for a look around #2 and the Airbus facility

[Mackrick]

Looks like it was a busy day with lots of visitors....

[Dan4th]

I've said it before and I'll say it again:::::::

Everyone LUVS The Guppy !!!

Did you count how many people climbed
aboard that day???

Oh, and is that Starfighter still minus
its J-79, Gaz?

Looking W-A-Y better than the 1st time
I saw it

Danf.

[Mayfly]

Those new seat cushions are looking good - who did them for you?

[Gaz]

Danf: Wne took £575.50. We charge £1 for adults, but, accompanied children are free. We had a lot of kids in. I reckon we, easily, had 1,000 people in

I keep hearing rumours about an engine for the widowmaker. Nothing's materialised yet. Justin is doing a tremendous job on tarting her up, though!


Pam: My good lady wife re-upholstered the flight deck. She's very good at that kind of thing