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Chip Shop


Danny Fenton
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Well, if it's an October start maybe I'll be able to join in. Meanwhile, to whet the appetites of the rivet counters, here's a few pics of one of the ex-Portuguese Air Force Chipmunks that I was involved in rebuilding. Chipmunks are not short of rivets, and not many of them are flush!

chipmunk 004.jpg

chipmunk 005.jpg

chipmunk 007.jpg

chipmunk 014.jpg

chipmunk 024.jpg

The measuring strip in the pics is 1 inch squares. Worst job in the rebuilding was retrofitting spin strakes (a UK CAA requirement) to the rear of the fuselage. This involved me, as the slimmest, taking out the rear seat and sliding head first down the inside of the fuselage to hold the block on the inside of the rivets while the boss whacked them with the pneumatic rivet gun from the outside. Lying on cables, pulleys and fuselage formers while being deafened was pretty uncomfortable.

I think I've also had the undercarriage legs out of the Canadian one with the RAF canopy in the header picture for it's periodic X-rays of the mounts. They're almost all cracked, and the cracks are allowed to grow to a certain size, then the wings are scrap.

Happy Days,

David

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Great pictures David, they will get squirreled away thumbs up Any more like that will be gratefully appreciated. I have taken some pics of the one at Cosford, but when i am next there i will see if they will let me closer and I will do a walkaround. I also have a friend who flys a Rollason Condor that has a Chippy that shares his hangar, should be able to go and get some shots of that if need be. I hear it is also silver.

I too spent a while laying inside the odd fuselage listening to my father shout "tap tap", whilst I held the block alongside the rivet to set it, then "rivet" with the block squarely over the rivet. Never was on the Chippy though, was usually Cessna 150 repairs as there was a ditch at the end of the runway at Sherburn, and it kept us busy putting noselegs back if I recall. I seem to remember the lead acid battery was just aft of the cockpit on the Chipmunk, and the sloshing acid corroded the fuselage directly beneath, or am remembering that wrong?

Well I think with David joining the throng we are back up to 9:

Me

Chris Bott

Glenn Stratton

Kevin B

Terry Walters

Tony Bennet

Colin Leighfield

John Stones

David (Captain Slog)

And a nearly comitment from Dylan (But he is trying to get his business afloat so has a valid excuse)

Okay here is a pic of me helping to strip the paint of a friends dads Chipmunk. He bought two, crated them up and shipped em to the States. We were tasked with stripping the paint off them before they left RAF Weathersfield.

weathersfield 1976 chipmunk001.jpg

I am the long haired lout at the rear embarrassed

Cheers

Danny

Edited By Danny Fenton on 22/03/2014 15:09:51

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I have to say gentlemen, that's beyond my commitment to scale detail, blow the rivets, stand-off is my normal level of attention threshold!

It's amazing how it's possible to keep old aircraft constructed in this complicated way in flying condition almost indefinitely it seems, even here we're looking at airframes around 60 years old. My birth year co-incides with the first flight of the chipmunk in Canada, 1946, and that's a long time ago!

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Posted by Danny Fenton on 22/03/2014 00:25:55:

By my reckoning that's nine that have tentatively said they are interested in joining in. I think that is tremendous thumbs up I appreciate circumstances change but it is a very good start, especially when you think we only suggested it today!

Me

Chris Bott

Glenn Stratton

Kevin B

Terry Walters

Tony Bennet

Colin Leighfield

Andrew Price

John Stones

If you shouldn't be on the list let me or Chris know? We may have misinterpreted a post embarrassed

After a chat with Chris we have set the start date as October 1st, that should give us all plenty of time to get sorted and a clear target to aim for. Please can we hold off starting before then as we think its important that we all at least start the journey together. There is no end date, and no event as a target. Its not a race. As Chris has said, if a few get finished and they want to get together then that is great.

Thanks again we are thrilled that so many have either said they will take part or posted their support for the idea.

Cheers

I have set the date.

Can I start purchasing ancillary items before hand, engine servo`s etc etc

Kev

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