Its official, I'm getting back into flying.....

djester · Post by **djester** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 5:40 am

I really like the airplane, but what I want is the property! Looks like heaven . . .

I have a good friend with a Stearman and get to fly it with some regularity. I've flown for 40 years, all kinds of airplanes, but nothing is as fun as a Stearman. Ranks right up there with sex.

Dave

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 5:59 am

Lifer wrote:Not many people recognize a Stearman anymore, but even fewer recognize the N3N. There is one N3N pilot who shows up at the annual National Stearman Fly-In in Galesburg, IL, now and then though.

Looking at your YouTube clip, I'd say she was being a little "temperamental" that morning. Did she ever get off the ground?

Me reaching around was narrowing down a "tapping" sound that I had heard the year prior and I was trying to isolate which cylinder that it was comming from.

Answer to the question
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9pssVR6 ... re=channel

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 6:03 am

djester wrote:I really like the airplane, but what I want is the property! Looks like heaven . . .

I have a good friend with a Stearman and get to fly it with some regularity. I've flown for 40 years, all kinds of airplanes, but nothing is as fun as a Stearman. Ranks right up there with sex.

Dave

The property is really nice but its where we keep her inside. our family home is 3 mi over the hill on a 3,000 ft grass airstrip and thats where she resides during the summer months.

Well if you think the stearman is like sex, you need to fly the N3N!!! To her, the stearman is a 50 dollar whore.

djester · Post by **djester** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 6:56 am

Without making any admissions against interest, I guess we've established I like $50 whores . . .

But you sure do make the thought of flying an N3N appealing! And I don't doubt it. There is just nothing that compares with those old airplanes.

In keeping with the analogy, I've always thought young women were over rated.

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 8:17 am

Here is a little play "between the sheets":)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWSDdI10y1M

djester · Post by **djester** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 8:37 am

Yep, that's about as much fun as you can have with your cloths on. Always loved the way the world disappears as you flair in those old taildraggers with a radial engine. Never will forget the first time I did that. Never made a better landing, before or since. I was the happiest guy in the USA that day!

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 8:46 am

It is a VERY good feeling!!
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=n3n ... 5TjBjo8Yew

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 8:56 am

djester wrote:I really like the airplane, but what I want is the property! Looks like heaven . . .

I have a good friend with a Stearman and get to fly it with some regularity. I've flown for 40 years, all kinds of airplanes, but nothing is as fun as a Stearman. Ranks right up there with sex.

Dave

I have not flown for 40 yrs (turn 38 tomorrow and I got my 1st ride at 8 months in our C-140) But I have had the pleasure to fly behind some neat ones.
All old school

djester · Post by **djester** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 9:12 am

That is a challenging little field, with the hill and trees on approach. Noticed you slipped it in at the last. That is a fine piece of flying! About as good as it can be done. Enjoyable to watch!

BTW, are those wings longer than on a Stearman?

Dave

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 9:24 am

djester wrote:That is a challenging little field, with the hill and trees on approach. Noticed you slipped it in at the last. That is a fine piece of flying! About as good as it can be done. Enjoyable to watch!

BTW, are those wings longer than on a Stearman?

Dave

Yes 34ft..............BTW, all aluminum.......NO WOOD and the pain in the ass part.......that top wing is ONE piece!!!

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 9:36 am

Top wing being moved at NAS repair station

The N3N was built to also be on floats, here is a early -1. Only one example still exists and its in SouthAmerica in a museum and still flies on occations.

Typical training day in 1943

Tho the navy kept a few until 1959 at ANNAPOLIS, surplusing them off in 61

Many after ww2 were made into cropdusters. Pulling off their 235 hp engines and installing engines up to 600 HP and serving aerial spraying for many years. Because of them, we still have many tired but still around projects waiting to take their turn back into the air!!

Here she is today

Nickathome · Post by **Nickathome** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 3:15 pm

Beautiful plane, and beatiful piece of land. Man if only I could win the lottery, I'd have a piece of land like that complete with hangar, my own plane, and my own private rifle range. Ahh heaven.

M-Thrax · Post by **M-Thrax** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 4:32 pm

I just went to a vintage airshow today in Williamson,GA, There was everything from Waco's to Widgons I haven't gone up in 17 years, damn time flys ( no pun intended) but now I have the bug all over again.
Regards
Bill Wincapaw VFR/SEL

djester · Post by **djester** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 5:11 pm

vtdeucedriver, looks like you are having too much fun with all those parts planes!

Great pictures. Did you notice the tail on the color picture of the float plane is different than the other airplanes? Wonder if that is because it is an early model?

Dave

vtdeucedriver · Post by **vtdeucedriver** » Sat Sep 12, 2009 5:28 pm

Same color dave, just the shadows that made it darker for the rest of the airplane. We only have the one N3N. Tho, that being said, we have one other fuselage that could be saved with alot of work!!! I do have 2 dataplates and a set of Navy Logs for another so who knows. Since I am working on a registry to account for all 816, I know where alot of them are hiding:) If I win the lottery, N3N's will start making their way east by the truckloads and a Howard 500 gets saved in AZ.

I have not talked about my uncle yet, he has his own strip. He has a cherokee 180, Aeronca champ, Beech staggerwing and 3 Beech 18's and a BT-13..............yep I think I got them all:)