MAM Sea Vixen XN685's restoration

wow , wat an amazing job you have done on XN685, she looks fantastic! Does she have engines present? and was she on the martel trails?

This is tremendous Rob. Where did you get the ‘Red Tops’ from? Are they genuine or mocked up? A nice pair of steps placed strategically would ensure a queue of photographers eager to capture those stencils on top of the engine! :rolleyes: Well done!

Both Red Top missiles have now been fitted to XN685 and because the airframe was sat on a kind of dead grass, dried soil type of surface, it has been decided that a clean-up operation be done under her so I have slabbed all under the front of the nose back to the air intakes and the rest is being gravelled to as far back as the arrester hook. Laying the slabs alone has made a vast differance already (Next their will be hanging baskets and flower pots) 😀

This is a great restoration. I grew up under the circuit at Lee on Solent and Sea Vixens were a way of life. The Lee air show always had a few and I remember Simons Circus too.

I have no idea if the Vixen was a successful aeroplane or not but I do like it.

I did once refer to it as being noisy, smelly and full of sailors – so a bit like Portsmouth, but that was more a joke against Portsmouth than the Sea Vixen.

Well done on the restoration, it is a pleasure to see.

Great credit to MAM all their aircraft seem to be coming along really well in the restoration/ repaint front and this is clearly no exception.

curlyboy

Worth every minute!

Here’s todays installment folk’s. All day………just to do one side 😮

looks the part now shes got some Red Tops.. she looks as good as new now.. keep up the exellent work.. 🙂

Absolutely outstanding. I can’t wait to see this lot first hand 🙂

Roy.

Looking forward to your visit, Roy.

Thank you all for your comments, it’s what keeps me going. This is just the beginning….it won’t stop now! 😀

Absolutely outstanding. I can’t wait to see this lot first hand 🙂

Roy.

very nice!! 😀

Looks great Rob.

Roger Smith.

Thanks for the update Robmac. It is amazing what a difference all the correct stencilling makes!

and the last for now…….

few more……..

After doing some serious looking into the Vixens wing, to my relief we have found that the wing fold jack is ok and it’s the sequencing valve that has split, which means we can still fold the wing by hand pump, thus enabling me to repair the valve.

Over the last week or so, more work that I have done is making the Vixen look so much better. I spent a considerable amount of time at home reproducing the panel markings on my PC to great effect! In the days of the Vixen, most information markings on the airframe were decals and not stencils, so I have made hundreds of decals to replace the ones that were worn away or completely lost, of which all were done through the use of my own manual which was a god send.

We have also now got ‘Red Tops’ fitted and it give’s Vicky a more aggressive look. All ‘KEEP OFF’ markings are on the top of the engine covers and the red cross and square markings I am currently in the middle of doing.

All in all, she’s looking fabulous!!

OK, I can see why the airport has a problem with cranes, but a hiab is not that tall – not enough to be a hazard. Are you directly aligned with the runways?

Bruce

maybe talk to the Hiab company and explain what you need to do and ask if they could donate one for an hour?

How high would a “simple” tripod gantry have to be Rob?

ie distance ground up to hinge + distance hinge to wingtip + allowance for block and tackle.

Just thinking out loud 🙂

Roger Smith.

Not too sure Roger to be honest. We’ll need at least a couple of feet clearance from the wing tip at 90 degree’s, but the wing itself from hing to tip is about 16 feet, so it would need to be at least 20 feet high my friend.!

Are the wings in the locked position, or merely down?

They’re not locked in place as far as I know, but could easily unlock them if need be by what the manual says. It also shows the wing being hoisted through 90 degree’s via a slinging system on a hoist. A hiab will probably be able to lift it but we have a problem with the airport regarding the use of cranes and the such, plus also the cost of hiring such a vehicle for a quick job like that will not be cost affective for the museum’s budget!

These are both idea’s that will work though. If any other idea’s are out there though…………………….

Are the wings in the locked position, or merely down?

If they are just down, then a truck with a hiab would be the way to go.

I will have a look in the maintenance manual and see if I can find any other clues.

Bruce