Dear all, thought you’d like to see the attached – the event was superb and PT in his Hurribomber did us proud, also basking in the sunshine was Mr Slater’s delightful Tipsy Trainer, which as far as I’m concerned is Plane Porn.
ATB and Happy Easter! Ben
23rd April 2011 saw the unveiling of Sywell Aviation Museum’s brand new extension. Named the Paul Morgan Display Hall after the noted warbird pilot who, when based at Sywell sadly lost his life in the crash of Hawker Sea Fury G-EEMV some ten years ago in May 2001, shortly before the Museum opened for the first time.
The Mayor of Wellingborough and Mrs E.A. Morgan unveiled the new hall in an event which was marked by a beautiful display by Peter Teichman of the Hangar 11 Collection in his wonderful Hawker Hurricane G-HHII. Peter has been a long standing supporter of the Museum and generously attended at his own cost as a mark of respect to a fellow warbird pilot, sadly now no longer with us.
The new hall expands the Museum by a third and has enabled the display for the first time of the Museum’s cockpits – DH Vampire T.11 XD599, DH Chipmunk T.10 WG419 (ingeniously displayed on the back of a 1945 Lister Autotruck!) and newly added DH.82A Tiger Moth cockpit G-BHLT. The latter, a 1941 Morris Motors built machine saw service with the South African Air Force before returning to the UK and is on loan from Skymax Aviation pending her rebuild to flight. All these types are relevant to Sywell having all be based there, the Chipmunk itself actually having been based at Sywell with 4 BFTS and 6 RFTS in the 1950s.
In addition the Museum has been able to display a complete LINK trainer on loan from Wellingborough CCF. The machine has been fully restored by Museum volunteers and is in full working order. In a unique partnership, the cadets can still use the Link, but when dormant she forms part of the Museum display.
The new hall, a former POW camp hut was dismantled in Derbyshire in 2005 and re-erected in 2010. The cost was entirely met by Museum funds (which considering the Museum does not have an entry fee and relies on donations is quite incredible!) and all work carried out by its volunteers.
Another recent addition to the Museum’s considerable aircraft ordnance collection was a German SC500 bomb of the type dropped in Northamptonshire’s worst air raid in August 1942. Going the other way was a Handley Page Hampden wingtip, held in the Museum collection, to the Michael Beetham Conservation Centre at RAF Museum Cosford.
TT
By: low'n'slow - 26th April 2011 at 08:46
Thanks for the kind words on the Tipsy, TT, even if you were a tad ruder about my former Luton Minor steed… and we didn’t dare bring the FRED within rifle shot of the re-enactors!
Congratulations on a brilliant opening for the new Paul Morgan Hall, and its superb displays. A lot of hard work I know for all the team,. Delighted it has paid off handsomely!
By: TwinOtter23 - 26th April 2011 at 08:23
…Thanks for your kind words mate, much appreciated – we’ve a way to go til we’re up to Newark’s standard though!
The Paul Morgan Hall is leagues above NAM’s dalliance with Nissen style buildings and highlights the benefit of genuine hard work and I know a lot of effort!
It’s a credit to you all!! 🙂
By: Mark V - 26th April 2011 at 00:36
Please don’t get me started on fees; we’ve got three ‘conditions’ to be discharged on our next project – fortunately we’ve tumbled the fact that if you get them discharged together it’s just one fee; as opposed to three fees if you do them individually!!
Another planning ‘stealth tax’ at £85 a pop :rolleyes: The only good news is its £25 for dwellings and free for listed buildings (for the time being anyway).
By: TEXANTOMCAT - 25th April 2011 at 19:58
Great to hear that you’ve managed to stabilise the display conditions as described, no easy feat in an un-heated building – that in itself is something to be congratulated on!
Please don’t get me started on fees; we’ve got three ‘conditions’ to be discharged on our next project – fortunately we’ve tumbled the fact that if you get them discharged together it’s just one fee; as opposed to three fees if you do them individually!!
We keep hearing good things about you down there so keep up the good work. 🙂
We WILL overcome! Thanks for your kind words mate, much appreciated – we’ve a way to go til we’re up to Newark’s standard though!
Til then keep up the good work – will almost certainly make it up in the Summer and check out the T-6(s)!
All the best
Ben
By: TwinOtter23 - 25th April 2011 at 19:49
Great to hear that you’ve managed to stabilise the display conditions as described, no easy feat in an un-heated building – that in itself is something to be congratulated on!
Please don’t get me started on fees; we’ve got three ‘conditions’ to be discharged on our next project – fortunately we’ve tumbled the fact that if you get them discharged together it’s just one fee; as opposed to three fees if you do them individually!!
We keep hearing good things about you down there so keep up the good work. 🙂
By: TEXANTOMCAT - 25th April 2011 at 17:44
Howard you are shameless! :diablo:
Yep if you’ve only single skinned it it isnt as strong nor is there any insulation at all – and yep the condensation will clobber you – the air gap is designed to avoid it building up. We still run dehumidifiers in ours all year round anyway and we dont have too many problems unless it is extremely cold (when the dehumidifiers freeze up – we dont have any heating)
The leather in our collection is a good indicator of humidity – it will bloom if its not at the correct ambient humidity – we’ve not had any ‘blooming’ for about 4 years now since we got the dehumidifier vs square footage ratio right.
We struggled with the planners when we put the original building up but as the extension was more of the same there were no issues at all (they made us pay two fees though, one for each extension on each end!)
ATB
Ben
By: TwinOtter23 - 25th April 2011 at 13:04
You’d be most welcome Howard!
The huts are designed to breathe, the air gap between the inner (horizontal) tins and purlins and the outer (vertical) tins) usually being vented by ‘witches hats’. I know of at least 2 Museums (actually not aviation ones) where they had to remove the insulation because of air circ and corrosion issues. As I say, if you have galve tins then no worries but if not, use caution.
No issues with BR at all – they were good as gold.
ATB
Ben
Newark only managed to secure a set of hoops for its Engine Hall the cladding was completely beyond use.
To secure Planning Permission they had to agree to plastic coated cladding to match the exiting buildings and it was completed with only a single set of sheets – seemingly hence the condensation issues.
As the structural calculations indicated that the building would fall down, one of the trustees had to identify exiting sites that used Nissen Huts so the Building Regs people could go out on site and see existing units standing safely! :rolleyes:
In view of your excellent progress this weekend I couldn’t resist getting a Nissen Building item added to the NAM website as Object of the Week – 24.04.11!
Good luck with the LINK!! 😉
By: TEXANTOMCAT - 25th April 2011 at 10:01
Love you too, Ben! 😉
:p
Thanks for your kind words!
Not sure about rides in the LINK yet – the CCF will continue to use it of course and there are H&S (ugh!) issues with strapping someone into it….watch this space.
ATB
TT
By: Eye on the Sky - 25th April 2011 at 10:00
Well done on Saturday’s event, very enjoyable. Had an equally good experience afterwards, when we travelled 20 minutes up the road to the Carpetbaggers Museum at Harrington.
Any plans to offer rides in the Link Trainer to paying guests? I’d put my name down for a crack at it.
Once again, well done.
Dean
By: BlueRobin - 25th April 2011 at 09:59
No issues with BR at all
Love you too, Ben! 😉
By: TEXANTOMCAT - 25th April 2011 at 09:35
You’d be most welcome Howard!
The huts are designed to breathe, the air gap between the inner (horizontal) tins and purlins and the outer (vertical) tins) usually being vented by ‘witches hats’. I know of at least 2 Museums (actually not aviation ones) where they had to remove the insulation because of air circ and corrosion issues. As I say, if you have galve tins then no worries but if not, use caution.
No issues with BR at all – they were good as gold.
ATB
Ben
By: RPSmith - 25th April 2011 at 00:43
TO/TT, perhaps a method of insulation might be the spray-on type. It adheres to the inside skin thus excluding the air in which corrosion would form?
Roger Smith.
Oh, and the new extension looks splendid. 🙂
By: TwinOtter23 - 24th April 2011 at 22:51
Howard DO NOT INSULATE the engine hall – unless the tins are galvanised. If you do, condensation will form and will rot the tins from the inside – trust me on this, what we don’t know about Nissen huts aint worth knowing!
ATB
TT
Thanks for the advice – condensation is the main current problem we’re trying to overcome; back to the drawing board! 🙁
Were ‘Building Regs’ a challenge? 😀
Looks good – I must get down and pay you a visit; maybe once the Harvard goes inside at Newark!! 😉
By: G-ASEA - 24th April 2011 at 21:19
TT,
Sorry what for, My son would love to burn my Minor! He say’s it should last to christmas. If you put a bit on the fire at a time.
Dave :diablo:
By: TEXANTOMCAT - 24th April 2011 at 20:38
Sorry Dave, couldnt resist the Minor joke… :diablo:
Howard DO NOT INSULATE the engine hall – unless the tins are galvanised. If you do, condensation will form and will rot the tins from the inside – trust me on this, what we don’t know about Nissen huts aint worth knowing!
ATB
TT
By: TwinOtter23 - 24th April 2011 at 19:50
Looking good TT – a quick technical question, did you insulate the walls?
I ask the question because Newark are planning an upgrade to their Engine Display building and your Paul Morgan Hall looks a pretty good example to try and follow. 🙂
By: G-ASEA - 24th April 2011 at 14:02
Im sorry I missed the opening! But I was working on vintage glider’s and my Minor.
Dave
By: TEXANTOMCAT - 24th April 2011 at 12:41
We missed you yesterday Dave! Yep the Tipsy is the little red aeroplane, 8/10 people surveyed said it was 1130% better than a Luton Minor 😀
TT
By: G-ASEA - 24th April 2011 at 12:21
The Tipsy belongs to Low and slow on this forum.
Dave
By: knifeedgeturn - 24th April 2011 at 12:12
Thanks for the info, is the little red trainer the Tipsy? looks a lovely little A/C; looks like you had a good day, with kind weather.
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April 24, 2011 at 11:32 am