11 Mar
Midweek work at Coventry this time.
Chaos on the motorways and various errands took a large bite out of the day, with airport passes needing renewing, and batteries collecting from forum member alanl (Thanks again!) but we still managed to get quite a bit done.
First job of the day was to pass the cake around… tomorrow marks 57 years to the day since WR963 first took to the skies!
Back to the work stuff…
All the stops are being pulled out to get 963 ready for a four day paintathon, if all goes to plan, indoors! The idea being to finish off the white Coastal Command scheme, and hopefully get roundels and code letters on her. We’ve been photographing any stencils we come across as we find them, and referencing them with photo’s to make sure we get them right. The only deviations from her original scheme will be the keeping of the red spinners, as they look rather smart, and the black antiglare panel may stay.
Vic and Rich Marriott are attacking the clouded window panels on the cockpit, replacing with new where we have them, and manufacuring replacements if we haven’t. Before we left last week, to cover where one panel has been removed, we sheeted up the gap and put the cockpit cover on. Removal this morning nearly resulted in some unplanned paragliding! The wind was atrocious, with not just 963 bouncing around but DC-6 G-SIXC visibly moving – at one point losing her tail steady.. 😮
The windows and windscreen frame are where the last bits of water ingress into 963 are found, all other leaks having been chased and sealed. One particularly frustrating leak was traced right back up the fuselage, through sound deadening and various panels, to the rooftop strobe light!
There will still be a team working on Saturday, and they have a long list of things to do. Hopefully this weekend will see the oleo legs recharged amongst other things.
Peter, sorry I didn’t spot your question earlier. Long bomb doors are something we would love to have, but it’s going to be a hell of a lot of work. All the original hydraulic runs and supports for the doors at the front were removed. It is on the list though, but won’t be looked at for a while!
For all those that are wondering when the Griffons are going to growl next?
A full run schedule for the year will be published before long, we just need to synch our calendar with Airbase’s. However, if you can’t wait that long and have the itch to see and hear it happen, WR963 will next run on Sat 16 April, for the first “Friends of WR963” meeting of 2011.
Regards,
Rich
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