Colonial Skimmer prototype

[MrWidgeon]

One word John.
SWEET !
Don't you just love it , kissing the wave tops like that ?
Great shot.

[TASSE]

With that distant background it looks like a small r/c model.

TASSE.

[skimmerone]

Sorry to keep you all "up in the air". I have been occupied with a few other chores. N6595K is alive and well, although she is tucked away in a hangar in Florida awaiting our annual "Lakeathon" next February 20th. I have been promising for the last three years that she would be at our annual fly-in at River Ranch Resort on Route 60, Lake Wales, Florida (right at the base of Lake Kissimmee). Rather than bear the cold trip (no heater) in February I decided to fly her south early. I left on a cold, blustery November morning and almost turned around due to the turbulence and winds. However, since those winds were directly on the tail, I persevered. Also, once I got through the New York City Hudson River corridor (piece of cake), things smoothed out as I went down the Jersey and Delaware Coasts. I stayed over at Accomack, VA after the 3 hours midday flight. The next day another 3 hours got me just south of Myrtle Beach, for lunch and fuel between 1 and 2 PM. I elected to fly a couple of more hours until I got tired, but the next thing I knew I was in Florida and landed at my destination after 3 1/2 hours just as the sun set. The tailwind lasted the whole trip, with the borrowed GPS showing 110 kts most of the time, and the airspeed showing 110 mph. Fuel consumption at 24/24 and slightly leaned was an amazing 7.8 gph. There is no doubt that if my bladder would hold out, I could safely do a 4 hour flight with reserve. Everything worked (well, the hydraulic accumulator went flat, but I knew it was low before leaving), even the avionics which I wired myself were right on the money, tested over Norfolk VA as I passed overhead at 1500 feet. She flew like she was happy to be in the air again.

I miss her, but I know she is in good hands with Bill and his son Skip. They have owned Lakes since 1964, having had one of each model. Bill is now 93 and sharp as a tack, still flying with Skip in the right seat and a son that also flies their Renegade. We will go down by airline in February to the fly-in and I will leave her again until the end of March where she will make an appearance at the Sun-n-fun seaplane "do" and then back home to New England.

[skimmerone]

Now that I can't work on #1 I need to start on my Berkeley Colonial Skimmer kit and later on the Pilot Lake Buccaneer kit. What are the recommended glues these days? They are mostly balsa with some plastic parts.

Of course, I really should start by sorting the mess still in the garage from restoring the real thing....

[TASSE]

Hi Skimmer,the two glues to use are balsa cement and cyano-acrylate (super glue). Hold both parts together and apply a wee drip to the joint, too much and it wont dry.

Nice to know that you are making a model. Hope that you will show us photos on the model section.

Cheers TASSE.

[skimmerone]

Have you ever considered restoring and old airplane? Read this first! Enjoy the agony and ecstasy of a restoration at a fraction of the cost and a miniscule amount of the time for only $22.00 USD. Website: http://www.jstaber.com

[skimmerone]

Sorry for no posts in a while. Next weekend we head to Florida for the Lakeathon at River Ranch Resort where over 50 Lakes and Skimmers and about 200 folks gather to have seminars, fly around and outdo each other with tales of seaplane flying. Hope to get some good shots of #1 Skimmer who will be the star of the show this year and many of her offspring. She is already there in a friend's hangar awaiting my arrival on Sunday morning to pick her up for a grand entrance about noon at the flyin. The new owner of #6 will be there also, plus the son of the original welder for Colonial who actually witnessed 95K's maiden flight in 1948. He would have been around 10 years old at the time and remembers going to work with his dad. We have been e-mailing for about 3 years now and I can't wait to meet him in person.

I do log on almost everyday and check the new posts and am amazed at what I see...old photos, model building, all those Widgeons...keep up the good work.

John

[MrWidgeon]

Glad to hear you're still with us John, I was beginning to wonder.
Sounds like someones fun meter is about get SERIOUSLY pegged, have a great time, wish I could join you.

Bill

[skimmerone]

On June 19, Skimmer One once again winged her way to Sanford, Maine for their airport open house. This time friend and Lake owner Bill Greenwald flew as copilot, his first ride in herself since he helped so much during her restoration. Sanford is where all the Skimmers and Lakes were built until the early 2000s. All of them except #1 which was built on Long Island and flew in July of 1948. Her wings, which came from #12, were built in Sanford in 1957. I had called ahead and talked with one of the old employees of Colonial and Lake and he informed several others. I also called the widow of Herb Lindblad who was responsible for building all of the Lakes at Aerofab, Inc. It was supposed to be a great day with light winds. However, they lied about the winds. We had no sooner shut the engine down when we were descended upon by about 30 "downeasters", all talking at once. Many of the old employees had actually worked on 95K in the 1950s. I had brought my 3 ring binder history of the Colonial years and they were a big hit, especially seeing themselves in the builder's photos. Bill and I spent about 2 hours talking with all, together and separately. Betty Lindblad brought several family members and they were thrilled to see what Grandpa had done oh so many years ago. The daughter of one old gent came up afterwords and and echoed the sentiments of many..."thank you for coming today, you made my father's day"...a day which they will be talking about for quite a while. Then back into the air for a bumpy ride home, both of us saying what a moving experience it had been. One fellow remembered building Bill's airplane.

I then decided to bite the bullet and install a brand new set of aluminum Cleveland wheels and brakes, something I should have done during her restoration, instead of using the magnesium wheels that came with her. This entailed changing the axles also. One could be tapped out with a hammer, the other required a hydraulic press and about 20 tons of pressure, done in Bill's excellent shop, and whole job took the better part of a week. At the same time I replaced the gyro vacuum pump which had lasted about 53 hours since a rebuild...this time it was a factory rebuilt pump so I hope to get a few more hours out of it. The only pesky problem so far has been keeping the engine idle speed under control. Evidently the cable sheathing is moving in its clamps and on a long flight the idle setting works its way up so that one is tempted to shut the engine down on final. It is not conducive to short landing rolls. Another couple of hours spent on the problem should have it under control...and boy does she need a bath. Must be all that Florida pollution.

[skimmerone]

http://share.shutterfly.com/action/welc ... mLluyZKSyA
On Saturday, July 16, an absolutely perfect day we winged our way east to northwest Rhode Island for a few hours of doing nothing but chatting, eating, bragging and enjoying the fine weather and watching the boats on the lake (making wakes). We were back home by 5 PM exhausted from doing absolutely nothing. It has been years since I made a trip like this.