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What's New For 2011

Russ Strait with his Stearman, before restoration begins.

Russ Strait came to visit us last spring to look at the M&M airplane we were in the process of finishing up. This past winter he became serious about finding a Stearman project, so we started looking in earnest. Our search of potential projects took us to Missouri, Connecticut, and Oregon; we finally located one in Illinois that Russ approved of.

This Stearman originally belonged to Tom and Joanne Forys of Poplar Grove, Illinois, and is a 1942 PT-17 painted in Navy colors. Tom and Joanne were very active in the Stearman community. Tom was a retired airline mechanic who was known for his generosity and good nature. Tom passed away several years ago and his daughter continued flying it until recently.

Russ watches as his plane lands. He hadn't seen his plane in person until now.

The Forys family has made the difficult decision to pass the Stearman on to the next caretaker, and I don't think they could have found a better person than Russ. Russ's father, Don Strait, entered the Army Air Corps as a cadet in 1942 and his initial training was in a PT-17. He went on to fly P-47's and P-51's in Europe and was the top Ace of the 356th Fighter Group, with 13.5 kills.

The Strait family tradition: at right, Don Strait in 1942. On the left, Russ Strait continues the flying tradition in 2011.

Russ followed in his father's footsteps, flying fighters with the New Jersey National Guard; he also had a 30-year career with American Airlines. He has always loved old airplanes and looks forward to sharing the Stearman with his son Ryan. Ryan is a third-generation military pilot currently flying Blackhawk helicopters in Iraq. April 2012 will mark the 70th anniversary since this photo of Don Strait was taken next to a Stearman, and Russ hopes to commemorate the occasion by having his father once again take the controls of a PT-17 painted in 1942 Army colors.

As of Sept. 2011, we have Mr. Strait's Stearman project to the reassembly point, with all parts being stripped, inspected, painted or re-plated. The gear has been rebuilt with new seals. The engine is a recent overhaul, so we cleaned everything up and installed new mounts and replaced the old generator with a Jasco alternator. He has decided to exchange all the old wings and center section with new assemblies we have built. Here are a few pictures of the restoration so far

Click here to visit a photogallery detailing the restoration of this plane.

Over the years I have noticed that many Stearman owners also have a Cub. It makes perfect sense when you think about it. They were both the iconic trainers of their time, both are able to be flown open cockpit (well, almost), most are painted yellow, and how many times have you heard that a Stearman is just a big Cub? As we get older, sometimes it's easier to pull the Cub out for a quick flight, and it is certainly easier to put gas in, and if we have a medical issue it's light-sport-ready. Nothing wrong with 5 gallon/hour fuel burn either. So if you're thinking of hanging up your medical, or just want the perfect companion aircraft for your Stearman, think about a Cub. I had always wanted a Cub project for myself, and when this one came along last fall, I snapped it up. It is a 1941 model and we did several updates to it. The wings were completely rebuilt with all new spars, wing-tip bows and a new 12-gallon wing tank. We installed the later D-style rear windows, gross-weight-increase kit for the main gear, tail-wheel beef-up kit, new mounts for Scott master cylinders, and hard points for a front and rear shoulder harness. In addition we have upgraded to the new sealed struts and heavy forks, new boot cowl, Grove disc brakes, engine mount, tires and tubes, trim-jack screw, floorboards.....heck we just threw away all the old stuff and bought new. The plane came with a 65-Hp Franklin engine, but I have a new 85 Continental ready if I don't come across a 90-hp Continental first. If any of this is tempting you, then call us; we can build you a great Cub with many of the modern updates like a bigger engine, wing fuel tanks, starter, or just a bone-stock original for substantially less than the cost of a new production Cub.