I have cast risers before, but found that the accurate machining of the cast part was difficult (the tapped holes and bar clamp area). I am trying another way here. This started out as a square billet chunk, with the holes already machined. Then I carve away the excess material by hand with a rotary file. This still gives me complete creative flexibility but ensures better accuracy. This pair took just about 20 hours.
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More pics from my second home.
Kully in front of the GAU8 Avenger gatling gun, the weapon housed in the nose of the A10 Thunderbolt 2, aka the Warthog.
F14 Tomcat- an amazing carrier based fighter. The plane made famous in “Top Gun”.
The indestructible Bell “Huey” chopper. Made famous in every Vietnam movie made. Reminds me of my favorite Jedi Mind Tricks line: “special opp, huey chop, gun ship, run shit, gook run when the minigun spit, wont miss, kill shit, spit 4000 bullets a minute, charlie, hit the trigger hit it, I’m in it to win it “.
The original Thunderbolt, ww2 era. Check out the Harley flathead too.
More info on this awesome plane… It was armed with 6 browning .50 cal machine guns, 3 in each wing. Some models replaced 2 of the .50′s with 2 20mm cannons. It also had the capability of carrying a 150 gallon auxiliary fuel tank under the center fuselage. It could be used up during flight to the target area then dropped to reduce drag, or whenever enemies were encountered and the plane needed more agility. 6 unguided rockets could be fitted, 3 under each wing. It had over 200 pounds of armor around the cockpit and the oil tank and cooler, making it extremely tough. In addition it had self sealing fuel tanks. They were made of a high density rubber that could be pierced, but then spring back to essentially seal the entry point. The hot lead would often times not ignite the fuel surprisingly. Some later versions of the plane supercharged the already powerful r2800 radial engine, with a top (level) speed of 417mph.
This aircraft was the second version of a basic carrier based navy airframe design. Its predecessor was the f4f Wildcat, considered a good all around fighter but lacking in power. The Japanese fighters of the time (WW2) were more agile and had much higher power to weight ratios. The Wildcat held its own in air to air combat with these more advanced fighters primarily because of its heavy armor and firepower (6 Browning .50 cals). The Hellcat was the solution to the power issue. The first prototype of the Hellcat was in 1941, but it did not enter service until July 30 1942.
Several new engines were tried but the Pratt and Whitney R 2800 “Double Wasp” was settled on. This is the same engine that powered the legendary f4u corsair (my all time favorite prop plane). It is a double radial 18 cylinder, air cooled engine producing 2000 hp. A lot of you might be thinking “2000 hp, that’s not that much”. Keep in mind that, unlike a drag racing car that makes 2000 hp for 5 seconds, this engine makes 2000 hp ALL DAY. In addition, it does it in a marine environment, with corrosive salt air, spray from waves, high altitude, and under positive and negative g forces. It never idles or comes to a stop light…its at almost full boar the entire time.
This new powerplant gave the Hellcat a boost from the 1200 hp the Wildcat. With this upgrade the Hellcat could easily match the Japanese fighters as well as being much stronger and more heavily armed. There have even been accounts of mid-air collisions between the Hellcat and the Zero, the Hellcat remaining intact while the Zero being ripped apart instantly!
There will be more coming. Here are a few pics:
