--- Begin Message --- Title: RE: Experimental ErcoupesFYI This is A-OK for this list!
Sounds like you have lots of imagination. What happened to your coupe? Why
did you sell it?-Tom
-----Original Message-----
From: JOHN SCHESTAG [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Thursday, June 11, 1998 12:55 PM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Experimental Ercoupes
I'm a week or two into this "coupers" site and want to know if talking
about "old times" with Ercoupes and their associated stories is OK? I
mentioned my interest in my first E-mail venture to the "coupers" list
and received a "dial tone" response from the members. At 56, I guess
I'm out of touch. At 20, I purchased, assembled and painted a 415E from
numerous boxes of parts (nothing was together at all, except the sheet
metal, etc. I personally overhauled my C85, mirror polished my prop,
added many custom mods.....bubble windsheld, biggest rear windows "ever"
on an Ercoupe, Mk 12-360, Mk 12, 3 lite MBR, VOA 4, VOA 5, ADF, full
gyro panel, Cessna 172 white control wheels, custom arm rests, rolled
leather interior, oversized luggage compartment (down to the bellcrank),
custom lighted, fused, switch panel, 2-4" venturi...in the fee de-ice
zone, hand made xenon strobe light mounted in front of nose gear, I
re-skinned the wings and modified the drawing for all flush rivets and
tucked the skin "under" the leading edge metal, post lighted entire
panel with the old GE10 lamp types, installed an 8 track stereo behind
the seat, had stereo/navcom switches for the headsets/boom mics and
button on wheel.....this was "My P-51"....and it ended up with one of
you coupers back in numerous boxes of parts!... over 30 years later!
I've flown over 60 types of A/C from a Robin (OX5) to a Connie EC-121...
to an Astra (IAI), DC3, 5 types of rotary wing, Fairchild flying boxcar,
C54, PBY "Cat" out of St.Thomas, Goose, DC8-60 Rio to Lagos, Ford
Tri-Motor, P2V, P3, etc., etc., (flying different types of unique
aircraft "all logged and photo'd" was my passion during my 7 years in
the Navy, NAS Alameda, and later) and my custom "V" tail Bonanza that I
own now...... (plus about 2,650 more hours) however, like your first
love......my heart was in my old Ercoupe.....I have beautiful in-flight
photos and my friends at Lockheed and I had all sorts of drawings "mods"
we dreamed about, a "V" tailed coupe with skyhawk air foils, Lyc 150, 2
rear jump seats, even special fittings to sweep the wings and lesson the
dihedral several degrees ala "Fury" to "Sabre", semi retract gear
designs, etc., stories of future P-38 pilots being checked out in
Eroupes at Burbank. I went over all of them and the drawings with Fred
at his home in Vero while he cooked me a great fish dinner and we
laughed for hours and hours. Fred called his son about my plane because
he owned it once and forgot he had!, etc. just some good
memories,....... to me anyway. I'll sign off now.....after 36 years of
Ercoupe memories. John
--- End Message ---
