Spruce Goose question

[sledge39]

Re: Spruce Goose question

.
October 1980, The first glimpse of the HK-1/H-4 since the 1940s (Los Angeles Times photo).

Partially disassembled the building to get it out, then stored in the open on the bank near the original location while the geodesic dome was built.

Floated across the harbor by barge to the unfinished Dome in 1982 where it remained until Evergreen moved it to Oregon in 1992.

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Spruce Goose question

Timing being everything, when I went to see the airplane in the dome, they were in process of getting her disassembled and out of there and I missed being able to get inside by less than a day..

Subsequently I got to crawl all over the airplane when it was in "storage" up here in the "great white north".. LOL1

[Jukka]

Re: Spruce Goose question

.
October 1980, The first glimpse of the HK-1/H-4 since the 1940s (Los Angeles Times photo).

Partially disassembled the building to get it out, then stored in the open on the bank near the original location while the geodesic dome was built.

Floated across the harbor by barge to the unfinished Dome in 1982 where it remained until Evergreen moved it to Oregon in 1992.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]23995[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]23996[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]23997[/ATTACH]

Was it soaking 33 years in water ?

[Leo]

Re: Spruce Goose question

Dry docked in a climate controlled hangar. The whole Culver City area where it was is slowly sinking (all the oil pumped out years ago) and it was getting harder and harder to keep it safe (hangar settling) so sooner or later it was going to have to move. I recall a story that they had a failure of something on a cofferdam and it floated up and the tail bumped the roof many years ago.

We can thank Hughes being more than a little eccentric for the survival of the HK-1, any other wooden plane would have long ago rotted away if not for the care he took.

[Dialtapper]

Re: Spruce Goose question



A piece of the cat walk from inside the wing of the Spruce Goose.

[Desertdawg]

Re: Spruce Goose question

Her home in Springfield is nice. A big plus is McKinnville and the surrounding area. Great place to go for a 3 day weekend, driving around the back roads, farm/wine country is nice, and the Evergreen Museum makes for a good morning/afternoon tour. In the summer you have the water park for the kids.

Heres a shot from inside looking back to the tail. My thought was, wow, this is made out of wood.

[sledge39]

Re: Spruce Goose question

Nov. 2, 1947



Summary of the history

http://www.air-and-space.com/sprucea.htm

[L.E.D.]

Re: Spruce Goose question

It's that leftmost picture that intrigues me... when they finished removing the front of the bulding... what was holding the rest of the building up? I'm sure it was designed that way but I want to see what they did. =)

These pictures really helped clarify for me what was meant by the 'hangar sinking'. I remember at the time hearing about it and I couldn't picture what was going on. I hadn't realized that it was drydocked with cofferdams and the tide had to be lower to float it out of there than back in 1947 when they floated it in.

.
October 1980, The first glimpse of the HK-1/H-4 since the 1940s (Los Angeles Times photo).

Partially disassembled the building to get it out, then stored in the open on the bank near the original location while the geodesic dome was built.

Floated across the harbor by barge to the unfinished Dome in 1982 where it remained until Evergreen moved it to Oregon in 1992.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]23995[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]23996[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]23997[/ATTACH]

[knot4u]

Re: Spruce Goose question

I saw Herman lift the H-1. My dad was an enthusiast and it didn't take much for me to get revved up for an adventure at 11 years old. I think we were on the Vincent Thomas Bridge and since my dad was also a photographer we had to find the "perfect" vantage point. Watching Herman, which was a massive floating contraption, lift that huge airplane up and finally, gently place it on a barge was a wonderful reason to stay out all night in the rain with my dad. I did make it to school rather reluctantly the following day, but I sure had a story to tell. And it was all true! A couple years later we went back and checked out the display. It was very impressive, inside and out it was just massive, I don't know how else to describe it. I wish it would have done a more complete test flight but I suspect there were reasons he only did what he did with it.

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Spruce Goose question

Anyone else notice that the entire top of the building is being held in place by cables from the mast at the top center of the building? I can't remember if that was there all the time or only during this process....