Rick, this is an enormous task to take on, even with a full team - I'm amazed at your dedication to save these huge machines for posterity - you are a hero!
It never ceases to amaze me how intricate old technology was and how it's just as detailed and thought out as anything we build today. Thanks for sharing these snippets of the past with us, Rick.
What blows my mind myself is the fact, in over a hundred years we're still using the same principles of building the same things. The only difference is that now we've got computers that do most of the thinking. It makes me wonder how much knowledge has been lost. Your videos and what you and your friends, volunteers, foundation, etc do give me hope that we can rediscover and retain that knowledge.
Rick I told my wife, who loves to haul me to 5K races and such that we ARE going to come see your work!! I built 747 aircraft for a quarter century, F-16's prior to that and F/A18 before which adds up to 32 years of it. We used to do a similar trick. Called it a "freeze plug" as it was a small round plug we would dip in liquid nitrogen to shrink it and then shoot it into the hole with a rivet gun and let it warm up and act like a solid surface. Then drill the hole where it was supposed to be. I will try to get in touch and figure out a good time in the summer. We are in Mansfield so not too far away.
