Dimensions and serial numbers ...

[Moose]

Can anyone tell me what the serial number of their F-19 fuselages are? Not referring to the manufacture's serial, but the fuselage serial number on the piece of webbing welded near the right gear area.? I have a fuselage that has a number starting with S-###. Is that correct? And what number did they start with?

Also, does anyone have the drawings for the dimensions of the fuselage for an F-19 specifically? I need to go through my fuselage and check it over quite carefully.

Lastly, who would anyone recommend to reweld my fuselage after I check it over and see that it's not right? Does anyone have a jig that can make it completely square?

Thanks all!

[Moose]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

I can't believe no one has any information on this so far!

I just noticed my elevator horns are marked "S-###", as well. Both match the fuselage serial number. Is this indicative that it was all part of one airplane to start with?

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

Boy, they sure must have changed things later in production! MOST manufacturing concerns that serialize components keep all of the serial numbers together in production (things like fire arms or fancy cars), Taylorcraft never seemed to worry about it in the pre-war and early post war period. We see mixed numbers (and NO numbers on most components) in almost all of the planes I have looked at. When you think about it, it really isn't that important. The parts are supposed to be interchangeable and I would think the floor people wouldn't really see the point. If a fuselage frame was damaged on the line, they would just pull it off and repair it, assembling the planes with the next one in line till the repaired one came back. At least that would explain to me the number of planes you see with fuselage serial numbers that are one off from the paperwork. Add to that the number of old planes that have had the serialized components replaced and you could see how the numbers would just become a mess.
I have NO experience with any Taylorcraft after about 1947 or 48 so I can see how the new management teams that came along might have changed the emphasis on keeping the numbers straight. I was really surprised to hear about an elevator horn with a serial number. In that kind of production a tail surface would usually be one of many hanging on a rack when assembly time came. In much more modern manufacture (like airliners and military aircraft) ALL components in the major stress paths (fatigue critical) are serialized and tracked, but there was never an attempt in the Grumman, Boeing or McDonnell Douglas or Lockheed planes I worked on to put the same serial number on all of the components in one plane. Many times the serial numbers weren't even in the same format! May have happened in other planes I didn't work on, but even Air Force One does NOT have matching serial numbers.
Hank

Remember, the serial number on a fuselage is the FUSELAGE serial number, NOT the airplane serial number. It MAY match, but it doesn't have to.

[Moose]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

Hank,

That's what was rather surprising to me. The fuselage and tailfeathers are part of a clip wing project I have. As described to me, it was either the first, or the last fuselage made, and then it was walked out the backdoor of the factory. I can't believe they would have taken the elevators, too!?

I'm just trying to figure out if it's a F-19 fuselage, or something else. Hence, wanting to find a set of drawings for the fuselage, to compare measurements to the tubes, as well.

Jim

[Dick Smith]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

Maybe this link can provide some help or contacts:

http://www.airport-data.com/manuf/Taylorcraft_Aviation_Corp.html

Dick

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

Interesting. Click on "Browse on all aircraft by manufacturer" to look at the rest of the Taylorcraft production. The F-19 list has a lot of much older planes in it, and the earlier Taylorcraft lists has both of my planes. They show the wrong year on my 45 but it looks like a great job of gathering info. There are a lot of errors in the data so I wouldn't take it as "Gospel". I need to see how I get in and add a photo and correct the information. If we all find our planes and correct the info it would be a more useful tool. There sure were a lot of late model planes that went to Canada!
Hank

[M Towsley]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

Hank,

I believe it uses FAA info, have you checked your plane info online at the FAA site to make sure they documented it correctly? I'm hard-pressed to believe someone typed all of that info by hand.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

My 45 was listed for years by the FAA as a 46. Took a lot of work to get them to recognize their database was wrong. The web site info may well have been a download of the FAA site that was put into a database and sorted into his format so he could add information. If he got the data from before I got the FAA to make the correction that could explain it. Still looks like a neat place to put information and pictures of our planes. There were a LOT of F-19s in his data that were built in the 1940s! We could make a bunch of corrections, one at a time, for him. It would be really neat to be able to find a photo of any of our planes on a site like that.
Hank

[M Towsley]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

I placed pictures of my plane on this site over a year ago. Forgot I even did it until I looked it up again just now.

[Moose]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

Maybe this link can provide some help or contacts:

http://www.airport-data.com/manuf/Taylorcraft_Aviation_Corp.html

My question is, what is the serial numbers that people have on their actual fuselages? Being that manufacturer's serial numbers and fuselage serial numbers (which is a part serial number, not an airplane serial number) are not the same. (I went through that when I had to prove to the FAA that my L-4 fuselage serial number was NOT supposed to match the Piper serial number. Nor should any J-3/L-4.)

What ones would have started with "S-###"? For example, mine is marked "S-001", on a piece of webbing welded on the right side, near the gear and strut attach point.

[N-43121]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

My question is, what is the serial numbers that people have on their actual fuselages? Being that manufacturer's serial numbers and fuselage serial numbers (which is a part serial number, not an airplane serial number) are not the same. (I went through that when I had to prove to the FAA that my L-4 fuselage serial number was NOT supposed to match the Piper serial number. Nor should any J-3/L-4.)

What ones would have started with "S-###"? For example, mine is marked "S-001", on a piece of webbing welded on the right side, near the gear and strut attach point.

I can't remember how I learned this, but I believe the S stands for "seaplane". I believe they took some extra care to seal up the fuselage holes that were normally a part of the welding fabrication process (or maybe they were used to insert some sort of oil into the tubes) ... my memory is poor on this. There may have been some other special coatings treatment they used on these seaplane fuselages.

Rod

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

All of the fuselages were treated inside (used to be boiled linseed oil, but don't know if that changed later). There were also some fittings for the floats that could be added later or welded on at the factory. Any funny looking fittings on the lower longerons?
Hank

[Moose]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

No float fittings on the fuselage. I'll have to see if there's any indication that they were removed.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

I KNOW there were clamp on float fittings available for some year planes and I would suspect there were factory welded ones at some time. We need to hear from the members who have float planes to verify.
Hank

[Ragwing nut]

Re: Dimensions and serial numbers ...

Was this fuselage in Arkansas at one point about 10 years ago being built as a clipwing?