By Grant Van Den Heuvel, EAA 606576
This piece originally ran in the March 2022 issue of EAA Sport Aviation magazine.
My dad bought a 1943 Taylorcraft L-2 in 1959. I got hooked as a youngster, with lots of flying memories. Unfortunately, he began a restoration when I was 15, so I didn’t get my pilot certificate until a couple of decades later. I acquired the L-2 after he died. I was working full time, had many other commitments, wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do with it, and I had my Luscombe to fly. I knew it needed another restoration, so it sat for several years.
I’ve been involved with 88Charlies, a nonprofit group in Palmyra, Wisconsin, restoring, maintaining, and flying airplanes with youth. The group encouraged and got me going on the L-2, with assurances of their help. Thanks to a local company, Standard Process, we have a fantastic shop to work in.
The first task was to re-cover the wings. Fabric was removed to reveal hardware, attach brackets, and fuel tanks that needed attention. I brought parts home for cleaning, priming, and painting. The trailing edges and some ribs had rot on the tips. A jig was constructed, and we made the rib tips. Time came to cut scarf joints. We set up a miter to make the cuts.
Next was making gussets, aligning, gluing, clamping, and nailing the rib tips and trailing edge. After that was cleaning, sanding, and revarnishing ribs, spars, the leading edge, and then it was time to refit the wing hardware and trammeling. Thank goodness my I/A, Doug Thomas, Dale Gauger, Al Borre, Mike Rosman, Bob Mischo, Marv Hack, and many others in the 88Charlies group were there, advising and helping along the way. Youth were involved, so I began to realize my additional role as project leader, teacher, and supervisor.
I chose the Airtech process, fabric through paint, and found it to be great. This was my first fabric project, so I read and viewed tons of material before I started. My first piece was the trim tab; that was actually one of the harder ones. I did that twice. Next were the control surfaces. It took a bit to master fabric shrinking in the tough areas. There is a lot of puckering around those curves. Rib stitching was a breeze after watching the YouTube video by Carol Durell a few times. I was amazed how quickly it took shape.
After covering the tail feathers, wings, and ailerons, I started priming the small parts. It took a bit to get the gun pressure and thinning just right, so there was a bit more sanding on the first pieces. Then I tackled the wings.
I decided to do a complete overhaul on the engine. Tom Woetring in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, is the Continental A65 guru in our area, so I gave him a call. I asked him if he would charge more if I assisted. He raised his eyebrows. We disassembled it, sent out the cases, crank, cam, and ordered parts, including new Superior cylinders. We overhauled the carb and began assembly. In the end, he complimented me, saying the process actually went faster with my help.
While I was waiting for parts for the engine rebuild, I took the fabric off the fuselage and gave it a good cleaning, wire brushing, and sanding — fortunately, there was no rust. I did it in sections and epoxy primed as I went. I fabricated new cables, cleaned and inspected controls and miscellaneous parts, repairing or replacing as needed. The Interior fabric was quite tedious but worked out well.
COVID hit in the last 15 months of the project, which gave me a lot of alone time to keep things moving. I started painting, and then I’d take a break from that to go back to finishing the fuselage fabric. It was starting to look like an airplane again. I finally decided on the paint scheme. I wanted to keep the stars and bars like Dad had it, but I didn’t like the olive drab and yellow, so I chose gray. Masking and painting the insignias took a lot of patience.
After finishing the fuselage, I was ready to install gauges, controls, windows, etc. I hung the engine and made all the connections. Doug and Dale kept a close eye on me throughout the project and always had an answer to my questions.
We transported it to my hangar, finished assembly, and did the weight and balance and rigging. The joy of hearing it start on the first prop was amazing. The project came to an end after three years. It was a lot of fun and was a great learning experience. I would advise anyone wanting to take on a project to go for it, provided you are handy and have the support from others.
The L-2 looks like new again, as it did after Dad finished in the early ’80s. As all airplanes need a name, this L-2 is named Murph in his memory.
I flew it to AirVenture last summer and was humbled and surprised to learn I was awarded a Bronze Lindy in the WWII Military Trainer/Liaison category.
Attention — Aircraft Builders and Restorers
We would love to share your story with your fellow EAA members in the pages of EAA Sport Aviation magazine, even if it’s a project that’s been completed for a while. Readers consistently rate the “What Our Members are Building/Restoring” section of the magazine as one of their favorites, so don’t miss the chance to show off your handiwork and inspire your peers to start or complete projects of their own. Learn more ->