D-ENAY Fw 44 Stieglitz

A Stieglitz


2004-2005

In that year the engine had been overhauled already and in 2005 bushings and the dampers in the landing gear were done so we figured that required work would be quite managable. Yet in the summer of 2005 we found some corrosion in the steel tube fuselage frame of the Stieglitz triggered us and we finally started the complete overhaul.

Well, during the restoration of the fuselage we realized that designer of the Stieglitz, Kurt Tank, had really gone deep into the treasure box of what was achieveable during the 1930s. The complete fuselage was welded from steel but it was absolutely gastight to avoid corrosion as a result of condensation. As a consequence any accessory to the frame has to be welded. During the previous overhauls in 1963 and 1976 the frame had only been resprayed without proper paint removal. Some of the wooden stringers hwere actually covered in tape holding some sheet metall to function as a backup. The electrical system was a collection of household cables and connectors. The instrument panel was actually drilled into a former traffic sign! So finally we loaded the fuselage into our trailer and took it to Dirk Bende's shop. It took two weeks before the entire fuselage frame could be taken to the Gomolzig company for the thorough inspection. The design seems to be bullet prove as there were only very minor welding repairs necessary and all the corrosion was only superficial.

2006

The freshly inspected frame was ready for blasting and powdercoating at last, so we trailered in on wintery road to Radevormwald. We used soda powder for blasting saving the material. After that the frame was coated with a layer of primer topped with a layer of colour. RLM 66 (grey-black) was the colour code used by the Aviation Ministry (Reichsluftfahrtministerium) during the production run for Instrument panels and cockpit interiors. For all smartasses our there:RLM 02 (green-grey) would be correct but under some of the leather covers and in the fuel tank area we found unmolested original paint and that was RLM66. After stripping 5 layers of differnt paint we finally found the original etched data plate from Sweden where our Stieglitz was built under license. That effectively ends all the speculations by planespotters worldwide: the s/n is 663. Continuing the assembly we put in the baggabe compartment with its own frame, control and trimcables, a new wiring loom conforming to aviation codes, reconstructing lines and hoses for oil and fuel, fire extinguisher system and finally building an instrument panel from scratch as nobody wanted to keep the old traffic sign. Under the panel we choose to build a separate panel to house the avioics components.

The completely new instrument panel was made to the exact specifications of the original even using NOS rivets and you will not be able to tell the difference. Starting in early 2006, Werner Enk alias Dr. Motte worked on the wings. We were quite lucky that all we found were older repairs that were not really up to standard and the areas attected had to be exchanged. All clued seams were perfect and even a mandatory LTA dating back to 1957, the german equivalent to the FAA AD, concerning the upper wing had been carried out properly.

Early September the wings were taken back to Hamm, bearings were changed and brackets painted. While covering the fuselage took all but one day, the rest fo the required work like applying the necessary span paint, grinding, filling, grinding, painting took another 2 months though. While we were working at the elevators, Airbus Industries took care of our ailerons. Unfortunately the metall design had seen poor repairs in the past and showed signs of corrosion requiring ribs to be changed before the surfaces could be primed. That should last for another lifetime.

2007

All the surfaces are covered, now the ardous work of filling and priming is next. Al wingstruts wer checked for cracks and we actually found some cracks hidden under bondo patches from the past. We did not even want to think about that repair method that was absolutely not to standard by any means so a certified aircraft welder took care of it and braought the parts back to an airworthy condition. We finally got the rquired release after more testing after the repair.

2008

We reinstalled the engine in February-what a great moment! The plane was finally put back into the Hangar and we could start the assembly. Thanks to some parts we could borrow from friends in the UK we had the required tools for a proper rigging. Of course nothing goes as planned so we ended up having to take the complete gas tank assembly out again as it was leaking. And that ws only one of many little things that slowed us down.