Gee Bee Plans...

[1000 HP]

I'm looking for a set of plans to build a 600 HP Gee Bee. I found a number for a guy in Idaho that has them but for two years he has not returned his calls. He must be dead. Any other ideas?

[Mitch Cronin]

... maybe something with wings? ...a biplane perhaps?

[RVgrin]

... maybe something with wings?

Haha! You owe me a mouthful of beer.

[Sky Pilot]

DOH! A Gee Bee is a low/mid wing monoplane capable of about 300 mph. About 75% of all Gee Bee pilots didn't make it back in one piece. But it looks like a fun and challenging bird. Probably a little hard on fuel.

[whistlerboy02]

These guys should be able to help, there a great operation based in Florida.
http://www.jimkimballenterprises.com/web/index.php

ask or email Jim's son Kevin,
problem is when you say you wanna build a Gee Bee.... everybody will think your crazy

[. ._]

Jeebus, man. Do you have a death wish?

I think a Seabee would be safer, and though it's slower, I think it would be a hoot to fly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_RC-3_Seabee

[flyinggreasemonkey]

I'd go for the SeaBee too...find one with the 6.0L LS2 Corvette engine upgrade...zoom zoom baby.

[the_cr]

Jeebus, man. Do you have a death wish?

I think a Seabee would be safer, and though it's slower, I think it would be a hoot to fly.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_RC-3_Seabee

+1

My grandfather loved his SeeBee. Started his camps in the Yukon with it. Bought it in Gimli from a small person (resist inserting pun here). The guy had blocks on the rudder pedals and the seat pushed forward.

Grandpa was able to remove the blocks but the seat was so far forward it was off the track so he had to fly it back with his knees up past his ears. Loved the plane though

[Widgeon Guy]

How about a Airmaster Avalon 680 (N767LB) that would be cool. It had a PT6 i think Larry only built one. Would be nice to find. Another fine thing that originated from Edmonton the city that had good things at one time.

[swervin]

The other person to contact would be Steve Wolf. He's down in Florida and helped build the R-2 with Delmar Benjamin. He has a website at www.wolfpitts.com

[Widgeon Guy]

I saw a Gee Bee at the Reno Air Races and that year it went down in one of the parks going home. Another place you can get plans is the Smithsonian Institute they will sell plans and blue prints there some items to rise money. We were talking to one of the guys by the Gee Bee at the races after he had done a lap and he indicated it was a hand full and it was the long wing version. It was a very nice looking a/c.

[1000 HP]

Thanks for all the helpful replies. Even the SeeBee replies are good. Most of the letters are the same. And no, I don't have a deathwish Chances are by the time I track the plans down, build the aircraft, and get it ready too fly, they won't be selling avgas anymore anyways.... Hmmm... Perhaps an alcohol fueled GeeBee with the polish PZL 1000 ?

[lownslow]

I saw a Gee Bee at the Reno Air Races and that year it went down in one of the parks going home.

That would have been the replica Hughes racer.


1000HP if you're really serious about building a Gee Bee, there are a few replicas slowly going together and I'm sure you can contact the builders. I can think of one or two R models that I've heard about and a Q.E.D. replica that's getting close to being covered.


Unfortunately, I have no contact info for any of them.

LnS.

[SeawingsUAE]

Both above built by "Jim's"
The Hughes racer, Jim Wright, sadly lost with the aircraft returning from Oshkosh, crashing in Yellowstone park, suspected prop failure.
The QED, built by Jim Moss (I took that photo by the way) the wings are now sheeted, the engine hung and it is being painted, and will fly soon.

Both fantastic replicas.

As well currently on the go, 2 Mystery ships, 1 Gee Bee R1, 2 Gee bee R2, a Hall Bulldog, a Laird Super Solution, a Crosby CR4, a Shoenfeldt firecracker, a Bugatti racer, 2 Comet Racers, and even more obscure a Napier Heston racer with a Griffon engine.

To build a Golden Age racer takes dedication, time and money. There is enough information, drawings, and photos available to build any of the Golden Age racers, but none of it commercially available.This is not like ordering a set of Pitts drawings.

Also keep in mind that these aircraft are not "fun" flying machines. Flying them was and would be a mission, and they are about as useless as an aircraft could ever be. At least in the 30`s there was a goal, the Cleveland and Thompson races, and the potential of large cash winnings, these days there is none of this. You end up with a single seat aircraft with challenging flight characteristics, no baggage space, usually very short range, (or long range but marginal take off performance due weight). There is a reason there are plenty more RV 6 and 8's than Gee Bee's.
So in reality any golden age racer needs to be viewed as a building challenge, with the goal of recreating a piece of history, if you want to build one mainly to fly it, then just get a Pitts and paint it like a Gee Bee, you will have much more fun, and save yourself years of frustration.

[lownslow]

...a Crosby CR4...

Does this one have a website? I love both of Crosby's racers.

LnS.

[Widgeon Guy]

Thanks for the correction lownslow, It was a great looking a/c and a lot of painstaking work must have gone in to it. Was there a cause to the crash?
I thought i saw a Gee Bee somewhere though!!! All the aluminum dust and fabric dope must be taking it's toll on my last two brain cells. I will have to go look at my photos albums.

[lownslow]

The Hughes racer replica was lost due to loss of power, IIRC. Mr. Wright (who built/commissioned) the replica went to great lengths to ensure the airplane was as accurate as could possibly be which included finding a fairly rare engine and I believe a ridiculously rare propellor (on the order of only five ever made, or something like that). I think one or the other failed, forcing Wright to make a forced landing in a park. Speculation (since none of us were there in the cockpit) is that he saw a family in the clearing he was aiming for and turned away at the last second. I don't recall whether he stalled in the turn or landed in an unsuitable area.

Sad to lose the airplane but even sadder to lose the man. If he had the drive to build an exact replica of a one-of-a-kind airplane for which no drawings exist he must have been a hell of a guy.

As for seeing a Gee Bee somewhere, you probably did. Delmar Benjamin and Steve Wolf built one in the early 90's and it enjoyed a few years on the airshow circuit before being retired. It's in a museum somewhere but I forget which. Either the Smithsonian, EAA or Fantasy of Flight. In a way its retirement shows that while they proved it could be flown by a mere mortal and was even capable of aerobatics, it wasn't the type of plane you fly for fun, otherwise after all the hype wound down it would still be flying.

-Tim

[1000 HP]

I fly everyday aircraft and enjoy doing it. Meeting interesting and successful people and hearing about their experiences is a great thing. But to fly a challenging bird is just what i am looking for. Oh sure the Otter or Caravan can be challenging in many situations. Landing with a 15 to 25 knot 90 degree crosswing in a 100 foot wide lake, dragging your heavy ass in is for sure a feat. But I consider the Beaver even harder to fly. I have never porpoised an Otter or Caravan. I have porpoised a Beaver (with only about 20 hours TT on floats), and a Beaver can quit flying "right now". But to fly a truly difficult aircraft, one that would make you fight for control and earn dominance, would be an interesting and challenging undertaking. Huge power to weight ratio would be fabulous. Tearing a machine off the earth and rocketing skyward, thrust pushing you back, with the smell of avgas and exhaust all about, the things dreams are made of. And at the end of the day, covered in sweat and oil, pushing the beast back to the hanger, exhausted. Yeah....I suspect building one would be a total labour of love. Bring it on!

[Beefitarian]

Meh, that would be ok but... if you really want to do something impressive start from scratch and build your own design. That's what the guys that built the originals were doing. Sure the GeeBee ended up being slightly deadly but that's one of the risks of making something that no one ever made before.

What about making something for maximum range or fuel economy that's really fast too. Then we're getting somewhere. "Go where no man has gone before." Or you can just copy some other guys I guess.

[lownslow]

Tearing a machine off the earth and rocketing skyward, thrust pushing you back, with the smell of avgas and exhaust all about, the things dreams are made of. And at the end of the day, covered in sweat and oil, pushing the beast back to the hanger, exhausted. Yeah....I suspect building one would be a total labour of love.

I had misjudged you, sir. Best of luck!

LnS.

[Beefitarian]

I keep thinking about this thread. Wondering what happened to the guy that wrote it. Especially since the Colonel keeps mentioning, "Gee Bee Racer." Quite often these days.

Boy I was surprised to see it was my good buddy (on here of course, never met in any realms of semi reality I occasionally visit) the stag chili loving 1000hp.

So have you ever found plans? I hope I don't get you killed but I think you need to talk to the folks at Fantasy of Flight. They are preparing one for Kermit to fly again. They should have some idea.

Edit: I see now you even spoon fed me the fact it was you, in my thread about Kermit, with the video of him running his up. Just too fixated to piece it altogether.