Model Airplanes

Owner: David McWalter

Community: Lunenburg

Car make and model: Terraplane roadster

Model year: 1932

What have you done to it since you bought it?: Complete restoration

What would you like to say about it?: My 1932 Terraplane roadster was acquired from California in 1998. According to my friend, the car was a basket case. The seller sold the car to me with the understanding I would not chop it and turn it into a street roadster, this after seeing restorations done on my 1929 Essex and a 1925 Hudson.

It took two years to finish other restorations that were already underway. In 2000 it was brought up to my workshop so I could restore the mechanical parts.

There was no rust on the car, but everything had to be stripped, sandblasted and painted.

This was done over the course of 18 months by a shop in Tewksbury. The original engine was sent to a shop in Westboro to be rebuilt.

Then the chrome and plating had to be done, as well as the upholstery, top and wiring. As the old saying goes “the devil is in the details.”

There are some unusual features in this car. It is a standard model with a rumble seat, which was not an option on a standard 1932. It also has aluminum door panels and kick plates. The metal piece behind the gauges and the covering on the glove

Article source: http://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/news/ci_29810224/my-classic-car

On Saturday, around 20,000 visitors were expected to arrive on MIT’s doorstep for a peek “Under the Dome,” in the Institute’s first open house since 2011. Judging from the weather — a stubborn drizzle that dominated much of the morning — those numbers appeared optimistic at first. Instead, they turned out to be more than modest: At the end of the day, as grey skies finally gave way to blue, more than 40,000 people had turned out to see, hear, and play with MIT’s many offerings.

Together, nearly 80 departments and labs hosted more than 380 activities, held in 170 locations across campus. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., visitors had the chance to sample ongoing research displayed in MIT’s courtyards and public spaces, from self-driving golf carts to 3-D-printed ice cream. They also sat in on special lectures given by eight distinguished faculty members, on topics ranging from the history of gravitational wave detection, to the future of biomaterials, and humans’ journey to Mars.

Visitors were also invited to dive into MIT’s labs and classrooms, many of which are otherwise hidden from view or even located within the labyrinth of MIT’s tunnel system. These include the Forge, where blacksmiths hammered and molded red-hot steel, and the Glass Lab, where glass blowers spun orbs out of molten glass — both of which hosted long and patient queues.

Robots played a prominent role in attracting crowds, including an industrious automaton named Baxter, designed with soft hands, that was working hard in the Student Street

Article source: http://news.mit.edu/2016/mit-open-house-attracts-tens-thousands-saturday-0424

More than 260 Falcon 7X trijets have entered service since mid-2007 and the fleet has logged more than 440,000 flight hours, according to Dassault Falcon Jet officials. BCA is conducting a second 7X Operators Survey now that the aircraft has had time to mature and dozens of product improvements have been made. Consistent with our findings in our March 2011 Operators Survey, Falcon 7X operators contacted for this follow-up report say the aircraft provides substantially more speed, range and cabin comfort compared to midsize and large-cabin aircraft they previously flew. Most of them moved up from Falcon 2000- and Falcon 900-series aircraft, so they are loyal to the brand.

Not surprisingly, Falcon 7X operators cited the aircraft’s best-in-class fuel efficiency, three-engine redundancy, EASy flight deck and runway performance as favorite features, much the same as they did during the last survey. But this time they also said they’re pleased with their aircraft’s dispatch reliability and Dassault product support. Five years ago, those were two areas with opportunities for improvement.

Back in 2011, we also heard grumblings about the shortcomings of the EASy cockpit. Many operators said Dassault fell short on delivering several of its promised capabilities. We learned that most of those deficiencies have since been rectified with the optional EASy II/II+ hardware and operating system upgrades.

Wes Gustafson, aviation manager at Valkyrie 7X LLC at Seattle’s Boeing Field/King County International Airport (BFI), is just as enthusiastic about the

Article source: http://aviationweek.com/business-aviation/operators-survey-dassault-falcon-7x