Thanks Steve.
I totally agree about the aviation safety. That said, most of these old warbirds are being restored way past that...polished P-51's.....flawless "imron" Corsairs. It makes sense given the price tag of a restoration...no one (maybe) is going to spend millions to restore a warbird for the restorer to slap a coat of paint on it.....
I do like patina on a jeep, but....there is some line between being a lazy restorer and over restoring. I don't know where that line is.....
Replied on Having an "Extra Pencil" Crisis, ShopTime™ 370
18 Jul 08:06
Thanks Dana.
I love seeing the human handiwork on these vehicles - like your "extra spotwelds". Somehow, it makes me feel "closer" to the folks who built them, probably because as a craftsman, I appreciate when folks notice "craftsmanship"....even when it involves me fixing a mistake. I would say that "my people" pay attention to these kinds of things - they "see" when most of the world is completely oblivious to these details.
You have a lot of manufacturing experience....I would like to think that these parts weren't pitted when new, but I can definitely see how things could happen that would make for a less than cosmetically perfect part. A pitted part could still be perfectly functional. I imagine that no wartime inspector would reject that part with quotas to make etc.....