This post is a follow up to Preserving and Displaying the “Bat-Wing Ship” published on September 9, 2011.
After preparing hundreds of condition reports last winter on the many artifacts that curators plan to exhibit in the upcoming Time and Navigation gallery opening at the Museum in Washington, DC in April, 2013, while simultaneously helping the Collections Processing Unit move artifacts from the Paul E. Garber Facility to new digs at the Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia, Museum staff could finally return to work on the center section of the Horten H IX V3 jet fighter, the “Bat-Wing Ship.” With help from retired treatment specialist Karl Heinzel, Museum conservator Lauren Horelick is determining the best methods to stabilize and protect the center section for movement to the Mary Baker Engen Restoration Hangar at the Udvar-Hazy Center later this year. Lauren carefully mapped the object to establish a baseline of problematic areas and to complete an essential step in recording present damage [Figure 1].
Figure 1: In-progress condition map showing the types and extent of damage currently seen on the metal components of the center section (Lauren Horelick photo, modified Arthur Bentley drawing published in Shepelev and Ottens, Horten Ho 229, Spirit of Thuringia, 2006).
In addition to creating written and photographic documentation of the jet, Lauren is conducting material identification analysis to identify the wood used to make the plywood, the adhesive used to bind the micron-thin layers of the plywood, and the adhesive used to join the large structural members of the wood panels. Her analysis will not only add to the history of the Horten wing, it will also help her craft the best conservation treatment protocol. Summer interns working with scientists at the Museum Conservation Institute are contributing to the materials identification effort. We will blog the results at the end of this summer.
We have begun initial effortsto protect the center section during the move to the Restoration Hanger. These efforts include removing the fragile plywood belly panels so that conservators can treat the wood for long-term stabilization before reattaching it. To remove the wood panels safely, it was necessary to apply a facing over sections of the wood to prevent loss of material [Figure 2].
Figure 2: Lauren carefully attached a sheet of Reemay, a non-woven spun bonded polyester, to cover a section of fragile and delaminating plywood on the underside of the center section. She used BEVA (Berger’s ethylene vinyl acetate) film, a reversible heat-set adhesive, around the perimeter of the Reemay sheet to hold it in place and stabilize the wood so that the panel can safely be removed for later treatment. Lauren cut the small holes seen in the Reemay to provide access to the bolts securing the panel to the steel tube support frame.
Other conservation efforts include researching adhesives to stabilize the plywood and developing methods to address how to move the center section to the Udvar-Hazy Center. Lauren is considering a multi-layered envelope system that would enclose the entire center section during travel.
Russ Lee is a curator in the Aeronautics Division of the National Air and Space Museum and Lauren Horelick is a conservator in the Collections Division of the National Air and Space Museum.
At least. Walter and Reimar will be glad up there looking down how their wonderful plane receives at least the treatment that deserves.
Any thoughts about the National Geographic Channel building a full size replica, testing its radar signature, and its combat potential if properly used and in sufficient numbers?
Lauren has clearly completed superb documentation and is undertaking a thoughtfully conceived treatment approach! Looking forward to hearing more!
The detail associated with this project is breathtaking!
Lauren’s work is outstanding and we are lucky that she is so enthusiastic about this project. We should praise National Geographic for their hard work to build and study a copy of the H IX. An all-wing design will usually reflect less radar energy than a conventional design because it has fewer oblique surfaces and corners to reflect the beam. I believe that Reimar shaped the H IX solely for aerodynamic reasons. He used wood for the outer wings and plywood, sheet metal, and steel tube to construct the center section because those were the materials he used to build all of his other aircraft, therefore he was most familiar with them. Wooden components happen to absorb more radar energy than metal.
I am so glad to see this plane get restored.
I am building a 1/8th Radio controlled model of the HO229 and can’t wait to be able to come and look close up at the most secret plane of WW2. I just wish that this plane was back in the UK and not in the USA so I could be closer to it.
Great work and keep us informed.
James.
Would Like To Make Contact With Russell Lee (Again) – Last Time I Spoke With Russell He Had Just Retired – 1st Met Russ When He Was Attending The Univ. Of Texas & He Worked As A “Grunt” On Old W.W.2 Airplanes Here In San Marcos Tx Back In The Late ’70′s – My E-mail Address As Entered Above Would Be The Best Mode Of Contact For Now – “If” One Of Your Kind Associates Would Make Sure Russell Gets “This” Request – Thanx! – Ray S. Harper – San Marcos, Tx / / Advise / /
Thanks for your inquiry, Mr. Harper. We will make sure Russ gets your email address.
I have been waiting for this restoration for years – thank you! What a project. What a priviledge. From its presence in the media of late, there seems to be widespread and enduring interest in this plane.
Now – has there been any word lately on plans for the Kyushu J7W1 Shinden?
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