1933 Ford Model A Pietenpol Air Camper Airplane

Let's take a look at Alan's 1933 Pietenpol Air Camper that he built himself. It's powered by a Ford Model A Engine and sports a two-seater open cockpit. Let's watch him suit up and fly it!

[@56jpg]

I got a ride in one once. The owner/pilot had to demonstrate to me on how to get into the front cockpit. A very specific procedure for your arms and legs.

[@bigboy9693]

Alan is from one of the greatest generations.

[@GratefulBamboo]

I can't decide which is more cool, the plane or the pilot. What a great video! 👍

[@43963]

Man o man what a beautiful classic this is!. This is where the fun is. Listen to the sound of the A-Ford engine. I bought the building plans from the grandson of Bernard Pietenpol years ago but I'm more a pilot than a builder. I'm flying a 1954 Piper Supercub . Comes close but this is the real thing!!!!!

[@horacesawyer2487]

He MADE the propeller. From just stuff out of thin air and desire. He made it. Fashioned the twist, and it provides thrust. You talk about impressive! My mouth dropped open.

[@steveb7310]

And it’s balanced!!!

[@robertcieslak1861]

This is a great video of an original Piet. This man made the WHOLE airplane, including the turnbuckles.

[@Danger_mouse]

A lovely plane, with period correct owner 💙 Keep on keeping on Alan! 👍

[@kirbyn2010]

I would consider myaelf lucky to know someone like this gentleman. The things that he could teach a person. Great interview and flight.

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@kirbyn2010 Yes. I consider myself blessed to know the people I’ve had pleasure of knowing.

[@9traktor]

What a gentle pilot and what a fine plane - I like it!

[@jackquillman7680]

Thanks for both the plane and the builder.Yeah, bring on some more.

[@jeffboatright]

That was a lot of fun. Thanks, and a big thank you to Alan, too!

[@leroyolson4349]

I loved watching this video. Made my day, God bless. That model A has a sound of it's own.

[@stacase]

Oh the engine sound! When I was a kid I remember Model A Fords were still on the road, and that sound is the same. Yes, I'm that old (1944 DOB)

[@hollyjollydog]

I owned one you could blind fold me and I would know that sound

[@FlyingForFunTrecanair]

That propeller is a work of art!

[@tmaster3332]

Awesome plane and an awesome builder, I was lucky enough to meet someone in my local area who owns an original 1929 Pietenpol Air Camper that he takes for a flight on occasion.

[@alexanderwilliams-hoffman5436]

Thanks for sharing. As a model A owner this was fantastic

[@dbaider9467]

More information about how he made the prop would be great. What a sweet guy.

[@secondwindmusicproductions]

Back in the 60's I belonged to the EAA in Rochester, MN. Bernard Pietenpol was a guest speaker at one of our meetings where he described the history of his plane. His son was a lab tech at IBM in Rochester where I was a young engineer. Both were very knowledgeable and interesting people.

[@rescue270]

I had an Aeronca KM that had been repaired by Bernard Pietenpol in 1946. He had spliced the right forward lift strut and replaced the prop and a few wing ribs. His work on the strut was still visible. His signature was on the log entry and the 337.

[@ponycarfan]

I've been to the Fillmore County Historical Society in Fountain and they have several Pietenpols on display. It's a cool little museum. It would've been very interesting to see him speak.

[@CountrySundevil]

OMG...thank Gawd for vocational education..on site and good ol common sense! Would like to give this gentleman a huge hug!...Thanks for sharing this jewel Kent... y'all rock!

[@AviationAZRancher]

You are very welcome

[@gawebm]

Fascinating! This gentlemen has so much knowledge it''s incredible.

[@ebikebert]

I have some time in a Pete, Cont. 65, Hastings MN. Brought back memories.

[@sangarp2001]

This Guy is great! I like the plane.

[@barrywinslow9798]

Outstanding........really neat fellow. And one beautiful airplane.

[@JeverHuelse]

This is the funniest thing i've seen in a while... This guy had me rolling several times 🤣🤣🤣

[@robinsparkes-u1l]

Fantastic in every way !

[@jeffpiatt3879]

Wonderful video! Have always loved the Pietenpol.

[@mikehart6708]

I enjoyed this very much. Alan is an interesting man. Don't let his demeanor fool you. I am a pilot and after watching his takeoff and landing, I can tell you that he has considerable piloting skill. I have always had a soft spot for Pietenpol air campers and this is a beauty. You don't see to many of them with the Model A engine and that is just too cool!! Alan, you can be very proud of your airplane. And of yourself. 1

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@mikehart6708 I will second that on Alan’s pilot skills!!!

[@mhilderbrand7693]

That was awesome! Thanks for sharing!

[@danosimp3]

Dude is a legend

[@justadudedoinstuff9142]

I love that you’re showing cool airplanes and not new overpriced hunks of junk

[@gregmiller8656]

Kent your. Knocking it out of the park . Fun fun video.

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@gregmiller8656 Thank You!

[@markclark1634]

Same year as mine but with a continental and not as many trim tabs .Flys great ,lots of fun.

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@markclark1634 👍

[@ralphstrahm4429]

I would love to buy a Piet. I'm flying a Taylorcraft now.

[@heinz-dietersindhoff7344]

What a cool man 👍🏻😊❤️

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@heinz-dietersindhoff7344 Yes he is!!!

[@DetroitMicroSound]

Great little aircraft! It would be really interesting to see one powered by a naturally aspirated Ford Sigma 1.6L. 😁

[@ayev8tor]

RESPECT!

[@rob5914]

My wife"s father and his two brothers grew up on a farm in Minnesota and were friends with Bernard Pietenpol. The brothers as teenagers built one of the early Pientenpol Air Campers and taught themselves how to fly with it. Luckily they survived although my father in law said it was often difficult to see well because the Model A radiator in frront of tkem would leak coolant and would blow back in their faces. He said they worked with Bernard along them way and made improvements to the airframe and other systems. All three brothers went on to be pilots, with one flying B17s in WWII, where he was lost. My father in law flew Boeing China Clipper seaplanes over the Pacific during Pan Am's contract to fly for the US Department of Defense. He continued to fly many planes around the Pacific after the war, with a long career with the US government. He said the Pietenphol Air Camper was always his favorite plane to fly as it held so many memories and while not fast or modern, it gave a great flying experience. He was a member of the EAA from about the beginning and went with his daughter - my wife - tio Oshkosh after retiring and moving back to the US. He would have liked your plane and video and thanks for shsring it.

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@rob5914 That’s a GREAT story and family history thanks for sharing it with us.

[@jims6323]

My cousin, Herbert Rowley, was involved with building two of these in the early 70's, one for himself and one for the local air scouts. His was powered with a Corvair flat 6. He flew out of Genesee airport, south of Rochester, NY. If anyone knows what became of these, let me know!

[@susanhenry7869]

Fun video! The bug shield is interesting😂 Love the helmet and goggles!

[@AviationAZRancher]

Glad you enjoyed

[@AD7ZJ]

I always thought the pietnpol is a really cool airplane. I especially admire the ingenuity of the people who built them. Where is this based at? I haven't seen any around Prescott.

[@kangaroojack6460]

talk about living the life

[@BarryHoffman-g4o]

I wanted to see the "Camper" part.

[@garyowen9044]

No threat of shock cooling, and preflight can easily include visual & tactile inspection of flight cables. Sign me up. Just don’t expect me to get in that front seat.

[@AnastasiaFuegel]

how did you make the prop. unreal

[@JerryWitt-n7z]

Air Camper Specs: Forward Visibility….. Owner: Huh???? 😅

[@slothzombi307]

I'm impressed with all the details and accuracy of fit. And then the engine pops over so easily. I'm curious if it is hard to get a home-built like this certified since it is being built with such primitive technology. And aren't propellers strictly regulated too.

[@jeffboatright]

Nope. I had one for years.

[@afterburner2869]

Wherever it is that he lives seem so peaceful and quiet. Just the way I like it. I wonder if carb icing is ever an issue, probably not considering the type of flying he does. I am also curious about fuel mixture since he doesn’t have a manual control for the mixture. It might be a non issue with that type of engine, I don’t know.

[@rescue270]

@@afterburner2869 Lots of small aircraft have no mixture control. My Aeronca with a 65 hp Lycoming had a Marvel-Schebler MA-2 carburetor with no provision for mixture control, and most others with 65 hp or less had Stromberg NA-S1 carburetors with no mixture control installed or NA-S3 with mixture control safety-wired in full rich per factory recommendation. These little aircraft are shut down by turning off the magnetos. Typically they maintained an acceptable fuel mixture up to service ceilings. I made 10,000 ft in my Aeronca and in my Luscombe 8A, which had a 65 hp Continental with Stromberg carburetor and no mixture control.

[@afterburner2869]

@@rescue270 I appreciate the information, thanks for filling me in.

[@jimjohnson3244]

@@afterburner2869 I think if you look back at the video you’ll see carb heat coming off of the exhaust on the first cylinder

[@rescue270]

@@afterburner2869 I forgot to mention that carburetor icing on Model A engines in Pietenpols can be a huge problem, according to some former owners I've spoken to. This one does have a carburetor heat system installed. If you look at the shots of the left side of the engine, you'll see a heat exchanger shroud, or "carb heat stove" on the exhaust stack of the forward engine cylinder with a large orange SCAT duct connecting it to an airbox at the carburetor. My Lycoming O-145-B1 had its induction system routed through the oil sump, so hot oil would heat induction tubes, thereby helping suspended fuel droplets evaporate more completely. According to the engine's Operator's Handbook, this system would reduce carburetor icing "to a marked degree." 🤣, on a cool, humid day that thing would ice up at lower cruise power settings in flight! If what they said was actually true, I'd hate to see a late 1930s engine that was considered bad about carb icing. The Continental A-65-8 had no induction sump system and it never iced up on me. I believe it had to do with the Stromberg vs. Marvel-Schebler carburetors more than anything. Early Marvels were probably more prone to icing. The Stromberg, however, had a float needle valve with a rubber tip that swelled up due to the toluene in 100LL fuel, causing it to lean out. Replacing the needle valve with a new one with a delrin tip fixed the mixture issues but it never seated perfectly and would start dripping fuel after shutdown. Replacing it again with an all-steel needle lapped into the seat only helped a little. Just turn the fuel valve off when you park it.

[@geoffb108]

Just imagine a similar air craft home built using todays Materials and motor. I know::::::: an ultra lite. But im talking home designed and built similar to the concept. There must be a thousand suitable car engine eg subaruru or even smaller 3 cylinder toyota or daihatsu. Just dreaming......!!!!!! Sorry

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@geoffb108 I think you are on to something. I will look around and see what I can find. 👍

[@gillesbueno1153]

Someone willing to build an RC version of this old beauty ?…🥳🥳

[@tonywright8294]

There’s hundreds of them .

[@reub5439evil]

I have a model engine that was built to run in a Pietenpol airplane. It was not the same engine shown here. The builder of my engine I ran this engine on a dyno and got 85 horsepower. I didn't know at the time I bought it from the builder what he was getting for horsepower out of this engine. I found out about the power later when talking with him. I put a Stromberg 48 carb that larger venturis than than the weber carb he used. I suspect the horsepower is now around 90 to 95 horsepower with the other parts that I added.

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@reub5439evil Wow! Didn’t know you could get that kind of power out of those engines. That’s good to know. Thanks

[@reub5439evil]

@@AviationAZRancher The engine builder, whose name I can't remember gave me a list of the mods and it is pretty long. It has larger intake valves, the block was ported and relieved, bored 1/8"" oversized . The is long and quite costly. with a 3.54 diff gear cruising on the freeway at 70 mph is easy. The engine is in my 28 tudor. It doesn't get driven anymore since I am now dealing with Parkinson's Disease and it looks like I am going to hsve to sell the car.

[@jimjohnson3244]

@@reub5439evil I’m terribly sorry to hear that. Best of luck to you with your health.

[@reub5439evil]

@@jimjohnson3244 thank you

[@yountsgill]

Wondering, how heavy a person can be fit in as passenger. Also isn’t it will be awkward to climb in front seat. Passenger must be in great flexibility shape to enter in cockpit. Please respond

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@yountsgill Watching Alan climb into the rear seat I would think getting into the front seat would be very difficult. I think I will try to climb into the front seat next time out visiting him. Thanks for the question.

[@slothzombi307]

@@AviationAZRancher I think you might throw a cushion onto that front seat.

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@slothzombi307 That’s a 👍 great idea!

[@jeffboatright]

@@AviationAZRancher There is a trick to getting into the front seat. You have to have in mind that you're actually not planning to get into the front cockpit, but rather, you're planning to crawl across it. When you're half way there, stop, turn, and sit. You're in!

[@AviationAZRancher]

@@yountsgill Yes I believe you are correct. It looks like it would be hard to get in the front seat.

[@jonasmaragno9527]

Um brasileiro fez um em Rio Claro SP Brasil

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

I would think there would be many better engines to use, lighter and even more power..

[@Flashman36175]

In 1927 ? This plane was made to be mostly like the original plane made in the 20s. There were better areo engines in the 20s, but the original designer used what he had probably had around.

[@jims6323]

Thats not the point!

[@jimjohnson3244]

@@jims6323 that’s what I came here to say!

[@Patrick-xm9hp]

Grandpa, you should never touch the propeller of an airplane. bad example

[@ThunderAppeal]

'It flies good. Not great but good.' Its a home built and it flies therefore no good here, only great.