I went down to the Cabela's at Lacey WA yesterday, lke last time again spent a couple minutes eyeballing the static display Cub hanging above the front of the store. The first time I went, an employee told me it was a mock-up. No.... it's a real Cub, things like mismatched yellow paint on the fabric etc give it away. But I'm puzzled by how they mounted the propeller-- not only does it turn at a low steady speed (obviously powered by an electric motor) but it's got a slight wobble. It's bolted to a flange just like the real thing, but it doesn't seem practical to have an electric motor mounted at the mag drive pads or something & turn the whole engine (removing the plugs, or maybe conn rods, etc). The engine sure looks like the real thing (A65 with eyebrow baffles), but the exhaust pipe looked awfully thick-walled-- I suppose it could be a plastic facsimile. Last time I wrote down the tail number & googled it and it was a J3 registered back east somewhere.
Anybody know how they done it?

Do you mean this J-3?

I don't think it would be too hard of a task removing all the innards of the engine and installing a small electric motor to spin the prop. Just a guess.

now there is a use for worn out bushwheels. I wonder who the buyer is for Cabela's??

I would need to take my tape measure up there to see. There is a really great looking airplane hanging at Scheels in Sparks. Big joint. Way big. They got a mountain inside with every kind of big game trophy you want standing on it. They are real trophies. They have a ferris wheel in the middle. It's a real ferris wheel. The airplane though is a fake airplane on fake floats. But it's a DHC Beaver; big but fake.

I think the cub at Cabelas is a fake. The pilot is real.

Doesn't cabella's know to solo a J3 from the rear seat?

Not if there's a moose in the ext. baggage.

patrol guy wrote:now there is a use for worn out bushwheels. I wonder who the buyer is for Cabela's??

The PA11 that hangs from the roof at the store in Glendale Az. has a brand new set of 26" Goodyears mounted on it. I was looking at then last weekend and thinking.......what a waste of good tires.

This is hanging from the ceiling of the grocery store near our home in Sweden.




Rough translation:

"Made in England 1953

18 were used in the Swedish Air Force 1955-73 to transport people and goods and as a flying classroom for future navigators This machine was used as an instruction aircraft at the 'flying technical school' in Vestoeros....was bought in 1992 as a static training station for pilots and cabin personnel."

Delete

The planes in Illinois and Wisconsin hanging in Cabelas the props are spinning backwards.

clippwagon wrote:Do you mean this J-3?

No, I mean the OTHER J3 hanging in there.
Yeah, that's the one. Do you have a shot where you can read the tailnumber?

Emory Bored wrote:...They got a mountain inside with every kind of big game trophy you want standing on it. They are real trophies. ...I think the cub at Cabelas is a fake. The pilot is real.

I think the Cub is the real deal. They have a "taxidermy mountain" at Lacey too-- lots of full body mounts on it of all sorts of game animals, including a prairie dog colony. Plus a tunnel through the mountain where aquariums are displayed, containing game fish (salmon, bass, etc).
Cool place- I didn't even buy anything, just went to window-shop & walk around & look at stuff.

There's one hanging in the Cabelas near Austin, TX as well.

My buddies and I would spend lots of money at Cabela's if they would let us land there. It's along drive. It's near Wheeling, WV. Does anyone know the regional manager or some landowner? They wouldn't need to buy a J3 if they had the real ones parked outside. I would let them put a logo on it for a sleeping bag. There's even Sheetz gasoline and food right there for the consumption. It would change everything having access to that place!

Here in Minnesota the Cabel's in Owatona is only 3/4 mile from the airport.
Fly down, call them from the fbo and they send a van to pick you up. Nice deal,
but they cost almost as much as this fly thing.
46tcrft

SNY is the home of Cabelas. I can actually look out my front door and see their headquarters and the store about 4 miles away accross the valley. There is no J3 hanging in this store but their corporate jet, a Beach 400 is hangared about 250 ft away from my hangar at SNY. I know the guy who rebuilt/built several of the Cubs that hang in several stores. The last time I saw him here he was delivering a J3 on floats to a store east of here. If you fly into SNY, the FBO will call Cabelas and they will send a van out to pick you up and take you to the store.
HC

hotrod150 wrote:

clippwagon wrote:Do you mean this J-3?

No, I mean the OTHER J3 hanging in there.
Yeah, that's the one. Do you have a shot where you can read the tailnumber?

Emory Bored wrote:...They got a mountain inside with every kind of big game trophy you want standing on it. They are real trophies. ...I think the cub at Cabelas is a fake. The pilot is real.

I think the Cub is the real deal. They have a "taxidermy mountain" at Lacey too-- lots of full body mounts on it of all sorts of game animals, including a prairie dog colony. Plus a tunnel through the mountain where aquariums are displayed, containing game fish (salmon, bass, etc).
Cool place- I didn't even buy anything, just went to window-shop & walk around & look at stuff.

When I said "do you mean this J-3?" I was referencing the fact that I had a picture of the actual airplane that you were attempting to describe to everyone, I was not, however, trying to suggest that there may be more than one airplane hanging from the ceiling, because there is not (as you have eloquently pointed out for us all)!

...And since I was unable to get a picture of the tail number (due to the glare) I decided to call them on the phone tonight and found out that it is N70182. I couldn't find it on the FAA registry!

And here are a few more pics of the place:













The End

The plane hanging at Scheels in Sparks I think is a 3/4 scale 1938 Fairchild on floats. It is a replica of founder Frederick Scheels' plane. It is very cool and does sort of look like a Beaver without an engine cowl.
This a link to a Flickr site with photos of it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottschra ... ?q=scheels airplane

chance wrote:The plane hanging at Scheels in Sparks I think is a 3/4 scale 1938 Fairchild on floats. It is a replica of founder Frederick Scheels' plane. It is very cool and does sort of look like a Beaver without an engine cowl.
This a link to a Flickr site with photos of it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottschra ... ?q=scheels airplane

That would be the one. Thanks for the correction on the make and model. It did look out of proportion for a Beaver but I couldn't think of what it might be.

Shame on Cabelas for hanging real J-3s from the ceiling.

N70182
Serial Number 17167 Type Registration Individual
Manufacturer Name PIPER Certificate Issue Date 05/18/2006
Model J3C-65 Expiration Date 09/30/2011
Type Aircraft Fixed Wing Single-Engine Status Expired
Pending Number Change None Type Engine Reciprocating
Date Change Authorized None Dealer No
MFR Year 1946 Mode S Code 52255720
Fractional Owner NO
Registered Owner
Name WEBBER CHARLES
Street PO BOX 175

City LIVINGSTON State NEW YORK
County COLUMBIA Zip Code 12541-0175
Country UNITED STATES
Airworthiness
Engine Manufacturer CONT MOTOR Classification Standard
Engine Model C85 SERIES Category Agriculture and Pest Control
A/W Date 06/13/1956