It was my fourth birthday, Feb 1944. I had already been exposed to some CL planes from kids flying in local parks and school parking lots. Also had a cousin living in Detroit who used to send his used copies of Air Trails and MAN to anothe cousing I saw frequently. I was developing a strange urge, an almost frightening desire. Then, my dad came home from work with a couple small boxes in his hands, all gift wrapped. A Strombecker Jeep carrier, and a Frigate. Before I went to bed, he promised me he would help me build them the next day. However, since I was having trouble sleeping with an undefineable excitement, I tripped the latch on my crib, snuck into the kitchen, and got the two boxes down from the top of the old Victrola (Remember those?) cabinet. Somehow, I was able to figur out the instructions, first the carrier, which was the easiest. With my minimal reading skills, I deciphered the plan sheet, worked out the difference between the packets of water mix wood glue and wood filler, and mixed up a batch of wood glue. I built both models that night. I dont think I understood what the filler was for untill I tried to paint them with Pactra Enamel. The end grain soaked up the paint like a sponge.
Over the next year, I had built more Strombeckers, a Megow or two, a couple Walker Hornets, 74 Gliders, and kind of built a couple Comet kits. To be able to cut out the prinnted wood, dad snapped a couple Gillette Blue Blades in half and wrapped the broken edges with several layers of Mastic tape. For my fifth birthday, I took the money I'd managed to save up, went down to a bike shop a couple blocks away, and bought an Enterprise Air Racer, an OK Cub .099, and a fuel tank. The proprietor threw in some black fuel line tubing Said to use heavy carper thread for lead outs, whatever those were. Carving the hardwood egine bearers was beyond me, and dad was working overtime on defense contracts.
For my sixth birthday,someone presented me with a Wen Mac (Aeromite?) with a pull start .049, a can of OK fuel, and an F battery with gator clip I think it took me about 5 years to get that engine running, with a Walker Balloon tank, 7-4 power prop, and Fox Hi-Nitro fuel.. After that, the engine had absolutely no compression.cables.