I have often had my garage door open on nice days with people walking or driving by, and very few give more than a passing glance. People don't realize what they're looking at. An airplane in a garage is the last thing on their mind. The few who recognize it for what it is are filled with disbelief. But when I set it up out in the driveway to mate the wings (I don't have room inside for the wingspan), it was a whole different story! Lots of people who were walking by, on bicycles, or driving, took a double-take and came back with eyes wide open, expressing everything from dumbfounded awe to wonderful compliments. Here's a shot from that day back in 2010 when I had the wings on in the driveway. What an experiece that was!
Then, just this last Friday afternoon, It was an unseasonably nice warm day. I pulled her out of the garage for some sweeping and spring cleaning of the shop. This time, she's on her gear and sporting her canopy, and the engine on the nose.
Once again, lots of passersby stopped to stare, offer compliments, congratulate me, or express amazement. One old man, an asian guy who didn't speak a word of english, came by and was uttering something with a big smile on his face. I keep some pictures of finished RV's in my garage for visitors (old Vans calendar pics), so I took him over and showed him what a finished, painted RV looks like. You should have seen the expression on his face and heard the words coming out of his mouth. No english necessary! One other guy drove by, stopped, backed up and parked his car right in the middle of the street, and jumped out to talk to me. Come to find out, his grandfather is the guy who started "Trade-A-Plane" and we had a very nice chat.
It sure is fun! You never know what's going to happen when you do this.