Shark Nosed Speedster

Story And Photos
By Gilles Auliard

Checking my six, I spot the shark-nosed airplane closing in on my tail.

Tucking in closer, I can see the broad grin on the face of its pilot, ready for the kill. Have I stepped in a time warp, one split second away from being blown out of the skies, or am I on another photoshoot?

I recently found myself in one of the most enjoyable and productive air-to-air photo sessions in my life, thanks to two exceptional formation pilots. While I was seating on the front seat of Ted Millers Stearman, Chris Price was displaying for my benefit Eric Rearwin's one-of-a-kind Rearwin 6000C Speedster N15865.

This momentous flight was made possible by a new friend, Tim Talen. Talen is the owner/operator of the Ragwood Refactory, a restoration shop located five miles east of Springfield, Ore. on a ridge overlooking the Willamette River.

He presents his company:

"I started it at the Chico Airport in 1976. We moved to Oregon in 1978, and did not have much work at the beginning. Along the way, I took a keen interest in Interstates, and Pete Bowers inspired me to do the restorations as authentic as possible.

"We specialize in the 1930's light airplanes, and we have done pretty much any type of the pre-WWII era Piper J series (except the J-4), Aeroncas, Porterfields, and a few Rearwins.

"We knew about this Speedster, and I had checked it out. Eric Rearwin contacted me, asking about the airplane. We went back and forth on the subject for years, and one day, he called me up saying that he had made a deal with the owner and that I would be the one to restore it."

Eric Rearwin of San Pablo, Calif. is the great-grandson of Raymond Andrew Rae Rearwin, who founded Rearwin Airplanes in 1928.

"There was not any Speedster flying at the time, and I figured out I wanted to bring it back as a family heritage," he said. "This is a very rare, Cirrus powered model 6000C.

"They only made two before switching to Menasco. The first one basically was a prototype and was destroyed during testing, so this is the only surviving example."

The Rearwin Speedster was a high wing strut-braced monoplane of conventional design with an enclosed cabin and fixed gear.

"The CAA at the time had really strict spin-testing requirements," the younger Rearwin explained. "The airplane actually had a smaller fin at the beginning, and it would not pass the spin tests.

"It took almost four years to get it certified. But then there were a lot of other competing models that made it outdated. That is probably why they made only 14."

This one, the second Rearwin 6000C Speedster built, rolled out of the Fairfax County Airport facility of the R.A. Rearwin Co. on May 25, 1936. It was registered the following day to R.A. Rae Rearwin as X-15865 (X for experimental), its certificate bearing the mention: "Demonstration purpose only. No person may be carried except bona fide members of the crew."

Transferred to the Rearwin Co on August 25, 1937, with the commercial registration NC15865, it remained as a demonstration machine until sold to Rudolph Edward Collioud of Montclair, N.J. on July 1st, 1939.

After a succession of owners, including Dexter D. Coffin, in 1962-63, a well-known aviator and yachtsman with Connecticut connections, the Rearwin ended up in the early 80's in the hands of Aubrey Weeks of San Leandro, Calif. He sold it to Eric Rearwin on April 10th, 2003.

Soon after, Talen went to pick the airplane up with his trailer.

"When looking at the airplane in the gentleman's hangar, the project looked like a million bucks," he said. "However, peeking around a little bit, I discovered that the wings were shot; the fuselage was in good condition, but all the wood was delaminating and the stringers were falling out."

He had to do a complete restoration and rebuild the wings over an eight year period. They kept a few pieces of wood to preserve the DNA of the airplane.

The first flight in August 2011 was "eventful," and a subsequent adjustment of the blade angle of its ground adjustable metal propeller, the Rearwin "flies like any kind of airplane should fly," Talen said. "In that regard, there were no surprises."

"I was afraid of running out of ailerons, as they are pretty small for the wing area, but we were pretty sure to have good rudder control, especially at full power," Talen said.

"To this day, I have not touched the original airplane rigging, as it is close to perfect. Trying to make it better would probably be like chasing rainbows."

The airplane flew very well right off the bat. The elevator is very positive, the rudder very nice, and the ailerons work pretty well, even in crosswind conditions, he said.

"Crosswind landings are easy to control, and you can straighten the wings with the ailerons down to stall speed. You even still have some aileron control on the ground," Talen said.

According to 1930's test pilot Mark Karant, the Speedster was: "A clean cut light plane that looks like an airplane that was designed in the first place, not merely assembled."

Nowadays, it is a living icon of a bygone era.