Retirement Gift

Low&Slow

Low&Slow

Ancora imparo
An old Army friend of mine is retiring next year, so I made a little bespoke gift for his desk.
I made the "ends" of the desk set from a UH-60M Blackhawk helicopter tailwheel strut piston that was unserviceable. I cut it in half, polished the tops of the piston halves, and attached the wind side of the flight computer to them.
I also searched Amazon for a globe paperweight, and a pen. I added a Master Aviator Badge to the base, and I'm planning to attach his rank pin to the computer slide, just below the clock, but supply didn't have any in stock so now I'm waiting for it to come in the mail.

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I start seeing something like this out of Wings in Daleville next time I’m TDY, they owe you royalties.

Looks good. Nice desk candy for the old guard. Today nobody would even know what that thing the clock is mounted to is.


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Thanks @Lawman. I make furniture and various forms of decor out of scrapped aircraft and automobile parts as a hobby. I usually give them away as gifts. I enjoy making things and bringing a little bit of happiness into other people's lives.
I just assumed everyone knew what that whizz-wheel thingy that makes the clock is. Haha.
 
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Low&Slow said:
An old Army friend of mine is retiring next year, so I made a little bespoke gift for his desk.
I made the "ends" of the desk set from a UH-60M Blackhawk helicopter tailwheel strut piston that was unserviceable. I cut it in half, polished the tops of the piston halves, and attached the wind side of the flight computer to them.
I also searched Amazon for a globe paperweight, and a pen. I added a Master Aviator Badge to the base, and I'm planning to attach his rank pin to the computer slide, just below the clock, but supply didn't have any in stock so now I'm waiting for it to come in the mail.

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Absolutely beautiful.
 
Did you mean to have a crew member or aviator badge? I only ask because on your original post mentions an aviator badge but the display looks like a crew member’s badge. The badges are so shiny so I can’t really tell in the pictures.
 
I still have an E6B that I occasionally twist and slide around to keep my mental pipes at least partially clear. I do recall a long, long time ago a very good ground instructor gave a lesson about the E6B and how it actually works. I was flabbergasted by the fact I basically had a modern version of the original mechanical computer (an abacus) sitting in my hands staring me right in the face and all I needed to do was spin and slide the movable bits and I'd end up with a very approximate, but broadly accurate, answer to any equations I wasn't able to figure out in my head. I hope whoever you crafted that gift for appreciates it.
 
Low&Slow said:
An old Army friend of mine is retiring next year, so I made a little bespoke gift for his desk.
I made the "ends" of the desk set from a UH-60M Blackhawk helicopter tailwheel strut piston that was unserviceable. I cut it in half, polished the tops of the piston halves, and attached the wind side of the flight computer to them.
I also searched Amazon for a globe paperweight, and a pen. I added a Master Aviator Badge to the base, and I'm planning to attach his rank pin to the computer slide, just below the clock, but supply didn't have any in stock so now I'm waiting for it to come in the mail.

View attachment 54127

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Nice! Exceptionally nice.

Well done!

When you retire, I hope there is someone who recognizes you similarly.

Economically, it obviously won't matter. I trust you recognize that you have found your retirement side hustle.
 
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