Steve Hinton is a modern legend. He’s flown just about everything.

I have been a Boeing 747 structural mechanic for 35 years...........you folks are a National Treasure !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can't even imagine how awesome it would sound on the deck of an aircraft carrier with dozens of R-2800's thundering, ready for takeoff!

In the 1980’s my wife and I did grunt work at the museum. We’d sweep, clean glass cases, etc. Loved being there around those beautiful old warbirds. Especially liked the Big Band dances.

I could listen to Steve Hinton all day talk airplanes fantastic! I always remember I got my 4 year old to watch Empire if the Sun and the famous wave from the P-51 pilot, the day before Flying Legends! The next day my daughter was on my shoulder waving furiously at the P-51’s and Steve waved back making my daughters day! Please keep these posts coming and Regards to you all from a lock downed UK!

Boy, that stirred some memories. My late father and another doctor bought a Bearcat located in Salinas from Gene Akers in 1960. I was four years old and I remember Dad cutting out new covers for the gun ports with tin snips at the kitchen table. He and Dick Brown flew it around the Antelope Valley for a few years, and during that era, stripped all the paint and changed the N-number to something easier to mask and paint: N1111L. Darryl Greenamyer entered the partnership in 1964 and the rest was history. My brothers and I take quiet pride knowing that our Dad was a silent partner in ownership of Conquest 1 when it won Reno all those years and took the 3Km speed record held thirty years by the Nazis.

I love your museum. It is my "Happy Place". I drop in when ever I am in the area (I live in Kansas) for a visit. It has been said several time, Steve Hinton, you are THE MAN! Happy landings!!!

The most exciting airplane, ever, to my mind. Amazing proportions, clean lines, beautiful from all angles, in the air and on the ground, always looking like it's ready to leap into the air. Glad people can take on projects like this!

Thank you for restoring the Bearcat. She is one of the most gorgeous aircraft in aviation history. Amazing work!

Thank you Mr. Hinton for sharing. It's sad that the Air Show had to be cancelled this year but I hope that all at P.O.F. are staying healthy and productive. I'm glad I paid a week day visit to the museum in February before all the craziness started. For anyone who has never been to this facility it is well worth the effort. Week days are great if you really want to see work and maintenance going on in the restoration hanger. The monthly living history presentations are also a must. Keep em flying!

I love people that work on, restore, and fly these old airplanes. And I’m extremely jealous of your lives.

Thanks Steve, awesome stuff! As a teen in the 80's volunteering every single day I could, it's more than just seeing an airplane fly for me. It's the countless hours problem solving and the pure love of doing it, not to mention the characters and camaraderie. Ed (God rest his soul) took A LOT of time with me and instilled attention to detail and history behind everything. I tried to stick around so I could be a permanent part of Chino, but I couldn't find a job locally and my parents moved away. I'm always trying to get back so I can be at the museum and helping behind the scenes. I suppose once it is in your blood, it doesn't go away. I always wonder if I could have got a job locally how things would be.

Seeing a warbird become airworthy is always worthy of celebration. Fantastic work. May she fly for decades to come.

Steve is a living legend, thanks for preserving history!!!!

That's what Dr.Frankenstein said about his Monster "It's Alive!" I like this Monster {F8F} better though, can't wait to see it fly. Also a pleasure to listen to Steve talk planes, an expert you can bet on.

New definition for an old one. Gives "hanging on the prop" a fresh prospective! Used to mean just pointed skyward with attitude. Never thought of it as dangling [hanging] on a prop spanner... Nice work, all. Beauty of a flying machine!

I miss seeing bill and corkey fornof in their father son arial performances saw them at NAS corpus Christi in 1970 in their F8F bearcats best performers ever ! RIP BILL

There was time when i would have never expected to see something like Steve Hinton showing me around a Bearcat.

It’s always nice to see these old planes running/flying

I can't believe there is a more wonderful toy in private hands anywhere.

U da man, Steve!!! I felt honored to talk to him, first in Deming, NM as a light cargo pilot passing through, while Steve was there refueling his F-86. He was nice enough to do a low pass on his departure, making my day! Saw him again at Nellis AFB, where he was part of an F-86 three-ship demo team. Got a great picture of them , which I keep as a computer screen background.

How exciting! Looking forward to seeing more. Thank you for taking the time to share.

Amazing! I'm glad to see it finally running!

Steve, Back when we were both a lot younger I remember you racing the Red Baron in the unlimited class at Reno in 1979. I want you to know I prayed for you until you were out of the woods. I liked the plane but it was only a plane. There have been others now and better ones. I thank God for your triumphant victory over injury and death. I wish you and your family continued success. So, tonight, I will pray for you again.

Thank you for sharing this. These old planes sound so awesome. Y'all are doing a super job.

Hello from Van Sant Airport! I could watch and listen to this all day. So wonderful.

Great video! Hope to see the first flight soon. And please keep adding these great voice overs by Steve Hinton, enjoyable and very interesting to listen to!

What a great close up video here! So great to see them putting the prop on it too!

Good job. Nice to see the airplane running plus seeing my friends is good too.

Very big thank you for sharing. Great to listen to specs and how it all comes together.

A round of applause for the team! I heard about this museum when I was a little kid. It was featured in a video game I used to play, and I see your aircraft collection has only gotten bigger!

Thank you Sir , I truly enjoyed this video from start to finish with the great narration and explanation of the work being done.

Great work on the video , I can't wait to see more on the Bearcat what ever you do to it . Steve I saw you at the Reno Air Races in 2010 , I had wonderful time there Thankyou very much.

Really happy to see people restoring these old aircraft.

Amazing Bearcat - great work Planes of Fame - can't wait to see it @ your May 2021 Airshow

These old aircraft fascinate me. My wife's uncle was a pilot just after WW2 he flew for Johnson's Flying Service, he was quite the character and was a joy to listen to him talk about his flying escapades. I have a copy of his last issued Instrument Rated Pilots License dated 11/09/1966, it lists single and multi engine land based, Grumman TBM, Douglas-B-26, Grumman F7F, North American B-25, Ford 5, Boeing B-17. I just wish I would have been able to fly with him.

What a quality engine! What a quality fellow who knows how to start it too!

Thoroughly enjoyed this video. Thanks! Was on the hangar deck of Enterprise docked in San Diego. Man those WWII era planes....I tell yuh...soul moving.

Fantastic - in all ways! Thank you POF!

You guys should be very proud of your work!! It's great to see this old bear come to life, and the scenery and the colors are simply overwhelming. Thanks for sharing!

Fantastic video Mr. Hinton. Thanks for sharing. Looking forward to more of these. Top Quality stuff, super high speed. Thanks again.

Such an AMAZING aircraft!! I wanna come back out and see your collection again!! I'd love to meet Mr. Hinton and talk about airplanes. Keep up the GREAT work!! 👍👍

Good luck from the UK. Epic rebuild story, thanks for sharing.

So great to see. Thank you for getting another bird closer to the air

nice to see that you work on them as well flying them good work mr Hinton

Very nicely done!!!

I love Planes of Fame and I must have visited at least 100 times. I'll never forget my ride in P-51 Spam Can and helping Steve H. lift and move a P40's tail one day before the annual airshow.

I've visited your excellent warbird museum many times in the last few years .I've peeked in the hangar and seen the Bearcat in various stages of restoration .Glad to see it running and ready to fly .

Very Pretty, can't wait to see the paint job.

Jet thrust discussion was really interesting. Love to see the knowledge of these kinds of planes being preserved.

Beautiful!

Love this videos, thanks a bunch for sharing!

Thanks for sharing Sir ! Goodluck and have alittle fun up there when you get her in the air !

That is wicked, great work.

Nice. I live near this museum, and I've been by before. Thoroughly impressed by all the restored airplanes, and even static displays.

Awesome video Thanks for all the explanation

Round Motors just have that sound. Love'em. Thanks for the Video looking forward to the Maiden flight.

Thank you for sharing.

Beautiful!!

My all time favorite aircraft fantastic work on it. Working on a 1/4 scale RC Beracat now and can't wait to get it in the air for the first time.

Great sound of P&W, can’t wait for Air Museum to reopen

Love the sound of a R-2800 in the morning. And afternoon. And night! If I could do a Vulcan mind meld to gain knowledge with anyone in aviation, it would be Steve Hinton. I miss the Red Baron and the Super Corsair!

Awesome guys

My hands down favorite of all the Cats from The Iron Works ! So well proportioned,...all business and the 2800's lopey idle has a universal appeal to gearheads like me !!! Thanks for the update,....will be watching for video of the flight around the patch !!

The last of the super piston fighters. It looks half the size of the f6f. And what a stance.

Keep the videos coming. Look forward to the test flight.

Hinton is such an amazing guy. Flies everything, AND turns the wrenches along with full understanding of the technical end of things. I would not blindly trade lives with many people, but I think I would with him. I hope he is grooming others to carry on with the warbird passion.

Love the Bearcat. My Favorite.

I'll be excited to seeing the next run

Seriously, you guys need an overhead crane. It makes hard heavy work a lot easier. Mr. Hinto is a fortunate man to do what he's doing. Living a dream that most just dream about and that is flying these awesome birds. Thanks for keeping history alive and well.

Awesome!

Pops took a ride with Steve at The Planes of Fame back in the early days. A Texan ride was $140 and there was a B-25?? that could be rode for about $250 a hr at the time. Late 70's-Early 80's??. Pops took the T-6 ride and mom sighed relief. The one that stood out at the museum for me was the MXY-7 Ohka. It was still outside in the weather awaiting refurb , ,in the old dirt walkaround paths. Bet it felt good to hang that prop finally. Motor took right to startup,,a good one. No flames or big bangers. No making metal. Congrats!

Steve, you have the greatest job in the world...

i love to see so beautieful planes alive. must be a pleasure to work them to.

Excellent video. I enjoyed the accompanying commentary.

Un travail remarquable et minutieux pour ce légendaire: F8F Bearcat! En plus il est aussi mon préféré, bien-sûr! Merci pour le partage vraiment passionnant! Un abonné de France.👍

Very informative, Thanks!

Superb job Steve! You have the respect of this recip mechanic. Mostly on ole shakey. C124C Globemasters!

Always loved this aircraft

Thank you Steve for all the work you and your crew do on these historic planes.!!

Fabulous! 👍. One of THE best propeller driven fighter airplanes of all time.

Excellent, I'll check your other post for progress. Thanks.... If I was going to build a Hot-Rod it would be a Bearcat.

Great stuff.

I remember being at Reno as a kid when Steve was flying the Red Barron

Good job

can't wait to see it in person at the airshow next year.

Spectacular machine

Nice Work there boys...

Just found your channel and subbed, great work guys keep it up.

Badass hotrod you got there👍

Congrats on the new "Cat" keep up the great work POF!

Great memories of Steve driving the forklift at Dijon, France lifting the contra-propeller for Christophe Jacquard's brand new Spitfire MkXIX :-)

Way Kool Stuff....... coming to work everyday and doin this would be pretty close to perfect... Keep up the good work !!

The F8F & the F7F were the 2 most epic beasts to come out of WWII.

Great info! CNO is outstanding!thank you

Steve is one of the most talented and luckiest aviators today

That is a sweet sound! When I was a technician back in California I did some strain gage instrumentation work for Lyle Sheldon on the “Rear Bear” F8 at Van Nuys. “Rare Bear” F8

Thanks guys, I find this kind of stuff fascinating, partially because my dad was a WWII Ranger, climbed up the cliffs at D-day etc. He told me it always encouraged him to see Thunderbolts, and P-51s and similar American aircraft flying over head when he was scouting behind enemy lines. Of course he wouldn't have seen this Navy plane, but you know what I mean. I hope you keep it stock because I'm from Sacramento and have seen the Reno Air Races several times and don't like those modified monstrosities they fly. BTW I just subscribed and hit the like button.

awesome

Great video, props (pun intended) to all involved.