Aircraft Crutches

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I think you guys may find this interesting......My father was born in 1924.  In 1938 he injured his spinal cord, was bed ridden for a year, then in a wheelchair, and then learned to walk on crutches that were made from hickory saplings.  During WWII, his brother was a welding instructor in the Air Force.  Sometime after the war (but probably before 1950) he made a pair of crutches for my father.  I always heard that they were made from "aircraft tubing".  The crutches are 5' long (my dad was 6' 4") and the tubing is 1".  My dad walked on these crutches daily for well over 40 years until he quit walking for fear that he would fall.  After he quit walking, he used them to push himself around the house in a office chair.  He did this until he became bedridden in 2007.  He passed away in 2009.I will also add that that my father never let his disability stop him.  He worked his way through the University of Alabama and was a member of the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society - all this was long before there was such a thing as the Americans with Disabilities Act. Joe
Reply:Wow thanks for sharing.  He was from the old school as my dad was.
Reply:Very cool.They don't make ppl like they used to. Hard work, determination and drive are lost on most these days.The crutches are cool too Expert Garage Hack....https://www.facebook.com/steven.webber.948
Reply:Very cool.What welding process ?Miller a/c-d/c Thunderbolt XLMillermatic 180 Purox O/ASmith Littletorch O/AHobart Champion Elite
Reply:Interesting story and crutches, thanks for sharing. The welds look to be oxy-fuel or brazed.Miller Big 40GMiller HF-251 D High FreqVictor OA Lincoln 135 MigMK 3A CobramaticBridgeport J HeadCronatron OxylanceRadnor ACAG TorchWeldcraft TIG Torches1 blown knee and two 5 Gallon pails away from being a hero.
Reply:Good share.My Dad served in WWII, and at that time there was a REAL GI Bill.  All the vets got a free ride thru college (with the exception of books).  It gave my father a good career in accounting.  It's a sin what they do nowdays, there is no good after-service support like there used to be.  Far as I'm concerned, Vets are being crapped on nowdays."Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:Originally Posted by farmersammGood share.My Dad served in WWII, and at that time there was a REAL GI Bill.  All the vets got a free ride thru college (with the exception of books).  It gave my father a good career in accounting.  It's a sin what they do nowdays, there is no good after-service support like there used to be.  Far as I'm concerned, Vets are being crapped on nowdays.
Reply:Old school for sure and hard as a rock! A fine of example of the strong no bull$h1t people who built this country! Thanks for sharing!-Niche
Reply:That was a very personal story. Thank you for sharing it with us.May God shine on him and his family.JimJim,I don't mean to be argumentative and cantankerous,but I am getting older and a bit crotchety!Addendum; AND CRANKY
Reply:Thank you for the kind replies. Sadly, I know very little about the construction of the crutches.  After the war, my uncle worked for an airplane manufacturer, then he opened and ran a small country grocery store (that had a welding shop in back) until he retired.  After he retired he continued to weld until he was past 80 - people would bring him the stuff that no one else could do!. Here is a picture from WWII - my uncle is in the foreground (I am fairly sure that is him......at least my 86 y/o mother says that is him........)