I was pleased to see the thread on the Link trainer in the Monday
MMDigest. Back in the 1970s I had begun my collection of mechanical
music machines and was familiar with Link and his trainer. One came
up at an auction in West Liberty, Ohio, and I was lucky to purchase
it for $350.
As stated in the MMD article, in addition to the airplane unit there
was a large, extremely heavy desk that actually was a platform for
the movement of the "crab" -- a navigational training device. The two
units were so large they had to be placed in my semi-truck garage.
After a few days of operation, it became clear that I had bought
another amusing but totally impractical object. The Link trainer was
eventually sold to a gentleman who took it to the Phillipsburg, Ohio,
airport where it may still be if anyone is interested in filling up
his garage.
Jim Welty
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