This historical 1946 Ercoupe Airplane Weathervane was first commissioned for the Walton Family by the construction firm remodeling the corporate aviation headquarters. It is a 3D replica of Sam Walton’s personal plane.

3D vanes are typically the most complex and time consuming style of weathervane to fabricate, but they are really perfect for creating replicas that look exactly right to they eye from all angles as they spin.  We often work from original designs, based on true proportions, and then precisely reduce scale. Failing that, we begin from many photos, capturing as much detail as possible.

A ‘Lucky Penny‘ from 1968, the inaugural year of Walmart Aviation, was requested to be attached inside the cockpit. The copper plane has been gilded with optional palladium leaf to replicate its silvery metal body. The N Number and side designs are red enamel. There is a Security Device attaching the sculpture piece to the copper mounting tube. In addition to adding some structural details to the design, a security device is included in the price of all our winged weather vanes to assure they don’t literally ‘take off’ in strong winds.

The Ercoupe was a big change in small plane design, with its low wings and drive train that steered like a car. It was designed to be the safest fixed-wing aircraft that aerospace engineering could provide at the time and you could even order it from Macy’s and JC Penney! The Ercoupe continues to enjoy a faithful following.