By day, David Jackson works full-time as an Ohio Class 3 wastewater operator in the Pickerington Water Reclamation Department. By night, he becomes a 48-year-old wanna-be astronaut who re-creates full-size A7L Apollo spacesuits.
The replicas are so accurate that Jackson earned a page on the NASA Apollo Lunar Surface Journal Web site. Two suits are displayed in museums in Germany. At present, Jackson is casting and welding one for a private collector in Sweden and another for himself.
The hobby began in 2005 while Jackson recovered from a fractured right foot. “I needed something to do,” he says. “I grew up during the Apollo missions, and believe the A7L and Saturn V rocket that carried it are the 20th Century's greatest technological advancements. It's always been my dream to put on that suit and step off the ladder of a LEM (lunar expeditionary module).”
The suits have gloves, emergency oxygen supply and backpack, two visors in the over-helmet, pressure helmet, communications helmet, lunar over-boots, body suit of arms and legs with boots, and liquid-cooling garment. Jackson averages 35 hours per week reproducing the components.
To afford materials — fabrics cost $200 per yard — Jackson began selling plastic spacesuit castings on eBay. “I make the molds from the real items, which are very difficult to obtain,” he says. “The castings sold faster than I could produce them.
“The toughest part was balancing a reasonable price with recovering my cost and earning something for my time. Without my day job, I'd be broke by now.” Jackson works on a special order basis but is not accepting any more orders until he finishes the two current suits.
Jackson machines and anodizes all the hardware in his shop. Many original items were supplied by Ken Thomas of Hamilton Sundstrand Aerospace in Windsor Locks, Conn. “Without his help, none of my efforts to preserve the past through reproductions would be possible,” says Jackson. After machine-sewing the first two suits himself, he hired a professional seamstress.
Jackson also contributes historical information to NASA and has his biography posted at www.hq.nasa.gov/alsj/DavidJackson.html. He chronicles the making of his spacesuits at http://apollospacesuits.com.
