(MONEY Magazine) – BY FRED MURRIN, 55, GREENVILLE, PA. AS TOLD TO DAPHNE MOSHER

"The first replica I built was a German Fokker Dr. 1 triplane. No plans existed, so I had to do a tremendous amount of research. I found an original World War I-era engine, which I extensively restored. I also reverse engineered the propeller, which I carved from birch and walnut. The next plane I built was a British Sopwith F1 'Camel.' I found all the original instruments, even the machine guns. I started to build the plane in my shop, but it outgrew the space, so I rented a hangar to finish the work. That project lasted about 12,500 hours, and I did everything myself--from working during some of my lunch hours to tracking down parts across North America.

I worked an average of 14 hours a week, so it took me about 18 years to finish the plane. Building both planes cost less than $39,000, and I did that on a five-figure engineer's salary. I saved money for the planes by thinking of it as an extra monthly car payment. Today both planes are worth almost 10 times their cost, but their value isn't really that important. My passion is W.W. I aviation, and flying these old planes is what drives me."