April 22, 2019. Issue #4,808
Trip Write-Up: South Africa Air Safari 2019 ...RudiGreyling
RVators,
This is just a short Collage of pictures of our air
safari through South Africa.
During the March School holidays us family took our
RV Zulu 10 on a 12 day air safari through RSA.
Plan was to fly from The Coves near Johannesburg and
fly the Vaal river from Parys to Kimberley then the
Orange river all the way to Augrabies Waterfalls.
This may sound strange to foreigners, to fly a
river, but in a water scarce country to see this
river cut through and give life to this arrid piece
of our country is beautiful.
Then head south to the desolate Verneuk Pan, a salt
pan, cut east to De Aar then fly the Vanderkloof Dam
into Gariep Dam.
Then Cut to the coast and fly the wild coast, stay
at Wavecrest. Onto Margate for a couple of days.
Then back home via the Majestic Drakensberg
Mountains right next to the escarpment at Lesotho.
New guy checking in ...Ryan Dodde II
Greetings. I guess I would qualify myself as “a
long time listener, first time caller” to the
Vansairforce forum. My foray into experimental
aircraft began some 50 years ago. when I was about
four or five, my family was on our way to church
when we drove past someone’s garage with a half
built Piper Cub poking out. That image stuck in my
head and was the seed that started this adventure.
It has also been the carrot that I’ve dangled in
front of myself while I was obtaining my medical
degree, starting my practice, putting my daughter
through school and building our house. I have
finally come to the point where I can pursue my
ambition of building an airplane. I purchased a RV8
QB kit and I am knee deep in the construction. I
have completed the empennage and ready to move on to
the wings. Both my father and grandfather were tool
and die makers, however, metalworking does not
appear to be an inherited skill. I find that I have
become somewhat frustrated in the effort that it has
taken to get my build to the quality that I expect
in my other pursuits. If there are any builders in
the Holland, Michigan area, I would appreciate it if
you would send me a shout. I have been very
impressed with the support of the Van’s community,
which is one of the reasons I chose this airframe.
N8402 flies after 4 1/2 year build ...JHartline
On March 29th slow-build project
S/N 140184 was officially pronounced an airplane by
Vern Darley. Great guy and tons of RV-specific
knowledge. I was very confident in my work after his
inspection.
...
RV Law of.... ...Brian Morrow entry
Van's Time Axiom:
The need for any Van's part will inevitably be
discovered at precisely 5:05PM Pacific Time on a
Friday.
Corollary: If the part is urgently needed and causes
your plane to be grounded, the Friday in question
will precede a Monday Holiday.
Ground Shot ...Steve Hamer
5 years!
I hit the flying for 5 years milestone. I now
have 653 hours. Basically, one third of the way
toward TBO, so check back in 10 years.
So now I have been officially flying more years than
building. I think I like flying more. Still have
some tinkering to do on it, but I don't think I
would have changed much if I had it to do over
again.
__________________
Bruce Hill
RV-9A
Ground Shot ...bkervaski
Status Report ...jcarne
On to the VS!
After mounting the HS on the fuselage last time I
realized I still hadn't drilled the elevator horn
lower hole for the push tube. So I took it off,
drilled the holes and remounted with the elevators.
I also decided to finish the trim tab hinge pin and
safety wire it (not sure why Van's doesn't give you
the right length hinge pin until the fuselage?).
Ground Shot! ...RudiGreyling
Verneuk pan South Africa
RV Series - RV/IAC Aerobatic Competition Standings ...Ron Schreck
A small turnout for the Carolina Boogie this
weekend. Weather and Easter may have played a part.
But those who came had a blast! Chris Crawford
brought his RV-8A out for his very first contest and
posted a very respectable 71.93% score. We had a
great practice day before the contest and I coached
Chris from the ground. He showed improvement on
every flight and went home with a trophy and a great
deal of new-found confidence.
The Very First One ...Chris
It is maybe not award winning, but I am proud to
share my very first Air-To-Air picture
RV-4 Emergency landing on LA Freeway
Small plane makes safe emergency landing on 215
Freeway . No injuries or collisions with vehicles.
Yes, it's a miracle. Images at link.
Ground Shot ...Rob Ray
April 19, 2019. Issue #4,807
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled Easter
weekend.
Best Most Awesome Ground Pic Entry ...Plummitt
Ditto ...Mark Dickens
Taken on a beautiful day right before I headed to
Sun N Fun this year:
Ditto Ditto ...Mark Ferdara
Sun 'n Fun 2019 My RV9A
Status Report ...jcarne
Well I haven't been sittin here doing nothing
since my last post.
Since I'm waiting for it to warm up before cutting
the canopy I decided to mount the tail. Yesterday I
finished mounting the horizontal stabilizer, it
takes quite a bit of time to get the bolt holes just
right but man they came out perfect, couldn't be
happier with them.
After careful marking I used 12" drill bits starting
with a #40 to get the initial hole. You can see I
placed an engineering square next to the bit to make
sure it was square with the fuse. This method works
well. The final hole was drilled with a 3/16" reamer
as it was just long enough to give drill head
clearance.
...
Things I wish I'd saved from the build ...jpowell13
I've got my right fuel tank from my 6A off for
what must be the 5th time to fix leaks and run more
wires and AOA tubing. I kept wishing I had saved the
fuel tank cradle until today I finally built another
one.
If you're building, be sure to put your fuel tank
cradle together with screws so you can break it down
and store it easily. You will almost certainly use
it again. If you don't need to fix a leaky tank, you
can turn it upside down and use it for a table to
serve your favorite beverage.
Be sure to save every tool and scrap of wire you
used in wiring your plane as well. There seem to be
no end to panel and cockpit upgrades that require a
little wiring.
And it's amazing how often all those little bits and
pieces of scrap aluminum come in handy. And, for
goodness sake, hold onto your plans and construction
manual. In fact, just save everything, if you don't
need it, your buddy will. John
(Spotlight reply -
Miles)
I have a bin with all my aluminum, scraps from the
project. I keep everything bigger than a 3/8” circle
(that's the smallest piece you can put a #40 hole in
with adequate edge distance
)
Pilot as a Day Job ...David Z
I was thinking the other day, how many builders
and RV pilots also fly professionally? Also, in what
type of operation and aircraft?
Did the systems or layout on the plane you fly at
work affect the layout or systems of your RV?
I'll start, I'm a Dash 8-100 Captain working for a
small airline in Northern Ontario Canada flying to
remote gravel airports. As for shamelessly stealing
from work planes, I have flown various models of
King Airs and the 1900 previously. I'm considering
stealing ideas from the Beechcraft electrical system
logic for redundancy. My build is pretty early on,
lots of time to change my mind.
P.S. Obviously the fighter pilot guys win the "cool"
contest with F-15s, F-16s and such. <g>
Phase 1 Take Off Vid ...AviatorJ
It's not the first flight, but it's still a Phase
I take off! A friend of mine recorded it and I
forgot about it.
April 18, 2019. Issue #4,806
Spent Wednesday bouncing around between layers in TX/OK/KS on a
side job before the forecast TSRA arrive (pic below). Very
little ground seen. Pushing this edition out before the
storms arrive. Forecast is for GR - hope the frozen
baseballs stay away. We don't like those very much...
There was an RV on the ramp outside at KDTO when we taxied back
in. I hope that person moved his plane inside!
enlarge
Houston area monthly lunch (April 2019)
The third weekend is upon us again, so let's plan
on hitting up Carl's for some BBQ at Weiser this
Saturday (4-20) at 11:30. I may be a little late
(flying Young Eagles at IWS in the morning), but
I'll be there.
Interesting Ground Pic ...Danny King
RV8-83772, N1986 ...Roarks
Howdy!
Well today is the start. After dithering on a
decision, having the plans preview book for 6 years
I called today and ordered the tail feathers.
It's been a long time coming. I had just finished my
Aerospace engineering degree, I finally got my
private, then got distracted with helicopters for a
while. Thought I would consider an RV... Took the
eaa sheetmetal class... It was good but I thought
there should be more so I got my A&P certificate.
Now I teach sheetmetal at the part 147 mechanic
school!
Should be an interesting ride. Which I could fast
forward to see the end of this thread!
Another RV-14A takes to the air ...Turner Billingsley
Today was the big day. Vic
Syracuse came down and did the inspection, issued
the S.A.C. and flew first flight. We identified a
few issues, but that just means more time tinkering.
Overall a great day, having the "Additional Pilot"
on the first flight was immensely valuable.
See blog for obligatory video and paperwork photo!
Garmin G3X (GDU 370/375) Pending Software Release ...g3xpert
We wanted to give G3X owners a
heads up that there is a subset of GDU 370/375
displays which are affected by the GPS week rollover
event which occurred on April 6.
Any affected G3X system is still fine to use and the
GPS data including navigation and displayed time is
not affected, but in the few places where the date
is exposed, like in the flight data log, the time
will be correct, but the date will be incorrect.
If you want to see if your system is affected,
select Menu, Menu, System Setup, Date & Time and you
can see the system date and time.
We have implemented a software fix and are testing
this fix before doing a maintenance release soon.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause
for those affected.
There are no known issues with G3X Touch systems.
Thanks,
Steve
Panel with newly installed FlyEFII System 32 display ...mill2978
I've been flying with the System32
since day 1 but had a temporary panel plate with
check engine lights and the fuel trim knob.
I received the controller from Robert at FlyEFII
today and got it installed. The controller has a
nice sturdy feel to it and tons of capability, I
can't wait to take it for a test flight
My introduction ...knievel
7 years ago I was early in my PPL training, pre
solo. I had grown accustomed to the stodgy
appearance and 2,000' take off roll of my club's
overloaded Cessna 150. (Instructor and I put it over
gross)
My instructor and I were taxiing for takeoff. KANE
Blaine, MN. A plane from the other side of the field
got takeoff clearance first so I held short. Oh my
God it was beautiful. Low slung, tail dragging thing
looked like it was going 200 in the taxiway. "What
is *that?" I asked. My instructor replied "oh,
that's one of those RV's. You build them at home.
Watch it take off". It rolled forward what looked
like 100' and then left almost vertically. My jaw
hung slack, I knew I had to have one.
I've lurked here every since, dreaming but knowing
it was outside of my space and finances. Then my
boys got into that youth sports age and I had no
time to fly at all. I dreamed of an 8, but knew the
9a would better suit my intended mission if touring
with my wife. (Who made it to almost 300' agl in the
c150 on her only flight before demanding to land).
The 8 just seemed selfish.
As my boys time with sports of rapidly coming to an
end I've been more intent on making this happen. I
showed my wife paint schemes, seating arrangements,
asked her opinion on pretty much anything that would
affect her experience should I every get her back in
a small aircraft. (Hey opinion is that the 747 is
nice, but anything smaller flies "bumpy", including
a 737). Finally she hit me with it. "Honestly, I'm
not really interested in flying around in your
little airplane". There it was.
I pick up my 8 tail kit later this month. I'm
shopping for tools. You're all a bunch of crack
dealers. <g>
If you know who has that 6 or 7 with a high end
paint job, blue and silver with a fading checkered
flag down the length of it, it's his fault. Thank
him for me.
65 Knot Tailwind Across Canada ...Greenley
Flying MI to Vermont over Canada and picked up a
nice tailwind. Fastest I have seen in my newly
finished RV10.
April 17, 2019. Issue #4,805
Starting the Flare RWY 35 52F...Randy
Richmond RV-8
...and things are greening up down here.
2,048 X 1,562 pixel enlargement
Alternate:
Pic scaled to your device
A Quick Update ...Colin P. RV-6A
Final assembly is pretty much done (less wheel
pants/leg fairings). Next up, I need to weigh the
aircraft. I have received my registration and am
working with Mel to arrange my AW inspection in the
coming weeks.
Sun N Fun 2019 - Full Trip Writeup ...bullojm1 RV-7
It's the kickoff to the 2019 big fly ins - SUN N
FUN! On my way home from last years SNF, I decided I
was not going to make the long EARLY run from
Maryland the Florida in the same day if weather
permitted. It's a super early wakeup (4am) and a
very long day of flying. So this year, on my 4th
consecutive SNF, I decided to work half of a day,
fly 4 hours, then make the quick hop to Lakeland the
next day.
Fast forward a year and holy cow...the weather gods
Mostly agreed with my perfect plan...except for the
winds. When I was at work, winds were blowing a gale
- 70 degree crosswind, 23G38 at my homebase. Screw
it, I was going to head out to the airport and see
what it really was. 50 degree crosswind,
20G27....LETS GO TO SNF!!!!
continue
F-741B Tunnel cover size
Q: I've seen mentioned a few times that people
have had to squeeze the z-brackets inboard in order
to line up with the dimensions of the top plate.
Seems like a fair amount of force needed to get them
together. Is there a reason this is the case
and that's why Van's doesn't supply a wider piece?
I'm thinking of making a new one and take any stress
out of this assembly.
A: (Draker) I just finished
this part and don't recall squeezing that much
to get it to initially fit. After everything was
drilled and riveted, it fit well.
I did end up with quite a bit of "overhang" on the
aft side. If I drilled it according to the plans the
aft-most holes would have been too close to the aft
ends of the z brackets. Instead I clecoed everything
together, made sure I was happy with the fit, then
drilled in a way that satisfied edge distance
requirements.
I also ended up filing away a lot of that overhang
in order to fit against the flap actuator brackets:
Mothership FF Report
Dennis Fox’s RV-8A | Three Hills, Albersta,
Canada
RV-8A #80531
Dennis writes in:
First flight of CGRVU was May 15, 2017 after 7 years
of construction. All went well with no snags and
performance of the airframe and engine combination
was gratifying and very grin-worthy. Engine is
IO-360 A1A from a Mooney and overhauled by Dave From
Aviation in Red Deer. Prop is Whirlwind 200RV and
pulls RVU along at advertised book speeds. Skyview
Touch occupies most of the panel space and controls
the Dynon 2 axis autopilot. Paint is from
UpperValley Aviation in Chiliwack BC. Thanks to
Chris Droege from Idaho for an excellent training
program that gave me the confidence to do 1st
flight. Thanks to Van’s for a great product that
provides a very high “smile per mile” ratio.
April 16, 2019. Issue #4,804
Non-RV Life Lesson - Don't Put the New Bottle of Tide on the
Dryer!
I did, and in the middle of evening TV time we heard
a thud, followed by a pop. It vibrated off
while drying stuff and landed ever so perfectly on
its side...
...which was the perfect angle to blow off the
top at a tad under the speed of light, which
proceeded to shoot across our bedroom
floor...trailing soap of course...stopping only when
it got to the drapes....
....it took 30 minutes to clean up. Used a
squeegee from the shower and a large flexible
cutting board, pouring a little at a time into a
plastic bowl.
Susie, "How are we going to clean
this up?"
Me, "Let me take some pictures first."
Panel Porn ...jdmrv7a
My RV14-A interior and Garmin G3X panel. I am
adding a G5 above the ignition switch, the wiring
harness is ready for the G5. Wool carpet and all
fire certified leather seat and side panels. The
inside firewall has dense sound and heat absorbing
mat painted the same color as the interior. The
optional Van's RV14 canopy with 97% UV block will
help keep the cockpit cool in summer.
2 more pics
Pics from the Fly-in at Ramona Sunday...bruceh 9A
I managed to
snap a few photos from Sunday's Fly In.
Looks like we had a bit of competition with the
Mojave Experimental Fly-In, but still had about 16
RV's arrive. Got to meet with several other builders
who are in progress and had some delicious BBQ
lunch.
Status Report ...Josh T
RV-10
Wings are just about done. Need to attach the
fuel tanks and rivet the flaps together. Got the
Fuse kit a littler earlier this time. With the wing
kit I was without a project for a month and that
just plain sucked. Lesson learned!
This box was quite the monster. The put the 1 long
piece of angle in the box kind of sprung so it
pushed against the side, and it ended up popping
open the box side. Its bent a bit when you look at
it down its length (8+ feet), but hoping thats not a
big deal. Also wierd that there's only 1 big
longeron, would think there would be two. We'll see
what inventory says!
Some thoughts on mid-range RPM vibration… Piper J3
RV-12
I have had a flakey left EGT for a while and
recently replaced the thermocouple sensor (Dynon EGT,
Hose Clamp, 0.75-1.25”, Rotax SKU: #100405-001). I
also did a fresh carb sync with a digital CARBMATE
and got very good sync at both idle and
just-off-idle. Unit works a charm.
My engine now runs smooth at idle and very smooth at
5500 RPM cruise. This is confirmed with the EGT’s.
At idle and at 5500 RPM there is less than 10F
difference in the EGT’s so both left and right
cylinder banks are producing equal power.
The mid-range (3000-4000 RPM) has a vibration, and I
believe uneven power L-R, is the cause. I have
nearly a 100F difference between the EGT’s in
mid-range RPM.
So, my thoughts:
• Idle and just-off-idle are easy to set using
CARBMATE. The sync looks very repeatable and
precise.
• 5500 cruise RPM is in good sync because both carbs
are nearly wide-open throat and running on high
speed main jet.
• Mid-range sync is a crapshoot. It’s easy to set
cable-pulls to match at low end and high end is
pretty much automatic. Mid-range probably has
several factors that contribute to miss-match most
of which are not controllable. Just musing here…
perhaps airflow in the cowling can cause different
ambient pressures for vacuum diaphragms that control
carb throat opening. The good news is there isn’t
much use for the mid-range, just don’t operate
there. When on downwind leg, I start a steady
throttle reduction to idle. The 912 engine has
water-cooled cylinder heads so shock cooling is not
a concern. Usually idle, or slightly off-idle, will
bring me to the runway threshold, so mid-range is
easily avoided.
Four New
First Flights ...on mothership
Leading Edge Check ...new guy w/a question.
Hello all,
This is my first post, been reading this site for
months though.
I’ve recently started an RV-14A empennage kit. I
wanted to check with you regarding the bend on my
rudder leading edge.
New Hangar for the RV-12iS build
...David Rohrlick
I have officially moved from my garage to a nice
T-hangar. Got it mostly set up. Very Exciting! Here
is my first official Vlog from the hangar.
Looking for those little white rubber caps
...to slide over my switches. Anyone got a
source? Stein maybe?
April 15, 2019. Issue #4,803
Hello. Hope you had a nice weekend. Some housekeeping duties
up front here today.
The tone and civility level in the forums hasn't been as
light and fluffy as I require here of late, so I need to
re-calibrate the knob a little. VAF is, by design and
business model,
a tree of CIVILITY and POLITENESS in a forest of online hate, in-your-face insults and
all around general douchebaggery. Doing that here will get you kicked out.
By me. Fast. The posting rules are
here if
you've never read them.
Wanna get super depressed super quick?
Try to make it through this whole article on the lives of FB moderators, then ponder on how
wonderful an escape this place, and hobby, really is in today's
world. Keep it light, keep it nice. VAF is about
lifting up and motivating a dream, not tearing stuff down.
Don't register if your only intent, stepping into my virtual living room
the first time, is to pull the pin
on a turd grenade. Plenty of places online for that, and I
get that some people are drawn to that stuff and think it's
acceptable. I'm not, and don't. Respect the house
rules, please. Pretty please.
Bad cop routine aside (I don't enjoy it, but I won't back down), hoping you got to fly this weekend.
On to the RV news over the weekend - there's a lot!
RV-8 Welcome Back To The Surface
I took some pictures of RVs landing and taking off last
week, and while going through the take during thunderstorms
over the weekend, noticed one right at the moment of
touchdown. Of note is the right main with some weight
on it, and the left main still mostly circular with just a
hint of burnt rubber vapor trailing behind it.
Beginning to spool up. Isn't that cool?
enlarge
Exhaust leaks at the slip joint?! ...Jvon811
RV-4, O-320-E3D with mid 90's design Sky Dynamics
Crossover exhaust...
The exhaust system has short stub pipes that bolt to the
cylinder that's maybe 5-6" long and then slips into the next
piece which starts the curve and crossover. I've started to
get some blowback or leakage on the slip joint on the #2
Cylinder (Front Left). I can see discoloration on the #2
intake tube and plug wires along with the obvious staining
on the pipe itself.
All bolts are tight holding the slip joints in compression
but there is still a bit of wiggle where I can sometimes,
but not always, rock the joint back and forth (maybe 2-3
degrees of movement) which I'm suspecting is the leak.
Anyone dealt with this before? Thanks in advance. I'll try
and grab some pictures tomorrow if it will help.
Newest maybe youngest RV grin in town ...Mike Robinson
3 yrs 5 months. She really wanted to go.
How could you say no to that. Did one pattern about 10
minute flight. Baby steps. The video I took is priceless.
Didn’t see till I viewed it later she was eating gummy bears
grandma had packed away for her
Mods on Tailwheel - Fork - Springs ...DeeCee 57
Aim of these modifications were weight loss,
practicability, looks and aerodynamics…
Weight: total weight change - 334g. Ain’t a lot, but could
play favorably for the CG of some -4s.
Practicability: the original Van’s fork with its almost 90°
angle to forward travel is an invitation to get stuck
against any kind of curb with possible dire consequences.
Rejected was the nice but massive Doug Bell product on the
grounds of its weight, being too wide and requiring the use
of countless washers, and elevating the tail of the
aircraft. Keeping the tail low was a requirement for
performance reason (use of very short grass runways) and
looks. Welding a triangular section in front of the fork
will hopefully prevent or alleviate having the tail stuck on
some obstacle, weight increase 62g.
Milestone: First Mistake ...Tim Foster RV-10
I was admiring my new found countersinking skills
when I realized I had just done drilled 24 of them
on the wrong side of the battery bell-crank mount.
Ugh. At least it’s a smaller part and it looks like
I can reorder online at Vans. Hope the shipping
isn’t too much. Lesson learned - read and reread
directions at least 7 times. I’m guessing this won’t
be the last time - part of the learning process.
Motivational Picture ...ben barron RV-12
RV12 at 8500 feet on the way to Spokane
When your friends say "I will be there in a minute" ...AX-O
I have been building a 360 motor and ran into an issue.
it required capabilities beyond the ones a possess. So a
call a few friends and basically got the "we will be there
in a minute" answer.
Never mind the fact they live in a different state. Dang RVs
are just pure magic. Few hours later they were on the way
back home.
My Panel Graphics Adventure...Hartstoc
When Searching VAF for panel labeling ideas I was
intrigued by a suggestion to look into dry-transfer
graphics. After comparing several options online, I settled
on one company, https://imagetransfers.com , that seemed
oriented toward professionalism and quality. It turned out
to be a good choice, mainly thanks to Luann, a partner in
the company, who was incredibly patient and generous with
answers to my neophyte questions along the way. I’m quite
happy with the final results but found myself struggling
with a very steep learning curve, and the whole process took
a couple of weeks of full time effort and concentration.
Before describing the experience, here are a few shots of
the final results, starting with the first full-dress
rehearsal of the whole panel:
RV-Lancair Brotherhood Day ...Redbud40 entry
Formation flight with good buddy
Borescope pics ...TShort
I shot some pics with the vividia borescope (new toy from
OSH last year) during the condition inspection.
This is new technology for me; anyone have any thoughts on
what I am looking at / how things look? These are all
exhaust valve pics:
No issues with the engine, running great. Oil analysis
and filter have been fine.
Beautiful flight in my 8 over CA wine country ...colojo
Took my 8 up this morning and was treated to
beautiful views of the Napa and Sonoma valleys. Only
got one photo, though, because my phone died. This
is the Sonoma Valley:
Parked w/B-17 Pics ...Darin Watson
April 12, 2019. Issue #4,802
We're getting some Wx this weekend in N. Texas, so I hope the Wx forecast
better in your neck of the woods. Wishing you and yours a
happy, safe and RV-filled weekend.
Milestone: The Big Cut ....wirejock
Yea! The Big Cut is done. Holy cow what a
stressful step.
[ed. I mean come on! How can this NOT
be the top story <g>. v/r,dr]
Vern in Ozark, AL Starts his RV
Greetings all,
Well after lurking here for an eternity I have finally started a 7. I
purchased an old kit from a friend to start with
because it came with assorted tools and it was
partly assembled...more on that later.
It took what seems like months to carve out a space
in my garage {the family storage unit} to have a
place to work. It still needs some upgrades but it
has the basics for now. Im sure Ill be waiting on
something someday and ill take care of the little
things.
Standard disclaimer, this log represents how I do things, not how YOU
should do things. YOU have to decide that for
yourself. My opinion is worth exactly what you pay
for it. Fire away if you have suggestions, Im always
open to constructive criticism.
Enjoying the Sunshine ...juany RV-7 ground pic from Argentina
Mr. Chops Starts an RV-14 Build
[ed. The Flight Chops
guy if you didn't get the hint ;^). And
welcome aboard, Sir! v/r,dr]
"I have lurked around these forums for many years...
Been carrying a beat up old pic of an RV-7 since I
got my first inkjet printer in ~2001, and am super
excited to be finally closing in on owning a Van's
Aircraft!
I look forward to making new friends here, and
picking your brains as my aircraft project gets
under way in a month or so.
Cheers,
Steve"
SnF Pics ...bhester
Here is the link to them, I didn't take as many
this year as I normally do.
Additional Pilot Program for Phase 1 testing- thoughts?...KatieB
Hey everyone! I'm still alive, mostly off the
grid.
I've been working on my PhD in Aviation (Aviation
Safety) at Parks College (St. Louis University). One
of my topics of interest for research is EAB Phase 1
flight testing safety, in particular, the Additional
Pilot Program. I saw a thread from 2017 and 2018 on
the subject, but thought I'd start a new one to
gather your current thoughts on it.
How many of you have used it? Is it worthwhile? Are
you aware of any accidents or incidents that have
occurred with a Qualified Pilot on board (RV or
other types)? What are your ideas on how to make it
more effective?
Thanks!!
Katie
Oh snap!
Rest In Peace, my 0.311" reamer!
That got my heart going when this thing loudly
snapped in half. This unfortunate tool met its end
while reaming the -7A gear mount holes for the main
gear legs. Thanks to great luck, it did not damage
the workpiece while breaking. I've learned here that
when a tool breaks it's usually not a bad tool but
bad technique. Anyone have any tips for properly and
safely using these very large reamers? I would like
to not repeat this one.
Mothership ...this weekend
Anyone Got SnF'19 Pics Online Yet?
...let us know the URL here if you think
of it.
April 11, 2019. Issue #4,801
Why'd the Blue Knob Stop Working?...seen at Monk's.
Moving the blue knob did nothing. Plane
brought to Richmond Aircraft Service (card)
the other day at my home field (52F).
Governor? Checks out. Linkages?
Checks out. Compressed air move prop?
Yes.
Pull the prop.
Crankshaft plug? Oh....yeah, that would
explain things. It came unseated.
enlarge
Monk has a tool that he either made
or helped make (can't remember - it was decades ago)
just for this purpose. Helps apply equal force
over the entire plug.
enlarge
Aircraft had hundreds of trouble
free hours on it. It just chose this
particular moment after takeoff to unseat.
Pilot pulled the prop knob back after takeoff as
usual and observed no change in RPM. Landed
and the investigation began...
enlarge
New plug currently being installed and things
being buttoned back up. Good find, Monk Man!
Food for thought if you're troubleshooting
someday...
SnF PIREP ...John Young RV-12
I have been to Sun 'N Fun about 15 times. Usually
1 or 2 days and I always stayed in motels.
This year I flew in on Tuesday, and yes I did get to
enjoy Lake Parker because of a Bonanza with gear
problems, and parked my RV-12 in the Homebuilt
Camping. I tied down the aircraft, pitched my tent,
put my stuff in the tent, and then went off to buy
my wristband, etc. and headed to the main part of
the show. It was about 5:30 p.m. so I decided to
have dinner and a beer and the went back to the
Homebuilt Camping area. I was in for a surprise.
Since I had never camped, I thought you parked your
airplane, pitched your tent, and you were on your
own.
When I arrived back at Homebuilt Camping, I saw the
big tent and all the people in it. I went over and
went in and learned that they have food. I had
already eaten but I sat down, introduced myself to
some people, and began a wonderful evening of
talking about airplanes, etc. About 11:00 p.m. I
finally went to my tent and to sleep.
The rest of the week I had breakfast and dinner at
the Homebuilt Camping. Almost every night I stayed
up until 11:00 p.m. visiting, etc.
On Sunday morning I took my tent down, got the
airplane ready, and flew home.
This year was my best experience at Sun 'N Fun. The
main reason was because of the great experience at
Homebuilt Camping. Heidi, the chairman, and all of
her volunteers did a wonderful job. Everyone who was
there owes them a huge thank you. The other people
who were camping there were great, fun to talk to,
and I learned many things.
The other reason it was the best experience is
because I had 4 full days at the show. I have always
been rushed before but this time I took 1 day just
for forums. I did and saw everything I wanted to
this year which is also a first for me. Always
before I left saying I wish I would have had time to
do ??????.
Homebuilt Camping was a good distance from the main
show area. Most of the time I rode a tram in the
morning, and stayed until dinner time, and then rode
a tram back. I was fortunate I didn't have to wait
long.
But this was my best Sun 'N Fun and I will
definitely be back next year and will be camping
again.
RV-10 Status Report ...Brantel
Now riveting the tail cone together and I have
ordered my slow build wing kit on 4/3/2019. Should
be here before the end of June.
Introduction - RV curious, and looking for local experts in
Northern Arizona
Greetings all
I have just recently joined this forum in an attempt
to find out more about the RV world.
I think I am most drawn to the RV 8/8A. (Mainly
because of tandem seating and aerobatic capability).
I currently drive an "18 wheeler with wings" for a
living (B747-8), and it's been way too long since I
have enjoyed the passion for aviation that brought
me to this career. It's time to rectify that!
To be completely up front - I am not an aspiring
builder. I would enjoy learning to tinker with, and
work on the aircraft, but I am just not cut out for
the commitment that building requires.
I looked at RV's at Oshkosh last year and have had
the pleasure of chatting briefly with Ron Schreck by
phone. Obviously I have heard nothing but good
things about RV's!
As I try to learn as much as possible about the
world of Amateur/home built aircraft, it would be
wonderful to try to connect with some owners who are
local to me that would be willing to share their
experience and insights.
I am in Prescott Az (KPRC), and I would be extremely
grateful to hear from anyone in the area who would
be open to assisting a curious newbie.
While it may be obvious, there is one issue that I
can't stop nagging at me. How do I get past the
amateur built vs certified peace of mind/quality
concern?
Reading these forums, I know there are several folk
who can assist with a good pre-buy inspection, but I
am also aware of how many variations to design,
construction and materials etc are out there.
While I know that no-one goes out to build a
sub-standard aircraft, its the unknown and
unforeseen consequences of a builder decision that I
am concerned about coming back to bite me.
Anyone else work through this?
Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I
look forward to learning more, and who knows -
possibly becoming the next vociferous supporter of
the RV.
Larry Griffin's RV-7A POH
...added to the POH page.
RV-3B Status Report ...David Paule
F-710/F-779/F-786C ...Aero_Octaveus RV-7A
Hi
All, I am currently fitting up my aft fuse and
experiencing the insanity of how tight and difficult
everything is. I just about to start drilling and I
have a question with how the lowest J-stiffener
F-786C mats to the assembly.
If I have the nesting of the parts correct (F-710
bulkhead sits above F-779 bottom tail skin, which
sits on top of F-778 bottom aft skin and the F-773
side skins). There is then a 0.040" gap where the
lowest J-stiffener transitions from the F-773 side
skin, to the F-779 bottom tail skin.
My question is do I just drill and rivet the
J-stiffener leaving a small ripple at that location?
Or did anyone put a joggle in the j-stiffner?
April 10, 2019. Issue #4,800
RV in the Morning Sunshine ...vid
Happened to be on the ramp with the iPhone when
an -8 launched for a short flight at my home field.
If you have the monitor space and speakers, turn it
up to 11 and enjoy. I never get tired of that
sound, and the 000000kt conditions Tuesday morning
here made it that much better. Pretty much the
whole gang showed and RVated, if for just a bit,
then it was back to the business of life. But
we sure felt better....
Slick Magneto Issue
I am having an issue with my Slick magneto on the
right side of the engine. I start my plane with the
left mag which has the impulse coupler on it. After
I start the plane and have both magnetos turned on -
if I turn off the left mag the engine dies which
tells me the right magneto isn't sparking. I thought
I had an issue with the wiring but today I
disconnected the p-lead and ground wires off the
right magneto to make it always hot and started the
plane with the left mag. When I turned off the left
magneto the engine died. When this issue originally
started I pulled the right mag off and checked the
spark off plug number 1 with a paperclip and it
would show spark. I put the timing pin in the left
rotation hole on the right mag and after setting the
flywheel to BTDC reinstalled the mag timing it with
the buzz/light box. Would an issue with the cap and
wires cause it to not work? Is this a timing issue?
I pretty much eliminated the wiring to the switch to
be the issue. The plane starts right up on the left
magneto. The plane has been sitting for months while
I try to get this corrected/sorted (my current job
situation doesn't allow much time to make it out to
the airport).
__________________
Mike
RV-9A
Finally coming together! ...Zazoos
Just wanted to share my excitement. My RV 6
project received it registration in the mail today.
N86TF is official!
Going to try and work 86 into the tail paint scheme
related to the meaning that 86 represents. (I'm out
of here, 86'ing this place, etc).
Rented hangar space last week and moved the wings to
the airport this weekend. Just finished installing
the panel. (I will post a write up and pictures on
labeling the panel using a Cricut soon)
Pretty good Monday so far!
Brakes weak
I have an RV-9A with Cleveland brakes. Both
linings and rotors were new 25 hours ago when I
purchased the aircraft.
The pedals are firm (no air in lines) but the brakes
are ineffective. Hardly can hold aircraft at full
power, and don’t seem capable of locking the wheel
on landing (this may be a good thing).
I thought they would ‘break-in’ , but not there yet.
Any suggestions? Is this common on RVS? Are the
linings maybe glazed?
Thanks
Tom
SnF Pics ...turbo
Long time lurker. New member. ...63scrounger
"Greetings everyone! I have been a long time
lurker on this forum. My father has been a long time
builder of an RV-6A slider. He has grown too old to
finish the project and has passed it on to me to
finish. ........ The project is very well along. The
sheet metal has to be 95% done. All that I see
remaining is the fuse bottom skins and the turtle
deck. Both wings, fuselage and all control surfaces
appear to be 100%. I have the wings in a cradle in
my garage. The fuse is sitting right side up on a
piece of soft 1" polystyrene foam on top of a 6'
folding plastic table. I have had this thing for a
few years now. I have overcome some challenges to my
health and it's time now to get building on this
thing! I need to find a starting point. I was going
to go through the plans and instructions and compare
that to my dad's builders log as a sort of
inspection process. Could someone help me out by
helping me understand if I need to make a build
table and get it flipped back over? Or is it past
that stage? Also the bulk heads for the turtle deck
area are flopping around and I have no clue as to
how those get stabilized and match drilled to the
turtle deck skin. That is enough embarrassing dumb
questions for one day..
__________________
I'm just grateful to be here. "
April 9, 2019. Issue #4,799
Charity Cap Sighting ...Plummit
Kansas. No not the state, the rock band.
fmi:
About the caps
Striving for A Consistent Force Required for Flaps
I have manual flaps on my RV-6, and I prefer it
that way. When landing, if the winds aren’t gusting,
I have a technique of raising the flaps right as the
mains touch. This reduces my ground roll
considerably in certain conditions, making a turn
off at my exit much more likely when landing on 35.
Recently I noticed some spots for custom V speeds in
my G3X software, in addition to the normal ones
you’d expect. In an effort to get the force required
to pull flaps each time the same, I entered two
speeds: FLP1 and FLP2.
enlarge
I’ve found the force required to pull full flaps
at higher speeds, even through you’re well in the
white stripe to be a LOT. Slowing down ten knots
makes it much easier. Slowing down even more makes
it hardly any work at all. I would guess that some
people with electric flaps aren’t aware of just how
much force is required at 87kts verses 74kts - how
hard some parts might be straining.
I’m finding it
fun to play around with. I pull FLP1 and FLP2 at the
indexed values (pic below), then tweek the value a
little on the ground. 1 knot here. 1 knot there.
enlarge
I’m getting it dialed in a little better and have
been enjoying easier, much more consistent flap
pulls.
Flying to Cuba: Did I Mention the Rum? ...KleensRV6
On the Mothership
Status Update ...kentlik RV-7A
I took some time to do a few little tasks and
then deal with more fuel line math... Added one more
of these electrical firewall access'.
...
April 8, 2019. Issue #4,798
My Baylor Lady Bears won the NCAA title. Please excuse
this non-RV splash image <grin>.
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Descending Curve
Ground track image from a short .2 a few days back
showing the RV coming up initial (top to bottom straight
line at left). The dance starts around midfield on downwind
(bottom right corner), followed by an always-turning,
continuously-slowing, staying inside FM1171, flaps in there
somewhere, prop going in, backing off the power to the
backfire rat-a-tat-tat...then some back in, scan
the runway for FOD and/or dump trucks, back to the AOA and
speeds, a little trim bump, wiggle the feet and ass to get
the blood going, pump the brakes on final to see if a foot
goes to the floor, game face ON, over the literal fence on
speed and in the energy state you strive for every time but
don't always get. Slightly tail low wheel landing on the
spot you wanted, at the vertical rate you were shooting for.
3D French curve. Mental gyros recalibrated for a day or so. A little
smile acknowledging just how good $8 of avgas
makes me feel.
enlarge
Writing the train wreck of a paragraph above made me
smile, too - I wrote it anyway. It's misty/foggy/OVC outside and nobody is
flying. While typing I got to relive the moment.
RVs equal sign
happy face.
Status: Jcarne...with bonus drill through fingernail pic!
Well after bending the canopy frame to satisfaction I figured I mind as
well go back and finish up the firewall. I installed the hinges on the lower
half for the cowl. All that is left to do at this point with the firewall
modification is to tape the seams with aluminum tape and throw in some of
the magic goop (3M Fire Barrier Sealant 2000+) around the perimeter where
the hinges are.
Over all I am SUPER pleased with how this came out. There are no noticeable
wrinkles, only slight distortion of light (worse in the picture than in real
life even). If you want to go with fire protection that looks sweet as well
I think this is the way to go.
Canopy Frame Update:
Here are some pics of my canopy frame after bending. If
anyone sees any problems or areas that need adjusted please
please post or PM me. The only thing I haven't done yet is
bring things in about 1/2" to account for canopy spread.
ADSB GPS for IFR flight
Maybe this has been discussed here before, but I don't
recall reading anything about it, but I'm wondering if the
new WAAS GPS units being sold by Dynon and UAvionics and
such for ADSB can be used for legal IFR navigation?
I'm guessing that the answer is no, because they are not a
part of a "certified" GPS "navigator", but it seems to me
that if they are accurate enough for ADSB that maybe they
are for IFR. No? Again, probably a different certification
standard but I'm just wondering.
I also understand that the moving map and control function
of any of the EFIS systems (other than the certified Dynon
and Garmin units) are also not certified for IFR use, but
hey? Just curious.
Green Fluid dripping inside cowling
I recently took my cowling off to work on my engine
control cables and immediately noticed some green fluid
dripping from the sniffle valve onto the lower cowling. Any
ideas what it is and how to deal with it?
(reply)
-
Fuel dye
-
BTW, it is good practice to have a drain hose/line connected
to the valve so that excess fuel that drains out goes
overboard instead of laying in the bottom of your cowl.
Part# help please ...7/7A
I am not near my project/plans and I need to order a
couple replacement parts that I cannot seem to locate in the
new/improved Vans store. I may just make them when back but
if they are cheap enough I can order/pick them up.
I am looking for the angle that rivets to the fuse that
holds the vent brackets- found this pic on a build log.
If anyone has it I'd greatly appreciate it.
(replies)
-
F-793 L&R Make from AA3-032 x 3/4 x 3/4
- Is a make-from
part. Make from AA3- 032-3/4 X 3/4.
- Seems like I made them
from wider stock because the edge distance was short but it
might have just been cut longer. Slept since then. Bottom
line, measure the distance accross the four side skin rivets
and add edge allowance.
RV-10 HS-1016 Dinged
So since Van's Support staff is away at Sun-n-Fun, I turn
to y'all.
RV-10, page 8-10, Step 2. The rivet gun jumped a bit while
riveting one of the corner rivets attaching the HS-1016
Stringer Web to the HS-1014 and -1015 Stringers. Some slight
deformation, no actual cracks or creases. Pictures below...
I need to know if this is a critical component or is this
superficial, cosmetic damage and can build on?
(replies)
-
Inspect the dents carefully for cracks, if none then give it
a quick whizz over with a scotchbrite wheel in your die
grinder to soften any hard edges only, prime and carry on.
Have a good look at what that dark line is just at the top
edge of the rivet head - a paint chip or something more
serious? Don't replace the rivet it is serviceable and
trying to change it out may give a worse result.
-
Looks like it’s probably fine, but definitely check for
cracks like stated above. You may also want to check to make
sure those rivets are set properly. Pictures may be at
strange angles but the “shop” head on that rivet doesn’t
look right.
-
Are you using the correct size set in your rivet gun?
Looking at that mark on the factory head to the left it
almost looks like you are using a -3 set instead of a -4.
That would explain it wanting to jump off the head as well.
It may be camera trickery but the dinged rivet shop head
looks crooked along with the topmost rivet on the right side
of your first pic.
April 5, 2019. Issue #4,796
Spent most of Thursday working a side job to supplement the fam
income during dem college years (the
view), and while doing that explored the Pulse Ox Sensor
feature of the D2 Delta PX watch Garmin is letting me play with
for a couple months. It does a lot of stuff as you might
expect, but I REALLY like that you don't have to touch it when
logging time. You just go fly. It wakes up in a 200'/min climb
greater than 30kts. When you land it stops logging on it's own,
then it syncs with GP while you're taxiing in. Nerds of
the world unite, as they say. The times we live in,
amiright? Coupla grabs below from when I got home.
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend!
My O2 levels during three flight legs. Read O2 (green) on left
scale.
Altitude in grey (right scale).
enlarge
Hey Kids! Captain Obvious Asks
(viewing heart rate):
Guess where the approaches to minimums were?
;^)
enlarge
Falcon Flight Clinic Date Change ...Check6
The WX is not going to cooperate for April 5-7 so
we are rescheduling the clinic to April 26-28 and
hope the WX will work out. The original link still
is the best way to sign up. Hopefully those that
could not make it due to Sun n fun now can!
And yes we do realize this is the same weekend as
the KC Flight Clinic and this was our backup date
due to our Airshow season starting.
Escape to Sedona ...Capt Sandy
It’s getting hot here in Ajo, so we decided to go
to Sedona to escape the heat and do a little hiking:
Yay! There is room above the camping gear for my hat
Final Update (Nose Wheel Damage) ...Flying Canuck
Probably the last update I'll put in here. I'm
just back from another flight that went
exceptionally well. Between this thread, the many
PMs I received and a very good conversation with
Ralph the other night, I've managed to get on track
with landing this amazing airplane. Lots more
practice ahead, but the method is working great so
far. Here is my "works for me" landing process.
If in the pattern, pull the power back on the climb
to keep from jumping to 110 KT at altitude. Get
downwind established at 85-90 KT, TRIM to keep that
speed and stay level. This is about 18" MP for my
plane. First bump of flaps (5 degrees) after abeam
numbers, let it bring the speed back to 85 if
necessary.
Turn base, add 2nd notch flaps in the turn, power
back to 12", pitch for 75 KT and when there, TRIM to
maintain the approach hands off.
Turn final, all of the rest of the flaps in the
turn. Pitch for 65 KT and when there TRIM to
maintain the approach hands off. Here I can play
with the power a bit to fine tune the descent rate,
don't need to do much. It flies in pointing to the
ground (uncomfortably even).
Over the runway, doing 65 KT, once 6' AGL, flair to
LEVEL. Speed will bleed off slowly as it settles
down gently. Tonight I was flairing at 60-62 KT and
it was gentle. As the mains touch, add enough back
pressure to keep the nose wheel off as long as you
can, maintain centerline with the rudder while it's
still effective.
My corrections really come down to 4 things.
- Intentionally get my speeds down, earlier, lower
and stable
- TRIM
- confidently point it at the runway, don't rush to
flair, and use small and gentle stick adjustments
- discipline to keep the procedures tight every time
Lots more practice ahead - I've only got 5 landings
in during this rehab stint - but they are the 5 best
landings I've had in the plane. While I don't doubt
that the plane can be landed well at higher speeds
by a more skilled pilot, it REALLY likes landing
close to 60 KT. The side benefit is that I don't
have any trouble sharing the pattern/circuit with
172s, had a 152 up with me tonight and there was no
problem.
Thanks to everyone who pitched in on this thread. I
hope it can be as helpful to others here as it has
been to me.
__________________
Claude Pitre
RV-9A #91081, C-GCPT
Mothership
Ignition Noise ...jump4way
I'm looking for some ideas to squash an ignition
noise issue I'm having. I'm able to isolate the
noise by shutting off one ignition and the noise
goes away. The noise is a steady tick tick tick
noise that has an increase in cadence as rpm
increases. The oddity is that If I turn on my aux
input battery powered bluetooth module, the noise
goes away.
Things I've tried are:
1) ferrite cores on the power leads.
2) two types of noise filters with the offending
ignition power wired through.
3) replaced spark plugs (using solid tipped
automotive spark plugs)
4) Ohm tested each of the ignition leads for proper
resistance. They all checked out to show appropriate
resistance for the given length. I also slightly
twisted and rotated the leads as I checked the ohm
reading to see if anything seemed amiss.
5) crimped each of the spark plug connectors to
ensure good contact.
6) put dielectric grease on each of the spark plug
caps.
7) checked the spark plug gaps.
Any other ideas any0one might have?
April 4, 2019. Issue #4,795
Anniversary. 12 years ago today my wife and I took a leap of faith
and I left the corporate world to run this site as our family's
primary source of income. As it turned out only a few
months before the economic meltdown of 2008 (ugh). Still
mildly freaked out about this hanging it all out solo thing, and always,
ALWAYS wondering about the bills getting paid, but
I'm still glad we did it. I've met a thousand people I'd
never have had the chance to meet, and I'm a better person for
it. And so grateful...
And thank you again to all the folks that help keep it online, and my
family fed.
I gave another first airplane flight today ...crabandy
Lil' dude has been bugging me to "go fwying" for several
days, no wonder as it's been (I'm almost ashamed) 3 weeks
since flying the RV. My only excuse is the last flight was 6
hours, time to stir the oil and charge the battery.
Lil' dude, mom and cousins went to "build a bear" today. I
was a more than a little impressed when the wife sent me
some pics and Lil' dude was building a dragon with wings.
...
Wing Paint Jig ...larrynew's method
Two sawhorses with a 2 pieces of pvc pipe in the
lightening holes just aft of the spar. 2x4 running the
length and screwed to sawhorses on both ends. Smaller pvc
pipe in another lightening hole to prop it horizontal.
Rotate as needed. Worked great and would do the same again.
Possible Solution to Why Wing Walk Didn't Stick ...MrNomad
Acrylic cleaner aka Prep Sol
The wing walk separation fault may be mine. Before I paint
cars or airplanes, I always use a product known as Prep Sol,
3M Prep Solvent-70, to clean the surface.
To remove the old glue, I work with a credit card edge and
lots of Prep Sol and it works nicely to remove the old
residue. The paint remained intact (thank heaven).
The nice people at Flyboys suggested alcohol to clean the
wing before applying the "walk" so I am wondering if the
Prep Sol left a film that precluded adhesion. What works
great with paint may NOT be what works great with the
adhesive on the wing walk.
Once again, the folks at Flyboys offered a free replacement
which serves as further testimony to their quality service.
Blake claims that 95% of his customers have no issue but my
walks have failed three times so I have to examine my
procedures.
Comments welcome. What did u use before applying the "walk"?
Vid: Return Up the Keys to KLAL ...Paul/Beth Duff
Watch out for forward floor stiffener orientation ...Draker
RV-7A
Here's a reminder to builders working on the forward
fuselage. Don't make the mistake I did. This isn't really a
gotcha because the plans are very clear:
When building the floor stiffeners, carefully examine
drawing 23. For the inboard stiffeners, F-772B-R goes on the
right side and F-772B-L goes on the left side. Makes sense.
But for the outboard stiffeners, they must be
reversed! F-772B-R outboard stiffener goes on the left side
and F-772B-L outboard stiffener goes on the right side. If
you aren't careful, it will not be obvious that you reversed
them because the parts are similar and fit both ways. Later,
you will go to fit the cover plates in the cabin and you
will encounter this:
Metal in Oil Filter ...fl9500
Hi,
after my last Oil-change, I found more than normal?
magnetic metal in my Oil Filter. Lycoming O360,
~1200 Hours. ~7month and 40hours after last
Oilchange.
For the first time I used CAMGUARD.
I now want to fly it for a few hours and then check
again.
Any tips what to do next ?
RV Series - RV/IAC Aerobatic Competition Standings ...ronschreck
We kicked off the 2019 competition
season with two contests: The Snowbird Classic in
Florida and the Early Bird contest in Texas. I'm
pleased to see that RV's were represented in both
venues. Patric "Balls" Coggin took home a third
place trophy, a great finish after being down for
repairs all of last season. No trophies for the
Intermediate competitors but they did post some nice
scores in the face of competition from Extras, MX's
and Pitts. A great start to the season.
...
Panel Upgrade Phase 1... ...BVD
KFQD Lunch...RV-Lanciar
Brotherhood Day entry
Four of us met at Rutherfordton [KFQD] for lunch
at 57A. Owen flew his red RV-12, Mark flew his RV-8,
Leo flew his Colby Starlet, and I flew my Lancair
235. While we were eating outside on the picnic
tables, a Lear jet pulled up alongside where we were
parked. I guess word has gotten around about our fly
ins
The Lear was real careful on departure not to blow
us all over. We appreciated that!
April 3, 2019. Issue #4,794
Harness Porn at the VanCave
Rob 'Mashy' Reece (RV-8) is beginning the hooking
up of the stuff. Art-worthy harness courtesy
SteinAir.
(enlarge
pic)
(note from SteinAir site)
"SteinAir will have a booth at SUN 'N' FUN in
Lakeland, FL on April 2-7. Our booth is located in
Hangar D-017. NOTE: SteinAir operations will
be CLOSED March 28th through April 8th for
SnF and also relocation to our new facility in
Faribault, MN (KFBL). Any orders placed in that
time-frame may not ship until April 8. We will also
have limited phone and email communication during
that time. Thank you for your patience, we look
forward to seeing you after the move."
Angle Clip Interference ...mfleming RV-7
The aft top fuselage skin is ready to be riveted,
but there is one skin rivet that's giving me
problems.
This skin rivet is directly over the F- 707B angle
clip shown on drawing 26, detail C and there is no
way to buck this rivet..
In my frustration I compounded the problem by
drilling out the skin rivet hole to ⅛" thinking I
would install a Cherry rivet but the Cherry rivet
hits the angle clip well before seating. I relived
the angle clip some with jewelers files to see if
that would give me room for the cherry rivet to seat
but I stopped before relieving too much material.
The obvious solutions is to drill out the
AN470AD4-5 rivets that hold the clip and rib to the
F-707 bulkhead and reinstall after the skin rivet is
bucked.
BUT, I'm afraid of screwing up the AN470AD4-5 when
reinstalling. These were obviously originally
installed without the top skin on from F-707 aft.
The squeezer will not fit up there with skins on and
one would have to use an offset rivet driver to buck
the -4's and I have had mixed luck with those
offsets....
Soooo....How important is this one little skin
rivet? Not very I assume.
Any Ideas??
Testing fuel time with plain water ...romanov in Isreal
Fellow builders,
I have sealed the tanks and still dont have real
fuel liquid close by. Can I test the
tanks with just water? How accurate is that
testing? Is it possible that watter won't leak
and 100LL later will.
(replies):
- Yes, Water has a much higher surface tension
than 100LL. While it might not leak with water it
doesn't mean that it is still 100% leak proof. You
would be much safer to do the final test with either
properly regulated air or 100LL. The initial
test with Water should be fine to test for larger
leaks. If there are any of descent size then water
will still leak.
- Without pressure, solvents,
such as gasoline, can easily weep through spaces
that water cannot, due to the lower surface tension.
Run up saves the day! ...jhk770
(I own a RV7A with an IO-360 with dual electronic
ignition with auto spark plugs)
Here is a quick story that I thought was important
to share and to emphasize how important run-ups are
even though 99% of the times they are un eventful.
My wife and I flew down to SC to visit friends for
the weekend. We had a great flight down and our RV7A
performed great. After a few day visit, we departed
KAND after a thorough preflight and uneventful
Run-up. We decided to stop at Lake Norman (14A) to
check out the area and grab some lunch. This time my
run up detected a very bad ignition issue. I taxied
back, uncowled the engine and searched for the issue
checking the connections to the coil and then spark
plugs. When I got to the left side of the engine,
the lower spark plug wire was just dangling!!! I was
shocked. The spark plug "cap" had fallen off which
led to the spark plug wire to come off. During
annual I always make sure that I tighten these
'Caps", but never in a million years would I expect
one to come off. Luckily I had spare plugs in my
tool kit and was able to replace the "cap" and be on
out way home to NJ without any issues. I'm
disappointed in myself because I always try scanning
my CHT/EGT's but I never saw any indications of poor
ignition to indicate a problem during the flight.
I'm so thankful I was trained well to use check
lists and I never cut corners and skip Run-ups!!
My question is, has this happened to anybody else
and do you think locktite on the threads would help
prevent this from happening or is there another
solution.
RV-7 Ryan in Oregon ...ryanflys RV-7
So it's finally staring to feel real. I've been
wanting to build an RV since 2011 and I've actually
taken the steps to begin. I'm currently setting up
my shop in the garage and my Cleaveland tool set
will arrive Wednesday!
I went down to Eugene a few weeks back and took the
fundamentals class with Synergy Air. I learned a lot
form the class and left feeling like this was
something I could actually do. We built this thing:
...
RV Hangar Repair
A lot of RV’s are housed in post frame / pole
barn type hangars and some suffer with rotting
posts.
Interesting video shows a method to repair rotting
posts and keep the building structure sound.
RV-8 Prop Controller Issues ...pjmRV8
I have an RV-8 with O-360 A1A set up with a
Hartzel CS prop. The prop controller teleflex goes
through the firewall and makes an aggressive "90" to
the prop governor on the rear of the engine.
After 1280 hours, it has become very stiff and hard
to operate. I was wondering if anyone had any
recommendations to revive the cable or good
replacements. It is roughly 50" long and I believe
is the standard green cable provided by Vans.
Any help would be appreciated.
Mothership During SnF'19
Status Report ...Brantel RV-10
Tail cone is almost all primed and ready for
final assembly. Faxing the order for the wings in
tomorrow.
I assume I should get the tank floats and aileron
trim option. I do plan on leading edge lights so
should I get Van’s kit or just buy the duck works
mounts like I did for the RV-7. Either way I will be
using an LED landing light source of some kind.
April 2, 2019. Issue #4,793
RV9 and CQ1 go to aerobatics school ...scard
Tanya and I had been talking about
doing some proper aerobatics training for quite some
time. We're always noodling opportunities to advance
basic airmanship skills and this was a big one on
our list. There are a lot of ways to skin this cat,
but how did WE want to do it?
Last week, we loaded up the 12yr old RV9A with over
2000hrs on it and pointed the magic carpet east
toward Alabama. The weather was perfect, and there
was little to do but watch the miles go by. Before
long, we rolled out on a beautiful quiet grass strip
in the hills just east of Ashville. We taxied right
into the hangar where the RV would sit for the next
few days.
...
Mothership News *
* ;^)
Some Thoughts on Tires & Brakes…
I fly from a private grass strip in northern
Ohio. Needless to say, not much flying in the winter
months. So, the spring ritual is to look over the
machine really good while I wait for the ground to
firm up. Even though I'm based on a grass strip,
almost all my flying is from hard surface runways.
Brakes are as important as flight controls for
airplanes with free-castering nosewheel. Loss of a
brake pretty much means deviating from the runway
and having a bad day. Original brakes were replaced
at 80TT. Now my second set of linings is due for
replacement at 415TT. I think the second set of
linings lasted longer because the disc was
conditioned by the first set of linings, at least
that’s my theory. The brakes pulsate and it has
bothered me from day one. The discs are soft steel
and get scored-up something awful. I have decided to
order new Matco discs and will have Master Chrome in
Cleveland, OH hard chrome plate them before use.
Master Chrome does hard chrome plating for Cleveland
Wheel so I should a good result. The hard chrome
surface should stay smooth and eliminate pulsation.
The original tires supplied by Vans lasted 200
hours. The outside edges got scalloped and worn to
the thread. I installed Desser 500-5 6 PLY RTO
Retread, Elite Premium 2 Groove. At 415TT I’m very
happy with these tires. The tread shape has
substantially more rubber on the outside edges
providing excellent wear. I’m going to rotate tires
L-R because right side tire is showing slightly more
edge wear. My plan is to run the tires until end of
flying season and then I will disassemble the wheels
and flip the tires so fresh edge is to the outside.
It looks like I should be able to get 600 hours on
these tires by remounting them on the wheels when
the outside edge is sufficiently worn.
Any ideas?
Coupla three days back at 17,500'. No idea.
Anyone? Click for full screen. Labeled
'ALLIED1' w/a GS of 287 kts. (thread)
And I get the irony that it's nearly centered over
Aurora, TX (of UFO fame).
Temperature probe fails
I’ve had problems with cht probes
coincidentally with parking the plane outside for a
week both at sun n fun last year, a Florida trip
this year. In both cases after takeoff was surprised
to find the readings quite low like 300 & erratic vs
1300ish. Received a tip from someone about heating
up the base of the probe to near red hot three times
between cooling off. It actually worked and brought
the probe to accuracy after failing on its own to
come back. I have drip loops at the probes so
moisture would not run into the probe but somehow
condensation must be entering.
Now recently my oil temp probe is erratic and
wondering about trying that but hesitant since it
normally doesn’t see temps that high as a torch
might bring. Anyone with oil temp probe symptoms?
__________________
Dave Ford
Just a test fit- but had to share ...Dan Reed
Picked it up from AFS Thursday and
couldn't help but at least test fit it . Plenty to
install behind the panel before it'll be secured,
but wanted to see how it would look. It's set up to
add an Avidyne GPS/NAV/COM at some point in the
future.
In case anyone noticed the odd placement of the vent
attachments, I had the modular panel (3 removable
panels with radio stack) frame in before that I had
to remove (will be in the classifieds at some point
if anyone is interested).
1 Million Gallons of Oil on m'Belly! ...bkervaski
Fun times!
On Friday I went out to do my BFR and when I landed
there was about a million gallons of oil on the
belly of the airplane.
Took the cowling off, cleaned it all up.
Checked the oil, in reality only lost about 1/3qt.
The oil seemed to be collected around the oil cooler
(right side bottom firewall on the 14), there was no
signs of oil on the engine or near any of the
connectors.
I couldn't find any leaks in the oil cooler. I took
it off, pressure tested it (using only the "hold and
blow" method and some soapy water). There were no
signs of weeping near the elbows. No signs the oil
cooler was the problem.
On the 14, the engine vent is pointing towards the
oil cooler, dumping out over the exhaust.
The running theory at the field is that the vent
line was clogged and came free dumping oil.
There was no indication in flight, no pressure drop
or anything odd feeling/sounding.
My plan is to, while leaving the cowling off, taxi
and run-ups to get the oil warm and see if any leaks
show up.
Any suggestions or ideas? Thanks for any advice!
Oh .. and 1/3qt goes a LONG way
Family News
...the Tater at SMU for an 'incoming freshmen'
type meet and greet. Obligatory picture in
front of the ponies. <g>.
April 1, 2019. Issue #4,792
Calendar Wallpaper for April
...Axel and his racing-modified RV-4 (note tape
and pants). Axel is featured in the current
VAFcast if you haven't
heard it.
Condition Inspection Findings
It has been over 11 years since I first flew my
RV-9.
In that time I have changed the engine (O-290 to
O-360) due to a prop strike. Last year I found a
crack on my engine mount and replaced that.
I started my Condition Inspection on Friday night
and so far so good. Compression on all four
Cylinders are normal. Last year #3 was low and I was
using oil like crazy. Just recently I noticed my oil
consumption was back to normal and sure enough, the
sparkplugs were all dry and the compression was back
to "normal".
Last year I replaced the O-ring on the gascolator
and lubricated it with fuel lube, which I would
always do. This year I removed the unused plug on
the gascolator and it pulled right off.
After the gascolator was reinstalled I decided to
"bleed" the fuel pressure line. Over the past year I
would get low fuel pressure warnings on my EFIS and
have replaced the wire, sensor, etc. and it would
still come back on occasion but once the engine
warmed up, it would go away and not come back on.
Also, even though it would read 1 PSI in a full
power climb, the engine never sagged, so I know it
was getting plenty of fuel.
So, this morning I turned on the electric fuel pump
and started loosing the plug on the "manifold" that
holds the fuel pressure sensor until fuel started
coming out. I was surprised at how long it took for
fuel to come streaming out, once it first bubbled.
With fuel leaking out, I tightened the plug back up
and then turned off the fuel pump and master.
I will report back, once I'm flying again to let you
know if this solved my low fuel pressure readings.
__________________
Bill R.
RV-9
Advanced Flight Systems Sun-n-Fun Special
Sun-N-Fun Package Special with ACM-ECB. I
suspect you can't beat this deal, even if you do all
the wiring. You get to decide if you want HDX
or AFS
Now I know how Dorothy and Toto felt! ...ronschreck
The Summertime Kansas winds can really pack a
wallop! I visited Salina for a few days last week
and tied down on their massive ramp. When I was
ready to depart the winds were 170 degrees at 38
knots, gusting to 45! Two large men held down the
wings while I untied the ropes, loaded and started.
I told the tower I was unable to taxi crosswind to
runway 17 and would they mind if I took off from the
ramp. "No problem, cleared for takeoff." The takeoff
roll must have been all of 100 feet!
When I landed in Houston I unscrewed the tie down
rings. Here's how they looked!
Who Knew? <g>.
SNF Seminars ...Vic starts the thread
For those going to SNF next week, I thought we
should start a thread allowing presenters to post
their schedules.
Vic Syracuse:
Condition Inspections in the EAA tent on Wednesday
April 3rd at 10:00 AM. The EAA Tent is on Laird Dr.
Flight Testing Experimental Aircraft on Friday April
5 at 10:00 AM in the EAA tent on Laird Dr.
Status Report ...jcarne RV-7A
Holy tomatillo, the aft top skins are done!
New guy and potential -10 builder!
Hello all,
New to the community although I’ve been researching
airplanes to buy for years. I just can’t seem to
justify spending a couple hundred grand on a
certified aircraft that will be a project and to
some extent “unknown” since a rod could be thrown or
a case cracked at any time putting me out 50k for an
engine swap. With that said, I think I’ve settled on
an RV-10 for my family of 4 (two babies). I guess my
concerns are how long the project will take to build
and really how much experience or inclination you
need to have as a builder. While I got a degree in
aerospace engineering many years ago, I’m basically
next to useless with my hands in terms of home or
car repair, but I’m smart enough to learn when I
need to. If things go my way and I get the orders I
want next (in the Navy), then I’ll be set to buy the
first (empennage) kit and tools/prep equipment this
summer. If my wife moves ahead of me to get settled,
I’m hoping to have at least a few months where I’ll
be able to put in 2-4 hours a day of work into the
kit. If I can knock out the empennage kit in that
time (300-400 hours), I’m hoping the QB fuse/wing
kits will really accelerate the project at my next
stop. Is it realistic to have a -10 ready to start
within 3 years if I can knock out 300-400 hours of
work on the empennage kit in a few months and then
QB kits after that? I am also all ears on
recommendations, advice, and tips for a new builder!
I really like learning from others’ mistakes.
EDIT: are there any RV-10 owners willing to indulge
a ride in San Antonio or New Orleans?
Thanks all for the input on my ramblings!
-Josh
Garmin FIS-B New Weather Products on Aera 660 and Aera 79X
(Available 3/26/19)
Aera 79X software version 5.60, and Aera 660
software version 3.50 have been released and are
currently available for download.
March 29, 2019. Issue #4,791
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend.
A Virtual Tour of E-mag ...and UFOs.
Thursday while updating the DB's on my G3X
screens, the opportunity to go with Monkey over to
Azle, TX to pick up some P-mags for two planes in
his shop (one for
Bugsy I think) popped up. I'd never been
out to the E-Mag shop so was excited to get to
finally visit it.
(35) or so pics at this link, many of them
with captions. THANK YOU Tom and Trent for
giving me a tour. Brad mentioned they are at
SnF in booth C-098 if you want to see and
hold some of the product (Van's will be at NE-012
and NE-013).
The very first P-mag. The prototype
(15 years old).
My two P-mags have been merrily purring along for
many, many years and hundreds and hundreds of hours.
Someone asked me once about writing a review, and I
couldn't think of anything longer than one sentence.
"I turn the key and it starts right up, and it
always runs smooth."
The trip out and back
also gave us a chance to drive through
Aurora, TX of UFO incident fame. You know
I'm on that like a duck on a June bug.
related: emagair.com
Tri-Level Tournament Trip Write-up ...rph142
I always consider the Indian Wells pro tennis
tournament the unofficial start of my rec tennis
season. This year would be unique in that my wife
along with her team won the fall Norcal Tri Level
tourney and was invited to play and the national
tournament alongside the pros with the other winners
from across the country. This of course gave me a
great excuse to put hours on my 3B.
Here's my machine, ready willing and able, with a
fresh oil change and glossy coat of wax.
...
Roll your own Mag cover ...AX-O
I am getting ready to build a motor and wanted to
step up in class during the portions of the build
where catastrophic FOD inside the motor could occur.
Specifically the portion where I put a piece of
cardboard where the mags and other accessories go.
So since I have been designing things on Solidworks
for the plane, figured I could give this a try. The
studs on the case are too long. I will fix that
later. This is just a trial fit. I rounded the edges
on the cover so I could easily grab it with my
fingers to remove it. I also re-enforce the area
with a flange in case it got smacked, it did not
fall apart. The part is strong like bull.
Designed cover on Solidworks
...
Baffle Mod Tinkering ...DanH
"...I tend to experiment. I enlarged the bypass
for #3 and got some further reduction. This photo
was taken while making that mod; I've cut away the
hammered duct:"
A larger bypass was riveted on:
Throttle and Mixture Cable Routing ...Lynnb RV-10
So I'm using Van's Throttle Quad
and Standard cables, I went to route them tonight to
check the lengths were good, which they are, but the
clearance around the engine for the Throttle cable
is really tight. I ran the mixture cable under the
engine mount and I think it will work, just
wondering how others have routed theirs and am I
missing anything. (see pics.)
New Product Release AEROSPORT Plastic Air Vents
Aerosport Products now has a new line of plastic
Air vents. These air vents come in 2 sizes and
configurations. Large vents are 1.625" ID and the
small are 1.25" ID. They both come in a square mount
version or round panel mount version. The square
mount is a direct replacement for the 3.25" square
mount
vent that Van's and may other aircraft companies
have used for years.
...
Mothership
March 28, 2019. Issue #4,790
So I'm warming up the engine for a little .1 or .2 to get the juices
going before work, and I hear a friend inbound on the radio.
"A little choppy." An understatement. I
launch and almost immediately the wiggles and bangs start in -
don't climb out of it until about 2,500', and by that time my
head already hurts. Why am I spending nearly a dollar a
minute to do this? I turned around and land after about
.2, and walk up to my friend at his hangar and say, 'a little
choppy huh?' <g>.
Walk over to Monk's and he says, 'I think your site is down.'
Huh? I pull out my phone and there are 20(ish) emails,
vmails and texts saying same. I should look into this when
my head stops ringing.
Between calls with the ISP and quality laptop time, we went to
Whataburger for lunch, and Buc-ee's next to it for car gas.
There is a NASCAR race this weekend here, and this was at the
pump next to us. These folks don't mess around.
(click to enlarge)
Back to the equipment outage, bottom line is the box my
virtual machine (VM) is on, along with a few more
clients, got a case of the vapors this a.m. and decided
to go on strike. A reboot of the VM got the site
up, but there were a couple of corrupted tables in the
grab bag that makes up the forums, and the box was
suspect. The easiest way to repair this is to
restore from backup to the last known good instance
(last night) on a new box. These things take time.
Restores always seem to take longer than you think they
will. It took all day but it's done...
So, the turd sandwich in all this is if you posted something between
around 9am and 4pm on Wednesday, my apologies.
It's gone. It looks like most of the posts were
classifieds at first glance.
Once the restored site was online on the new box, and the ISP cut it
over, I smurfed on over to the mothership and grabbed
some first flight news (below) to help build a quick and
dirty edition for Thursday. Again, my apologies.
Technology happens - occasionally not like you're
expecting. If memory serves, this is the first
full blown restore in 11+ years.
Moved over a million posts over to a new box, ran a she-ite load of
database repair utilities, changed some internals to
point to new equipment, adjusted backup routines to get
the new box tonight. It's been a long day with
more technology than I care for. Things seem
stable for now, but we're talking with the brains about
more robust hardware with newer OS's. All good
things.
If you haven't listened to the latest
VAFcast,
it's 42 minutes long. Axel was a great guy to
interview! Maybe that'll help some if you got
withdrawals. ;^)
RV-14A Video
Published 3/26
(Felix Wong) "My buddy took me up in the Van's
RV-14A aircraft that he built."
Mounted Rudder
Pedal Assembly and Brakes and Wheels on Ken Krueger's Landing Gear
Time lapse vid from 3/25. Building my own
aircraft - a Vans RV-8. HB-YZZ
[ed. Neat rotisserie there
at the end of the clip! v/r,dr]
First Flight
First Flight
First Flight
First Flight
First Flight
March 27, 2019. Issue #4,789
Delivery of a 9A ...jjbardell trip write-up
"Don’t ride in an RV if you have no intention of
owning one…"
[ed. Now THAT is how you
start an article <grin>. Awesome Sir! v/r,dr]
While my plane is down for a panel swap, my friend
Tim found a flying 9A on the east coast. We went
together to bring it home from WV22 to 3CK!
Note from Luke
Classic Aero Interior Lead Times
Hi Everyone,
I just wanted to put out a heads up to those
planning to place an order in the near future. Due
to the recent release of side panels for the RV-14,
the volume of orders on our schedule is about double
the normal amount. Currently our ship dates have
been pushed out to around the end of August.
We expect this to be a temporary situation.
Historically our lead time has ranged from about
8-12 weeks (usually depending on the time of year).
We will be working to get back to that. Over the
past 12 months, we have invested significantly in
new epuipment to produce our own metal parts in
house. This was in aniticipation of the RV-14 side
panels. We expect this to give us greater control
over scheduling, and cost.
If you need your interior by this fall, you will
need to place an order pretty soon. On the other
hand, if you won't need your interior until next
spring or later, it would be helpful if you could
hold off until later this year so that we can take
care of customers that will be ready to fly sooner.
I appreciate everyone's understanding so far as
we've been working through this transition.
Best regards,
__________________
Luke Doughton
Classic Aero Designs
Pictures from 'Alcohol and Flying' Trip Writeup ...Bill R.
Traffic Jam During Superbloom ...AX-O
I guess I don't get originality points for taking
my wife to see the flowers from the air but......
I was probably 20 miles out when I spotted the
flowers, even in the haze they were bright. Once we
got closer we noticed the traffic jams. Cars for
miles and miles. My wife says "OMG look at the
traffic jams, glad we are flying". I said "well you
look all you want, I have to fly and deal with my
traffic jam". It was craziness out there.
G3X Touch Software V8.20 now available 3/26/19
While the G3X was being certified,
Team X continued to move forward with software
features for the E-AB and LSA markets. G3X Touch
software 8.20 is now available for non-certified
aircraft and can be downloaded from the Garmin
website:
Lightning, Cloud
Tops Forecast, Turbulence Forecast, Icing Forecast
Related:
-
New Product Announcement: GPS 175/GNX 375 IFR Navigators (3/25/19)
-
G3X Touch is now CERTIFIED (3/25/19)
Status Report ...David Paule RV-3B
Now both the seat and the baggage floor are
pilot-drilled.
After this, I removed these and drilled the
substructure for the nut plate mounting screws. No
photo on the holes, and the hardware is on order. I
did remove the flat seat ribs and added the
nutplates to these, as it was easier to do that then
do them in place.
With both landing gear legs drilled to the engine
mount, I located and pilot-drilled the U-403 brake
mounting fitting to the axels. Then, Rick and I
drilled its mounting hole. The drills used were, in
order and in inches, 1/8, 3/16, 1/4, N and finally
the .311 reamer. I forgot to get a photo, but there
wasn’t anything especially noteworthy about the
set-up. Rick made some aluminum vee-blocks, which
did a fine job gripping the axle. The 1/8 bit was in
the pilot hole, which was just deep enough to locate
it. We eyeballed the bit for verticality, rotating
the axle as needed, and then went ahead and drilled
it.
The landing gear is all going back to storage as I
won’t need it for a while. The reason all this took
place now was merely because it was easy to align to
the fuselage at this stage. I’ll all in favor of
making things easy. Besides, it's so much easier to
rotate the fuselage when the gear legs aren't on it.
I found several smallish parts that haven't been
plated yet, like the brake flanges and rudder cable
straps, and got those ready for plating. I'd better
have a look in the crates to see if there's anything
else, too.
Superbloom Yesterday ...Brian RV-4
My wife and I just went yesterday. We hiked
Walker Canyon a few years ago to see the Spring
Bloom, but this year we saw it from a slightly
different perspective.
March 26, 2019. Issue #4,788
from the archive grab bag. dr.
New Product Announcement: GPS 175/GNX 375 IFR Navigators (3/25/19)
...Garmin
"We are extremely excited to announce our new GPS 175 and
GNX 375 as the latest addition to the Garmin product line of
touchscreen IFR navigators...
...The GPS 175 and GNX 375 offer a beautifully blended
user interface with a dual concentric knob and a touchscreen.
The touchscreen allows for quick data entry and key features
such as graphical flight plan editing while the knob allows
for quick page switching and an alternate means of data
entry. For those of you with experience in the Garmin GNS
series or G3X systems, the page selection via the outer knob
will make you feel right at home."
more
G3X Touch is now CERTIFIED (3/25/19) ...Garmin
"Since so many of you have interest in the G3X Touch
system and have interests outside of E-AB aircraft as well ,
I wanted to let you know that Garmin has received AML STC on
nearly 500 single engine aircraft models. Check out the
Garmin website to see a full list of the supported
models...."
more
-8A Cracked Canopy
Cruising along at 4500 ft. Saturday from Rostraver, PA (FWQ)
to Bolivar, MO (M17) fat, dumb and happy. OAT 23 degrees;
163 kts TAS; no turbulence. Hear a loud bang, but no change
in engine parameters or flying qualities. Landed at I23
(Fayette County, OH) to check things out. Discovered a 15
inch crack in the right side of the canopy about ten inches
forward of the cross brace. Sikoflex install with not a
single rivet in the canopy. Previously had and stopped
drilled two 6-inch cracks on either side just forward of the
cross brace so I felt further cracking was not going to
occur. Have no idea what the specific causes were unless I
inadvertently created stress points when clamping the canopy
during initial fitting.
Want to attempt a repair before punting to a new install.
Can anyone point me to the previous forum threads that offer
the best repair advice?
And yes - that dull roar you may have heard early Sat
morning was me repeatedly going through my curse word
inventory.
Recent First
Flights Reported on Mothership
Alcohol and Flying ...a travel story from Bill R.
In talking with some friends, we wanted to get
together for a weekend away from home, without the
kids, preferably someplace halfway between us.
We thought Rough River State Park would be good and
one of the wives was making a reservation at a local
B&B only to be told by the proprietor that there was
nothing to do there and if we were looking to do
something other than hang out at the B&B, we might
look to go somewhere else.
Back to the charts to find a place that was not too
far away.
After much studying over my last glass of bourbon my
eyes fell upon Frankfort, KY (KKT). Frankfort
happens to be the capital of Kentucky and smack dab
in the middle of the Bourbon Trail.
With four planes and advance planning completed, the
eight of us were ready to go and the wives were busy
planning meals, distillery tours, etc.
Friday morning, March 22nd rolled around and there
was snow and ice in the Cleveland, OH area but clear
throughout the rest of the Southeastern US.
The RV that was to join us from Cleveland dropped
their kids off at school and started driving south
and would be late getting to FFT.
The V-tail
Bonanza that was coming in from Atlanta had to work
late and would be late getting to FFT.
The T-tail
Lance that was supposed to come from Nashville
texted and said they were in Florida and would be
late getting to FFT.
Do you see a pattern starting to develop?
continue
Not RV But Too Cool Not to Spotlight
...Ironflightflies!
Broken Step - Pilot Side
During inspection I came across a crack in the pilot
step. The crack shown in the picture is located on the front
side of the step at the intersection of the horizontal step
to the vertical portion that leads up to the fuselage. I
ordered new steps from Vans and noticed that the welds in
this area are very small. The picture was taken with the
step being flexed in a vise.
Just providing this for others to see, the airplane has
around 900 hours on it... - Jason
Hidden Oil Door Latch Article ...Brad Benson
Fuel Pump Mounting - EFII
I'm trying to keep everything under the stock fuel
injection cover. What do you think about mounting the
pump like this? The floor stiffeners would be drilled for
the bolts.
March 25, 2019. Issue #4,787
New VAFcast Uploaded Over the Weekened ...Axel Alvarez RV-4 fastback.
42
minute podcast
chock-full of RV vitamins and minerals. It might make
that long commute a little less sucky.
related: More VAFcast episodes
Milestone: IFR Checkride Passed ...Dave Ford RV-10
Today passed my ifr check ride in my 10. First rv10 the
examiner had flown in, was impressed with what we get for
the money vs. Cirrus, Columbia, even the high priced Cessnas
he flies in. He does a lot of check rides for the local
college here.
Had a slight glitch to overcome regarding
partial panel, he’s used to g1000 or steam but not the
experimental glass. Since I was able to duplicate on another
screen primary instruments when covering up ai he thought
that wasnt acceptable for acs standards . He learned
something about IR.VII.D.R1 that ‘use of secondary flight
displays when primary displays have failed’ allows a
complete secondary efis to qualify as a true secondary
backup.
Now looking forward to the 10 opening up more adventure.
RV-Lancair Brotherhood Day ...snopercod
Owen and I fought the turbulence on this bright and sunny
Saturday and met for lunch at the Runway Cafe at GMU. My
ground speed hit 198 Kts. on the way down (but 140 on the
way back ). They were swarming like butterflies in the
pattern, but the tower sorted everybody out safely. There
was already another RV-12 parked there, but we don't know
who it belonged to. Purple RV-12: If you're here, identify
yourself!
A How To Guide for Wrecking Your Nose Wheel
As mentioned in my recent AOG thread (I'm all fixed up
now thanks to VAF), I destroyed my nose wheel tire, tube and
fairing on a hard landing a couple of days ago. Now that
I've stopped shaking, ran through the experience in my head
too many times, talked it through a few times and analyzed
my data logs, I thought I'd recount what happened and what I
found out. I apologize in advance, this is going to be a
long post.
A little background, I'm a mid life crisis pilot and
builder. Got my PPL 3 years ago, managed to build about 240
hours total time. Finished my RV-9A last summer and have 70
hours and 100 landings on it. The incident trip was a 3 day
leg stretch to the Denver area, my first trip into the US
and first multi day trip. The incident flight was from
Billings, MT to Lethbridge, AB to clear customs. 2 hour
trip, coming after my 2 hour initial leg out of Rapid City.
This was my first flight into Lethbridge and it was the 5th
unfamiliar airport of the trip.
My initial approach was to runway 23, 200' wide (first time
for me) and I had a shifty quartering tailwind. In looking
at the logs later, winds went from 126 at 7 at 500 AGL to 59
at 5 on the ground. On top of this I was fast, 87kt over the
numbers. This was already a recipe for trouble. The approach
ended in a well executed bounce to go around, no second hit
and quick reaction to add in full power.
My second approach was to the same runway, a little better
speed (78) but still too fast. This one bounced as well and
I had go around power in within 2 seconds. FSS gave me
runway 12 for my next pass, winds were a little better for
it. This is 150' wide so the sight picture needs an
adjustment.
My third approach was decent, still a little fast and ended
with hard contact on the mains. I read that as a bounce and
immediately put in the power. The incredulity of my
situation was hitting hard and the nagging voice in my head
started shouting that I'd forgotten how to land. FSS was
treating me like an emergency now (so I found out later when
I paid them a visit).
My fourth approach was the one that wrecked things. This is
the "how to". One decision. I hit hard on the mains again
and decided to override everything I knew and pushed the
nose down to try and save it. The logs showed that I hit the
mains with 1.5 g at a pitch of +1.3 and in 3/4 of a second
hit the nose wheel at 2.4 g at a pitch of -5.4. I think I
anticipated the bounce and had already pushed forward before
the initial hit. This bucking landing hit happened again a
couple of seconds later with 2.6 g on the nose and a 13
degree pitch change. If the first one didn't smash things,
this one surely did. I finally decided to do what I should
have done, pushed in the power and got out of there.
On that fourth climbout, FSS asked me if I would like to fly
away for the airport for a few minutes to collect myself. It
was just what I needed to hear and I did that, all the while
talking through the landing process out loud. After about 6
minutes I requested a long final for 12, thinking that a
long stable approach would give me the best outcome.
Finally, 30 minutes after my first approach I managed to get
the landing I so desperately needed. It wasn't pretty, still
hard and I had a couple of nose oscillations after the mains
stuck. I taxied in and declared my day done (we had planned
the 1 hour flight home after clearing customs) before
finding the damage that formally ended my day. In the end,
the tube was punctured, the inside sides of the tire were
delaminated, the axle bolt was slightly bent, the wheel pant
had 3 large chunks blown out and the leg fairing was cracked
with a couple of popped rivets. They closed the runway
behind me as soon as I found the hole in the pant and they
found the pieces.
I still need to wrap my head around my landings, my landing
back home yesterday wasn't very good either. I am sure of a
few things. Firstly, my wheel pants went on recently, I only
had 3 landings on them before starting on this trip. The
pants bought me 12 knots at cruise and the speed management
is a whole new beast that I need to get a handle on before
any further flight. Secondly, my hard hits/bounces are
coming from failing to counteract/avoid sudden sink over the
runway. Lastly, no matter how frustrated, angry, scared,
tired, confused, anxious I get, NEVER try to save a bounce
by pushing the nose forward.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading. This post is
mostly for my own benefit as I work through this, but since
I'm not the first or the last to experience this, I thought
it was worth sharing and discussing. I'm going to take a
short break from flying so I don't have recent memory
haunting my decision making. Then I'm going up and spending
a good hour entering and exiting slow flight at a safe
altitude before getting some circuits in and relearning my
landings and reclaiming my confidence.
__________________
Claude Pitre
RV-9A #91081, C-GCPT
Milestone: Moving to the Airport ...dbaflyer
After 8.5 years of building in the garage, it's finally
time to get a permanent home.
ADSB Upgrade - RV-8 - GTX-345 ...f14av8r
I'm providing links to my ADSB
upgrade schematic along with my GTX-345
configuration table.
I bought a GTX-345 and a Flightstream 210 at Oshkosh
last year. I did the initial install in August of
2018. I replaced the existing GTX-327 with the
GTX-345 and added the FS-210. I also replaced the
audio panel, upgraded my TruTrak autopilot, and made
some wiring changes to my AERA-660.
The initial installation went well but, after
getting it up and running, I discovered a
configuration problem that required some minor
rewiring. The transponder was working well but I
wasn't getting the proper data from the 430W to the
autopilot or the EFIS. This is a big foot stomper!
All the data format options are not available on
every input or output of the 345! RS-232 1-3 have
more options than the RS-232 4 port. And, you
sometimes cannot configure the inputs and outputs of
a single port separately. Good luck finding that in
the documentation! I had established my initial
wiring based on being able to configure some things
in the 345 that weren't possible once I got it all
hooked up.
I decided to fly with the less than optimal
configuration for a few months for a couple of
reasons. First, I dreaded pulling everything apart
again and second, I thought I might learn more about
what changes I should make when I went back in. That
was a good decision.
Additionally, my RV-8 did not have an avionics
access panel in the forward package compartment. I
was determined to put one in before working on my
avionics stack again. That was another,
exceptionally good decision. So, a few days ago, I
made the big cut and installed the access panel and
boy did that make things easier. I'm not sure why
anybody would every build an RV-8 without installing
an access panel in the forward baggage compartment.
I should have cut one before doing the initial
installation of my ADSB equipment. SOOOOO much
easier. I was able to access the 430W and GTX-345
plugs and rewire the necessary pins without pulling
the panel.
When I bought the GTX-345 from
Spruce, I also bought their harness. That was also a
great decision. I made some significant
modifications to the harness and added a lot of
other wiring but the pre-made harness was a good
start and well worth the cost. Just being able to
see how Spruce manufactured their harness gave me a
real leg up when I started making my own. Wiring the
GTX-345 and GNS-430 isn't overly difficult but did
require some techniques I hadn't used before. I'll
just say this - get the right size pins, the right
pin inserter/pullers, a good mechanical pin crimper,
Raychem solder sleeves, and a really good soldering
iron!
Configuring the various equipments was the hardest
part. Finding accurate documentation on the Garmin
equipment is frustrating. I emailed the G3X team and
they put the latest and greatest manuals in my
hands. That was essential as a lot of the stuff on
the internet is outdated and incorrect. This is
especially true when it comes to the settings /
configuration pages of the 430 and the 345.
I'm very happy with the 345 and the 210. The 345 is
a superb (though pricey) one box solution to the
ADSB problem. The 210 allows my 660, iPad (Foreflight
or Garmin Pilot), and the 430W to exchange flight
plans and updates in real time. I also made a 232
connection between the 660 and my SL-40 that lets
the 660 send the SL-40 frequencies for the selected
airport automatically.
Milestone: Painted! ...Erimo RV-14
...many pics.
Cracked nose gear faring ...AviatorJ RV-10
23 hours into Phase 1 I was doing performance
Takeoffs and landings today. I'm afraid I brought
her down a little bit hard today on a 'short field'
attempt. Taxi'd back and inspected my gear fairings
and found this....
Fixing it is pretty easy. To
prevent it from happening again (I will land hard
again in the future). Should I put some more
clearance on the radius's to accommodate smashing
the front wheel? Or could this have been something
else?
March 22, 2019. Issue #4,786
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend!
2/15/2005. Scorch and me
patrolling during a TX sunrise. dr
RV Stuck: Nose wheel in Lethbridge, AB ...if you can help.
Second to last leg on my US trip ended poorly.
Lethbridge got the best of me and after 4 bad
bounced landings, and I mean bad, finally got it on
the ground. Apart from my nerves- which are going to
take a while- all I’ve damaged is the nose wheel
fairing, which is a total loss and a flat tire.
Anyone in the area with a tire, might just be the
tube. Moral support would help too.
__________________
Claude Pitre
RV-9A #91081
Just Starting out- looking for NH or MA RV builders
Hello all, first post. I have been lurking for
many years and am finally getting to a point in my
life where I may have the time and money to finally
start flying. I have taken a couple of first flights
over the last 20 years and also fly whenever a
friend or friend of a friend invites me.
In any case, I am looking for "local" (MA or NH)
RV builders so as to take a look at the work, ask
some questions and maybe help if they want it.
Many thanks,
Paul
Mothership News
O-320 E2D Drama ...Sam I Am
I purchased my first plane, a 2003 Vans RV-9A,
July 2018. I commute from Texas to Kansas weekly for
work so have accumulated almost 200 hours since
purchase. The plane had 525 TT when I bought it. The
Lycoming was a rebuilt that was in storage for some
time before the RV builder purchased it in 1999.
Previous log books were not available but Lycoming
estimated that it had been in use for 2,000 h when
he purchased it. The engine was disassembled and
reassembled by A&P with new gaskets and seals at
time of the builders purchase and pistons, valves,
seats, cam, lifters, etc all appeared new based on
log book entry. Had a prebuy conducted and no issues
were noted at purchase.
Almost immediately fuel burn went to 11 to 12 g/h
and the engine would not run smoothly. Two mechanics
later there were multiple fuel leaks found. Replaced
the Van's fuel selector valve with Andair. Fixing
the leaks brought the fuel use back to 7,5 to 8 g/h
but the engine was not very smooth. Found the intake
connector hose clamps were loose and tightened them
up. Through trial and error determined that when the
electric fuel pump was turned on, the engine would
turn off! Only use electric fuel pump when priming.
The primer was checked and not leaking fuel to the
cylinders when not activated.
High CHTS climbing out has been a common issue
(425F) until fall weather brought cooler ambient
temps. The plane is equiped with and EIS 2000 with
probes in the 1 and 4 cylinders. Baffling is in good
shape and checked again last night with flash light
for leaks. Started to notice that the mixture would
be set at flight elevation then would get LOP after
some time. The engine tried to quit several times at
take off then did quit at 11,500 over the panhandle
one day. I then replaced the carb with a rebuilt
Marvel-Schebler MA-4SPA and a new lycoming
mechanical fuel pump. Wow! The engine ran much
smoother and fuel burn at 7 g/h. Thought I had it
fixed....
Now that the weather is warming up, the CHT are
skyrocketing. Yesterday I left TOP (880 msl, 60
degrees F). I taxied to the runway with the engine
leaned, conducted my runup to 1,800 rpm after
enrichening the mixture. The left mag was rough so
ran the engine up and leaned to burn off the plugs.
Next mag check spot on. As I lined up to take off,
the CHT #4 was already 425 F and #1 was 415F. I took
off with one eye on the sky and one on the EIS. I
climbed very slowly, full rich, as the temps went to
485. When I reached 3,500 msl, the cylinders started
to cool to less than 400 F as I continued to climb
to 10,500 (32 degrees F). The temps settled in at
375 and 355 for the remainder of the flight. When I
landed in Amarillo, the temps immediately went to
285 for roll to the hangar. This has been the
condition for the last 3 flights. The previous
flights did not entail having to burn off the plugs
before take off.
I'm about to conduct an intake leak test but
thinking that my scenerio doesn't quite fit a leak.
I've read that the Lycoming SB 258 can be an issue
so will pull the carb and check the intake through
the sump for dead space. Any other ideas would be
much appreciated.
While I have the podium, I would like to thank
everyone for their time and knowledge on this forum.
I'm a newly minted pilot with a new plane and would
have walked away by now had it not been for this
forum and peoples honest input. THANK YOU!!!!
El Paso
from FL 38
...Mr. X
(click to enlarge)
RV Law of …
A stab at comedy. I’ll get the ball rolling with:
"RV Law of Clean Leading Edge Slash Dirty Belly"
If you just clean the leading edge of your wings
after a flight, the longer a visitor stares at them
the probability of them believing the belly is also
clean approaches one.
Got one to offer up?
Bragging on the Kiddo
You already know our daughter Audrey is out on
the west coast pursuing
her PhD in ChemBio. She sent me this pic
the other day of some lady she met out there.
The
lady on the right? Our awesome daughter Audrey
(the 'AR' in N617AR).
The lady on the left?
Winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Dr.
Frances Arnold.
Audrey texted me 'Whatcha working on?'
when she sent me the pic. I didn't have the
heart to tell her I was working on a bit about
farts... ;^)
March 21, 2019. Issue #4,785
Spokane Sunrise
...Mr. X
(click to enlarge)
Flying Away from Tennessee ...Capt Sandy
When Roy and I started dating almost 15 years
ago, I never expected that our flights to the coast
for dinner or down the valley for lunch or hiking
would turn into journeys across country. I never
expected that I’d want to fly anywhere other than
the Pacific Northwest. And I certainly never
expected that we’d fly as far away as Tennessee - or
that I would fall in love with the Smoky Mountains.
I’m so happy for the Plane He Built.
Status Report ...acam37 RV-4
"...I’m proud to say that the plane is ready to
fly and has passed it’s airworthiness inspection.
The next chapter is to get the first flight done and
complete phase 1. ... We are really happy with the
final results."
Unexpected altitude change in RVs and the 737Max8 ...ClayR
Last evening, while enjoying glass-smooth air at
about 4000' just after sunset, my RV9a unexpectedly
pitched down hard. I had just reached over to pull a
little cabin heat when it happened.
My first thought was I just hit a massive downdraft
- something was pushing my nose down hard. I could
pull back to counter it, but had to pull on the
stick hard and it wasn't letting up. I pulled
throttle back and it eased up a little. My second
thought was "how could cabin heat cause this" when I
didn't have an autopilot that might be affected by
the changing pressure in the cabin.
Then, I tried pitch trim up (electric trim, with a
switch on my panel just above the throttle) and it
just as quickly corrected itself.... problem solved!
But, it certainly got my heart racing, and also
thinking about how the pilots in the recent 737
Max8s that crashed must have felt as something
'external' was pushing their nose to the ground.
I certainly didn't think my right hand finger was
pushing the trim button at the same time my left
hand was pulling the cabin heat knob, but my right
hand was resting on the throttle where it normally
does, and I suppose it could have happened as I
slightly leaned forward to pull that knob. I don't
suspect a faulty Ray Allen switch, but I suppose
that could have happened too.
I also took out my original ray-allen trim indicator
on my panel when I installed my GRT efis, moving the
trim indicator to the EFIS. However, the trim
indicator isn't shown when I'm in PFD mode with a
split screen with moving map, so I didn't know the
trim had moved.
I checked the forums this morning and found several
other threads describing similar incidents where
people had bumped the trim buttons on their stick,
or had malfunctioning switches. They described very
similar symptoms as I saw...
The best suggestion I saw was to install a
"Safety-Trim" which limits any press of the trim
button to 3 seconds before you have to release and
press it again. I'd like to hear from anyone who has
installed one of these because it seems that the
limit should be 1 or 2 seconds instead of three. I
think it could happen again similarly with a 3
second press of the button unless I slow the trim
motor down a lot. (which might actually be a good
think to make it more sensitive to fine adjustments)
I also thought that perhaps installing a big red
"TRIM" light on my panel would alert me whenever the
trim motor is activated. That might get annoying
though during regular use though and I'm not sure
how to wire it.
My third thought is to see if I can program the EFIS
to display an error when the trim reaches a certain
point away from center. That would have helped me
identify that the trim was out of normal range. Has
anyone done this on a GRT EFIS?
At the VERY LEAST, I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE EVERYONE
with electric trim to practice dealing with
unexpected trim by establishing cruise speed at a
decent altitude,press the trim button up or down for
4 or more seconds to see what it feels like! See how
much back or forward pressure you need on the stick
to counter it! I wish I would have done this when
people talked about these issues before so I would
have been prepared for it when it happened.
In any case, I'm sharing this to hopefully avoid
others from experiencing the same thing, and to
discuss the best possible options to keep it from
happening again... or at least quickly identify the
issue when it does.
Please, don't discuss manual vs. electric trim
here... I have electric, and I'm not changing it
now, although I might put manual in my next build.
Discussions in previous threads:
...
Stepping covers for floor ...TJCF16
I made these floor covers out of plywood so as
not to deform the floor every time my fat but steps
in during maintenance. It sure saves smashing
hinge pins, just an idea!
Leaky Brake Fittings ...fbrewer
OK, so we have leaky fittings on
the right side brakes. We've tried
tightening the plastic fittings without stripping
the threads -- no dice. Still leaks.
I think I want to replace the semi clear tubing and
replace with the black hose and new fittings. Where
is the best place to buy these replacement parts?
Any other suggestions to my leaky brake fitting
problems?
Mothership
March 20, 2019. Issue #4,784
from the photo archives. dr.
Don Orrick's Visor for his RV-10
My solution that I just completed during my
condition inspection was to buy the RAM $68.00 visor
from Aircraft Spruce and the SHORT Ram ball clamp
connector. It is only 2.5'' -3 '' long. I then
ground one end of the ball connector to the
curvature of the round center bar using my removable
co-pilot control stick that is the same sized
material as a template. I then painted it and glued
small pieces of rubber to the inside of the ground
end to prevent scratching up the post and allow the
clamp to grip the post tight.
By using the short ball mount modified to fit the
post, the visor fits between the post and the edge
of the door frame just right. the visor can be
adjusted up and down the post depending on how high
or low the sun is during flight. You can also swing
it around to cover the co-pilot side of the
windshield if needed. It can be easily removed by
just loosening the ball clamp and set it in the back
seat.
I also installed a ball mount above the pilot's
door with a nutsert to mount the ball stud and
utilize the same visor on the door by ordering
another short ball clamp WITHOUT modifying it to fit
on the ball mount and the visor ball. It works great
and can cover the entire side window area for those
early morning flights when the sun is pouring in the
side window.
1 visor
2 ball clamps
1 ball stud for door
under $100
Test flew it and works great!
Thank you Wayback Machine!
I was curious about some performance numbers
recorded on the CAFE site back in the day on the
RV-6A they tested - wanted to see how they compare
with V speeds entered into my G3X. Discovered
the site is no longer online. Thank you
web.archive.org! Found a copy online (link)
and I'm good to go.
Old Geezer Update (his title) ...David-aviator life update
Greetings,
I've been member of this forum for a while and have
enjoyed the comradeship over the years. There are
lots of good people here sharing a passion for
flying and RV airplanes.
I am still flying. And perhaps to the delight of
some old instructors with whom I've had exchanges
here, have finally gotten close to 3 pointing the
RV-7.
The tail dragger experience came late in life to me,
age 75, so it was some challenge in the beginning,
glad I did not wreck the RV-8.
The 7 belongs to a friend who asked me to fly it
once in a while after he had open heart surgery. The
RV-8 I built at age 74 was sold to a friend about a
year ago. Had this compulsion to down size, stop
spending money, not knowing what was coming next
after wife passed away. Flying the 7 has been a
blessing, I still enjoy it.
But at this stage of life, question keeps popping
up, when should one quit? Common sense says no one
flies forever. And end up a statistic due to pilot
ego because the envelope was inadvertently exceeded,
like I can do this forever, makes no sense. Is
somewhat of a dilemma making decision on this
subject.
Beyond that, I've decided to get married again.
I hate living alone, have reconnected with high
school friend in Minnesota where I come from, will
be moving back there this summer to be with her. She
is widow and feels same about living alone. We go
back long way to riding horses, milking cows on
Minnesota farm 65 years ago as teenagers. It was not
difficult getting reacquainted.
Anyway, just want to say Hi to forum, this place is
great for what we are passionate about - Flying
airplanes and in particular the RV's.
dd
7A Rebirthing Update ...kentlik
Fuel valve plumbing coming together. Not terrible
but does make me a bit heavy headed leaning over for
so long. Oh well.
If
you push the right buttons in the right sequence...
...the RV will fly
the approach and hold really smooth-like.
Practicing button work flow Tue morning for a bit
before quality time with the computer. I
remember this approach seeming so complicated a few
years ago. It turns out this practice stuff
really works.
Grab from the iPad running GP
later - click to enlarge if bored.
Crashing in the wilderness... some thoughts ...Paul_5r4
Sorry about the length of the
post!
Hey fellow VAFers,
Because I feel this is an important post, I’ve been
working on it for a few days.
A bit of history regarding this post. Recently I’ve
watched several videos where regular people
unexpectedly find themselves in situations that
ended up potentially life threatening. After
watching several of these videos, I’ve noticed there
were some common denominators. One is in each case
they’ve unintentionally found themselves in these
situations and finally reached a point in their
struggles way to early on that they have zero
options left. As pilots we should be prepared,
having at least thought about the what’s and hows
after a successful forced landing. As pilots, we
always need to have plan B and never have the
thought of “there is nothing left I can do.”
Naturally as pilots we most often think of the
aviation side of flying. I looked at my checklist
and online at some others. That’s were the checklist
ran out. They all do a fantastic job of getting
everything configured to give us the best chance of
survival in the event of that hopefully never to
happen off airport landing…. Hmmmm, off airport
landing. Almost makes it sound like something that’s
routine. In the real world and in the heart of
hearts of most pilots, I think we still call it a
crash. I don’t know… maybe that’s politically
incorrect now days. :-) Take note though that is
where the checklist ends. I hadn’t given much
thought regarding survival in the event of hours or
days until help arrives. I did have a little
survival kit but didn’t know how to use half the
stuff in there. All of this left me thinking despite
having the little kit, I didn’t have a survival
plan, not even a little one.
continue
OT: Paul & Louise's Jet is Painted
How cool is that?!?!
more pics
Help! Oil Pressure Loss when Cold and Hot
...rv969wf
Alan Judy's Van's RV-6 with a Lycoming IO-360A1B6
fuel injected engine, CS Hartzell Prob.
Approximately 750SMOH. Almost everything inside this
engine was NEW except the case and cylinders,
cylinders were taken .010" over with New pistons
etc. All machine work was done correctly and Yellow
tagged, engine was blueprinted very precisely. All
clearances within factory specs at overhaul and I
did the assembly so I know this engine inside and
out. SMOH this engine has always had around 45psi
oil pressure +- 2-3 lbs at 190F degree oil
temperature at idle 750rpm. In cruise it has always
had around 75 lbs +- a 2-3 lbs at 2,450 RPM with oil
at 190F degree. I have always been able to maintain
my oil temperature plus or minus 5-8F degrees
between winter and summer via a controllable oil
door, the NEW Vernatherm at overhaul has never
caused a problem. Engine has had Exxon Mobil Elite
20w-50 it's entire life after rings were seated. Oil
and filter has always been changed around 25-30
hours. Oil samples have always been good and oil
filter has always been very clean when cut apart and
inspected. Engine is preheated in cooler months so I
haven't had any cold starts, I live in the Oklahoma
area in the USA. I average 90-120 hours per year and
fly mostly cross country with a few short trip, at
times I'll close the oil air inlet to the oil cooler
get the oil up too 200-210F to boil off any moisture
in the crankcase for a few minutes then lower to
190F range. Compression always around 76-79 over 80
at annual.
This is what happened on my last flight, on run up,
my oil pressure was normal at the time. I took a 45
minute flight and shortly into the flight I noticed
my oil pressure was only 52 lbs at 2,450 RPM, 190F
oil, it has always been around 75 lbs +- a couple
lbs SMOH at 190F oil temp. After landing my low oil
pressure light came on, my low oil pressure sending
unit is a separate unit than my oil pressure sending
unit and it is set at 25lbs for the light to come
on, I then looked at my oil pressure gauge and it
was only showing 23 lbs at idle 750RPM, 190F oil.
The first thing I did the next day was take the oil
filter off and cut it apart to inspect, Tempest
#AA48108-2, the filter media was VERY clean with no
debris. I build automobile racing engines for a
living and few airplane engines so I know what to
look for. Oil level in the crankcase was showing 6
1/2 quarts at this time. I have always flown after
an oil change with 7 qts total and when it gets down
to 6 qts I add one quart, oil burn has always been
about 1 qt in 9-12 hours with my steel Lycoming
cylinders SMOH. My next step, I installed a New oil
filter, 1 more qt of oil added to bring the oil
level close to 7 quarts total and I installed a
Perma Cal Calibration test gauge directly to the
right front oil gallery that is the same oil galley
that feeds the main bearings that is at the right
front towards the prop to compare oil pressure to
the MicroVision VM-1000 cockpit oil pressure. I test
ran the engine and documented the start up with oil
at 48f degree cold and warming the oil up to 100F.
The Perma Cal test guage read 2 -3 lbs higher than
the VM-1000 cockpit gauge throughout the test from
idle to 2000RPM at various oil temps, test gauge and
panel oil pressure corresponded in equal amounts,
slight variation but all good. Being this I
eliminated the oil sending unit being a problem or
possibly the oil fitting at the crankcase for the
sending unit that has the .040" restricted hole from
being plugged up. For those that don't know, the
.040" oil restrictor is there in case the oil line
breaks to slow down the loss of oil. While warming
up the engine and oil, I had the same oil pressures
within 2-3 lbs variation, so the oil filter was not
the problem or the oil sending units. My next step
was to remove the oil pressure relief, spring, ball
and washers. I inspected the seat that the ball
seats against in the crankcase oil galley at the #3
cylinder crankcase location, it looked good but I
took the time to apply some dye, lapping compound
with an old pressure relief ball and lapped the
seat, it had a perfect contact pattern and was
seating nicely, no issues there. The pressure relief
ball had no nicks or signs of wear, I measured it
with a micrometer and it was perfect. I checked the
bypass spring with a NEW spring, free length was
good and it had the same pressure as a new one, I
went ahead and installed the new spring and noted
how many shims were behind the spring and put the
same ones back in. Did another ground test run,
started the engine up and there were NO changes of
oil pressure at different oil temps or RPMs. I'm not
sure what is happening to cause the sudden loss of
around 20-25 lbs oil pressure when its cold or at
operating temp throughout idle to cruise RPM 2,450.
If I had metal in the oil filter I'd be tearing the
engine down but I don't see anything in the filter.
My next step is to run the engine, warm the engine
oil up, drain and take an oil sample and send in for
a report. I suspected my fuel pump diaphragm might
be going bad and allowing fuel into the crankcase
and deluting the oil, but the vent line from the
fuel pump has showed no signs of dripping or
leaking, maybe the oil sample will help with this.
CHT's have always been in the 300-360f range
depending on outside temps. Oil temps have always
been normal, no changes in fuel pressure, EGTs all
good and peak the same. Timing has always been set
at 20 degrees because I'm runging 10:5.1 pistons,
bore scope of cylinders show no issues, no
detonation issues on piston tops or ring lands.
100LL Avgas all the time, 150F -200F rich of peak in
climb, cruise 75-100F rich of peak at 65-70% power.
Sometimes lean of peak at low power settings. This
engine has always been strong and has never had any
issues and it makes a lot power. Its still strong,
makes no abnormal noises and runs like nothing is
wrong other than the 20-23 lbs of oil pressure that
I lost across the board. Possible bearing problem?
but no metal in the oil filter, possibly oil pump
issues but why such a sudden loss of pressure,
possibly a crack in oil gallery which if there was,
oil pressure should be good cold but much worse when
hot as the aluminum expands and should open up a
crack in the oil gallery and making it worse at
higher oil temps, but I don't think that is the
case, the Woodward prop governor works fine, prop
cycles normal, oil galley plug missing?, if one was
missing it should have zero oil pressure. I don't
see any issues with the Vernatherm as my oil heats
up quickly as normal and at cruise my oil temps are
normal. I have even used a thermal imaging camera to
detect how the fluid/heat is flowing through the oil
lines, filter and oil cooler and find no issues.
Something that I have not done yet is too shim the
oil pressure relief with 5 washer/ shims which
should raise the oil pressure 25 lbs across the
board from cold oil to hot oil for GROUND RUN
TESTING ONLY to see if the oil pump will maintain as
a test only. If the added shims don't show any signs
of raising the oil pressure, possibly oil pump
issues or something else has gone wrong inside the
engine that is causing the leak of internal oil
pressure. I questioned the piston oiler nozzles but
they open at around 40 lbs and should not cause low
oil pressure at cruise RPM. It's not a heat related
issue of any sorts as I don't have any. I'm at a
loss and need some professional advise before I do a
teardown at 750SMOH. FYI, I used to be on this VAF
forum daily on a regular basis MANY years ago and
payed my dues during that time but do to life
changing things I have not been on here and after
posting this I need to send Doug some $$$$. Any GOOD
Technical Advice would help. Thanks, Alan
(reply from Martin Sutter)
Same thing happened to my engine with otherwise
healthy parameters. After being unable to find the
cause I called Aerosport and talked to one of their
engine assembler. He advised me to remove the oil
pressure regulator and meticulously clean the steel
ball inside and the seat it resides in. When I took
it apart I was not hopeful as the ball was only
lightly tarnished but nowhere near cruddy. I went
ahead anyway and cleaned it to a mirror finish with
a soft cloth and some fine polishing compound. Low
and behold, problem solved and pressure back to
normal.
(from mahlon_r)
I would check the suction screen. probably ok but
you should check.
To me it sounds like there is another relief valve
operating in the back ground..ie a hole somewhere. A
internal missing 1/8 pipe plug would exhibit similar
symptoms to what you have seen. If you do get to
doing a teardown maybe start with the accessory
housing first to check all those rear plugs. Don't
think its a bearing with no metal. never saw a crack
in a case have so much of an effect on the pressure.
Do you think the prop gov could have an internal
leak, that is allowing it to suck up more engine oil
pressure than normal but still be able to function
OK? Maybe worth trying a different governor? Or
getting that one checked?
Any aerobatic equipment installed? if so disconnect
and re plumb and see.
Assuming you have a late style pressure relief valve
tower and not a short one with a case that doesn't
have the centering cage for the ball. But if you
have a short tower without the cage in the case it
would possibly cause symptoms like you are seeing.
easy fix to install a proper tall tower and get that
ball centered and functioning properly all the time.
Good Luck,
Mahlon
March 19, 2019. Issue #4,783
Five Balls and Clear
Monday I woke to 00000kts and CAVU, and the whole
morning's carefully crafted plans immediately went
out the window. I needed go juice so I
launched for Bridgeport and its $3.49 gas. OMG
it was smooth. After the obligatory potty
break, and while walking back to the plane, the urge
to get a picture of all this blue percolated up.
(My brain talking) "Do you even realize how
awesome this is?!?! It's Monday morning and
you're standing on a ramp in bright sunshine with an
amazing airplane topped off and ready to go wherever
you point it. Soak this in and make sure you
don't forget how lucky you are!!!! Dumbass."
5,120 pixel pano
Above one pano if you have a two monitor setup,
and below a regular style pic thrown in for good
measure. I only logged .6, but it reset the
mental gyros completely and gave the opportunity to
call up approach and get sequenced for the 16L ILS
at KAFW on the way back for buttonology stretching.
Crazy crazy smooth. Even I could pull it off.
Then off to the home office for catch up. It
was worth it.
More
traditional-sized pic
Superbloom flights ...bruceh RV-9A
My daughter was on Spring break this week and
wanted to get out to the desert to see the flowers.
Saturday we flew into Agua Caliente (L54) and hit
the hot springs for a soak and a bit of hiking
to/from the airstrip. After weeks of cold, wet
weather, the skies cleared and we actually warmed up
a bit this weekend.
Sunday we flew up to visit family in Orange County
and on the way up we could see that the hills east
of Lake Elsinore were just covered in orange
flowers. We detoured on the way back and flew over
the hills, which were just amazing.
...
Add another RV-4 to the registry ...acam37
N684ML is now official, thanks Mel for making
this a pleasurable experience. 2019 RV-4
fastback
Electrical Schematic Thoughts ...Paul 5r4
I've received Carl's schematic for dual batteries
and he's reinforced to me via emails the importance
of being able to get that power to the critical
places with no to minimal pilot action. I absolutely
agree with the previous post about making your
system too complex. That in itself adds a degree of
increased risk.
Here's my thinking. I'll have two batteries and one
alt. If I have an alt failure, I would be notified
of that by the Dynon EMS. If I confirm/agree with
the EMS of an alt failure, all I have to do is flip
the two switchs to get power from BOTH batteries
directly to the avionics and turn off the master
switch. Power from the batteries will be direct to
the avionics with the only connections being 1. At
the battery 2. The relay (power in and power out) 3.
The avionics buss connection.
With the Dynon's back up battery and the built in G5
battery along with the two full size batteries up
front, I feel this would give me best I can figure
an absolute minimum of like 90 minutes to get back
to VFR or below the clouds.
Discussion: Carl's stresses the importance of
getting the power to the necessary equipment. I
agree. That includes battery grounds. Each of my
batteries will be grounded side by side to the
airframe/engine block.
A thought on the relays that will be the only thing
inline between the batt power and avionics buss. The
connection for power in and power out of each relay
from each battery to the buss. There is of course
the wires running into the cockpit for the switch
and switch to ground that could fail too.... as well
as the switch itself. Here again, There is ANOTHER
switch going through the other relay to provide
power from the other battery directly to the buss.
OK..... What are the odds of first an alt failure
followed by a second failure of a
relay/switch/wiring connection at the same time and
if that WERE to happen, there is the second battery
with the exact same setup to get power from that
OTHER battery to the buss? Admittedly I'm just
learning all this stuff and am speaking from
probably the most inexperienced point of view on VAF.
Reviewing my own schematic, I see there's a single
point of failure at the 25 amp pull breaker. If that
did happened it would only make sense to turn off
both "direct to" relay switches again and go back to
the battery only side of master to get power to the
avionics buss. I wonder if it would make sense to
leave the batt side of master on from the beginning
of the alt failure and turn on the two "direct"
source switches. Of course this last would add the
importance of sheding all unnecessary loads from the
main. The advantage is now there are THREE ways
power is getting from the batteries to the avionics
buss.
Any thoughts are appreciated.
AOG Final Update ...Guy Prevost RV-10
Doh! I didn't check in last night! Everything
worked out well. The Cards hooked me up with
supplies and labor. By the end of it, I just had to
watch!
What keeps you from flying aerobatics? Really? ...poll
Sometimes I feel like I am beating my head
against a brick wall. I have enjoyed flying
competitive aerobatics in my RV since 2006 and have
done my utmost to encourage others to do the same.
Last weekend an aerobatic training session was held
at Siler City Airport (KSCR) and numerous RV pilots
contacted me, anxious to come out and participate or
watch. We welcomed sunny skies and moderate
temperatures on Saturday morning and I was the only
RV pilot that showed! Where are you guys? In an
effort to answer that question I have posted the
accompanying poll. Those of you who are flying
aerobatically capable RVs (RV-3,4,6,7,8,14) please
give me honest answers to the poll and I will try to
address your questions and concerns in this thread.
Thank you for participating.
Refurbished RV-4 ...Chris Copeland
Purchased a flying aircraft built in 2000. Low
time, High quality build and well equipped with tall
gear, O360, CS prop, etc. Exterior was John Deere
green and interior was cheddar yellow. I spent the
first 6 months of ownership doing a complete strip
and repaint taking care of any needed maintenance
along the way as aircraft was disassembled. Flying
the aircraft now and having a blast with it!
Previously owned a C-140 and a Citabria 7eca. Both
great aircraft, but the RV is definitely another
level of fun!
Aborted RV-8A Wing Install
Sorry if this has already been covered
extensively on the site. Please point me to old
posts if it has.
I attempted to install wings today and ran into a
snag when the landing gear weldments kept bolts from
penetrating spar. Aircraft is on gear with engine
installed. My team, which includes multiple RV
builders (all taildraggers), concluded that the
weldment shifted due to the extra load. My plan is
to lift the fuselage off the mains and loosen the
inboard weldment bolts to get the wing bolts better
aligned.
Appreciate any comments confirming that approach or
something more ingenious.
Thanks,
Greg Walker
Aledo, TX
Mothership News
March 18, 2019. Issue #4,782
Good morning! Fast weekend. Spent Saturday working a
side job to help supplement the scratching out a living thing, but
managed to get a short .2hr RV hop Sunday after Mass. A
lot of locals did the same Sunday, as there was a big high
pressure capital 'H' over Texas
and Oklahoma all weekend. Some
basketball on TV and lots of VAF work and the weekend was outta
here.
So there I am Saturday KRVS in Tulsa, OK at the
aforementioned scratching, and what do I see taxi by? RV
of course. At KRVS (pic).
Kinda fitting. ;^) Crazy busy there Saturday morning. I think every plane in the
area was flying.
Hope you had a good weekend.
Registered and Certified! ...Boomer506
FAA guys gave me a thumbs up! I'm doing engine
runs and working out final settings on communication
busses and things, but I'm very close to first
flight. Weather is getting better and engine is
running strong. Also finalized a policy with AVEMCO
so you know I'm getting serious.
Milestone: RV-12 ...JBPILOT
1,300 HOURS!!!!! Been a terrible
winter. First flight in 2 full months. Almost forgot
to take pic.
Falcon Flight Formation Clinic KGYI April 5-7, 2019
Update March 14, 2019
Falcon Flight Formation Clinic is now 3 weeks out.
WE still have some slots available so if you want to
update your formation currency or take on a new
precision skill you can find all the information by
signing up at the link below.
Mothership News
Carbon Fiber Rudder ...ATangle
I've been working on making a carbon fiber rudder
(RV-8 drop-in replacement) for a little while now
and finally have a little bit of progress to share.
I just fabricated the skins this past week while I
was home from school for spring break. This project
is primarily for my own education with
designing/fabricating composite parts, and I'm quite
happy with how the skins came out. The look is a bit
different than the stock RV-8 rudder, with some
influences from the GB1 Gamebird.
Status Report ...GoN4Broke
After a 4 year build and nearly 3 years of flying
it around “naked”, Juliet-Kilo finally has colors.
The scheme is an homage to my wife Kathy and her
fanatical love for all things Seattle Seahawks! Wife
Happy. . . Me Happy
RV-7 Elevator Trim Tab Work ...atalla
hey all,
I put this video together on the Left Elevator Trim
Tab, i have found this to be one of the more
challenging tasks so far in my build.
any input or suggestions would be greatly
appreciated
Thanks in advance
RVs around DFW Sunday with Viper
Mentioned above. A glance at the
FlightRadar24 app while sleeping through basketball
games Sunday...
"There were bogeys like fireflies all over the
sky."
"So you were there?"
"I was there."
enlarge
March 15, 2019. Issue #4,781
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend!
More Ice Cream Social Pics ...AX-O friend
A.O.G. Update ...Guy Prevost RV-10
Steve McLeod, a local A&P showed up with tools today. He was
knowledgeable and willing to work with me, not just grumble about
experimentals. I mostly needed access to tools, but he was far more useful
than that and a good value too. I guess he maintains a few RVs around these
parts.
We test ran with normal ignition checks etc. No issues. When I removed the
upper cowling this time, I noticed the (relatively new and not well set) aft
baffle seal was turned backwards. One of the things I had really noticed
when the problem appeared yesterday was significant cowling vibration and
extra pillowing between camlocks. The Mrs and I looked hard for a cowl
problem because that’s what it felt like.
Intake gaskets were all good, but the intake tube from the sump on #3 was
loose. They were all just re-swaged at engine rebuild 120 hours ago. Ugh. It
wasn’t loose enough to go anywhere; we repositioned so that its sitting
well, cleaned and applied RTV. A temporary fix for sure.
I just finished flying .75. No roughness and all CHTs and EGTs normal. #3
CHT did not run up high like it had the last couple of takeoffs. Completely
nominal. Climb to 6500 was normal. Flew high and low MP at different RPMs.
No issues. Leaned to a about 35degrees LOP and did an ignition check. A
slight change in tone and then smooth. All 6 EGTs slowly increased, but no
roughness.
In my RV8 I found several issues the first few times operating out of
lowland airports. I live at 6k’ and mostly fly places that are as high or
higher. My canopy skirt would buzz against the fuse at high IAS, something
nerver achieved at home. On another trip, a wing root fairing let go. All of
these items were associated with descents into near sea level airports. I
think that the rear baffle seal either got flipped at cowling installation
or that the increased pressure from high IAS (and pressure) descents into
these high lowland airports flipped it.
Since I found solutions to both anomalies I was experiencing and can’t
reproduce them after those repairs, I’m headed 30 minutes South. There are
lots of friendlys at GTU, but the best runway for today’s conditions is
closed. EDC has a car waiting for me, and is closer to family so that’s the
plan for now. I’ll report in later today.
Mothership News
RV-6A Status Report ...Colin P.
I haven't posted here in quite a while. I'm
finally at the airport working on final assembly. If
you look closely, you may notice I started this
thread (2010). Yeah, it has been a slow build.
Suggestions to finish this off?
RV-8, Right Elevator. I am fitting
everything prior to final assembly of the component.
I still need a little more sanding on the E-612
fiberglass tip as it sits proud of the weight.
Just wondering what others have done in this area to
finish off the forward edge? Maybe a flox
mixture to smooth over the lead counter weight?
Rolling Tool Box Project ...RV7ForMe
Hello.... quick update. Nothing really moved
forward on my own airplane. In fact it actually went
backwards as i gave some build parts to my buddy for
his rebuild to save some time to get his RV back in
the air. I got new parts for it and the promise I
will finally get some right seat time in an actual
RV7! Never flown one
In the meantime. I saved up a bit of money and wrote
Vans a check for the Fuselage kit! Big decision time
here. It will be an RV7-A I went back and forth a
lot on this decision and reviewed my mission and
while I think the tail dragon is waaay sexyer the
nose dragger is just a bit more practical. YMMV of
course, but the decision is done.
Also, to give credit where credit is due. Somebody
on this forum posted a very nice rolling tool box
that insprired me to get one myself. Until now my
own project never requried it but since my tools
have been at the rebuild project it is actually
really convenient to have a tool box that rolls
around the airplane once parts get big. Also I just
think it is very cool......
A little off topic but fun to follow
...our RV-3/8 buddy Iron's jet project is getting
paint. Many time lapse vids at
www.kitplanes.com.
Look familiar? Off my wing a few years back. <g>
March 14, 2019. Issue #4,780
Damn Storms
You know you got a lot of rain quick when
you find a crawdad trying to cross the runway during a FOD
check. Relocated to the creek...
We had a squall line and some TSRA come through the area
around 0500 local Wednesday. After the line passed,
the air was still and clear. I drove out to get on the
treadmill for an hour and lift weights, but the sky was so
blue I opted for Plan B - a short flight. I'll
exercise after dinner...
The Luscomb upside down is over at a friend's private strip
east of Propwash (I texted him after I landed in case he
didn't know about the damage to the north end of his
property). Found out later there were several planes
moved around at both Denton and Grand Prairie. Lots of
bent metal around, but I haven't heard of any fatalities
thank goodness.
the rest of the pics
article
RV-10 Build Status Report ...LCampbell
On to some bigger pieces now, as work is well underway
with the horizontal stab. I’m getting most of the tail
feathers up to the point of closing them up and pausing,
prior to a visit from my tech counselor to double check that
I’m doing things in a manner that won’t put life or limb at
risk.
One thing I started to notice was that the dust from
deburring with the 6 inch grinder and scotch-brite wheels,
wasn’t staying in the immediate vicinity of the grinder like
I thought it was, I was finding it 10-15 feet away and it
was starting to get on everything. So, a trip to Home Depot,
and for less than $40, I’ve got a great solution of a fan,
filter, and bit of tape, to help keep the dust in check, and
it seems to be doing a great job.
One other tweak, on the HS cradles, I didn’t like how they
wanted to crease the metal (they didn’t, but looked like
they wanted to), so I grabbed some 1/32 in plywood from the
hobby pile, and made some quick 2 inch wide ‘feet’, and
simply attached them with some tape, to widen the
pressure/contact area, and liked the result.
Houston area monthly lunch (March 2019)
Lunch time again! I suppose we're due to get some B-52
burgers up at Hooks again. Let's do the usual time,
11:30, at the Aviator's Grill, this Saturday (3-16). See
y'all there!
Panel Upgrade: Old vs New ...flyr747
Snorkel Status ...scottmillhouse
After all the tales of whoa, surprisingly mine fit with
lots of trials and small cuts at baffle side. No butchering
and glass work. Appears it is designed to fit a real
Lycoming and not a clone. Getting the filter in was
challenging due to tight space. I had to take a lot off of
the cowl and made a filter cover cap that tied in the
snorkel side, side baffle and cover. RV-7A, Vans standard
Lycoming IO-360 180 hp.
Phase 1 Complete: Panel Upgrade ...BVD
I've pretty much completed phase 1 of my panel upgrade. I
wanted to upgrade the panel with modern tech, a better
autopilot, and reduce some of the weight and complexity
without cutting a new panel.
I've already started thinking about phase 2 which will
include a new panel I'll build on the bench. However, I'm
gone 8 months of the year for work, so it'll probably be a
while before it's completed and installed.
March 13, 2019. Issue #4,779
2019 Ice Cream Social Writeup ...AX-O
We had a great turn out despite the WX being
somewhat bad North and South of us. We really lucked
out. For 2 weeks ahead of the Social, the WX has
been weird. Wet particles falling from the sky,
winds on Fri got up to 50ish kts. Made arrival for
my buds somewhat difficult. We got rid off a
ridiculous amount of sugar. 8 gallons of ice cream
and supporting toppings were gone. If you have
pictures of your trip or the social, please post
them as my wife and I don't have much time to take
picture.
Yeap, we stuffed 9 additional RVs (well one rocket
too) in this small space over night. No need to tie
down outside in those winds.
...
Active Duty Air Force RV Builder Needs a Solid ...Raven31
Hey guys, I’m active duty Air Force and started
building an -8 back in October. The tail is done via
builder assist and I was planning on continuing to
build with synergy but the work schedule has changed
and I won’t be able to take leave as frequently as I
thought. Also, I’ll be moving summer of 2020 and
don’t know where yet.
My QB kits just arrived in the US and I don’t really
want to move the project multiple times and I was
curious if there is anyone in the SC area that
would have any interest in being a mentor/builder
assist? The thing I liked best about builder assist
was the guidance and “do this next” so I wasn’t
staring at the plans trying to figure what to do
next.
I don’t know how much I could get done over the next
year working a few hours at night and however long I
could on most weekends
Milestone: First Power Up ...Driving '67 RV-14A
First up, A special thanks to my friend/mentor
Art for his help, guidance and encouragement for
this challenging part of the build.
We finished up the wiring of the Avionics harness
and electrical system in the past week. Yesterday
powered up the panel for the first time. Everything
came on line, talked to each other and NO smoke
..... Woohoo!!
Time to call Steinair to finalize the panel details
and get it cut and painted.
Now back to the Salt mines to pay for this
affliction!
Cheers Jim
Status Report ...David Paule RV-3B
I bolted the engine mount on again and rigged the
right gear leg and pilot-drilled it to 1/8”. This
photo shows the drill guide I used - I made it.
Later, Rick drilled and reamed it out to .311, and
the close-tolerance straight pin is a tight fit.
...
Bonus: Roomba shop cleanup!
Electrical Gremlins ...dbegeman
I
have an issue that has been bugging me since I
bought my airplane a year ago. Unfortunately I
didn't realize it was an issue until after the
pre-purchase inspection was done and the paperwork
signed.
What happens is, when ever I push the PTT button (on
either stick) my manifold pressure gauge starts
decreasing and the ammeter deflects 180 degrees from
zero amps. It does it on either radio (ICOM 200 and
a Bendix/king nav/comm) and with the engine running
or just on battery power. The ICOM makes the ammeter
deflect one way and the Bendix/King the other way
but both deflect 180 degrees from zero amps. In
addition I have a switch labeled AMP that on the
right selection says ALT and the left selection is
unlabeled and I have no idea what function it
serves. I included pics (and hopefully I can lable
them). Any help would be appreciated!!
Mothership
Schematics
Q: Electrical Schematic Capture Software.
Getting to the point in the build where I need to
get my electrical schematics into shape (from the
back of the envelope scribblings) and looking at
something better than Visio 2003. I ran across KICAD
- it is a open source schematic capture and PCB
design tool and while it has some interesting
features is pretty straightforward to use and has a
comprehensive library of components suplimented with
the Digikey library of parts. It runs on Mac,Windows
PC and Linux, and the price is right. Worth taking a
look if you dont have a current copy of Autocad or
the Solidworks schematic capture tools.
A: For a long time, I had access to an
industrial-grade schematic capture package (Altium),
but not when I started my RV7 electrical system. I
decided to go with Visio since I didn't want to go
through the tedious task of making all the symbols
for all the component (connectors, pin numbers, etc)
or did I want to spend any $$$.
However, now that I'm at the other end of the job, I
would do it over with a basic schematic capture
package. Though the schematics aren't as "pretty",
one of the most useful things you can get from the
capture package is a netlist of connections. This is
super useful when you're running wires through the
ship and routing them to the correct boxes. I had to
basically do a manual version of this to make the
install efficient. The schematic capture packages do
it for free, and maintain it for free.
Find your favorite free version (kicad is good) and
spend the time up front; it will pay off in the long
run
March 12, 2019. Issue #4,778
2 First flights this month for people ...turbo 6A
Adriana is Kim's 7 years old grand
daughter. Had her first 15 minute flight that
was a blast. Got her boosted up with foam
blocks which helps too.
Michael is a friend of Al Girard who is from
Sweden and in line to become a professional pilot.
Asking all the right questions and loving the RV
flying qualities.
[ed. Smiling kids
getting their first RV rides? You KNOW that's
gonna be the top story <grin>. v/r,dr]
Shimmy ripped off nose gear fairing
...Michael Wellenzohn RV-10
Hi all,
I wanted to share a surprising shimmy experience and
would like to know if anyone had ever had a similar
experience with the —10.
I was landing with probably 10—15kt crosswind from
the left and experienced, after the nosewheel came
down, a short shimmy (hard surface RWY). I taxied
back to parking where I was surprised to see that
about half of the rear nosewheel fairing was ripped
off. I am flying my -10 since 2013 and
nothing like this ever has happened. On my last
annual I checked and varifyed the breakout force,
and I’ll check again next time I’m in the hangar.
My hypotheses is that the crosswind might have
forced the nosewheel out of center and started the
shimmy after touchdown.
The first ice cream social pic...
...from this past weekend. More to come.
AX-O said he would get me some pics down the road
when workload allowed. He did send me one from
the start of the day, and it was so good I thought
I'd share it now.
(click to enlarge)
How JohnInReno Did It ...clamping vent for RTV set-up
Some of the common "Quick Clamps" are reversible
so they push apart. I used a 2x2 and clamp to hold
both sides against the fuselage.
Status Report ...jcarne 7A
Well the weather has finally
turned into a Wyoming springtime (30s) which means
it's time to go full steam again in the garage! I'm
looking forward to a productive work year, perhaps
so good that I'll be flying at the end of it!
The firewall insulation has been on my mind lately
so I decided to just tackle it and get it done.
First I went through and drilled a hole mess of
holes in the firewall for various things. I ordered
in a piece 0.020" titanium from TMS Titanium, this
was quite honestly cheaper than the titanium foil
some people use and I simply don't like the look of
the wrinkly stainless. I'm not done yet but I am
glad I went this route, it seems very sturdy and
when it gets riveted/bolted down I don't think there
is going to be very much wrinkling.
First I cut the sheet on a foot shear. Cutting the
sheet is for letting the fibrax below a path for off
gassing in the event of an engine fire. Next simply
trim them to fit on the firewall. against the
fuselage.
Aircraft Extras Press Release
RV-14 NEWS and Must have's
We
are NOW accepting orders for our new "RV Center
Console". This was developed with the help of three
different RV-14 builders. It possesses the same
quality as our RV-6, 7, and 9 Console. Thanks to
their help, we are able to share a new product with
you! We now have new inventory and are able to ship.
Please visit our E-Z Out Center Console page to
place your order.
MUST HAVE's
Don't forget to purchase our “Must have's”, . . .
“No Weld Handles”, “Relay Boards”, and “Tire Valve
Extensions” for new or old aircraft projects!
For more details on these two items and more
GREAT PRODUCTS, please visit
www.aircraftextras.com.
Best regards,
Rich
Charity Cap Sighting
Baylor Girls vs Kansas State Big XII semifinal
game this past Sunday in OKC.
about the cap
March 11, 2019. Issue #4,777
Tate: Getting it done back in the day.
Today I have some wonderful family news.
At 7pm Friday night, as instructed, we logged on with our
special ID number and got the word our son Tate was accepted
into SMU (see
the letter). He was, as you might suspect, at his
after-school job cooking burgers. Of course we texted
him (and his sister, and his aunt, and his...). He has
an intern gig already lined up we think for the summer in
the
same lab his sis spent a few years in. He's
looking at Chemistry. I see a trend...
This kid absolutely crushed it the past couple
of years - all A's. And I know he worked hard at it.
I was cleaning the carpet Saturday, and while waiting for
the foam to dry so I could vacuum he explained to me,
Hello chemistry!, how the electrical properties of the
soap molecules help bind them to the oil and dirt. I
acted like I understood.
I think he'll be fine...
And he can weld. And land a Cub.
Tate, your Mom and I (and the rest of our
family and friends) are so very proud of what you've done
with your life so far, and how you carry yourself.
Character counts, and you've got it in abundance.
VAF friends, thank you for indulging a proud Dad while he
brags on his kid for a bit. Many of you have known him
as long as I have, and are punching a fist in the air just
like me.
Look out world!
Last Day of '19 Ice Season ...Vlad
the Amazing
Today was the last day of ice runway at Alton Bay. It was
a good season. Looking forward to 2020 good job airport
crew! Thank YOU!
many pictures
Landing light install....frustrated ...Reflex
After surfing through various web sites,
searching the Van's store, and running a few searches on VAF,
I decided I need to get a bit of advice. I'm having trouble
figuring out how to install the landing lights on my -14.
Based on my searches and common sense, it would appear that
the landing lights would need to be installed to W-00017
before riveting it in place. Unfortunately, I didn't figure
that out until I had the left bracket installed.
At issue: How does the landing light install/connect to
W-00017?
Since wing wiring is going to take place
very soon, it would make sense to do the installation of the
light (or at least the prep) now. The plans in section 17 do
not address this. It would seem to me that Van's would have
given at least some indication of what is needed at this
time.
Questions:•Is this indeed the right time to install the
landing light(s)?
•What size light will/should or is best to fit in the wing?
•What is needed to connect this light to the air frame?
•Is there any way to do this AFTER W-00017 is installed?
I'm a bit frustrated by having to take valuable build time
on a Saturday morning to post on something as simple as
section 17. (By the way, gotta love the verbiage on 17-09;
step 1 last sentence.)
Sorry for the rant. The kit and plans have been excellent to
this point and the fit and finish are beyond excellent. The
verbiage in the written instructions just leaves a bit to be
desired in a number of places.
Many thanks to any of you who could take a look at the
questions above and give me your thoughts.
VAFcast #2 Online ...the podcast.
Rob 'Mashy' Reece RV-8
Pics mentioned in the podcast
Flying my new RV6a home ...Chuck KC
After a year of searching for a plane, originally looking
Mooneys'. I have decided to go with a Vans RV6a. You just
can't beat the technology and price of an experimental.
Since I did not build, I am looking forward to getting to
know all about this airplane and working on it with
guidance. I am a really big advocate of owner assisted and
want to learn as much as I can. Super excited for the
adventures to come! This is my solo flight after receiving
transition training from a CFI.
Came in a donation letter
...beautiful RV based in Sweden. Thank you for
sending those pictures, Mr. Bramberg!
Donations List Updated Over the
Weekend
...THANK YOU!!!! for helping our family keep this small
business going!
Annual French VANS Fly-in
Hi everyone,
We have just released the official announcement for our
annual French VANS fly-in in Pont sur Yonne (not far from
Paris) :
EVERYONE WELCOME
Anyone if France on June 14-15-16 is welcome to join
us for this great week-end.
It's nothing to compare with Oshkosh but it's a great
friendly week-end where we discuss our common passion while
enjoying good cuisine and wine in the French way...
Simply dowload, fill and return the registration form from
the website to let us know if you whish to join us
It would be great to have anyone from the USA or anywhere
else visit us, I can assure you that you will feel very
welcome and will learn some french and enjoy good food
Mothership News
Notice to California Residents – Sales
Tax Collection
If you live in California, we need to make you aware
of a change that’s been required by the state
related to the collection of sales tax.
The State of California will require Van’s Aircraft
to collect sales tax for orders delivered to people
or businesses in California beginning April, 2019.
The sales tax rate varies by locality and will be
calculated for each order.
Note that our online store and kit order forms do
not automatically add the state sales tax to your
sales total — although we will be working on a store
enhancement to enable that capability later this
year. Our team will add the applicable tax and
notify you of the amount when processing your sales
invoice.
If you have a tax exemption certificate you wish to
provide Van’s Aircraft, please email a copy to info@vansaircraft.com
and we will ensure your account in configured as
tax-exempt.
March 8, 2019. Issue #4,776
VAFcast #2 Online ...Rob 'Mashy' Reece RV-8
Pics mentioned in the podcast
The VAFcast this time around spotlights 52F's own
Rob 'Mashy' Reece, RV-8 builder, former coworker and
friend of about 25 years. Rob is the airport manager
of 52F and is building his RV-8 about twenty feet
from where I store my RV-6.
This time around we have some new equipment that
makes recording a little easier, and as time goes on
we'll figure out how to use it better.
Intro music 'Guitars and Cadillacs' in honor of
Rob's love of all things Texas and old school C&W.
I know it's out of tune and the timing is off, but
I'm not recording a second take ;^).
Rob's golf clubs in wing mod...
33 minutes or so, and hope you enjoy it.
Thanks for helping keep this site online with your
donations. They get turned into things like this
<g>.
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and
RV-filled weekend. Enjoy VAFcast #2, straight
from two guys who have no idea what they're doing...
RV-Lancair Brotherhood Day New Entry
After weeks of bad weather, we finally had a
flyable day so we all met at Spartanburg for lunch.
Owen, Mark, and Steve brought their RVs, and Alex
from Hendersonville brought the beautiful CallAir 90
(Like a Piper Cub) that he restored. Owen brought
along a 12 y.o. future pilot. We ate lunch at
Jason's again.
Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the RV-4 at EAA AirVenture
Oshkosh!
...mothership.
related:
Thread
Pinholes while painting the interior my RV
I'm sorry if I don't know the terms in painting,
but according to my research what's happening to me
is called pinholes. I have these little dots of
contamination, like those little balls of lint that
you get in your clothes.
I've cleaned the fuselage
thoroughly, vacuumed it, compressed air, then water
and alcohol until it was spot on clean.
I built a
homemade paint booth with an inlet and an outlet all
amounting to positive pressure to avoid drawing dust
into it, I wet the floor to avoid dust or fallen
paint from rising back up into the cabin but no
luck.
RV painters, How have you approached this? Any
advice?
Night flying in experimentals
Q: How do people go about getting
permission to fly at night? I have the required
lights installed, but the FAA inspector that
inspected my plane pointed out that FAR 91.319
states:
"(d) Each person operating an aircraft that has an
experimental certificate shall -
(1) Advise each person carried of the experimental
nature of the aircraft;
(2) Operate under VFR, day only, unless otherwise
specifically authorized by the Administrator..."
There is nothing in my operating limitations that
specifically prohibits night flying, but it does
state I have to comply with FAR 91.319.
I guess I have the same question about flying
experimental airplanes IFR, however I don't intend
to do that. The inspector, while helpful, was very
obviously not willing to negotiate limitations in
the regs so I didn't press him about it.
A:
(Vic) You didn't mention when you received your
operating limitations. The last few Orders allow
night and IFR if properly equipped after completion
of Phase I.
Here is the exact wording form Order 8130.2J. BTW,
you can always ask for new Operating Limitations
from the FSDO. But, also bear in mind that the DAR
and/or FSDO inspector does have the authority to
tighten the limitations, but never relax them.
22. Night flight operations are authorized if the
instruments specified in § 91.205(c) are installed,
operational, and maintained per the applicable
requirements of part 91. (48)
23. Instrument flight operations are authorized if
the instruments specified in § 91.205(d) are
installed, operational, compliant with the
performance requirements of, and maintained per the
applicable regulations. All maintenance or
inspection of this equipment must be recorded in the
aircraft maintenance records and include the
following items: Date, work performed, and name and
certificate number of the person returning the
aircraft to service. (49)
Wing Tip Spliting
Having a heavy wing issue. I corrected some of it
by rerigging the right aileron which was off by a
good 1/8-1/2 inch. I flew today and while it's much
improved it's still heavy on the left side.
Looking at my wing tips, they're not aligned with
the ailerons, which are aligned with the flaps,
which are aligned with the bottom of the fuselage.
There's no control surface twists either, all the
rivets line up. Here are a few pictures.
To me it makes sense to correct the right one
first. Go fly and if I then have a heavy right wing
then correct the left one.
I'm not 100% sure on the technique used to do all
this. I'm guessing you just dremel across and
'split' the trailing edge. Then pull it up where
it's level with the aileron. Then drill some
reference holes to cleco later. Sand the inside flox
back together and cleco to dry.
Does that sound about right? If I cut too much off
when splitting can I fill with milled fiberglass vs
flox or maybe use some fabric?
Thanks!
March 7, 2019. Issue #4,775
RV-8 and the Hoquiam Bird Walk ...Steve Rush
Saturday 3/2/19 was a rare clear day here the PNW.
The snow and ice was on the run and we could finally
see the ground again. Hoquiam is a nice little
spot way out on the coast. It used to be a more
common destination when the restaurant was open, but
it closed several years ago. It is still a nice
place to go for a walk.
Nose Wheel Breakout Force
Q: Have any of you had to re-adjust the nose
wheel breakout force after flying for a while?
A:
Yes, mine went loosened up to 16lbs before I was
finished with phase 1. Tightened back up to spec and
I'll check it again before leaving for SNF.
A:
Some loosening after gaining time in use is totally
normal. I usually recommend that people check
it (regardless of RV model) after 30-40 hrs and then
again at 100. After 100 it usually doesn't
change much.
Milestone: It Moves!
Our RV-8/3 buddy Paul Dye taxied his newest
project for the first time recently. Video at
the link. This thing went together in about
twenty minutes <g>.
Old Thread, New Shimmy ...Joe Wilber
Resurrecting an old thread here.
I've been flying for about 1.5 years and have *never
had a nose wheel shimmy problem. This morning I
landed in some moderate cross-wind conditions and
the landing was a little sloppy, coming down onto
the nose-wheel quickly after the main gear. And
there was a shimmy during roll out. The shimmy
remained until I turned off the runway.
Several months ago I noticed the same thing. As I
recall, that time was something like 10 gusting to
20 all crosswind and I had the same issue. I quickly
put the nose wheel down after landing an the nose
shimmied during roll out until turn off.
I fly about once a week and apart from these two
incidents my nose wheel does not shimmy.
Anyone have any idea what might be going on here?
RV-8 Status Report ...Ed Hicks
We've been finishing a few post-paint tasks off
in the workshop - hoping to take this to the
airfield in the next few weeks.
Take Your Airplane to Work Day ...Jvon811
Here's a couple. First is when I'm waiting for
freight at work when Mom and Dad just happen to be
in the area. Second is my airplane with some Heavy
Iron while volunteering at the Yankee Air Museum.
What is this? (thread)
Seen from the air Wednesday in OK.
enlarge pic
March 6, 2019. Issue #4,774
Charity
cap
sighting. Friend rubbing it in.
Click on pic to see the rest... dr
Shawn's RV-7 (Desert Garage Works) ...Gilbert, AZ
I finally got started on actual
plane construction (barely) and thought it is a good
time to start a progress thread.
Working now to sand down those nasty file marks
left from "breaking" the edges.
The LONG version, from the start . . .
I got first taste of an RV about 2 years ago when my
cousin took me for a brief ride in his RV-7. From
then on I was hooked and knew I need to get one
"some day." I read about the kits on the mother-ship
website and knew that building one was an experience
I wanted.
This past June (2018) I sold my house and moved into
one with an awesome garage setup. It has a two car
garage and a separate one car garage. At that point
I had planned on making the small one-car garage a
"shop" for working on r/c planes and other small
projects.
Soon after we moved in, my wife decided she much
preferred to pull her car straight into the small
garage, as opposed to having to make a hard left in
the driveway to get into the bigger garage. It was
then that the larger two-car garage became mine.
...
Build Status Report ...goatflieg
I've posted a new Blogspot entry. It's another
long one chock full of lots of little firewall-forwardy
details. Yum Yum. Click on the Blogspot link in my
signature below. Here's the teaser photo:
SUN 'n FUN Homebuilt Parking Change! & NOTAM
I am involved in planning for this year's SUN 'n
FUN event, and wanted to relay important changes to
the parking plan, changes that will allow us to
linger, inspect and otherwise enjoy other folks
craftsmanship.
Our former Homebuilt parking area was just north of
the central (core) area of SnF, and this parking sat
right under the lateral path of our showcase
flybys--which are flown at 500'. Because of FAA
regulations concerning flight over populated areas,
the FSDO allowed us to park aircraft there but the
occupants were not allowed to linger in that area
after parking.
Naturally, we want to see each other's
aircraft--comparing innovations and enjoying other
people's build quality are some of the joys of what
we do. We received a lot of well-deserved complaints
in the past three years over the requirement to
vacate that parking area during the flyby period,
which normally takes place between 10 am and the
beginning of the airshow, normally 1 or 1:30 pm.
That's a lot of time required to be outside the area
you wanted to be in. You made valid points, and we
listened.
Our new Homebuilt parking area is evolving--and this
year's efforts are part of a multi-year push to
expand and enhance your SnF experience. This year's
primary Homebuilt parking will be located on the
south side of taxiway E, just to the east of
Vintage. Overflow Homebuilt aircraft will be taken
to the north side of E, just across from the main
parking area.
The good news? This area is NOT inside the
overflight clear zone, and you WILL be able to
remain, linger, drool, covet, envy, inspect, polish,
buy, photograph, and otherwise enjoy all of the
other Homebuilts in the area full time, regardless
of flybys or even the air show. This area is just
for parking (no camping), and your windshield sign
should read HB to get there.
If you wish to camp beside your aircraft, the normal
Homebuilt Camping area has not changed locations.
Use the HBC sign to be directed to that point.
We are rolling the area prior to the show to ensure
smoothness. We will also compress parking spot
distances to ensure we get as many aircraft into
that area, but of course we will do so with the
safety and security of your aircraft in mind. We
don't move aircraft after they have been parked and
positioned with the owner present.
Feel free to contact me if you have questions or
concerns. Our job is to provide you a great
experience at SUN 'n FUN, and I promise we will do
our best.
Oh--and here's the NOTAM. There will be minor
revisions, so be sure to look for those before you
take off.
Fly safely-
Sam Huffstetler, aka "Flipper"
Chairman, Air Ops
Mothership News
Garmin ® expands aviation database coverage and capabilities in
Australia
Garmin International, Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd.
(NASDAQ: GRMN), today announced it has received
approval of a CASR 175.C Data Service Provider (DSP)
certificate from the Civil Aviation Safety Authority
(CASA), enabling expanded aviation database coverage
in Australia. In addition to the integration of
Airservices Australia data into the suite of Garmin
databases, Garmin Pilot™ within Australia has also
expanded to offer additional data and supports
connectivity between Apple mobile devices and
compatible avionics in the cockpit, including
wireless flight plan transfer. Pilots can now take
advantage of these new databases in Australia within
Garmin Pilot, as well as in a new, cost-effective
PilotPak database bundle on the flyGarmin® website.
more
Garmin Pilot v9.6 is Out ...FYI
March 5, 2019. Issue #4,773
Iceport 2019 ...Shark
It was a beautiful Saturday here in Minnesota so
my daughter and I took a very fun run up to Lake
Milli Lacs for the Iceport 2019 fly in. Only saw one
other RV, maybe next year there will be more.
more pics
Fantastic News!!! ...RV8Squaz
I am happy to announce with great
pride and joy, that our very own Ron Schreck has
been selected to be the Contest Director (CD) for
the 2019 US National Aerobatic Championships!!
This is a huge deal. It is a tremendous honor and
responsibility. Ron will be responsible for
organizing and safely and efficiently running the
week long event which will involve the coordination
of about a hundred competitors, dozens of
volunteers, and all of the similar logistics you
would find at a small air show to include food,
hangars, vehicles, etc. Adding to the complexity of
the event is that we will be operating out of a new
venue, Salina, KS. And I know my buddy is up to the
task (although he feels a little overwhelmed at the
moment ) Here is the official announcement from the
IAC:
"2019 U.S. NATIONALS CONTEST DIRECTOR NAMED
Submitted by Executive Director on Fri, 2019-03-01
21:56
At a Special Teleconference Meeting of the IAC Board
of directors held today, Ron Schreck IAC #433751 was
chosen, by unanimous affirmation by the Board of
Directors, as the Contest Director for the 2019 U.S.
Nationals to be held in Salina, Kansas, 21-27
September 2019.
Ron is a member of the IAC Board of Directors and
serves as the South Central Regional Director, a
position he has held since he was elected in 2016.
Ron lives in Gold Hill Airpark, North Carolina. He
is an Intermediate competitor in his RV-8 Miss Izzy
and a National Judge. Ron was also a member of the
aerobatic formation team of AeroDynamix where he was
the flight lead. A graduate of the U.S. Air Force
Academy, service in the United States Air Force as a
fighter pilot for over 20 years, and a career as a
USAir Captain, Ron has an excellent background as an
organizer.
Ron reported today that he already has begun work on
the foundation of the Nationals by arranging to meet
with airport officials and the Visit Salina!, the
Salina Area Chamber of Commerce, in Salina on March,
25, 2019. He will be joined by IAC Chapter 119
founding member A.J. Hefel of Wichita, Kansas, who
will be his on-site liaison in the coming months.
Ron has the full support and encouragement of the
IAC Board of Directors and we are looking forward to
a successful in event in September."
So there you go, an RV guy as the CD of the US
Nationals Aerobatic Championship! RVs are respected
and welcomed at IAC events all over the country. RV
participation is desired at all levels in the IAC.
If there was ever a time to join the IAC and
participate in the many fun events, the time is now!
Why don't you join in on the fun?! I hope to see you
at a future contest or chapter practice day
sometime!
N803DR Performance Numbers ...j-red
Just another data point for
comparison with other 8 owners and builders.
After a few hours learning how to fly (and
particularly how to LAND!) this thing, I've got the
confidence needed to install the wheel pants and
gear leg fairings without subjecting them to assured
destruction!
Lots of work has gone into these, and they're still
not perfect, but I think they turned out pretty
good.
...
Hit a milestone on Sunday ...Bill R.
My 10 year-old asked to go flying
on Sunday. Now that he can see over the panel (with
the help of a stack of cushions), he is more and
more asking to go.
He did his usual great job of flying us over his
school, over a new highway extension, looking at the
Bradford Pears that are in bloom, etc. All while
doing a great job of holding altitude.
When I filled out my logbook after the flight, I
realized I now have 1001.2 hours of tailwheel
time. I feel like counting tailwheel time in an RV
is cheating since they are so easy to fly!
That's OK because someday, someone with a P-40 might
need someone with a thousand hours of tailwheel time
to fly it for them.
Build or Buy ...Danny King PIREP
It's a very personal decision. I started the Doll
September 1997. The quick build option was months
away, so the only option available to me was a slow
build. Buying? Not a chance. As best as I could
calculate, the Doll was the 20th RV-8 to fly. No one
was selling RV-8's in September 1997! Why not an
RV-4? I love the 4, but she is a little too small
for me. My 5' 8" wife was cramped in the back seat,
and cargo space was too sparse for the two of us.
So....I ordered the RV-8 tail and wing kit. Two
years and seven month later the Doll was fully
painted and ready for her first flight. I did not
consider the building experience work. It was pure
joy! So why does it take builders ten years to
assemble a quick build? I really don't know! I was
flying a Boeing 727 fifteen out of thirty days every
month during the 2 year 7 month build. I was in
hotels away from my shop two or three nights on each
of those trips. When I was home I put in the hours,
but it really wasn't work. It was fun and joy and
pride of workmanship. It was a tremendous feeling of
accomplishment.
Watching the admiring crowds around the Doll at
Oshkosh 2000 was incredible. Van himself left his
tent and inspected Beautiful Doll parked out in the
west field now known as EAB camping. What a Rush!
I never added up all the receipts but I figure I
first flew the Doll for around $55K with steam
gauges and a rebuilt used engine. Since then, engine
and avionics updates have put the investment around
$85-$90K. She's not for sale, but if she were, you
could not get her from me for anywhere near that
number!
Someone posted.... you have to include the "cost" of
the work in the amount invested. Someone else said
to substitute the word "Joy" for "cost". I can tell
you it was all Joy! It's been over 21 years since I
drilled that first hole, and the joy continues along
with a big RV grin every time I fly her!
Note: Having flown three different RV-4's and 26
different RV-8's I think the 4 edges out the 8 in
pure flying characteristics. So Smokey Ray....
you're right on there! The RV-4 is a wonderful
flying machine, and the easiest taildragger I've
every landed.
You Never Know ...Iron
...where you’ll find EAB
(or RV) guys....years ago, I was showing the
Snowbirds around the old Mission Control Center, and
when I was explaining flight director call signs,
and that mine was “Iron”, one of them pointed at me
and says “Hey, you’re Iron Flight! We know you -
I’ve got an RV, he’s building one, and he’s got one
(pointing at other Snowbirds)”
Turns out they were a bunch of good old bush and RV
pilots at heart....
Guy Looking for a RV-6/7/8 to Buy
...buddy of Rob 'Smokey' Ray. (Rob) "My
JAARS missionary pilot buddy Glenn is looking for an
RV. $60K range. 6,7,8 preferably.
Pic of him 'at his office' as a missionary pilot."
[ed. If anyone has an RV to
sell in the range, give Smokey Ray a shout at
smokyray 'at' rocketmail 'dot' com.
v/r,dr]
Fast and Slow ...Carlos151 RV-8
As most of you know, joining the 200kt club in
our machines is a regular occurrence. I was just out
playing last week and with these crazy winds we've
been having in the TN valley, I recorded my fastest
and slowest ground speeds in level flight yet, with
not a whole lot of effort.
RV-14 Panel PIREP ...jeffw@sc47
Finally, everything attached and mounted on panel
and behind panel, VP-X Pro with configuration
transferred, Master Switch ON. Hold breath and step
back . . .
No smoke or sparks. VerticalPower VP-X; ACK
ELT, Garmin - G5, GDU465, GMC507, GTN650, GTR200,
GMA245, GDU470, GTX45R_emote.
Now on to a few small buckets of airframe finishings
up, gear leg fairings, wheel pants, etc, etc...
March 4, 2019. Issue #4,772
From the archives - Jaybird and
Freeman. dr
Heavy Iron - RV brotherhood day
Since there was an RV-Lancair brotherhood thread,
I didn't think this would be out of place.
Just got finished with my every 9 month
dial-a-disaster experience in the B737 simulator.
I've been on this plane so long I usually know the
other pilot and the instructor.
However, today both the copilot and the instructor
were new acquaintances and for the first time ever
for me - we all had RV's. So the requisite
emergency procedures and limitations oral was
interspersed with discussions of cool places to fly
your RV. Johnson Creek, ID is now on my planned trip
list.
Former military pilots used to make up a majority of
hires at my airline - and they frequently avoid (or
have never done) GA flying. We have a lot more
civilian only pilots now, so my experience today may
become more common.
__________________
Krea Ellis
Falcon Flight Formation Clinic April 5-7th 2019
For anyone interested in RV
formation flying Falcon Flight will be hosting a
Formation Clinic April 5-7, 2019 at KGYI North Texas
Regional airport. If interested please contact via
the link below.
Petit Jean Spring ... A Hill Country Soriee...Fredericksburg, TX
March 22-24
Mag Failure - Check Slick SB 1-15A ...TimO
I figured this is a good one to post here,
because many of us ordered engines and built RV14's
with engine from the same era.
I had a complete mag failure on my one and only
mag in the RV-14. It was first caught on the ground,
during run-up, and it wasn't vague at all as to
there being a problem. Once I tore into it, what I
found was pretty unexpected, yet based on the parts
Slick was using at the time, I believe many of you
will fun into the issue if you have affected mags,
and it is absolutely a good one to take care of. I
hadn't caught this Service Bulletin until now, so
now that I'm aware I want to make sure you know
about it too.
...
Mothership...
Aircraft On Ground (AOG Stuck). Now Fixed ...MConner
(original)
On landing the pitch trim would only run nose
down from either stick, not up at all. After landing
and fiddling with it I see that the tab on the
copilots side is full up and the pilot side is just
a little nose up above neutral.
(update)
Ok I appreciate all the support. I can hear the
relay clicking in both directions. I did run the
trim full forward without meaning to a little at the
time while troubleshooting it.
Thank you for being part of this forum and helping
me understand how the system worked.
Help: Cracks in Landing Gear Mounts ...mbauer
Today started my annual condition
inspection for the RV. Found some cracks in the
landing gear mounts. My mechanic is learning about
RV's.
Not sure if these are something that can cause
issues down the road.
Here is the only photo that is in focus, other side
is almost identical to this photo:
That time of year: improving cabin heat ...Dugaru
I've had some modest success improving the cabin
warmth of my RV-9A, and I owe it all to the various
posts here. So I thought I would list what I've
done, in the hope that some other freezing RVer
might find this info useful in the future.
RE: RV-12 'Rudder Slip'
(Scott M. reply)
The RV-12 uses plastic bushings as guides for the
rudder cables (all of the RV models do actually but
because the skins are predominantly thinner on the
RV-12 it can resonate the noise they sometimes make,
to a higher degree).
It is fairly common to hear a rubbing / screeching
sound on the ground when moving the rudder pedals.
You may have just noticed a change in yours because
of different temperature, slight wear in the
bushings (this is normal... they typically last for
thousands of hours), etc.
It should still be investigated to confirm the
source since we can not hear what you are hearing,
so there could still be something else causing it.
What for sure is not the cause, is loose (they are
loose by design until you put your feet on the
pedals)or stretched cables.
3-years In (pics) ...74-07
Superior Buyback
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SUPERIOR AIR PARTS ANNOUNCES IT IMPLEMENTING AN
IMMEDIATE AND MANDATORY
BUY-BACK PROGRAM FOR ALL XP-382 AND XP-400
EXPERIMENTAL ENGINES
The company is contacting each XP-382 and XP-400
series experimental engine owner to arrange to
immediately buy-back their engine.
Coppell, TX (March 01, 2019) — Scott Hayes, VP,
Sales and Marketing for Superior Air Parts, Inc.,
announced today that the company is implementing an
immediate and mandatory buy-back of all the Superior
Air Parts XP-382 and XP-400 series experimental
aircraft engines in the field.
“This is not something we want to do, but the safety
of our customers is our utmost priority. Because of
that we are contacting every Superior XP-382 and
XP-400 engine owner to arrange to buy-back their
engine,” Hayes stated. “We know it is a considerable
inconvenience but again, safety of flight is
paramount in everything we do.”
“We have already contacted a number of our owners
and while it’s no surprise that they are not happy
with the situation, they understand that we are
doing this because it is the right thing to do,” he
said. “In fact, the typical response has been them
thanking us for keeping their safety as our top
priority."
Bill Ross, A&P I/A and Superior Air Parts’ VP
Product Support explained that the company’s
decision to take all of the XP-382 and XP-400
engines out of the market comes after a lengthy
evaluation and testing process.
“When we first learned of the breadth of the
detonation problem, we contacted XP-400 engine
owners and paid to have them ship their engines to
our facility for evaluation,” Ross said. “We
disassembled, inspected and tested the key
components in each engine.”
“The good news was the majority of the engines were
absolutely clean, with no signs of stress wear or
damage,” he said. “The bad news is of the few we
found with issues, neither our engineering team or
our metallurgy specialists were able to define a
consistent root cause of the issues.”
Ross added that even after the company took all the
available steps to adjust the engine’s ignition
timing to reduce internal stress, the results were
still unsatisfactory. So to eliminate the
possibility of any future occurrences, the company
is grounding all XP-382 and XP-400 engines
immediately.
While the detonation problems are currently confined
to the XP-400 engines, Hayes said that because the
XP-382 shares so many of the same internal
components, that the decision was made to include
that model in the program as well.
“I want to be 100-percent clear that the grounding
and buy-back mandate does not include any XP-320 or
XP-360 engines,” he said.
“Throughout Superior Air Parts’ 50-plus year
history, we have stood behind the quality and safety
of our products,” Hayes said. “While the financial
burden of this buy-back is significant, it is not as
stressful as thinking that we have failed, in any
way, to do what we could to protect the safety of
our customers and their passengers.”
For more information, please contact:
Scott Hayes, VP Sales and Marketing: 972.215.6992
Bill Ross, VP Product Support: 214.395.9183
March 1, 2019. Issue #4,771
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled
weekend!
March Wallpaper Calendar
Kurt W. N425KW fresh out of GLO
Custom at 52F.
Auto Paint ...Rob Traynham RV-7
I recently took a day to clean and wax our RV-7
(originally built by Brian Carroll) which was painted with
automotive paint. I remembered reading threads about the
advantages and disadvantages of this type of paint system. A
recurring question was, “ Yeah, but how well is it going to
hold up?” So, to answer that question, I thought I’d offer
the following photographs, one made almost nine years ago
just after painting and then, another set made yesterday.
Brian and his friend Corky Robert’s did this in Corky’s
paint shop. I have experienced and operated aircraft ranging
from a two-time Oshkosh winning Champ to a brand new
Gulfstream 550 and this is, by far, the best paint, both in
gloss retention and durability, that I’ve ever seen.
Rob Traynham
ATP, A&P
RV-7 N125RT (was N155BK - Aurora)
Pics
James Aircraft Acquired
Gaithersburg,
MD, February 28, 2019 – James Aircraft, known for producing
high-quality cowls, plenums, wheel pants, induction systems,
and spinners for experimental aircraft, is under new
ownership. Sam James founded the company over twenty years
ago and is now retiring after a long and colorful career.
The company is relocating to Montgomery County Airpark (KGAI)
in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and will continue to operate as
James Aircraft.
The new owners have extensive experience in fabricating
composite structures and in building experimental aircraft.
They intend to preserve James Aircraft’s tradition of
delivering quality products and providing great customer
service. The integrity and attention to detail that Sam and
his son, Will, are known for will remain core values.
Production of new components is temporarily halted until the
new facility is established. Production will resume in
mid-March.
The new James Aircraft will improve existing production
methods and develop additional products and materials. The
James Aircraft website will be redesigned to make it easier
to find important information.
The new owners of James Aircraft are RV builders and pilots,
and your comments and feedback are welcome.
For more information about James Aircraft and its products,
please visit us at http://www.jamesaircraft.com. For orders
or additional information please call +1-301-615-1511 or
send an email to email info@jamesaircraft.com.
[ed. Their ad lives in the Previous
Day's News section. v/r,dr]
Rudder Gust Lock ....DIY options
"I made one based on Greg's drawings"
Recent Mothership First Flight Reports
Scott Anderson
Robert Godsy (w/video of first flight)
February 28, 2019. Issue #4,770
Pic from the archives (2007).
Scorch takeoff. dr pic.
RV-10 Project Switzerland
Good day,
Just a few words to announce our RV-10 project,
started in August 2018. We just love every moment of
it so far!
Our blog is also online, it is not
a technical one but rather a place where we will
document and share this great adventure with 3 to 5
articles per year.
Many have done, or are doing, a detailed build blog
and I take this opportunity to really thank them for
their work which is a tremendous help to new
builders. For the RV-10 : Brian Chesteen (Brantel),
Jason Ellis (video blog), Adam Bezancon (adamsrv10),
Mark Ciaglia (marksfamilyrv10), Charlie (N688CD),
Mike (rvten.com), Richard Williams (mouser) and many
others.
Thanks a lot also to Doug Reeves
for running this forum and to the contributors!
[ed. You're very welcome
Sir! v/r,dr]
Brgds,
__________________
Yannick Bovier
RV-10 HB-YYB
Switzerland
From E-MAG
2/25/19
Dear E-MAG Fans:
We
want to give our VAF friends a quick heads-up that
revised E-MAG pricing will be in place by the middle
of March, 2019. We’ve been able to hold prices
stable since the fall of 2013 - over five years.
Unfortunately, the cost of manufacturing has not
been as considerate. All Series 114 four cylinder
products will be affected. Prices for Series 200T,
our new six cylinder model, will remain unchanged
for now. If you are considering a purchase in the
near future, you might want to call before the
increase hits (817 444 5310). We can defer
delivery/payment for up to 60 days, if that helps
your budget planning.
We’d also like to express our appreciation to
everyone in the Experimental community, and the VAF
crowd in particular, for your continued
encouragement and support.
Kindest Regards,
The E-MAG Team
Bunch of 90* Bends ...kentlik 7A status report
Start of fuel mockup on the bench. Kitchen
remodel bench. I looked at the standard Vans
valve and it had 90° bends.
Now I worked for a time in fluids and controls at an
engineering firm dealing with prototypes and we
avoided 90° bends like the plague in pneumatic
systems. Low pressure systems, 50-250psi. I am going
to have to do some semi-scientific empirical testing
on this to satisfy myself this is GTG as I don't
have four different types of engineers to get free
information from hahaha!
Good news is I can read!
Thanks to Rick Brennan! ...David Paule RV-3B
Since then, progress has been made: the tapered pin is within 1/8”, which
is about the axial equivalent, roughly, to the .004" diameter needed of
being ready for assembly. The final eighth inch, though, needed another #3
reamer.
Once we got back together again, we followed this process. I’m starting at
the beginning of the recovery here rather than the final 1/8”.
1. Secure the assembly on the mill.
2. Drill through the joint with the smallest drill that's close to the final
size for the small end of the tapered pin.
3. Step drill the hole so that the drills don't exceed the taper wall sides,
but going as far as possible short of that.
4. For the final reaming with a tapered reamer, put the reamer in a Tee
handle.
5. Make a mandrel such that you can use a milling machine for pressure,
pushing down on the reamer.
6. Press down on the reamer with the mill while a second person rotates the
reamer by hand. For here on out, the mill is turned off. Use plenty of
cutting oil. There is plenty of axial force on the reamer, and plenty of
necessary torque on the Tee handle. Use work gloves. Only turn it in the
cutting direction, even when pulling it out for a look.
7. Check often. But it goes slowly enough that if you do that, you won't
exceed the tolerance. When checking, don't neglect to deburr the exit of the
tapered hole. That burr hinders the assessment of the progress you're
making.
And the bottom line is that this side is done, finally, after a LONG time of
being unworkable. Thank you, Rick!
Dave
At my home field....
.....2019 assessments were mailed 2/27.
Check those mailboxes fellow property owners, and
hope you're enjoying your new runway, drainage,
signs and more! <g>.
February 27, 2019. Issue #4,769
Whirlwind factory tour ...Steve Melton
I met Jim Rust at Whirlwind Propeller (KSEE) for
a factory tour and he showed me his latest product
in development, a new three blade constant speed,
and said I could post a few pictures. Note how thin
the blade is, that's good for performance. It seems
they have invested in technology with a 5 axis mill
that produces the hub in one setup for precision
parts. My Whirlwind 200RV prop has performed
flawlessly for 750 hrs and looks good.
...
Prices of 8's...506DC
chimes in with his RV-4 build experience
"Building an airplane is not for the faint of
heart. I raised four kids and owned a CPA firm so it
took me ten years to build my RV-4 and I wanted to
quit several times during the process. In those days
we did not have the internet so I traveled about 100
miles to get help, take pictures and ask questions.
Because of my work and family, the most of the work
was done during the last 5 months of the year.
Should you buy or build. Today Vans kits are eons
more user friendly and building resources are
unlimited. First you have to look at your financial
resources. When I built my kit, I spent about 3K per
year. With a used motor, I finished the kit for
about 30K. I wished that I had purchased a new motor
but motors were expensive and since then, I
installed a new motor and CS prop. Today it’s going
to cost you somewhere around 100K to build an RV-8
if you have someone paint it for you and you
purchase a new motor and a CS prop. You will have to
get it registered, inspected and pay sales tax if
you live in a sales tax state so that’s another
8-10K and that’s a lot of bread. There is some ways
to avoid sales taxes but that can be a dicey
situation. Buying a used airplane may be the best
way to go depending on if you can get a good one
with all the things you want. Unfortunately,
avionics are expensive and sellers for good reason
are not willing to take a discount in sales price
for having a nice panel so the sales price is
adjusted accordingly. If you can find a good used
RV-8 for 60K that is finished and painted, buy it
now!
Would I personally buy or build it today? In no way
do I regret that I built an airplane. My wife tells
me that I can fix anything. I am not sure if that is
true but after building an airplane, I look at every
project differently. I am the IA for my RV and I
work on the certified planes that I have owned and
just about no maintenance operation I will not
attempt with the proper tools and maintenance guide.
I have kept all my aircraft tools and I use them for
repairing aircraft both experimental and certified.
I have used my tools to repair and build stuff
around the house also. Using my skills for all of my
projects both aircraft and domestic has saved me
thousands of dollars. Numerous times I do things
today that I would not even attempt before I built
an airplane. I always owned at least one airplane
and when I had just finished my RV-4; I was also
flying a 1969 V35A Bonanza. I flew to Stockton, CA
for a business meeting and during the flight one of
the magnetos broke apart and dumped the impulse
coupling parts through the accessory case and into
the oil pan. On run-up, my mag did not check so I
taxied to a maintenance facility. The owner quoted
me about 5k to remove, disassemble and replace the
motor and that was a lot of money in 1998. You could
have painted a Bonanza for less than 5K in 1998. He
offered to let me use his facility if I had an A&P.
After I told him that I just completed a homebuilt,
he let me do the work myself. I showed up with my
tools in a trailer and yanked that engine out, took
off the accessory case, removed the oil pan,
cleaned, inspected, reassembled and took the
opportunity to replace a low compression cylinder in
the process. He inspected the airplane and signed
off the paperwork and charged me $500 for assistance
with craning the removal and installation and use of
his facility. I did everything else. I would never
have attempted or given the opportunity to do this
project without a guy named Richard VanGrunsven. A
friend of mine owned a Baron. He had an elevator
trim tab replaced during an annual inspection. They
charged him 10K to replace the hinge. I did not have
the heart to tell him that I could have done it for
25 bucks. When you build a RV-8, you’re not only
getting an airplane, you are getting a degree in
aircraft construction of some level depending on the
completeness of the kit.
I am currently looking at STOL aircraft like a
Kitfox. Everybody needs three airplanes, right. My
RV cruises at 180 knots so I have the cross-country
thing nailed. I also have a Cessna 170B. I use it
for giving taildragger endorsements and my wife
won’t let me sell it because it has four seats and
we can take friends for $100 hamburgers. She told
me, “If you sell the Cessna, you better have one in
the hangar to replace it” You have got to love that
type of woman! Should I purchase an STOL or build? I
have never covered an airplane with fabric, how
difficult could that be?……Hmmmm."
West Coast Formation Clinic
Less than a week out.
Get those apps in.
11th Annual Ice Cream Social at Inyokern, CA on March 9th
Less than 2 weeks out. A picture of
ice cream to motivate you to attend.
RV10-Top Cowling Cracks-Nose-Help
have cracks on the upper half of the engine
cowling of a RV10.
They start from the in front of the three screws and
the first screw hole then go up around half of the
curve of the nose on both sides.
I took it off this weekend and put two lawyers of
fiberglass on the back side, even around the curved
portion. Flew it 4 hours not sure its stopped
cracking further?? I ve started taking pictures
after each flight.
Ive owned it for the last two years and flown it
almost 200 hours. Its a 2010 that was flown 200 in
its first 6 years. Notice small cracking a year ago
but only seemed like surface cracks. The prop has
been dynamically balance and my last Savvy report
says no miss firing.
Any Suggest would be great!
Jim Folck
Mr. X -
Winter Park, CO
AviationNation student builder receives President's Scholarship
Yesterday Thomas Schuler (JCHS Student Project
Manager and new Private Pilot) received word that he
is one of 20 students state-wide to receive a
Presidential Scholarship from Indiana State
University. It is of course in Aviation. Thomas had
his sights set on becoming a doctor, but after
building an RV-12, changed his mind. Thomas has been
a joy to work with, and is an excellent pilot.
We ask God's blessing on his decision, his time at
Indiana State, and his future. We also want to thank
those who make these programs possible, through
their volunteer efforts, or their support.
Bob
__________________
Bob Kelly, Scipio, Indiana
Tech Counselor
Founder, Eagle's Nest Projects
President, AviationNation, Inc
RV-9A N908BL, Flying
Practice
.5 Tuesday driving the RV around
the patch VFR in Heading Mode, capturing the
approach to both KDTO (ILS 18) and KAFW (RNAV 16L).
Just outside LVLEE at KAFW tower had me sidestep
over to 16R, so A/P off. This for a C-130 on a
three mile final for 16L - at missed they had me
turn out west, then north, then slide around the
back side of the C-130 after it passed by. At
first I was bummed that I didn't get to monitor the
A/P all the way down to mins, but getting to look
down on that C-130 all dirtied up on short final was
something folks don't do everyday.
Boring screengrabs, both can be
enlarged by clicking on them.
How often do you remove your prop to clean sludge in the hollow
cranck-
Q: Last time I removed my prop for
nose seal replacement i was shocked by the amount of
sludge I found. What is the recommended interval for
cleaning the crank? thanks
A: (Steve Smith)
I seem to recall a recommendation of 500 hrs
somewhere in Lycoming literatature, but I can't
remember where. I could be imagining it.
I didn't know anything about the sludge at 300 hrs
when my prop came off to re-seal it. OMG, I thought.
So I read up on it, and I think that is where I came
across it.
One of the thoughts I had was, YUK! If there is
sludge here, what about elsewhere? I think the
unique thing about the crank is the high centrifugal
load that probably slings the sludge out rather than
keeping it in suspension.
My other thought was, "this is engine oil. The only
exposure to lead would be from blow-by during
combustion. How is there so much?"
Back in the days of leaded fuel for cars, I used to
find similar grey sludge deposited in various parts
of the engine. Getting rid of this will be a nice
side-benefit when they eliminate lead from our
avgas.
February 26, 2019. Issue #4,768
A pic from the past (no paint). I had
forgotten the little smiley face I drew on the canopy release
knob to remind me to 'have a nice day'. I need to draw
that on again (old one wore off). Wait, that knob is red
now. Did I do that or did somebody else? Who can
even remember at this point?
Hadn't seen a pic of our RV's panel #1 in a decade or so
- probably in Phase 1 (no A/H or D/G, just covers).
I forget what that red light was for - probably boost
pump ON. I think I still have that Chapstick with
velcro around it somewhere in a drawer.
Man, where does the time go?
Mixture seems to adjust itself in flight
Hi all,
I have been experiencing some mixture issues in
flight and I could use some help thinking about the
problem. I believe the issue has been present for
the last ~100 flight hours, but yesterday developed
from curiosity to concern.
After leveling off at 2000' (for a short local
brunch run), I leaned my IO-375. My typical
procedure is to pull power to 62%, then lean for
60%, which gives me LOP burn of ~7.8 gph. After a
few minutes I heard the RPMs drop and found that my
fuel burn had dropped to 7gph and power was low. I
enriched the mixture and continued the flight. A few
minutes later I looked down and found that my burn
was up over 10gph. Again I adjusted and continued
the flight.
On the way home I experienced the same issues, but
with wider and more frequent swings in consumption
and power. I bee-lined for home and pushed mixture
to full rich, thinking that the last thing I wanted
was for my engine to lean out in flight. Full rich
was burning >20gph! For reference, I burn ~15gph on
take off. I started to worry that I was going to
fowl the plugs, but by this point I had the runway
made, so I left mixture at full rich and landed.
What could be going on here?? Maybe the mixture
cable is slipping in its housing? Possibly an issue
with the fuel injection?
Thanks,
Dan Ainge
RV-7A N375M
Alaska:Kenai to Knik Glacier Flight 2-24-2019 ...mbauer
Yesterday, was incredibly
beautiful. Sunny, blue skies and had to look for
clouds. Decided to take a little flight before my
condition/annual inspection.
Took lots of photos, and wouldn't you know it;
camera settings were all messed up. Photos didn't
turn out at all. Today was cloudy in spots, decided
to fly a shorter route and get some photos anyway.
Warning, this thread will have
photos, more photos and lots more photos of what it
looks like to fly from Kenai to Knik Glacier. The
route I chose was about as safe as it could be.
Tried to follow roads, known places where people
snow machine, along the Alaska Rail Road system, and
finally passes where help might be available. Once
you see the mountains I was flying over you'll
understand.
I used to fly Huey helicopters for the Alaska Army
National Guard in the mid 1980's. Flew these routes
several times.
The following photos will show different views of
the same locations, going to and returning from. A
few photos will be called Location Photos. Took a
photo of my Garmin Aera 660 to show what /where at
when taking some of them.
2300 RPM and 11,500 ft altitude! At turn around
point climbed to 12,500 until starting my descent
for Kenai.
continue
Extremely low oil consumption on new engine
So I now have 5 hours on my rebuilt IO-540. This
follows an hour on Barretts test cell going through
various power settings. So guess that means there's
6 hours on the engine.
For break-in I have been following the Lycoming's
Service Instruction. 95% of the 5 hours was spent at
3,500 - 4,500ft with power settings between 65% and
75%.
After initial service I had about 9.5 quarts in it.
After an hour of operations I had about 9.25 quarts
in it so I put another quart in. After another 2
hours it was about 9.25 again. Seeing that the oil I
put in was now relocated on the belly of the
aircraft I left it at 9.25. After another few hours
it's still at 9.25. So either it's not burning any
oil or the amount is so minuscule that I can't
notice it on the dip stick.
Per the Service Instruction "For correct piston ring
seating, in a top overhauled engine or a newly
overhauled engine, operate the aircraft at 65% to
75% cruise power until oil consumption is stable."
Can an engine break-in as little as 5 hours or is it
typical not to consume oil during the break-in
process?
__________________
Justin
RV-10, N10JW
FAA Safety Team | Safer Skies Through Education
(upcoming webinar)
"Weather
Risk Assessment-Weather Briefings 3"
Topic: Gain confidence in know if any of the six
hazards have a reasonable risk of affecting your
flight.
On Monday, March 11, 2019 at 16:00 Pacific Daylight
Time (17:00 MDT, 18:00 CDT, 19:00 EDT, 13:00 HST,
15:00 AKDT, 16:00 Arizona, 23:00 GMT)
In
this 90 minute webinar (plus Q&A) Delia will
demonstrate her method to clarify and add certainty
to often conflicting weather information.
• Learn the top tools to identify each of the six
hazards
• The tool most pilots rely on—that is actually the
LEAST reliable tool (and what to use instead)
• How to identify “invisible” hazards.
• Recognizing LLWS even when it's not forecast.
This is our level 3 class for more experienced
pilots, however, it can also benefit low time
pilots.
February 25, 2019. Issue #4,767
Fast weekend. Friday I worked a side job, Saturday a drive
down to Waco and back for a funeral (unsafe crazy windy here),
and Sunday Mass, yard and VAF duties. Wx here Sunday was
PERFECT, and when I looked on the FlightRadar24 app on my phone
during a yard work break, I think I saw every ADS-B OUT-equipped
RV at my field in the air rubbing it in.
Rub it in, but my yard looks goooooooood (yes you start mowing the yard
in February in parts of Texas). I'd been missing the 'ol
zero turn. ;^)
Hope you had a nice RV-filled weekend.
When the Wife wants to fly, you fly! ...crabandy
My Wife doesn't get the same
enjoyment out of flying as I do, she's tagged along
probably 25 hours of the almost 400 on my RV. I've
tried bribing with various destinations but she'd
almost always rather stay home. When she asked me
yesterday about flying to see her mom for her mom's
Bday I was ON IT like white on snow.
Weather forecast was pretty decent
the night before but it is February in Kansas,
airplane prepped and plugged in the night before. It
wasn't forecast in my vicinity but I was not
surprised to see the Fog and low visibility while
driving home from the mid-shift, seemed it was
freezing fog by the looks of the treetops. We
postponed departure 30 minutes to let the sun do
it's thing.
After breakfast for me and lil' dude and Wal-Mart
for the Wife we met at the airport where the updated
TAF was proving the Fog was lifting. 10 miles of
hazy visibility at takeoff and a tailwind at 1500'
AGL. I'd almost regretted putting in the carseat
attach points, almost. I've yet to use them hour for
hour as long as they took me to build.
...
RV-14A Landing Courchevel Video ...Georges Grenet (France)
related:
Departure video
Rest in Peace Mr. Ron Jennings
...Steve Eberhart post
"Ronald V. Jennings, age 85, of Evansville, IN,
passed away at 2:00 a.m. on Thursday, February 21,
2019, at Linda E. Hospice House.
Ronald was born December 23, 1933, in Evansville, IN
to the late Vernon E. and Madeline (Cobb) Jennings.
He graduated from Mechanic Arts High School in 1952
and served in the US Air Force during the Korean
Conflict. He worked for Industrial Paint Systems
before retiring from Jenco Erectors, Inc. in 1996.
He is survived by his wife, Judith “Judy” Jennings;
daughter, Debra “Debbie” Endress (Steve) of
Newburgh; sons, Ronald E. Jennings (Yoli) of
California, James Marcus Jennings (Lydia) of
Evansville, Victor Allen Jennings (Pam) of
Evansville, and Andrew B. Jennings (Becky) of
Florida; sisters, Joyce Jennings and Eloise
Jennings, both of Evansville; 12 grandchildren; 7
great-grandchildren; and 2 great,
great-grandchildren.
Memorial Contributions may be made to: Linda E.
White Hospice House, 611 Harriet St., Evansville, IN
47710."
EFIS to HUD Project Update ...Brantel
Been working on another screen option for the HUD
project. This one mostly modeled after the F18 HUD.
It’s not complete yet but is taking shape.
New Build Thread ...gcman6
After reviewing the plans and build manual for a
couple months, I jumped right into the empennage
kit. I spent a few hours inventorying the kit and
everything was present and in great condition. I
then started on the rear and front spars.
There are a few tricky spots on the front spar but I
was able to get everything cut, bent, and drilled
correctly using some tips from other builders. I
prepped the ribs and cleco’d the substructure and
skins together to see how it all fits. I then got
the HS-00005 and HS-00006 ribs lined up, drilled,
and cleco’d together and proceeded to match drill
all holes in the skins.
Next up is to take everything apart, deburr the
edges and all holes, dimple, prime, and get ready to
start riveting it all together.
Avionics failure during flight ...Jonathan Alvord
Went for fuel filling trip today
and lost all avionics including transponder, EIS,
GRT displays. Thankfully had steam gauges for
backup. That is the short and sweet. Here comes all
the details leading up to it. The plane has roughly
460 hours on it and I am the second owner. Two
months ago we replaced the alternator when the
displays turn off when coming in to land. No real
issues otherwise up until today. Run up normal, flew
to Oregon for gas and avionics shut down while on
final and rebooted. Filled up, run up good, Voltage
12.9 amps 10 I believe all in the green on the EIS
and displays. Half way back in VFR all the avionics
turned off, no contact with ATC and I was on flight
following, called Flight services on cell to ask
them to relay to ATC that I had lost comms and would
continue VFR direct to my local airport.
Now why did it fail? It appears the PTT on joystick
was pulling power from the avionics, that's my
theory. I and two others have looked through the
plane most of the day. All the solenoids in the
engine compartment appear to working. WE have power
at the master switch, we no longer have power to
Avionics (GRT, Radio stack) and Fuel pump. I have
checked all the fuses and can't find a single one
that is bad. We were able to jump the power to the
avionics and it still works , just not from the
switch. When testing the panel for endurance fuses
(fuel pump, manifold pressure, avionics, EIS, and
inst lights) we could only get 2.7v, All of the Main
fuses were working (nave lights, auto pilot, pitot,
strobe, trim ignition, trim switch, landing, pwr
source 1, interestingly Power source 2 had no fuse
in it).
I am unable to find a wiring diagram, although I
know it would help we drew out one and I have a
picture but can't post here. I did not pull the
floor panels off and have had no problems with the
fuel pump in previous 250 hours.
Any ideas? There are no mech or avionic specialist
at the airport, this is new territory for me as to
how to get it repaired. Any Advice would be greatly
appreciated. BTW I am near Yakima/Tri Cities
Washington.
__________________
N122EF RV7A
Steve Formhals RV-3
Mel inspected it on 2/11 and first flight was on
2/15. Still working out new plane bugs and
tweaking.
Update ...jcarney 7A
Decided to assembly the FlyLEDs kit I received
last year, I have been saving it for cold weather.
This was one of the funnest parts of the build so
far! I don't solder as much as I would like so this
was a treat. Here are the blank boards before
trimming the main boards to fit the wingtip. An
oscillating orbital sander made this trimming so
easy it wasn't even fair.
Panel Pics / Interior ...Bavafa
Do I cut the countersink cage to fit? ...kjowen
I am working on -8 empanage / elevator. I am to
the point of countersinking the spar in 4x to attach
the E-709 rib. Call out requires countersinking as
elevator horn fits over spar and must sit flush. The
two inside holes - easy. What's up with the outside
/ upper and lower holes? Do I take a cut off wheel
to my micro countersink cage?
Status Report ...kentlik 7A
Got back to the fuel lines, need a return so I
spent a lot of time researching the best way to do
it. At least I think it is currently.
Mothership News...
The TeenFlight Puyallup crew (40+ kids were there
representing their program today!) with their almost
competed #4 RV-12 today at the Northwest Aviation
Conference and Tradeshow.
February 22, 2019. Issue #4,766
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend!
Usual Suspects Formation Practice 52F
From the Mothership...
Van’s own Sterling Langrell speaks to a group of
Civil Air Patrol cadets and leaders during a tour of
the Van’s Aircraft factory on Tuesday evening. It
was a large crowd of motivated and interested youth!
We conduct tours for the public twice daily at the
factory on weekdays, at 9:30 am and 1:30 pm. Or, let
us know if your group is interested in coming out to
learn about building RVs!
You're Not The Only One
(who cracked a part getting in/out with some
parts off).
(RE: F-01447)
Ughh, I made this mistake too when getting in and
out of the airplane without the cover plates screwed
in. It really bothered me but I came up with a fix
that leaves it stronger than it ever would have been
without adding much weight. The rudder cables are
right there so I believe having a brace makes sense
for an obviously vulnerable part.
I had a very small crack forming. I stop drilled it
using a #61.
I drilled out the nut plate and then fabricated a
.025 backer piece. I used a 3/8 drill bit to radius
the turns and cut the piece on my bandsaw. I bent
the flanges on the backer plate using a handseamer
and then clecoed it in place a little bit oversized.
The backer piece is tied into the floor, the front
of the floor and the bulkhead with lp4-3 rivets.
Everything was match drilled and the nutplate holes
dimpled. Trimmed the backer plate to size around the
match drilled holes and clearing the hole for the
rudder cable. Re-riveted the nutplate behind the
backer piece and set the pop rivets. Once it was all
done I put a dab of jb weld on that I will file
later so the crack is not visible after paint.
Anyways it really bothers me but will be hidden by
the cover plate anyways and at least I don't have to
worry about it cracking any further in the future! I
built one for the other side and installed it at the
same time.
Control Stick Wiring Issue Resolved ...Keith Rhea
I finally figured it out and tested it seems to
work ok. Had to add a 12vDC to the input through a
4.7Kohm resistor.
From Kitplanes Newsline
BRS Whole Aircraft Parachute for Van's RV-10.
$26K
Thanks Vic!
Came in the mail yesterday. I see on the
back he's giving Stein a run for his back-of-shirt
joke money ;^).
Mothership First
Flight Stats
February 21, 2019. Issue #4,765
Diagonal Away from Home ...Capt Sandy
We were on the taxiway, waiting clearance to take off.
The flaps were up, the canopy closed. The long, asphalt
runway stretched off to either side. I had my
sunglasses and iPad. Bright October sun warmed the
cockpit. I was happy I’d worn a t-shirt. I was wearing
the pink Love at First Flight shirt Roy bought for me at EAA
Airventure. It felt appropriate for the first flight of our
open ended journey.
Safety Pilot Ballast
A local at our field is going for his instrument and
needed a pulse in the other seat. We have a two day
window around here of pretty good weather so sure!
Logged 1.4, 1.3 under the hood. Hand flown.
Three approaches (KGLE RNAV 18, KLUD RNAV 17, KLUD RNAV 35)
and some around-the-area to round the hood time up to 1.3.
All in all not a bad way to spend a little time before lunch
- I got to enjoy the sky instead of gauges <g>. I got
some ground tracks so I would have some news for the site,
but when I got home there was plenty of news to choose from.
Since I already had 'em, six grabs from the morning starting
HERE. (opens new window) Winds ~20kts from 270
at 3000'.
Seemed like everyone and their cousins were in
the air around N. TX Wednesday. In the teardrop turn
at HIRGO (KLUD 35) we had a helicopter two miles behind us
with the same plan, and another plane on the RNAV 17 - clear
skies, all planes on the scope and everyone talking.
Fly while the Wx permits <g>. Good time.
KLUD RNAV 17, then turn around and RNAV 35.
Does Anybody Else Do This?
I have a skinny, long funnel that allows me to leave the
dip stick in the fill tube. You have to pull the
dipstick out a bit, but you don't need a rag. Lazy I
know... Don't know where I got this funnel.
Maybe someone left it here.
Lifter Failure ...RV8iator
I have (had) a Titan DIOX370 on my 8. Great engine and
ran trouble free for 5 years/ 950ish hours. Started burning
oil like crazy but everything else was right where it should
be. Good compression, clean pipes and plugs but dirty oil
and using a quart about every 3 hours like a switch was
flipped. Found a collapsed breather hose, replace and
thought I was good to go and lucky that the crank seal
stayed in. Talked to engine shop and thought I had glazed
cylinders or just broke a ring or any other myriad of things
that can go south in a cylinder, so off to JB's for a top
inspection and top overhaul as required.
They pulled a cylinder and found this..
...
you can see how the lifter is just coming apart and the
scored crank in the background. This is lifter part number
7287R and it seems these came from a batch in late 2012ish
that may have been produced with improper hardening done.
and this. You can see how the cam lobe is chewed up also.
and this. Another view of the top of the lifter. You can
see how clean the inside of the engine was.
It has been five years and 950ish hours since new. I have
never gone more than 2 weeks between flying, usually much
more frequently than that, changed oil and filters
religiously every 50 hours at most, sometimes at closer
intervals and used CAM GUARD for the past 3 years since I
got out of flying shows very, very regularly.
I'm posting this just as a heads up that if you have an
engine from this time frame, really watch those filters at
oil changes. Mine went from clean to full of very, very fine
black dust that was not visible, but a magnet picked it up
after the filter was washed and dried. This happened very
fast once the metal started circulating around.
This is not meant to be any kind of negative thread, just a
heads up and a reminder to really, really check those
filters when changing the oil. There were warning signs to
me in the oil consumption and I just happened to have the
filter laying in the trash from the change preceding this
one and after I washed the mesh and ran a magnet over it I
found a little of the ferris metal there. I'm sure going
forward I will be much more diligent when inspecting used
filters. Absolutely nothing visible, but the old magnet
found it. If your engine was produced in this time frame, I
would keep an eye out.
New Superior engine is already built and almost ready for
installation.
Crack in F-01447 baggage floor - what to do? ...iamtheari RV-14
I'm working on the window. That seems to be going okay,
but one step involves marking from the inside where the roll
bar brace brackets interfere with the aft edge of the
plexiglass so you can trim it to fit. I did that step and it
all went well, but I was not 100% happy with the centering
of the window, so I did the whole thing over again. In my
second attempt, I was kneeling on a stack of towels on the
baggage floor and felt something give.
The result is a dent in the F-01447-L baggage floor just
behind the hole where the rudder cable passes through and a
crack from the inside corner up to a point next to (but as
far as I can tell, not intersection) the rivet on the
innermost of the K1000-08D nutplates. Pictured below with
lots of bright light to make it look as bad as possible. The
dent is enough that the F-01440 seat ramp has a slight gap
in between that nutplate and the next one outboard, but it's
not very bad.
I am worried about the crack. All advice is welcome.
Replacing the baggage floor, while technically possible,
would be a real headache because it would also require
removal of the baggage side walls and rebuilding of the seat
bottom hinges, plus about 10,000 LP4-3 rivets, 4,000
nutplates, miscellaneous other work like redoing the baggage
tie-downs, and painting the interior on that side all over
again. But if replacing it is the right thing to do, it's
just a few dollars in parts and a few dozen hours of lost
time.
Here's my shame, bare for all to see
February 20, 2019. Issue #4,764
Episode #1 of the VAFcast ticked over
the 500-download mark overnight (pushed out 12 days ago).
Working on getting the next guest to make a hole in his sched -
Smokey Ray....looking your direction w/foot tapping. Have
your people call my people (rimshot).
First Flight ...j-red
I believe there is a law that states RV videos
must be accompanied by music from the Top Gun
soundtrack, so I've obliged.
First flight was a thrilling experience! After
literally jumping off the ground, the plane flew
flawlessly. Left wing was a little heavy, but
nothing the trim couldn't handle. Flight was 30
minutes, directly above the field at around 3k', and
mostly at 75% power to seat the rings. Winds were a
little gusty up high, and it was overcast, but all
was calm on the ground. I did two stalls before
coming down to confirm the airspeed indicator and
returned for a pretty smooth landing.
Couple of squawks included the flap circuit
blowing at 20* down every time. With the VP-X, it
can be reset, would retract fine, then blow again at
about half-flaps. Worked fine on the ground. Turns
out, one of the plastic covered spade connectors I
used to connect it had pulled out slightly and would
contact the flap motor at about that position.
Reconnected it and taped over both wires then
secured them so they wouldn't move like that again.
The landing light circuit also blew. Turns out it
just needed to be set at a higher amperage in the
VP-x.
Finally, I landed and found a pretty good oil slick
dripping from the lower cowling. After plenty of
cleaning and ground running, it became apparent that
the oil temperature probe gasket had gotten cocked
when it was put on. Gasket was replaced and is
holding and dry. There is some oil up front that
looks like it might be coming from one of the
smaller through bolts that doubles for retaining the
hall effect sensor for the CPI ignition. I'm going
to try some wicking locktite and see if that helps
there.
Aside from those minor little things, she runs
great! 75% power resulted in about 165kts true
without wheelpants, and the climb is unbelievable.
Third flight occurred this morning and with an OAT
of about 35 degrees the initial climb rate was about
2500fpm! Ran for 30 minutes at power, then practiced
landings at KGED. I'll say this: paved runways are
definitely harder to land on than grass!
Thanks to the vans community and to this forum for
all the help and support along the way. Keep
Building
__________________
Rebuilt RV-6A N94CR
RV-8 In Progress
Flying
Control stick wiring ...krhea
I am upgrading my control stick to
tosten Cs-8 and am confused about the digital input
output wiring. I am adding the MGL n16-V16 radio and
a CS-8 stick grip. I built a small schematic at this
link:
I just cannot wrap my head around
the ptt going to audio ground at the radio and the
other ptt switchs grounding to power ground. Seems
like i need to take the cs-8 apart and add another
wire for the ptt trigger?
Thanks
Keith Rhea.
RV7
Ground Shots...Bavafa
Flap Control Bracket ...NorthernRV4
Hey guys
So I made an error when I laid out the rivet spacing
for my inboard rib flap rib. Instead of 5@1.00"
rivets I laid out 4@1.25" spacing. Unfortunately I
didn't realize I had made the error until the
everything was drilled so now I'm looking for some
advice. Due to the blind access, these rivets must
be pull type and the plans call out CS4-4 carbon
steel type rivets. I could drill 2-3 extra holes at
5/8" spacing to the current ones or would a stronger
rivet like a Cherry Max be a sufficient choice here
instead of the CS4-4? The loading is such that the
bracket pushes on the inside of the rib flange when
extending the flaps so the stress on these rivets is
only when the flap is retracted up against the
fuselage. More likely the worst stress they would
see is if someone accidentally stepped on the flap
(had to be the port flap too ) their weight would
put these rivets in tension, I cringe at the thought
of it though for various reasons.
Electrical Issue - low battery ...Indwarrior
I have been seeing a repeated
problem with my electrical system that I am trying
to figure out. Some things to know:
- I built the plane and designed the wiring system
based on the Z-11 diagram.
- It has worked well for 300 hours
- engine is an O-235
- 40 amp B&C alternator with 300 hours on it
- B&C LR-3 voltage regulator with about 30 hours on
it
- EarthEx ETX680 battery 300 hours as well
- Electronics International Volts/Amps meter set up
in a LOAD Meter arrangement with matched EI shunt
- very low amp draw electrical system - about 10
amps with everything turned on (VFR panel, led
lights, etc)
I have noticed my battery voltage dropping when it
has not been flown in a while.
EarthEx says either I have a parasitic drain going
on when the master is off or I have a bad battery.
So far I have not had the time to trouble shoot what
might be draining the battery. I do have an Always
On bus for LED cabin light, USB port and possibly
other item that I cant remember right now.
My normal/average total amp draw in flight is around
7 amps.
Yesterday I checked the battery with a portable amp
gauge and it was reading 12.9 amps - below the 13.3
that is typical for this battery.
The engine started just fine and I did a short MX
flight directly over the airport. For the 10 minutes
I was in the air the amp meter was reading about 25
amps, though this was varying up and down by an amp
or two.
I have never seen this high amperage (alternator
output) before. I have high and low voltage warning
lights and a stuck starter light. None of the
warning lights lit up during the flight.
So, is the 25 amps I saw simply just normal? Is this
a case of the alternator charging a low battery?
Again, the max load from my electrical system is
around 10 amps, and everything was not turned on
during the flight.
I know I need to check the system for parasitic
drain but right now I'm just trying to understand
that my charging system is doing.
"Unusual
Attitude" ...Brad Benson
One of my favorite pictures of N164BL to date.
Need to check six more.
Battery box too narrow ...dbaflyer
Went to install my battery tonight
and it would not fit. The left side started to slide
in, but the right side would not go. Removed the
battery box from FW and measured it. The right side
is only 2 and 29/32nds. This is a van's battery box
that was already put together. Just needed to rivet
on the angle on either side. I see my only
alternative to cut the right front corner, widen it
to the right size and install a piece of angle on
the outside of the box to hold it in place. Anyone
else have this issue? Seems odd to me that the part
would come undersized.
February 19, 2019. Issue #4,763
Helping a Friend
52F POA Prez Mitch W. called me at 0945am Monday as I was
about to step on the treadmill for an hour after a cuppla
hours on the laptop. "Any chance you can fly me
down to Lampasas, TX so I can pick up my plane?"
Sure. Anything to get out of exercise ;^).
173kts GS down at 4,500'. 170kts GS back 5,500'.
It was 45*F in cruise, and 33*F on the ground.
Preferred the plane <g>. 1.8 logged. Wx goes to
turds Tue here, so get it when you can. ;^)
What an
amazing machine, this RV.
Soft Spot Plenum Lid ...DanH
RV-8 builders know stuffing an angle valve Lycoming into
an RV-8 cowl results in very tight engine to cowl clearance
above the front cylinder corners, and down the left side. It
gets worse with a plenum lid, a classic case of stuffing six
pounds of stuff in five pound sack.
My plenum lid has routinely bumped the inside of the upper
cowl. If I look close, I can see some fine spiderweb cracks
in the cowling clear coat, so if allowed to continue surely
it will develop an ugly spot. In recent times it has not
been bumping so much, but that was because the mount
isolators were sagging. With new isolators, it was time to
fix the bumping.
...
Mr. X Photo Dump
Been awhile. Had several que'd up. Many new
pics as large as your monitor is starting
HERE. Enjoy!
Mr. X Pic Folder
RV-3B Status Report ...David Paule
The RV-3B has a depression in the seat pan to accommodate
a large pilot, which I’m not. Typically, the builder adds
foam to fill the shape. I’ve heard that some of the seat
cushions get pretty heavy.
So I’m making a wee change in the seat structure. This
picture shows both the existing ribs and one of the added
webs. The fuselage is on it’s side here, in case you’re
wondering why the photo is odd.
...
Update on the RV-4 40yr Anniversary ...Greg@Mothership
Sounds like we have pretty good interest - I will send
out some more info as soon as we have it. Anyone interested,
feel free to keep commenting here and we can form a list.
Anyone willing to help coordinate, please let me know!
Update on Lord Motor Mount Thingy ...DanH
"...The answer seems to be ....both.
With the VIP acro mounts, the airframe shake below 2400
felt like an out of balance prop. Vic had done a dynamic
balance not long ago, before I discovered dripping silicone,
and realized how far gone my Lord mounts really were. With
new VIP acro mounts installed, we were both curious about
how failed Lord mounts might affect the dynamic balance
process. If one or more gel bags and center spacers were
against the inner steel ring, would it skew the dynamic
balance results?
Answer...apparently yes. I flew over to Fresh Fried Chicken
where Vic and I repeated the balance done just a few months
ago. Getting down to 0.01 required the removal of a #10
screw, washer, and compact nut installed when we balanced
with bad mounts. IPS immediately dropped below 0.4 (or maybe
it was 0.03). A washer or two in the right place dropped it
to 0.01. The lesson, now learned, is obvious; check your
mounts before balance.
However, when flying home, there was no significant
difference in cockpit feel. Pulling the prop to down to
around 2300 would still make my sunglasses dance. Ok, fine.
If it ain't balance, it must be resonance.
As previously noted, the VIP acro mounts are simply two thin
isolators and a slightly different internal bushing length.
I called VIP, and they were willing to sell me the thick
isolators and the correct bushings, since I already had
plenty of thin isolators. The resulting thick-thin set is
exactly what you would get from Vans or Aircraft Spruce.
Blocked out the day Saturday and got 'em in there.
Drum roll please; a short test flight yesterday confirmed
the return of good vibes. It's been a long time since I had
new Lord mounts, so a direct comparison is hard to
judge. There is no objectionable behavior with the
VIP mounts; I can pull RPM down with fairly high MP and the
previous large amplitude shake is gone. I did notice one
difference between the VIP and Lord mounts. With the Lords,
I recall pulling 3G would cause a noticeable change in
engine sound and feel. There does not seem to be any change
with the VIP mounts. I assume G would push the Lord gel bags
into contact with the rings. I do not know how long ago I
noticed the sound change with G; could be after they had
sagged a little.
I'll fly the new isolators a while and eyeball them for sag.
Given this is a return to the "one size fits all" isolator
set, I'm interested to see if the large engine actually does
shorten isolator life. Seems logical that a 320 would not
load the isolators as much as a 390. ..."
...
RV-7A Status Report ...jcarney
Slow going the past couple of weeks but still making
progress. Finished up the pushtubes just in time for a bunch
of family visits to see the new little one. I also started
working on the FlyLEDs kit, pics coming soon.
Bald Mountain Camp 2019 Fly In Pics ...kevinsrv7.com
Garmin® celebrates a GPS milestone in aviation
OLATHE, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Garmin International,
Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRMN), today
commemorates the 25th anniversary
of the GPS 155 TSO – the aviation industry’s
first FAA TSO-C129 approach approved IFR GPS receiver. The
GPS 155 TSO set the standard for product development within
avionics, laid the groundwork for future innovations in GPS
navigation, and raised the bar for technological GPS
advancements in the aviation industry.
...
"...For the first time,
pilots could fly in instrument meteorological conditions
(IMC) throughout the departure, enroute, and approach phases
of flight using GPS as their primary navigation source..."
Alternator pulley suddenly rubbing against bottom cowl
Hi
This morning during the preflight I discovered a little
crack in the bottom cowl of my RV8. Furher inspection
revealed that the alternator pulley touched the inside of
the cowl and rubbed through it.
I have been flying for app. 70 hours since a prop overhaul
and haven't noticed this issue before.
But last week I had the cowls off, did a oil change and put
them back on, so I assume that putting the cowl back on was
the moment from wich the pulley started to touch. I didn't
touch or change anything else.
I'll repair the little crack with a bit of glass and a drip
of touch-up paint on the outside.
But does anyone know what I might have done wrong when
replacing to cowl or what else might I have to look at? If
it happened immediately after replacing the alternator or
work on the prop or then that might be the cause. But I
didn't touch those.
Thanks
Roger
RV-14 VFR day/night panel, feedback please
February 18, 2019. Issue #4,762
Rob Ray in his RV-4 'Bandit' 12/17/03, the
100th anniversary of the Wright Bros. first flight.
dr photo from back of Danny King's 'Beautiful Doll'.
OSH Event: 40 Years of the RV-4 at AirVenture! ...Greg @ mothership
Heading to OSH this year in your RV-4? On the
fence? Need some fresh motivation to finish that
18-year-old project? Well - maybe this will push you
over to the "I'm going" side!
The RV-4 is officially 40 years old in 2019, and
we've be in discussions recently with EAA because
they'd like to work with us -- and all of you -- to
see if we can have a special RV-4 parking area and
do some other stuff to celebrate the RV-4! We'll
update here as we nail down details, but in order to
get started we need to line up some helpers!
We're in talk to try to arrange RV-4 participation
in a "homebuilt review" style fly-by, and some other
possibilities. EAA has said they'll help arrange a
meeting place for a get-together if we like.
Ultimately, we are looking to the RV-4 community to
see what you'd like to do! These things can't happen
without community involvement to help drive it, to
be sure. So -- If you're interested in participating
or helping coordinate some part of this, let me
know!
From the mothership, our working plan right now is
that Van will present a forum covering the history
of the RV-4, where it came from and the role it
played in propelling Van's Aircraft in its early
days.
Should be a lot of fun!
Bald Mountain Camp 2019 Fly In ...Vlad
They had THREE runways this year.
Two plowed ice and one packed snow. There was a
Burning Man like circle in the middle. Cool view
from the above.
...
Iowegian Lunch ...petehowell 9A
Kate called, she had a birthday
present for the old man. Maybe it would be a good
day to warm up the oil on the old RV......Maybe
lunch could be involved.....
What the heck, twist my arm. Do it for the Kid! High
ceilings and cold, but not "stupid cold" said we can
do this......
Bernie and I were wheels up at 10:30. He escorted me
to the border, then headed home. The blue skies and
sun were very inviting. I was fascinated by the
drift patterns on on the farm fields from the
prevailing winds as we flew south.
...
Airworthiness 2/15/19 ...j-red
Happy Valentines Day to Me!
Don Scarfone from up in Bear, DE drove down to
perform the airworthiness inspection. The plane has
been ready to go for about 3 weeks now, save for
some last minute items that have been hanging onto
the bottom of the "to do" list for what seems like
forever. All were minor things, like painting the
glareshield flat black, sticking on necessary
placards, making sure the jamb nuts on the elevator
hinges were tight , etc. Fortunately we've had a
string of warm days recently, and so a sunny 75
degree day a couple of weeks ago presented the
perfect opportunity to get these knocked off the
list.
The inspection went just about like the one he
performed on my Zenith four years ago. Didn't check
every nut and bolt, but seemed to know what he was
looking for and went right to those areas.
Most importantly, he stood still and smiled for the
obligatory "handshake" picture
EFIS to HUD Project Update ...Brantel
So a few of us geeks have been
quietly working on a project that takes input from
an EFIS (currently serial streams) and processes
that data within a Raspberry Pi and generates an
image that can be used on a HUD or other display
that supports HDMI or CVBS (Composite) video inputs.
(Think back seat display for tandem aircraft)
The project is being built with the ability to add
different input modules and to make it relatively
easy to add customized displays to the available
options.
Currently the serial input modules that have been
developed include:
MGL
Skyview
Legacy Dynon
G3X
Capabilities for each of these input modules vary
due to the fact that the different manufacturer's
serial streams also vary greatly in the variables
being streamed.
As would be expected, I have been working on the G3X
input module and have developed the following custom
display based on the data that is provided in the
G3X serial stream. Several additional variables have
been created by developing algorithms that use
provided data to calculate those that are not
present in the data stream.
Here is a static image of the custom screen as it
exist today:
...
Some pretty awesome news over the weekend ...proud Dad
Our daughter Audrey, whose undergrad education a
lot of you helped make happen with VAF yearly
donations, took and passed her 'quals' this past
Friday at grad school. To hear her say, it's
the biggest hurdle towards getting her PhD.
She sent me the (60) slides she was presenting to
the 4-person committee. I didn't understand
the title, but I did recognize her name and the
date. ;^)
They liked
her research, where she's going with it, and told
her to keep on keep'n on. That's her in the
blue shirt.
fmi:
Audrey's citations /
bio
Homemade jack pad
Howdy,
Inspired by the cool jackpads from Winter, I made my
own out of 1" X 1 1/4" 6061 T6. I did the whole deed
with out much more than a drill press, carbide burr,
and a miter saw. The mounting holes are 15/16" OC
and I used AN4-21A bolts. I had to make one spacer
at about 17/64". The AN4-31A bolt only has about a
half inch of threads so I reamed the hole halfway
and tapped the rest. That way the shank of the bolt
is in shear. I made a sleeve out of 3/8" OD 4130
reamed 1/4" ID to take advantage of more bending
resistance and so I could torque the bolt into place
for jacking. The pad weighs less than 2 oz. and fits
under the wheel pant with the jack bolt removed. I
bought an aluminum Porsche jack on Ebay which weighs
less than 3 lb. I'm gonna throw that in a bag for
the baggage compartment on cross countries. With a
spare tube and a CO2 inflator, I'm ready for tire
trouble.
Ed Holyoke
Odd Brake Failure ...Tim-NJ
After some routine maintenance which did not
include anything at all with the brakes (I did an
oil change), I uneventfully taxied out to the runway
for a short test flight. Winds were something around
12G18 and coming from a direction that favored the
far end of the runway when coming from my hangar.
The taxing was uneventful. I line up and go full
throttle when I do notice some unusual squirreliness
staying on the centerline that I dismissed as xwind.
I flew for a half hour and landed only to find out
my right brake was completely out. Lucky for me the
runway was 3500ft and a the last third is uphill,
2nd stroke of luck the FBO was a left turn I got a
tow back to my hangar and found this! I'm wondering
if I picked up some FOD on the taxiway or runway?
Photos:
Test Data!!!- Anatomy of a fuel pump, part 3- ...Hartstoc
Now that we are getting comfortable flying
“electron-dependent” aircraft and have powerful,
lightweight lithium batteries at our disposal, I’ve
been thinking it is time to find a way to SAFELY
eliminate one of the last vestiges of the magneto
era- the engine driven mechanical fuel pump. There
are a lot of really good reasons for doing this that
I won’t go into here, but the challenge in making it
possible is to find a reliable electric fuel pump
properly matched to the task. This thread documents
my successful search supported by real data, and
I’ve generated accurate performance charts under
real-world conditions for three pumps.
Thousands of airplanes already sport electric boost
pumps that seem to work well, but on close
examination few of them make any sense at all in
this context.Two problems with most pumps currently
in use is that they generate flow and consume power
FAR IN EXCESS of our needs, and many feature
continuous short-loop recirculation of the vast
majority of their output back to the pump inlet.
This is no big deal for backup pumps used
intermittently, but wholly ill-suited to continuous
operation in a twin-pump setup with no engine driven
pump. Some are also quite heavy, bad news with two
installed. For continuous operation, return lines to
the tank in use become mandatory, and the pump must
operate efficiently to minimize electrical demand in
normal operation and maximize range on battery power
should the alternator fail.
A plethora of choices exist in the 500-1,000 HP
range for auto racing applications, but precious few
really make sense in the context of typical RV’s.
Also, I’ve discovered that published performance
data for pumps is often not detailed, accurate, and
reliable enough to allow intelligent selection, and
these do not take into account system-wide
resistance that must be subtracted from the
performance of the unrestricted pump.
I decided to build this test rig, shown here
collecting data for one of the Walbro pumps. It
incorporates pre- and post-pump filters and enough
lift, bends, turns, and manifold reversals to
roughly mimic the aft-of-firewall dynamic flow
restrictions of a typical RV installation. Here, the
return line is closed off, and “engine” output,
dialed-in at 30PSI resistance, is being shunted to
the flow-measuring vessel.
...
Latest Build Video ...Sean A.
Updates to RV-12/RV-12iS publications and plans - Feb 14 2019
(mothership)
RV-12 folks,
As happens from time to time, we published a few
documentation updates for RV-12 and RV-12iS
builders/owners today.
You can find the updated documents in the Support >
Service Information and Revisions section of the
Van's website. All of the changes published today
fall in the "Revisions and Changes" publication
category. You can also sign up to receive periodic
notifications of changes we publish via the signup
box on the home page of the Van's Aircraft website.
The following documents were updated for both the
"legacy" RV-12 and the RV-12iS.
•Pilot's Operating Handbook
•Flight Training Supplement
•Production Acceptance Procedures
•Maintenance Manual
In addition, the following documents/plans pages
have been updated specifically for the RV-12iS:
•Section 28iS/U and Section 35iS/U - reflects
changes to parts and procedures related to new,
improved gun-drilled gear legs
•Section 51AiS/U - Placards and Certification
Documents
•Section 03iS/U - reflects an addition to the
builder's supplies list
•Section 01iS/U - minor changes plus DWG 1 and DWG 2
(the three-view and cut-away view drawings) have
been published
The following section has been published and is
specific to the "legacy" RV-12:
•Section 35 - reflects changes to parts and
procedures related to new, improved gun-drilled gear
legs
Note: The RV-12 gun-drilled gear legs are a revised
part, which integrates brake plumbing and removed
the need to run a tube on the outside of the gear
leg. This is now the standard shipping part for all
RV-12/12iS aircraft. In the event one needs to
replace a set of original main gear in the future,
different attachment hardware will be used and Van's
will have a kit available for doing so. Other than
the integral brake line, there is no difference
between the original and new parts.
February 15, 2019. Issue #4,761
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend.
RV-12 Crosswinds Update...Ron Gawer
I wanted to share my experience early this
morning as I’ve gotten more and more XW experience
in my RV12.
Today I was able to explore what I think are the
upper boundaries of XW’s in my 12. I had 160@41 KT,
which presented about 35KT HW and 20.5KT XW in the
pouring rain this morning. Aside from being crabbed
about 15º to the right and just over 30KT ground
speed, it was pretty much a non-event. I find that
the rudder has plenty of authority to crab down to
the runway and then kick the nose around into
alignment and set the upwind gear onto the runway. I
then let the left gear down to the runway, set the
nose down and then pretty much came to a stop after
that without any brakes. I had to power up to get to
the turnoff and then had to use power and brakes to
finagle my way to the tie-down.
My fellow commuter was laughing and joked that it
seemed like an “austin powers” getaway scene taking
so long to get to the runway.
All in all, I’d say that’s about on verge of a limit
for the airplane. I think it could handle a couple
more knots XW for the landing, but taxiing sucked.
Afterward, I noted that the rain did an excellent
job shining up the aluminum.
Separately, there was windshear at 2000’ indicated
at 55KT; coming down through that was, shall we say,
“bumpy”. 90KIAS worked well, and the stick and
rudders got a great work out too. The TAF for
tomorrow is a little better with less rain, should
be another fun ride.
Show Us Your Day Job ...James in Redwood City
[ed. You're gonna want to click
on this <g>. v/r,dr]
First Flight(s) done! ...AviatorJ RV-10
Successfully completed Flights #1 & #2 in N10JW
today! I defined success as flying the plane and
nothing leaking or falling off!
I did two shortish flights. This first was about 25
mins in the air doing about a 5 mile box around the
airport. The second was a quick 15 minute flight
around the pattern once. I did these as 'shake down
flights' with my only concern being checking for
leaks and validating the wings weren't going to fall
off.
Really the only issue of concern was my oil temp. On
the first flight as soon as it pushed over 220 I
decided to land and it was 243 when I landed. After
a hour of engine cool down the 2nd flight it rose to
220 fairly quick so that's why I only did one lap
around the pattern. I talked to Barretts and they
gave me some places to start troubleshooting. Hope
to do another flight next week!
Video of our Winter Flight to Key West via Lakeland from MS ...Paul
& Beth Duff RV-9A
Formation Clinic Apr 5-7
Falcon Flight Formation Team will be hosting a
formation training clinic April 5th -7th 2019. The
clinic will be held at KGYI (North Texas
Regional/Perrin Field) in Dennison, Texas. To
register follow the link and you will be asked to
join the group. There you will find all the info to
register for the clinic,
https://groups.io/g/KGYI-2019-FormationClinic
This clinic is for RV newcomers as well as
experienced formation pilots that want to brush up
on their skills.
Also for those that can not attend this clinic or
any of the clinics around the country here is the
website so you can maintain and train to the FFI
standards.
http://ffi.aero/
We hope to see many of you at the Formation Clinic!
Falcon Flight Formation Team
Flight Levels Club ...BruceEicher
It was so cold my fingers and brain missed the
altimeter adjustment by .01. Hope this and the dirty
screen is forgiven.
Flying home from Arizona last weekend.
I should have also turned into the wind, slowed to
approach speed and flew backwards, but I was too
cold so I pushed on and around the weather. You can
see my deviation from the flight plan to avoid
further weather.
Van's web orders placed Feb 13th - Please check for confirmation
email
(Greg at
the Mothership)
VAF community,
We've had a couple of limited "growing pain" moments
with our web store since we launched the new site.
The good thing is we will be replacing the online
store later this year with a new, much more modern
platform. The tough part is there are some orders
placed on Wednesday (Feb 13) that may not have been
completed due to an error that was not obvious to
the person placing the order.
If you placed a Van’s Aircraft web store order on
Wednesday, February 13th
2019 between 4:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Pacific time,
we ask that you please check your email to determine
whether or not you received a confirmation of your
order. If you placed an order between those times
but did not receive a confirmation email, please
either call our office and speak with the Order
Team, or you can simply resubmit your order online.
Confirmation emails can sometimes take 15 minutes or
longer to arrive.
What happened: Due to a system processing issue,
some orders submitted during that time frame could
not be completed. An error message was displayed to
the person placing the order, but that error message
was not explicit in stating the error, and some
customers may not have recognized that there was an
error with their order.
The issue has since been rectified and testing
performed, and web orders being placed now are being
processed as expected. If you placed an order
outside the hours listed above, or if you received a
confirmation email for your order, there is no need
for you to take action.
Thank you, and please accept our apologies for any
inconvenience.
Seen over DFW Thursday 0600
62kt winds from 230 at 3000'.
Pretty unusual. Could have joined the 230kt GS
club if I was crazy enough to fly to Sherman for gas
<grin>.
enlarge
enlarge
February 14, 2019. Issue #4,760
Seen at Monk's
Neat custom center console on RV-6. Added
to the 'Show us your RV-6 panel' thread.
See 'um...
Houston area monthly lunch (February 2019) ...Philip
It's that time again! Let's hit up Weiser for
some BBQ this time around. 11:30 this Saturday,
2-16, at Carl's BBQ in Cypress. I probably
won't be able to make it this time though. Next
time...
Skyview Checklist Maker ...Dgamble RV-12
I wasn't satisfied with Dynon's method for
creating custom checklists so I started working on
an alternative. It's pretty far along and I have
created a nice RV-12 checklist with it, but I'm not
sure what to do with it now, if anything. Here are
some screen shots to give you an idea as to where I
was headed with it
It has not been tested beyond my own PC, but I do
have a self-installer that should work on any
Windows machine. I really have no idea what to do
with it at this point. Sell it, give it away, just
forget about it - it seems a waste to only use it
for my own checklist, but I'm reluctant to get
pulled back into professional IT, by which I mean
that I'm not sure I want to be forever on the hook
for maintenance and enhancements.
As such, I would like to
have a handful of people try it out, see
how it works, and give me an idea as to how much
more development it will need before being useful
for a broader audience. Before doing that, though, I
thought it might be a good idea to get some feedback
on what I have done already.
Thoughts?
continue
RV-10 Status Report ...Tim Foster RV-10
"...I got the RV-10 kit
tool package and looks like a bit of everything.
Also working with Brandon on the tail kit a couple
hours at a time. Now I know why everyone talks about
how much fun deburring is. The tail kit is coming
together, fun to see it take shape and then take it
apart again.
Cutting off that triangle piece of sheet metal on
the front right part of tail cone was a bit
disconcerting. Read that section about 5 times
before cutting it off. lol.
Here are a few pictures
[ed. and videos in later replies. v/r,dr]...
"
Mothership HOBBS
Meter
February 13, 2019. Issue #4,759
Any Central/North Texas RV folks out there dentists? Mine
retired and I need one. I can fly to you if it's not too
far from DFW. Might make for a nice travel story <probably
not>. Anywho, contact info
here if you have that
doctor diploma hanging on your office wall with teeth on it, and
you're courtesy car distance from the airport. I'll buy
lunch.
As I sit here at my desk in the home office typing this, an RV just flew
over my house. A local rubbing it in ;^). Flew a
ground track away from the window so I'd be sure to look
outside.
RV life is good.
Kurt Wooten's RV-9A With Fresh Paint Job ...pics
Kurt (and friend Larry) picked up Kurt's 9A
Tuesday at GLO Custom. Gorgeous paint job and
blue skies made for some nice
photos before BBQ. Hope you enjoy.
Great looking plane. Very nice guys!
(Kurt is 'krw5927'
in the forums). dr
Pouring Elevator Counterbalance Lead ...Bill E.
What I did..
On my -4, I made a simple wood mold that mimicked
the rib shape and depth. I took my completed
elevator, minus the weight and set up on balance
point, then filled baggie with lead shot and taped
to rib tip, adjusting amount until slightly nose
heavy (compensate for paint). I then melted and
poured into wood mold. After cooling, drilled and
counter-bored for mounting bolt through rib. Test
fit with bolt/nut while in balance jig to obtain
slight nose heavy condition. I then primed the lead
weight (rib already primed, and installed the weight
with Proseal to completely water seal the weight in
the rib. The finished product looks almost molded
in, and was painted during final paint. In the event
it would still balance nose heavy, it is possible to
drill a hole to remove weigh, then touch up paint. I
do not like the idea of a bonded or glued weight,
because if it comes loose, your elevator will likely
jam, and obviously, you risk flutter with loss of
balance, hence, mine are bolted and sealed in place.
The whole process from mold making to installed took
an afternoon at best.
Panel Porn ...klewin
G3X Touch Software V7.00 Available 2/12/19 ...g3xpert
Garmin is pleased to announce G3X Touch Software
Version 7.00 is now available for download. You can
download the free software from the Garmin website.
Changes made from version 6.30
to 7.00:
•Add ability to temporarily toggle map orientation
by touching north arrow symbol
•Add ability to share internal GPS navigation data
with G5
•Add support for GSA 28 servos used for pitch trim
and roll trim
•Add support for sky pointer roll indicator display
on PFD
•Add support for Kavlico P4055-5020 pressure sensors
•Add support for GAD 27 absolute flap position mode
•Add option to sequence flight plan legs based on
distance from next waypoint
•Add fault indication when GAD 27 is not receiving
required power
•Add configuration page for general system options
•Add configuration page for PFD options
•Add configuration option to prevent changes to AFCS
configuration and AOA calibration when not in config
mode
•Add configuration option to display pairs of fuel
quantity gauges separately
•Add configuration option to disable PFD pitch
adjustment
•Add configuration option to disable flight director
attention tones
•Add support for RS-232 interface to GMA 342/345
•Add ability to save and restore configuration data
using SD card
•Add AHRS diagnostic page
•Improve G5 interface
•Improve Connext flight plan interface
•Improve weight and balance envelope editing
•Improve runway label display on map
•Improve airport runway information display
•Improve traffic target ground track numeric display
•Improve UMA 1EU50A pressure sensor conversion
•Improve flight plan forced leg activation
•Improve flight plan source selection at powerup
•Improve display of radar coverage data
•Improve minimums bug on round altimeter gauge
•Improve user waypoint page
•Improve proximity waypoint page
•Improve position edit page
•Improve gear warning logic for turbine aircraft
•Improve radial engine cylinder temperature display
•Improve operation of ESP controls on MFD
•Change checklist page to preserve progress when
page is closed
•Change audio alert when automatically engaging
autopilot due to ESP activity
•Change flight director attention tone sound to be
distinct from disengage tone
•Change display of AFCS trim and airspeed
annunciations
•General improvements to system operation
•Includes update to audio data version 2.50
•Includes update to G5 software version 6.00
•Includes update to G5 boot block software version
2.20
•Includes update to GAD27 software version 2.30
•Includes update to GAD27 boot block software
version 2.30
•Includes update to GAD29 software version 3.10
•Includes update to GAD29 boot block software
version 3.10
•Includes update to GDL5X software version 2.12
•Includes update to GEA24 software version 3.50
•Includes update to GEA24 boot block software
version 2.20
•Includes update to GI260 software version 2.80
•Includes update to GI260 boot block software
version 2.20
•Includes update to GMA245 software version 2.50
•Includes update to GMA245 boot block software
version 2.30
•Includes update to GMC507 software version 2.80
•Includes update to GMC507 boot block software
version 2.30
•Includes update to GPS20A software version 2.30
•Includes update to GPS20A boot block software
version 2.10
•Includes update to GSA28 software version 4.30
•Includes update to GSA28 boot block software
version 2.20
•Includes update to GSU25/B software version 3.80
•Includes update to GSU25/B boot block software
version 2.20
•Includes update to GTR20/200 software version 3.30
•Includes update to GTR20/200 boot block software
version 2.30
•Includes GDL39 software version 4.81
•Includes GMA245 audio software version 2.20
•Includes GMA245 Bluetooth software version 2.00
•Includes GMU11 software version 2.00
•Includes GMU11 boot block software version 2.00
•Includes GSU73 software version 3.70
•Includes GSU73 IGRF database version 1.03 (Base
Year 2015)
February 12, 2019. Issue #4,758
Alton Bay 2019 ...the Vladinator
I went up north a
while ago. On my way to Rangeley ME I decided to
land on famous ice. It was windy and not many planes
made it that day.
continue
Some Screen Grabs and a Short Video ...GP app
RE:
Icing Levels and more
in Flight Profile view
Yesterday a few people asked in a thread about the
Flight Profile view in the Garmin Pilot EFB app and
its display of icing levels (and winds and clouds).
I grabbed a few screens off my iPad, annotated them,
and recorded a short video of the helpful 'widgets'
that I use planning most flights. You can see
the (5) screen grabs and (1) video
HERE (the last image in the folder is the
video). I find the flight profile view helpful
in planning a cruising altitude (you can drag the
altitude line up/down - shows wind speeds/values and
direction).
Hope this helps those who were curious.
Classic Aero RV-14 Side Panel Pictures ...Luke
Hello RV-14 Builders,
I'm sorry this has taken longer than I expected it
would. I've lost count of the number of major design
changes we've made, and there still may be a few
tweaks before it's said and done. That said, these
pictures should represent the final design for the
most part.
If you have questions about the side panels that
others might benefit from, please ask here rather
than calling, and I'll try to keep tabs on this
thread. I'll also start off by answering a few
questions here too:
•We are starting out with "Cabin Area" side panels
for now (that is what these pictures show). Full
baggage panels will be available. Timing to be
determined as we get further along shipping these.
More pics
•We are still working out pricing.
All of the information for the cabin area side
panels should be on our website sometime next week.
We won't be taking any orders until then.
•Other products for the RV-14 will include
Glareshield trim, and a much more basic side panel
package for those that like the more spartan look.
Timing to be determined further down the road.
•The hidden canopy latch mechanism is a custom
design to work with our side panels. It is
retrofitable. The handle will be anodized aluminum
(the mockup is a painted 3D printed part).
•The lighter area near the top is the painted
structure. All other areas are covered in our
standard upholstery materials so that they match our
seats. Colors can be arranged to your preference.
•Headset jacks are in the stock location.
•Based on past experience, we have used 2024 T3
Aluminum for the structure. This reduces weight (we
will have final weight numbers when production parts
are ready), increases durability, and aids adhesion.
The only molded plastic part is the air vent trim.
•With a few very small exceptions, there are no
visible fasteners.
•The black trim below the latch is machined
aluminum.
Comments and constructive feedback are welcome.
These have been a long time coming. They may look
fairly simple to the casual observer, but hundreds
of hours of design and prototyping went into these.
Hope you all like them
Here are more pictures
Bruce Hill Copperstate Photos
200kt GS Club ...bruceh
I finally was able to hit the magic 200+ Knot
ground speed on the way to the Copperstate Fly In.
This is of course only possible with a really strong
44 Knot direct tailwind, but it is in level flight
with "Otto" the pilot at the controls. The green
circle on the map is my "glide ring", you can see
how skewed it is towards the North East. At one
point I saw a 48 knot tailwind. It was actually
quite smooth all the way out to Buckeye, AZ. I
decided to enrichen the mixture a bit and see what
the true speed of the airplane could be at altitude.
My usual 6.5 gph speed is around 147-150 Knots
(LOP), so with 9 gph it was going only 8-10 knots
faster.
Bird Strike PIREP ...luca
I had to wait some months to write this story due
to some ‘insurance misunderstanding’.
It was a relaxed and calm sunny day last year on May
25. I liked to give, to our local kindly “tower girl
operator” what we call the RV Grin. So at 3 pm local
time we were in the air.
After a 30 minutes flight I was descending over the
home field at 190 Kts and without seeing nothing I
only heard a GREAT 'bang', really loud (something
like shooting with a S&W 686 a .357 Magnum bullet
w/o ears protection).
The condition of the windshield immediately gave me
the idea of what happened. Fly the airplane, stay
calm, reduce speed and power, deep breath was my
automatic routine.
continue
Busy Weekend
I decided to make the best of the
weather this past weekend and get a few things from
my list accomplished inside the hangar that have
been lurking over my shoulder. I have to admit to
being a bit complacent the past few years and let my
instrument currency lapse. Northern California is an
easy place to let that happen with abundant sunshine
and few reasons to feel the need to fly IMC. I used
to fly a Socata Trinidad when living in Ft. Myers
and filed IFR nearly every flight, feeling safer
under the watchful eye of ATC. Well, I finally got
my act together and practiced, re-learned, and took
a combo IPC and BFR last week, passing both. As a
reward, I purchased a second GTR-20 for my -9A. I
always said that I wanted a second comm but just
didn't get around to installing it. The threat of
flying IFR was enough to get me in the mood to dive
back under the panel and do this. So I called my
friend and patient teacher Randy Throne to arrange
some help. We updated my ELT to an ACK 406 and fixed
that co-pilot PTT that didn't work since the panel
upgrade (it helps if one actually attaches the
ground..... oops). Last, we replaced the left side
fuel sender that was going south. Everything went
together and worked right out of the box. the ELT is
registered, comm broadcasts and the PTT is happy
with electrons moving in the right direction. All in
all a very busy but successful and fun weekend in
the hangar. Thanks Randy, I always enjoy working on
the plane and learning the right way to do
something.
__________________
RV-9A N435KR Vans calendar March 2018
IO 320 B1A, Dual LS Plasma III, AFP injection
G3x touch
Frustrated: Squeezer bending rivets ...Girraf
I'm most of the way through my empennage and I'm
still struggling to get my squeezer to to not pull
the shop heads as they set. Biasing the tail towards
the throat side of the sets seems to help but its
not always possible to make that happen because the
nose of the yoke inevitably hits the web of whatever
is being riveted (see photo).
...
February 11, 2019. Issue #4,757
Angel Fire with The Daughter ...crabandy
Milestone: Commercial Rating (checkride
in the RV-6)
Checkride this past
Friday afternoon out of KWEA. DPE Joe Johnson (card
below). Firm but fair, expects you to know your stuff.
Know your EFB app and your weather. Detail-oriented
oral w/many scenarios. The flying part was more
enjoyable - turns out 2,500+ landings in this thing is a confidence
builder. Stalls, emergency descents, sim'd engine out
180* landing, soft field, short field, spot landing, simulated fouled runway in the flare. The
flying was fun!
Joe Johnson photo
Thank you Mr. Johnson for a professional, well done
checkride. I would certainly recommend you to any RV
pilot that would listen. Thank you Gary Platner, RV-8 owner and CFII
rock star. Thank you
Monkey
for one seriously dialed in plane. And last but not
least, thanks again to Mr. VanGrunsven for
designing such a wonderful flying machine.
Took both IFR and Commercial checkrides in the RV.
What a honor to get to do that!
It felt strange Saturday
morning (and Sunday) to not have that Oral Test Prep book in
my lap. I'm getting over it. ;^)
The next day....icing and OVC all around.
Digging Out My RV-6 ...mbauer
Was sick last week, wasn't
able to dig out the RV after each snow storm until
yesterday.
Nikiski received more
snow than Kenai, it is 15.2-miles from my driveway to the
tie downs at the Kenai Airport (PAEN).
When I arrived after work yesterday, the RV was isolated by
about 10-inches of frozen snow. It rained at 40 degrees F
and then cooled down to below freezing before it started to
snow.
Only way I could move the snow was by using a metal square
tip shovel to break it up and then a plastic snow shovel to
move it out of the way. Took three hours to clear the
tie-down. Worked up a sweat wearing a t-shirt in 12 deg F
coolness.
Anyway here are a few photos...more
Passed Inspection! ...AviatorJ RV-10
Still hasn't hit me
yet but as of yesterday N10JW is Airworthy! She
successfully passed with no major issues. The DAR
was fantastic throughout the process, fielding the
numerous questions I had as well as help in
completing all the fun FAA paperwork!
For the actual inspection he gave me to posture of
the plane prior to coming out. Basically access
panels removed, empennage fairing no screws, baggage
panels removed but the engine cowled up. He spent
about 45 mins looking over the plane, we also
removed the cowling so he could see the engine. All
in all I had 5 or so items he wanted me to double
check and made some great suggestions.
We then went back to the heated FBO where he looked
at my build log, FAA forms and made all the
appropriate entries. He also walked me through the
special airworthiness certificate which now also
includes operating limitations. After everything was
completed and explained we took the obligatory
inspection picture and now I'm clear to fly!
Another Panel Layout Thread ...N804RV
**RV-8**
1) I'd welcome comments and criticism on this panel layout.
This is a rough idea. All switches and circuit breakers have
not been accounted for yet. Trying to keep the 430W high
enough in the panel to clear the aft LG tower support. And,
keep the PFD nearly centered.
2) As far as keeping the PFD close to centered: Can the
SkyView 7" Classic display be configured so the the PFD is
on the right (60%), and the map on the left (40%)? I always
see the PFD on the left side of the screen.
Status Report ...KazooRV-9A
Canopy skirts are
in place! No small feat.... Friend Ken was over last
week and we put in 36 man hours total to get them in
place. I like how the instructions say, that after
all the work it took to fit the bubble to the frame
and actually achieve a rolling closure with proper
fit, that the rear skirts are the hardest part of
the canopy build. I disagree, they were tricky,,,
but not the hardest part.
AND.... Here's the long awaited first look at the
Aerotronics gauge panel sitting in place. I've
waited two years to see this little gem in the
cockpit. I'm betting the original builder (Marty
Johnson - Gone west) can see it now, and is
thrilled, he surely spec'd out a nice panel.
Good News ...vic syracuse
A couple of things I want to share:
First, our youngest son, Nick, earned his Private
Pilot's license this week. He's been working
with me in the business for a while, too. It's
really heartwarming and way cool to see your son
enthused about aviation as much as I am.
Second, Many of you may have heard by now that we
have finally opened up our new facility at Falcon
Field (KFFC). Next Saturday
February 16
(rain date Feb 23), we are going to have an open
house from 11-2, with barbecue. So if you are
looking for a place to fly to next Saturday, we
would love to see you!
We will be giving out T-shirts with our company logo
on the front and a catchy phrase on the back I think
you will all get a kick out of.
The new hangar is on the Southeast corner of the
airfield, on the left hand side as you land on
Runway 31. It's a large empty ramp with only our
hangar there now, so you can't miss it.
If you think you might make it, please RSVP to my
email. We want to have enough food.
We won't hold you to it if you don't make it.
February 8, 2019. Issue #4,756
Got in a .2 Thursday for a post-Mx flight
in the cold wind. Bumpy, crosswind, but all the gauges good.
Fresh annual, hoses, fluids and more.
Thanks to Monk for the help.
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend.
New Plane for me
Hey gang!!
I bought a nice RV-6 this past weekend. Its a tip up
with a Lyc O-360 and FP Prop. My previous RV was an
8 that I built. Air on the ground was not an issue
with the 8....this tip up thing cooked me on the
ground at 74*F!!! it is too heavy to just ride
around while holding it open. I know there's gotta
be a better way...HAHAHA!!! please tell me the
secret...
Also, today was my first time flying it. Very heavy
left wing with full (even) fuel. My 8 had a heavy
wing and I remember there was a trick for fixing
this...as I recall I put two paint stirrers on the
trailing edge of the aileron and then used an edge
seamer to "crimp" the trailing edge..I just can't
remember which aileron to "adjust"!! Any help would
be greatly appreciated.
__________________
Joel McMillian
Eagle's Nest Projects - Montgomery HS (TX) - A little fun in the shop
...video of the 'First Landing'. ;^)
Eagle's Nest Projects - McKinney HS (TX) - NBC_DFW Ch5 Education Feature
Video- NBC_DFW Ch5 Features McKinney
Aviation Academy Students Learn Aviation Skills at
McKinney High School - NBC (Morning intro...)
Mothership News....
JDAir new Canopy Latch
The JD Air Parts tip up canopy latch
has been slightly redesigned for a better
appearance. Mechanically, it is exactly the same.
The reason for the design change is two fold. 1) The
previous version was water jet cut and then required
machining. 2) My company doing the machining looked
at the drawings and felt the latches could be
machined quicker with a better appearance.
RV7 builder Sean Blair installed one in his plane.
He had the old version and installed the new one for
comparison. He said it works exactly the same. He
will probably chime in with his thoughts and
impressions.
And, in the interest of safety, we are also offering
the latches anodized red.
I thought this was important as a critical handle
for egress. I don't have pictures of the red version
but will get them on the site soon.
February 7, 2019. Issue #4,755
Paint! ...skyking902001
Finally got some paint on the -8. Painted by GLO
Aircraft Painting--Roanoke, TX (52F). Mark and the
guys did an outstanding job!
New Guy ...gcman6 (Fredericksburg, PA RV-7)
I received my empennage kit yesterday! I am
building a taildragger with slider canopy and manual
flaps and trim. I still need to finish setting up my
shop and finish the kit inventory. But, I made some
headway on it last night and hope to finish it
tonight after work. I've been dreaming about
building an airplane for some time and and am super
excited to get started. If anyone else is building a
-7 in the southeastern PA area, please reach out.
I'd love to connect with any fellow builders in my
area.
Aileron Bellcrank Grease ...Mudfly
I'm ready to install the aileron bellcranks in
the wings (RV14). Not sure about other models, but
the bellcrank design for -14 has a brass bushing
that is inserted into the steel housing of the
bellcrank. The assembly is placed in position and
secured using a AN4-32A. When the bolt is properly
torqued, the bolt and brass bushing are to remain
stationary with the rotation occurring between the
bushing and the steel bellcrank. There is no mention
in the plans of lubricating this rotation point, but
I was thinking it may be a good idea. My question is
what would be the better lubrication. LPS-2 and
Lubriplate 630-AA are two products that I'm
considering. It seems both may have pros and cons.
The pros for the Lubriplate would seem to be longer
lasting. However, the con would be when it is time
to replace, the bellcrank assembly would need to be
disassembled. Also, will this lubriplate break down
during the heat of the summer and drip out the
bottom? That's what happens to grease in my grease
guns out in the garage during summer. The pro for
the LPS-2 would seem that when time to re-lube, it
would just require opening the access panel on the
bottom wing skin and applying fresh lube using a
flexible tube. The con for LPS-2 would seem that it
would need to be re-applied at shorter intervals.
I realize I'm overthinking this, but was just
curious what others have used, and actual
lubrication requirements for this part once in
service.
Legally Heating a Hangar ...mfleming
So I purchased a hangar recently
One of the improvements I would like to do is
install a fixed vented propane heater.
Because I will be renting the hangar out until I am
ready to move my -7 project into the hangar I
applied for a commercial lease. Oregon requires a
commercial lease if ANY revenue is being made off of
the hangar.
Anyway, while researching heaters I came across NFPA
409. This states that heaters must be at least 10'
above the wing of the aircraft.
I might get the heater 10' above the wing of my -7
but the rule says 10' above any aircraft that can
fit in the hangar (I'm paraphrasing). Not happening
I read all about portable heaters...I'm interested
in the fixed variety.
So, Do I have to comply with this NFPA 409?
What is everyone else doing with hangars with lower
ceilings and heat??
The top of my door is 12', the door opens to about
10' 8"... No way to meet the rules as far as I can
see
Build Site Up! ...randylervold
I just wanted to let the -12 folks know that I
finally got my -12iS site up...
rv12driver.com
FlyLED Test Video ...Av8torTom
Finished assembling my FlyLED, "The Works". This
is the first time I've had one of the wing-tips
outside in the dark. Paul at FlyLEDs was a BIG help.
Pretty impressed.
February 6, 2019. Issue #4,754
Annual almost done. Engine run (no drips) and stuff
going back in/on. Hope to test fly Wednesday. Wx
might not allow. Sad face.
More RV-10 Bahama Pics ...Ivan Kristensen
Exit diffuser on oil cooler to increase flow through oil cooler ...scsmith
I want to do some cowl work to
reduce my cooling exit flow area and at the same
time reduce overall frontal area.
But before I can do that, I have to do two other
things. One is make a seal around the
crankshaft/spinner gap. As you close off the cooling
exit, raising the pressure in the lower cowl plenum,
you want the higher pressure to result in higher
exit velocities out of the cooling exit, not just
spill out around the spinner. So I have to do that.
The other thing I need to do is
increase the flow through the oil cooler. The
angle-valve engines put a lot more of the heat load
into the oil, and efficient oil cooling is crucial.
I've been very happy with my firewall-mounted cooler
arrangement with the large 20006A cooler, I have
good oil temperatures even during a long climb at Vy
on a hot day. But as I close off the cowl exit and
increase the pressure in the lower plenum, the oil
cooler flow will decrease because of the reduced
pressure differential across the oil cooler. So..how
to get that flow back? put a diffuser on the cooler
exit. The trick is to do this smoothly enough get
good pressure recovery without a lot of length that
wouldn't fit in the cowl area. Short, wide-angle
diffusers can work pretty well. The pressure in the
oil cooler flow at the exit of the diffuser will
match the local static pressure in the area around
it. Ideally, if the diffuser is flowing well, this
results in lower pressure at the exit face of the
cooler itself. Its like immersing the cooler in the
throat of a venturi.
I made a mold out of wood, painted and waxed it, and
laid up a fiberglass diffuser. The diffuser geometry
has an area ratio of 1.45. This will also be a good
trial of the high-temperature hardener system
(3136R) I got for the Jeffco 3107 (Rhino) epoxy we
use. The diffuser was room temperature cured, then
removed from the mold and post-cured, 1/2 hr at
150F, 1/2 hr at 175F, then 2 hr at 200F. Hopefully
this will give a high enough glass-transition
temperature (T_g) for the epoxy to survive the hot
environment in the lower cowl. Here are a couple of
pictures of the installation:
continue
Exit Diffuser on Oil Cooler ...DanH input
Ahh, the Chinese menu dilemma: fast, cheap,
good...pick any two.
FWIW, I have a row of miniature bulkhead fittings
installed in my firewall. Buy a length of 10-32
threaded rod. Cut it into 1-1/2" lengths. Chuck it
in the lathe and machine a half inch of threads off
each end, leaving a half inch of threads in the
middle. Center bore with something small. Now drill
a 3/16" hole in the firewall and fasten with a plain
nut on each side. 1/8" tubing pushes over the
threadless ends.
I have something similar installed in the rear
baffle wall, four lengths of brass model airplane
tubing soldered in a brass plate.
In an attempt to read static pressure only, I
usually go with piccolo tubes, but you know more
about that stuff than I'll ever learn.
continue
RV-10 Status Report ...LCampbell
Work is underway, and I’m having a blast!
Really impressed with how well thought out and
designed all of this is. It gives encouragement and
confidence in the path that lay ahead.
To the guys in Missouri, I’m looking forward to
crossing paths with you all, and getting to see your
birds. I’m getting to know the guys at the Jeff City
EAA, and it looks like a great group.
To Mike S,
neat to connect the dots through our mutual friend,
and thanks for the well wishes as well.
I’ve one small question… one of the photos is a
really close up shot of the small bend that’s to be
put on the trailing edge of the rudder skin. Does
that amount looks about right? That seemed to be
about how much I did on the small practice kit that
was a 1 foot aileron section, and it seemed to turn
out ok. But I’d rather not glue the trailing edge
together, and have it curl up during riveting.
Garmin Pilot v9.5.3 is out...FYI.
RV-6A PROJECT For Sale $13K
Listing for RV friend Bob Mozina
Partially
complete, Out of jig, Gear legs drilled, All tail
surfaces completed.Wings completed except for lower
wing skins the are drilled and ready too install.
Excellent workmanship!! Wing tip strobes , Electric
Flaps, Engine mount, All aircraft wire to complete.
Complete O320 Engine. Plane located in Florida (FL10
airport) $13,000. Please contact Bob Mozina
980-699-5380. Bobmozina5 'at gmail 'dot' com
pics
Pic of Luke/Franz's Planes in Hangar ...DeeCee 57
Mothership News
February 5, 2019. Issue #4,753
From Italy to Texas ...fradante (Francesco)
[ed. Trip report from my RV friend in Italy.
What a great guy!!!! Great fun talking with
him and his friends. v/r,dr]
While on a trip in
Texas I had the opportunity to meet DR in person at
the VanCave. I landed at 52F with my friend’s
Cardinal, he’s spending four years as instructor at
Sheppard AFB. After a visit to the VanCave, we
went to a tex mex for lunch with some other RV guys.
We had good food and we spent a very good time
talking together about plane and flying, at 52F
there is a big and friendly RV community!
THE Jay Pratt and
Francesco!
At the end of the
visit I asked Doug about Jay Pratt and Hicks field,
and in a couple of minutes the “VAF connection”
arranged for us a stop to meet Jay at his shop. VAF
it’s a big help while building and a fast lane in
connecting people. Once again I had the
feeling that building and flying it’s all about
friends.
continue
[ed. Who is fradante? He's the guy in the
orange RV-8 in the CrewRV8 formation team <g> v/r,dr]
New steering link geometry ...scsmith
Some
of you will have seen the thread that I started several
years ago after a surprise groundloop occurred in a strong
starboard cross wind when the steering link unexpectedly and
suddenly released.
That thread stimulated a lot of good discussion on several
related topics, one of which is the asymmetry of a "rocket
link" steering link in the release points when steering left
and right. The asymmetry is caused by the angle at the
rudder horn from the rudder hinge axis to the attach point
for the steering link being a different angle than the angle
at the steering arm from the tail wheel pivot axis to the
attach point for the steering link.
After some discussion with Darwin Barrie at JD Airparts, he
arranged to make a modified steering arm. I spent a little
while doing some trig and analytic geometry to come up with
a length and sweep angle of the steering arm that would
produce a symmetrical release action to the left and right,
and have both directions cause release of the tail wheel
lock just at the extreme deflection of the rudder. Darwin
sent me the the new steering arm and a longer steering link
to test out. Here are some pictures of the installation.
I have not been able to fly this installation yet because of
weather, ongoing condition inspection, and some other
activities. But I will report back here as soon as I can fly
with it. I can tell you that on the ground, if you pull the
rudder all the way to the stop, and put pressure on the tail
wheel in the direction it would feel if steering, it does
NOT release. Same left and right. If you put the rudder all
the way to the stop and put pressure on the tail wheel in
the direction to make it swivel intentionally, it does
release. Same left and right.
You can also see that I
substitute a normal rod end with an AN3 bolt and AN970
washer, plus some of the rod end spacer washers that Vans
sells, in place of the integral rod end + stud that is
supplied. This insures that the rod end stays captive in the
very unlikely event that the bearing fails.
So I am pretty optimistic that this will be a nice
improvement to the steering link system for those that like
it. The steering link system is quicker steering than chains
or cables with springs and a little slack, and arguably not
as rugged as cables with springs. So there is still room for
personal preference here. But for those of us that like the
quick, positive steering feel, this new steering arm should
give you symmetrical behavior.
__________________
Steve Smith
Aeronautical Engineer
RV-8 N825RV
RVs connected people ...Luke in Italy
The very first VFR
day after a while in my area created a connection
opportunity. Three builders, good guys - all
in the liner pilot business and never met together,
arrived in my home base to meet me.
Dan, retired from airline, flew his red/yellow RV-6
from Swiss. Hermann, Lufthansa pilot, own an
RV-7 and an RV-8. He has some serious plans to cross
the Pond to Oshkosh with the 8.
Tobias - the booster - flies his brand new RV-7.
He's a young pilot for Swiss Airline. Hermann and
Tobias arrived from distinct Germany area.
We spent some hours to speak about RVs, they took a
look of a pair of nice 8s , so we had a lunch
together. Thank you for your visit ! See you soon.
"It’s the airplanes that bring us together. It’s the
people who keep us coming back."
continue/more pics
[ed. Luca! The calendar you sent me arrived in
the mail Monday. Thank you very much!!!!
On our refrigerator right now!!!! v/r,dr
RV14 panel design - give us any advice ...romanov (Israel)
Hello fellow
builders,
It is first time I am designing IFR panel full of
avionic devices I never used (yet). So please give
me your best opinion on the work so far. Your
experience here is the most valuable piece of
information that can be.
Thanks a lot:
Status Report ...Tdeman -6
I got a deal on a
second hand engine mount, gear legs, and wheels that
came off of a colleagues RV-6. As a bonus, it had
wheel and leg fairings already installed. I decided
to see how the mount lined up with the holes that
were in my firewall already. The top two holes were
dead on, but the bottom two were both more then half
a hole off to the inside… Symmetrically, so there
was no way to realign the mount to get it to work…
Measured the mount, and it’s right to spec, so
somehow, sometime before I got it, the firewall and
weldements were miss drilled to 1/4”. Time for some
surgery to get things right…continue
February 4, 2019. Issue #4,752
Build Update ...jcarne
Well now that the
flaps are done I decided to do the aileron and elevator push
rods. First I had to take a couple of weeks off for this
bundle of joy. Say hello to my new aviator named Avden with
his custom RV hat.
...
Condition inspection RV9A/ compression tests.
Working on my condition
inspection in my logbook for engine I have a note with my
compression tests from last year that indicate satisfactory
with AC 90.116-98. I wanted to read that but I cannot find
it I am assuming it is a advisory circular. When checking on
the Internet I show no results found. After checking my
Lycoming manual I am not finding a set of values for
compression test. Help! Ron in Oregon
Almost
There
...16th annual inspection
in the final stretch. Engine cleaned, new valve cover
gaskets, intake pipe gaskets, oil breather line hose and
more. Man that thing looks clean. I like.
full size
Bahama trip follow-up
I just returned from
my 4 day (3 nights) trip to the Bahamas in a nut shell it
was a fantastic in every way. I began the trip fairly early
the morning of Jan. 28 and flew to Fort Meyers airport (KFMY)
where I picked up my long time friend Art Kampf. From there
we flew non stop to New Bight airport (MYCB) on Cat Island
in the Bahamas. Flight time was 2.3 hrs. Clearing customs
there was easy and took only a frw minutes plus a fee of
$60.00
continue
Pan Pan ...Ed W.
“Approach,
experimental XYZ, pan, pan.” That got their attention!
I’d used mayday two or three times in the past, but this was
the first time using pan. I was flying with a friend, and
when he gave me the controls back in the RV-9A after doing a
turn, the stick was really heavy. The elevator trim
indicator showed way, way nose down – uncommanded. And the
elevator trim switch was ineffective. After talking it over
with my friend, also a very experienced CFI, we decided this
was an appropriate PAN situation and going home right away
was the best course.
We were about 8 minutes out, about 120 knots, and what to
do? ATC offered closer airports, but home base seemed pretty
doable. But it took a LOT of pull on the stick.
The first decision was that I had him fly so I wouldn’t be
landing an out of trim airplane with really tired arms.
continue
RV-10 'Poster' ...charrois
Here is mine, while on
static display at an airshow. About 200 hours of flying on
it now, and worth every hour of construction time!
Keeping fuel pump cool
Hi everyone.
I've been having ongoing issues with fuel pressure
fluctuations at higher altitudes and am trying to get them
resolved once and for all. I've done everything I can think
of to keep the tunnel cool (insulated firewall and floor of
the tunnel, pipe wrap insulation around the scat tubes
there, etc.), but that hasn't helped. I'm now in the process
of moving my fuel flow transducer out of the tunnel and
instead between the engine pump and servo as the "red cube"
manufacturers suggest to avoid the possibility of the
transducer being a source of vapour lock. I've also changed
my fuel pressure sensor in case it was faulty in some way.
I'm still working on these changes so haven't done a flight
yet to see if the situation improves, but while the plane is
down am trying to improve the performance of the fuel system
as much as possible.
But something which still strikes me as "poor design" is
that when cabin heat isn't required, heat from the exhaust
muffs is directed to the area between the firewall and
engine, right where the engine fuel pump is. I have the
stainless cabin heat selector vents as well, which help to
prevent heat from leaking into the cabin when it's not
wanted, but does nothing to keep the area aft of the engine
cool.
...
Newbie question: skin dent
Just starting out on my VS
and I made my first (of many I'm sure) goof. Flipped VS-706
upside-down and when I wrapped the skin, the rib created a
small but visible dent. I should have known better. I'll
probably order a new skin to be safe, but would be helpful
to get a second opinion. Am I going overboard or is this
going to bother me every time I look at it?
11th annual ice cream social at Inyokern, CA on March 9th
The 11th annual ice
cream social will be held at Inyokern, CA airport on March
9th from 1100-1400.
The ice cream social is just an excuse to get together, eat
some free ice cream and fly. It started as a way to get
folks involved and has grown every year. Last year was a
bust due to weather. Hope we can make for it this year.
If you would like to attend, please email me at axel_alvarez
"at" hotmail "dot" com Use "Ice cream social" on the subject
line of the email for spam filter reasons. If not, it will
end up in the "trash/recycling bin" and I won't know you are
coming. The head count will be used to figure out how much
supplies my wife and I need to buy. All I need is your name
and the number of people attending by March 2nd. Please
DON'T wait until the last minute.
...
Ted Chang New Kit Status ...mothership
fb post
Prop Crack Update
Closing this out, here's
the statement from the engineers at Sensenich published with
Don Rowell's perimission:
"The crack occurred at the 30% ply drop. While the crack did
not and likely would not have propagated into the spar, it
did go through all layers of the skin laminate. We cut into
the laminate at the crack location, but we were unable to
find any abnormal type of discontinuity. This is the first
like this we have observed on a production propeller blade.
It is our recommendation that we replace both blades free of
charge. At this point, we believe this to be a discrete
failure due to an irregularity that industry standard
quality control practices were unable to diagnose.
We have sectioned the blade, and will certainly continue to
diagnose and if needed correct the issue that caused the
failure. We do feel strongly that the alternate load paths
found in the blades would have prevented this failure from
becoming catastrophic."
As I said above, I will monitor the new blades carefully. As
someone else said, there's no such thing as a company that
hasn't supplied defective product. I expect to have a good
experience with the new blades and think that Don and his
staff have done all that can be expected.
Neat
Freak Porn
Seen at Monk's during my
annual. Oh baby...
February 1, 2019. Issue #4,751
Continuing the annual on the RV-6. Gaskets, hoses,
plugs, etc. The tailwheel bushing is pretty shot - might
be the year to replace that after a decade and change of
abuse use. It might be nice to have positive,
firm tailwheel steering again - currently it's sorta a
'suggestion'. ;^). I gave
Darwin a call and he gave me some idears.
Developing...
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend.
Upgraded Mothership Website and Brand
...pretty great looking! Give it a look!
A New Look For Van's Aircraft ...the press release.
Wallpaper Calendar for February
Photo courtesy Ed Hicks
Flow Images Ltd, 3C Lower Lapdown Workshops,
Lapdown Lane, Tormarton, Badminton, GL9 1JE. Tel: 07973 715211
Why I fly Young Eagles ...D. Gherardini
Gents, After reading the posts from the few who DON'T fly
young eagles, I felt compelled to tell my story. This is
gonna be long, But, I MUST tell it.
About 7 or 8 years ago or so, A fellow pilot friend of mine
from another EAA chapter called me on a friday eve, and
asked, "You are coming to our fly-in tomorrow ?" And I said,
" You bet, in fact Im gonna try and make two fly-ins
tomorrow because there is also a fly-in car-show at Pekin
Muni." He said great, would you consider doing us a big
favor and helping out with the Young eagle rides? Last year
we had over 100 kids show up and we think this year will be
even bigger, and one of our members just called me. He went
out to his hangar to check on his Cherokee and found a
puddle of oil underneath, so he has canceled, and we are
worried we wont have enough aircraft to get them all done."
...
Now, I had been a EAA guy for many , many years. And I
really never much paid attention to the young eagle
stuff..always too busy to give it much thought. Not that I
dont go to fly-ins. I attend a fly-in somewhere just about
every single weekend of the summer. Hated it when I missed
one within range of whatever aircraft I owned at the time.
Looking back, I was just selfishly thinking about my own
fun, and not any kids. Now this friend who called, he is a
really good friend, and as I was thinking about probably not
being able to make BOTH events if I got wrestled into this,
so I was trying to figure out an excuse to turn him down.
Anyway, because of our friendship, I just couldnt. So I
agreed. I can tell you, I flew up to their airport early the
next morning, kind of bummed out, feeling like it was a
chore I was not much interested in.
Well, for whatever reason, not as many kids showed up as
they had hoped, and after flying about 40 or so, we were
done. I cheered up, as I now was going to be able to make
that other fly-in with the car-show now. Before I left, as I
had plenty of time now, I walked over to where the pres of
that chapter, some other officers and the other pilots were
sitting in the shade of a Cessna wing and took the extra
lawn chair to jaw with them. They were all discussing what
had gone wrong, why the turnout was poor, where they spent
their advertising money, and how "unsuccessful" the event
was.They were all, "Down in the jaw" I didn't say much as I
am not a member of that chapter, and wouldnt have known a
successful event from a bust anyway.
While this discussion was going on, we noticed a woman
walking towards us from up by the area where to food vendors
and other activity was. She had a kid, maybe 8 or 9 by the
hand and continued walking our way with this somber, serious
look on her face, and kind of a "John Wayne" jaunt to her
step. Pretty quick, everybody shut up as she was definitely
coming straight toward us. When she stopped in our midst,
she said, " Excuse me men, But I would like to speak with
the pilot of that Yellow airplane right over there."..and
she pointed right at my craft. GULP...I was floored..I didnt
recognize the kid as one I had flown, but figgered I was
about to get reamed by a mad mother for something, making
her kid sick , or scared, or who knows what..and all I could
think of was..I knew I never should have done this. So I
stood and simply said, "That would be me ma'am." geting
prepared to take my licks. I think all my friends were
taking a step or two backwards as I stood..you could have
heard a pin drop.... Then she began. "MY son rode with you
this morning, and I wanted to ask you a favor, I Just didnt
see this coming. He just turned 16 last fall and got his
drivers license, and he has been in so much trouble. His
grades at school have been terrible, he wont mind me or his
stepdad. He has been in trouble with the police and he has
not come home several nights"...she continued on about the
boy, and their problems, for a bit.cant remember all she
said, but I do remember she said "he wont even stand up
straight anymore"..anyway, she continued, "But something
just happened to him, and I really think he is going to
straighten up. " When he got out of that plane he came
running to me and asked me for my phone, because he needed
to call his dad right now! " I gave him my phone and he
called his father. I heard him apologize for the trouble he
has been in, which he has NEVER done before, and when school
starts he will get good grades and he will do what Mom and
his stepdad tells him and how sorry he was, because..he just
has to learn to fly, and the pilot told him..He had to study
hard, get good grades, because Aviation is expensive, but
its worth whatever you have to pay. Nothing beats flying."
"Well, im sorry sir for the trouble, but I just didnt see it
coming, I had to go to the car and get my camera and if you
dont mind, I'd like to take a picture of you and him next to
that airplane. I dont want him to forget today."
Talk about floored..I was not expecting this. Of course I
said "yes 'ma'am, and as we started to walk towards my 912
KitFox, I saw that boy come running down from the main
hangar area where he was waiting. AHhhh..now I remember
him..he was that kid with the chip on his shoulder..acting
too cool, and like he was just gonna do but it wasnt gonna
be anything. HE was the kid that, after we got to altitude,
and asked him if he wanted to take the stick, and of course
he did..and after about one minute..he melted, and became
super enthusiastic. He got the hang real quick, as most 16
year old boys would..and as I coached him thru the next two
turns, he did really well. I felt good about it then, but I
had no idea of his troubles..and now, well, as it turns out
Thanks to his mom, two boys lives were changed that day. Mom
took her photos, and we parted. I noticed something also, as
they walked away, he was standing up straight and held his
chin high.
I was immediately overcome with both pride, and then shame.
So proud I might have had a chance to change a wayward young
mans life positively, and so danged ashamed, I had ignored
this program..well..since it started. What a selfish turd i
thought of myself in the next moment. When I walked back to
the squad under the Cessna wing, The mood there was
decidedly different. I went right up to the chapter
president, and I told him. " I dont care how unsuccessful
you guys thought this event was, and I dont care if you have
only one kid come next time..you call me, Ill come and fly ,
cause nothing pays better than this." They of course were
all smiling now, in a much better mood.
I fly young eagles now with several chapters, and never miss
one. How often does a fella get a chance to make a
difference in a strangers kids life so effectively, and how
much is it worth? It does not happen of course every
time..and you cant tell what effect you have on them always,
but when you can see it..its worth more than gold. Flying
young eagles can be a Heck of alot more than giving airplane
rides, you are setting an example.
__________________
D. Gherardini
Central Illinois
RV9A slider 0-320 carbed
Garmin Aera 660 Software V3.40 Available 1/31/19 ...g3xpert
Aera 660 software version 3.40 is now available. As
always, the Aera software update is free and can be easily
downloaded on your Aera 660 when connected to wifi. Here are
a few highlights from the new V3.40 software:
On the airport runway review tab, the Aera 660 will now show
you headwind and crosswind components for the selected
runway. The preferred runway will be highlighted green.
continue
First Start After Sitting A Year. . . Ideas?
My Lycoming O-360 has been sitting for a year while the
airplane has undergone a complete panel and electrical
system upgrade. Soon I’ll be starting the engine, and I have
concerns about scuffing the cam lobes while waiting for oil
to make its way to the top of the engine. I’ve always been
told that this startup wear, particularly on what is
probably a very dry cam, is responsible for a tremendous
amount of overall engine wear.
In trying to come up with a way to mitigate the problem, my
friend wondered out loud why I couldn’t just fill the case
to the top with oil (through the breather), submerging the
cam. Then drain it all out, pull the engine through by hand
to insure no hydro lock issues, refill the case to the
normal level and start’r up.
It sounded kind of crazy at first, but after giving it some
thought, I can’t see why it wouldn’t work. I figure I must
be missing something, and thought I’d run it by you guys.
What do you think?
If you think its a good idea, I wonder how many gallons of
oil it would take to make it to the top. Also, couldn’t you
use cheaper automotive oil, since it’s going to be drained
out anyway?
Thanks in advance for your input!
January 31, 2019. Issue #4,750
300+....The Jacket ...turbo RV-6A
"...getting this jacket was a great surprise.
coming in handy this winter in florida. we have also
been flying kids in operation 300. this is for kids
who have lost a parent during military service.
these have been some of the best flights in my rv."
:^)
Status Report ...KazooRV-9A
Hard to believe it's been 10 months since my last
post. Here's a current photo of the Fuse. I've been
working on the Canopy since early December, it's as
difficult as many of the threads describe. Mostly
trail and error to fit the bubble on the frame and
meet the desired fit to the fuselage. I was ready to
just go open cockpit, but a friend came over one day
and we somehow got things fitted. (The windscreen is
just sitting on the front).
continue
Avoiding confusion
Recently I've redone my checklists. The plane was
first flown in 2012 and as time has passed I found I
had many little checklist tucked away in the nooks
and crannies around the cockpit. This past week I
spent some time consolidating them into three 5X11
inch laminated cards. All my information is now
handily located on the front or back of these 3
cards.
Here's the point of this post. Once when I was ready
to head home from the Petit Jean Fly-in in Arkansas,
I had my primary GPS unit go belly up. The little
bit of checking and messing with it I could do
sitting there ready to takeoff didn't yield any good
results. I had the back up nexus tablet up and
running so no issues there and I blasted off for
home. After taking off I began to think of how the
loss of the device would affect my flight. My mind
went blank!!! Here's what I did about it. While
sitting at home drinking coffee with all the time I
needed and no stress of flying a plane, I went
through each device in the plane and tried to write
a summary of each. What information I was getting
from each device, (and what information I would lose
in event of failure of that particular device),
where the device got that information from and in
the event of a failure exactly what to do about it.
I'm VFR only so this was pretty simple. The
interesting thing was the human factor that come
into play. This was no emergency at all but my mind
in the middle of it could not organize the
information. GPS/autopilot/wifi/bluetooth/dual
antenna.... it all began to run together and created
confusion in my head. Eventually I found the best
things was to ignore it and use the nexus. I did get
bummed about the thought of hand flying the 450
miles home.... (what did I ever do before I had an
AP)??? I did figure out the autopilot would still
work in heading and altitude modes.
By the way, it turns out the only thing wrong with
my primary GPS device was some corrosion on one end
of the fuse so that's why it wasn't blown and still
didn't work when reinstalled.
__________________
Paul Gray
Foley, Alabama
N729PG
RV-10 Shot ...Electrogunner
Panel Progress ...ssokol
Got the newly cut and coated blanks (I ordered an
extra one for a table-top demo) on Friday. Here's a
shot of one with the switches installed:
I already had the Carling rocker switches with
the custom covers, so I decided to just push ahead
with them. Probably not as good or as small as the
locking switches, but they were paid for and they
should do the job. I think they look pretty good.
The cut-out on the far right is for the breaker
panel. Decided to stay semi old-school and use
standard Klixon breakers. The airplane already has
17 which are in good shape, so rather than trying to
go in a new direction I just expanded it a bit. The
new breaker panel will mount from behind so if I
ever want to remove the panel I can do so without
disconnecting all those breakers. Just take out the
screws and pull the main panel away.
I should have new mounts for the iPads soon. I
designed a new low-profile mount that won't take up
too much space and will make it easy to mount the
"knobs and buttons" bar at the bottom.
If you're going to be at Copperstate in Buckeye AZ
next weekend, look me up. I'll be in the exhibit
tent. I plan to have the demo system set up and
running.
Don't Make My Mistake ...Bill Boyd
See this fancy drag-reducing closeout of the
outboard end rib on my right flap? I did them on the
inboard side as well. Before trimming the flap to
fit the fuse. Without realizing the inboard end
isn't exposed to the slipstream when the flaps are
up.
It's all getting ground away to make room for flap
fitment to fuselage. :^(
Status Report #10 ...romanov
...many pics.
Mothership Stats:
The End of the Great Program ...Vlad
The program is discontinued. I managed to stamp
over a dozen of airports in South Carolina. I will
keep the booklet who knows maybe in 10 years it will
be running again. :^)
Jan/Feb '19 Safety Briefing Issue is Online ...40pg PDF
January 30, 2019. Issue #4,749
And so begins the 16th Condition Inspection...
...at Richmond Aircraft Service (Monkey's).
Looking like this might be the year of hose
replacements.
enlarge
Getting my RV Grin ...Brian RV-4
Here's one way to get the RV grin. It was an
especially nice day for flying upside down.
Thanks ...first post update
Thanks for the welcome everyone. It’s encouraging
to know that there’s so much support available to
help with the build. And with very little “small”
airplane experience, it has been great to have some
folks helping me learn to flare a little lower than
30’ and teach me what a magneto does. Anyone wanting
to visit CYQA, just let me know your plans. If I’m
not on the other side of the planet working, I’ll
happily meet-and-greet any fellow RVers. It’s even a
port of entry for any Americans who want to take a
quick trip across the border. I’m excited to be part
of the RV club.
__________________
RV-3A bought
RV-8 building
RV7-A model: Access to torque landing gear mount hardware
Looking ahead in the plans, us -A builder
eventually need to install the WD-721 landing gear
mounts against the F-704 center section bulkhead
with bolts on the top and bottom of the mounts. Once
the bottom skin is riveted on, getting good access
to those bottom nuts will be challenging:
I will be able to get a long skinny wrench down
there, but not any torque wrench I've seen. Before I
button these bottom skins up, is there anything I
can do to make this task less of a P.I.T.A. later?
Is it acceptable to measure/set the torque on the
bolt sides instead of the nuts for these?
I decided to install the F-663 control column mounts
to the bulkhead before riveting the skin for this
reason. But I don't think it would be possible (or
wise) to install the gear mounts early too.
__________________
Ryan Drake
Livermore, CA
RV-8 - #83674 - N8SA ...update
I am building a RV-8 and have reserved the tail
number 8SA. I have been documenting the build so far
in time lapse video on YouTube. The Horizontal Stab
and Vertical Stab videos are just the time lapse
video, however moving forward I intend to try and
make the videos a little more interactive and
informative for those that wish to follow along in
my build. This is the first plane I've build and
have so far learned a ton, with plenty more mistakes
to go, I'm sure!
vid
__________________
Sean A.
RV-8 -- N8SA
January 29, 2019. Issue #4,748
The importance of Pie Insurance ...Capt. Sandy
Aviation Tales for Cold Winter Days, part two,
where Jim continues his story, and the importance of
Pie Insurance comes home:
....Past the playground and the fuel pump, a fellow
in a brown flight jacket slide open a hangar door
and pulled out a navy blue bi-plane. A young couple
stood nearby, waiting for the ride of their lives.
They’d see the sparkling waters of Puget Sound and
the jagged peaks of the Olympics from a vantage very
few get to see. Their flight would be thrilling, and
I hoped for them, joyous. But it wouldn’t be even
half the joy Roy and I, and others of our aviation
tribe experience. It wouldn’t have the same joy,
because their flight doesn’t carry with it the hours
spent in a airplane hangar pounding rivets, or
studying weather and courses or learning how to look
up that one radio frequency you can’t find to get an
IFR pop-up when you’re going to be in the clouds
like it or not...
Moxie Gets Her Wings ...petehowell
You might have heard there is an Alberta Clipper
headed towards the midwest. You have heard
correctly..... Bad today and getting worse. -27degF
on Tuesday and Weds nights. We just had -6 this
morning, but no wind and lots of sun. Flight time!!!
-3B Status Update ...David_Paule
The strip for the Mil-Spec quarter-turn fasteners
for the top of the cowling now has a pattern, not
shown. I had a bit of aluminum for that, but it’s
one inch too narrow, since I need to allow for the
semi-conical shape of the thing. New piece on order.
Next, I figured that this was a good time to make a
pattern for the baggage floor. The piece of aluminum
supplied with the kit has a curious shape, and the
cut-outs for the flap torque tube arms looked large
to me. That plus Ironflight’s comment about needing
to make a pattern for his, all combined to say make
a pattern. Don’t just start cutting.
And a good thing I listened, too. I found some
white poster board at the hardware store and dove
in. Immediately, it was apparent that there was no
way it would fit into the baggage compartment as a
single piece of card stock. I cut it in half. It was
then difficult to put each piece in by itself, but
eventually, I got both sides trimmed. And more card
stock taped on, and trimmed again. Kind of fun,
working that way, but then elementary school
subjects sometimes are.
When I finally got both pieces in together, and
taped back together, the difficulty of putting the
pattern in or removing it returned. And what about
the final skin?
I temporarily installed the flap torque arm assembly
and marked, generously, lines around the arms. After
removing that frame and the pattern, I then laid out
the cut-out from the plans. You know, it’s a better
fit than I’d thought. But a tweak here and another
there, and I was able to refine the cut-out
somewhat. And, remember this, it was now easy to get
the pattern in and out. While it might be wishful
thinking, maybe the baggage floor will go in
readily, too.
Here’s a pic of the pattern in place, but not the
flap actuator tube. At the bottom cut-out, you can
just see the plans version of the cut-out at the aft
end of the hole. Yes, there's plenty of room for
working at the pushrod.
I’ll probably do some additional minor trimming
before I cut metal.
On the far right, you can see that the halves of the
bulkhead top are unconnected. The splice plate is
under that bit of blue tape. That'll be part of the
aft tailcone skin project, by and by.
Mystery Nutplates and Other Holes ...iamtheari RV-14
I'm nearing the end of the fuselage kit of my
RV-14, and I've also been working on the finishing
kit. I don't have the wings yet. I'm saving those
for last. Along the way, I've run into a couple
mysteries and I'm wondering if anyone knows the
answers.
Mystery 1: On page 10-12 while building the tailcone,
there are two K1000-08D nutplates installed on the
top flange of the F-01406B bulkhead. The F-01406F
baggage bulkhead corrugation covers this area up in
section 42. In between those points, I haven't found
where anything gets screwed into these nutplates.
Mystery 2: The left side of the flap motor cover
(part F-01445B-L) has two openings along the aft
edge. What is their purpose?
The two that are in focus, with their rivets
half-painted. (Note that I added two nutplates to
the battery angles for a different reason. I'm
talking about the two that are actually called for
in the plans, on the upper flange of that bulkhead.)
...
Alternator Question ...KRviator
Following on from Dan's issues - and rather than
start a new thread - I thought I'd seek the
collective help of the VAF Brains Trust on a nearly
identical issue.
For the last 20 or so hours, I have been trying to
work out what is causing my alternator to be
constantly hunting in output. The alternator is a
single PlanePower FS-14B, one of those
internally-regulated ones that mounts on the vacuum
pad.
From my "Running a tank dry" video, it also shows
the problem I'm having, with the voltage and
amperage fluctuating between 14.5-14.8V and 8-16
amps.
video
I flew again today after running a series of
resistance checks on the B-lead connections, the
master contactor connections and amp shunt fittings,
all were secure and no variation to the resistance
was shown during the tug tests. I'd previously
removed the 3-pin plug and noted a small amount of
corrosion on one of the female pins, though nothing
I'd class as troubling. Today, I removed the 3-pin
plug and also removed the 2 female pins from the
housing, and squeezed them down slightly before
reinstalling it. Next step is to replace the plug
and pins in their entirety.
Of note, when the battery is low, ie for the first
10-20 minutes of flight, there are no problems, it
charges normally and indications are rock-steady.
When the problem manifests itself, turning the
alternator OFF drops the indicated amperage to 0 and
battery volts to around 13.5-14.0 as you'd expect.
Reselecting the alternator several minutes later
shows normal charging until the current drops, then
the problem recurs.
From what I've done so far, I figure:•I don't have
any loose fittings (the only one left to check is
the Alt Field pin onthe VPX-end socket)
•The problem is 'actual', not an 'instrumentation'
problem.
•The problem is internal to the PP alternator
•The problem is not vibration-related as it is too
regular in its' cycling.
I can't see a problem doing so, but rather than
replacing the alternator, is there any reason I
can't install a separate external voltage-regulator
in addition to the internal one in the PP unit?
So...Does anyone have any ideas?
https://www.fltplan.com/abbreviations.htm
I found a nice page listing all the Wx
abbreviations, descriptions, phenomena, could types,
etc. I added the link to the
Wx page next to the word
METAR in the upper right corner.
January 28, 2019. Issue #4,747
Sterling @ Van's. Camping pic. (enlarge)
RV-8 and the Endless Cloud ...Steve Rush RV-8 (10min vid)
1/14/19 was a really nice day, at least in my corner of
the world. Unfortunately, virtually everywhere I wanted to
go was under a solid blanket of clouds. Anyway, it looked a
lot like this.
Just some weekend fourship fun ...fl-mike
Taken from the backseat of Randy's 8 (#2) last Saturday (19 Jan). For
all our frozen RV brothers up north! Harvey lead (8), Randy #2
(8), me #3 (6A), Lonn #4 (8). Gotta get my 8 done!
APRS Art/Geometry ...Vlad the amazing.
Once upon a time a good friend of mine from far away
topped me off around Hanukkah. He asked me to draw something
big <g>. On a weekend I went up, got a squawk and
settled myself between 7 and 9 thousand feet. Over four
hours and three controllers later I was still up there above
the deck, listening to music, contemplating about life and
giving PIREP to a rare flyer who ventured to punch through
the thin layer. I didn't finish the silhuette the fuel was
running low. I promised my buddy to try again next year.
The plan.
The actual.
I'm Back
Hello
VAF'ers, Some may remember me from the 08/09 era. I built
and flew a -8. Great airplane by the way. In the 9 plus
years I have been away, I've helped several friends finish
up and paint their RV projects. I have purchased a 7A Tip up
kit from a friend that started it around 06, and never
finished. I have already converted it to tailwheel and now
working on the slider canopy conversion, Just wanted to
re-introduce myself and say I was back in the RV business.
Really glad to be back.
Bill Woods
RV 8 QB
RV-Lancair Brotherhood Day ...snopercod
Rutherfordton. The Brotherhood had a last-minute fly-out
to Rutherfordton [KFQD] for lunch today. The gusty winds
beat the stuffing out of us and we reported moderate
turbulence to ATC. The lunch at 57A was good, though, and it
was great to see Steve's Suburu-powered RV-8 again. Man, his
plane sure sounds awesome in the pattern.
And this is why you do condition inspections...Mark Dickens
My relatively new (< 2 years old and about 120 hours of
use) Sensenich ground adjustable prop surprised me this
morning when I was inspecting it as a part of the condition
inspection:
2017 Vans RV-8, Tullahoma, 30Dec18 ...PHOTO01
Had a great time in December getting some neat photos of
a good friend's RV-8 in Tennessee
RV-10 Build Status Report ...tforster100
Well thanks to Brandon in nearby Denton I’ve got
a headstart on my build already. Just bought his
mostly done empennage kit. We are working on the
tailcone and I’m learning a lot. Got a lesson on
deburring, drilling, clecoes, and riveting. Even
made my first accidental smiley face today, at least
it was on a practice piece. Thanks Brandon.
9A Status Report ...dwranda
James Cowl Update. Here's a few pics of the
progress. I still have work to do on it, but it's
coming along. It was pretty cool to see it on the
plane and to be able to open the oil door and take
out the dip stick.
January 25, 2019. Issue #4,746
It's time for the commercial rating checkride.
Are there any DPE RV fans out there semi-close to me that needs
a customer? Have RV. Will travel.
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend.
Clay R. RV-9A (flying since '04).
ClayR_9A in the forums...
dr pic from I don't even remember when...at least a decade ago.
Practice in 'The System'
Yesterday I went for gas up in Sherman and
thought I'd flex the brain a bit (not saying much).
Filed IFR using FltPlan.com and tested out the
import into Garmin Pilot feature for the first time.
Seemed to work fine. IFR out of a non-towered
field into a non-towered field, and back out of a
non-towered field equal sign time on the phone.
I bet this was so much more a pain in the arse
before cell phones bluetoothing into headsets became
a thing.
Got some time in the system, the ILS RWY 16L at
KAFW, got steered around some conflicts, cancelled
IFR at missed and back over to 52F for lunch.
Then home and work.
enlarge
A good morning to practice perishable skills.
Getting vectored around some heavies was kinda fun.
Behind a FedEX Airbus for a bit on the approach.
Testing - Wheel pants or not?
Q: I did all my flight testing of our
RV-7A with my wheel pants off; standard practice in
Minnesota in the winter. Come spring, wheel pants
back on, and retesting WOT, I found significant
difference in max RPM and airspeed from my no-wheel
pants testing. In reviewing the new FAA Test Flight
cards, where they go into such detail as where CG
should be, and how much fuel to carry, for each
test, a question occurred to me.
Relative to Vx, Vy and best glide testing, would
they change, depending on wheel pants or no wheel
pants?
If so, I will want to retest, this time with wheel
pants on. I may even retest anyway, following the
FAA Test Flight instructions, just to confirm my
earlier results.
A: (Raymo) The drag
imposed by the exposed landing gear is significant
and would affect glide speed and distance. I
gained around 20 MPH after installation of mine.
Everything got better, including CHTs.
Hi-Res RV-10 Pic Request ...rdrcrmatt
(oren_rakach request) "Here's one of ours
that just came out of paint."
Help for a TALL pilot ...new guy chimes in.
Good afternoon. This is my first post.... I'm
very interested in the rv-14, but I have a problem.
I'm 6'6'' with a 35'' inseam. Half the people I talk
to say no problem, the other half say no way. Would
love to be able to "try one on". I'm in central
Florida. At the very least, I would like your
opinions. Thanks in advance.
(replies)
I am 6'5 w/ 36" inseam and I built my RV-9 to fit
me. I have no issues. Seems like a RV-14 would be
even better height wise and mostly width wise.
Micheal, I am 6’3 and 200 lbs with a 99th percentile
sitting height. Small aircraft have always been an
issue with my head hitting the canopy. I got the
opportunity to sit in an RV7/8/10/ and 14. The 7 was
too short in either seat (head pressed into the
canopy). The 8 was good in the front seat but
impossible in the rear seat. The 10 was ok, but with
the headset on it was occasionally touching the
cieling. In the 14 I had no contact between by head
and the canopy except in low G maneuvers, but that
was likely due to the loose seatbelt. Not saying you
will be the same, but hopefully this helps.
I am
6'4", 32 -34 inseam with an RV9a I built with almost
14 mod, rudder pedals moved forward and have plenty
of room. The RV14 will not be an issue.
Mentioning
inseam means you are more concern about leg room
than head.
I am 6’3”, tall in the torso. I sit on 4” of Medium
dense foam that compresses down to 2”, 3” of back
foam, Bose headset, geezer accordion sun shade above
head. All this leaves me with about 1” between
headset and shade.
I wear 31” inseam pants and thinking of bring the
pedals 1” closer. Plenty of leg
room available.
I say 6’6’ should be no issue
Hey Tall Guy,,, I’m
tall too,
,,,added this bar to recline my seat (-8A) and it’s
helped a lot. Also, using a thin high density foam
seat cushion with an Air Hawk air cushion on top of
that-just right. I’m 6’3” and on the larger side.
The -8A fits great.
Vansaircraft.com
TALL SEATBACK OPT.
WD-823-PC
I’m am building an RV-14 and wondered
the same thing. I flew in a local RV-14A and had no
issues with leg or head room. I’m 6’-6” 36” inseam
and weigh 250#. You should have no trouble at all.
I’m 6’4” 210lbs 36” in seam, I fly a -6 with almost
a -14 mod, I fit quite well.
Pic from Mr. X
June Mountain Ski Resort
January 24, 2019. Issue #4,745
It's time for the commercial rating checkride.
Are there any DPE RV fans out there semi-close to me that needs
a customer? Have RV. Will travel.
Parked on Water...Alton Bay is OPEN.
(Jpm757) Can confirm Alton Bay is open and runway
is in great shape!
Milestone ...Bill Boyd
A great psychological barrier has been crossed in
this build: not only is she on her gear now, but
this happened last night. Very visible progress,
probably the most there will ever be at one swoop.
Thanks to my son and my daughter's boyfriend for
manhandling the expensive and delicate pieces
without a mishap.
Yeah, We Understand ;^) ...llavalle RV-12is
I don't recall being this excited by a phone call
: Van's just called to get the authorization to
charge the credit card & finish crating. The emp kit
should be shipped this week or next week!
Panel Finished ...dbaflyer
Been finished for awhile, but these also have the
wind screen and dash complete. Running around 7.5 -
8.0 amps
Sebring Underway ...mothership
Installing GDL-82 In Completed RV-8 ...ArlingtonRV
I just completed the installation
of a GDL-82 in my 2001 RV-8 (I'm not the builder).
The good news, I just completed the validation
flight and have all green and got the Incentive Code
to apply for the rebate. The bad news, I started all
this on December 22nd.
The long span is all my fault and the result of a
few things, 1) even though I thought I panned ahead
to have everything on hand, I still needed to order
a few things, 2) I planned to do it over the
holidays so getting the things I forgot took longer
than usual to get, and 3) I had no idea where I
wanted to mount everything and spent a lot of time
working out logistics.
This is simply intended to show what I did. It
works, so it is a viable option, but not necessarily
the best or only option.
The first consideration that took a lot of time to
resolve was where to put the GPS antenna. I have a
Garmin GNC 250XL so there is already a GPS antenna
on the turtle deck. I considered putting the new one
next to and farther aft of the one that is there,
but to maintain the 9" minimum, 12" preferred
distance between antennas that idea became
untenable.
I then considered replacing the 250XL antenna with
the GDL-82 antenna and just living without GPS on
the 250 XL (I have an Aera 660 and an iPad running
Fore Flight), but I didn't really like that idea. I
also considered replacing the 250 XL antenna with
the GDL antenna (they use the same hole pattern) and
using it to provide GPS data for both units using a
splitter. The problem there was more wires to run,
another piece to mount and another $300. I ended up
using the antenna shelf from the RV-12 (current part
number F-01201R-1) on the firewall and mounting it
there. When complete, it looked a lot like this:
continue
Aerosport
Products Website Update
Hello all. If you have been trying
to open the Aerosport Products website within the
last 48 hours and have not been able to, it's
because we were in the process of launching our new
website!!! The new site is LIVE and we would love
for you to check it out.
January 23, 2019. Issue #4,744
It's time for the commercial rating checkride.
Are there any DPE RV fans out there semi-close to me that needs
a customer? Have RV. Will travel.
748PK is a bodacious RV-9A aero-plane
OK builders, it’s true. Do something on the project every
day (in my case, days per thing is the practical unit of
measurement) and eventually you really can’t think of
anything else that needs to be done before calling in the
DAR.
No squawks from the inspection and paperwork in
order…748PK is an airplane as of Monday January 21st, 2019.
Ordered the emp kit December 26, 2005 and went ultra-slow
build all the way, partially dictated by sending two kids
thru college in the intervening years.
Had the privilege of introducing myself to Ironflight, who
was the speaker at EAA Chapter 663’s annual dinner, on
Saturday night. Our chapter VP told Paul to give me his best
advice ahead of the upcoming inspection, and he said, “Jam
nuts! Vic Syracuse is on an absolute tear….” Happy to report
they were all snug and striped when I checked (again) Sunday
night!
Kurt Haller
P-town, CA (10 min from KLVK!)
N748PK, RV-9A
Airworthy as of 21 January 2019
Retirement at Cleaveland Tool
For 24 out of our 26 years at Cleaveland Tool, Marshall
McDowell has been pumping out tools that change the lives of
builders around the world. He is retiring this week and I
thought it would be fun to solicit comments from users of
his work. Annette and I get to hear it from customers on the
phone and at Oshkosh, but please consider passing on a
message right to him to show your appreciation of top
quality dimple dies, squeezers, edge formers. We hired
Marshall in 1994 from a jewel cutter, knowing if he could
see facets on a stone he would work well with the details we
needed. Since he has trained the half dozen people that
currently do the same (including another jeweler). Happy
camping Marshall!
(I will pass on comments from here next Tuesday)
Thank you all!
Self Portrait ...Ken W.
Why not more Nord-Lock washers?
I've been wondering for some time why Nord-lock
type washers are not used on our birds. They have a
neat design that uses tension in the washer to
rather than friction in the locking nut to provide
the locking action. They are touted to be
particularly good in high vibration environments.
Interesting video
here
I finally came across a set in my Matco brakes; the
AN4 bolts that hold the pad opposite the plunger
have Nord-like type washers. It's a bolt into a
blind hole, so safety wire or Nord-locks are the
only way to secure them.
My question to the VAF brain trust: Why aren't these
washers used more frequently? On my IO-360, all the
bolts use the ancient star washers as "lock
washers." It sure seems they get smashed down pretty
flat after one use. Is it the price?, love of pre
Wright bro's technology, or some other reason(s)?
RV-10 Family Affair ...Rhome, TX
After 17 years of thinking about building an
airplane my RV-10 kit is on the way!
Project has come full circle from the RV to Lancair
to Glasair to Lancair to RV. Originally wanted the
RV as it is based on proven and time honored
construction, went to Lancair for the 4 passenger
capacity, to Glasair for the cost and speed, back to
Lancair for the capacity and finally to the RV for
the proven construction and 4 passenger capacity.
When my wife and I first started talking about it
she was not only supportive but excited, even after
telling her we would need to buy some tools. All she
was concerned about was being able to help with the
process. She also advised that if we were going to
turn the shop into an airplane factory we would have
to clean it up and get organized.
While waiting on the kit, we ordered the practice
kit, talked with a couple of builders and started
practicing. She says it is a lot like sewing;
pinning your patterns together and then sewing them
up, albeit with a few more steps and precision.
Riveting seems very simple and easy with an
experienced builder by your side but the rubber hits
the road when you are on your own. Sure glad we are
making as many mistakes as possible on the practice
pieces! This morning we decided to practice drilling
out rivets and after several ovaled huge holes and
finally discovered the best way for us and
successfully drilled out quite a few rivets.
Mothership Reminder....
TV antenna for VOR
Can anyone tell me why using an old set of rabbit
ears (set to 26" or so) wont work for a VOR/LOC/GS
antenna (under canopy install)? Ham guys tell me
that using the 75-300Ohm balun is fine for 50ohm
coax work (and it has the freq range)....
January 22, 2019. Issue #4,743
It's time for the commercial rating checkride.
Any DPE RV fans out there semi-close to me that needs a
customer?
Have RV. Will travel.
Kids in an RV ...always a news item.
RV4 Whirligig
I thought you guys might get a kick out of this
project. This is a wind-driven whirligig of two RV4s
in formation. It is made mostly of wood with some
help from my trusty 3D printer.
more
video in use...
Stuck Installing HS-01231C
I am at the step on the Horizontal Stabilator
where I finished cleco'ing the skins to the skeleton
and before riveting, I am supposed to cleco and then
final drill the HS-01231C's. If you look at the
attached picture, I have cleco'ed it in one corner
and I have pointed out where the other three holes
on the long edge aren't lining up. I tried turning
it, checked all four and same problem. Has anyone
else seen this?
In-flight Self Portrait ...bhester 7A
Status Report ...mbishop (Tampa)
Getting the rear spar ready to be riveted on.
https://dan-larry-rv14.blogspot.com/
"We are horrible with documentation but here is
the web site with pictures. We just went
through a progress inspection yesterday to make sure
we are building it correctly and it came out with
flying colors! Since we are new at it we just hired
someone with vast experience to inspect periodically
what we are building.
Build on! Larry"
Interior Update ...Justin RV-10
Okay drove my last rivet today, finished up my
interior clean and got everything to take pictures
of her. Here are a few new panel pictures. More
pictures on the build log.
The New Taxiway Signs
...have been installed at my home field (52F).
Just FYI and thought you'd like to see the airport
getting some love.
(enlarge)
January 21, 2019. Issue #4,742
What a perfect day looks like ...1flyingyogi
This was from a few weeks ago on a
gorgeous Southern California day after the rains
cleared away all the smog/ haze that's typically in
the LA basin. We woke up to brilliant blue skies,
scattered with fluffy white clouds. I wanted to go
flying. My wife wanted to go hiking. I said, why not
do both? So we did! But not before I went up first
by myself to do one of my favorite things
Cyl #1 50F cold
Need ideas, #1 CHT has always been significantly
colder. Facts:
1-New 0320x150HP with perfect compression (180 hr)
2-Swap #1 TC with any other cylinder and the cold
reading follows #1TC.
3-Replace #1 TC with new Alcor, still cold when
flying.
4-Test all 4 TC in boiling water it reads 212F.
5-Used one TC in boiling water applied to all 4
panel inputs. All read 212F.
6-Installed a little deflector on #1 like #2 has
from Vans baffle plans, no joy.
My concern with blocking #1 more radically to get a
response is “What if the above is somehow flawed.
Don’t want to cook a cylinder.
I noticed a Dave Anders pic with #1 cyl wrapped
nearly to the top af the fins. OK, but why isn’t
everyones #1 grossly colder ?
Ideas appreciated...Larry
__________________
Larry DeCamp
Jcarne RV-7A Status Report
Time to get my rivet on! I started with the
inboard ribs.
Michael Henning Alton Bay Update
Alton Bay has 12” of ice. Runway has been
plowed. Need a state inspection. Should be open
after Sunday’s storm is cleared out.
Little Copilot (Germany....different chute requirements)
Here is a short video with my copilot - enjoy.
Look who's on the cover of Sport Aerobatics! ...ronshchreck
I'm going to toot Jerry
Esquenazi's horn a bit. Getting your plane on the
cover of Sport Aerobatics just means you have a
beautiful airplane. Winning the Sportsman Regional
Champion position in TWO IAC regions means you know
how to fly the wings off that beautiful airplane.
Jerry took top honors in the Northeast region in
2018 with an overall average score of 82.92 percent!
He also took top honors in the Southeast region with
a mind-blowing overall score of 83.83 percent! By
the way, second place honors in the Southeast region
went to our own Randy King, flying his RV-8.
Jerry will be stepping up to the Intermediate
category in 2019 just to give me a hard time. All
you Sportsman competitors can take a breather.
dtw_rv6 Rebuilt Snorkel Flange
I just rebuilt the flange on my inlet snorkel
after ten years of service. It was never flat when
new - I slathered on some silicone and bolted it on.
So I cleaned up the flange and here is the result:
I call this a reverse layup:
Clean flat sheet of glass.
One layer of dry peel ply
Two wetted laters of bid
A thick layer of peanut butter like micro ballons
Wet the face of the old snorkel flange with epoxy ,
then press it into the goo and wait overnight to
clean it all up.
This baby is flat!
Welcome Aboard RV-14 N508KB
I arrived home from flying the big nose-dragger
at the day job to find this box full of our future
tail-dragger. The contents have been moved to the
warmth of our small shop and the inventory begins
while the snow falls. I have no idea what I’m doing,
but I sure am learning.
Long build 6A (England)
Well today saw another mile stone in the build of
my RV6a.
The story started back in 1997 on a flight back to
the UK from Florida. As a bit of in flight
entertainment I had picked up a copy of Kit Planes
for the journey. There were some stunning pictures
of a bright yellow RV8 on the cover and in the
article. This was the start of the itch and having
convinced the better half about a year later I
ordered a RV6 empanage kit . The build started but
as usual kids work and a year out to build a bigger
garage to put it in have all taken toll.
There has never been a dead line as there are
already too many and this is a hobby, after years of
leg pulling I could put it off no more .With very
few jobs left to complete in the garage the RV6a saw
the light of day for the journey to the airfield for
final assembly and the 90% of jobs to do .
Life has changed recently so fewer dead lines and
time to push the RV to the front .I now have a very
firm dead line of a bit less than 12 months to
complete.
Today saw the start of the smile but the GRIN is
still to come .
PS Already had a hangar mate giving me stick for the
training wheel at the front
kentlik 7A Rebirthing Update
I am diving into the duplex Andair valve today if
I can skirt around my Julianne's to do list a
little...haha
David Paule RV-3B Update
Russell sent me a photo showing how he’s
attaching the forward top skin to the sides. He’s
installed an angle, riveted to the top longeron, for
the top skin to attach to. I understand this is how
the Rocket does it. He could have done much the same
thing by insetting a strip partly in between the
skin and the top longeron. As I mentioned, I’m
overlapping the sides per the plans, and am not
using an attachment strip or angle. Here’s Russell’s
method.
January 18, 2019. Issue #4,741
A Lip Locker With a Side of Oriental Fries
It was short notice and the window was tight.
And it was bumpy for a lot of the flying.
CRUMMMMMY weather rolls into DFW this weekend, so
some of the usual suspects decided Thursday last
minute to RVate down to Waco 30 minutes south for a
Lip Locker and oriental fries at
Kitok Restaurant. It's just about
perfect on the dive scale if you get the chance to
visit. My friend of 40 years Danny Gibbs
picked us up at the airport so no courtesy car was
needed. Thank you fine folks at Texas Aero for
letting us leave our planes on your ramp for free.
Seven full size pics start
HERE, but here are some highlights (captions
at the link)...
4-ship overhead break with tower's permission.
RWY1
While at the table at Kitok Danny said, "That
policeman eating over there is Frank Gentsch."
Danny graduated High School with Officer Gentsch.
I graduated with his younger brother. Small
world. Officer Gentsch was shot in the line of
duty 35 years ago age 20 when he first joined the
force (story).
He's still on the force, with a bullet lodged near
his kidney. He's Assistant Chief now.
Dedication.
1.2 logged, some formation, two meals
worth of food at one sitting and some laughs.
Got to fly before the 25*F temps arrive. Good
times.
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and
RV-filled weekend.
Panel Status ...CJ in EP
Garmin G3X Day/Night VFR Panel - RV-9A
Exciting progress in the shop last night, got the
panel mounted and most of the harnesses secured.
Still a lot to complete before I can really turn the
system on, but the back up battery at least let me
turn the screens on to play for a little while.
A few pictures of the panel, installation of the
remote components on the sub panel, and the
harnesses:
continue
Rust on Gear Leg ...snoopyflys
Hi All,
Hoping to get some good advice for solving my latest
issue. My installed main gear legs have developed
"rust freckles". Both have been installed for about
4 years (really slow build) and both have the
original powder coating as received from Vans. I
suspect with some of the wild temp and humidity
swings has caused condensation to settle on the gear
thereby making the rust freckles. So, given they are
installed, can I sand down the powder coating,
clean, prime and paint. Or should I consider
removing them and having them stripped and re-powder
coated?
RV-7A Rebirthing Status ...kentlik
So I got the brakes lines installed and flared
but not sure about the lower one might cut the flare
off and shorten it a bit to get it parallel with the
above line.
My inner "Monk" is screaming at me. I didn't notice
it was not in harmony with the other line until I
saw this pic. Will think about that...not that the
top line is perpendicular to the bottom skin anyway.
Proud!! ...HansLab RV-12
Never been so proud as I took my firstborn out of
the hospital!
Just have a look at this beauty: MGL 10" screens,
MGL 8.33 radio, Trig transponder, MGL ECB's. It all
works like a charm! In the tunnel you'll see a Matco
parking brake. Trim switches in the stick grips. I
followed this very forum in many iterations: you can
see a headset hanging on one. Furthermore I added a
computer fan to the restrictor (build underneath the
panel, PAX-side), and microswitches for flaps, open
canopy, trim and wing security.
Finally put the upholstery in yesterday - wow. looks
more and more like e real touring plane to me, now.
Countersink Mod ...RV10Pilot
RV-14 Panel Status ...rwthompson67
Expercraft Website T.U.
This morning on the Expercraft site - RIP
Expercraft.
"In November of 2007 I launched ExperCraft to the
public. It started out as a completely free service
and evolved into a voluntary pay system for what
proved to be a very useful tool for many builders
and restorers of aircraft.
My aspirations were to generate revenue by
advertising relevant products to builders who need
them, while providing a tool to make building and
tracking your aircraft project easier and more
enjoyable and automatically publishing an easy to
share web site.
continue
January 17, 2019. Issue #4,740
Gas Run Pic a Coupla Days Back
...$3.35 at KSWI. Pretty
amazing the quality you can get these days with a
smartphone. Usual suspects on the wing (they
weren't as close as the cropped pic suggests).
Freakishly smooth air...
enlarge
RE: IAC Known Sequences for '19 ...Brian RV-4
Thanks Ron! It looks like a fun sequence. Can't
wait to try it out this weekend! I kinda like the
reverse wedge better (more fun), but I understand
that it's more difficult without inverted systems -
although I don't have any problems with mine. I just
want to keep the negative stuff to 3 seconds or less
in duration b/c I'm worried about oil starvation for
the engine. Fuel-wise, no problem.
I totally agree with Bill on the snaps. I've
recently got some dual time in a Pitts S2B and done
about half a dozen of them, but cannot seem to do a
decent one in my -4. I just can't get it to break
cleanly no matter how hard/ briskly I pull on the
stick. I'm sure it's technique, and I haven't figure
it out yet. Maybe I can get some input from you
guys. I know snaps are not in the Sportsman
sequence, but I like to learn new stuff and just
have fun (besides flying competition sequences).
(ronschreck)
Well, look at you! One contest in Primary and you
are already practicing Intermediate figures.
I'm going to keep my eye on you!
Your -4 is a different beast than my -8 so what
works for me may be different in subtle ways.
Generally speaking, a snap roll works when one wing
is stalled just when the yaw motion is introduced.
The sweet spot for my -8 is 100-110 knots upon
entry. I suspect it might be lower for the -4 and
maybe Bill McLean can chime in here. Snaps work best
at a high power setting with plenty of prop wash
over the tail so it would be best to slow slightly
below your ideal entry speed, add full power and
initiate the snap as you get to entry speed. Apply
rapid aft elevator to pitch up about 10 to 15
degrees. You should feel about 3.5 Gs in this pitch
up. (Full aft stick is NOT required.) Add rudder
just as you add back stick. Full rudder position
should be reached at the same time the Gs peak at
3.5. This is the point where one wing stalls and the
other at high alpha induces a rapid roll into the
stalled wing. As soon as this happens you should
release the back stick pressure as you don't want
both wings to stall. It's OK to add just a bit of
aileron into the snap as well. To recover, lead the
stop point and apply full opposite rudder as you jab
the control stick slightly forward of neutral. The
point where you lead the stop point will vary with
aircraft so that will come with practice.
More than any other maneuver, the snap procedure is
very dependent upon aircraft type, trim, speed and
pilot inputs. You made do a hundred before you find
the right combination. You will know when you find
it. There is no doubt when the inside wing stalls
and rapid rotation occurs. You will feel it and hear
it and the RV grin is evidence that it really
happened!
Panel Porn ...N402RH
I just updated to the new Aerosport switches with
graphics in my RV-10. Photo taken last night about
50 miles east of Van's during a software test
flight.
New (Jan 2019) Garmin GTR 200B COM Radio with Bluetooth ...g3xpert
Garmin is pleased to announce the
GTR 200B panel mount COM radio for experimental
and light sport aircraft that offers all the
powerful features of the
GTR 200 including advanced auto-squelch, 3D
audio, stereo intercom, stereo music input, alert
inputs, standby frequency monitoring, on-screen
frequency identification, 10W of power, 25 kHz
tuning, and remote tuning integration with G3X
Touch, Garmin portables, and other EFIS systems.
Additionally, the new GTR 200B provides a Bluetooth
interface with convenient front panel control that
supports telephone/tablet connectivity for
communications and music for those using the GTR
200B as their 2 place stereo intercom.
The GTR 200B uses the same rack/wiring as the
popular GTR 200, and is a slide-in replacement for
those wanting to upgrade.
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•All-in-1 radio and stereo intercom solution with
standby monitoring and stereo input
•Powerful 10 W Comm with a slim 1.35” tall design
and large sunlight-readable display
•Displays facility name and type when tuned to
user-defined presets or supplied by compatible
portables/G3X™
•Advanced audio panel features including 3D Audio
and auto-squelch
•Optional Bluetooth® connectivity enables easy
access to phone calls and audio entertainment
Mini iPad Thoughts ...RV-3 Mycool
I'm in the process of rebuilding a Rv3 to Rv3a,
Im mounting ipad under the Dynon D-180 with a ram
mount, also integrating a Dc connection for
charging.
3D Model of RV-10 Panel ...supik
Not real work, just planning for near future ;^)
Counterfeit NGK spark plugs ...Bill R.
While doing some research, I ran
across this. You can bet I'll be checking my next
batch of spark plugs.
January 16, 2019. Issue #4,739
Please read if converting from Fixed pitch to Constant Speed prop
...AX-O 1/15/19 Update
Well, it has been a long
troubleshooting event. Leading down multiple rabbit
holes.
Background info: I removed the
engine from the plane to access the firewall for the
governor cut out and also to send it in to an engine
shop (name held on purpose). As the engine was
already at the shop I asked the shop to convert it
to constant speed. They said no problem.
Bad Assumption: Everything should be working, they
are professionals.
Trouble shooting:
After I did the test with the air on the 90 degree
fitting (nose of the engine that gets the governor
line), I started researching on VAF and other sites.
That lead me down the path of the hole or no hole,
NPT plug or not.
in order to confirm the problem, I tried to prove
that saying of "insanity is doing the same thing
over and over again, but expecting different
results".
in this case, I was not insane. The results would
differ and were not predictable. Sometimes I would
put 40 psi of air in the plug and the prop would
move. Sometimes i would cycle the prop a few times
with the engine running and it would work. Then it
would not work after a certain number of prop
cycles. Sometimes it would work if I "double pump"
the prop lever is my RMP was at 2200. Seemed like it
always failed to cycle at around 170 deg of oil
temp. All that took time to diagnose and collect.
I designed a pressure differential
tool that would work just like a cylinder
compression tool. I would put 40 psi of air in the
90 deg fitting and read the actual pressure in the
system. Sometimes the tool would real 22-24 psi and
the blades would move; and some times the 40 psi was
going straight out of the crank case vent without
any prop movement or pressure.
Talked to a local A&P and he said I should
instrument the governor to check the pressure. So I
contacted the PCU5000 folks for guidance on how much
pressure I should see at what governor rpm. They
told me that max pressure of 320 psi plus/minus 20
happens as low as 1700 governor rpms. So 1700 times
the governor ration of .866 gave me the engine rpm
required. at 1600 ish engine rpm i should have a
good check of governor pressure and not blow the
gauge to the moon. I ran the engine at 1600 rpm and
the pressure gauge read 350 psi. I called that good
as the calibration on the gauge was not checked for
accuracy prior to using. we just knew it work as
they A&P uses it to check pressure in the fuel/oil
lines he makes. Pics below of the set up.
...
Preferred Parking ...kaweeka
Now THAT's preferred parking. Just where a Vans
ought to be! KTRK (Truckee, ca). I just loved
the juxtaposition of the mega money jets and my RV,
both equally enjoying the Sierra Nevada beauty.
Houston RV Gang: Attention to Brief! ...Philip
Alright, it's getting to be that
time again. Who's up for a burger at Hooks?
Let's meet at the usual time, 11:30 AM, this
Saturday (1-19), at the Aviator's Grill.
IFR Rating RV Update ...airguy
Update on this thread...
It took a while but I finally got my ticket wet this
morning. We've had lots of IFR weather here since my
checkride, but most of it was LOW IFR and had icing
conditions, so that was a no-go. I've flown a fair
bit IFR in VMC since getting the ticket, but this
morning was the first chance to fly solo actual with
conditions fitting a minimum-experience fresh IFR
ticket.
I took off from my home private strip after getting
clearance via FSS on cellphone, entered IMC about 30
seconds after takeoff, was in-and-out of the tops
enroute, and didn't see the ground again until 700'
AGL on the RNAV 25 at KMDD. Perfect conditions for a
first-solo actual flight. Now with the weather soon
turning warmer and ice becoming less of a threat I
should be able to add more actual to the logbook and
fine-tune my personal minimums.
Flying with an instructor or safety pilot under the
hood, or even solo in VMC, is completely different
than solo actual. I expected a little pucker factor
the first time I went IMC and it was there,
definitely an attention-getter. Huge fun!!
2100 hour Borescope ...petehowell
9A
It's that time again! Just did the 2100 hr oil
change and took a peek at the valves. Oil filter and
suction screen had some crumbly carbon bits in them,
but no metal I could see. The magnet on the filter
had a thin film of micro iron stuff that wiped right
off.
Compressions were 77/72/78/77. #2 has shown a bit
low before, but typically comes back on the next
test.
here are the Exhaust Valves I added some "pop" in
Google Photos.....
January 15, 2019. Issue #4,738
So I went to the TCU/BU WBB game in Fort Worth Saturday ($10 general
admin) and got a hat sighting (pic).
Thought I was all set for a splash image sometime this week.
Then around 3pm Monday I got a text from a corporate pilot
friend currently in the T&C 'for work'. Pic below....shown
as a contrast to Dvalcik's RV-12 landing on a block of ice
yesterday ;^). I was finishing up the insulation/sheetrock
repair in the water-damaged closet (pic)
when I got the text. Was going to tape the drywall next,
but Tate had to leave for work after school and I wanted to show
him how to do it (not like there aren't
outstanding videos online showing how to do it better than I
ever could).
My evil plan to get Tate to do the taping for me might not pan out as I
had hoped...
(about the charity cap)
AX-O RV-4 Update
Flew the plane yesterday for .6 hrs. Will write
something up tonight if I get the chance. The plane
is way different to fly. Will need some time to get
used to it.
With the limited flight time; the plane feels less
maneuverable, heavy on the landing flare but it
climbs like a bat out of you know what.
Mothership News
U.S. Sport Aviation Expo Jan 23-26.
Join Van's Aircraft east coast rep Vic Syracuse at
the US Sport Aviation Expo this month in Sebring,
Florida. The One Week Wonder RV-12iS will
also be at the show for all to see! The show runs
January 23-26.
RV-6A partner wanted in Wisconsin
I have a 2000 full IFR RV-6A. Only 220 hours on
the engine. Just had annual inspection completed. I
keep it in a T-hanger at Green Bay airport (Austin
Straubel or KGRB) I hope to have a partner with some
mechanical ability because I have none! Thanks
Please call or email Chris at 530-2SIX3-22
FOUR9 or savchris 'at' hotmail.com
RV-14 Panel Plans ...infltc2s RV-14
Update on the Crankshaft leak - I have new seals I don't need now
...Triumph1974
Hello Everyone - quick update.
The other week I had the chance to take the prop of
the RV7A, and do a good visual inspection around the
outside of the crankshaft seal....it was bone dry
(other than the little bit of grease I used when
installing the seal that was still on the shaft).
Sanding in the Helix per the Continental SB
certainly solved the issue.
...
If you want to ride along in an RV-9A for 17 minutes
...found
this new video online. Go full screen on
your monitor and daydream about RVs while enjoying
the snow covered mountains and engine noise. I
like videos like this. ;^) dr
RV-7A rebirthing update ...kentlik
I got back in the garage for a short time today.
It was cold. I managed to stuff myself back in the
bad boy to do the brake lines. Didn't finish, wanted
to watch the Chargers a bit. Also, short a nut for
the output bulkhead fitting. Have -6's but no
-4's...bummer.
Mr. X Pic
...GG bridge SFO sunrise. Click to enlarge.
January 14, 2019. Issue #4,737
Landing at the House on Ice ...Dvalcik
I have been waiting for the right conditions with
the ice thick enough. I have flown into Alton Bay
multiple times. We live on Branch Lake just outside
of Ellsworth Maine, close to Bar Harbor. Today was
almost perfect to land on the lake for a photo op of
the RV12 in front of the house. Winds calm, sunny
and the Temps were – 15 Celsius on the ground (a
warm day for Maine.) The ice had very little of any
snow and was almost Zamboni quality.
A few pictures of the plane on the ice with the
house in the back ground.
...
Momentary blackout
I've been flying with my G3x and GTN 625 for almost 2 years and enjoying
the many features and benefits provided. I keep everything up to date with
respect to software and charts. Something interesting happened yesterday
after a few practice approaches. While taxiing in, the G3x went black
momentarily then re-booted with all frequencies and screens as they were
prior to the event. This happened once before exactly as described. Just
goes black and immediately reboots back as it was. I never could find a
reason and I am stumped still. I checked all connections carefully to be
sure. I would hate to be driving an approach to mins and have this happen
again. Anyone have a similar experience? Any suggestions?
Thanks,
David
__________________
RV-9A N435KR
Dec '18 Summary ...j-red
Haven't had a lot of time to update the thread in
the past month. The engine run was quite a leap
forward past all the other tasks that had to be done
since first hanging the wings. Going back through my
build log, here are some of the highlights...
Empennage tips took a couple of weeks to do. This is
an older kit and they were either never formed very
well to begin with, or age and heat had caused them
to distort, because they had to be cut, squeezed,
filled, and overlayed in a bunch of ways in order to
get them to fit right. Lots of work, but they turned
out nice in my opinion.
KC Flight Formation Clinic
2019 Kansas City Formation Clinic April 26,27,&
28 at (KLXT) Lee's Summit Airport
More Emphasis on advanced formation flying and Large
formation Flight. As always new formation pilots
training will be geared for their skill level. New
information and education on the Updated FAA 8900.1
rules for formation flight in a CoW.To sign up for
the clinic go to the DATABASE section of this group
and make an entry on the appropriate table. The Fee
for the clinic is $80.00 All meals will be provided
starting on Friday evening.
Participating pilots should have excellent stick and
rudder skills. This clinic is only for RV aircraft.
Sorry, no RV-10’- 12s. All aircraft must be in
excellent condition. Beginner's aircraft must have
dual controls (throttle, stick and rudder),
intercom, and PTT in both positions. No vernier
throttles allowed! In addition to the normal
paperwork required of all aircraft (registration,
airworthiness certificate, weight & balance), pilot
certificate and current medical, you will need to
bring proof of liability insurance. We have arranged
a block of 30 hotel rooms under (KC Flight) at
Comfort Inn & Suites in Lee's Summit, MO . 3701 NE
Ralph Powell Rd. 64064 phone 816-554-6688 Rooms Drop
Off the Block Rate on March 26, 2019 make
reservations early cancellation 48hrs notice.
We will provide dinner on Friday evening, and lunch
and dinner on Saturday. Further detailed information
will be posted to this group as it is available.
Experienced pilots who wish to take a check ride to
earn an FFI Wingman or Flight Lead card must secure
a recommendation for the check ride prior to the
clinic and request a check ride through this forum.
Virtual Hangar Entry ...Fhuber
RV-7A N357FD Frank Huber
I purchased my second hand RV-7A quick build kit on
March 4, 2011 in Houston, Texas and trucked it back
to my garage shop in Maple Grove, Minnesota, with my
best friend John. I got things organized and figured
out where to start. I started working more regularly
after retiring in September of 2012. By June of 2015
it was time to move it to our hangar at KANE, before
we downscaled into a fifty-five and older community.
Work continued until July of 2018, when I ran out of
things to do and my friends verified it was ready
for the inspection.
...
(Related: Same Person) Here is my panel
I have a Skyview touch with both control panels,
a D-6 backup, Garmin 650, backup com 760, PS
Engineering com control panel, I-Pad mount on right
side with a charger and cooling fan built in and a
EI Commander to program and monitor the P-Mags. The
panel was cut, painted and markings added by Stein
Air. The panel was made a bit taller, to allow all
the switches to go under the Skyview
RV-10 Status Report ...cderk
Finally got all windows "glued" in. Now to start on the fiberglass work!
Fun with my RV-6A ...terry.mortimore
Had some fun last summer, a local pilot wanted an RV ride. He filmed the
affair.
Trim tab alignment ...Girraf (7)
I'll admit that perhaps I overthought this part
of the build, but I really wanted to do this just
once. I won't bore you with the details of what I
found challenging, but here is my final result. The
hinge doesn't leave you any room for fore aft
movement of the tab if you want any hope of
preserving edge distance on those hinge attach
rivets. You basically need to drill directly down
the centerline of the hinge flange. Overall, I ended
up with exactly 3/32 gap on the outboard edge (min
distance per the plans, which I can file open
slightly), and well matched inboard edge, and the
tab itself sits about 1/32" in from the TE of the
elevator. Again, due to the hinge edge distance
issue, I don't think I had much control over how
this ended up. I'm curious if that's a passable
result or if I should have done something different
to get a perfectly matched TE. Here are some pics. I
can always order some new hinge and try again....
Side note: my Wings arrived this weekend!
...
Falcon Flight Formation Training Clinic - KGYI - 2019
Falcon Flight will be hosting a Formation
Training Clinic on April 5/6/7 2019 at the North
Texas Regional Airport – KGYI. The weather-out dates
will be April 26/27/28. This is a closer location to
those coming from the north/east than the ones we’ve
held in the past. We have created a group to handle
the logistics. Use the link to request membership in
this group, then add a line with your information to
the Clinic Signup Table.
We will be using this group for all information
distribution. Further details regarding scheduling
et al are forthcoming and will be disseminated
through that group. We’re looking at a cost of $60
per person to cover van rentals, food, drink and
other incidentals.
A limit of 32 participants is in place. Newcomers
and advanced are welcome. We will also be going over
the changes to 8900.1 that apply to carded pilots
when operating within a certificate of waiver (airshows).
All hotel information is found in the FILES section
of the group. If you have any intent on
participating, make sure to get your room booked
early before the group rate expires - you can cancel
up to 48hrs prior to arrival at no pentaly.
Wiring Technique Request
A: (Mike S)
Too many dimples in F-01412A Bulkhead?
The plans page 10-07 step 1 called for dimpling
the #30 holes in the web of the bulkhead except as
indicated in the figure. There are two holes that I
don't think should have been dimpled though. In the
picture you can see the two dimples behind the edges
of the tie-down bracket that is keeping it from
laying flush to the bulkhead. Anyone else run into
this? Can I just flatten those dimples out?
Article...I Survived a Mid Air Collision
(Not RV) but a scary, interesting read.
January 11, 2019. Issue #4,736
Wet and windy here in DFW over the weekend. Yuck. There
was some downtime Wed/Thu and I apologize for that. Had
the ISP on the phone and we are looking at some things possibly
causing it - some changes made that I think will help (DB
cleanup routine times, backups, etc). We're monitoring
things and might do some more tweaking over the weekend.
Apologies in advance if you try to get in and can't - we might
be working on stuff.
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled weekend.
20 Years in Our
RV-4 ...gmrv4 vid
Tech Counselors
Q: I have arranged with a local expert to
come help me 'get started'. Well I got antsy and
started with out them. I started with he HS, and
have stopped where I have a question, and so now I
moved on to the VS. I see some folks have
recommended to start here anyway.
Thus far I haven't done anything I do not think is
reversible or fixable, but before I get to far ahead
of my self, at which point do I need to have tech
counselors take a look?
I assume before I start riveting skins on would be a
good start, but besides if I have question should I
have a tech counselor look before then?
A:
Yep. Before closing the skin on the first component.
Panel Pic ...DeeCee 57
Ok, here we go: my minimal VFR day only panel...
light, simple, and functional
Since I bought the -6 already built, I didn't design
the panel. The holes were already there, and I've
just spent about 14 days rewiring the headsets,
installing a new 8.33KHz COM, a Garmin G5, a GT-50,
and a Garrecht AT-1 TAS.
Not shown on the foto, the iPad mini which is
affixed by the ball.
Retired from the airlines I prefer to enjoy the
outside scenery instead of perusing an acre of glass
with zillions of useless stuff on it. And no A/P
either
A Pretty Neat Towbar Post From the Past ...rzbill
Due to the holiday week, I have had more "shop
time" than usual.
One of the things I have been thinking about was a
replacement of my current control lock. This was an
idea stolen from a Diamond DA20 I flew some 10 years
ago. My initial implementation was OK except the
interface to the rudder pedals was a bit light and
it popped off once, giving me a dent in the rudder
that very very windy day.
So, a few months ago, I saw and picked up a couple
of discarded aluminum crutches by the side of the
road. Perfect.....
I did a jury rig proof of concept at the hangar and
then an evening in the shop to fabricate it to final
form.
...
Mr. X Pic
Daniel's First RV-6 Flight
...end of '18
Flying into Canada without landing ...Jim RV-9A
Q: Say if a guy plans a flight from Port
Huron, MI over Canada to Rochester, NY (Niagara
Falls area) what things should he be prepared for?
Should I file a VFR flight plan or just ask for
flight following? but then what? What radio contacts
should I be prepared to make once over Canada. Does
CA charge a fee? I suppose if I have to make an
emergency landing in CA then it would get dicey
unless I just do the planning beforehand for the
contingency. Advice, comments?
A: Just file a VFR flight plan and away you
go. There won't be any charge from Nav Canada. Same
deal for us Canadians flying over the US to another
Canadian destination. When I file a VFR flight plan
from Ottawa to Halifax, I'm assigned a transponder
code and automatically get flight following. Each
controller will just hand you off to the next one. I
wind up talking to:
- Ottawa Terminal
- Montreal Center
- Boston Center
- Moncton Center
- Halifax Terminal
It is all choreographed for you, just change freqs
when told, tell them you are there, and that's it.
Dead simple.
However, if you need to land, you better have your
passport with you and land at a facility with
Customs on site if at all possible. Also, you might
have to sit around a couple days as I think you will
have to file an eAPIS thing to get back into the US,
although I could be wrong there on the timing and
whether it is required for Americans returning to
the US...
A: I've flown that route many times going to
and from Oshkosh. As previously offered, always file
a VFR flight plan. I've never had to make an
uplanned landing in Canada, but I have heard it can
be messy. Sometimes I have used flight following.
New York or Michigan will seamlessly hand you off to
the appropriate Canadian controllers. Very easy.
Some Updates: Brantel RV-10
Blog
Timelapse Aileron Structure Build (Jan 9)
...[ed. I like these type videos. Benny Hill
music always plays in my head. dr]
January 10, 2019. Issue #4,735
My RV-7 was in an clothing catalog photo shoot ...Gash
An ad agency's models and photographers spent a
few hours today with my RV-7 doing a photo shoot for
an OGIO ad campaign. We had fun playing with the
airplane and motorcycle. When I asked if they wanted
me to "photo bomb" one of the pictures, they said
absolutely! And of course, I shared the other seat
with one of the pretty ladies.
...
ATC Says, “Altitude Upon Request.” Say what?
So I’ve been using VFR Flight Following more now
than any other time in my many years of flying. I
try to use it on any trip outside my local area and
it’s really been great. ATC is very accommodating
and the more I use it the less chance of my
stumbling over my words and sounding like the rookie
that I am.
So a couple of weeks ago I was on a flight from the
SF Bay Area to the Sierra foothills. During my
initial call to ATC they asked what altitude I was
requesting. I told them 5,500 feet. They told me to
fly at or below 5,000 feet and they added something
like “5,500 feet upon request.” I hadn’t heard that
terminology before.
So I do understand holding me at 5,000 because there
were a couple of jets flying overhead for landing at
Oakland. So, I waited several minutes until the jet
traffic seemed to subside a bit before calling back
and asking if I could to go 5,500 feet. This was
approved and off I went.
I figure basically he’s saying “yea man, chill at
this altitude for a while even though it’s not where
you want to be at. At some point hit me up later if
you still want to go higher and I’ll check and see
if it’s cool or not.” (The controller is from
California too.) I’m pretty sure this is what is
going on here. If so, I’m thinking I did the right
thing by waiting to ask for higher later. I was
perfectly fine flying at 5,000 the entire way but
that’s not a proper VFR cruising altitude.
My questions are:
1-What exactly does this phraseology mean?
2-Would it have been ok just to stay at 5,000 feet
and not request higher? I think being at the proper
VFR altitude is safer of course.
Show me your AFP Boost Pump mounts
Q: I did a few searches but came up short on good
pictures. I was planning on using two padded hose
clamps but wantes to to how everyone else has done
it on a 6.
A: Almost Standard Install in 9A with
Andair Selector Switch
Here's how it turned out in mine. I used the Andair
fuel selector switch instead of the Van's, and being
that I have electric elevator trim I bend the flange
forward of the switch (where the manual trim knob
would be installed) to a 90º and tucked it into the
pump housing.
Good Luck!
Hoping this mistake doesn’t equal a new HS Spar
I was trying to punch out a rivet tonight whilst
riveting my HS spar together (page 8-6). I was
unable to punch it out so slowly started to drill
further into the rivet with a #40 and continued to
punch it. Still couldn’t get it so I drilled through
the whole shaft. Whilst being careful to keep it
aligned at the top the drill bit was pushed to the
side out the bottom (see photos, first post so I
hope they work).
I’ve flicked an email off to Vans but thought I’d
throw it on here whilst I wait for their response.
Hoping to save my work. The HS-1002 part isn’t on
Vans parts list and while it may not be overly
expensive the shipping to the East Coast will be a
devil.
Also I’ve been having some issues with rivets being
hard to push in by hand due the primer. Is it an
issue to use a metal object (read hammer) to gentle
tap them in (not pounding but they are too tight to
push in with hand). Would this cause any damage to
the shaft of the rivet, if it will I guess I’ll have
to ream the holes.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Mothership News
Stowing Towbar
Q: Those of you that use a towbar, do you travel
with it, and if so, have you done anything specific
to secure it in the baggage compartment - some type
of clamp set up? Would you mind sharing thoughts?
A: Tool Clips. I installed four 5/8ths-inch
tool clips on the floor of my forward baggage
compartment. To make it more secure I also installed
a lock pin (foreground) through one of the tow bar's
existing holes.
Awesome new headset! CQ1 from Card Machine Works
I’ve had the privilege of flying with a new
in-the-ear headset for a few months. It was designed
after years of frustration with the offerings from
the two established in-ear headset manufacturers.
The best part is that the CQ1 is manufactured and
marketed within the VAF family; Tanya and Scott
Card. I’m not sure what CQ stands for, but in my
mind it’s Card Quality. Card Machine Works is now a
paid advertiser on the site, headsets are now for
sale, and I feel like I can out them. I get
extremely energized by watching people identify
problems and create solutions. It's even better when
we all benefit from the results!
I’ve been flying with the CQ1 for a few months. The
noise cancelling microphone makes a huge difference
in the quality of communication and the speakers
have the quality to match. Right after Christmas I
made my first IMC approach into the LA area. it was
such a relief to have consistent clear communication
capability without having to mess with my headset.
The kids in the back seat don’t comply with the
sterile cockpit rule, so the headset mike has to do
double duty filtering out airplane noise and kids
excited about arriving at Disneyland. Communication
with SoCal approach and the tower was never a
problem.
The CQ1 is visually similar to some other offerings,
but one touch or a closer inspection reveal the
enormous differences. The differences are even more
obvious at first use. The frame is more robust and
stays where you put it. The cables are high quality
with a Kevlar core. The controls are simply amazing!
No more finding the tiny sweet spot in the volume
knob that allows both speakers to work
simultaneously! The mike is fundamental game changer
with its noise cancelling capability. It stays
EXACTLY where you put it with no spring back.
There’s no auxiliary input, that feature is easily
addressed by simple adapters and most intercoms and
audio panels have wired and / or Bluetooth inputs
anyway.
My fear is that this post reads like an
advertisement. It’s not; I am however excited about
the product and what its creators have done. I like
it well enough that we have bought a second CQ1 for
my pilot wife. I own two Bose A-20s because they’re
quality, they fit the kids, and they will for years.
I own a Lightspeed Zulu II which was an expensive
failed experiment. Quality is good, but they
interfere with sunglasses and hats, and they clamp
my dainty ears; a fault they share with the Bose. I
have primarily flown with the Quiet Technologies
headset because it’s more comfortable than anything
that clamps my head. It was also fickle,
temperamental, and of mediocre quality. I have
tested all 4 headsets back-to-back and Tanya and
Scott’s CQ1 offering is the best, hands down.
I find in-the-ear headsets quieter than ANR in RVs,
especially when glasses and hats are in the mix to
break the seal with my head. I can hear the
cancelling feature in ANR headsets and find it
tiring and a bit nauseating. There was a post here
recently about that, so I'm not the only one. Ear
tips and ear plugs are a very personal thing. They
also have to be inserted correctly to work. I roll
my own using Howard Leight earplugs because they
work well for me. I think Card Machine Works have a
few other suggestions. I use the same basic plugs
for flying, motorcycling, woodworking, machine work,
and even at my day job at times. It’s on my list to
make a video describing my process. Now that I’ve
stated that publicly, maybe I’ll follow through.
Here's a link to their website. There is much more
detailed information there.
https://cqheadset.com/
...
Status Report #10 ...romanov
That report is about:
• Aft Fuselage: it's almost the fuselage, in fact it
is the fuselage.
After we have made small wing type structures
(...four of them), now we have a chance to try our
skills on the actual body of the plane. Here is how
it looks like:
January 9, 2019. Issue #4,734
1/8/19
FOD Check
...my home field (52F). Rob Reece driving the golf
cart / me as pax. Two sets Mark I eyeballs.
Reno 2019 rookie...hopefully
Wheels are turning and gears are in motion at Bear Dog
Racing to make the Reno Air Races 2019 for the very first
time in our RV-4. First comes Pylon Racing School in
June..."Rookie School". When all goes well there, I'll have
my Sport Class racing license in hand on Sunday the 9th,
then....qualifying in September. Really excited!! Race prop
finally being carved this weekend. Need to get going on the
10:1 pistons and intake mod. Feel free to come to the pits
and turn a wrench
See y'all in Reno!!!
SARL Race 51
__________________
Johnnie Painter
RV-4 O-360 (N92BP)
Panel Critique
Hi all-
I've been working with Advanced on my quick panel (they are
awesome to work with). I am switching from 12V to dual USB
chargers. Also, adding 3-4 spare toggles just in case for
things I've not considered or will add in the future.
Any other thoughts? Would love the thoughts of those that
have built and what they'd do different, add/delete. The
collective IQ and history/knowledge of this crew can find
something I should change I am sure :-)
Thanks in advance!
dan
Front Access Panels ...bhester
If I was building today I would just mount everything so
that it could be accessed on the sub panel, it could be
accessed via removing the instrument panel. I just could not
do that when I had analog gauges. The big brain box for my
AFS engine monitor and my Lightspeed Ignition box are
mounted under the LH panel. My altitude encoder use to be
under the RH panel, no longer needed, now that I'm using the
Garmin G3X. I use clear RTV when installing them and they do
not leak. I have been back into them a number of times. I
made this mod myself, they are not the ones being sold, but
are made like them, only smaller. Feel free to go to my web
site and look at my ugly plane ;-)
Advanced Flight EFIS Software Release
Advanced Flight Systems just posted our
long-awaited Version 15 software release for the
AF-5000 series of EFIS screens, which includes a
number of new features:
• Improved graphics.
• Ability to use a Garmin G5 as the backup ADAHRS.
The new software even does ADAHRS cross- checking
between the Dynon ADAHRS and the G5 ADAHRS.
• New Airspeed filtering algorithm improves the
airspeed display in turbulence
• New AHRS filtering algorithm.
• Ability to tune and push frequencies to an Avidyne
IFD radio from the EFIS.
• Ability to tune and push frequencies to a Garmin
radio (GTR200, GTR255, GTR225) from the EFIS.
• Ability to send ADS-B weather and traffic to the
Avidyne IFD Navigator display.
• Improved integration with the PS Engineering
PDA-360 Remote Audio panel with Bluetooth phone and
music.
• Remote MFD map control from the PFD Joystick. When
displaying a map on the PFD, the joystick will
control the remote MFD map.
• EFIS Inset Windows (profile view, flight plan,
traffic, map, g-meter).
• Display Sectional, IFR Low or IFR High charts in
Track Up or North Up
• Added Nexrad WX to Sectional chart.
Link to new Software:
Link
AF-5000 Video Pilot Guide YouTube Page:
Link
2018 was an incredible year for Advanced Flight
Systems! With the introduction of our Advanced
Control Module with Electronic Circuit Breakers,
sales grew at an exceptional rate.
We also introduced a new and improved web site at
the end of 2018:
http://www.advancedflightsystems.com/ Check it
out!
more pics
Master contactor failure (maybe?)
Hi friends,
Looking for some advice. I've got an RV-6A with a Lycoming
IO-360 and Skytec starter, 750hr TT. I bought it flying
about 350 hours ago.
Went flying a week ago, and after a fuel stop, I tried
starting back up, head a "clunk", then nothing. Tried again
and it worked... gremlins I thought...
Then I went to go flying today, and after turning the master
power on: "clunk clunk". Then nothing. My engine display,
which is always on if the master power is on, was "off". I
toggled the master switch a few more times for
troubleshooting and got a wide variety of results. In some
cases, I'd get the prop spinning like normal. Other times,
I'd turn the starter switch on and absolutely nothing would
turn on - not even any "clunks" of the master
contactor/solenoid.
I confirmed the battery is healthy (I keep it on a tender
and then checked the voltage independently - good). The
weather was mild.
I replaced the starter solenoid about 2 years ago after a
similar problem. This one is different because sometimes I'm
not getting any power at all... but when I get power I can
engage the starter.
So, I "think" my master contactor has failed. I only have 1
battery and 1 alternator, but the plane has 2 master
contactors in line. When I heard the "clunk"s, they were
coming from just one of them. No noise from the other at
all.
There is no marking on my contactors, but they look kind of
like Aircraft Spruce's LAMAR SOLENOID 12 VOLT CONTINUOUS
(X61-0028) - just without the sticker.
Do master contactors fail like this? Thoughts?
Thanks for your help!
-sumo
Wrong surface
landings video
Here's a short and sweet FAA video that's worth the
watching:
Garmin announces Q1 2019 aviation webinars
January 8, 2019 - Garmin is pleased to announce
aviation webinars through the first-half of 2019.
Ranging from Garmin Pilot tips and tricks,
cost-effective autopilot upgrades to low-cost
avionics solutions, these free webinars offer pilots
and customers with a broad overview of the latest
Garmin has to offer, while also providing a general
operational overview of its vast product line.
Autopilot Retrofits
Low-cost Avionics Solutions
Advanced Avionics Upgrades
ADS-B Solutions for Business Aviation
Garmin Pilot
Garmin avionics for experimental aircraft
Register
Scoreboard
January 8, 2019. Issue #4,733
No Words (too awesome!) ...lucaperazzolli
(RV-8 Italy)
At the top of the loop. During the
first january flight we had taken this still photo from a
Camera screwed under Franz's plane (along the tip screws
line). It's a strange perspective (for a carburator
engine ). I'd like to share it with you:
Carb Issues ...Stevegrasley
Over the last few months I have been
noticing a small amount of dirty fuel/oil dripping out of
the nose gear faring onto the nose wheel pant. Nothing
really significant and I chalked it up to little leaks,
dribbles and dirt on a 5 year old O-360 that I fly behind
300+ hours every year. Nothing else to note in terms of
performance anomalies (fuel consumption, power, engine
performance in general) except that I seemed to be having to
diddle with mixture more and more in the last few months to
get nice stable performance at altitude.
Yesterday after a 1 hour flight I pulled up to the hangar
and was shutting down. Low and behold the mixture cutoff was
fully pulled but it just would not shut down. Would slow way
down and then burp and cough and rev up a little more and
keep coughing. Seemed like it was definitely not "cutting
off". Shut the dual PMAGs off and after a little dieseling
it quit.
Pulled the cowl and noticed a lot of fuel sitting in the FAB.
(Wow! Where was this fuel coming from? No external leaks
anywhere around the carb.) Took off the airfilter thinking
the fuel sitting in there was the cause of the continued
running as it vaporized. Fired up without the FAB and
everything seemed OK. Did a run up and all good. , But, then
it started running rough at idle and I had to lean quite a
bit for the engine to run smooth. I am at sea level and it
was 75 degrees. Odd. Like it was way too rich for some new
reason. Tried a shut down and similar story. Shutdown the
dual PMAGs and finally got it to quit.
After shut down I noticed a fair amount of fuel dripping off
the back of the FAB mounting plate. It was not obvious to me
where it was coming from but I think it was internally
coming out of the carb...like a float was stuck down and the
residual pressure in the engine fuel pump was forcing fuel
out...but the mixture was supposedly cutoff? This must have
been what has been getting worse over time.
I bought my Lyc O-360 from Van's and it came with an Avstar
10-4164-1 carb. Compared to the carb that I had on my 1972
C172M the Avstar is built like a tank. But something is not
right.
I have decided to replace the carb before contemplating any
flying. Really get frustrated when I am AOG. I am suspicious
of damaged floats and/or mixture valve but I am not sure.
Carbs are one thing I have never gotten deep into
understanding. Can anybody give me a more definitive answer
based on what I have written here? Up until now this carb
has 1,260+ trouble free hours on it.
__________________
Steve
RV-7A
RV-9A Status Report ...9GT
Fabricating a plug for a new snorkel. It will be
removable to ease the difficulty of
removing/installing the lower cowling with a three
blade prop, and it will also house a custom FAB. I
don't care much for the Van's FAB bolted to the
bottom of the fuel servo. For experimental purposes,
I am going to embed a copper tape VOR antenna in it
and see how well it works since I already have the
materials on hand. No big deal if it doesn't work
well. I will just go with my original plan of an
Archer style wing tip VOR antenna.
Milestone! ...goatflieg
Another milestone happened today. My thanks to Harry
Manvel for his assistance and shared wisdom.
Insurance PIREP ...Leah (VAF
advertiser)
DID YOU KNOW older pilots need to take
extra precautions when comes to insurance?
Welcome to 2019!!! It’s a new year and we’re all going to be
turning another year older. Did you know that some insurance
companies will deny starting coverage for you once you reach
a certain age no matter what your health condition is? It’s
true, before you turn 75 years old, make sure you are with a
solid company. A company that won’t reduce coverage, require
an annual medical, or require you to fly “dual only” just
because you had another birthday. There are several good
companies for senior pilots, so if you are 75 years or
older, check with your agent to make sure you won’t have any
surprises come your next renewal. Age is just a number. You
can still fly insured well into your 80’s as long as you
plan ahead.
We wish you all a happy new year and safe flying!!!
Panel Demo / Fit Test ...ssokol
Here's a shot of a full system (less the engine monitor)
I put together using the blank I cut for the booth at
Oshkosh last year.
In the foreground you can see the ADC, GPS puck, and
FlightBox. On the far side of the FlightBox is a 4-port USB
hub. Not pictured are the power supplies for the iPads.
Milestone! ...MJarreau
Finished Our First Page!
It's a silly thing, yet huge for us! We have completed Page
8-2 (HS rear spar). A neighbor is an A&P type for the Coast
Guard and said our work was just fine. (You can't come close
to imagining what that did for our egos!)
What a learning curve... ..never having used our hands
before... ..replacing all the parts (at least once)...
..never having painted anything much less performing
significant surface prep. This stuff is just amazing.
Thanks to all the contributors here, we learn much from your
posts!
Mike
__________________
RV-10 Emp Kit!
Milestone ...Pilotjohns
Big day today, I rolled the fuselage canoe. It is just a
symbolic step about half way through the fuselage
construction.
more pics
IFR Hood Time Safety Pilot
Local pilot needed ballast a safety
pilot. Sure, why not?
1. VOR/DME RWY 18 KXBP
2. VOR/DME RWY 17 KLUD
3. ILS 16L KAFW
Some grabs (click to enlage).
Tracked in Garmin Pilot.
January 7, 2019. Issue #4,732
Saturday morning before drywall duty I had the pleasure
of giving new friend George his first ride in a small plane.
He works in law enforcement. George and Cynde are 'an
item' as the kids say, and we've known Cynde pretty much our
whole lives. Great guy! Cynde and George drove
up, and I think Cynde was planning on hanging out on the
couch. Randy walked up and said he wanted to go fly
too. New plan. "You have a hat I can wear?"
Yes. ;^)
enlarge
It was 00000kt and CAVU, so of course we're doing some
formation if the passengers don't object. Gentle turns
and nothing too steep for our guests, then it was up to KGLE
for gas. It seemed everyone with an airplane was
flying Saturday. I know a big group went to KSEP for
BBQ (I bowed out because I needed to be home repairing the
closet by midday). Anywho, back to the story, gas
bought and back in the air. Randy and Cynde went
direct back 52F while George and I flew over to his neck of
the woods so he could see his house. On the way we saw
a B-52, guessing out of KGYI or such). It turned away
and we got a nice show of exhaust. While on the ground
GLE I texted lifelong friend Billy T to see if he was home
(lives near George). Yes. "Go in your backyard
in 14 minutes." OK. Thankfully he didn't moon me
(it's in line with his character). Maybe his wife and
son standing next to him were an influence. Waves
exchanged.
enlarge
Let George fly for about 15 minutes and then back on the
ground 52F, handshakes, laughs and a sense of
accomplishment. Got to treat a law enforcement officer
to some aviating fun, got to have some laughs with a family
friend, got to share airspace with a B-52 defending my
freedoms, and lucked into a greaser landing (told him they
were all like that). Later I got the 'George wants to
know how much it costs to learn to fly' text from Cynde <g>.
And so it begins...;^)
enlarge
The rest of Saturday was drywall and work.
Sunday 0730 Mass, more drywall and more work. A nice,
productive weekend.
Hope you had the same and that you have a nice Monday.
Here's the rest of the RV news from the weekend...
Vibration
I have 125 hours on my RV7A with an Aero Sport 0-360 ECI
engine. The prop is a Sensenich metal prop purchased through
Vans. During take off and level flight I have a vibration.
When descending it is not near as noticeable. I had the prop
dynamically balanced. It seams to be better when lean of
peak. Leak down and regular compression testing show good.
Ignition is a Light Speed II and one mag. Timing is set
correct. Carb was just overhauled. Any ideas or suggestions?
__________________
RV7A Completed
N315S
One more Sunset.....petehowell
I know I probably post too many sunset
pics, but I snapped this on a quick flight tonight and
really liked the colors from the HDR setting on the phone.
The sun, the ice, and the sky were really kinda
special.........
How bad is it? (back riveting oops)
Well, I did it. The thing I said I
wouldn't do. I riveted off the edge of my back rivet plate
and damaged my rudder skin. SEE PHOTOS HERE.
Will be putting a call into Vans, but hoping someone here
can talk me off the cliff. Is this a, "Buy a new skin don't
even think about continuing," OR "A little paint filler
after completion will take care of that?"
Few positives: 1) It was barely off the plate, so wasn't
able to push down to workbench and punch through, 2) I
caught it on about the 3rd hit of the rivet gun. I went
ahead and dimpled the hole again, and that looks fine along
with the stiffener, but wondering about the dent/crease on
the outside of the skin. Thoughts?
RV-14A Status Report ...kbalch
Fuselage join accomplished this morning. A
complete non-event, as everything clecoed right together as
expected. For anyone who’s built an earlier, pre-matched
hole, kit, these -14 kits seem like cheating. I built an
early -8 and the difference is night and day. I love it!
Finally Pulled the Trigger!
Hi, y'all,
Might as well introduce myself... I (we) finally pulled the
trigger today after lurking for perhaps a record setting 12
years! I surprised myself and ordered an RV14 instead of the
-8 that I have a sweet set of Grove Airfoil Landing gear for
in my garage.
I can already credit people here on the forum for guiding me
to keep my better half happy and perhaps more engaged in the
project.
While I'm technically an Aerospace Engineer with 20 years of
military flying and now an Airline pilot, I'm going to rely
heavily on the group here for advice and instruction. It
should be a fun ride! I've just got to keep telling myself
you eat an elephant one bite at a time...
_______________________
B. Hoover
N858BC (Reserved)
KSEP BBQ PIREP ...scard
Oops, we did it again! It was great to see
everybody. We counted 23 heads.
RV-14 Electrical Diagram ...mulde35d
With all the discussion on lighting and
electrical noise I thought I would post the primary power
and G3X pinout diagram that I created over the course of
about 6 weeks of sitting in hotel rooms bored out of my
mind. This is still under revision as I actually build it,
but while the pictures are only JPEG I would be happy to
email the full visio product to anyone who is interested (PM
me with your email address). I created this from scratch
while referencing an electrical drawing that was produced by
a professional company to give me some ideas on how to lay
things out in a clear manner. Hence why it may look like a
paid for product, but is purely my creation. The wire
numbering scheme is also original and has a decoding method
to the madness that should help me identify wires quickly in
the aircraft should I find problems once in flight.
I am also open to any input from any electrical guru's in
the house as most of this was self learning from the
baseline installation documents with a couple calls to
Garmin for some detailed pinout instructions. Have fun on
the eye chart if you so desire.
RV-12 Status Report ...rongawer
I installed a canopy latch with security lock from
Aircraft Specialty. Steve was very helpful and I highly
recommend this upgrade.
Status Report ...jcarne
Somewhat of a big day today. After finishing the
flap fabrication it was time for my last major
primer session. Almost everything is primed for the
wings (just push tubes left) and almost everything
for the fuselage (push tubes and a couple of small
parts) I will still have some odds and ends here and
there but this is the last big one!
Pilots needed
This Summer August 13-16 there will be a
gathering of 45,000 - 50,000 kids grades 5-12 at
Oshkosh, these kids are from around the world. I am
responsible for the aviation portion of their
activities. The last time this event was held we
gave around 800 Young Eagle rides in the 2 1/2 days
that weather was good. Our goal is 1,000 if we have
4 good days of weather. I am looking for volunteers
that would like to help with flights. We also have a
ground display area on aviation, home building, and
mission aviation. The kids will all have gone an
intro to aviation and a preflight before they come
for their Young Eagle ride.
If you would like to help for any or all of this
time please contact me. I will be their with my
RV-10 (now this is RV related )
Thanks
__________________
Bill Greenley
RV-Lancair Brotherhood Day...snopercod
The weather was perfect and we had a great
turnout today at GMU - seven people! Besides the
regulars (Darwin couldn't make it), Keith from
Greenville showed up in his RV-12, and Doug and wife
Susan from Gainsville, GA flew in in his RV-12,
making three RV-12s! Mark Cigal in his RV-8 brought
his Cirrus instructor friend Chuck from Denver.
Lunch was good as usual and it was a pleasure to
meet the new folks. I hope they'll come join us
again the next time we do this. In no particular
order:
Owen's Red RV-12 and Keith's Blue RV-12:
more pics
Year 12 Performance Runs ...petehowell RV-9A
Got out and up today to see how the old girl is
doing at cruise.
Cloudy, but 02degC and a pretty nice day. She seems
to still have it at 12+ years and 2096 hours!
O-320, carb, dual EI, Hartzell, mogas. Otto flying
the legs.
Yep - The D-10A has the dreaded black spot - it is
stable for now, so I am just leaving it. The D-10A
and the EMS-D10 have been great for 12 years and I
know Dynon will fix me up when time comes.
The snapshot:
Master contactor failure (maybe?)
Hi friends,
Looking for some advice. I've got an RV-6A with a
Lycoming IO-360 and Skytec starter, 750hr TT. I
bought it flying about 350 hours ago.
Went flying a week ago, and after a fuel stop, I
tried starting back up, head a "clunk", then
nothing. Tried again and it worked... gremlins I
thought...
Then I went to go flying today, and after turning
the master power on: "clunk clunk". Then nothing. My
engine display, which is always on if the master
power is on, was "off". I toggled the master switch
a few more times for troubleshooting and got a wide
variety of results. In some cases, I'd get the prop
spinning like normal. Other times, I'd turn the
starter switch on and absolutely nothing would turn
on - not even any "clunks" of the master
contactor/solenoid.
I confirmed the battery is healthy (I keep it on a
tender and then checked the voltage independently -
good). The weather was mild.
I replaced the starter solenoid about 2 years ago
after a similar problem. This one is different
because sometimes I'm not getting any power at
all... but when I get power I can engage the
starter.
So, I "think" my master contactor has failed. I only
have 1 battery and 1 alternator, but the plane has 2
master contactors in line. When I heard the "clunk"s,
they were coming from just one of them. No noise
from the other at all.
There is no marking on my contactors, but they look
kind of like Aircraft Spruce's LAMAR SOLENOID 12
VOLT CONTINUOUS (X61-0028) - just without the
sticker.
Do master contactors fail like this? Thoughts?
Thanks for your help!
-sumo
January 4, 2019. Issue #4,731
Wishing you and yours a happy, safe and RV-filled
weekend!
First Flight RV-12 N12SM ...Tacco
On New Years Day. After 18 months of build time.
Flew great! No surprises. Rudder trim needs
adjusted. No heavy wing. Finished half of PAP FT-1.
Still grinning.
RV-10 #41988 - DFW
And so it begins........
After at least three years lurking on this site and
flip flopping between a 10, 9a or 14a, and even
looking at some high wing models I made the leap
today.
Officially ordered my RV-10 QB wing kit. I’m waiting
a few months to order the tail kit as I recover from
Rotator cuff surgery. I figure this will be added
incentive to do the exercises and recover.
Can’t wait to start the process. While I’m one armed
over the next few months I plan to clean and
organize my workspace/garage.
Thanks to dr’s website and the countless blogs and
threads I have read to get to the starting point.
And I’m sure I will be reading even more on this
site as I move forward
__________________
Tim Foster
RV-10 QB Wings ordered
How I painted my RV-6 Fuse ...Joewebb 12min vid
Exit pressure must match local exterior flow at exit
...Steve Smith thoughts
The fundamental rule of subsonic exit flow is that
the internal flow pressure at the exit must match
the external flow pressure at the exit.
When you open a cowl flap or have a diverging exit
angle, you are creating an area of lower pressure in
the external flow, which yes indeed helps extract
more flow through the internal flow path, because
you are exiting into lower pressure. The penalty for
this is the increase in frontal area needed to
create the accelerated external flow, and the
likelihood that exiting internal flow may be at a
lower velocity than the external flow.
When you have an exit in an area where the external
geometry is tapering or sloping back towards smaller
cross sections as you go downstream, the other flow
is slowing down, pressure increasing, and you are
exhausting into an area of elevated pressure
compared to the free stream. The internal flow at
the exit is therefore at a higher pressure, lower
velocity than it could have been. In small doses,
this region of decelerating flow, with rising
pressure, can be good - the pressure recovery on the
aft-facing slope provides some thrust. But if the
pressure gradient is too adverse (pressure rising
too fast) the boundary layer will separate and you
will have a separated flow region trapped in the
area where the body is getting smaller, causing
pressure drag - which is a way of saying that you
are not getting the pressure recovery that you would
have gotten had the flow stayed attached.
...
Tuft Testing and Systems ...DanH (same thread)
Larry, first suggestion is to think in terms of
building a system. Whatever individual modifications
you might make should be considered in a system
context. Bandaids only go so far, and real bolt-on
speed is rare.
Next, remember the little things. I'm going to take
one subject as an example, that 4-pipe exhaust.
You're thinking about cutting off the downturns, but
in the context of how to reduce cooling drag, the
best bet would be to stack it under a workbench
somewhere.
...
Welcome Aboard...Bellhemem (Lafayette, LA)
Vans sold another RV10 Kit
I took the plunge and should have a RV 10 Empennage
kit delivered next week. I have a few questions as I
do not personally know any RV builders, or have an
active EAA.
I have most of what I need (I think). Advise on a
couple of questionable parts/tools –
Substructure Dimple Die 3/32? Leaning towards no…
Countersink Jig?
Tail light Adapter Ring?
Threaded Tie Down Block?
Rudder Cable Fairing?
Static Line Kit from Cleveland any better/worse than
Vans?
I have ordered extra rivets, the Radio Shack
Self-Adhesive clips for the Static Line, and RV10
Bucking Bar.
Anything else other than a Light/Conduit I may need
to finish the Emp?
New Panel Design - Critiques Please ...ssokol
I spent part of the holiday break working on a
design for a new panel for my RV-6A. I'm getting
close to having a first cut of my home-grown
avionics suite working and its time to bite the
bullet and start "eating my own dog food" as they
say. Please take a look and let me know what you
think.
...
Status Report ...jcarney
Well after finishing up the ailerons by bolting
the brackets on it was time to start the flaps.
19K and 89kt Xwind ...crabandy
Also from 2018, KSDL..KICT 3:40ish enroute time
and less than 20 gallons if I recall correctly.
Inspiration from 'Ron's Cart' ...TASEsq
I took great inspiration from Ron’s cart below,
but not being able to find a cheap cart that wasn’t
too big, I just used some left over kitchen to build
mine. The drawers are very handy (they are 10mm
ply), for stuff needed often but not every second.
The drill bit holder and die holders are the best
things ever - never have to search for a bit, and
I’ve since removed some I don’t use and added
reamers for an3 and 4 bolts. The air tools hang on a
bit of PVC pipe with notches cut. I also now have a
sandpaper holder on the side, and found 5lt olive
oil cans are the best for clecos. Very handy having
all the hardware boxes wherever I’m working. Thanks
for the inspiration!
January 3, 2019. Issue #4,730
Mothership Jan 1 pic.
2019 Sats, maybe ahead of Vlad for a day? ...BruceEicher
Finished off (this year so far) 15 airports with
landing and Take offs, 5 new airports, one grass
strip and 2 night landings. Was trying for the
entire Oregon Coast and all airstrips. Had to scrub
one grass strip after landing on the better one, it
was very soft and the other posted warnings.........
Now Vlad, if I want to keep this up I might just
have to install your auxiliary fuel tank so
conveniently left in my hangar <g>
Video on RV-12iS Drop In Lines ...Aircraft Specialty
[ed. I enjoyed this
video immencely! If you have a 19 minute hole
in your day I recommend it. Nerds of the World
Unite!!!! ;^). v/r,]
The rv12is provided a great opportunity to fully
utilize CNC tube bending technology to provide drop
in lines for the 12iS aircraft that the OP of this
message utilized in his aircraft.
Here is a video that shows the design process,
fabrication, as well as tube final dimension
verification.
The 10:22 mark is where the actual tube bending
begins. The rest of the video shows how the entire
process is done from start to finish.
As always, we couldn't have done this without the
help of some great beta testers. The RV/
Experimental community is comprised of some great
people, and we really enjoy working with you to
refine and improve the build experience.
HS spar scratches RV 9 ...toddramsey
"...finished match drilling my ribs to the spars
on my horizontal stabilizer. When I disassembled and
removed the blue plastic, I found these shallow
scratches. I believe they came from the brake used
in bending the spars in the manufacturing process.
The blue plastic was also cut along these scratches.
I used mineral spirits to clean the scratches to
remove the plastic residue and the photos show what
remains. These scratches are very shallow but I can
feel them with my fingernail."
From Lycoming...
Photos of the 'Wood Tool Cart' ...ronshchreck
...per request.
Potentially catastrophic mistake: Aft canopy deck position along the
longerons
...Draker
Happy new year everyone. Wish I could
share in the happiness, but I just found what's
possibly a catastrophic mistake I made on the RV,
and wanted to share it. Obviously this is going to
involve a long discussion with Van's, but I thought
I'd start a discussion here to potentially prepare
myself for the extremely bad news I have coming.
Long story short, it looks like I built the whole
forward and mid fuselage around incorrectly bent and
drilled longerons.
I'm at the point in the build where I'm
disassembling the forward fuselage to prep the
surfaces, dimple, and countersink them for riveting.
While countersinking the longerons, something just
didn't look right. The top holes I had drilled for
the aft canopy deck were way too far aft. So I
clecoed the longeron back to the mid-fuselage, and
pulled out the F-721B aft canopy deck pieces. Lo and
behold, the holes are indeed way too far back:
...
January 2, 2019. Issue #4,729
Clean drywall cuts made - drying out continues (bad
pano pic). Washroom ops returning to normal. Clothes
donation pile growing - clothes that I didn’t know I had tossed
in. ‘Professional clothes’ whittled down to about a foot and a
half of rack space - feels pretty great to tell you the truth (pic).
Less clutter is nice.
Hope you had a nice holiday and that your 2019 goes swell.
Getting Back to Building! ...llavalle
So some of the older folks here might remember
me. I was building a -9A back in what.. humm
2008-2009. Had a webcam link in my signature which
was awesome in 2008.
Went to 'Osh in 2009 and met some of the folks
here! At the Van's dinner, our host here, DR,
recognized me by saying "hey, you're that French
Canadian guy from Québec, right?"
So anyway, after 265hours and 3642 rivets (yup,
counted them), life had other plans for me and I
paused the building of the -9A. ~2 years later, was
offered a very good price on it so I decided to sell
it. Emp was complete and inspected by MD-RA
(specific to Canada stuff). One wing was mostly
complete, the other one I was working on.
continue
Unbelievable! ...Don Patrick
Finally...
After a week of fighting the flu, I managed to get
to the airport and strapped on my RV-8.
I can't say that I wasn't nervous..I sure was, but
once the power was poured on, all trepidation left
and it was down to business.
What an amazing feeling....Incredible!!!
The only issues I had was a heavy right wing, a
D180 that screamed stall at me the entire flight (my
programming mistake) and a MP issue that I have to
resolve.
There are so many I have to thank. My family, you're
the best! Manny Rosario and the boys at Enterprise
Air...your ACES!. Rob Baldasaro, thanks for the
paint work!. Simon Hitcheon, thanks for my RV
checkout and the support!! All the others from this
site for the help and guidance, much thanks!
For those of you still building...keep moving
forward every day...These are amazing aircraft!!
It wasn't a perfect weather day, but the end
result..PRICELESS!!
RV-9 Daddy/Daughter Vlog to Cumberland ...rv9daughter
RV9 daughter is home for the holidays! Which
means that I had to ask my old man to take the RV
for a spin. We packed some snacks and made the short
trek to Cumberland, WI on Sunday. I made this (very
poorly filmed and edited) video just for a fun
memory, but my family thought you all might like to
see it. Enjoy
Flight Data Recorders: Foreflight logger, Arduino, Raspberry Pi
...Saville
So last week I decided to fly some simple tests to
determine how useful the Foreflight Track Logger is
in capturing data for Flight Tests.
So I flew a simple plan which consisted of taking
off, flying wind speed and direction circles at 5000
feet and then again at 8000 feet, then doing some
simple aerobatics to see if the Track Logger could
also be used to tell me how I'm doing with the acro.
The results were interesting. I downloaded the
CSV file from Foreflight and wrote some Python to
capture the data and plot it out in 3D.
The short answer is - the Foreflight Track Logger
might be useful for Phase 1 flight test of climb,
airspeed calibration,best glide, Vx Vy determination
etc.
Doesn't seem to be useful in showing a round loop.
This is the 3D plot of the full flight. The roll,
loop and roll is the track at the far right of the
plot:
continue
RV-12iS Fuel Line Photos ...subpar_bucker
wanted to send a quick post our showing the
installation of the fuel lines I purchased from
Aircraft Specialty. ...... I
can say it was quite delightful after humiliating
myself fabricating the long fuel lines to simply
attach these lines where they belonged in a single
attempt
No Excuses ...petehowell
Brrr - someone turned off the heat in the upper
midwest today, but Bernie and I had the day off -
that means a good day to fly! -1F, bundle up and go!
Flight Levels Club ...airguy
Since we've got the "200 knots" club and it's
been around for a while, I thought we should have
this one as well. I know quite a few of us have been
up there with our RV's, and a couple of us have gone
WAY up there.
Anyway, here's my entry, coming back home from Reno
2018, was picking up a trace of ice in the top of a
layer at 17,000 so requested FL190 to get clear
2019 New Year Resolutions ...Jaybird gets the ball rolling
2019 New Year Resolutions
Exercise more
Lose weight
Install ADSB
Fly more this year.
Resolutions are made to be broken. Right?
I predict,,,,, This time next year I’ll be asking
what you did to comply with this new ADSB rule? I’ll
still need to exercise more, and lose weight.
I only flew 113 hours in 2018. I’m wondering why I
have 3 airplanes.
From
Paul at Kitplanes
Happy New Year - And (Maybe) Hat Sighting ...tcard
Happy New Year to all of our flying friends! The
Year 2018 ended with a flight, so it seemed
necessary for 2019 to start with a flight. There
wasn't any of the requisite noise from our airpark
community, so we decided to fix that even though the
weather was, well, not great. Clearly our fellow
pilots needed a ceiling report. The consensus in our
cockpit was low and "variable".
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