Update:
Well…. The first conditional inspection is almost completed. I can’t believe she has been an airplane for a year now. I was only able to fly her for about 55 hours in the first year as there was a lot (I mean a lot) of what we call “fly-fix-fly” mods. The most significant were the numerous oil cooler and oil cooler configuration changes to include the engine plenum.
I have not found anything unexpected during the conditional inspection as I have kept a close eye on things. Taking things apart, cleaning, lubricating, etc. more than usual. The small things I added in the build process to simplify maintenance have really paid off. IT IS IMPERATIVE to think about how you will maintain the aircraft during the build process. If there is something you don’t want to open up, or crawl into or just plain do; figure out a way to overcome that issue during the build process.
I did take the time to make a few “upgrades”.
-Added a 5th harness strap for my wife.
-Painted a few interior parts.
-Reset the control stick to the right so it would be more ergonomically suited for my flying position.
-Made/installed an exit fairing at the bottom of the fuse covering the engine-mount cross-tube. This was a new concept for me. I let a friend (Brian, future RV builder) make the part and just provided guidance and requirements. It turned out very well, flight data to come at a later date. I also came up with a way to interface the new fairing with the DanH’s style cowl flap. Will post pics later.
Discovery
In the process, I discovered that the injector restrictor nozzles on the 340 were .028. Long story short, Don at Airflow Performance (the nicest, most supportive vendor I have ever talked to) is sending me .022 restrictor nozzles. That should also help with my idle issue. Fingers crossed. Will report out later.
Still to do:
-Arrive at the final rudder trim wedge size. Slowly cutting it down.
-Make aft wing root fairings.
-Reset the incidence angle on the horizontal stab.
-Motorize DanH’s style cowl flap. Brian is working on a concept to automatically open/close the cowl flap based on engine temps and also provide the capability to override the position.
-Install the right pitch/length prop. Waiting on the 4th version.
Keep pounding rivets, running wire and sanding fiberglass. See you at OSH.