…getting it started.
v/r,dr
v/r,dr
Van's Air Force
Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.
What did you do with your RV this weekend? (12/15-17/2023)
- Thread starter DeltaRomeo
- Start date
Not flying for 18 days - but back in the air
It had been 18 days since I have flown. I just had surgery for a total knee on the 30th, but 14 days later I got the RV Grin Back! Surgical technology sure has been in enhanced over the last few years. Quick recovery and It feels good to be back in the air. I have began working immediately after the surgery to get my range of motion back. I have been walking without a cane 7 days after surgery and it was time to get and get the grin back. I wish I had not waited and got it done earlier.
https://youtu.be/6VPr85vn2OM?si=HEjVIGZtzk-jTFwb
Short 2 min video
It had been 18 days since I have flown. I just had surgery for a total knee on the 30th, but 14 days later I got the RV Grin Back! Surgical technology sure has been in enhanced over the last few years. Quick recovery and It feels good to be back in the air. I have began working immediately after the surgery to get my range of motion back. I have been walking without a cane 7 days after surgery and it was time to get and get the grin back. I wish I had not waited and got it done earlier.
https://youtu.be/6VPr85vn2OM?si=HEjVIGZtzk-jTFwb
Short 2 min video
Attachments
Last edited:
Bittersweet day today for me. After 5-1/2 years of being based at CYQF Red Deer, AB, I moved to a small airport a little bit farther away (10-15 minutes drive each way), Lacombe CEG3. My hangarage ended as they needed room for an incoming Diamond DA-62. My new home is spacious and convenient. Unfortunately it's not heated, but it will keep me out of the elements. My previous base had become difficult to fly out of for a variety of reasons, so this is an upgrade as far as flying opportunities. The 15 minute rebasing flight was only my 4th flight since returning from Osh. Hopeful to get several more flights in this year.
PilotjohnS
Well Known Member
Freakshow108
Well Known Member
Paint job
I just picked my 7A up last week from ArtCraft. You will not be disappointed !
Attachments
Bill Boyd
Well Known Member
Took the -10 up to get the oil flung around and the pilot rust removed, verified that the Bowden cables for cabin heat and oil cooler air work better for now after an application of Mouse Milk to the sheaths.
Also noted that the latest Red Cube is again inoperative after being off-and-on during my last X/C in November. This is the third cube to fail in 120 flight hours. The first was in the tunnel, came with the kit and was of unknown pedigree but assumed to be new. The next two were new replacements mounted between the servo and spider, suspended by hoses, once with an L- bracket to the sump and the second time without said bracket.
The hourly cost of these things is prohibitive! I hate trying to set LOP mixture with the "big pull" without reference to FF data, not to mention the loss of all fuel computer and % HP functions on the EFIS without the cube's data - so I'm going to keep replacing them regardless.
Also noted that the latest Red Cube is again inoperative after being off-and-on during my last X/C in November. This is the third cube to fail in 120 flight hours. The first was in the tunnel, came with the kit and was of unknown pedigree but assumed to be new. The next two were new replacements mounted between the servo and spider, suspended by hoses, once with an L- bracket to the sump and the second time without said bracket.
The hourly cost of these things is prohibitive! I hate trying to set LOP mixture with the "big pull" without reference to FF data, not to mention the loss of all fuel computer and % HP functions on the EFIS without the cube's data - so I'm going to keep replacing them regardless.
PilotjohnS
Well Known Member
Saw it
I saw yours there. Glad it all worked out for you.
It is a very nice job; really impressed with the colors and the scheme and the finish.
I saw yours there. Glad it all worked out for you.
It is a very nice job; really impressed with the colors and the scheme and the finish.
Last edited:
AlexPeterson
Well Known Member
I took one last flight of 2023 yesterday - wasn't a ripple anywhere in the air. The temperature was about 15F, making for sporting performance.
As we will leave for AZ next week I covered the plane to keep the inevitable winter dust off from it. Since we are going to be gone for only three months, it is borderline worth the hassle to come back for the plane, not to mention finding a place to tie it down. Rest well my friend!
As we will leave for AZ next week I covered the plane to keep the inevitable winter dust off from it. Since we are going to be gone for only three months, it is borderline worth the hassle to come back for the plane, not to mention finding a place to tie it down. Rest well my friend!
Attachments
Last flight of the year on Sunday afternoon, clear blue sky and light winds in Tulsa. Shot a few approaches in the area and had one airport to myself for pattern work and touch-and-go's, and made some of my best wheel landings (for me at least
). All in all a great couple of hours getting away from the daily stuff. The RV flew great, all the systems worked as intended and I greased the landing back at RVS.
A great afternoon flying.
Figs
). All in all a great couple of hours getting away from the daily stuff. The RV flew great, all the systems worked as intended and I greased the landing back at RVS.A great afternoon flying
.Figs
Michigan to Louisiana
It asnt the weekend but we got back Friday afternoon so that is close!
Last Monday my wife and I set off from KTEW - Mason MI to KDTN - Shreveport LA. It was freezing cold - about 20 degrees F and cloudy at 3000. The first hour we had to drop a few times to 2000-2500 to dodge clouds. My RV 9A must have the worst heater of any type of plane ever. I dont think an open cockpit would have been any warmer!
We landed at KFRK - Frankfort IN after flying for an hour to warm up. They have a nice FBO there and nice people. After some hot oatmeal and hot chocolate the sky started opening up. We took off and did a 1800 fpm climb through a hole and were above the clouds at 3500' to sunshine. We flew down to KARG - Walnut Ridge AR to get fuel. We decided to spend the night.
At KARG the manager and her husband greeted us, gave us directions to a hotel, recommendation for dinner, and gave us a nice 1990's Crown Vic to drive. They also had a hangar for us to use for the evening. The airport was an old AFB in WWII and there is a museum there that really looked interesting. I wish we had had time to go through it.
Tuesday morning we took off about 9:30 and headed to KDTN - Shreveport. The weather was warmer and it was nice and sunny with some haze. The haze got pretty thick from lots of burning but still about 15 mile visibility. We made it in just over two hours. KDTN is an interesting place to fly into. I am NOT used to class D and do not land at towered airports very often. On one side is Barksdale AFB and the main Shreveport airport on the other. I was handed off to the tower from flight following when I THOUGHT i had the airport in site. I was lined up for Barksdale! Lucky there were several planes in the pattern and the ATC guy must have known I was screwing up and told me to do a 360 for traffic. I noticed my error when I saw KDTN just in front of me and I was at 3000'! I told him I needed another 360 to descend. After that I made a great landing and got progressive taxi instructions to the hangar I had reserved at Tuberaux Aviation. I was in with a couple Cirrus and a nice Cirrus Jet.
The weather looked like it could be an issue over the weekend so we left a day earlier on Friday. At about 9:00 we took off and climbed to 5500. We were going to get fuel at KARG again but had a nice 15 kt tail wind and decided to change to KCGI - Cape Girardeau MO. About 2:20 later we landed for fuel and a rib eye steak sandwich. The fuel was $4:65 - the best price on the trip. The sandwich was great. We got them to go and started out for the flight home.
From KCGI we set the AP to KTEW. It was about a 3:00 flight. After about an hour we decided we should find a place to walk around and use the facilities. We ended up landing at CFJ - Crawfordsville IN. I topped the tanks and we headed out for the last hour of flight. It started getting pretty hazy as it got close 4:00 in the afternoon and we were glad we were almost home. Landed nicely and put the plane in the hangar.
Things I learned.
1. Having foreflight on my ipad right with the RAM mount on my left was great - especially the taxi and airport diagram.
2. My heater is ****. I need to figure out how to stay warmer or risk my wife not flying with me again
3. Flight following is great. They got me through MOA's class B and right into the busy KDTN airport
4. Tower airports are not as bad as I had feared.
5. I need to make sure I understand how to run LOP and that I am not going too far LOP
6. The cockpit of the 9 is small. Makes me want a Velocity or a 10!
Stats:
Miles Traveled: 1800+-
Hours of Flight: 10.9
Fuel Used: 86 +-
Landings: 6
Take Offs: 6
It asnt the weekend but we got back Friday afternoon so that is close!
Last Monday my wife and I set off from KTEW - Mason MI to KDTN - Shreveport LA. It was freezing cold - about 20 degrees F and cloudy at 3000. The first hour we had to drop a few times to 2000-2500 to dodge clouds. My RV 9A must have the worst heater of any type of plane ever. I dont think an open cockpit would have been any warmer!
We landed at KFRK - Frankfort IN after flying for an hour to warm up. They have a nice FBO there and nice people. After some hot oatmeal and hot chocolate the sky started opening up. We took off and did a 1800 fpm climb through a hole and were above the clouds at 3500' to sunshine. We flew down to KARG - Walnut Ridge AR to get fuel. We decided to spend the night.
At KARG the manager and her husband greeted us, gave us directions to a hotel, recommendation for dinner, and gave us a nice 1990's Crown Vic to drive. They also had a hangar for us to use for the evening. The airport was an old AFB in WWII and there is a museum there that really looked interesting. I wish we had had time to go through it.
Tuesday morning we took off about 9:30 and headed to KDTN - Shreveport. The weather was warmer and it was nice and sunny with some haze. The haze got pretty thick from lots of burning but still about 15 mile visibility. We made it in just over two hours. KDTN is an interesting place to fly into. I am NOT used to class D and do not land at towered airports very often. On one side is Barksdale AFB and the main Shreveport airport on the other. I was handed off to the tower from flight following when I THOUGHT i had the airport in site. I was lined up for Barksdale! Lucky there were several planes in the pattern and the ATC guy must have known I was screwing up and told me to do a 360 for traffic. I noticed my error when I saw KDTN just in front of me and I was at 3000'! I told him I needed another 360 to descend. After that I made a great landing and got progressive taxi instructions to the hangar I had reserved at Tuberaux Aviation. I was in with a couple Cirrus and a nice Cirrus Jet.
The weather looked like it could be an issue over the weekend so we left a day earlier on Friday. At about 9:00 we took off and climbed to 5500. We were going to get fuel at KARG again but had a nice 15 kt tail wind and decided to change to KCGI - Cape Girardeau MO. About 2:20 later we landed for fuel and a rib eye steak sandwich. The fuel was $4:65 - the best price on the trip. The sandwich was great. We got them to go and started out for the flight home.
From KCGI we set the AP to KTEW. It was about a 3:00 flight. After about an hour we decided we should find a place to walk around and use the facilities. We ended up landing at CFJ - Crawfordsville IN. I topped the tanks and we headed out for the last hour of flight. It started getting pretty hazy as it got close 4:00 in the afternoon and we were glad we were almost home. Landed nicely and put the plane in the hangar.
Things I learned.
1. Having foreflight on my ipad right with the RAM mount on my left was great - especially the taxi and airport diagram.
2. My heater is ****. I need to figure out how to stay warmer or risk my wife not flying with me again
3. Flight following is great. They got me through MOA's class B and right into the busy KDTN airport
4. Tower airports are not as bad as I had feared.
5. I need to make sure I understand how to run LOP and that I am not going too far LOP
6. The cockpit of the 9 is small. Makes me want a Velocity or a 10!
Stats:
Miles Traveled: 1800+-
Hours of Flight: 10.9
Fuel Used: 86 +-
Landings: 6
Take Offs: 6
Attachments
Many people carry blankets in their RV for just this reason.
Sealing up any air leaks around the canopy is a very big help towards keeping the cabin warmer.
Roadjunkie1
Well Known Member
COLD flights....
GOBI heated vests and hoodies are AMAZING!! Battery-operated and can keep you warm in cold places.....like the spacious cabin of an RV-9! There are some others that are less expensive but I have not heard good things about them. Mine is a heavy fabric similar to Carhart's and my navigator has one that is quilted and insulated. I wear mine in the hangar when it is too cold to be in there without it! Some good outdoor sports stores will have them.
GOBI heated vests and hoodies are AMAZING!! Battery-operated and can keep you warm in cold places.....like the spacious cabin of an RV-9!
There are some others that are less expensive but I have not heard good things about them. Mine is a heavy fabric similar to Carhart's and my navigator has one that is quilted and insulated. I wear mine in the hangar when it is too cold to be in there without it! Some good outdoor sports stores will have them.Rockwood,
As stated above sealing up the canopy is huge as is the rest of the cabin, doesn’t matter how big that heater is if air is pouring in from the canopy and spar area.
I have a slider so sealing is different, but front and side canopy seals did the trick for me. Also stuffed foam in the front side of the spar/fuse junction to seal off the wing root area. I was going to make the aileron tube boots but never needed them.
Heated seats will also add to your comfort even in warmer temps.
I can fly in shorts and a tshirt on a sunny day down to 30 degrees easy, have spent several hours up high in the winter at -25 with a hoody on.
Too far LOP is easy, it’ll get rough enough to make you uncomfortable……
Next time you get established in cruise flight set power to 65% and grab your notepad. Lean your mixture 1/4 turn at a time, give it 30 seconds and record your EGT’s, CHT’s, FF and IAS.
You are looking for Peak EGT for each cylinder and which cylinder peaks first and which one peaks last. Keep leaning and recording values until it runs rough.
You will find the EGT and FF when all of your cylinders are LOP, you’ll find the EGT that gives the best FF for airspeed and smoothness and cool CHT’s. This changes with temp and altitude.
Then richen it to 80 ROP, note the airspeed and FF and you’ll quickly be back at LOP………..
