Rans S21 Outbound build French Island. Nic and Mike. Start date 3rd May 2022. Finish date 1st February 2023. Target $ spend to be determined.

[Mike Gearon]

First video is why we are building the S21’s. Really tough to get into the air this wet and the S21’s will just lift off without drama very quickly.

 

Second video isn’t one of my finer moments. On phone with the bank manager and distracted thinking I was leaning against a normal height fence and not Nic’s special low runway rabbit fence.
 

Nic just kept working. Build moves quickly because Nic is an awesome worker and also because he researches really carefully prior to each days work. Manual and YouTube’s then we just go and we go fast! I’ve learned since back from USA I can’t match pace. 52 y.o to 64 y.o and my only option is to slow down.

Fuselage is challenging. Lots of panels to match up. 
 

We are onto controls next week. Rudders, sticks and putting wheels on should see the week out.

 

[rodgerc]

Poor Skyranger 😕

[pmccarthy]

Much damage to that nosewheel spat?

[Mike Gearon]

8 minutes ago, pmccarthy said:

Much damage to that nosewheel spat?

I had that area inspected before returning to French island. Left the nosewheel spat amd gave it a good wash. Aircraft now clean again at Nic’s much drier runway. A lot to be said for farm runways on hills.
 

 

Edited September 3, 2022 by Mike Gearon

[Mike Gearon]

The build is getting exciting. Nice to see rudder pedals in. Sort of move backwards to go forward getting skins on then removing to deburr. We will leave the side skins off while doing avionics. Heaps better access. 
 

Stuff coming from overseas should be arriving soon. Firewall forward Titan kit air freighted and we expect that in next week. The UL520t engine due within the next month. UL520turbo motor should be a month away. Garmin isn’t far off. 

 

Tomorrow we will have rudder cables sorted and control sticks in place. Moving onto seats and wheels next week. End of October we might be getting close to  flyable. It could possibly be 2 aircraft built by end February…. Rans currently has a 3-4 year wait for factory built S-21 aircraft and still around 12 months wait on the kits.

 

We have 2 X Titan engine on order with delivery possibly mid 2023. ULPower engines around 3 months wait so I expect we will see how the engine performs. I’d still prefer that a mixture control on the UL rather than rely on the ECU programming. That’s the change I’d make if it was possible.

 

Top 2 pics this afternoon. Bottom pic is where we were a week back and looks of course more finished. We do have to get the firewall back on to run the rudder cables with a foreword support bracket through the firewall.
 

Edited September 9, 2022 by Mike Gearon

[facthunter]

U certainly don't muck around. Nev

[Mike Gearon]

Progress report. Rudder connected, seats in. Elevator and aileron controls ready to connect. Tyres on so we can proceed with hydraulics. 
 

 

[Mike Gearon]

Wing tanks today and tomorrow. We’ve watched 3 different YouTube builders and the Rans videos. Then we run out of stuff to do on aircraft 1. I’ve started aircraft 2 with rudder done straight and near perfect. We will push into aircraft 2 next few weeks amd whenever stalled on 1. 
 

Garmin G3X stuff is slow. It’ll arrive in bits and pieces next few months. Titan 180hp engine is now steel bore because we can actually get one in the next month. UL520Turbo 220hp will be here soon. We’ve decided to go the easy way on aircraft 1. All the Titan FWF is here and looks straight forward. 

 

USA Ulpower are in process of getting 520t carbon fiber cowling and engine mount done for S21 I’m guessing these will be toward the end of the year. There have been delays already.

 

Airmaster prop for 520t is some 8 months away so aircraft 2 can proceed at a leisurely pace and we won’t sweat what will probably be a challenge getting the Ulengine sorted.

 

Aircraft 2 is a tail dragger at this point. I have the Pipistrel tail dragger motor glider in a 40’ container mid November so can see how that goes. It’s much harder to handle than the S21 TD

 

If anyone wants space in the 40’ I have heaps. Shipping from Moriarty New Mexico to Moorabin

[APenNameAndThatA]

Plywood floor?

 

[Mike Gearon]

Aircraft 2 up to the wings. Definitely phone a Neighbour time. I couldn’t get my big hand in at all. The D leading edge well worth it though. 
 

Some concerns with plastic wing tanks moving and swelling.  I’m seriously looking at aluminum tanks. 
 

An external flange can sit between the 2 ribs where the book is. We apparently have a genius aluminum welder at Tyabb that does the war birds. 
 

 

[Mike Gearon]

Aircraft 1 has avionics starting to light up. 2 weeks to done then we are really looking for a motor. Turns out the Titan steel barrel option is still quite a delay. Nic plated Titan a year away and steel sooner but not soon!

 

We may end up putting the UL520t in aircraft 1 and ordering a second UL.

 

We had the SAAA guys visit aircraft 1 and 2 last week. What a great volunteer service. Inspection 2 on aircraft 2 and inspection 1 on aircraft 2.

 

 

[Mike Gearon]

To end the year we have aircraft 1 powering up avionics today. Nic has promised he won’t turn the power on until I’m there to celebrate primarily and  with the fire extinguisher as a backup plan.

 

We have ULPower USA about to ship 520turbo carbon fibre engine cowling and engine mount. We have Sensenich prop about to ship. We have the engine crated in Europe and ready for air freight. If all goes well we may have test flights in February 2023 as scheduled! 
 

Second S21 has fuselage and tail mated. I’ve had to stop frame work now and jump forward to dashboard and wiring. Makes sense as Nic suggested to do the second set of wiring while it’s fresh. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to YouTube Rans S21 video blog Cleared Direct. Steve is a retired fighter pilot and we’ve duplicated his panel exactly. Steve has also supplied a wiring diagram that’s made our life infinitely easier. 
 

I’m an apprentice avionics wiring guy this week. As you see the two panels in pic. Being able to physically check the first aircrafts wiring and have Nic look over my shoulder is a massive help. I’d not have tackled wiring on my own. 
 

We took time off to change out Nic’s windsock. Both agreed we have a lot more fun doing general farm stuff than building aircraft! Still, it’s a satisfying daily grind with some mile stone fun moments coming up. Control stick in and moving control surfaces… very satisfying!…Getting avionics powered up. Getting wings on. Powering up the engine. Actual flying. Well, that’ll beat farm stuff! 

 

 

 

[Mike Gearon]

1st Feb 2023 isn’t going to happen…

 

We have taken delivery of the UL520t. Nic was quite impressed with all the wiring we don’t have to do.

 

I’ve worked on aircraft 2 wiring console all of January and it’s definitely my least favourite thing to do. In pic you see my console going for the walk of shame from aircraft factory 2. I’ve given up for now. Once we have concrete in the new hangar it’ll be a game changer. We can put wings on aircraft 1 and mount engine and really head for the finish line. Realistically I’m hoping we fly before I leave April 20th for annual USA time with family. 
 

Aircraft 2 is to continue August this year and maybe we complete toward the end of the year.

 

Definitely a shake up seeing the crash. I think the nose gear on the Rans while probably from same supplier and same thickness as Vans is different geometry and I’ve discussed with Randy (Rans designer) and feel a bit better about it. Aircraft 2 is already tail wheel and around 400 hours my flying is heaps better. I try to land the tricycle as if it’s a tail wheel… rock solid Center line track and stay on the rudder pedals all the way to engine off. Hopefully the damaged Pipistrel tail dragger will be flying when I’m back in Oz. Wing now being repaired. Who could have imagined the fuselage coming loose, crashing into front wall of container and wrecking spinner and prop then tail crashing into roof and damaging tail then coming back down and damaging wing. 
 

 

[onetrack]

I've seen more than one sea container shipping disaster, thanks to poor tiedowns and inadequate restraint. You need experienced operators doing this work.

 

A vintage car club mate shipped in a Daimler SP250 from the U.K. to W.A. It broke loose along the way from its poor tiedowns, and he almost cried when they opened the container, and he saw it. It looked like it had been sideswiped by two trucks.

 

But the worst I've sighted, was a fleet of earthmovers supposedly chained down in an open hold area. Some of the chains broke in rough seas, and bulldozers smashed into front end loaders, and front end loaders smashed into graders, and then the graders smashed into the walls of the hold, and so on.

The big problem was - no-one could get near the equipment to re-secure it, until they reached calmer waters, or they would've been squashed like bugs. The damage bill was in the multiple hundreds of thousands of dollars.

[Mike Gearon]

Video….Nic flying in with the Blackshape to build S21. 
 

Pics… aircraft 2. Starting to paint interior bits with 2 pack. Being asthmatic I’m quite concerned with possibility of the 2 pack triggering an attack hence the PPE Tailcone to fuselage exactly parallel (both .2 degrees)  as the clecos get replaced with rivets.

 

Goal now is to put aircraft 1 on the barge next week to have the engine mount and cowling sorted then painted. We are lucky enough to have Paul Chernikeeff handle the UL520t install and painting on aircraft 1. Might be in the air before I head off to USA late April. Having a hugely experienced engine builder like Paul oversee getting the UL520 turbo running and in the air is a massive win.  

 

 

 

[Mike Gearon]

Quick update.

 

Aircraft 1 has taken a boat ride to the mainland. It’ll be painted and finished up at Tyabb. Actually nice to be able to hop in the car and be at a supplier 20 minutes later instead of a flight or boat and car ride away.

 

Pics 1 and 2. Aircraft 1 with visit from Rob Fox. It’s always a motivational boost and learning curve when we visit each others builds.

 

Pics 3, 4 and 5 Aircraft 2. Learned a lot on aircraft 1. Anything we can do upside down we do! Wheel struts, wheels and belly fairing as well as paint. Belly fairing was a painful half day with problems on aircraft 1 (we had new fairings sent). Aircraft 2 belly fairings was an hour with accurate precise fit.

 

Overall…

 

Aircraft 1 would be flying now if we’d had a Titan engine available. We are moving well along the wait list but no immediate availability. We are waiting on UL520t FWF items to get to the finish line. That turbo normalised 220hp is enticing! Even if the UL figures are not realistic and it’s 200hp normalised that translates to a realistic 150kn cruise at altitude when compared to the rotax turbo getting 135kn. 

 

Aircraft 2will have controls in place along with Garmin based carbon fibre panel same as Aircraft 1 amd controls in place when I leave for USA 21st April. Gone for 4 months and I’ll miss the build. Good part is USA I have flying missions next 4 months.

 

Purchased a Bellanca Super Viking with good IFR platform in California. I fly there for 2 weeks to complete IFR rating and familiarisation with Bellanca. Buying from a CFI so that makes it easier.  IFR I have 40 hours and exam done already at 85% so hopefully it’ll go okay minus head exploding in checkride and that’s possible! Even if the case I’ve learned heaps and recommend anyone take on IFR even forgetting the checkride. The journey is worth it. IFR to VFR is like going from a difficult tail wheel to a tricycle. Adds confidence in aircraft handling, situational awareness and communication.

 

Fly the Bellanca to Moriarty, New Mexico to fly sail planes and get parts for the Pipistrel Sinus motor glider that 

 

From there Deb and I go to Alaska. Float planes at Moose Pass. The most fun I’ve had in an aircraft. I’ll also be up from being the “low hours pilot” (150 hours)  amongst transport and fighter pilots to what they might call medium hours? I don’t know. 450 hours with tail endorsement, glider rating and a heap of bush flying on difficult runways. Deb will get  to fly in the Cessna and see glaciers and grizzlies. Last 2 years in USA have been fairly difficult. All operations and medical stuff for Deb rebuilding after a boating accident in USA broke her knee and shoulder.

 

We then fly to Nome where they film Bearing sea gold. I have a number of friends there from last trip (without Deb) and we will gold hunt and fly.

 

Later Osh Kosh. Fly the Bellanca in. I’d not be game to fly into Osh Kosh if I’d not done it as a passenger. 30 page Notam to be read about 30 times and ready.

 

Then back to Oz and if Nic has been bored through winter he will have the avionics done on aircraft 2. Aircraft 2 should by then be getting the Titan on order or I’ll switch to the UL520t. We will have it flying in the aircraft 1 by then. Les who handles UL imports to Australia has been really helpful and flies in to help us as required.
 

 

 

 

 

 

[rodgerc]

Hey Mike, skip the UL520t and bolt one of TurbAero’s engines on the nose of your big-tyred puddle jumper and you’ll be able to scoot along at FL250 pulling 250kts, leaving Lancairs wallowing in your contrails. 😉
 

 

Edited April 5, 2023 by rodgerc

[facthunter]

There are already turboprop pressurised Lancairs and it's fairly cold at FL 250.  Nev

[Mike Gearon]

I saw those guys at Osh Kosh last year. I was really put off. I think it was the potential price point was astronomical as well as how early there are. Give it 10 years and high production and maybe it’s a go.

 

we might have a problem in the Rans at 250kn. It’s about 60kn past VNE 😀

[Mike Gearon]

I’m in USA until end August. Left Nic back in Australia with the first S21 build waiting on UL USA to ship cowling and engine mount. The good news is the cowling and engine mount ship this week.

 

The bad news is we’ve just been made aware of an S21 with UL520t that’s crashed with engine failure in USA. Pics here.

 

Having put rivets into 2 S21 builds and aware of the time and effort it’s so sad to see that S21 upside down. Nic and I are somewhere between excited to finally have the UL cowling and mount shipped and upset with the crank failure. It’s been pushing toward a one year wait. Turns out the composite maker in Florida does work for a number of engine companies with cowlings and mounts  is really busy. 

The ECU data is being examined by UL Power Europe and probably by ATSB  USA.  The crank is definitely being examined by ATSB. We look forward to that report and further information from UL themselves.
 

For build 2 I’ve spent time investigating Viking. They do Honda engines reclaimed from low mileage wrecks and their own gearbox. The 195hp Honda turbo is currently being installed on an American build S21. It’ll be very interesting to see flying data when this one is in the air. I’ve flown at Hays Kansas in the 180hp Titan with Rotax turbo flown by Randy (Rans designer) Definitley cuts  the bullshit factor to see actual real life performance. The Titan out climbed the Rotax easily and eventually around 10,000ft the 2 aircraft were equal TAS.  135kn. This means the UL520t with a claimed 220hp and the Honda with 195hp should be pulling some decent TAS. Perhaps 150kn realistic considering drag of this airframe.

 

I’ve also spent time with Mark Ketterman of Aeromomentum. He has an engine he’s not allowed to name.  I can.  It’s a Hyundai 300hp turbo. I found it easy enough to research the spec on the Aeromomentum engine. It’s 100% Hyundai. It’s also new. Not a wreck reclaim. Mark has 10 that have been sold this year and he doesn’t want to provide more until these are delivered.

 

I think the UL520t that just crashed was actually meant to have an Aeromomentum engine. Delivery delays may have pushed the change to UL. 3 months delivery time is pretty good for an engine supplier at the moment. The Titan 180hp natural aspirated is something way longer wait pushing past a year and possibly 2.

 

I’m due to go to Florida August 7th for sea plane rating. I’ll also visit Aeromomentum in Florida and get a feel for what their factory looks like and production. Mark did tell me they are at 300 hours tested  on the 300hp engine.

 

So, hopefully aircraft one will have an engine and paint and flying when I return end August. I’ve sold the Pipistrel Virus so need a daily commuter for flying off island. I don’t think flying over 6nm of water twice a day is going to be fun if worrying about the crank crapping itself. Nic and I will both look forward to further info. We do know the Australia dealer is not aware of another crank failure. It’s not like the 520 is being pushed hard. It’s reduced from 3300rpm to 2700rpm max. It’s turbo normalised so a mild boost. The airmaster prop is possibly a factor in this case but unlikely. When I talked with airmaster last year their prop had not been approved for the 520t. I believe it is now listed as an option. I would have thought resonance issues would just destroy the prop and not run backward into the motor. Maybe somebody knows something about the phenomomen and it’s a thing. No idea! 
 

Aircraft 2 is just going to be looking for more paint when I get back and Nic will sprint through getting the avionics finished with me. It’ll be the engine again delaying getting 2 in the air.

 

 

 

[rodgerc]

It makes no sense whatsoever to spend a single cent more on (or wait a day longer for) a proven aero engine, until the very instant the one you saved $10,000 to acquire (or waited 6 months less for) begins to falter….

 

….The bitterness of dubious quality/reliability lingers long after the sweetness of low price/short lead-time is forgotten. (With apologies to Benjamin Franklin)

 

Sermon over. 

[Mike Gearon]

7 hours ago, rodgerc said:

It makes no sense whatsoever to spend a single cent more on (or wait a day longer for) a proven aero engine, until the very instant the one you saved $10,000 to acquire (or waited 6 months less for) begins to falter….

 

….The bitterness of dubious quality/reliability lingers long after the sweetness of low price/short lead-time is forgotten. (With apologies to Benjamin Franklin)

 

Sermon over. 

Of course. Understood.

 

Money is not a consideration (within reason). It’s a combination of delivery time and expectation of reliability.

 

Until the current crank shaft failure we had a fair expectation UL had solved their old problems. These were mainly related to pistons and a crappy throttle sensor. Both solved. Les, the Australian agent has been flying these engines for 14 years. I also don’t want my best friend flying an aircraft that’s not as reliable as the Rotax  we’ve both flown for some years. That being said we’ve had 3 instances of near failure in the Rotax amongst ourselves and close friends. One over Bass Strait that could have gone badly wrong. The other two slightly less potential for catastrophic consequences. All related to cooling. Nome related to any failure on the part of the pilots involved.

 

So, Rotax isn’t rest assured bullet proof.

 

I’m just back from Alaska where the super cub we were about to depart in had a complete mechanical failure. (Lycoming)

 

Conclusion… we are still on the wait list for 1 Titan engine. If we aren’t happy with the test results or information coming out of UL we wait on the Titan. Nic and I have other aircraft to fly. 
 

For aircraft 2 that’s all mine. I accept consequences totally on the engine decision. These car engines are looking like a real option. Considering Honda for example sell millions of their engine every year. The engineering is phenomenal. The high rpm continuous isn’t a problem when you see them putting the engines into outboards and they aren’t exactly low rpm on the autobahns. The problems to be solved for aircraft are ECU, cooling and gearbox reduction. Viking and Aeromomentum are IMO reaching maturity here. 

 

We are also in the experimental category. EAA and Osh Kosh built around people like Paul Poberezny. Experimenters. That history museum at Osh Kosh is part of my favourite aviation exerience. 
 

Here’s the history on Mark Ketterman. I spent an hour on the phone with Mark. I plan to meet up as mentioned later in the year. I don’t think they will be at Osh Kosh. The factory is being expanded right now. So, to conclude the response to the “sermon”. Yes, I get it. I’ve also made a successful living as inventor for 3 decades.

 

I don’t seem to be able to resist experimentation. That gets balanced in aviation with respecting the history and knowledge of people like Randy Schlitter. Rans designer. I’ll fly my 1941 cadet down there in the next few weeks. A few items to discuss with Randy including the car engines and particularly the Hyundai 300hp turbo. That’d make a great STOL competition aircraft.  I already know he’s deeply sceptical of anything not LycCon. I do have a fair certainty the old Continental C-75 and the 1941 airframe will do just fine on the trip to Rans. (4 hours in car or 2 in aircraft.. could still be a car trip) Those Cadets are an amazing old aircraft. There’s a guy does an air show in USA with one where he has an aileron fall off mid show and continues with aerobatics. Pic of mine below. It was fully restored 20 years ago and came from a museum.

Mark Kettering (co-owner of Aeromomentum Inc.)

• Studied at UMass Lowell BSEE and MSEE
• Studied at California Polytechnic State University MSAERO
• Studied and worked at Virginia Tech
• Worked at Harvard University
• Adjunct Professor, UMass Lowell
• Former Aerospace Engineer at NASA
• Former Lead Instructor at Calpoly

 

[facthunter]

The UL doesn't have dynamic torsional vibration damping so Prop could also have an effect. The crack looks  as if it started from a crankpin  radius  Which maybe had a scratch there but I need to have a better Look (and discussion )on that. Some Lycoming are clones. CAR engines are not made for Planes. and there's the redrive. Statistically I think the STD Lycoming range would still be the most reliable powerplant with choice of props too.  Nev

[Thruster88]

4 hours ago, facthunter said:

The UL doesn't have dynamic torsional vibration damping so Prop could also have an effect. The crack looks  as if it started from a crankpin  radius  Which maybe had a scratch there but I need to have a better Look (and discussion )on that. Some Lycoming are clones. CAR engines are not made for Planes. and there's the redrive. Statistically I think the STD Lycoming range would still be the most reliable powerplant with choice of props too.  Nev

No Lycomings engines are clones. There are clones of the lycoming, Titan made by Continental engines is one of them. When your only competitor in class clones your engine you know it is good.

[Mike Gearon]

Yes, the Titan is a clone Lycoming.

 

Interesting on torsional vibration dampening. The failed engine had 2 new introduced factors.

 

1. Airmaster prop.

2. Turbo normalised.

 

Failed at only 55 hours. That’s the most concerning part. Intersting conclusion to the article below. Author summarised with conclusion most piston aircraft engines still have manual mix control and relates it in a way I don’t understand to torsional dampening.

 

 I’m flying a 172 at the moment that fuel injected. It’s so easy to set and control mix and EGT. Climbing in the heat a few days back and had to richen up the mixture. I’d asked a few months back if anyway UL could give us manual mix control. Apparently not.
 

https://www.matec-conferences.org/articles/matecconf/pdf/2022/04/matecconf_mms2020_01009.pdf

Edited June 19, 2023 by Mike Gearon