metalman

Congratulations, where were you flying from Dave?

Nah Pete ,was another aviation guru, I have one in each state ! Matty

Thanks maj , and clouds , I've seen a similar trim tab on another aircraft( maybe a Foxbat) on the elevator , I thought it was a pretty crapping trim tab but maybe it's got a problem with the elevator hunting around a bit, thanks fellas Matty

Went up last night in pretty still air to have a wander, the rudder issue isn't really an osiliation but seems to be effected more by the fuel load being uneven than anything else I've been in, it does have one issue though that I'd like to try and fix, if you push in rudder either way it doesn't come back to where it was but finds a new place to rest, the hinges are all free and lubed ,I have heard of some aircraft not having a enough rudder area for it to trail in the same spot every time , I had thought of a trim tab but it would only be good for one amount of fuel it seems. I'll still check the rigging of the whole thing cause I think it needs something ,but just thought I'd post some thoughts.

where can I find the specs/measurements of the jigs, also if youve got a copy of the procedures it would be handy, I also have some pics of the aileron hangers I made if your keen, if you PM me an email I'll send you some pics, cheers Matty

Most of the modern 2paks can be touched up fine, and unlike acrylic they hold a gloss a lot better in harsh conditions, the same can't be said for 2pak over fabric, it holds up fine but you can't remove it to do repairs to the fabric, shiny ,yes, practical,,,,not really. Acrylics are easier to use without a booth and are hugely forgiving to spray on, but gloss retention is poor, they're also more susceptible to humidity blisters if there's any moisture in the air when spraying . On a metal aircraft I'd go ( and have done ) for a good quality 2pac, and the automotive stuff is quite alright and much easier to use than some of the aerospace urethanes , added to that you have a massive choice of colours . Good quality is any of the top line products, glasurit( don't get talked into water borne) sickens, Ppg , they'll all have a complete system for aluminium from wash primers or acid etchs up to topcoats. I've done some aircraft in 3layer pearls and although it looks nice it's a lot of paint and a real pain in the arze to match for touch ups , some of the nicest paint jobs I've seen are the simplest , the RV websites/forums are great for ideas. Cheers Matty

I've done a few RV7s and my rag n tube jigger, usually around the $4k for labour on a three colour scheme, and materials would run around $2-3k depending on the brand, stripping old paint is hard to quote as it has a lot of variables, Cheers Matty

As I think about it in flight there's a feeling of lightness in the stick ,the only other thing I can relate it to is a car with not enough castor ,I'll look at the ailerons they might be in a neutral position which is causing it to roll slightly ,Inturn causing the feeling of a Dutch roll ( I know it's a higher speed thing) ,the imbalance of the fuel usage alps causes balance issues as the weight drops, I might have to look at setting up a tap to control the tanks more accurately

That makes sense actually, I'll look at it,

Me too, it's not fast though, just wanders

Nah the vert fin seems fine, I mean I give everything a good wiggle as part of a preflight and it doesn't move unusually ,I've heard that not having a big enough rudder will cause it to not trail properly, maybe ,I'll have to look into it

Thanks for the input Nev, I've flown it feet off and it tends to hunt a bit, rather than being out of balance one way or the other it tends to yaw one way then slowly yaw the other way, we're talking half a ball here. It has more hp than the original and cruises around 8 knots faster, I was thinking a bit more offset to the engine thrust line might help. I need to eliminate some of the other surfaces by checking the rigging though, just to be sure nothing is causing an issue, Matty

Not yet, it gets worse as I use fuel as it doesn't pull equally from each side, I'm also going to set it up and check the rigging right through to see that it all good. Another thing I've found is when I start a turn I use a small amount of rudder to over come the adverse yaw but then I have to use top rudder to keep the turn co ordinated, I'm getting used to the plane but occasionally it feels odd and a look at the ball confirms why. I'm hoping to get the chance to go over it in the next few weeks , and I'll also try it with out the springs on the controls Matty

Aviation has always been hard on humans ,regardless of how we dress it up flying has all the risks of motor racing ,boating commuting ,infact every other thing we do and then add altitude to the mix . As soon as we leave the ground we have raised the risk factor considerably, so as flyers we have to accept the risks or take up knitting, simple! We can do a lot to lower the risks but we'll never remove them , and on top of everything else it's spring ,we always seem to get a spike in crashes after the winter hibernation . I always get annoyed when they mention" speed " as a factor in car accidents,,,what a stupid comment ! Of course speeds a factor ,with out any speed it's hard to bounce a couple of cars off each other.

Great article , thanks

I had a really long answer written and was about to post it when it occurred to me, I really don't care what he flys, not in the slightest ,and certainly not enough to get into a to and fro over it, so Cheerio fellas

Geez, after reading that I'm amazed anyone since WW1 ever managed to get off the ground ,let alone land a plane, I guess all the pilots up until about the early 60's were just lucky ,unless of course no one told them tail draggers would ruin their self confidence and the fun factor would go through the floor, Matty

W Wow, gotta love the internet, nice looking bipe, have you seen the biplane forum BB ,could be a good resource, Matty

Was there week before last, should've asked , doh!

any info on the accident, I come from up that way, could be someone I know

I found the weight of the controls the biggest challenge going from an UL to an older plane , I'd done a heap of time in a eurofox and then jumped into a Tigermoth , It felt like the rudder lock was still on, after a few circuits I thought my bloody legs were going to give out , haven't been in a Cessna taildragger for ages ,would be interesting to see how long it took to get a feel for it again, Matty

Interesting thread, for info I think the 912uls makes peak torque at 5100rpm ( approx) , I've just done a big trip and was getting 19lph at 5000rpm, my plane is a Kitfox/Skyfox type and I'm getting 80kts cruise at 5000 , I've coarsened the pitch to get a better cruise but it actually feels better at a lower RPM and the cruise doesn't drop much, I'll be re pitching it a bit finer ,2 degrees equals 3-400 rpm on climb ( which I'm only getting 5100 at the moment) there's a really good tutorial on prop pitch on the rotax owner site . I've been keen on the foxbats for putting online , or the eurofox , I've never flown the FB but it would have to be pretty good to beat the eurofox, would be good to hear a compare from someone with time in both. Matty

I fly out of Coldstream airport, it's a gravel strip and no matter how careful you are that initial power when taxiing or taking off can suck stones up into the prop,,,,the taildraggers don't have the problem like the nose wheelers,although I'm still very aware of it and do all I can to be kind to my prop. Another point in favour of the taildragger ,on a recent trip some of the crosswinds were well above anything I'd flown in 25knots and more, at a couple of the places we dropped into I had to touch down on one corner of the runway splay area run up over the runway on an angle and off the other side ,in a taildragger it wasn't an issue ,I don't know to many ultralight tricycles that I'd be comfy doing that with. I started off in tricycle gear stuff like most of us but always like the taildraggers( I've never seen an aircraft that looked ugly with a tailwheel) after a while I did the training and started to look for time in anything going, it's not easy to do nowadays but I managed to get some C185 and RV6 time, then we moved south and I got some Eurofox hours ( a really sweet plane) and spent a few hours in a super decathalon and recently was able to get checked out in a DH82a , the thing is ,for some reason ,the most interesting planes have tail wheels and the ability to handle one finds you in a position to get left seat in some pretty cool aircraft. Someone mentioned insurance? I have my Skywolf ( a Skyfox based experimental) insured for flight risk, and my RV6 kit for ground risk ,hull value about $38000 each for a premium of $2200 a year, not sure how that compares with others, also heard that the RV taildraggers are less risk than the nose wheelers. My point in if you have the choice to train in a taildragger I'd go for it , if it added maybe 3-5 hours to the total ( which is about the minimum for an endorsement) it would be worth it ,you'd come out the other end a much more aware and competent pilot, and in a position to get time in some of the more interesting aircraft around, Matty

I know CCQ,,, one of lilydales planes, it's had quite a career, I think it was the one that nearly had the tail ripped off by a birdstrike.

I've never met one face to face,,,,are they normal looking? Apart from strapping an engine to their backs do they have any odd habits?