Aug 16, 2021     Finish Brake System - (4 hours)       Category: Landing Gear

After putting in the Throttle/Brake quadrant I filled an leak checked the brakes. I had to make a small mod on the threaded portion of the piston to allow full freedom of movement. There was not enough movement to allow the piston to the full extension and I was concerned there may be pressure to the brakes which could result in dragging.

A 1/4 inch was removed and full freedom was noted. Brakes were set and checked next day for leaks.

  Jan 07, 2021     Brake Lines - (8 hours)       Category: Landing Gear

The "upgrade" brake line kit comes with the lines having a tunnel at the back of landing gear. I like the protection it affords the line and looks nice. The only thing is that as the line comes up the gear it terminates at a place that doesn't allow access to the fuselage. I consulted other build logs and referenced some photos I took while at Torrance. I opted for what Torrance did.

This required drilling an access hole that would be just below the floor boards of the rear seat. I also required removal of about 50mm of material from the back of each landing gear to allow the brake line to make the turn.

  Jan 07, 2021     Finishing up Gear installation - (12 hours)       Category: Landing Gear

Solved the upper bushing problem., Individually, each bushing fit and had good freedom of movement. Once the strut was fitted with both bushings the gear became difficult to turn. The problem was either the center of both bushings when mounted to the strut was slightly off (call it Z-axis) or, the X-Y plane of the bushings were not parallel. (or a bit of both?)

I slowly ground the insides of each bushing until I felt there was adequate freedom of movement. Since things loosen up over use/time I did not want to take away too much material.

Final fitting of the main gear and bolts secured and witness marks applied.

  Dec 17, 2020     Initial Landing gear installation - (6 hours)       Category: Landing Gear

12/17/2020

Got some muscle to help me put the fuselage on saw horses.

The plans also called for shortening the Main gear bolts by 6.5mm to a length of 163.5 mm. I got them close enough :)

I started the fitting of the nose gear strut bushings which many builders have had issues with binding. Some solutions have been to remove the powder coating, grind the inside of the bushings or a combination of both. I sent an email to the manufacturer asking how best to handle this issue and the response was just to grind the bushings until the strut moves freely. Before I do that I have been test fitting the 4 halves of the two cut bushings to see which pair mates up the best. It appears that I may only have to grind one set of bushing. Also, I made sure of the brackets fittings. All parts have been marked by me for proper installation order as I can best work it out.

My brother is helping me place the single piece main gear. The adjustable horses will make the amount of lifting into place minimal using a floor jack. The trick will be making sure the lift is a balanced as possible

  Jun 30, 2020     Take Apart the Brakes & Axle - (1.5 hours) Category: Landing Gear

Just when everything was completed according to the Assembly Manual supplied with the kit I noticed a part that had an PN number that was associated with the gear. A question to the factory returned an answer that the part has to due with a Service Bulletin issued last Summer! My kit was supplied with some (not all!) the parts to comply with this bulletin but NO instructions.

I can comply with most of the Service Bulletin but I have to wait (months) for the missing parts to arrive.

  Jun 26, 2020     Spats (Wheel Pants) Workk - (21 hours)       Category: Landing Gear

Fit the wheel spats. Some parts did not fit well so I had to heat and shape along with some grinding.

Drilled and attached the rivnuts. Drilled the inspection ports for tire inflation and brake wear

  Jun 16, 2020     Assemble the Gear Parts - (24.5 hours)       Category: Landing Gear

Assembled the main wheels and mounted to main gear strut.