Mar 08, 2023     Finished trimming bottom cowling - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

Using a dremel and a cutoff wheel (actually several wheels), I finished trimming back to the 3/8" line in the bottom cowling cutout for the oil cooler and the radiator. I sanded everything smooth and then refit the cowl. It fits slick as snot. I'll remeasure everything and sand or file away more in spots that aren't quite trimmed back to 3/8" at some point.

I also added a bit of RTV where the pitot tube begins to snake around the airbox on the Rotax 912iS. I saw that the Lockwood RV-12iS that someone posted on Van's Air Force had done that, though it's not in the instructions.

And I torqued down the #1 EGT probe.

  Mar 07, 2023     Fitting bottom cowling - (1.5 hours)       Category: Engine

I fit the bottom canopy, which, as expected, hits the radiator and oil cooler and then measured 3/8" around the opening, drew the line and then cut away that much using a Dremel tool. I couldn't finish the cut as I'd promised Carolie I'd take her to lunch at Holman Table at the downtown St. Paul Airport (it was delicious, by the way.) Expect it to be a very nice fit once it's cut and sanded.

  Mar 06, 2023     Secured throttle cable       Category: Engine

While looking over the instructions on the throttle cable (as a result of looking at the photos of Lockwood's RV-12iS), I realized I didn't have a double Adel clamp on the engine mount to secure it and keep it from rubbing against the mount. Maybe I had it on before I had to take the engine off to replace the mount but I don't think so. So I installed the clamp and, of course, it took about 2 hours, evoking surgeons in an operating room. I also adjusted the White Lightning cable to allow the overflow bottle to fit back in, I put some heat shrink on the end of the throttle cable, and I secured more wiring with some tie wraps.

Also secured the pitot line to an Adel clamp, wrapping it first in some rescue tape. We'll see how that works out.

Unfortunately, I can't find the terminal kit for the White Lightning, which I'd brought home to read and then put somewhere. So I had to order another one. $25 plu $20 shipping. Ridiculous.

  Jul 01, 2021     Completed heating and cooling - (3 hours)       Category: Engine

I cut three SCAT tubes out of single tube supplied in the powerplant kit -- the last item in the box -- and cut one to 17" and two to 13", adjusting each end to remove wire and tuck it down into the tube to make it easier to get on the heat muff. Everything fit pretty well and I tightened the clamps with the exception of the hose to the air vent on the cowling (boy, getting that cowling off is sure going to be fun!).

After that was done, I was pretty well finished with everything in the instructions that I currently have -- with the exception of certain things I cannot do until the avionics arrive.

So I started working on stuff I wanted to change or improve. I cut out the hole for the access to the quickdrain on the empennage. I made a mistake when working with the template; I drilled the screw holes off the template instead of using the F-01282A plate as a drill guide. So I've ordered a sheet of .032 and I'll make a new one and match drill with the existing holes.

There's a few other things I want to clean up but for the most part I'm done for the summer although I'm thinking of going ahead and mating the tail with the fuselage even though there are a couple of wires that need to be routed in the avionics kit that go back to the baggage bulkhead. Theoretically I could do the canopy this summer. We'll see.

  Jun 16, 2021     Overflow bottle and air filter - (1 hour)       Category: Engine

With the RTV cured, I mounted the overflow bottle onto the firewall after attaching the two hoses, one a breather tube which I routed down to the right side exit and zip tied in two locations. Seems like it needs another clamp somewhere. I attached the rubber line using a hose clamp (I lost the second hose clamp last week when it went flying elsewhere in the hangar. It has not shown up yet. Ordered more) and routed it around the air box to the expansion tank but can't clamp it yet.

I dug out the air filter and assembled that with the scat tubing. I need to cut hinges for the vents but my bandsaw blade is dull from using it to cut rubber hoses so I've ordered a new blade.

The aluminum bushing I couldn't find for the throttle tension wheel arrived. Yep, it was the same one that I'd found in another bag. But I ordered a new one just in case it wasn't.

  Jun 07, 2021     Installed oil lines and Adel clamps - (3 hours)       Category: Engine

Careful review of the plans revealed the path for the oil line to take from the left side of the engine back and around to the oil tank so snaked that through and torqued it down.

Then it was a matter of putting on two Adel clamps to hold the right side oil lines in place, which shouldn't take three hours to do but I buttoned down one line before reading the next paragraph which said a wire needs to also go under the Adel clamp. Of course, it was impossible to take off the screw/locknut without stripping the god damned 10R7 screws that Van's uses instead of a simple AN3-5 bolt. I ended up cutting the nut off with a Dremel, tossing the DG14 and reinstalling it.

I also installed the clamp for the front oil line.

  Jun 06, 2021     Attached oil tank - (3 hours)       Category: Engine

I finished the radiator hose by zip tying the bonded rubber tube to the #4 cylinder coolant host (adding RTV under the zip tie), then torqued the bolts holding the radiator and oil cooler on (to 195 inch pounds) and safety wired them. Then I added the oil tank and tightented the clamps.

Later in the afternoon, I had to go to the hangar to receive the camper back from a rental (Oshkosh dates still available!) so I cut the oil breather tube, bent, and attached to the firewall stiffener with Adel clamps. A little bit of a pain in the neck to get them bolted out because access to the nut and bolt is very limited, even when loosening and removing the oil tank.

Also got a reminder that there's oil in the engine when I went to attach the oil return hose.

The Van's drawings don't show much for the routing of the oil-tank-to-cooler hose and it's a long throw from one side of the engine to another. I'll have to send a note to support.

  Jun 05, 2021     Radiator hoses attached - (3 hours)       Category: Engine

It's kind of a shame the avionics kit is delayed for four or five months, which keeps me from doing canopy work because the temperatures have been hovering near 100 for the last few days. That also restricts my work to a few hours in the morning. This must be what living in Phoenix is like.

The last several days have had me working on the modification to the preformed radiator coolant hose, which I pulled off before attaching the engine. The hose is cut around the bend tangent line and then reinstalled. Neat trick. There's virtually room to get a hand close to the attachment point to get any "oomph" into pushing it on. Plus you've got the spring clamp to deal with (by the way, the spring clamp pliers should be in everybody's toolbox). So it's mostl a matter of pushing from the other end of the hose.

Eventually, after shedding a pint of blood, I got it on. I think. It's impossible to see the underside of the spot. I added the spring clamp and then added the hard aluminum tube from the radiator to it, connecting it to the radiator with a four inch tube and spring clamps. Another 1" piece of tube was bonded with RTV so that it can be zip tied to a coolant hose out of the #4 cylinder for adding stability.

A few other hoses were also installed.

  Jun 01, 2021     Installed oil cooler and radiator - (4 hours)       Category: Engine

Over the last few days I waited for some fitting sealant (Tite Seal? Permatex 2? Loctite 565? I ordered the latter two and decided to use Permatex 2. ). I installed the fittings and the temporary plug, then dug out all of the bushings and washers and bolts and nuts to join the radiator with the oil cooler. Then I fit the unit onto the engine, putting three washers on the inside of the bracket and three outside the bracket in the four locations to center the unit. I don't have a hex socket set so I couldn't torque the four bolts down quite yet.

I added the two hoses as mentioned, learning in the process there's oil in the engine.

Then I fit the bottom cowl which is super snug but the radiator/cooler is centered in the openings. I'll have to check to see of the cowling should be touching the radiator fins. I suspect not so I may have to sand a little.

I sent Van's support a note on tightening the bolts around the rubber isolators, specifically is the goal to haveeverything bottom out on the bushings?

Sterling replied:

"The design here is that the bushing will hold the necessary dimensions allowing the bolt the be torqued as normal and end up with a known condition/preload on the isolators."

I'm not entirely sure that's a "yes" or "no". I think it's a "yes".

  Dec 08, 2020     Reinstalled muffler - (.5 hour)       Category: Engine

Aircraft Spruce delivered the nickel-based anti-seize so I reinstalled the muffler and attached springs, I tighted the mounting studs but only tight enough to seat the ball joints. I noticed the heat muff scat tubing connection doesn't look like the drawing so I've sent a note off Van's.

  Nov 28, 2020     Stalled on the muffler install - (.5 hour)       Category: Engine

I put the muffler on but it was all for naught. I didn't realize that Amazon sent the wrong anti-seize. They sent a food compatible anti-seize, whatever that is, so I assumed I just ordered the wrong part. So I ordered Nickel based anti-freeze and today I checked that order and found that, even though nickel-based was pictured, they were sending me copper-based anti seize. I canceled that order, started a return on the previous order, and ordered Nickel based anti seize from Aircraft Spruce. So I have to take the muffler off and clean up the ball joints, which is not a big deal except that it means no work on the system for a week, when the AS order comes.

Fortunately my Cleveland Tools order of #19 bits and #19 clecoes arrives today, so I can go back to working on the spinner.

  Nov 26, 2020     Muffler/exaust installation - (.5 hour)       Category: Engine

I didn't do very much at the hangar because I didn't want my spouse to get mad because I was playing at the hangar and not at home where she was slaving away on Thanksgiving dinner. Besides, I went there to get safety wire to put up garland and wreathes.

Anyway, I attached the four exhaust tubes, and found the heat shields and clamps, the latter of which actually came with the finishing kit, it turns out.

Put the tubes on but waited until tomorrow for the muffler. I had to get back home.

  Nov 09, 2020     Assembled muffler/heat muff assembly - (3 hours)       Category: Engine

Not much detail to provide here. I basically followed the instructions. Riveted heat dams inside the muff. Clamped an aluminum slider around the muffler, knocked the sharp corners off the relief cuts in the heat muff brackets and bolted them on. Then wrestled with two large worm clamps after placing the heat muff around the brackets. Next step is to bolt them onto the engine but I have to order a stud nut since one was missing when the engine arrived. I found it in the crate, put it aside, and now can't find it. Because: of course.

  Nov 04, 2020     Finished pitot tube routing, started on spinner - (1 hour)       Category: Engine

I looked over the plans a million times and finally was able to get the pitot line routed under the intake plenum, at least enough to keep the connection to the pitot tube relatively straight. I still wouldn't mind putting an Adel clamp in there somewhere at some point.

I covered the end to keep any debris from getting inside as the rest is included in the avionics kit which I won't order until there's a new tax year.

I started on spinner, cutting the aft portion to almost the scribe line and then sanding the rest.

  Jul 27, 2020     Started the cowling - (4 hours)       Category: Engine

The good news is I found the old Vertical Power installation manuals that had information on removing pins from the kind of connectors used on the Rotax 912iS. I was able to remove the offending pin -- a combination of the VP wire removal "tool" and pushing the shank of a used cherrymax rivet. Oh, I bought a new pair of needle-nose pliers to make the job easier.

The bad news is the pins used aren't the ones I have. This is one is a SQUARE connector. So I'm on the hunt to location a handful of those.

The instructions in Section 37 say to wait until the engine is installed -- Section 46 of the instructions -- before working on the cowling, which actually comes with the finishing kit. I completed Section 46 so I figured I might as well start on the cowling.

For the most part, it was a matter of finding the hinge "mates" of those that were installed on the front of the fuselage a year ago (I actually had saved and labeled them), then finding the hinge pin material and make hinge pins for all the pieces. This is pretty much the same design as I had on the RV-7A, curve the hinges, bevel the "eyes" on the curve to make them fit better and then struggle with the hinge pins to get them in all the way.

This will be a particular pain in the neck early in the plane's lives but, if the 7A is any guide, will become easier to install with time as the pins get worn and the eyes get wormed out a little bit from use.

I did look ahead in the instructions a little bit and alignment of the cowling seems to require the propellor hub be installed so I may be going back and doing a little of that work and dovetailing it with this section.

  Jul 26, 2020     Completed Section 46, except for one little thing - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

There were a few things left in the engine compartment to secure before moving on. The ground wire to the starter, and the wire from the starter solenoid to the starter. The latter was a giant PITA because the screw faces the inside and there's almost no room to get your hand in there. But I actually ended up getting that torqued down. The ground wire I just had to go by experience what 36 inch pounds feels like.

Then I completed a series of safety wiring of various plugs, the bottom of the oil tank etc.

Tragedy struck however on 46is-10 Step 1, pulling the alignment pins out of the connector. The instructions say to twist and pull. The instructions also say it might break off, which it did on one, taking out an adjacent wire.

These look like the same connectors I used on the Vertical Power VP-50 so I might have extra pins around. I can crimp one on some wire and solder and heat shrink to the existing wiring run. But I've got to try to remember how to get the pin out first. Email to Van's support.

  Jul 26, 2020     Clamped ECU wires - (1 hour)       Category: Engine

Adel clamps aren't the most fun but ganging three of them together is a challenge, even with Adel clamp tools. True, safety wiring them tight while assembling helped a lot.

The Van's instructions said to clamp the two wires separately to the engine mount, with a little "bushing" acting as a standoff. But the figure provideded showed only two Adel clamps -- a DG8 and a DG10, and clearly showed the two wires clamped separately. Cool, but unless you used one clamp to clamp the wire TO the mount, I don't see how this can be accomplished with just two clamps. And why would you want to clamp directly to the mount anyway? That seems to invite chafing of the clamp.

Enter a third Adel clamp -- DG7, which clamps to the mount, with the DG10 capturing one wire and the bushing to the DG7.

  Jul 23, 2020     Mounted ECU - (.2 hour)       Category: Engine

A Doordash delivery took me close to the airport so I figured that was a sign to go work on the airplane a little bit. I didn't so much. I bolted the ECU -- engine control unit, I think -- to the cabin side of the instrument shelf and support. Then ran the connecting wires through the firewall .

Interesting thing: the instructions say to connect the wires, but don't lock them in because the connection an only be made 20 times. I wonder what happens after 20?

  Jul 22, 2020     Fuse box work - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

I have no idea what I did today but I spent a couple of hours doing it. I realized there were more ground wires that needed attachment, but I'd already mounted the fuse box. I didn't have any metric wrenches -- the Rotax is made in Austria -- and I didn't want to unfasten four bolts, so I went to the hardware store and bought a $55 metric wrench set only to find out the nuts are 7 mm. The wrench set only comes with a 6 or an 8. Waste.

So I took the fuse box office, added the ground wires. Then added the sealing washers to the Lane A and Lane B connectors and routed the wires and secured them to the fuse box.

Then I added two generator wires. I'm digging this plug and play stuff.

I dug out the ECI -- the Engine Controller Somethingsomething -- to figure out where it goes (under the top skin so I took the top skin off and drilled the four holes out to #12. I'd left the dogs in the house unattended so I figured that's enough work and went home to mow the lawn and see if there was any damage inside the house. There wasn't. Good dogs.

  Jul 20, 2020     Heat shield and fuse box - (4 hours)       Category: Engine

The camper came back trashed as a renter bent the bed rails. That was a major pain in the neck to get off and then I spent all day fixing it. Patrick came by after his night softball game to help lift it back into place, which gave me a little time to close the day out working on the plane. I smeared red RTV over the black RTV and put some heat foil on the bottom. Then studied the information in the plans to get it positioned exactly right before safety wiring it into place. It protects the ignition coils.

Then I dug out the Rotax fuse box, which is an impressive bit of engineering, and drilled the four mounting holes to #12 to allow it to be temporarily mounted. First I attached ground wires from Lane A, although the instructions say to clip and heat shrink one of the wires.

  Jul 19, 2020     Cut firesleeve - (.5 hour)       Category: Engine

It was about 105 degrees with the heat index so, no, I wasn't going to do much work at the hangar. I'd gone there just to drop off the power washer for storage. Then I remembered the old Ken Scott piece of advice: "touch the project everyday." Well, OK. So I cut two 4 1/2" lengths of firesleeve and then "bonded" (yeah, we'll see, this all seems kinda lame) the two together with black RTV adhesive. This is going to protect an area of the engine. I would've liked to have used red RTV (and I probably still will), but my old tube had hardened. Save your jokes.

  Jul 17, 2020     Retorqued engine bolts - (1 hour) Category: Engine

Van's confirmed that the torque value for the engine mount bolts is 160-190. I found about 30 inch pounds friction torque so torqued to 210 inch pounds. With the crowsfoot adaptor, that value had to be recaluclated to 190 inch pounds. I attached two fuel lines but couldn't torque them down because my 11/16" crowsfoot is missing and I want to doublecheck that those get torqued down to the steel fitting values on the engine side, which is over 200 inch pounds.

  Jul 16, 2020     Hung the engine - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

I remember when I hung the engine on N614EF, we had six well intentioned guys who struggled to get the big 180 horse engine mounted and to come up with a way to get all the bolts to line up; it took all afternoon.

Granted the 100 hp, fuel injected Rotax 912iS is smaller (and $10,000 more expensive) but it took me less than an hour. By myself.

Just had to approach it like docking at the space station. A minor bit of wrestling and twisting but it's light so no big deal. Everything lined up perfectly.

It helps to own an engine hoist.

Van's was pretty explicit to check the Rotax maintenance manual and observe their torque callouts, but I couldn't find one for the firewall mount bolts. In the maintenance manual, all the hardware is metric.

So, at least for now, I observed the torque for a 3/8-24 bolt (160-190 inch pounds) and sent a note off to Van's to confirm. With the prevailing torque factored in (roughly), I torqued to 175 inch pounds, which on the torque wrench was 168 with the crowsfoot adaptor.

I'll make adjustments as necessary

  Jul 16, 2020     Drilled second engine mount hole in firewall - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

If I was smart, I would've looked into the instructions to see that hte two AN310-6 nuts I need to secure the 3/8" bolt so I could drill the second engine mount hole was only a temporary thing, specifically so I could drill the second hole.

But, no, I had to take it literally and order two AN310-6 nuts, which, as I write this, have been in transit for abour 10 days at a cost of $6.50.

So the other day, I did read ahead and realize I could just go get a 3/8-24 nut and get this done.

Today, I did. Then I secured the one side and drilled the second lower hole to 5/16" and then reamed it out to 3/8". Then I took the gear leg (thank god I already installed the new gear leg required by the service bulletin) off and deburred all holes. I also gave the holes and mating surfaces a shot of CorrosionX and remounted.

  Jul 06, 2020     Solved CPS-1 and 2 mystery - (3 hours)       Category: Engine

Following up on yesterday's post, Tony Kirk at Van's confirmed that I should have removed the left side of the wires and routed them as the instructions indicated. And the connector that holds them in place doesn't pull back, it pulls out. Duh. After considerable looking at the instructions, I ran the wires and then tie-wrapped them.

The instructions talk about a yellow mark to indicate where a particular connection goes, but my Rotax instead had two yellow dots on one wire (and the position sensor) and one yellow dot on the other. I initially surmised that it must also indicate which is CPS-1 and which is CPS-2. But the configuration that came from the factory had the two-dot wire connected to the wire with the text label CPS-1. I ended up reconnecting everything the way it came from the factory after rechecking the pictures I took before disconnecting everything and noting the marks *I* had made on connectors to be sure they were going back the way they should. Tony said as long as the upper sensor is connecting to the upper connector it should be fine. That tracks perfectly.

[Update: Tony found an image in the maintenance manual that clearly confirms the one dot is CPS_1 and the two dots are CPS-2. So either the factory had wired the engine incorrectly or -- more likely -- the connecting wires I traced based on the text labels twisted inside an Adel clamp and what I thought was CPS_1's connection was actually CPS_2's.]

Next, I turned attention to drilling the firewall for the mount plates. I made a small bushing and installed hardware on the right side of the firewall and gear mount and then torqued everything down with a AN3-5 while drilling the left side out to 3/8", first using a 5/16" bit and then I discovered the old Avery Tools reamer for these bolts from the RV-7A I built. Slightly undersized at .3774, I believe. Anyway, it came out perfect.

I wanted to drill out the hole on the right side, too, but the nut called out in the instructions wasn't in the packing list so I have to investigate what that's all about.

  Jul 05, 2020     Engine mount bolted to engine - (4 hours)       Category: Engine

The tale of the top left bolt was certainly an educational experience but all four bolts are now torqued to 29.5 foot pounds. My first idea was to buy an 8 mm Allen wrench and cut a short piece so that the socket would be flush to the bolt and I'd be able to sneak a wrench in there. That didn't work and cost me a new Allen wrench.

Then, with the recommendation of former Van's boss Scott McDaniel, I bought an 8mm BALLED Allen wrench, cut off the short piece and put a socket on it. With the ball-end, it allowed the piece to fit at an angle to the bolt. I did not add or subtract anything from the torque value.

Afterwards, I reconnected the two lower coolant hoses. The preformed radiator hose that was also removed is put aside as there will be some modification work done in Section 50, according the the instructions.

The next step, though, is causing all sorts of confusion. There were two wire connections that were removed and the instructions give a new route for the wires once the engine mount is on. But in order to route those wires, a different section of that wire connection needs to be removed. I'm not sure how to get that off or whether I should even try given that Rotax has it nicely tied down to the aluminum bracket. I'll have to consult with Van's.

  Jul 04, 2020     Engine mount to engine - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

I struggled a little bit the other day getting the radiator coolant exit hose off because of how tight a space it is. I got the clamp off but couldn't pull the hose itself off the bead. Then in the middle of the night it occurred to me just to take pair of plumbing pliers and twist it a little bit. That worked fine.

Then I disconnected the two #1 and #2 wires to allow them to thread through the engine mount when it goes on.

I removed the edge of power coating on the bushings of the mount and used painters tape to protect the inside of the mount as it fits onto the engine.

I removed the four Allen screws holding the stabilizing angle on and put the engine on blocks to allow me to fit the engine mount on the engine, which went fairly easily. I then used the new Allen bolts and washers on all four bushings. There was no gap between the mount and the engine so no washers needed.

I need to torque down the bolts but the space by the #4 cylinder is virtually non existent. I suspect it will have to involve a ball socket of some sort.

  Jul 02, 2020     Removed coolant hoses - (.2 hour)       Category: Engine

Step one is disconnecting the lower left and lower right water coolant hoses, which I did. A little coolant came out of the left side but not the right side.

It was too hot to continue and I didn't have a good set of pliars.

  Jun 30, 2020     Completed Section 27 - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

The 8 foot length of ATO-035x3/8 tubing arrived so I made the final two fuel pump/filter assembly lines called for in this section. I must say I've gotten quite good in the art of the tube bender.

I built to the instructions specifications but I decided on the adaptor-to-pump tube that I could make it better, adding about 1/8" for a better fit.

Dug out some old VHS tapes that have been stored at the hangar and watched the 1985 New England Patriots - Miami Dolphins AFC championship game.

The heat was intense after a day of heavy rain and made for very humid and hot weather once the sun came out. My Meniere's Disease has been acting up for the last week so I fled for the safety of home.

  Jun 29, 2020     Reference pictures of the ROTAX iS - (.1 hour)       Category: Engine

As directed by the first line in Section 47 of the instructions, I took a series of pictures of the ROTAX as it sat on the work area to have something to reference later when putting things back together.

  Jun 27, 2020     Uncrated the ROTAX 912iS - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

With the warning from Van's I calibrated the two torque wrenches I had, borrowing a 10 and 15 pound weight from my son, Patrick. The foot pound torque wrench was properly adjusted but I couldn't get the inch pound adjustment one right. So I decided just to order a new Craftsman version, which means I had to drive 30 miles to River Falls, Wis., now the closest Sears store. Still didn't test out right, so I think I'll weigh the weight. Then, of course, I'll need to calibrate the scale I weigh it on. And on and on it goes.

Anyway, it was time to move the ROTAX from its shipping crate to a work area and I'm glad I bought an engine hoist years ago when installing the IO-360 in N614EF.

The ROTAX manual is excellent (it's online) and I found the two lifting holes and the engine leveler fit nicely. Still, though, two bolts for a $35,000 engine made me nervous. But I lifted it high enough to get it out of the crate, moved it past the crate, and then lowered it to near the ground -- I put a pillow underneath it all the way -- just in case something snapped and it fell.

It didn't fall, but I got it put on a one inch sheet of plywood across three sawhorses to work on it. I kept the shipping brackets on the engine for now to provide stability.

Meanwhile, I heard back from Tony Kirk at Van's that the P-150 should not have a #8 ring on it because that won't fit onto the master cylinder stuff. So these cables were not made properly and I'll have to get a new one even though I drilled out the hole to a bigger size (not fun). I've always had problems getting fat cables from Van's. On the last plane they didn't crimp any of the terminals; just put heat shrink on.

And so it goes.

  Jun 25, 2020     Started putting things on the firewall - (4 hours)       Category: Engine

Van's confirmed that the tube end labels referenced in the previous entry were, indeed, reversed, so I went ahead and torqued the pre-filter to-pump tube down. I didn't have enough ATO-035x3/8 tubing to fabricate one final connection so that will have to wait until the order comes in.

I doublechecked -- again -- that the plans do not have snap bushings in several bulkheads through with the flap actuator cable run, but, in fact, they do not.

Then I started hanging stuff on the firewall - the master solenoid, the starter relay, several power and ground cables and various cushions for the EarthX battery, finally installing the battery. The only problem I had is the #8 ring terminals are too small for the master cylinder posts. Not sure why Van's did it that way. I drilled out one but it's not fun drilling copper. I'd rather they have put the correct ring terminals on.

I'm ready -- more or less to hang the engine -- but I need to get my torque wrenches calibrated and I have no idea where to go for that.

  Jun 20, 2020     Started work on fuel filter - (2 hours)       Category: Engine

Only a few items missing:

BAG 4000

c-665 Latch arm spring
F-01246E Clip, spring
BUSH AL 197x.313x.750

BAG 3394

FF-1201 Pitot tube block
TAPE UHMW 3x6 (Received one. PIck list says two.)

  Jun 16, 2020     Powerplant kit arrives - (6 hours)       Category: Engine

Almost a month to the day after ordering it, the powerplant kit arrived which includes the Rotax engine and Sensenich composite prop. The lightness of the blade of the prop is phenomenal.

Son Sean and aviation pal John Wanamaker, who survived a day of big layoffs at Minnesota Public Radio, were again quick on the scene to help with the uncrating.

  Jun 05, 2020     Engine shipped Category: Engine

The Rotax 912UL powerplant kit has shipped