Dec 18, 2023     Vinyl Wrap - (100 hours)       Category: Paint / Decals

This was a big job, but compared to paint it was a lot faster. In hindsight, I would have preferred to paint the cowl and fairings, and spinner, and only wrap the metal. Next plane ;)

  Jul 05, 2023     Engine first run - (4 hours)       Category: Engine

We had our first run of the engine. We tested the fuel system first, both the internal pressure, looking for leaks and then we jacked up the plane in a nose high attitude (17 degrees) and did a fuel flow test.

We ran 1 minute on each tank with only 3.5 gallons of fuel in each tank and got similar results of about 2.5 lbs per minute. This is about double what Lycoming demands from the fuel flow test.

Now the plane is finally done! We have just the inspection left and then we can do our first flight!

Here is a link to the video of our first engine test run. I did have a CHT probe and an EGT probe wired backwards (swapped the pins) which was (thankfully) and easy fix so all probes ended up testing perfect after the initial run.

https://youtu.be/kr_JsWNpEeU

  May 28, 2023     Canopy harness - (20 hours)       Category: Interior Finish

After finishing the avionics and testing all other connections I wires the canopy harness. I could not use Van's instructions exactly as the led strip I used was a little different and I wanted to make it span the entire bottom of the canopy rail. So instead of using their routing I decided to combine the canopy latch wires with the wires and then connected those all together at the molex.
I also could not use their mounting brackets that are in the canopy frame as they interfered with my G3X mounts. So I just used an Adele clamp to secure the wires together and then some RTV to give the connection wires a little bit of strength. These wires are all fairly easy to get to so should I have to replace them it would not be a big deal.
The canopy latch was a little bit of a pain. The hole was just large enough to get two wires though. I used some safety wire to “fish” them out and then it was fairly straight forward.
The only issue I had was that the switch was not fully engaging with the canopy latch pin. It was a fraction too short. So I built up the edge of the switch just a tad and now everything is working as intended.

  May 28, 2023     Wing Root Fuel Filter - (13 hours)       Category: Fuel System

Instead of having just one fuel filter at the intersection of the fuel vale to the fuel pump, I went ahead and purchased the wing root fuel filters that also come with a cut off valve which will allow me to shut off fuel without having to drain tanks should I need to replace a leaky connection.
The wing root filters will also help save me the hassle of working inside the tunnel where all my nice interior will be should I have trouble with my fuel system.
The installation required a little bit of trial and error to find the best spot for the Adele clamps which secure the hoses on both sides so that the system is not touching the ailerons or the bottom wing root fairing.
Alll in all Jt cost a bit more than I expected but it was an easy install and hopefully the upgrade will be worth it by saving my loads of time during annual inspection.

  May 25, 2023     Rigging and Wing Root Fairings - (180 hours)       Category: Controls

The wing root fairings were a little strange in that you need to countersink the forward holes on the upper wing root spar in order to accept the dimples of the upper wing root fairing. It's a little difficult to do with the wings in the plane for the most inboard hole. Would have been better to do this before mounting the wings. However, once I got my right angle drill out and carefully countersunk each hole everything came together perfectly.
There also was a small gap in between the fairing and the fuselage at the front but not really anything between the rest. I'm not sure how to address this but I'm dining many people with the same issue and they are using various solutions. Some sort of seal material would be nice but I can't seem to see an easy way to install any of the options out there. I'll postpone this for the moment.
This was only short lived as I still need to complete my rigging and also need to connect my fuel system. I have decided to go with the wing root fuel filters which will be a deviation from the plans and will also require me to remove the fuel filter from inside the tunnel of the plane. It is assumed this will save me time in the long run….let's hope so. These mods are not cheap!
The rigging was incredibly satisfying. Although I did not enjoy working through the access hole to remove and replace the bolts holing the bell tanks together, I did manage to get good at it with the right combination of universal head and extensions on my socket wrench. This allowed me to adjust every little detail until I was able to get both sides perfect in trail at the same time (with flaps fully retracted).
The “trail” position of the flaps is -3 degrees and so when you combine that with the ailerons you end up with a slight mismatch of the ailerons and the wing tip. This is normal although it appears wrong. There is no way you could have both the ailerons and the flaps line up with the wing tips so apparently this is just the way it has been designed. At any rate, mine lined up perfectly together, so hopefully it flies like a dream.

  May 20, 2023     Wings on and wired - (50 hours)       Category: Instrument Panel

Quite a bit has happened since moving to the airport. Got the wings on, took about 3 hours. Surprisingly easy to do. Using dry ice to reduce the bolts diameters helped get them in and with every bolt it seemed to get a little easier.

Once I got the wings on I started to connect the rest of the wiring harnesses. Starting from the back and then to the front I made sure everything worked. The wing root had a lot of mismatched wires and so I was grateful that I labeled all the wires making it easier to piece together the puzzle of “what wire goes where”.

After several days of working 2 or 3 hours I powered Jt all up and checked all my connections. Everything worked perfectly except the flap motor is backwards, so I just need to reverse those pins.

  Mar 12, 2023     Wiring lights - (50 hours)       Category: Lighting

The biggest thing I need to log is that I used the same wire that I got from spruce for the rest of the kit to connect the wiring to the panel. The vans harness has colored wires which do not align. So I have to make sure and keep all the connections accurate by labeling the wires and their counterparts when they meet at the moles connector at the wing spar.

Vans: - Mine:
RED - White
YEL - Orange
GRN - Blue
BLK - Black

Now that I am done wiring the fuselage and everything to the wing root it is time to move to the airport so I can mount these wings!

  Mar 01, 2023     JD Air Latch - (13 hours)       Category: Instrument Panel

I finally decided to add the JD Air canopy latch. I found out it was only $130 and a small amount of metal work (the parts you use are 100% compatible with the ones from before). This, combined with my decision to go with Classic Aero for my interior made the decision come to a head.

Start off by drilling out the BOTTOM BRACKET only. You can leave the top one in place. Then you align the template for cutting using the existing slit as a guid and trying to match the edges with the edges of the holes. The dimples from the previous holes on the corners are the only part that require a little finessing and in the end you will have a very tiny gap should you elect to remove the hole completely (which I did). I am talking only 1mm though so you won't notice it. Better to have the edge clean and straight.

After that you install the mount and match drill the bottom bracket. Rivet the bottom bracket to the skin and install the hardware. I was very please how easy this task was. Only 3 hours from start to finish.

  Jan 08, 2023     More Wiring - (280 hours)       Category: Instrument Panel

One of the big decisions I have made is to install the Lemo jacks for the BoseA20 headsets. The advantage of using the 6-pin “Lemo” jack instead of the standard 2-plug mic-phone jacks is that you can get power for your noise cancellation without having to rely on batteries. This may cause additional strain on your system but should not be enough to deter the change. What will be a significant change will be swapping out the connection on both of headsets as it costs an additional $300 per headset.

In addition to this I have had to acquire a lot more miles connectors that came with my vans kits. Specifically I needed to look up the correct amperage for the flap motor which takes a lot of juice and you really don't want to lose that in flight (although not the end of the world I suppose). In addition I have several wire segments left to connect between the baggage area bulkhead and the panel as much of that does not connect all the way.

Lastly one of the things I need to research on now are the transducers. I am not sure what type of connections to make and I am thinking of just making spade connectors for the three wires.

  Jan 03, 2023     Panel Installed - (285 hours)       Category: Instrument Panel

This post is long overdue. I spent so many hours on this panel and figuring everything out that you may want to watch this video I have made instead of reading all this. However, the key points are below:

1) Before I installed my panel I added a firewall blanket to help reduce the noise from the engine compartment. This was a difficult job but would be a lot more difficult after the instal so it had to be done now.

2) The panel I purchased from Aerotronics came with most of the wiring harness completed and the panel fully installed. I had to completely detach the pilot side of the panel in order to route the wire harnesses through the sub panel bulkheads and then reattach. The most tedious portion of this was disconnecting the rocker switches but when it was all done the panel fit like a glove.

3) I did not know where to instal the battery backup so I decided to use the span of the “glove box” behind the passenger side panel but the connection for this doesn't not have room without routing through the lightning hole where the canopy frame is so I actually reversed this and now the battery backup is installed aft of the sub panel bulkhead.

4) The transponder location was sorta difficult and for now I have elected to use the frame that holds the pitch servo. These parts are borrowed from the RV10 and hold the battery and thus give the name “battery angles” and so it seemed logical that this could house the transponder. The GTX45R states that the “transponder should be mounted so that the blue tooth Antenna is pointed towards the panel for optimum use” and this right now might be a problem. However, I am hoping that the proximity and fact that it's slightly off center and so not pointing at but still able to reach the panel shojld be good enough to transmit. Not sure how important the blue tooth capability is for this model but this might require me to located the transponder in another location when it comes time to test.

5) I ended up using only 3 of the 12 wires from the vans tail kit wiring harness (the only ones left to be used were for the nav/strobe). In the future I would advise to people not to use the vans wiring harnesses as they are not really built for the Garmin system.

6) For the center stack I had to swap the GTN650 Navigatioj unit with the audio panel because the depth of this unit was so long that it ran into them the bottom of the bulkhead. Even after switching it with the much shorter audio panel, I had to trim about 1 inch of material from the bulkhead but checked with Van's and they told me that was totally fine structurally so long as I did not cut the bottom part of the bulkhead.

Note: I also discovered a leak in one of my brake fittings and had to remove and reinstall with permatex. I had used something else recommended by a friend and now all my fittings have permatex #2 on them.