Sunday, September 30, 2018

Back to work on the 10. Wingtips and Fuselage...finally

I've been waiting for this day for months now it seems but I finally got to start work on the fuselage.  The fuselage was my favorite part of the 9 to build so I'm excited to get started.  However that means endless hours of deburring for the next several sessions.  Oh well its therapeutic. <just keep saying that>

I also decided to finish riveting/epoxying the wing tip hinges into each wing tip.  I know there will be more work to do once I get ready to do final assembly but at least the VOR antenna is in and the wing tips are attached to the wing.

Oh one more thing, I got to do a little evening flying this week.  It was beautiful and I took a few pictures.





Right wing tip with VOR antenna mounted and attachment hinges riveted and epoxied in place.

Finally the first steps in the Fuselage phase begin...and on a beautiful fall evening to boot!

Sunday, September 23, 2018

Oil cooler outlet ducting installed

Finally I was able to install the oil cooler outlet duct this afternoon.  This project took much more time that I hoped it would.  I think I printed out 3 different version, used the CNC to make one version out of aluminum and finally came up with this final design made out of the fiberglass and carbon fiber.  I probably wont get a chance to fly it until next week but I don't expect much of a change in the oil temps, only now I will have the ability to regulate the oil temperature on really cold days. (Edit: 9/30/18 - After flying this combination for about 4 hours now I am happy with the setup.  Project success)

This is the outboard inside view.  The servo will control the flapper in the middle of the duct opening.

This side has the 2" outlet nozzle that the heater hose attaches to.

View of the installed duct from the side of the airplane.

Looking up at the bottom of the oil cooler.  You can see in this picture part of the problem I had with this duct.  That engine mount strut was routed directly over the middle of the duct.

Looking aft from the front of the airplane.

Monday, September 17, 2018

Still working on the 9

I'm getting a little antsy to get started on the fuselage of the 10 but I promised myself that I would finish up a few projects on the 9 before I dug in to the 10.  So, what are these projects?  First I formed a new induction shroud for my intake.  The one I had in place was a 3D printed shroud with some fiberglass haphazardly slapped on to protect it from the exhaust heat.  It looked horrid but it did the job.  Now I have a nice new (painted) shroud with a slightly different flow profile.  I flew it this weekend and it worked perfectly.

Second I have been wanting to install some sort of automatic alternate air induction system that would keep the engine turning if I had some blockage in the filter or inlet port.  The blockage could come from flying into a heavy snow fall, ice, or even a simple plastic bag on takeoff/landing. 

Both of the first two projects are complete and the only remaining project is getting close.  The final project was to fabricate some sort of oil cooler exit shroud that would allow me to regulate oil temperature in the winter.  With the new oil cooler in place I expect I will have a hard time getting the oil temperature up to 180 degrees in the winter without some sort of ability to control the air flow.  Some people just block off the inlet air flow but since I pull my cabin heat from the oil cooler outlet I need the inlet air to flow normally.

Wow, this one looks weird.  This is looking down the snorkel of the new induction cone.  That black circle in the middle is the top of my K&N air filter.

The new snorkel from the outside.  Much better looking than the old one...and a bit lighter too.

Here is the new alternate air induction ports.  Actually you only see one of them here but there are 4 of these little openings on the circumference of the induction base.  My finger is pointing at the spring loaded door that is kept shut by both spring pressure and induction air pressure.  If the inlet gets blocked for any reason the engine will quickly go to manifold pressure (which is a vacuum) and the air from inside the cowl will force these little doors open thereby providing air for combustion.  The little fan up front will keep turning which means the pilot stays cool.

Here I am pushing the spring loaded door open.