Monthly Archives: February 2015
Fuselage Completion #13 (Firewall preparation and battery box)
Total Build Time: 910 Hours. Once I had the engine, exhaust and intake mocked into place I could plan the firewall layout. First step was to identify the usable area on the firewall. I then (with help from Bill) made some cardboard cutouts to assist with planning the layout. The cutout below represents my … Continue reading
Electrical System and Instrument Planning
Total Build Time: 873 Hours. To plan my electrical system, I studied other builder projects, the sonex plans and the book Aeroelectric Connection. Some general concepts I followed were to use fuse blocks (rather than circuit breakers) for wire protection, 2 main fuse-block-busses (main and avionics), in-line fuses to protect all wires not otherwise connected … Continue reading
Fuselage Completion #12 (Canopy frame, trimming)
Total build time: 866 Hours. With my Mom and Bill in town for the week, I wanted to use their extra sets of hands to help me with moving and fitting the plexiglass canopy. I began by preparing the canopy frame. I’m actually installing a swing-back style canopy which I will detail more in another … Continue reading
French Door
Mom and Bill were in town again, the first they’d been back since that first week I started the airplane in November 2013. Once again, they helped me make big improvements on my workshop! This time, the main focus was the all-important french door that will allow me to actually get the plane OUT of … Continue reading
Aerovee #8 (Mounting the engine, oil cooler, exhaust manifold)
Total Build Time: 846 Hours. So I had an engine resting on a table next to the airframe, and I took these pictures while trying to decide how many people I should invite over to help me mount the engine to the airframe. Upon looking at those photos, a thought dawned on me, and I … Continue reading