Cup Holders and Rudder Gust Lock

We've been trying to think of a way to have cup holders in the cockpit and now we have four different locations for mounting cup holders.  We purchased some belt cup holders from Amazon and have two pieces of "velcro".  We sewed mating pieces of Velcro into the fabric around the control sticks in four locations to allow us to move the holders around.  Well, after a short flight they worked out wonderfully and we're very happy with the outcome.

Velcro added to carpet

Cup Holder installed

A second location installation

Michael took a rudder gust lock design by Trent Palmer for his Kitfox and modified it to work for our Highlander.  The design was 3D printed and seems to work great.

Gust Lock installed on Rudder Pedals

Airworthiness Cert, Vortex Generators, Rigging Check, High speed taxi test

We finally received our airworthiness certificate on Aug 20, but had some work to do before first flight.  During our trip to Brasstown for transition training, our flight instructor (Vic) at Plane Fun Aircraft gave us many tips, and strongly recommended that we add vortex generators (VGs) before first flight.  These should lower stall speed a bit and they reportedly do not affect top speed.  We originally planned on adding them post flight to gauge their effectiveness, but changed our minds after talking to him.

The VGs that came with our kit had sharp corners and no adhesive (they recommended a form of super glue).  We elected to order some new ones (Stolspeed VGs) as these had a more rounded shape and came with 3M adhesive that is removable.  We installed them per instructions.  The VGs at the wing tips are installed with a closer spacing to ensure the wing tips stall after the root wing stalls.  We also installed VGs on the bottom of the horizontal stabilizers.

VGs on the wing

VGs on horizontal stabilizer

Also, even though our wings were rigged at the factory, we were advised to double check this   According to Vic, If the wing is leveled at the root, and measures something like -1 or -1.5 degree angle at the center (angle of incidence), then it should be about -2 to -3 degrees at the wing tip.  Having a little twist like helps ensure that the wing tips will stall after the main wing stalls. More important is to ensure that both wings are identical.  When we measured our wings, we found that the right wing was close to level across the whole span (no twist).  The left wing was a little better but had just -0.8 degrees at the tip.  We adjusted the right wing as far as allowed by loosening the jury strut and then rotating the main strut's clevis fork rod end, and were able to get it to -1.2 degrees at the tip (with about 0.6 degrees center).  The left wing was then adjusted to match this. 

We also ran another taxi test.  This time it was a higher speed taxi test down the runway.  Power was applied gradually while holding back the stick until the nose lifted off the ground, then reduced to hold the position.   The test went well, although we noted that the airspeed on our Garmin G3x never dropped under 23 MPH.  We contacted Garmin and found that this means we need to have our GSU25c (ADAHRS) replaced.  Luckily, this will be covered under warranty.  

We are also finding that our coolant temps still run a little high during taxi on hot days so we may need to adjust the cowling opening and/or radiator position sometime in the future to improve this.

Transition Training

 While waiting for our airworthiness inspection, we decided to get some transition training in a tri-gear Highlander.  We did this for 2 reasons... The primary reason was to get familiar with the airplane and stay safe, and the other was to appease the insurance gods that require some transition training before providing coverage.

We drove to Brasstown, NC to a build center for Just Highlanders called Plane Fun Aircraft.  Vic Payne was our flight instructor, who was outstanding.    The mornings were foggy, but it generally burned off somewhere between 10 or 11 am at which point we had beautiful flying weather.  We took turns flying and over the span of a couple days, we each received 5 hours of flight training.  Vic was not just a great flight instructor, but also a wealth of knowledge who gave us some excellent tips on rigging as well as suggestions on future potential plane modifications that might help with W&B, controls, or maintenance.  He also gave us some great tips on how to prepare for and fly initial test flights as he has done this on many many Highlanders.

Michael prepping for flight with Vic Payne

Ed starting his flight instruction with Vic

Airworthiness Inspection

We contacted our DAR, Lisa Burwell, early in the week to finish the airworthiness application and schedule the inspection.  A few days later, she called and said she had an opening on Fri, Aug 4, which we immediately agreed on.  The day before, we removed the cowling, turtledeck, footwell panels, and many inspection panels so that everything could be seen during the inspection.  

   She arrived with her husband, who is also an experienced A&P, and they both gave the plane a very thorough inspection.  Lisa also went over all the paperwork to ensure everything was in order.  They gave us a lot of great information and suggestions, and they did find a couple of nuts that were missing cotter pins, which was an easy fix.   Very happy with how the whole process worked and I can definitely recommend Lisa as a DAR.  We passed the inspection, and now have to wait for the FAA to process everything in order to get our airworthiness certification. 

Taxi test; coolant temp check, fuel system

Another taxi test was performed, this time watching the coolant temps closely since they were a bit high last time when running with the top cowl off.   This time, we kept the top cowl on to keep airflow as it would be during normal taxi, and the results were very good.  Coolant temps remained within the green. Outside temps were about 10 degrees cooler (87) than the last test, but coolant temps varied between 204 and 217 during taxi test which was over 35 degrees cooler than the last test. 

Michael checking coolant temps during taxi

Also, we double checked the fittings that were tightened last time (at bottom of left fuel tank, and at bottom of header tank).  No fuel seepage was detected so looks like these are now fixed.  

Lastly, we attached a small zippered plastic pouch to the left footwell panel which will hold our airplane registration and other documents that need to remain in the airplane.  Hours: 3

Engine idle adjustment, Fuel system

We adjusted the idle on our engine, as it was idling too low (below 1400 RPM).  By turning the idle screw a bit at a time and retesting, we found that a total of 5 whole turns clockwise was needed to get it to 1700 RPM where it was idling smoothly. 

We started to do another taxi test, but cut it short because our coolant temperatures were getting too high.  We had the top cowl off during this test, so suspect the change in airflow may have contributed to this, along with the very hot outside temperatures (97 degrees).  We will retest this with the top cowl on in near future to check this out. 

We installed a new bingo fuel sensor that arrived in the mail (since the initial one died on us).  The new sensor works great and our low fuel warning light is working again.

We have been smelling some fuel odors in the cabin, but an initial search for leaks didn't turn up anything which was a bit confounding.  However, the odor didn't go away over time, so we decided it was time to go on a more thorough hunt for the source.  By examining every fitting very carefully and closely, we actually found 2 issues.  One was an NPT fitting at the bottom of the header tank.  We could feel one area was slightly moist where a little fuel has slowly seeped out.  This was tightened to seal the leak.  The other issue was at the bottom of the left wing tank, where the fuel strainer screws in.  We had to unfold the wings to find this one.  The fitting was actually bottomed out in the hole, so it could not be screwed on any tighter.  We found a 2nd fuel strainer that had threads cut a little different to fit a bit tighter.  We installed this fitting and reconnected the hoses to the wing.    Hours: 6

Slow leak at bottom of header tank

Slow leak at bottom of left wing tank

Another taxi test

 Today was a hot day (high of 96), so thought it would be interesting to watch our temps while taxiing, especially since there is much less cooling airflow through the radiator and oil cooler during taxi.  Happily, all our temperatures remained in the green during the test today as the plane was taxied around the airport.  We forgot to insert an SD card into the Garmin G3 unit, so we couldn't easily review all the data later, but we did note that all temps were well within the green.

Below is a short video showing a bit of the taxi test.  Kept the pilot's door open during this test due to the outside temps.  Hours: 1

W&B Detailed test data

 Detailed W&B Data is appended below:

Tank cleanout, Windscreen work, Stripe, Fuel cap

To clean out the fiberglass fuel tanks and also ensure there is no uncured resin, we used the clean-out method recommended by the factory.  Basically,  add 1 gallon of lacquer thinner to the tank (ensuring all openings are sealed), swish around in the wing while turning and tilting it to ensure all surfaces of the tank get wet (about 30-40 seconds), then remove cap to release pressure as it builds quickly.  Drain and repeat with 2nd gallon.  Drained fluid should be clearer.  Drain and repeat with 3rd gallon.  This 3rd gallon comes out clear, so it is saved for use on the 2nd wing.  This process was then repeated on the 2nd wing.  A total of 5 gallons of lacquer thinner was required using this method. 

Michael sealing fuel port in prep for fuel tank cleanout

During a final test fit of the windshield, we found that some of the attachment screws could catch the sides of the holes in the windscreen.  Since this could lead to eventual cracking of the windshield, we carefully enlargened the holes for better clearance by using a Dremel tool with a cylindrical bit.

A few holes in plastic windscreen enlargened

A green stripe (3M light green material) was applied to the side of the fuselage between the white and orange paint.  We like the look and plan on adding this stripe material to the wings, cowl, and control surfaces that have both orange and white.

Green stripe added to sides of fuselage

The fuel caps need to be vented, so we disassembled the fuel cap and drilled a 3/16" hole in the top and bottom sections of each fuel cap.  We then upsized the hole to 1/4" in the upper fuel cap, but only to half the depth.  The fuel vent tubes were cleaned and epoxied into the 1/4 inch holes.

Hole drilled in top of fuel cap

Vent tubes epoxied into the fuel caps

We decided to spray black Plasti-dip on the seat position latch handles.  After masking off most of the base, the T-handles were sprayed with about 6 coats.  Hours: 13

Plasti-dip on seat position latch handles

Fuselage moved to hangar

In order to gain space back in the garage to fix a wing and do some more painting, we moved the fuselage to the airport.  Wanted to get a new trailer as the old one wasn't super stable (narrower wheelbase and taller deck).  Had a difficult time finding a trailer with wide enough deck for the gear, but found one in Greensboro.  The plane fit nicely and we had about an extra inch on each side between the wheels and the trailer's wheel wells.  With the fuselage out of the garage, we can now focus on getting the garage cleaned up a bit and the paint booth back in operation.  Hours: 8

Plane loaded up and ready to go

Unloading at the hangar

Misc (Brakes, Cowl, Header Tank)

We've been working on a lot of various parts over the last few days.  We finally got all the brake plumbing complete and got the brake fluid bled. It took some effort to remove all the air bubbles.

The front of the cowl received 3 layers of fiberglass over the foam shape in near the propeller.  After allowing the epoxy to cure a lot of sanding was done to smooth the transition.  We're planning on adding fasteners on the inside of the cowl air openings hear the propeller hub.  This area needed some attention with fiberglass to give enough room for fasteners.

To make the site tube more visible on the header tank, Ed is fabricating an aluminum shroud that will also have a hash pattern that will greatly improve the header tank level.  This is just a back-up since we also have a fuel level sensor on tank that turns on a red LED on the dash if the level ever drops below a set value.

Hours: 8

Peel-ply over the top of the fiberglass addition on the upper cowl

Fixing the lower cowl to allow for fasteners

West System epoxy in use

Ed working on header tank site gauge shroud

More Lower Cowl Work and Oil Lines

Continued working on the lower cowl modifications.  Additional Micro/Epoxy mixture was added to fill in the fiberglass weave and imperfections.  After allowing it to dry, it was sanded down.  The excess fiberglass on the inside of the cowl was removed as it was no longer needed.  A coating of filler/sanding primer was sprayed on the part.  This is VERY revealing and immediately highlights the imperfections.

Lower cowl lookng nice

Excess Fiberglass removed on interior

Filler/Sanding Primer Sprayed

We spent a few hours planning our firewall penetrations and what would mount on or near the firewall.  This was needed so we can start progressing toward installing fuel and oil lines.

We plan to have an oil fluid thermostat in our system.  This will hopefully help keep the engine oil at a more appropriate temperature, also allowing the engine to warm up faster, bypassing the oil cooler until the temperatures of the oil are elevated.  A bracket was made and the oil fluid thermostat was installed on the firewall.

Two oil lines were built and installed.  The first one goes from the bottom of the Rotax engine and to the oil tank. The second oil line was run from the oil tank to the oil fluid thermostat.

Hours: 12

Oil flows out of the engine to the oil tank on the Rotax 912iS

Oil flows out of the oil tank to the oil fluid Thermostat

 

Engine Mount, Pitch Servo, Schematics

We temporarily installed our new nose-gear engine mount see how how it fits, and while it was tight, it did fit.  We had to add a few washers behind the lower mount point, but this was not unexpected.  We checked the nosegear and it fit nicely.  The firewall was removed for now as we are planning on making a template to help trim the top of the firewall once we can determine how it meets up with the cowling.  

Temporary fitting of engine mount & nosewheel

Since we had the engine mount attached, we decided to see how the Rotax ring mount mates to it.  Unfortunately, we ran into a problem.  The shock-mount isolators (Large rubber isolators) that we purchased from Rotax didn't fit.  We contacted the factory and found that these parts were unique and we neeeded to purchase them from the factory instead of Rotax.  So we returned the Rotax parts, and are now waiting for the new parts to arrive from Just Aircraft.  So we are in a bit of a holding pattern for now until the new parts arrive.

One other thing we did was remove the pitch servo and change out 4 bolts that attached it to a mounting bracket (these were a little too long).  The new bolts were torqued, and the assembly was remounted in the back of the plane.

Pitch servo with new bolts

In the meantime, Michael has been spending many hours (days) putting together the schematics for the wiring using KiCad.  A lot of time has been spent digging through all the manuals to make sure we get the wiring correct, and much time was spent sourcing parts like switches, circuit breakers, etc.  Hours: 20  

Painted the Main Lift Struts and More

The last large (i.e. long) part that needed to be painted were the two main lift struts.  They came from Just Aircraft with gray powder coat applied but we decided that they would look much better painted the same Vestal White as was applied to the fuselage.  We had to scuff the powder coat and clean the parts before painting.  We also painted the small Jury Struts at the same time.

Lift Strut Painted Vestal White

To paint the Struts we moved the fuselage outside for it's debut in the sun!  We had to take a photo with the two builders (i.e. US!) for our family and friends!

First time Painted Fuselage has been outside

With the last long part painted and allowed to cure we no longer needed the large paint boot taking up a large portion of the garage.  Over the Thanksgiving week, the front part of the paint booth was removed.  The side entry door was re-framed and installed. The two front doors still need to be extended in height in order to allow them to seal up the room.

Re-Sizing Paint Booth

We started working on the firewall next.  Just Aircraft had provided us with stainless steel material for the firewall.  To save some weight (about 2.5lbs) we chose to use titanium as our firewall material.  That material was sourced from McMaster Carr.  First the width was trimmed using hand shears.  We then had to cut notches around the nosewheel mounting points on the fuselage.  The nibbler tool worked perfectly for this task. Once we had the bottom edge of the firewall where we wanted it to be we marked the side areas that needed some clearance notches.  The process was identical to the original notches and quite a bit quicker since they didn't need to be as deep.

Ed using Nibbler tool on Firewall

Finally, once the firewall had a good fit we drilled the 8 attach point holes and cleco'd the firewall in place.  We also drilled the four corner engine mount holes.  We still have some work to do on those holes before we can put the engine mount on the fuselage.  The top of the firewall still needs to be trimmed to match the boot cowl, but that too is for another time.

Firewall Drilled and Cleco'd in place

Hours: 15

Fuselage moved to hangar

We needed to move the fuselage to the airport so that we had room to build a paint booth in the garage, so wrapped up the fuselage to prepare it for the move, and then the next morning we loaded it up on the trailer and towed it away.  The move went very smoothly with no issues.  We always have to watch out for low hanging limbs when pulling out of the driveway, and also when driving (very slowly) down the narrow road leading up to the hangar.   With Michael's expert driving skills, and my unmatched talent at lifting low branches with a broom, the trip went without a hitch.   (Hours: 4.0)

A quick pic of the fuselage before the move

Fuselage in front of the hangar, ready to be unloaded

Loading Fuselage for Transport

We spent the day building and attaching ramps to the flatbed trailer.   The fuselage was then wheeled out of the garage and a winch was used to slowly get the fuselage onto the trailer.  Then the whole fuselage was strapped down and a few blocks were attached to make sure the fuselage doesn't move during the transport to Cox Airport.  Hours: 3

Ramps in place awaiting Fuselage

Fuselage extracted from garage and dollies removed from mail wheels

Strapping down the airplane

Strapping down the airplane II

Covered for the night, ready to head to Cox Airport

Transport Trailer Work

We are getting close to the point of adding fabric to our project.  In order to do this, we need more room in our garage.  We plan on taking the fuselage and wings to Cox Aerodrome where Michael has a hangar.

In order to transport the fuselage with gear attached, we needed to create a platform on top of Michael's utility trailer.  Holes were drilled in the railing at uniform spacing.  These holes were later used to up-drill into the 5/8" plywood deck.  A 2x6 backbone/joist was placed down the middle with 4x4 posts.  1/4" carriage bolts were placed in the holes going through the plywood and aluminum railing.  A nice 45 degree corner cut was done for looks.  Hours: 5

Center Joist being constructed

Ed cutting the plywood deck

Decking cut to shape, rear view

Decking cut to shape, front view

Tool fabrication

I had previously made a special wrench when we were going to use a Sonex connector for the vent line in the wing tanks.  But then we later realized that this connector woudn't work so we changed to an alternate aluminum fitting.  Unfortunately, this alternate fitting was a different size, and required me to make a new special "thin" wrench that will allow us to install it easily.  But it wasn't too hard since I had practice. I traced the shape out on paper, transfered it to a sheet of steel, cut it out, and buffed it smooth.  The final part came out nice and fits the new connector well.  Hours: 2.0

Paper template and fabricated wrench

Windows and Welding

The right rear window panel was drilled in place and then deburred.  Both the left and right rear window panels were riveted in place with CCP-42 rivets.

Ed continues to hone his TIG welding skills.  Hours: 1

More Welding Practice and Rear Window

Ed continues to practice his TIG welding skills. He's practicing on a small scaled version of the header tank using some of the same material we plan to use in the final header tank.

Michael cut out the window opening in the rear window panel.  There still needs a little tweaking to get the shape perfect.  Hours: 1.5

Rear Window taking shape

Dynon Pitot Static AOA Kit From Aircraft Spruce Arrived Today