Category Archives: RV Engine

Engine is back home….

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We are still cleaning the hanger to get ready for new tenant, with LOTS of stuff moving, selling and giving to the EAA hanger here on the field. BUT BEST OF ALL, the engine is now back.  My A&P did a beautiful job of inspection, gaskets, hoses, and making sure we complied with the oil pump AD. Nice paint here and there too! The engine is used (about 900 hours) but we did a careful inspection and I’ll get a few hours on it before I need to overhaul. Pretty stock 150HP with std mags, carb and fixed pitch prop.

Lycoming O-320 engine

Lycoming O-320

Nice.

We are still working on the hanger but I really want to fit wings this week-end if possible. We have the space now, and all will be better if we can get the wing incidence set before the new partner plane arrives.

Forward!

More later.

 

The Engine is off to camp…

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Saturday was a big day for the engine. We are taking it over to my friend the A&P for inspection, new gaskets, and a little paint here and there.  We will change rubber parts, remove the vacuum pump (not needed on my plane) and generally check it out.

Lycoming O-320 Aircraft engine

To slip these surly bonds…

I bought a used engine that was flying (HP upgrade) and I  hope to bolt it on and fly for awhile. The engine only has 900 hours on it, so I’ll have a little time before it goes back to the shop. Maybe ask for 160hp.

I hope this takes less than a month. I forgot to drop off the logs books so I still have to do that.

More later.

Motor Mount Mounted!

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We got the motor mount attached this week-end!  Of course, it hits the plate nut for the electric fuel pump. Even after I carefully measured the position of the pump. Really?

Plate nut hits motor mount

Plate nut hits motor mount

OK, we go that fixed, and we are moving forward.

Motor Mount

Motor Mount

Sorry about the quality, but I forgot my camera, and just got a shot or two on my crummy phone. I gotta get a new phone one of these days.

 

We also had a long meeting with my friend the A&P and he agreed to look the engine over. I do his computer work, so this is a trade. He will put the engine on a stand, and chek out all the rubber parts, make sure stuff is tight, and try to keep oil leaks to a minimum. Remember, this is a Lycoming.

Question: How to you prevent oil leaks in a Lycoming engine?
Answer: Don’t put oil in it.

I bought a running O-320 from a minister who was upgrading to a 160 HP for his Cessna 150 (a story for another time 🙂 and I plan to plug it is and run it. It was running just fine when removed, so I plan to do little to get it in the air again. I’ll still have the A&P look it over though.

More later!

 

 

 

Five Years!

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Today, Superbowl Sunday, Feb 3, 2013 is the 5 year anniversary of this project. As it just so happens, it was SuperBowl Sunday when we started as well.

A lot of stuff has happened in 5 years. We completed the tail, wings, flight surfaces, gas tanks, much of the fuselage, installed the ELT and some wiring.  Here is what we completed yesterday:

throttles

We have purchased an engine, the finish kit, and some of the firewall forward. Since we began, I have three new cats, a new car or two (we keep cars a long time) remodeled a bathroom, re-did the upstairs of the house, kept my job, learned a bunch of new skills, both with the airplane and at work, and stayed married. We have many new friends in the Van’s RV community, and have watched some speed past us, and some fall by the wayside.

We are planning flight instruments and radios. My Key: Keep it simple to start. 2 comms, 1 nav, 1 GPS external, and of course the GPS in the EFIS. We are still planning on Dynon Avionics, but we will simplify the panel to start. One EFIS for now. IFR VOR Nav configuration and maybe an IFR GPS. We will see about that.  We have the transponder (King KT-76A) and the Audio panel.

Tom and I still love to build, and we are not about to rush to finish now. We have been very careful builders, and the work we have done is top notch!

So, When will the plane be finished? Not sure. Still much to do, but the next phase is to get the fuselage off the rotisserie and on a cart for setting the wings.  Get the motor on and get the wiring done.

We’ll see.

Happy New Year!

Dkb

 

I’m gonna THROTTLE you!!!

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So, that is what we did. This week-end we added the throttle/mixture/carb heat/flap switch panel to 18TD.  The control cables went in reay easy, but not so much with the flap switch. A normal flap switch has 6 connectors so it is pretty wide. Looks like the flap switch plate I bought was not designed with that in mind. We got it to fit, but it was a bunch of work.

throttle cluster

Engine Control Panel

We are making pretty good headway with the three part panel, but I’m kinda nervous about leg room. I’m a tall guy, and it looks like the panel is getting into the pilot area.  We will not know until I get the fuse off the rotisserie and on to a safe stand where I can sit in the thing.

I got the firewall forward plans today, so we are starting to verify we are ready to add a motor mount. Battery is in, Master/start relay is in, and we have most holes punched. I’m gonna do some control cables after I have the motor mount in place to verify position.

Next week is a special anniversary for us, so stay tuned.

 

Engine Purchased!

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On Friday, October 5th, Tom and I hopped into his truck and drove 600 miles to Green Valley, AZ. We spent a nice night in a Best Western (I really recommend these guys!) and had a nice evening walking around and enjoying the sites.

Next morning, we drove down to the hanger where Ken was waiting for us.

We spent some time discussing the 150hp motor (my new motor), his cool plane (Cessna 150 tail dragger), Ken’s work, a new 160 hp motor, a 250hp Franklin, life, fairness, faith, justice, long-distance running, kids, experimental aircraft, life-long missions, and global freedom.

At the end of it all, I purchased a Lycoming O-320 E2A 150HP engine that is going to be the heart of Loud Emily.

Lycoming O-320 Aircraft engine

To slip these surly bonds…

Funny, but every time I see an aircraft engine strapped in for transport somewhere, I envision the engine straining at the straps, not to prevent sliding around, but to burst skyward in escape! To become free and airborne once again, as if the natural place for such an engine is in the sky.

The engine is mid-time, and my intent is to bolt it in and fly as-is. Of course, my A&P will check it out, but I’m hoping to get a few hundred hours before I add upgrades, like electronic ignition, lightweight start and alternator, etc.

So, at 9:00am on Saturday October 6th, Tom and I started the long trek home, to safely deliver the engine to my hanger, and to get home before it was too late. Oh, and the engine has a vacuum pump.

Vacuum pump? What’s that for?

 

 

 

The battle of the fuel pump(s) is/are over!

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I want to use mogas in my plane.

Mogas is getting up to 10% alcohol in it, and that is not going away. Now in California, you can no longer get gas without alcohol at any regular gas station. So a good solution is to use electric only fuel system that pushes fuel instead of trying to pull it.

No worries about vapor lock, and no worries about the effects of alcohol on rubber parts in manual pumps! Two pumps with two independent switches would eliminate the need for a valve. Fuel pump placement at the root of the wing would eliminate considerable plumbing inside the cockpit.  I talked with lots of folks about the idea. Many support it, and in fact fly with it today. Many poopoo’d the idea as too risky. What if this and that and that happen???

Well, after considerable thought, and the ringing of my motto in my head: “What would Cessna do?” I decided to wimp out and stay with the plans.  Keep the valve, one electric pump and one engine driven pump.

Fuel pump

Fuel pump

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, this is an experimental  aircraft, but I’m not an engineer.  Also, when you go off plans (which i have done once or twice) you add many hours to the process.  So, I’ll live with the current plan, and maybe do some experimentation later.