Actually this is being transmitted from back at Trimley, about 200 miles
east of Staverton. I didn't manage to get the modem plugged into a socket
with outside line access before it was time to leave today.
Today Graham Singleton told us some of the basic, simple things that we can
do to get our aircraft weights down to the levels that Jon Tye has shown
(remember children, less weight means more performance!). The main thing is
to think lightness from day 1, and make sure all layups are well squegee'd
out. He warned of going _too_ far when applying layups carried to the job
on cling film, where air bubbles can start to creep in around the edges
after enthusiastic squeezing-out.
Gary McKirdy talked about getting micro-balloons (filler) applied
correctly. He's not sure Ron's famous fishing-line technique is the best,
but agreed that you need to find something that works for you. He uses a
2-foot length of aluminium extrusion as a skimming tool, with heat applied
ahead of it from a hair-drier to reduce the viscosity of the filler. The
idea here is to have a pretty long tool, so it bridges the small
undulations effectively, like Ron's vacuum sander. Pete Sonderskov wondered
if the tool could have hot air blown through it (kinda like a reverse of
the vacuum sander) so the job could be done single-handed. Who'll be the
first to try that and report on it?
Gary also showed us a Europa aileron which had been finished in two
different ways - the factory recommended paint system (4 different layers)
and a gel-coat system (1 layer, but applied in multiple passes).
This is not any old gel-coat (as used for moulds or boats, etc). The system
is a German brand which Gary wasn't even sure how to spell, and it's
unobtainable in England, but the results were very impressive. As well as
looking great and clearly being tougher than paint (there was a sample to
scratch), he claimed it will outlast paint by many years. It's what is used
to give modern laminar-flow glider wings their terrific glide ratios of up
to 60:1. The final result also depends on a hard-waxing step, which is a
required maintenance item about once a year. I think we've persuaded Gary
to put some of his ideas on paper for the next issue of the Europa Flyer,
so watch out for that in June. (We are looking for a new newsletter editor
after that issue - cut'n'paste skills rather than desk-top-publishing is
fine!)
I didn't mention in yesterday's session the good advice given by Dickie
Feake on panels, avionics, and electrics generally. Make several mock-ups
of your panel _before_ you ever think about cutting holes in it. Make sure
there's enough depth behind the panel for that very long item. Keep your
wiring together in neat bundles, except where it should be separate ....
(ie, keep mic leads away from aerial leads, and aerial leads away from
ignition leads). Use the right _size_ wire for the job - copper is heavy
stuff, too ........
After lunch today we went a mile or two down the road to see MidWest
Engines. We had a tour round the place and saw several examples of their
rotary engine. Their proud boast is that they and Rolls-Royce are the only
British manufacturers of certified aircraft engines today! The 100hp Katana
installation was being re-worked, and would probably have to go back to
Austria to be test-flown (some complication with the CAA, here). The
exhaust first installed on that airframe had kept it pretty quiet, but was
also quite effective in muffling the power output. We saw the ARV version
fired up and run up to 7000 rpm - the brakes just about held it. The noise
was quite business-like, even though there was a large external silencer
under the fuselage, but some of that may have been propeller noise - it
appeared just about as loud in front as behind. Certainly seemed pretty
smooth - reminded me a bit of the old 3-cylinder 2-stroke Saabs, but with a
bit more of an rasp to it.
A MidWest engine is being fitted to a Europa for the factory - watch this space!
I spent quite a bit of time collecting subscriptions from people and doing
admin stuff, and so didn't make as detailed notes of the weekends'
proceedings as I might have done. Apologies if I've left out anything vital
- perhaps someone else can fill any gaps. And of course a lot of the
interesting business was done in between the formal sessions. The
well-known expert faces such as Graham Singleton and Andy Draper were
always surrounded by a knot of people talking & listening, but there were
many other groups equally animated. Nigel Charles, for instance, was
showing around a very natty pitot-static probe he found somewhere in USA.
It was a bit like the ones that live under old (and perhaps new as well,
but I'm not intimate with any of those) Cherry-Tree wings, but rather
smaller and more sculptured. He's probably going to get requests to pick up
a few more next time he's there.
Many thanks to Trevor Jackson for organising another good event. He has
plans for a couple of purely social events later in the year, after which
he, too, would like to retire. Far from being dismayed, I think we should
see the regular rotation of jobs as desirable. People know then that
they're not being nobbled for life when they get elected, and while some
continuity in the committee is important, it's just as good to get new
ideas injected regularly.
cheers
Rowland
... that's Rowland with a 'w' ...
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