• Welcome aboard HomebuiltAirplanes.com, your destination for connecting with a thriving community of more than 10,000 active members, all passionate about home-built aviation. Dive into our comprehensive repository of knowledge, exchange technical insights, arrange get-togethers, and trade aircrafts/parts with like-minded enthusiasts. Unearth a wide-ranging collection of general and kit plane aviation subjects, enriched with engaging imagery, in-depth technical manuals, and rare archives.

    For a nominal fee of $99.99/year or $12.99/month, you can immerse yourself in this dynamic community and unparalleled treasure-trove of aviation knowledge.

    Embark on your journey now!

    Click Here to Become a Premium Member and Experience Homebuilt Airplanes to the Fullest!

Search results

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
  1. I

    What happened to the Ultravair?

    There is virtually nothing on the net for the Ultravair. I don't think it's dead, so much as the early adopters are slowly working on the first small group of completed engines. Most of the collected experience so far is tucked away on the Ultravair2 Yahoo group: ultravair2 : UltraVair2 And...
  2. I

    Welded aluminum wings?

    And, just to add fuel to the fire... The Stinson 108 has quite a bit of spot-welded aluminum sheet in it, cowl stiffeners for one, and the doors are built up like a unibody car body. From the exterior, you can hardly see it.
  3. I

    Fuel Cap Lever - Installation Thoughts

    FWIW, I'd go your gut and have the lever pointed aft. I doubt that any lift on the little thumb tab would be able to lift the entire lever forward into the freestream. If it really bothers you, you could always fabricate and adhere a little fairing in front of the thumb tab.:gig:
  4. I

    Why do some metal skinned wing airplanes have fabric covered control surfaces?

    BBerson, You're remembering right, the Stinson 108 series have metal horizontal and vertical tail, and all-metal control surfaces. The rest is fabric--the reverse of what everyone else was doing at the time. Apparently, getting the certification data for the metal control surfaces was one of...
  5. I

    undersquare engine design

    There are a couple of reasons I can think of for not ending up too undersquare. Adding more stroke makes the engine larger to contain the same bits--larger crakshaft radius moves the pistons farther apart. Generally, that would add some weight. Additionally, increasing the stroke increases...
  6. I

    How to create a STC?

    K-Rigg, As others have pointed out, the STC process is not for the faint of heart. My experience is with Transport Canada and not the FAA, but both operate similarly. You've got two huge strikes against you: first, you don't come into this mod with a long, pleasant professional relationship...
  7. I

    Tube framing software...

    My truss software of choice is GRAPE. It's available as a freeware download. There's a bit of a learning curve, but it does the job for me. Hope it's useful. Ivan
  8. I

    Wood fuselage design

    plncraze, And don't forget, buckling can happen in two planes. Even if you've restrained your vertical column in the fore-aft plane, the plywood web has added virtually no support in the in-out plane. Ivan
  9. I

    How do you make glue test strips?

    Skeeter, Here's what I've seen and done. I take some scraps of square hardwood stock (usually in the range of 3/4" to 1" square) and cut them to roughly 2" lengths. None of the dimensions matter--this is a qualitative test. I keep these hardwood chunks (usually maple, because that's what's...
  10. I

    Flat-wrap interpolation between airfoils

    addaon, Well, this thread popped out at me as I'm in the middle of my own flat-wrap interpolation (by hand). Fortunately for me, I don't have any cusps to deal with, so I'll just tell you what I would try first. May or may not work. I would first find the slope 'across the cusp' if that...
  11. I

    Fuel price insanity: can we adapt?

    Returning to the question of fuel economy; adding my own opinion to the mix... I keep returning to the thought that the easiest, cheapest, and (ironically) quickest way to save fuel is to simply slow down. When was the last time you cruised cross-country at your plane's best range speed? I'll...
  12. I

    Covering Instructions website?

    Hi Greg, I don't know whether you're only looking for Stits (one 't') info, but the last time I looked, the Ceconite site had some detailed articles for their process, as did the Superflite (Superflight?) site. All three are approved processes. Ivan
  13. I

    flybike

    Toomba, For more information about any of the Beaujon designs, try contacting Scott Perkins through the vula.org website. And I'll second Topaz's opinion on horsepower. One recurring theme in these old designs that work on very low power is that the designers were often of the 5'-2", 110...
  14. I

    Low temp aluminum welding

    Peter V, The rods may look runny, but they're actually real easy to manipulate. Ed, I don't know if you've seen it or not, but the home site for the Falco plans (Sequoia Aircraft or whatever it's called) had a really interesting page devoted to the testing of their welded aluminum...
  15. I

    Low temp aluminum welding

    ohioflyer, For what it's worth, I haven't used that particular brand, but there's quite a number and they all seem to be the same thing. They're a zinc alloy, and these low-temp brazing rods can come in handy around the shop for non-structural work and repairs. My experience using them on...
  16. I

    Fuselage Question

    As coltfarmer mentioned, metalizing was fairly popular 30-40 years ago. Stinson 108-series was also a common target for the procedure. A lot of owners now seem to be changing back to fabric, and have made the following remarks: - Metalizing STC procedures are often kind of 'scabby'--they...
  17. I

    Same Design - Different Materials

    Joel, The only things I can think of off the top of my head are: - the Pietenpol Air Camper (wood) and the GN-1 clone (steel tube). - the Culver Cadet (wood) and the Cadet STF homebuilt (steel tube). Although in both cases, I believe the material substitution is in the fuselage only, and...
  18. I

    Carving a Prop

    For online resources, try googling "How I make wood propellers" by Alvin Shubert. For equipment, searching for 'carving duplicators' should yield a few guys using them to make props. Ivan
  19. I

    Composite Tube Fabrication Methods

    Billski, You could try something along the lines of the PVC pipe idea, but slit the pipe lengthwise first. Slide a second, smaller pipe inside the slit one; both for support and to hold the slit open. Wrap the whole thing in saran wrap or shrink-wrap or something to act as a release and to...
  20. I

    ProSeal Balance

    Can I toss in a couple of pennies? Captain John, It would work better if the hook and plate on the long arm weighed 1/10 of the hook and plate on the short arm. Rob is right--set the arm ratio to 10:1 by measurement first. Then add weight to the short arm till the beam balances on it's...
Back
Top