Snoshoo SR-1 Reno Formula 1 Racer

[Tantrum1]

Hey gang! Well I know its been some time since I posted, but we are at the point on the wing that some steps are taking a long time to complete. Its big progress but not much interesting stuff to show you as often hahaha. So to recap, as you can see above we completed the load/stress test on the wing and have moved on to the fill and sand portion. I made my own fill using microballoons and west systems. after a few experiments it turned out to be lighter then super-fil, and seems to be just as easy to use. It sands decently. We were also asked to participate in a local car show this past weekend, and it was a big hit. We got a few more people to our facebook page which is always great for the exposure! So here we have the top surface of the wing filled, sanded(somehow was even able to get the wife to help!), then primed and ready for more sanding. Then we have the airplane at the show.As usual thanks for stopping by!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Hey all! Things have slowed down a bit as I'm in the middle of getting an annual done on a friends Cherokee as well as getting some flying in.
Spent some time making some carbon floor boards. hoping to finish up the last odds and ends of welding this week! Then the chassis will go out for paint!
Thanks for stopping by!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Alright! Good news!! Finished up the last of the welding and fitting of the floor boards and side walls, and spent a few days prepping, but the chassis is officially out to paint!! After it comes back I should be beginning the final assembly! That being said still lots to do! Finally assembly includes wiring, plumbing, installing all necessary components and running all engine controls as well as among other things! Still lots to go but we are always moving forward! October should be a pretty productive month, I have a week off that is dedicated to the build. Fun times!

 

[Tantrum1]

Good day all! We were able to finally get a nice no wind day to get the wing out side to lay down some high build primer, then get it back into the shop to begin the last stages of the sanding process! Hoping to have this wing finished and set for paint by end of Oct! Here's hoping!
Thanks for stopping by!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Hey Gang! well my apologies for the lack of posting of the progress lately but my wife seems to think building another hay storage shelter for her horse is more important then building this airplane... (insert sarcasm here)! LOL. Well we finally were able to get the chassis and small bits back from the painter! I really wish I would have had the space to do it myself, but they did do a great job! I've finally got a perfectly smooth surface on the top side of the wing. next step is to verify that its flat and straight, but I'm pretty confident its close. I just need to pick up some guide coat spray. then I will be onto the bottom side. I was aiming to have the wing done and out to paint by mid november but thats not going to happen. So I'm shooting for end of november. I had to put everything partially together for a few photos for a trailer sponsorship contest that i'm in. So that also cut into my time. Anyhow I hope you enjoy the progress, and as always thanks for stopping by!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Well we're still at it, its sad to think that with all the things going on in this world with COVID and such that its benefited me with more time in the shop. All awhile still working full time. I am a very lucky individual.
As we've been progressing, the wing is about 95% finished. We are just waiting for one last part to arrive so we can finish up the aileron hinges. The wing top and bottoms are completely sanded and ready for paint, i just need to finish sanding the root ribs, and bond in the dash mounts. The horizontal stabilizer and elevators have been sanded down, with micro applied, all pin holes filled and the last coat of high build primer applied. Next step will be to sand down the stabilizer and elevators and then inspect, they should then be good for vinyl wrap then balanced. Also was able to use our new CNC router to fabricate our battery tray mount. Pretty excited about that turned out really well! Still needs a bit of trimming but here it is roughed out. As usual, thanks for stopping by! We appreciate it!

 

[Tantrum1]

Hey Gang, I know its been a while! but i'm still plugging away! No obvious progress to show, but lots of little stuff coming together! I did the final fitting of the ailerons and they work great! I'm hoping to finish the final body work on the wing assembly by the end of this weekend and it will be ready for paint! I've also prepped a few molds to make a few parts for some avionics trays, hope to lay up this weekend coming! anyhow heres a short clip. U hope to have more visual progress to show in the next couple weeks!
Thanks for stopping by!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Hey Gang,
Sorry I havent posted much progress lately, rest assured I'm still plugging away. I'm about to beginning final assembly of our little race plane. With only a little fabrication left to do as we start final assembly. was able to get the carb heat, fuel shut off controls installed as well as a rough layout of the throttle/mixture controls (however i'm not overly happy with it so will likely change it). Latest progress was finally got my landing gear radius blocks fitted up and I really like the fitment, also was able to get the wing rear spar mounts wetshimmed to get me the proper beginning incidence angle as specified in the plans. As always thanks for taking the time to stop by and read/view my ramblings!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Good day all,
Progress continues on the race build. Sadly it nor I will be ready for Reno 2021, due to Covid crap and my wife just now returning to work after a layoff. But we will push on and the determination is growing stronger. This week had us shift gears from working on the wing to working on the airframe. Was able to make an avionics tray out of carbon fiber (with a top layer of glass). The tray will be removeable for race week. I cut the mold on my CNC router. It didn't turn out as perfect as I'd hoped BUT its definitely useable. Next we are in the final preparations to get the wing and flight controls all painted next weekend. Pretty excited about that! As usual thanks for stopping by!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Hey Gang!
Well another major milestone for us!! We were able to get the wing and all flight controls into paint! I took it in on Friday and was there for the day then left it ion the booth all weekend so that way there was no way i'd wreck it on the transportation home. One of our sponsors a local car dealership Fundy Honda was happy to help us out with this. We went with Honda Rally Red. I tell ya, I picked it up today and WOW does it ever look good. Its been along time since i'd been in a paint booth and wow can't believe how things changed, I was a bit skeptical when i left as I felt the surface looked a bit pebbly but nope this more I did a very thorough inspection and nothing but perfection! I couldn't be more pleased with the results.
My only complaint is that it has shown me where I could have made a few more improvements in my craftsmanship, where I thought it was perfect it clearly wasn't.
Next step is to balance the ailerons, and elevators and get the stabilizers wrapped. Then finally assembly of the ailerons onto the wing, then the wing get put away while we begin diving into the fuselage/Firewall forward.
Thanks for looking!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Hey Gang,
I know its been a bit since I posted, but were still making a little progress. Had to stop building for a week to prep. We got asked by an event organizer to partake in a local car show. LOTS of people and lots of exposure. Anyhow as of lately we are currently working on the interior left side panel for internal mounting of the throttle quadrant. Was able to get our instrument panel finished and am beginning to mount in the instrumentation in hopes to begin some wiring next week. We only did a light polish on the panel we didn't want to bring it up to a very high polish as to keep the glare factor down, since we wont have a glareshield. As always thanks for stopping by!
Mark

 

[Tantrum1]

Well Its been a crazy with work and life commitments this past week. I had to order a 55 pin canon plug assembly to wire up my panel which arrived on friday. The panel has been designed/built for quick removal and install do to the fact it attaches to the wing and the wing comes off and on for trailering to race events. Anyhow I was able to almost complete the panel assembly, I just have one more warning light to install that I forgot about. This next week is shaping up to be similar as the past one, but I'm on vacation for a week in a week and the plan is to spend it in the shop. Anyhow as usual thanks for stopping by.
Mark