SxS Elite ....Part 2

[CLS447]

Got alot done today on the SxS. I stuck this tap right through the side of my Weber carb. Then screwed in a carb temp sensor. Looks like I got lucky & it fit perfectly, between the venturi & butterfly, should give me good readings.

[CLS447]

I also made a carb heat cuff for my exhaust. I'll have it welded on while the cracks are being rewelded! This will supply my RAF "Ram air box/W/carb heat.

[CLS447]

Swapped my K&N filter with an RAF. I made an adapter plate & Use flathead 1/4-20 SS screws so to not interfere with the filter seal. Gotta move one it hits the carb. 3outa 4 aint bad.

Oh yeah, I had a heluva time cutting out that carb outline. Tried every tooll,saw,grinder,drill & file I had! finally got it. Cut myself pretty good ,once.

[CLS447]

I cut that circle out with a small table band , upright. Shar said she didn't think it was gonna as good as it did. Still no faith.

She missed me struggling like an idiot with the center cutting. With slight hammer pressure it fit right on. It was alot harder beating it back off. I think I can rebuild it though.

[CLS447]

The studs sticking up out of the carb are 5mm. Gonna get some ss 5mm all thread & cut long studs . I'll use lower nuts to bolt the body to the carb And also bolt the lid down with the same 4 studs. Just didn't figure out what to do with the stock center hole that came with the lid. Maybe a little American Flag.

Waiting for the K&N filter replacement. It will be the wrong one anyway! I'll probably have to adapt that ,TOO!

I had to point it this way for the best fit & routing. Will the prop steal the air from it?

Hey what do you guys feel about the Facet Fuel pumps I'm using?

Did you notice my "solid mount" Oil P sensor. I gotta change that to a flexible connection.

I definitely want to change the carb feed forward. How stupid does that fuel line look , looping back to the rear feed? Checked all the websites and manuals & didn't see anything about yanking the tube out with pliers, gluing the hole shut &drilling the other side out to accept the now bent up hose coupling. Any tips? They do talk about jetting these 32-36 up for much more perfomance!

I love the Subaru logo moulded in. Does Raf make these? Oh yeah, I'm gonna reverse the heat actuator arm for rear pull cable then if I can get a decent choke cable bracket, I think I'll bolt it to the side of the airbox. The rest should be easy. Wow now I've got a choke knob & a carb heat knob on the same quadrant with my throttle & prerotator handle. This is getting confusing.

[CLS447]

Another guage, Ken J. I think I gotta stay out of the yellow zone or the engine could get extra quiet. I had to address the situation, I don't want ice to shut me down.

I'll prob use the stock intake on the direct drive KB-2 thats just waiting to be assembled. Hot water flow to the base of the carb. No carb heat needed? Even if I stick on a Weber?

Yes I straighted the gauge & erased the pencil marks, But slipped with the file a scratched the panel face.. DOH !

With my conduit & pull boxes I almost finished the wiring job too.

Relocated my pitot tube with a remvable one.. Copied a fitting that Spruce wants $28 for. The pitot pal. Don't tell anyone!


Radios , walkman,Gps , intercom, transponder, Black Box, Missles will have to go in the rear compartment of the gyro. I didn't figure that out yet.

[CLS447]

Check out the little mounting box I made for the intercom. Right at your fingertips. I hope the leather armrest console W/ashtray doesnt interfere.

This stuff takes time! My older brother just got his rudder kit for the Zen 701. All that thin aluminum and pop rivets with no holes drilled scared the hell outa me. I'm a nuts and bolts guy.

[Dean_Dolph]

I had to point it this way for the best fit & routing. Will the prop steal the air from it?


Chris, good question and observation as to what might happen.

I would be more concerned if the angle of the filter intake was 90 degrees to the relative air flow instead of the angle it is now. I'm not sure what effect the angle that is greater than 90 will have.

But if it were 90 degrees then in effect what you would have is the same thing as carb venturi air flow where low pressure pulls gas into the air flow.

In other words air that flows past the filter intake would drop the pressure of the air flowing in. You would have two competing low pressure areas; the intake valve and the filter intake. The prop might very well make it worse by speeding the air up as it flows past.

The intake valve will win the contest for the air but the question remains; will the amount flowing thru a filter at 90 degrees (or any other angle greater than 90) be the same as the amout that would flow if the intake was pointed into the air stream. This is not taking into account the ram effect with the filter intake pointing into the wind.

If I didn't have the choice of pointing the intake into the wind then I think I would rather chance positioning the filter intake facing the the direction of relative air flow or in this case to the rear. There still might be a low pressure area created but it is likely to be less that at 90 degrees. And then there is the possibility that with a little creative intake shaping such as a bell mouth that you would help the relative air turn the corner into the filter.

There are some aerodynamic issues here that our 'experts' may clear up. I say this because despite my explanation of the possible problems and solutions, drag/sprint cars in years past, that ran Hilborn injection, used no filters and individual bell mouth air intake tubes that were 90 degrees to the relative air flow. I'm not going to say ignore all I said but there maybe other issues that I'm not aware of.

[CLS447]

I went with Larry B. to the trucking co. to pick up his Colorado rebuild FI EJ-22. Threw it right on the mount we did! That thing must weigh a ton! LOL

His modified Ecu & harness from Don Parham arrived the next day. And all these wires do WHAT? That machine's as good as done now!

Not a shred of wire in it yet, Where's the aspirin?

Same engine Sparrowhawk is using.

[CLS447]

Hey Dean, sorta like cowl induction on the 75 vette, Low pressure, more air. Of course I was hoping to mount it facing forward, it would have been right against the back of the mast, even if I could have routed the heat duct that way.

I think the RAF mounts them forward, but doesn't the cabin block the airflow or did they have that low pressure thing already figured? I gotta hand it to RAF .... They got the "sizzle" as Paul would say.

The K&N wesite has alot about airflow on it , they say the straight up airhorns are counter productive. I'll have to see what the say about my situation. I was thinking a blower facing forward, I think I could run it off my crank pulley. Or at least an air diverter of some making!

I will be lookin at this closely for RPM loss.... I can't spare it. Can't wait to see if my contraption works.

[CLS447]

I like to call this my Souza redive Vent, breather,fill, sight glass, no mess recirculating, cooling vessel with reserve & shut off! What do ya think?

[PW_Plack]

Chris,

Chevy's "Cowl Induction" works because there is a high pressure point right where the airflow hits the windshield, not a low pressure point. I'm not sure how functional it is at highway speeds.

[Dean_Dolph]

Pure genius, is that what you wanted to hear? :D

What are you using for a 'cooling' vessel and a shutoff valve? The vessel looks familiar.

[Dean_Dolph]

Paul, you are absolutely correct.

If it wasn't for the weight penalty and the impracticality of it, I would suggest that Chris try to mount a diffuser pointed into the air flow in a place as conveniently close to the filter as possible. And then run some smooth ducting that had as few bends as possible between the two.

For those who aren't familiar with a diffuser I did some 'googling' and the 2nd page* http://www.snowgoercanada.com/tech_ram_air.shtml that popped up had some interesting info. I can't comment on the validity of any info on this page except the next to the last paragraph where it talks about diffusers. Diffusers are a pure Bernoulli application as explained in that paragraph.

I used to think that the belly intake on a P-51 was a diffuser but I can't find any reference to it. All I've got to say is that it sure looks like one! 'Cause it looks like the intake body expands to be larger than the intake. This would allow the air velocity to slow and build some pressure. Free supercharging anyone?

*Interestingly this was about the only reference to engine air intakes that I found in my short perusal on the 6100 pages found.

[CLS447]

Thanks Dean! So at the base of the widshield, there is high pressure? I think there is a vacuum operated flap that opens when you punch the gas pedal. My dad has a 75 convert Vette. Over 100,000 miles on it. With a stock Hp rating of only 195, when you punch it on the highway & the cowl ind. kicks in, it sounds cool. Still a strong 350, even with the new emmissions crap for a 75, first year for a cat converter.

I got that mini catch can from Jeggs, $50. Ok I exagerated, it might not cool to well but I can lie can't I? It came with 2 90 fittings in the top & a petcock on the bottom.

[CLS447]

Here is my seat support bracket. It works great!

[barnstorm2]

More Picts!

Come on Chris, surely you have some more you can post? How close are you?

[CLS447]

Installed the vinyl graphics on my tail last night. Here is a pic. It is hard to see but this is yellow laid over orange. The colors match the Harley decals that I have to put on the winglets of the H Stab. Not sure how I want to "advertise" for Air Command yet. Probably won't use the decals that came with the kit. Any ideas on a classy logo?

[CLS447]

Moved my radiator to the back side of the engine mount post to get it away from the heat of my exhaust. Not crazy about the hose connections, just trying to see if my radiator is going to work or not. Trying to avoid the expense of buying a custom aluminum radiator. I will be checking out radiators at Mentone.

[ben]

chris, like the flames

[StanFoster]

Chris: Nice work...I will look you up at Mentone....Stan

[KenSandyEggo]

"Any ideas on a classy logo?"

Yeah. "TOUCH THIS GYRO OR SIT IN IT AND YOU'RE DEAD, WANKER!"

[GyroRon]

How bout this one....

A$$, GAS, OR GRASS OR NO RIDE!

[Vance]

Hi Ken, I don't know what a wanker is. I asume from the context that is ment to diminish but I would like to know what it means. Thank You, Vance

[barnstorm2]

Chris,

Good to see new pictures!

What are you using for your elbows in the cooling system hoses?

[CLS447]

Thanks guys, but I meant a classy Air Command logo.

Tim,
Checked all the auto supply houses and noone had 1" elbow or couplings. Checked my Dad's warehouse and found plastic well pipe fittings. I hate to use brass because of the weight, but I sure ain't going to be using these for anything other than testing on the ground. I'm not sure of their temp rating. Sure could use some ideas from anybody. What are you using Tim?

[ben]

chris ever think about using thin wall conduit or copper tubing and bend the 90's with a tubing bender

[barnstorm2]

I'm looking for options myself.

Anyone know the temp rating of PVC?

I made a mockup whilst I am waiting on a metal replacement using a PVC T but I don't plan to fly it until I can find the temp rating or a suitable replacement.

[GyroRon]

I ordered my 90 degree fittings - 11 of them total - for my Dominator from Lockwood. They weren't more than 10 or 15 bucks total. I ended up needed one more and went to lowes and showed the plumbing guy the fitting and he showed me a area that had boxes and boxes of the same parts. They were a little - but not alot - cheaper at Lowes....

don't know if they are best thing for aviation but Lockwood sells them and has for years.....

[KenSandyEggo]

Wanker = jerk-off or masturbator (literal). Non-literal = geek, nerd (usual, common meaning).

[Vance]

Thank you Ken, Vance

[CLS447]

Ron A. , How you doin? Comin to Mentone or not?

LEAF also has plastic 1" fittings. Are you comfortable with them?

I am impressed with the speed in which you finished your Dom. How is the family of the previous owner doin? How are those shocks workin out?

I just have to finalize a few things like my throttle handles, reroute fuel line with new filter, finish dual stick(T-stick), Radiator & exhaust, Valve cover breathers, some more decals, a couple tube caps, & a few details.

I dont want to be working on it at the airport so I want it 100% before I haul it there. I am very anxious to do the perfomance/ flight test, & to teach Shar how to taxi/drive it. Also Blade management, but for flight it will be just me , 10 gal of fuel & 2 94lb bags of portland cement. Let's see what this puppy can do! This won't be till after Mentone. I'm goin nuts!!!!!

Here I am thiking "I'd rather be flying"!

[GyroRon]

Chris I have pretty much decided to bail on mentone. It is just too far away to go for only two days. I would spend as much or more time on the road than I get to spend there at the fly in. that sucks! If I could take off the whole week it would be different. I want to go very badly and want to show off my dominator too :) but I need to work next week and can't take off for the whole week and just don't think I will make it Sorry. I DO hope you and Stan and the rest of you Northerners come down to South Carolina for ROC. And I hope you will park with the rest of us and now be a hermit like last year, parked way out by yourself!

the Dominator has a short list of things that still need fixing or attention of some type. The front leaf spring is too weak and sags, the rotor tach is reading way too low, The pre rotator system needs flushing and refilling, The cyclic needs a bend towards the back as now the stick is too far forwards in flight, Blades still need one more shim under the teeterblock to get the tracking perfect, and now for some reason the gyro won't fly feet off without a slight nose to the left yaw but I can find no reason for it to do this, and I still need to do a few other things like mount my radio and so on.

The shocks are fine, I aired them up with nitrogen to 200 Psi and they looked okay for a few days then sagged again, so I took it to another airport and he had a special thing for boosting air pressure from a normal air compressor system and we used it to pump the shocks up to 550 psi to get them to the firmness I wanted. And so far since then they have been great, maybe a tad too stiff if anything.

I kept Ashelys widow I bought the gyro from updated as I built it and sent her some pics and a email after I flew it. She is both happy her Husbands gyro is built and flying and also sad of course it wasn't her husband that got to be the one in the seat. But overall I believe she is doing real good all things considered.

If you still have more hold ups on your gyro let me know, I work fast and can have her in the air in about a week!

[CLS447]

Thanks, Ron but I'd rather do it right! LMFAO

[CLS447]

A few pics today

[CLS447]

Here's another

[CLS447]

One more ,Goodnight!

[Dean_Dolph]

Ron, just a reminder to be careful with the cyclic. Remember what happened to Bill Parsons.

For those that don't know, and I don't recall all the details, it was reported that Bill modified his cyclic by bending it improperly and then had it fail at altitude on the next flight with a passenger. Not good.

[CLS447]

First off we will miss you at Mentone.

We really want to come to ROC. We'll bring one machine or the other depending on what happens.

As for parking closer to you....
We run a generator and didn't want to disturb anybody. We had 3 dogs with us and didn't want you to step in a pile of doggie doo. We are very noisy at night and my dogs bark at everything. Also someone had to take Catfish & MJ's camping spot. I also like to relief myself out the side door and didn't want to "scare" anybody. We figured we were safe from you down there. I am not a hermit.

However, even with all that rain we had a great time and really can't wait until this year. Hope we can come.

[CLS447]

With a cool campsite like this, you must have been the first one there.

[GyroRon]

I had a great time last year, and yes I was there early - the second person set up for camping - I did not like the rain, but still has a good time anyway. This year has to be better.

Chris I hear ya, when I had to pee I just stepped behind Dave Dewinters motorhome and pissed on the fence! Also at ROC camping WITH power - 24/7 power and quiet power at that - is only a couple more bucks a night. The doggie poo would not have been good to step in. So I understand now. Leave the dogs at home this year or get a pooper scooper and come down to our end!

[GyroRon]

Dean I got a steel stick and I was told they aren't are fragile as the aluminum sticks like the one Parsons bent and had broke on him. I plan to bend it in a proper pipe bender. Thanks for the heads up.

[CLS447]

Ron,
We always pick up after our dogs. I'll bet you were peeing on Dave's tires. LOL
I don't have a land power connection yet. I could have done it, but I was beat.

I don't have any pictures of Todd P., who's got one, I am forgetting what he looks like.

Does anybody know who I'm talking about :D

Love that Red Dominator!!!

[GyroRon]

Red dominator is back on the market for sale now. That was Dave dewinter and Ora Cook there under the tent. Me showing some nipple too I guess. Here is a pic of Todd - he is the third one to the right

[CLS447]

When I posted that, I missed that. Thanks for pointing out the breast shot.... OOO baby!

Hey Todd, It's good to SEE you again! My one niece went to Washington state a week or 2 ago to see a Dead concert, some gourge or something. Know anything about this place? I think the Allman Bros. played with them. I haven't spoken with her yet. I think she took her newborn son/ my great nephew, Samuel with her.

Ron, leave my dogs at home? Didn't you like them, or didn't they like you? I am not happy about leaving them for a week now! When I camp I like to take them with.

[ToddP]

Hi Chris, I'll have to find a picture of me smiling....I usually am, must have been a frustrating day of gyro building :)

[ToddP]

Chris, The Gorge is this amazing amphitheatre overlooking the Columbia River. It is about 25 miles away from where I grew up. It is in the middle of the state and about 140 miles from both Seattle & Spokane - Right in the Middle. Dave Mathews recently released a live collection recorded at the Gorge. I just bought it yesterday, 2 CD's + DVD w/ Concert footage plus a documentary about the Band and the Gorge. There are several bands that play it every year, apparently its kind of become one of those places that draws artists because its such beautiful location. With all that said....I've never been to a concert there, can you believe it? Always one of those things we're going to do, and just don't get done. Maybe Dave Mathews this September.

[ToddP]

Dave Matthews Band - The Gorge

[CLS447]

Todd, you do look like you might have had a slight headache there!?

That is the nicest shot of a Dominator frame I have ever seen!

Wow , thanks for the Gorge info! I am so jealous of my niece, Stella !!

Looks like you gotta go! How is the CD, Just might have to get that one.

[GyroRon]

Building a gyro in the Firestation! well at least it is a clean workplace! :)

Todd when is El Mirage? You going to pick me up from the Airport? ROC??????????

[CLS447]

Get er done !!!!!!