SparrowHawk II Build

[Russ Hobbs]

Heather
I think you've set a new standard personally. definitely a lot of work, but the pay off is outstanding. Russ

 

[Gyro_Kai]

Russ,
I plan to use my aircraft for cross-country flights, and I think that the finish is a safety item (higher visibility) in case I ever go down.
Heather

Heather,

the polishing is more than that. Every, ever so small un-eveness of the surface may under vibration extend to a crack. Like tearing up fabric, it becomes easy once the first few threads have given.
I definitely consider smoothed surfaces to be a safety feature in terms of stability.

And hey, if not that, it still really looks fantastic.

Kai.

 

[lanichol]

Heather,

How will you handle the valve covers? I have both a 2.2 and 2.5 engine and was considering polishing. Would the chrome paint work?

 

[Hognose]

Gee,

that polished engine mount is beautiful. Not a word I've ever used on a Sparrowhawk engine mount before, but the polish really brings out the interesting shape and structure. Thanks for sharing your progress with us, Heather!

cheers

-=K=-

 

[Heather Poe]

How will you handle the valve covers?

lanichol
I was planning on polishing them as well.
Heather

 

[Harry_S.]

Hmmm...I've been told by some engineer that if I ever covered my valve covers with "paint", I should use a dark color...black is best...to help dissipate heat. Some other light colors will cause to retain heat.

Just for info purposes.


Cheers

 

[Heather Poe]

My EFIS Arrived

My EFIS Arrived

It is a Blue Mountain Avionics EFIS/One with a repeater display. I set it up near my kitchen, with the GPS antenna on the window sill. It is set to show a synthetic vision view in the ADI. Terrain colored red is terrain that I can fly into. The range of the moving map may be set as wide as 300 nm and zoom in as tight as 4 nm. I will be getting a second, backup unit that will be between these screens and will be normally set to the engine monitoring page.

 

[Heather Poe]

"Chrome" Shock Absorbers

"Chrome" Shock Absorbers

I thought these were the least attractive part of many builds, but I like the look of mine.

 

[Heather Poe]

Synthetic Vision from 3500 AGL

Synthetic Vision from 3500 AGL

Altitude was simulated by adjusting air pressure. Lake Sammamish is in the background.

 

[automan1223]

cost ?

cost ?

I thought these were the least attractive part of many builds, but I like the look of mine.

what does that cost you ?

 

[All_In]

Looking good Heather!

 

[Heather Poe]

what does that cost you ?

About $30.00

 

[scottessex]

Not to be a party pooper, Looks great, but: but 4130 is susceptible to hydrogen embrittlement in chrome, nickel, and cadmium plating solutions and in hydrochloric-acid pickling.
And after reading the PRA article about the failure of the anodized alum control rods, this might be something to consider, just an FYI.

 

[Heather Poe]

Not to be a party pooper, Looks great, but: but 4130 is susceptible to hydrogen embrittlement in chrome, nickel, and cadmium plating solutions and in hydrochloric-acid pickling.
And after reading the PRA article about the failure of the anodized alum control rods, this might be something to consider, just an FYI.

Thanks for the warning Scott. GBA warned me about hydrogen embrittlement. That is why chrome is in quotes. It is actually a primer, then paint with elemental silver, then a clear coat. No real chrome was used.

 

[Russ Hobbs]

Heather and Scott, are you referring to the finish on post 78. If so Heather are you saying you used a primer followed by painting the chrome finish. If that's the case, they look excellent.

 

[scottessex]

Very nice Heather, you did your homework, good.
Is that an ALSA coating?

 

[Heather Poe]

Very nice Heather, you did your homework, good.
Is that an ALSA coating?

Scott,
No, it is not an ALSA coating, see posts #37 and #42, http://www.coatofchrome.com/, for painting my main gear struts and the nose gear. I got samples of the ALSA paint and it was fairly dark and gray, so I didn't use it.
Heather

 

[Harry_S.]

Not to hijack this thread but...There is an article on anodizing alum. in this Feb. issue of the EAA Sport Aviation, pg.86, with pictures. Anodizing alum. especially small wall thickness is not recommended. In fact, a no-no.


Cheers

 

[Greg Mitchell]

Heather or anyone else,

Can you help me?

Do Sparrow Hawks have and anti servo tab on their Tall Tails?

Does anyone know how much they weigh?

The surface area of the HS and the VS?

Cheers,

Mitch.

 

[Greg Lockhart]

Mitch,
I, unfortunately, just happen to have an anti-servo tab lying on my bench. I say unfortunately because I should have had my SH built a long time ago :Cry: The tab weighs 12.3 oz. I forgot to measure it.. but I can do that the next time I'm in the garage if you need me to. The hinge is bonded between the trailing edges of the two vertical fin skins at the bottom. The picture of the red & black one is of a tab that was added after the tail was assembled.
Greg Lockhart