Barnett

[R-Sigma]

I had a great time building mine. Took about 1000 hours, started from scratch, but I made some modifications.

A Subaru 2.2 or 2.5 liter engine works well for power as an alternate to a Lycoming, Continental or Rotax. I would suggest at least 135 hp if your want to go with a passenger. 165 is much, much better. I bought the body from Jerrie before he died. Finding a source for that may be a real problem. If you have fiberglass skills, you should be able to do it yourself. It is a fairly simple design. As mentioned above, two pieces, top and bottom halves.

Welding skills are a must. Some basic machining capabilities would be very helpful. The rotor head requires a milling machine and lathe or a cnc machine. Or you can buy a different style head and modify the mount and the control rods accordingly. I used Jerrie's design and am happy with it.

I'm on the forum more as the weather gets cold, I'd be happy to answer any questions you have.

I had a great time building mine. Took about 1000 hours, started from scratch, but I made some modifications.

A Subaru 2.2 or 2.5 liter engine works well for power as an alternate to a Lycoming, Continental or Rotax. I would suggest at least 135 hp if your want to go with a passenger. 165 is much, much better. I bought the body from Jerrie before he died. Finding a source for that may be a real problem. If you have fiberglass skills, you should be able to do it yourself. It is a fairly simple design. As mentioned above, two pieces, top and bottom halves.

Welding skills are a must. Some basic machining capabilities would be very helpful. The rotor head requires a milling machine and lathe or a cnc machine. Or you can buy a different style head and modify the mount and the control rods accordingly. I used Jerrie's design and am happy with it.

I'm on the forum more as the weather gets cold, I'd be happy to answer any questions you have.

Larry,
I do have questions. Are there any changes that most people would recommend after accumulating a fair amount of flight time? In other words, what would you and other builders upgrade/change/reinforce/modify if you were to build another J4B-2? Are there any weak areas?
As I mentioned before, I am in the final stages of building a Long EZ, and there are several of this type of modifications that resulted from many years and hours of flight by many owners.
Thanks!
Patrick

 

[j4flyer]

Bob,
Sorry, I don't have the 5 blade prop anymore. It was 58" but I sold the extra blades to get me to 3. It was a laminated maple Precision Prop, so it would only fit on a Precision hub. Ground adjustable. I don't believe they are in business anymore. If you are interested in those, let me know.

Wayne,
It was a mess, the frame was bent and the door was bent also. I don't think they want to see me back again with a new gyro (or anything for that matter). It was also expensive, even with the insurance. Something about a "Stupid" clause.

Yes it was heavy, I used the 7.5 inch offset Barnett gearbox. I don't remember the weight, but it was probably not the best choice. I was impressed with his original "Shoebox" gearbox, but apparently he had problems with that unit and talked me into the big one. It was heavy and a HP hog. The oil level in it had several gears always submerged in oil and making a lot of heat. A belt drive would have been much lighter, and less HP loss. It did look cool though. Gold anodized aluminum case and cooling fins. I had all the equipment to fly at night as well, It was EAB not ELSA.

The O-200 was Jerrie's original engine for the J4B single seat craft. I talked with Herm Wimmer and Howard Merkel who both had a J4B2s and they both felt that the O-200 engine was too small for flying two up. They both had Continental engines, although I don't remember the size for sure. Howard's may have been an O-320. They were able to get good deals on used engines, I was unable to find one nearby at the time I was building.

Mr Butler am I reading this correctly that you have a 58” 3 blade ground adjustable prop ? If so, yes, I’m interested. You can call or text me at 530-nine zero 8- one-one 72. Thanks much.

 

[R-Sigma]

One other question...
Does anyone have detailed information (plans, drawings, photos, etc.) on the Barnett Hydraulic pre-rotator or the Barnett engine re-drive or both?
Thanks!!

 

[L_Butler]

Patrick,
If you have a set of recent plans, they are quite complete. As in most fabrications, Jerrie made changes/improvements as more kits were sold. The biggest change I made to mine was the engine mount. His original design with the offset gearbox had the engine below the prop. I didn't like the resultant lowering of the c.g. I wanted to flip the gearbox and put the engine above the prop thus raising the c.g. So I designed my own mount. This raised the engine by 7 inches. This change put the craft much closer to center line thrust.

The other change would be the canopy latching mechanism. The canopy was rather flexible so latching it became a matter of twisting things until everything lined up and slid into place. Since I usually flew with the canopy off, improvement modifications were on the back burner. Most other J4B2 owners made changes to the latching system as well. This was not a big deal, but a nuisance to deal with before flight. The single seater did not have the problems with the canopy. The canopy and body are much smaller, therefore stiffer. So the latches lined up easily. It was primarily a problem with the two seater since the canopy and body were so large that flexibility was an issue.

Sorry, I don't have any plans on either the pre-rotator or the gearbox (re-drive). I don't believe he sold plans for the pre-rotator. He did not sell or provide plans for the re-drive. I asked for a set when I bought his re-drive. He would not provide any drawings. I had to disassemble it to see the insides and determine the bearing numbers. The gears were made by a local (to me) racing machine shop. They were standard parts. The bearings were also stock items, however, I'd have to take it apart to tell you what they are. I wrote it down, but have since moved and that information is not readily available. I can send photos of the pre-rotator if you are interested.

Sorry, the Precision 3 blade prop is no longer available. I sold one blade when we moved and only have two left. I forgot about that in the chaos of the move. The hub is for 3 blades, so the assembly is incomplete. If you are looking for replacements for another Precision prop, we can work with that.

Larry

 

[R-Sigma]

Larry,
That's great information!
I have drawings of the flex cable pre-rotator, but it's hard to make out the details. I would really appreciate some pictures. It's not at all urgent, just if you have time.
Thanks,
Patrick

 

[okikuma]

Larry,

Have you picked up and flown your "new" J4B2 from Canada?

Wayne

 

[L_Butler]

Larry,

Have you picked up and flown your "new" J4B2 from Canada?

Wayne

Wayne,
I have it in hand but have had a problem registering the trailer that came with it.

It used to be a simple matter to register a trailer, take a photo and the bill of sale, and pay your money to the department of revenue. No longer. Now I have to get a emissions certification and pay an import tax. I don't understand why I need an emissions certification for a trailer, or how I even get someone to certify the emissions, but the Notary won't issue plates without it. My local garage mechanic scratched his head and gave me the "shrug".

So I can't get it to the airport without plates on the trailer, and I can't get plates without an emissions certification for the trailer. Where's the guy from the government who is here to help me?

Larry

 

[okikuma]

Wayne,
I have it in hand but have had a problem registering the trailer that came with it.

It used to be a simple matter to register a trailer, take a photo and the bill of sale, and pay your money to the department of revenue. No longer. Now I have to get a emissions certification and pay an import tax. I don't understand why I need an emissions certification for a trailer, or how I even get someone to certify the emissions, but the Notary won't issue plates without it. My local garage mechanic scratched his head and gave me the "shrug".

So I can't get it to the airport without plates on the trailer, and I can't get plates without an emissions certification for the trailer. Where's the guy from the government who is here to help me?

Larry

Larry, how dare you try to register a trailer from another country, or so it seems. The speed of government.

Wayne

 

[Mayfield]

Darn! This is the first time I noticed this thread. I thought it was titled "Barrett."

 

[Tyger]

I don't understand why I need an emissions certification for a trailer, or how I even get someone to certify the emissions, but the Notary won't issue plates without it. My local garage mechanic scratched his head and gave me the "shrug".

This is in PA?? I would get a "second opinion" on the requirements there!

 

[Aerofoam]

If the trailer import is too a big of a hassle, you could probably just abandon it's identity and treat it as a new title.
maybe not completely kosher, but sometimes bureaucracy just needs a bypass operation.....

 

[MikeBoyette]

Nothing like dealing with the communist state of Californication.

 

[WaspAir]

This is in PA?? I would get a "second opinion" on the requirements there!

 

[Tyger]

That makes sense... and no mention of an emissions certificate.

 

[L_Butler]

Well, that's interesting. In PA the Notaries typically handle title transfers and vehicle plates, etc. My local notary seems to be reading from a different script. She even gave me the emissions form number I needed to fill out. Nothing like the instruction sheet you provided J R.

I hate to confront her with that, but it sure makes more sense to me than an emission certificate for a trailer. Hopefully she will accept the Fact Sheet as a reasonable instruction document.

Thanks for your help J R.

 

[Tyger]

When I lived in PA, they had companies just to help you fill out the paperwork, and then to courier it to H'burg to get your plates. They didn't bill themselves as mere notaries, although I'm sure they were that too.
I wouldn't bother confronting anyone, I'd just go to a different place.