ChrisBolkan

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Everything posted by ChrisBolkan



  1. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Kitfox IV Standard Gear for sale   

    I think but am not positive that the KF TW main gear does not sweep forward like the Avid TW main gear. I seem to remember that the gear attach points are further forward on the KF than on the Avid fuselage. (But I DO NOT know for sure and have very little experience with kitfoxes) At the very least double check. Or maybe someone here knows for sure. 
     
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  2. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Matco brake fluid replenish   

    I always fill from the bottom. I don't think it matters how you get the old fluid out but your idea sounds great.
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  3. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Dean Wilson ‘40 Special’   

    This plane just has regular rectangular wings but it looks like he copied his Elipse wing struts.
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  4. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Dean Wilson ‘40 Special’   

    Here are some pictures i took of it in Deans shop. I was very impressed with it. He made the prop that is on it in these pics. I took a picture of the jig he used to make the prop. Pretty cool.






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  5. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Do I have the correct gear?   

    You have tricycle gear in the TW position. Tailwheel gear has longer legs and is swept forward.
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  6. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Wing Stand   

    Nice!
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  7. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Catalina Project   

    Thanks! Yes the gear moves so easily from extended to retract it is amazing. I feel lucky that the idea to use a bungie came to me :-)
    Regarding the battery, I don't know. I just took the fuse to the airport to put the wings on and I will do a W&B. and figure out if I need to move it or not. That's where it was. I'll move it if W&B says I should. Good call and thank you!
    I have it all re wired and re plumbed, have run the engine so its pretty much ready to go. I just got an email from the FAA yesterday asking me what phase 1 fly-off radius I wanted! Can you imagine that? Since when do they ask? They have been wonderful to work with on this project.
     
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  8. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic New here just bought an Avid   

    Welcome! This is an incredibly helpful and knowledgeable group.
    That looks like a nose wheel weldment in that fuselage. Worth it weight in gold IMHO. That means the plane can be easily converted between trike and TW configurations making it more saleable to a much broader audience.
    One thing I notice is that the fuse appears to be sitting on trike gear positioned in the TW mounts. If you are planning to fly it as TW you will need the TW gear legs which are longer and swept forward.
    But that and many other details are a long way from being important right now.
    Congratulations on your new plane! Avids are awesome.
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  9. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic SAVE the Ellipse!   

    I almost bought an Ellipse! It was a beautiful plane. Could fly very fast and very slow. This was many years ago. It was an unfinished "kit" The wings came completed because they were so complex. Made of wood. Then common sense took over (for me anyway) when I realized just how difficult it would be to repair a wing if a ground loop or something damaged it. And I would be just the one that something like that because I like to fly and land lots of places that are sub optimal. I ended up passing on it but it was a GORGEOUS plane and would have been incredibly practical except for the complexity of the wing.
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  10. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic EDMO   

    Bye Ed! You are missed.
    Chris
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  11. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic NEWBIE   

    Hi! my Catalina has gull wing doors. Here are a couple pictures (including one in back of my home where I intend to play a lot :-) . I have not flown mine yet, but it's getting close. It's ready to move to the airport and put the wings on. I need the phase one flyoff moved to my area. That is in process with the FAA now. I need a condition inspection since I am not the builder, and I need to do a W&B once it is together. Mine has a blue head 582 which I just fired up a week ago and runs fine. That's a relief. I have re plumbed and re wired the entire aircraft. It is pretty much ready to go and I am getting excited.





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  12. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Catalina Project   

    I ended up not going with an electric jackscrew for the Catalina landing gear. After studying the manual I could not see how the helper spring was going to work very well with its weird angle change over the throw of the handle, and the builder never installed the spring plate to the floor of the plane so I did not have a mount for the other end of the assist spring. So I had an idea. I ended up using a used but not worn out landing gear bungie cord to provide the assistance. It works amazingly well! I am actually blown away. With the wheels off the ground, the lever is EASY to move from wheels down to retract and back. It will be no problem whatsoever in flight which was a big concern for me. It's so easy to move back and forth that I see no reason for electric retract. The assist is very strong and consistent because the percentage length change in the bungie is minimal so the assistance force throughout the range of motion is consistent and comes from the right angle throughout the range of motion. The bungie is completely out of the way when floor boards and seat panels are installed. A picture is attached.
    I also completely rewired the Catalina and everything works except the tach which I need to sort out. Replumbed everything replacing all lines and leaky valves and primers. Started the engine for the first time since I have owned it and it runs beautifully (except for tach not working) And last but not least finally got the registration transferred to me and am in the process of getting the operating limitations updated for phase one fly off from my local airport.
    So after years of inching along the ball is really starting to roll downhill towards the finish!




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  13. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Avid Model C Landing Gear   

    Yes I believe all are same through MKIV. Magnum is different.
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  14. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Whoa... $50k for a FWB KF7 STi ?!!   

    And here are a couple pics from the Wallowa mountains and Banks Lake with the Fat Avid. Can't carry the bicycle and have to carry some gear on the jury struts, but still not too bad! I have red and blue dry bags that I match the Nav light color with. I think it is a cool touch 




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  15. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic MK4 engine choice?   

    They do require 10LB min in the tail with 912! Could be tools or battery though so doesn't have to be dead weight. I even have 10LB in my Fat Avid tail with the 912. That said I have no complaints whatsoever with the 912 once I put a slipper clutch and high torque starter on it. Before that I was plagued with issues, but I have an older S model engine. After the slipper clutch and high torque starter the engine has been a dream.
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  16. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Whoa... $50k for a FWB KF7 STi ?!!   

    Here's a couple shots taking all that camping gear AND a bicycle WITHOUT any bags attached to the jury struts! This is what I could carry with my Magnum.



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  17. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Whoa... $50k for a FWB KF7 STi ?!!   

    I Love my Fat Avid!
    SO much room. I just camped in the Wallowa mountains and took my wife, a 7 person ultralight Tentipi, (12 feet diameter, 10 feet tall in the center) a wood stove for it and camping chairs in addition to all the normal stuff you need to camp. I did have small bags tied to the jury struts. But it all fit and I wasn't over gross. Try that with a kitfox. Highlander yes, but any other KF or Avid no way. Well a Magnum can carry all that, but its a completely different league of plane.
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  18. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic MK4 engine choice?   

    Try and fix the Jabiru?
    Go to a 912?
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  19. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Kitfox 8 wheel hubs for 1 1/4" axel   

    Very nice! 
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  20. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Kitfox 4 build # 2   

    Wow. I get 100 lightly loaded with a 912S in my fat avid and that is at like 5400 RPM. More like 85-90 at gross when it is hot out.
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  21. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Kitfox 4 build # 2   

    Nice Jim! That will be a real ripper when you finish it up! If being that close doesn't fire you up I don't know what will! 
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  22. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Another broken flaperon hanger   

    Nice repair!
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  23. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Getting the film off of (old) flaperons?   

    Glad you found something that works. I did not mean a LOT of heat. Sometimes just bringing a film or decal up to a "hot to the touch" will allow it to peel where almost nothing else will. Boat decals and license plat tabs come to mind.
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  24. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Getting the film off of (old) flaperons?   

    is it a peel-off coating? Have you tried heat? Just a thought.
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  25. ChrisBolkan added a post in a topic Whoa... $50k for a FWB KF7 STi ?!!   

    Wouldn't the dollar be BETTER off against other currencies if it were sound currency as opposed to fiat?
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