skypics

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Everything posted by skypics



  1. skypics added a post in a topic Covering butt rib   

    When you paint leave a 2-inch diameter unpainted area over the tank. This will allow light into the tank to make it easier to see fuel level as you look at the root end of the tank.  I actually cut a hole in the fabric at the root end of the tank just above the fuel viewing window.
    I also made two fuel level marks. Five and ten gallon level marks with tail up and separate marks for tail down. 
    I have the under chambered wings.
    John M
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  2. skypics added a topic in Avid Model IV   

    Better aileron response

    Have you ever had a larger person sitting in the passenger seat and during landing or takeoff found you needed to input rapid and large aileron displacement to compensate for wind gusts?
    I have whe I flew a young lady with what we might call "thunder thighs."
    The stick slapped against her and I barely had enough deflection to keep the wing tip from touching the ground.
    This was on my model B. So I found that I could reverse the bell crank at the place where the aileron push rod connects to the mixer.
    So I have finally made this same mod on my MK4. 
    At cruise it takes a bit more force to move the ailerons, but you really don't have to deflect them much at cruise. It's diring low and slow that the augmented deflection came in handy.
    During my testing today I also founf the if I deployed just a bit of flaps two things happened.
    The aileron pressures were greatly reduced and the roll rate was awsome. Secondly the TAS increased about 3 MPH with that little bit of flap deployed. I found after landing that the previous owner had a bit of reflex in the flaps which while it can benefit with extra cruise on aircraft with normal flaps, it actually makes aileron movement harder.
    After landing I adjusted the mixer to add 3 degees down in the clean position.
     
    I took photos showing before and after. You will notice that one arm is longer thn the other so with the short one now connected to the aileron push rod a small movement makes a larger one at the mixer.
    John M
     
     
     

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    • 784 views


  3. skypics added a post in a topic New legs for the Avid   

    Good to keep in mind when fairing out aircraft parts is..the fairings also add "wetted surface" which adds a bit of drag. However, if done correctly, the added wet surface drag is less than the drag reduced by fairing.
     
    John M
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  4. skypics added a post in a topic N139AH   

    High Country:
    I flew my model B for a couple thousand hours before I totaled it on a High Sierra strip. 
    I removed the 582 and installed a Jabiru 2200 so I had no water cooling issues.
    I had to add a belly mount water cooler when I flew behind a 582 to keep it cool in hot SoCal summers. The side mount couldn't cut it. You may want to consider the belly mount before you cut into that nice cowl.
    The belly mount has its issues being that it takes in heat from the muffler going back to reduce the efficiency of the belly cooler. I overcame this by dropping the belly cooler down a couple inches and then running a sheet of aluminum from under the muffler and ducted the heat over the top of the belly mount.
    I highly recommend using the cheek coolers, but you would have to cut into that nice cowl
    I notice that you have installed diamond steel plates in front of the pedals for your heels to rest on. You will find that any thickness added to the this area raises your feet so that your toes may get hung up on the firewall crossbar and interfere with the braking. Secondly, you will want your heels to slide easily on the heel plate, but I suspect the diamond plate, while looking nice, may interfere with the ability of your heels to easily slide on that plate.
    I now have a MK 4 which offers a bit more leg room with 135 MPH Vne and 1150 Gross. As I recall the B model is 91 MPH and 911 gross. I exceeded those limits many times and believe they are very conservative. Although... it's your butt on the line.
    I frequent the MK 4 Avid Forum if you need to contact me.
    I have attached a photo of my B model.
    John M

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  5. skypics added a post in a topic Easy Seat Removal   

    Wolves:
    I appreciate the extra legroom of my MK4 as opposed to my Model B.
    I placed an aluminum over plate above my rudder peddals to prevent me from getting my toe cought under the frame work on y MK4.
    John M
     
     
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  6. skypics added a post in a topic Trailing Edge Wire   

    I had the trailing wire in the Model B I totaled on a High Sierra strip, but my replacement MK4 does not use that system. In fact I thought all MK4s had  the straigt edge instead of the bat wing.
    I also have 3 false ribs between the main ribs. A friend bough a MK4 that had 4 false ribs between the main ribs. Sure did help the climb.
    John M
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  7. skypics added a post in a topic Where is the MK4 section?   

    Thanks for the tip on where to find the Avid MK4 section.
     
    John M
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  8. skypics added a topic in Technical tasks   

    Earthx Battery
    While moving my Earthx battery from behind the seat on my Avid MK4 (By the way where is the MK4 section of this forum?) to the firewall to eliminate the line loss of two meters of #4 battery cable for easier starts in cold weather, I shorted out the battery causing its battery management system to shut down the battery.
    By putting it in the Battery Tender Jr charger while jumping it with another battery, I got it to put out voltage again, but alas, the fault light was always on. It cranks the starter much faster now with the shorter cable.
    Earthx said to go on line and fill out the warranty form and they would send me a a sticker to put on the battery to send it back to them where they will take the top off and see if they can fix it. In the meantime I ordered another battery from Amazon ($375 OUCH). 
    The Earthx battery (4 pounds) replaced my Odyssey battery (16 pounds) and cranks my Jabiru 2200 MUCH faster. Especially in cold weather.
    John M
    • 1 reply
    • 454 views


  9. skypics added a topic in Avidfoxflyers General Hangar   

    Wing Strut Fairing
    I have flown the model B STOL and now the MK4 STOL and had noticed when flying that I could see a vibrating ripple in the fabric just behind the leading wing strut.
    I placed yarn telltales in that area and was amazed and mystified at what was revealed.  
    When climbing out the yarns were flowing back in a streamlined fashion as expected. However, when I leveled out the yarns actually turned 180 degrees and faced FORWARD!
    Finding a wing cuff for an Avid is impossible so I went through many iterations until I hit on the right combination. 
    Now the yarns stay streamlined al all AOA. Can't say how much drag was eliminated, but it should be substantial.
    To see this change check out skypics234 on YouTube. 
     
    John M
    • 2 replies
    • 827 views


  10. skypics added a post in a topic Where is the MK4 section?   

    Since I no longer see a MK4 section I'll post this info here.After the original failure I just ordered another one 
    I use an Earthx battery on my Avid MK4. It is muck lighter than the Odyssey and cranks my Jabiru 2200 much faster fro quicker starts in cold weather.
    I recently moved the battery from behind the back seat to the engine side of the firewall. This eliminated about 5 feet of #4 battery cable reducing the line loss substantially. 
    While doing this change I acidentally shorted the battery causing the fault light to come on. The BMS Batterty Management System blocked the output of the battery.
    I read 3.5 VDC. I tried to recover the battery ($375.00 item) by putting on the charger while jumping it with a boost pack similar to what we carry in our cars and airplanes for a quick jump.
    I got the battery back to putting out its normal 13.2 VDC, but the battery fault light was still on. 
    I tried startng the plane and it cranked very well. I flew an hhour with the aircraft charg system applying 14.8 VDC in cruise. The fault light went out.
    I though the proble was resolved when I returned to my home base when I noticed the fault light was not lit. However, it did light much later.
    I called the company and found them to be very cooperative. They said they would look into the internal circuits in the battery, fix it and return it.
    After the original failure I just ordered a new one from Amazon that should arrive today. So I am going to have a spare batter which I will sell at a discount just to recover some costs.
    I'll let you know how this turns out.
    John M
     
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  11. skypics added a topic in Avid and Kitfox parts Suppliers   

    Seat Heater
    Just tried out my new seat heater purchased from KOHLS on sale for $15.00.
    My Avid is drafty..arent they all...so I needed something to take off the chill.
    This seat heater plugs into my cigarette lighter plug. It has a two position..HIGH/LOW...switch and LOW does it for me here in SoCal. Pilots in the fidgid parts may need the HOGH position. Can't tell you the actual current draw, but going from off to HIGH only shows a voltage drop of 1/10 volt on my DYNON.
    Two of my wingmen boiught them when they got tired of me telling them how toasty I was on our cross country trips.
    You can order them from Amazon also for abut $19.
    John M
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    • 622 views


  12. skypics added a post in a topic Where is the MK4 section?   

    What the......?
    I don't see it on the forum which is why I posted this question on the Magnum section.
    I see all the other sections. 
    Any ideas as to why I must be doing something wrong?
    John M
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  13. skypics added a topic in Avid Magnum   

    Where is the MK4 section?
    What happened to the Avid MK4 section?
    John M
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    • 743 views


  14. skypics added a post in a topic Alternator noise!   

    Make sure your headphone jacks are isolated from ground.
    John M
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  15. skypics added a topic in Technical tasks   

    Seat Heater
    It doesn't get very cold here in SoCal, but recently at altitude, I'm seeing as low as 30 F at 9,000 MSL so I dug out my seat heater. 
    I just plug it in the cigarette lighter socket and put it on low and it keeps my back and butt toasty.
    I think I bought it from McMaster Car many moons ago, but I'm sure Amazon must offer them by now.
    I didn't want to go to the trouble of installing a heat muff on the exhaust and all the that involves. 
    So this works for me.
     
    John M
    • 1 reply
    • 609 views


  16. skypics added a post in a topic MATCO Tail wheel shimmy   

    There are enough opinions to go around on tail wheel shimmy.
    MATCO sent me a couple bellville washers to put under the top nut.
    John M
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  17. skypics added a post in a topic MATCO Tail wheel shimmy   

    I fought the same issue with my MATCO single fork tail wheel.
    I found that the shimmy was worse with a passenger in my MK 4 Avid. This is because the tail wheel spring would flatten more with the weight throwing off the geometry.
    I found that the tail wheel had worn parts. Namely the triangle shaped part that the "wings" rest on when in the steering mode was worn so the tail wheel broke into swivel too early. Also MATCO sent me those washer that are bent...can't remeber the name...to put under the top nut. And finally I ran my rudder springs tighter.
    I am seeking a shop that can rebend my tail wheel spring back to the original shape, but am not haveing an shimmy issues.
    John M
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  18. skypics added a post in a topic My idle thoughts on 582 cooling system   

    FWIW here is my feedback on belly mounts vs cheek mounts.
    I currently fly a MK4 with a Jabiru 2200 so no water issues, but prior to the MK4 I flew a model B that came with a side mounted cooler that neve quite made the grade so I installed a belly mount in series with the side mount which cooled properly. Here's what you need to consider...
    Usually the belly mount is mounted somewhere between the main gear or maybe even a bit forward. 
    You will have to deal with the fact that the hot air from the muffler goes directly back to the belly radiator and so does not cool as well as it could.
    What I did to solve this issue was to mount the belly radiator 2 inches below the fulelage and then fabricated a sheet of aluminum that directed the heat from the muffler up over the cooler.
    A year back a friend bought a MK4 nose dragger with a belly mount encased in a plenum like a P51. We could never get the heat down to an acceptable level and then I remembered the issue with heat from the muffler. Fortunately another friend had removed his 582 and installed a Jabiru 2200 so he had two cheek radiators for sale. 
    We removed the belly mount and installed the cheek cooler.Problem solved along with drag reduction which gave us an extra 2-3 MPH cruise.
    The belly mount will need more coolant (weight) due to the extra length of the hoses.
    Stay with the cheek mount for a simpler solution.
    John M
     
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  19. skypics added a post in a topic Little Progress   

    Now might be a good time to figure out how to get more foot room on the pedals. That lower crossbar on the firewall frame will interfere with how much of your foot can fit on the brake pedal.
    I wear a size 9 and I can oly get my tip toes on the top of the brake pedal. If I could get the ball of my foot up om the top of the pedal  I could get better braking.
    Also it is possible to get ypur toe between the top of the brake pedal and that cross bar. 
    Avid MK4 
    John M
     
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  20. skypics added a post in a topic Another Forced Landing - Mine   

    Possible vapor lock???
    I had over 2400 hours behind a grey head 582. No issues.
    I drive a Jabiru 2200 now and like the simplicity.
    It weighs the same as the 582 I removed from my Avid when changing to the 4 stroke.
    John M
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  21. skypics added a post in a topic MY AVID Mk4 RX-1...build   

    How heavy is that engine full up ready to fly?
    John M
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  22. skypics added a post in a topic F7 part for differential ailerons on Avids   

    So how do we order the F7 bellcranks?
     
    John M
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  23. skypics added a post in a topic "The Raven" a kitfox avid clone!!!!!   

    You can install a Subaru but it is very heavy. A friend had on on his MK4. He had to add weight back in front of his tail wheel to keep her from being very nose heavy.
    It performed well and the engine was much cheaper than the usual engines used.
    John M
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  24. skypics added a post in a topic Rotax 582 engine failure. Can you solve the mystery?   

    Ronin:
    Good point. Ultralights have high drag and low mass. 
    So if you are climbing at Vx and the engine craps out at 100 feet agl, you have a second to get th nose down to keep flying speed and have enough reserver to flair out.
    You may notice in the video the front seater pulled BACK in the yoke when the engine died and was still puling back on the way down essentually turning the 500 into a lawn dart.
    Practice those engine outs.
     
    The engine analysis was super professional.
    John M
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  25. skypics added a post in a topic Rotax 582 engine failure. Can you solve the mystery?   

    I only watched  the 1st segment. 
    I had 1200 hours in a GT400 so I can relate to the flight characteristics. The 500 with a passenger is heavier, of course. I fly an avid MK4 now.
    In this incident it is obvious that there was no flair by either the student or the instructor. Therefore, the unnecessary damage and personal injury.
    So what would be a minor incedent became major.
    All engines can fail and ususlly at the worst time. We practice accuracy engine out (dead stopped) landings every month. And I recommend every pilot practice landings with the engine off. There is a significant difference between ideling and stopped engine glide.
    John M
     
     
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