marksires
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Everything posted by marksires
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
Yes, mine is pretty small for a red iron building - 50' x 50'. The picture is only the front half, the 'rigid frame bay'. The back half is mostly C channel with cable braces instead of I-beam columns/trusses.
I'm surprised I haven't had iron workers picketing me, I'm obviously using cheap, unskilled non-union labor!
Florida has a surprising amount of mining - sulphur, phosphate, and other minerals. It is all open strip mining or dredge operations. I was driving I-10 between Jacksonville and Lake City, and saw what I swore was two giant dredges. Since that area is all pine forests, I thought I must be hallucinating. I looked it up on Google Earth, and sure enough, a huge dredging operation is there in the swampy area just outside the pine forest. Some company spun off from Dupont extracting anything they can from the swamp.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Camper Project
Ha! You should set up camp next to the Cozy Girrrrls at Oshkosh. They have what they call 'the little red truck'. It's a semi tractor they had the frame lengthened, and are building their own camper on the back.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
It has been a lot of work to get to this point, but it has been a lot of fun also. It isn't often a computer nerd gets to play with all the cool big boy toys!
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
More progress over this long weekend. Just my son and I this time. With the heat (105 heat index all weekend), and a missing set of hands, progress wasn't as fast, but we did get the rigid bay completed. Found I was missing a column for the front end frame. I thought I had miscounted when I received it, but when I looked at the packing list, they only shipped 1 instead of 2. That will likely delay me some more
The best news so far is that it is dead square just putting it up. I borrowed every come a long and chain hoist I could get my hands on expecting to have to pull this way and that to square it up. We've checked everything twice, and the most it was off measuring across the diagonals was 1/8" over 50 feet. Close enough for me! The height of the trusses at the center was also dead on the plans measurement. The concrete guy set the bolts perfectly, and the factory made the parts just right apparently. Surprised the heck out of me!
The concrete guy is coming back tomorrow to put some more fill around the outside of the slab. 20" of rain last month screwed up it pretty bad. My little tractor can keep up with the front and sides, but the back is too steep and tall for it. I could have started on the back bay, but I expect he'll have to move some of the dirt over the slab to get the back built back up to the point he can drive on it again.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Camper Project
Without an engine brake it would be a bit much for a pickup in any hills. My 2013 2500 had one, and the 2015 3500 has one also. When I went through the 'mini mountains' on I-24 in Tennessee with the 5th wheel, I didn't touch the brakes, and it stayed right on speed with the cruise control down the mile or so 6% grade. The engine brake was kicking on and off, and the transmission downshifted as it needed to to keep the speed down. The newer pickups are a lot different than the older ones. Probably accounts for some of the price inflation.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Passed FAA Inspection
Nice! When you get the 40 hours done, the little bugs worked out, you'll have a very nice travelling plane! The best of both worlds - a low/slow plane for fun flying around the area, and high/fast plane for going places.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Camper Project
Well, to each their own, enjoy it! If your truck was a stick, that changes the equation a bit. At least in the newer Ram diesels, the automatics have a lot more torque available. Stopping mine hasn't been an issue at all, nor has maneuvering. But again, they keep raising the trailer capacity on the newer ones, and that is mostly increasing the braking capacity. Except for turns at intersections, most of the time I don't really know mines hooked up.
I took it out to a beach campground a couple of weeks ago, and made it safely there and back even with Florida drivers on 2 lane roads. It was pretty sweet to be parked on the beach, with my own 'stuff', and no upstairs neighbors clog dancing or something. The price for 4 nights was less than one night at the cheapest hotel on the beach, and they were across a busy road.
That rig will definitely pull it with no problems, but I'll be a lot happier driving my truck to Walmart for supplies when I need them, or taking the wife out for dinner occassionally when we both are sick of our own cooking.
The main reason I chose a 5th wheel over a driveable is the truck for the 5th wheel is useful even when I'm not pulling the camper, and I'd have to tow a driveable vehicle along anyway. Plus I always try to prevent having one more thing to change the oil in I don't use all the time.
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marksires added a post in a topic Camper Project
Our 5th wheel 'only' weighs about 14,000 fully loaded. 2013 RAM 3500 w/Diesel, no dually, pulls it all day long with no problems at all. Unless something goes wrong, I'll be at Oshkosh with it all week. It isn't a toy hauler, but it's 38 feet from the front to the back of the bumper. If our first apartment had been as nice as this camper, we'd probably still be living in it!
Picture attached, the truck is my old 2500, I traded it 2 years ago for a 3500. We also want to take it to Alaska, and the 2500 didn't have any cargo capacity left after the trailer was hooked up. I want an auxiliary diesel tank if I'm going to Alaska at 10mpg.
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marksires added a post in a topic Complete Avid kit
Also my kit 941 was purchased in 1991 by the original builders, so this one was probably produced in 1990-1991.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Complete Avid kit
Mine was kit number 941, it has the same cowl and tail. It's kind of a hybrid as well. My build manual says it is the Avid 'D' model manual.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Avid amphibious floats ?
If you can find them I'll scan them in and post them here. I'm planning to be at Oshkosh all week this year.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Avid amphibious floats ?
They should have water rudders. I have the floats Jim Chuk had. One of my projects is to lay them out on the hangar floor and measure, take pictures and make some simple drawings to put here. But that probably isn't going to happen very soon.
I'd say 2k is a decent price if they are all there and not damaged. I new set of Lotus Floats amphibs would be 8-10k.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS
If some of your 'stuff' got sprayed, Tractor Supply sells 'Skunk out' or something like that. It is by all the dog shampoo stuff. Our dog got sprayed BAD earlier this year, this was the only stuff that got the smell out. And it was horrendous.
The poor dog didn't know what happened, he didn't even chase it, bark at it, or anything. He came around the side of my truck, and apparently it was standing right there. Sprayed down his whole side. And of course, he immediately ran into the house and jumped on OUR bed before we figured out what was going on....... It was a long night!
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
We'd have made more progress, but it was a) 108 heat index all weekend, and b) I was stupid.
My son and I started Friday afternoon late, we got the first center post lifted into place, onto the anchor bolts, and had three of the nuts on. Then my son, who is much smarter than I, looked up at the rigging on the end of the post that is now 18+' in the air, and asked "how are we going to disconnect that?" CRAP, forgot to order the man lift. Desperately searched for a place to rent one, but the only place open on Saturday that had something only had a towable man lift, not self driving. Had to settle for that, so we spent a lot of time moving the lift around with my little John Deere tractor. Everything is 25' between each end, and the towable only has about a 10' diameter circle it will reach. Lift Girt/Purlin, move lift to one end, secure, move lift to other end, secure. Repeat way more times than we wanted.
Scissor lift will be delivered tomorrow........
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
Progress! Finally a weekend with no rain!
My son, I and a neighbor got this much done. I should start charging admission for the golf cart parade going by, I'd probably pay for the equipment rental, at least
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marksires added a post in a topic Blocking off the Oil Injector 582
Ford engineers designed an built millions of cars, but they still came out with the Molotov Pinto. Navistar designed and built hundreds of thousands of diesel engines, but they still came out with the Ford 6.0. Engineers ok'd the Challenger liftoff as well. Engineers are human, make mistakes, and others pay for those mistakes. They are far from perfect.
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
Crap, another inch yesterday evening - came in 15 minutes! All I can seem to accomplish is get the dirt pushed back up to the slab, smoothed and tamped back out in time for the next rain storm to wash it out again. 14.5 inches so far in June, 18 of 21 days with measurable rain. Average is 7.09 inches so we are already more than double that. At least the tropical storm went west of us. Everything is so saturated, if it came through here I would definitely need to talk to Ed's cousin Noah!
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Moving the throttle position
?? My Avid throttle is on the right side of the pilot, in the middle of the panel. This is where it is on every side by side certified plane I've ever flown also, so I never thought it was in the 'wrong' place. I prefer the vernier throttles, very good fine control turning the knob, and for big changes just push the knob. In a tight plane like an Avid, it is nice to not worry about hitting the throttle by accident when reaching for the radio (not that I've ever done that.....)
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
Don't know - I think Noah used it all, and didn't have two trees left to put on the ark! You remember Noah, right Ed?
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
The siding might just rust away where it is sitting on ground.
I am beginning to wonder if I should see if I can turn the steel frame members into a keel for a really big boat though! It isn't gopher wood, but it might work.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
Nothing happening again today. Yesterday I did get the major steel members up on the concrete, ready to be put up. Sigh. 11.5" this month and counting - this looks like it will add another 2 inches or more.
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marksires added a post in a topic Finally starting new hangar!
Ed,
The rain I was bragging about hasn't quit yet. My weather station says 15 of 16 days in June so far had rain, and 10.65 inches total this month (normal is 7 for the entire month). I had the forklift delivered yesterday, and I'm putting up the support beams today. I'll just have to dodge the thunderstorms like I do when flying in Florida!
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marksires added a post in a topic A few pics from this weekend
chopndrag - we have one in March at Cannon Creek, and Live Oak (Suwannee county) had one last month. If you aren't, sign up to socialflight.com - they send out notices of 'stuff' around you every week.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Aileron attachment rib end repair
Usually it is just too big, and has to be shrunk. This is easy to do using the 'Paint' program that comes with Windows, you don't have to buy or download anything. Just pull up the picture in Paint (usually it is under 'Accessories' or 'Windows Accessories' in your program list), then on the tool bar is a 'Resize' option. Select it, and put '25' in the Horizontal box, the Vertical Box should automatically change to '25' also, then click OK. Then do 'Save As', and change the file name so you don't overwrite your full size picture. I usually just add '_small' to the file name right before the dot in the file name. Then try to upload the 'small' version you just created, and I'll bet it will work.
If that doesn't work, email one to me at sires dot mark at gmail dot com and I'll fix it, and tell you how to fix the rest.
Mark
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marksires added a post in a topic Anyone ever use a sea doo engine?
That should happen about every 5 or 10 minutes on those Missouri lakes......
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