Luked

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Posts posted by Luked

  1. Posted

    Here are some details about the engine I'm planning to use. It's a Continental A-65. I know this isn't the engine most people would choose for this plane, but I think it will be a good fit for what I'm planning to use the plane for. I will probably build it as an A-75, but even still, I expect performnce to be modest for an Avid. About like a J-3 with an A-65. Maybe my next Avid will be a STOL fire breather!

     

    The engine I bought was kind of a gamble. It was cheap, and local, and it has the flanged crank shaft, but no logs. It was also missing all accessories, and the accessory case. The main thing I wanted was the crank. I'm planning to tear it down this week, and send the crank for inspection and have them do whatever needs to be done to it (assuming it's usable). I asked the seller if I could pay him half of what he was asking to start with, and pay him the the other half if the crank checks out. Fingers crossed. Here are the pictures.

     

    Engine the way I brought it home.

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    Setting it on the stand

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    Parts to save

    post-760-0-63723500-1394250566_thumb.jpg

     

    Parts to trash

    post-760-0-04914700-1394250575_thumb.jpg

     

    Engine after I stripped off the cooling tins, and induction system

    post-760-0-15143700-1394250580_thumb.jpg

     

    That's about it for now. Any comments of advice are welcome.

     

    Thanks,

    Luke D.

  2. Posted

    Well, here is a quick run down on my new to me Avid project. I bought it in January, but have not done anything on it yet. I actually have an ultralight project that I am planning to finish before diving into this one.

    Fuselage:
    The previous builder added some extra things that I'm planning to remove. Because of my engine plans, I will need to keep things as light as possible. Mostly it's just a lot of extra sheet metal in the baggage areas. An extra baggage area was also created farther back in the lower part of the tail. This kit also came with dual brakes. The previous builder did the tail stretch mod. I was told it was extended by 16". I was wondering if the plates welded into the tubing under the front of the seat are stock. You can see the stretched tail in the second picture.
     

    post-760-0-42596600-1394248637_thumb.jpg post-760-0-94526000-1394248646_thumb.jpg post-760-0-22524700-1394248653_thumb.jpg post-760-0-73979600-1394248658_thumb.jpg

    Wings:
    Not sure if I will use these wings or not. The previous builder had planned to have "convertible" wings so that they could be converted from speed wings to long wings and back again with a spar socket system. Each wing has 3 parts (wing, extension, and tip). After looking at the way this was done, I think the only way that I would use the existing wings is as speed wings. I would just attach the tips permenently to the short wings. It looks like the system adds quite a bit of extra weight, and there are a lot of extra pieces to connect together. I'd rather keep things simple, and go with a proven setup. Also, they have a very noticeable amount of washout. I measured it from one spar to the other, and it's 2" over the span of the 12' wing panel. Below are the wing panels, the tips, and the extensions.

     

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    Misc parts:
    It looks like I've got most of the parts in various boxes. There is also a cowling that I don't have a picture of. I think I'll make my own. I've always wanted to design my own cowling from scratch.

     

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    The tail surfaces are all stock. I didn't get any pictures of them. That's pretty much what I'm starting with. I also bought an engine (sort of) last week. I'll do another post to get all the details on that.

  3. Posted

    Hi Luke,

     

    I grew up in Hood River Valley and my brother, sister and I still have our parents place there so I get down there about once a year.

     

    I think you will really enjoy your Avid.  They perform pretty darn well and they are affordable to own and fly.  When I bought my MKIV I had several people tell me I should by a "real" plane; well I flew that plane to places that surprised a lot of them and I fly my Avid+ to even more.  They are pretty capable planes once you get to know their advantages and limitations.  I trailered my MKIV to the north slope and flew it up there.  A couple of years later I was hunting with a friend and we were using his Supercub and got locked out by weather coming home.  Since we were on the road system we ended up leaving the plane at an airport and came home; it took 2 weeks before we could get the cub back.  Not a problem with an Avid/KF.  And talk to Joey (C5) he takes his Avid Flyer on some great long trips.  They may not carry as much as other planes but you will fly them a lot more and have fun doing it.  I fly mine more than most of the other pilots I know because I don't have to fret that I am out burning 8 to15 gph in a cub or 180, so I can just go fly for an hour in the evenings or whatever and not feel guilty; and I can do all my own work on it and modify it as I please.  You will have fun challenging yourself with the STOL capability as well.

     

    We are surely blessed to be able to fly and land about anywhere we want here in AK and I know I sometimes take it for granted it is so common.  I am reminded that is not the case everywhere when I go down below.  Even in places like Montana they restrict where you can land, etc.  You got to love AK, hopefully it will stay this way for a long time and you all can get a chance to visit and enjoy it with us.

     

    Small world. My wife's family is actually from Trout Lake, so we usually pass through Hood River at least once a hear to go to visit relatives. It's a nice area.
     
    I'm really looking forward to the getting the Avid flying. Economy is one of my main goals. Like you say, when I get it flying I want to fly it a lot without worrying so much about the hourly cost.
     
    Hope to make it up there at some point. My Grandpa used to live there, and always talked about how beautiful it is. Oregon is pretty, but not quite the same.
     
    Luke D.

  4. Posted

    Hey Leni,
     
    Yes that's us. We've been doing it for a little over ten years now. It does seem like the market for "Avid type" (counting the various derivative designs) aircraft is having a resurgence. I remember being interested in Kitfoxes back in the early 90s when I got my license when they were the hot item.
     
    We would love to offer products to more aircraft owners, but unfortunately there are some practical considerations that complicate things. Without getting into the gory details, it takes a fair number of sales for most of our products to even break even on the design work that goes into them. Also, there are quite a few items that our current RV customers want that we have not completed yet. Right now our biggest challenge is not volume of sales (we stay pretty busy year round), but improving the profit margin. People would be amazed if they say the number of seats and other products we produce in a year, compared to the profit we end up with. I think we are already perceived by some customers to be one of the higher priced options (our products do in fact cost more than some competitors, but that's because they are more expensive to produce), and in the current economic climate, customers are pretty sensitive to price. We have been focused on reducing the cost to produce our products through buying materials in larger volume, and improved efficiency in all parts of our business (I could share lots of detail there, but won't bore you). Once we feel like we have gotten things where we want them in terms of efficiency, we will probably go back to focusing on new products.
     
    I have people with various aircraft types ask me about this fairly often, and I hate to sound like a wet blanket when I answer. It's just that after doing this for a while, I've learned to limit my commitments (in the early days, I started trying to make seats for Glastars, Zeniths, etc.). For the past 10 years I've usually worked about 70 hours a week, and that doesn't leave as much time as I would like for family (I have 4 kids now 8 and under).
     
    I view the Avid project as my own personal recreation vs. "business". On the other hand I would be happy to help anyone here with advice when it comes to seats, upholstery, etc. if it would help. Offering free advise is much more relaxed than providing paid goods and services. That's probably a lot longer answer than you were looking for. I guess I got into some of the gory details after all. Who knows we might make seats for Avids and Kitfoxes someday. If I can help anyone here, just let me know.
     
    Luke D.

  5. Posted

    Yeah, thanks Leni for getting things running again. I know it costs money, so this was a good reminder to send the PayPal I've been meaning to send. I'm starting to get used to checking the site every morning. I was bummed to see that it was hacked the other day. Thanks again!

     

    Luke D.

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  6. Posted

    Welcome Luke.  It looks like your plane is well on its way.  What part of Oregon?

     

    Thanks Randy,

     

    I'm just south of Salem. Btw, I've looked over lots of your pictures. I'm totally jealous of the kind of flying you get to do up there  :P. The pictures are great. I love the ones that show the planes parked on the gravel bars. Thanks for sharing them. I've got a brother in law that lives in Fairbanks. I'd like to get up there some time to see some bush flying in person. Maybe go see the Valdez STOL competition some time.

     

    Unfortunately I don't have the budget right now for a high performance STOL plane, so this one will be a basic Avid for local flying mostly in the Valley. I think it will still be a lot of fun, and it's got to be better than the 172.

     

    Luke D.

  7. Posted

    Welcome aboard here!  Looks like you have a great start on the project and should get it in the air pretty quick.  Post up a build thread if your so inclined when you get started on it.  We love airplane porn here so you can post enough pics to satisfy us :lol:

     

    :BC:

     

    Thanks for the welcome. I'll probably get some better pictures up in the next day or two. Then I'll start with the questions...

     

    Luke D.

  8. Posted

    Hi everone,
     
    My name is Luke. I bought a partially completed MKIV kit in January, and I've been lurking on here to learn more about these planes. I got a private license in 92, but have been out of flying for the past 15 years. I just got back into it recently, and rent a local 172 when I can.
     
    I hope to use the Avid for some cheap(er?) flying. I started a homebuilt back when I got my license, but ended up selling the project. I've been waiting to get back into homebuilding until I felt like I could commit the time and money to follow through to completion.
     
    Thanks for the great forum. I've already picked up a lot using the search. I'll probably post a thread with more details about my project when I have time to take some more pictures and get them posted. For now, here are a few. Sorry about the quality, the place it's stored right now is kind of messy. I need to clean out my garage at home to get some room to work on it.
     
    Luke D.
     
    Fuselage complete with a layer of dust.
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    Wings
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