Builder Tips, Tricks, and Modifications
This page will contain your Builder Tips and Tricks. Please share your thoughts on how best to organize this information. I think by aircraft system is probably best, rather than by submitting user, but I'm flexible. Here are some beginning categories.
CLICK THE TEXT, not the picture, to get to the article!!!'
Contents
- 1 Specific Tips
- 1.1 NACA or Nose Cooler or Heat Mods
- 1.2 Cowling Mods
- 1.3 Door Mods
- 1.4 Strake or Fuel Mods
- 1.5 Prop and Spinner Tips
- 1.6 Engine and Exhaust Tips
- 1.7 Fuselage Mods
- 1.8 Control Mods
- 1.9 Misc Mods
- 1.10 Trim or Control Modifications
- 1.11 Shimmy Damping Mods
- 1.12 Brake Mods
- 1.13 Landing Gear Mods
- 1.14 Franklin Tips
- 1.15 Painting
- 1.16 Building Space or Shop or Moving Tips
- 2 General Tips
- 3 Engine Installations
- 4 Oil Cooler Turning Vanes
- 5 Toe Brakes
- 6 Builders tips by section of the builders manual
- 7 New Articles
Specific Tips
Find data on Velocity Props
Velocity Glossary
Current Events
NACA or Nose Cooler or Heat Mods
 Keel Seal |
 Nose Heat Control |
 NACA Inlets |
 Nose_Oil_Cooling |
 NACA_Ducts |
 Updraft to Downdraft Conversion |
225px Cabin_Heater |
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Cowling Mods
 Cowl Inlet Door |
 Screwless Cowl |
 Custom Cowling |
 Air Filter Installation |
 Ground Hot Air Vent |
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Door Mods
 Air Stair/Split Door |
 Really Big Hatch |
 Hendricks door latch | |||
 Forward Hinged Doors |
 Door Latch Safety |
 Smoother Door Latch | |||
 Door Gas Springs |
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Strake or Fuel Mods
 Fuel Sump Sensor |
 Fuel Strakes |
 Extended_Strake_Elbow |
Prop and Spinner Tips
 MT_Prop_Rebuild |
 Spinner#Ferrell_Hersey_Kiss_Spinner |
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Engine and Exhaust Tips
Engine#Prudhomme_Air_Cleaner |
 Engine#Ferrell Exhaust Augmentors |
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Fuselage Mods
 HID Landing Light |
 Mounting Studs great for spar |
[[Image:|225px]] [[]] |
Control Mods
 Center Stick Reinforcement |
 Side_Sticks |
 Yokes |
Misc Mods
 Draggage Pod |
 Aircraft Tracking |
 FLIR Forward Looking Infrared |
 Condition Inspection |
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Trim or Control Modifications
Shimmy Damping Mods
 Nylon Belleville Anti-Shimmy |
 Mishler Nose Lock |
 Millin Factory Shimmy Damper |
 Nose Wheel Shimmy Damper |
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Brake Mods
 SE "Old Style" Brake Parts |
 Brake Relining/Pads |
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Landing Gear Mods
Franklin Tips
 Franklin Oil Bypass |
 Other Franklin Information |
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Painting
 Paint#Wing Painting Jigs - Ferrell |
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Building Space or Shop or Moving Tips
 1 Man Wing Support |
 Move fuselage with Spar installed |
 Wing & Canard Rack new |
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 Wing Jacks |
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General Tips
| General | Controls | Paint | Fuselage | NACA Ducts | Emergency Procedures |
| Wings | Engine | Avionics | Interiors | Test Flying | Tow/Tug |
| Prop | Spinner | Finishing | Landing Gear | Electrical Power | Nose_Wheel_Shimmy_Damper |
Engine Installations
| V8 Engine | V6 Engine | Subaru Engine | Mazda Engine | TIO-540 | Franklin Engine |
Oil Cooler Turning Vanes
Not great pictures but I managed to stick my phone into the nose of the airplane to get pic of each side of the oil duct.
What I did was remove the duct, do a micro fill & sand job on the inside to smooth it up. Mine was really rough and had numerous bumps and edges inside..
Then carve curved matching slots in the two sides of the oil duct. Just thick enough to slide thin aluminum through.
Then cut out aluminum vanes. Each aluminum piece slides through both sides of the duct slots creating turning vanes. Slots are about 1 inch apart. I left tabs on the ends of the vanes that were then folded against the sides of the oil duct. Then a few layers of bid over the tabs and sides of the duct to seal the slots to the vanes and restore the oil ducts strength.
The shiny squares you see in the pic are the aluminum tabs
Scott
Here's the side towards the gear
Heres the side away form the gear
Toe Brakes
We've retrofitted our XL to use the toe-brake option from the factory. We will eventually add the cast aluminum pedals, but currently have the two separate pedals on both sides. The pilot side master cylinders go to the brakes on the lower end, and the tops go to teh copilot lower master cylinder connections, and the copilot upper connections run to the new resevoir. Note also that the new system requires Mil-Spec 5606 fluid (like the retracts use in the hydraulics).
Installation Instructions
Toe Brake Options
Toe Brake Pedals on N44VF
Adjustable rudder arm
Co-pilot pedals
Reservoir
Figure 1 - Mechanical Connections
Figure 2 - Rudder Adjustment
Figure 3 - Plumbing Diagram
Toe Brakes with Pedals from Don Johnston
Builders tips by section of the builders manual
1 - Introduction 2.1 - Wing Core
2.1.1 - Joining Leading Edge Wing Cores to Spar 2.1.2 - Joining Trailing Edge Wing cores to Spar. 2.1.3 - Navigation (VHF) Antenna
2.2.1 - Lower Skin
2.2.2 - Wing Leading Edge Rib
2.2.3 - Wing Root Ribs
2.2.4a - Glassing
2.2.4b - Top Wing Skin
2.2.5 - Rudder Conduit Installation
2.2.6 - Wing Attach Bolt Access Holes
2.3.1 - Preparing Winglets for Glassing
2.3.2 - Glassing Inboard surface
2.3.3 - Glassing Outboard Surface
2.3.4 - Winglet Trimming
2.4 - Wingtip Trimming 2.5 - Winglet to wing attachment
2.5.1 - Overview of Winglet to Wing Attachment
2.5.2 - Winglet and Wing Preparation
2.5.3 - Setup and alignment
2.5.4 - Winglet Attachment Lay-Ups
2.6 - Filling and Sanding Wings and Winglets 2.7 - Ailerons
2.7.1 - Aileron Cutouts
2.7.2 - Aileron Wells
2.7.3 - Glassing Aileron Well and Ribs
2.7.4 - Aileron Construction
2.7.5 - Torque Tube and Hinge Backing Plates
2.7.7 - Balancing the Ailerons
2.8.1 - Rudder Cut-Outs
2.8.2 - Rudder and Rudder Wells
2.8.3 - Rudder Hinge Installation
2.8.4 - Rudder Horn Installation
2.8.5 - Rudder Return Spring
2.9.1 - Prepare Winglet Bottom
2.9.2 - Attaching Winglet Bottom to Wing
3.1.1 - Reference list
3.2.1 - Installation of Lift Tabs
3.2.2 - Foam Cores
3.2.3 - Preparation for Skinning
3.3.1 - Canard Lay-up Schedule
3.3.2 - Canard Lay-up A
3.3.3 - Canard Lay-up B
3.3.4 - Canard Lay-up C
3.4.1 - Assemble Cores
3.4.2 - Lay-up Procedure - Side One
3.4.3 - Lay-up Side Two
3.4.4 - Elevator to Canard Fit
3.4.5 - Elevator Hinge Installation
3.4.6 - Hinge Arm Installation
3.5 - Canard Final Preparation for Elevators
3.5.1 - Positioning the Elevator
3.5.2 - Positioning torque / counterweight arms
3.5.3 - Elevator Balancing
4.1.1 - Locate Bulkhead Placement
4.2.1 - Preliminary Fitting of Parts
4.2.2 - Bonding Procedures
4.2.3 - Glassing Bulkheads
4.2.4 - Engine Bulkhead
4.2.5 - Engine and Gear Bulkheads
4.2.6 - Cowl
4.2.7 - Canard Bulkhead Notes
4.2.8 - Battery Shelf
4.2.9 - Landing Light
5.1.1- Window Cutouts
5.1.2 - Fit Windows
5.1.3 - Install Windows
5.2 - Fuselage Top Installation
5.2.2 - Door Cutout
5.2.3 - Fuselage Door Hole Treatment
5.2.4 - Door Hinge Installation
5.2.5 - Install Door with Hinges to Fuselage
5.3.1 - Install Door Latch Mechanism
5.3.2 - Latch Base Assemblies
5.3.3 - Pilot Door Security Lock
5.3.4 - Installing Door lock
5.3.5 - Install Windows in Doors
5.3.6 - Install the Latch Pin Tubes in Fuselage
5.4.1 - Install Carbon Beams
5.4.2 - Install Door Seal
5.5.1 - Install Door Gas Springs
6.1.1 - General
6.1.2 - Forward Keel Access Hole
6.1.3 - Aft Keel Access Holes
6.1.4 - Fitting the Keel
6.1.5 - Keel Hard points
6.2.1 - Fuselage Hardpoints
6.2.2 - Seat Belt Hardpoints
6.2.3 - Front Seats
6.2.4 - Rear Seats
6.3.1 - Keel Control Assembly Locations
6.3.2 - Forward Aileron Torque Tube Bearing
6.3.3 - Rear Aileron Control Bracket
6.3.4 - Mid-bearing Support
6.3.5 - Control Stick Assembly
6.3.6 - Aileron Torque Tube Support
6.3.7 - Keel Installation
6.3.8 - Keel Stiffening Lay-ups
6.4 - Forward Fuselage Treatments
6.4.1 - Nose Access Cover
6.5 - Pedal System / Brake Cylinders
6.5.1 - Mount Master Cylinders
6.5.2 - Assemble Rudder Pedals
6.5.3 - Mount Pedals
6.5.4 - Install Nylaflow Tubing for Rudder Cables
6.6.1 - Locate Panel
6.6.2 - Install Panel
6.7.1 - Spar Positioning
6.7.2 - Spar Installation
6.7.3 - Lay-ups
6.7.4 - Triax Reinforcement
6.8.1 - Canard Attachment Reinforcement
6.8.2 - Canard Top Attachment Points
6.9 - Overhead Fresh air Duct 6A.1 - Keel Controls
6A.1.1 - Keel Cut out
6A.1.2 - Upper Aileron Torque Tube Bearings
6A-1.3 - Control Stick Assembly
6A.1.4 - Lower Aileron Torque Tube
6A.2.1 - Bottom Seat Pan Installation
6A.2.2 - Seat Back Installation
6A.3 - Rudder Pedal / Toe-Brake
6A.3.1- Installing Toe-Brake Assembly
6A.4 - Cleveland Brake Install 6A.5 - Main Gear Leg Torsional Reinforcement
6A.5.1 - Gear Leg Preparation
6A.5.2 - Carbon Bid Gear Leg Torsional Reinforcement
7.1 - Nose Gear Door Installation
7.1.1 - Nose Gear Door Cutout
7.2.1 - Nose Gear Bushings
7.2.2 - Overcenter Linkage
7.2.3 - Sequence Valve
7.2.4 - Gas Spring
7.2.5 - Nose Gear Guides
7.3.1 - Gear Leg Preparation
7.3.2 - Gear Leg Torsional Reinforcement
7.4.1 - Gear leg cut out
7.4.2 - Drilling Holes for Main Gear Bushings
7.4.3 - Transverse Bulkhead Install
7.5 - Installation of Main Gear Bushings 7.6 - Main Gear Pulley Installation
7.6.1 - Pulley Assembly
7.6.2 - Main Gear Overcenter Linkage and Sockets
7.6.3 - Hydraulic Cylinder
7.6.4 - Cables
7.7 - Installing the Main Gear
7.7.1 - Gear Legs
7.7.2 - Brake Lines
7.7.3 - Main Gear Doors
7.8.1 - Hydraulic Power Pack and Nose Gear Door Cylinder
7.8.2 - Plumbing
7.8.3 - Pressure switch adjustment.
7.8.4 - Electrical
7.8.5 - Final System Adjustments
7.8.1 - Basics
7.8.2 - Nose Gear Safety Stick
8.1.1 - Install Main Gear Axles
8.2 - Nose Wheel Installation 9.1 - Fuel System
9.1.1 - Transfer Template
9.2.1 - Wheel Well Measurements
9.2.2 - Preparation
9.2.3 - Lower Strake Alignment
9.2.4 - Cut out Lower Baggage Access Openings
9.2.5 - Lower Strake Half Glassing
9.3 - Internal Strake Structures
9.3.1 - Fitting Wheel Well
9.3.2 - Baffles and Bulkheads
9.3.3 - Install Strake Baffles
9.3.4- Bulkhead Fuel Fittings
9.3.5 - Fuel system venting
9.4.1 - Fuel Cap Installation
9.4.2 - Fitting the Upper Strake Half
9.4.3 - Upper Strake Half Installation
9.3.4 - Outboard End Strake Reinforcement
9.5 - Sump Tank and Fuel Lines
9.5.1 - Fuel lines
9.5.2 - Install the Sump Tank Cover
9.5.3 - Install Mounting Tabs
9.5.5 - Sump Tank Installation
9.6.1 - Wing Strake Cutout
9.6.2 - Wing Strake to Beam Support
9.6.3 - Installing Leading Edge of Strake onto Door
9.7.1 - Solid fuel line Installation
10.1.0 - Introduction
10.1.1 - Installing Control Stick Push-Tube Assembly
10.1.2 - Elevator Trim
10.1.3 - Aerodynamic Trim (Sparrow Strainer)
10.2.1 - Rudder Cable Installation
10.3.1 - Rigging of the Roll System (Ailerons)
11.1.1 - Cowling Relief Hole for Wing
11.1.2 - Cowling Joint Flanges
11.1.3 - Upper Cowl-to-Wing Flanges
11.1.4 - Lower Cowling Flanges
11.1.5 - Premolded NACA Scoop Installation
11.1.6 - Oil Access Door
11.1.7 - Cowl Attachment
11.2.1 - Installation
11.2.2 - Counterweight Fairings
12.1.1 - Introduction
12.1.2 - Engine Mounts
12.2.1 - Aluminum Oil Lines
12.2.2 - Fuel Plumbing
12.3 - Controls, Cooling and Prop
12.3.1 - Throttle, Mixture, and Prop Controls
12.3.2 - Pressure Checking Fuel System
12.3.3 - Fuel Sight Gauges
12.3.4 - Cooling Plenum Chamber
12.3.5 - Propeller
12.3.6 - Nose Mounted Cooler
12.4.1 - Overview
12.4.2 - Cowling Cutout
12.4.3 - Exhaust Stack Trimming
13.1 - Electrical system and Avionics
13.1.1 - Introduction
13.1.4 - Glideslope Antenna
13.1.5 - Marker Beacon
13.1.6 - Transponder
13.1.8 - GPS
13.1.9 - ELT
13.2.1 - Instrument Panel
13.2.2 - Engine Instruments
13.3 - Electrical System Completion
13.3.1 - Introduction
13.3.2 - Basic Electrical System
13.3.3 - Trim, Speed Brake, & Speed Brake Warning
13.3.4 - Switches and Circuit Protection
13.3.5 - Avionics
13.3.6 - P-Leads
13.4 - Pitot - Static and Vacuum Instruments
13.4.1 - Vacuum System
13.4.2 - Static Port
13.4.3 - Pitot Tube
14.1 - Final Assembly Procedures
14.1.1 - Canard / Elevators
14.1.2 - Aircraft Tie Downs
14.1.3 - Wings to Aircraft
14.1.4 - Ailerons
14.1.5 - Control System
14.1.6 - Rudder Pedals, Cables,
14.1.7 - Vortilon Installation
14.1.8 - Brake Bleeding
14.1.9 - Landing Gear, Wheels, Brakes, Fairings
14.1.10 - Fuel System
14.1.11 - Powerplant / Propeller
14.1.12 - Pitot / Static System
14.1.13 - Electrical System
14.1.14 - Alternator
14.1.15 - Vacuum Pump System
15.1.1 - Headliner
15.1.2 - Carpet
15.1.3 - Upholstery
15.1.4 - Seat Foam
15.1.5 - Glue for Installation
15.1.6 - Trim and Weather-stripping
15.2.1 - Fuselage Headliner
15.2.2 - Window Frames
15.2.3 - Carpeting
15.2.4 - Side Panels
15.2.5 - Interior Door Cover
15.2.6 - Glare shield
15.2.7 - Rear Cover Panel
New Articles
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