Table of Contents
April 2018 Issue
Builder Spotlight
How Dan West put a Vortech supercharger on his RV-8. By Tom Wilson.
Riveting the assembly, part 3. By Paul Dye.
Around the World and Over Both Poles
Sky Polaris-a historic flight in an RV-8, part 2. By Don Pearsall.
If you're going to design the perfect airplane, which piece do you work on first? By Lewis Bjork.
CozyJet dead-stick. Losing an engine was the least of the problems. It was a brake fire that almost destroyed this one-of-a-kind homebuilt. By Ryszard Zadow.
Shop Talk
A second life for Cleco pliers. By Jon Croke.
Buckin' where the sun don't shine. By KITPLANESŪ Staff.
Rebuilding the MATCO MC-4 master cylinder. By Dave Prizio.
Home shop heat treating. By Bob Hadley.
Be a fan fan. By Jim Weir.
Missing baffling screws. By Vic Syracuse.
Shop Tips
Exploring
Traveling machine. By Paul Dye.
So, what's the Homebuilt Council? By Vic Syracuse.
Through new eyes. By Tom Wilson.
Fast and Smooth
The Tarragon invades America!
The Tarragon is a new (to the U.S. market) plane from Europe, a fast, sexy-looking craft built for the Light Sport market across the pond, but selling as a kit in the U.S. for the Experimental/Amateur-Built market. Why not market it here as a Light Sport? Retractable gear, a constant-speed prop, and a speed that significantly exceeds the 120-knot LSA limit. And the truth is, while those things might disappoint a Sport Pilot, they are significant plusses for someone looking for a new E/A-B.
West with the Wind
How Dan West put a Vortech supercharger on his RV-8.
Well built and equipped, Dan West’s RV-8 is a full-featured daily flyer with racing pretensions. There’s no bleeding edge aerodynamics going on here as the tiedown rings and antenna farm attest. That means its 240+mph TAS at altitude comes down to muscular engine power and efficient prop thrust.
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SubSonex Serial #21 (N958PD) made its first flight out of the Dayton Valley Airpark in Nevada on the 24th of March, 2019. Winter kept trying to hang on in the Sierra Nevada mountains, but the weather smiled on us, I had a great crew that made themselves available on short notice, and we got "Loki" … Continue reading "Paul Dye's SubSonex N958PD: Successful First Flight"
N646GT started with six members in an LLC, and currently has four left, 10 years after we bought the kit. One of our team is Richard Hogan, the designer of the new Commutercraft. Our RANS S-6 started construction at a hangar at the now defunct Mathis Airport in Suwannee, Georgia, then moved to another hangar …
First flight of my Helicycle helicopter was on January 31, 2019 after two years of part-time building. Previously, before I retired, I built an RV-8 and a Zenith 750. The Helicycle was my first post- retirement project. I discovered I had more building time when I was working. Now trips, lake time, skiing, etc. interfere …
At Sun 'n Fun 2018 we interviewed Jeff Schans, Lycoming's Sales manager and we asked about the popular Thunderbolt Engines. Watch the short Product Minute video as Jeff describes the benefits of the Thunderbolt product line and what it means for the aircraft homebuilder.
Dynon Avionics' latest-generation SkyView integrated avionics called the SkyView HDX has a newly designed bezel and user controls for easier use while flying in turbulence, plus brighter displays and a reworked touch interface. Larry Anglisano takes a product tour of the HDX with Dynon's Michael Schoefield in this video.
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