Jim Weir
Jim Weir is the chief avioniker at RST Engineering. He answers avionics questions in the Internet newsgroup www.pilotsofamerica.com–Maintenance. His technical advisor, Cyndi Weir, got her Masters degree in English and Journalism and keeps Jim on the straight and narrow. Check out their web site at www.rst-engr.com/kitplanes for previous articles and supplements.
Can You Hear Me Now?
For those of you in aircraft with magnificent audio systems—stereo music and multi-input switching panels that have push-button selection of your half-dozen headphone inputs—this...
LED to a Landing
We have come a long way with light emitting diodes. They went from $200 a bulb in 1968 to 5 cents a bulb in...
This Is an EXCELlent Idea
For a long time after I bought my first airplane (N2014V, the Cessna 120 heavy), the problem of keeping the aircraft data (weight and...
QLF–Amateur Radio in Your Aircraft
To find the earliest recorded amateur radio in an aircraft, we have go back to 1912 when Lieutenant B.T. James (RAF) strapped a pair...
Airshow Antennas
We are headed into airshow calendar time. I don’t care if it is the granddaddy of them all (Oshkosh) or the usual four beat-up...
A HOG in Time Takes…Forever
As I told you a couple of months ago, “In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is a...
ELT Enlightenment
I had another subject’s full column in hand for this issue, but when I get half a dozen questions in the space of a...
Potpourri
Potpourri (pronounced “poh’purree”), taken literally from the French origin, is translated “rotten pot.” In English, though, it means a collection of small things; in...
Progress Report: Bits and Pieces of HOG
OK, so we’ve got that 100-watt solar panel firmly bolted to the hangar roof. Let’s take the other pieces that we have to have...
HOG Prime Mover
Time to stop messing around. Time to fish or cut bait. Time to…oh, you know all the rest of that stuff. Me? I’m getting...
In Case You Missed it
Wind Tunnel
Although we often consider maximizing airflow over the exterior of an aircraft, we sometimes neglect internal airflow design that can cause significant drag.
All About Avionics, Part 7
If you intend to fly non-precision or precision GPS approaches, you really do need an IFR GPS. This article explains the options available and the legal issues associated with using the latest in-cockpit GPS technology for IFR navigation; by Stein Bruch.
Around the Patch
Editor-in-Chief Marc Cook discusses his recent visit to a Zenith Aircraft factory workshop where he had the pleasure of flying some airplanes and pulling some rivets.