![[Credit: ChatGPT]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/What-did-you-miss-Topaz-Gigapixel-4x-scale.jpg?w=534&h=462&crop=1 "Last Bits"){kind=tracking}
![The best builders learn to combine both mindsets. They build like engineers but think like future mechanics. [Credit: Bill Wilson]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IMG_0037.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Building vs. Fixing")
![[Credit: Wikimedia Commons]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/F-117_Nighthawk_Front.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "Odd and Unusual Aircraft")
![After nearly 75 years, the basic Tailwind design remains sound. [Credit: LeRoy Cook]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IMG_4636.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "The Wittman Tailwind")
![Trimming composites gets the full PPE job. [Credit: Eric Stewart]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/7-2.jpg?w=265&h=198&crop=1 "A Few of My Favorite Tools")
Avoiding the Traps of Bad Engineering and Construction
There's a large body of knowledge of good engineering practice for aircraft. Most of this knowledge was gained the hard way, and it should not be ignored lightly.
Bearhawk LSA
Its the wing that gives Bob Barrows latest design a faster cruise and slower stall speed than similar LSAs. By Chuck Berthe.
Boots on the Ground
Paul Dye talks about meeting old friends and making new friends at air shows and fly-ins, and introduces several new columnists who will be regular contributors to KITPLANES.
In Case You Missed It
Aero ‘lectrics
Transistors don't like excessive heat, but there's a way to beat it: an engineered heat sink.
