No Brake Fluid
Perhaps brake lines in the cockpit should be part of the preflight? This aircraft was moments away from having no left brake due to...
What a Darling(ton) Noisemaker
Mostly we’d like our airplanes to be quiet. Somehow, “airplane” and “quiet” don’t belong in the same sentence. We’ve got roughly 5000 explosions per...
Cogswell’s Molds, Part 2
Last month I discussed the slump and drape molds that Steve Cogswell used for making fiberglass concealers/accessory panels for his RV-8. (Also see “A...
Another Alternator Gotcha
Well, it seems to be the season for alternator problems, as just this week I had to diagnose another interesting one. As with any...
That’s Shear Nuts
The aircraft bolts we use to build our projects will always be paired with an appropriate nut to complete the mission of holding components...
Firewall Forward: Intake and Exhaust Systems
In the next installment of KITPLANES Firewall Forward sponsored by Tempest editor at large Paul Dye takes a close look at intake and exhaust...
Design Process: The Rudder
The fixed portion of the vertical tail of an airplane provides directional stability. The rudder provides directional control. When the pilot deflects the rudder, it...
Leaky Primer Line
Primer lines need to be silver soldered into their fittings. Using RTV to fix a leak is not acceptable and poses a serious fire...
Round…and Around…We Go
Stay with me here. This is going to be a very interesting and somewhat difficult project. But worth the read, I guarantee. No matter how...
Low Fuel, Idiot, Light
In the year 2019 BC (before COVID), I made a number of cross-country trips between 300 and 500 miles. While these distances were well...