EAA Prop Selection

The Spirit of Homebuilt Aviation I www.eaa.org Vol.2 No.
1 I January 2013
Catching a Barracuda Picking a Prop

Restoring an older homebuilt What’s best for your aircraft?
Andy Werback’s
Award-Winning Lancair
H o m e b uil d e r ’s C or n e r
Lucky 13
Airplane anniversaries
in 2013
By Chad Jensen
As does every year, 2013 has some notable airplane the Hatz CB-1. These three airplanes couldn’t be further apart
anniversaries to celebrate. I keep track of the yearly as far as construction is concerned. The BD-4 is an all-metal
anniversaries on a spreadsheet that was started before I design, the VP-1 is all wood, and the Hatz biplane features
arrived on staff at EAA, and while it’s not comprehensive, it tube-and-fabric construction.
does show the more popular designs that we’ve all come to
know and love. Here are 13 designs to celebrate throughout Looking further back, the Thorp T-18 will celebrate its golden
this year; we will be making special mention of several of anniversary this year. The all-metal, low-wing, tailwheel
these at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh this summer. airplane can use powerplants from 125 hp to 180 hp. The
design is fast and offers economical cruising and very
The youngest on this list is Van’s RV-9/9A. Fifteen years ago, Van’s economical construction.
Aircraft introduced one of its most versatile designs ever, and it
continues to be one of its most popular. The nonaerobatic cross- An anniversary that coincides with EAA’s 60th anniversary
country cruiser is an all-metal kit and is well suited to today’s is that of the Wittman Tailwind. This high-wing speedster
builder. Designed for economy cruising, engines up to 160 hp are is of tube-and-fabric construction with wood wings. The
approved, and the RV flying qualities are oh-so present. two-place, side-by-side airplane can be powered by engines
ranging from 90 hp to 180 hp, and all of them fulfill the need for
At 20 years old this year, the Seawind is one of the most speed, just like Steve Wittman wanted.
unusual homebuilt kits out there. Purpose-built for water
flying, but with speed in its back pocket (there is one Seawind At the age of 80, the Pietenpol Sky Scout and Knight
that races in the AirVenture Cup race every year), the Twister share all-wood construction. But the Knight
Seawind is quite a machine with great looks to boot! Most are Twister is a biplane, and the Sky Scout has a parasol
powered with 300-hp-plus engines, and that means getting wing. The differences don’t end there; the Sky Scout was
off the water and to your destination quickly. These airplanes designed around using a Ford Model T engine, and it is still
are all fiberglass in construction with retractable landing gear being built today with that engine. But both airplanes are
and large, four-place cabins. single-seaters.
The Lancair 320/360 series airplanes came on the scene 25 The oldest airplane on this noncomprehensive list of
years ago with one goal: Be the fastest in the 160/180-hp anniversaries is the granddaddy of homebuilts—the Pietenpol
class. Fast glass is the name of the game here, with smooth, Air Camper at 85 years old. First flown in 1928 with a Ford
swoopy lines and all-fiberglass construction. A bubble canopy Model A engine, to this day it continues to be one of the
surrounds the pilot, providing great visibility, and a reclined most popular plans-built airplanes available. The Brodhead
seating position offers comfortable cross-country cruising. Pietenpol Association even holds its own fly-in at Brodhead,
Wisconsin, the week before AirVenture every year.
Looking back to their 1973 roots, we have the Sonerai II and
the Hiperbipe celebrating 40th anniversaries. The Sonerai II is So while this is a list of anniversaries, the variety of airplanes
a fast VW-powered tandem two-seater, while the Hiperbipe is available today to build is the bigger picture. From wood
a fast, fully aerobatic, side-by-side, two-seat cabin biplane. plans-built parasols with converted automotive engines
to kit airplanes that are so advanced that new certificated
The year 1968 saw the arrival of three designs that will airplanes look ratty by comparison, find something to build
celebrate 45 years in 2013: the BD-4, the Volksplane VP-1, and and enjoy every minute of it!
On the cover: Andy Werbeck fies his AirVenture 2012 grand champion kit-built Lancair Legacy.
(Photo by Chris Luvara)
2 Vol.2 N o.1 / January 2013

Contents
Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013 I A publication of the Experimental Aircraft Association
Features
» 12 The Second Time Around… » 20 Barracuda!

Andy Werback’s legacy of perfection They say every good fisherman is born with
By Budd Davisson patience. I waited 30 years to catch my Barracuda.
By Jeffrey W. Weisel
Departments Columns
» 2 Homebuilder’s Corner » 32 Safety Wire
By Chad Jensen Experimental Aviation, Part 2
By Stephen L. Richey
» 4 E-Mail
Letters and links from readers
» 36 Under the Cowl
Pick a Prop
By Tim Kern
» 6 News from EAA HQ
News from EAA
» 41 Light Plane World
Changes Coming
» 10 Flightline to the ‘Fun Zone’
Industry News By Dan Grunloh
» 45 Flight Test Techniques

» 26 What Our Members Are Building Airspeed Calibration
The Airplanes of the EAA Homebuilt Aircraft Council By Ed Kolano
» 31 Hints for Homebuilders » 49 If I Can Do This

Blind Fastener Tips We’re Building an Airplane!
By Cy Galley By Hal Bryan
» 52 Hangar Debrief
Building Your Homebuilt Using the
New FAA Major Portion Checklist
By Joe Gauthier
EAA Experimenter 3
E- M a il
Other Airspeed Calibration Methods

PUBLICATIONS STAFF
I am quite disappointed in your airspeed calibration article(s)…. By Ed
Kolano’s own admission, “This is a risky flight environment.” …But in fact, Founder: Paul H. Poberezny
there are much better ways with much less risk. Publisher: Jack J. Pelton, EAA
Chairman of the Board
The picture that accompanies the article on page 44 shows a GPS on Vice President of Publications:
the glare shield…. The problem breaks down into three phases: 1) J. Mac McClellan
Obtain ground speed(s); 2) correct for wind; and 3) correct for density Homebuilding Community
altitude to calibrated airspeed. We must assume level flight in smooth Manager: Chad Jensen
air in all cases. Editor: Mary Jones/EditEtc. LLC
Graphic Designer: Chris Livieri
Phases 1 and 2 get you to true airspeed, which is best obtained with a News Editor: Ric Reynolds
GPS. You can set it to kilometers for greater accuracy, but the instrument Copy Editor: Colleen Walsh
is extremely accurate in any unit of distance. Multimedia Journalist: Brady Lane
Visual Properties Administrator:
The National Test Pilot School provides some excellent resources. Jason Toney
Contributing Writers: Marino Boric,
If you don’t want to bother with a three-way run, then use this: At your Hal Bryan, Budd Davisson, Cy Galley,
predetermined test altitude, slowly turn until the corrected compass Joe Gauthier, Dan Grunloh, Tim Kern,
reads the same as the (magnetic) GPS track. You are now flying either Ed Kolano, Stephen L. Richey, Jeffrey Weisel
directly upwind or directly downwind. Observe your groundspeed. Turn European Correspondent: Marino Boric
either 180 degrees or until the compass and GPS agree again, but in the
reverse direction. Observe your groundspeed. Average them. That is the
wind-corrected groundspeed, which is the true airspeed. This can be
done safely and with less chance of atmospheric disturbances at higher ADVERTISING
altitudes where thermals are zero or minimal and where ground proximity
risk is absent. An error of 2 or 3 degrees has almost no effect unless the Display
wind is very strong. Sue Anderson
Jonathan Berger
Assuming your OAT is correct, your altimeter is correct, and it’s set for Jeff Kaufman
29.92 inches HG, then use your E6B to get your density altitude and then
the same instrument to convert true airspeed to calibrated airspeed. Mailing Address:
TAS to CAS. P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086
Phone: 920-426-4800
The more precise math can be obtained from the spreadsheets on Fax: 920-426-4828
my website. E-mail: experimenter@eaa.org
Website: www.EAA.org
Howard Handelman
EAA 111399 Need to change your address
or have other membership
Ed Kolano responds: questions, call 800-564-6322
(800-JOIN EAA).
Mr. Handelman is correct in that there are several methods for performing
airspeed calibration. Indeed, the “three-way run” he mentions is an EAA® and SPORT AVIATION®, the EAA
excellent alternative. Incidentally, the source for that procedure is a Logo® and AERONAUTICATM are registered
paper written in 1998 by David Gray entitled “Using GPS to Accurately trademarks, trademarks, and service marks
Establish True Airspeed.” Using GPS for a variety of flight-testing of the Experimental Aircraft Association,
techniques may be addressed in future columns. I chose the ground Inc. The use of these trademarks and
course at this early stage of Experimenter because it offers a better service marks without the permission of
opportunity to address attendant flight-testing considerations such the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc.
as test planning, hazard analysis, risk mitigation, error sensitivity, and is strictly prohibited.
engineering judgment with a healthy safety emphasis while keeping the
technical aspects manageable.
4 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

January 2013 EAA Exper imenter 2
N e w s Fr o m H Q
AirVenture 2013 Tickets

Available Online
Advance purchase admission tickets and camping are entrance, including specially designated lines on peak
now available for the 61st annual EAA AirVenture Os- arrival dates.
hkosh, scheduled for July 29 to August 4 at Wittman
Regional Airport in Oshkosh. Daily and weekly admis- Advance purchase admission ticketing is again made pos-
sions are available; new members who join EAA now will sible through support from Jeppesen, which for more than
immediately receive the best possible admission prices 75 years has offered pilots an array of innovative naviga-
available only to EAA members. tion products, services, and software.
Those who prepurchase AirVenture tickets online be- To access the advance ticketing area, visit
fore June 15, 2013, receive a $2 discount on daily adult www.AirVenture.org/tickets, make your selections,
admissions and $5 on weekly adult admissions. pay by credit card, and print your tickets at home.
Full instructions and answers to frequently asked ques-
Advance purchase camping for Camp Scholler, tions are available. Advance purchase AirVenture tickets
which opens on June 28, 2013, provides the conve- are scanned and exchanged for an appropriate wrist-
nience of express registration at the campground band at all AirVenture gates in a quick and easy process.
6 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013 Photography by Jim Koepnick

New SportAir Workshops Leaders Named
EAA staffers Jennifer Bork and Lucas Hartwig have been
promoted to manage the EAA SportAir Workshops, as
the new program model is rolled out for 2013. Bork is the
SportAir Workshops coordinator and Hartwig the Work-
shops logistics coordinator.
Bork joined EAA seven years ago and has worked closely
with the homebuilt community on the workshop program
as well as the EAA Technical Counselor and Flight Advisor
programs, EAA Webinars, and more. She also served as
safety programs administrator and worked in the builders’
education center during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.
Hartwig joined EAA in March 2012 as a membership services

representative and has been active in several projects,
including the AutoPilot member renewal program and
SportAir Workshops. He will provide logistical support around
the country as the new program model is established. been active in our staff Zenith STOL CH 750 E-LSA building
project,” said Chad Jensen, EAA communities manager
“Along with their past experience in working with the and homebuilders community manager. “We’re very ex-
homebuilt community, both Jennifer and Lucas have also cited for them to start in their new roles.”
New LODA Page Facilitates Easier

Transition Training for Experimentals
EAA has established an online listing of Letter of Devia- Publication of this list was one of four safety recommen-
tion Authority (LODA) holders for instruction in experi- dations made by the NTSB directly to EAA in its study of
mental aircraft. amateur-built safety earlier this year. The other three rec-
ommendations, which tie directly into EAA’s long-standing
The list, categorized geographically by state, includes efforts to support the homebuilding community, include:
certificated flight instructors who are authorized by the • Create a type club coalition that includes kit manufac-
FAA to offer certain types of instruction for hire in their turers, type clubs, and pilot and owner groups; and 1)
experimental aircraft for the purposes of type-specific develop transition training resources and 2) identify and
training. FARs otherwise prohibit flight instructors from apply incentives to encourage both builders of E-AB air-
receiving compensation for the operating costs of an craft and purchasers of used E-AB aircraft to complete
experimental aircraft. the training that is developed.
The list of LODA-holding instructors makes finding transi- • Identify and apply incentives to encourage owners,
tion training easier for builders and new owners of ex- builders, and pilots of E-AB aircraft to complete flight-test
perimental amateur-built (E-AB) aircraft. Using an E-AB training prior to conducting flight tests of E-AB aircraft.
LODA instructor allows pilots to become familiar flying
a similar aircraft to their own (during Phase 1 testing or • Work with the EAA membership, aircraft kit manufacturers,
at any point thereafter). Proper transition training is an and avionics manufacturers to develop standards for the
essential first step toward safe operation of experimen- recording of data in electronic flight displays, engine instru-
tal aircraft and a key element in the continuing effort to ments, or other recording devices to be used in support of
improve aviation safety. flight tests or continued airworthiness of E-AB aircraft.
Photography by Jason Toney EAA Experimenter 7

N e w s Fr o m H Q
EAA Volunteer Advisory

Committee Members Named
EAA has announced its first EAA Volunteer Advisory Com- • Research and recommend volunteer management
mittee (VAC), comprised of 11 appointed members select- policies and procedures.
ed for their past volunteer leadership as well as their com- • Research and recommend ongoing training
mitment to help improve the EAA volunteer experience. for volunteers.
• Support volunteer recruitment and management.
This committee is charged with representing and promot- • Assess and recommend recognition and appreciation
ing the interest of EAA volunteers through recruitment, programs that celebrate volunteer contributions
training, support, appreciation, and proper recognition, and successes.
and has the Board of Directors’ full support. • Oversee the production of the volunteer newslet-
The first appointed VAC members include: ter, Along the Flightline, and support other
communication channels to ensure volunteers
Ken Decker, EAA 52084, of Ottawa, Ohio are informed.
Tim Fox, EAA Lifetime 335031, of Fort Wayne, Indiana
Dennis Hasha, EAA 227907, of Tuscumbia, Alabama The committee will also seek to discover and imple-
Ginny Largent, EAA 575325, of Stephens City, Virginia ment other opportunities that support and enhance the
Rich Largent, EAA 512497, of Stephens City, Virginia EAA volunteer experience—both during AirVenture and
Dave Mercer, EAA 379378, of Vancouver, Washington throughout the year.
Joe Norris, EAA Lifetime 113615, of Oshkosh, Wisconsin
John Nowicki, EAA 116894, of West Chicago, Illinois To serve on the committee one must be an EAA member
Bonnie Parnall, EAA Lifetime 30554, of Oshkosh, Wisconsin in good standing with at least three years of experience
Barbara Rapchak, EAA 638323, of Crystal Lake, Illinois as an EAA volunteer. Committee members may serve a
Alan White, EAA Lifetime 60137, of Superior, Wisconsin. maximum of five consecutive years.
The committee’s overarching responsibility will be to If you have any questions about the Volunteer Advisory Com-
develop a best-in-class volunteer program. Among its mittee or any other questions regarding EAA volunteerism,
charges are to: contact Janine Diana at 920-426-6843 or jdiana@eaa.org.
Ken Decker Tim Fox Dennis Hasha Ginny Largent Rich Largent
Dave Mercer Joe Norris John Nowicki Bonnie Parnall Barbara Rapchak Alan White

EAA Hall of Fame Inductees
EAA inducted five new members into the Sport Aviation Hall the bible for pre-World War II air racing fans. It won the Clif-
of Fame during its annual induction dinner held in the mu- ford W. Henderson Achievement Award in 1992.
seum’s Founders’ Wing in Oshkosh on November 15, 2012.
Wes has owned a Meyer Little Toot and is a co-builder of a
Inductees include (click on names for special video bios) Wes scratchbuilt Steen Skybolt.
Schmid (Homebuilders), Clyde Smith Jr. (Vintage), Taras Ki-
ceniuk (Ultralight), Giles Henderson (Aerobatic), and Preston Owner and founder of Icarus Engineering since 1971, Taras
“Pete” Parish (Warbirds). EAA congratulates our new hall of Kiceniuk Jr. of Los Angeles, California, has designed and built
famers and thanks them for their many contributions to EAA several ultralight gliders over the decades, a few of which
and to aviation. broke world records and have been held in high honor.
An active EAA member since 1956, Wes Schmid, EAA 3113, In 1971, Taras created the Icarus II biplane glider that set
was involved in the preparation of Experimenter and rede- the world duration flight record of one hour and 11 min-
signing the Sport Aviation magazine in 1958. He also pre- utes. Two years later, his Icarus V set the world duration
pared EAA’s advertising programs and developed a variety record for high-performance hang gliders at two hours
of special publications such as data books, how-to manuals, and 30 minutes. Additionally, in 1975, Taras’ Icarus HPA-1
brochures, and other educational and promotional materials. became the first powered plane to make unassisted flights
in the United States.
In 1959, EAA Founder Paul Poberezny appointed Wes to the
position of forums chairman, which he held until 2009. During As the chief engineer on the Gossamer Albatross project for
those years, the forums grew from the one tent at the Rock- human-powered flight across the English Channel, Taras was
ford, Illinois, fly-in convention to the 11 buildings currently awarded a medal in 1979 by England’s Prince Charles for his
used at AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. He continues to work. More recently, Taras was project director for Reginator,
volunteer with the forums operations to this day. More than a manufacturer of electric- and wind-powered hybrid aircraft,
500 educational forums are scheduled during AirVenture, from 2007 to 2009 and demonstrated the first atmospheric
some of which include aviation’s most knowledgeable de- energy-gathering flight on May 31, 2007.
signers, builders, and engineers.
Also credited for several patented product designs and engi-
Wes had been a member of the EAA Board of Directors for 33 neering positions with companies like General Motors, Taras
years, serving as the association’s secretary. He is co-author holds three private pilot ratings: glider, single-engine land,
of the Golden Age of Air Racing, which has been considered and instrument.
SportAir Workshops to Implement New Model in 2013

Since first offering courses in the early 2000s, EAA’s tinue to be held exclusively at Atlanta Aerospace Com-
SportAir Workshops have been traveling around the posites, Griffin, Georgia.
country to help educate homebuilders. The workshops
provide the guidance to increase confidence and skills Each regional location will be equipped to offer fabric
for attendees to take home and put to use. covering, sheet metal, and composites instruction as
well as electrical systems and avionics courses. As
In 2013, starting with the workshops slated for EAA EAA SportAir Workshops evolve, workshop attendees
AirVenture Oshkosh in January, eight to twelve strategi- can expect to see expanded course offerings, more
cally located regional sites will be established around advanced skills workshops, improved quality, and
the country, allowing courses to be offered on a more other enhancements.
regular basis. These regional facilities should also lead
to expanding both the frequency and course offerings EAA will provide more information soon, including selected
throughout the year. The TIG welding course will con- regional locations and course schedules/offerings.
EAA Experimenter 9
F li g h t lin e
Dynon Announces SkyView Version 5.0, Featuring

ADS-B Weather, Traffic, and TFRs
Dynon Avionics has released Version 5.0 software for the capable SV-XPNDR-26X Mode-S Transponder, an SV-ADSB-
SkyView Integrated Glass Panel system, making good on 470-equipped SkyView system receives a full traffic portrait
its Oshkosh promise to deliver ADS-B-based traffic and from the FAA ADS-B system. This portrait is tailor-made for
weather for SkyView this fall. Version 5.0 is a free upgrade the SkyView-equipped aircraft and includes all ADS-B and
for all existing SkyView owners. radar targets that the FAA can detect. In contrast,
other portable/receive-only ADS-B solutions only receive
When coupled with the recently released SV-ADSB-470 UAT “partial” traffic when another ADS-B“Out” equipped
Band Traffic and Weather Receiver ($995), SkyView Version 5.0 aircraft happens to be nearby, drastically reducing their
allows U.S. customers to receive ADS-B-based weather. All traffic-sensing capabilities.
information displayed is free, with no monthly subscriptions,
based on the FAA’s ADS-B broadcast in the United States. Other major feature additions to SkyView Version 5.0 include:
Weather is displayed graphically and textually on SkyView, automatic ALT/GND mode for the SV-XPNDR-26X, single
and includes NEXRAD radar, METARs, and TAFs. Weather display reversionary mode for multidisplay systems, a new
graphics are clear screen swap button, which swaps entire contents of the
and easy to under- displays, and improvements to airspace depictions. For a full
stand, even with list of all the additions, please see the SkyView User Manual
terrain displayed, available from the Dynon website at www.DynonAvionics.
thanks to SkyView com/docs/support_documentation.html.
smart map layer-
ing system. Customers can download SkyView Version 5.0 for free from
www.DynonAvionics.com/docs/support_software_SkyView.html.
Additionally,
when paired with For more information about Dynon products, please contact
the ADS-B “Out” Dynon at 425-402-0433 or info@DynonAvionics.com.
Flight Design Celebrates 25 Years

Flight Design GmbH has been designing and manufacturing include: Rotax 912iS engine; Dynon SkyView avionics, dual
aircraft for 25 years. To mark this milestone, the company is 10-inch displays (for LSA/EASA 1,320-pound/600-kilogram
offering a special “Jubilee” series of its models with unique CTLSi and MCi) or dual 7-inch displays for CTLSi at 1,040
features and value pricing. pounds/472.5 kilograms, or single 10-inch display for CTSLi;
Dynon autopilot; 8.33-kilohertz communications radio with
“It has been an exciting 25 years where we brought interest- Mode S transponder; Garmin 796/795 GPS; electric stabila-
ing new airplanes to markets around the world,” said Flight tor trim; two upgraded Bose A20 Active Noise Reduction
Design CEO Matthias Betsch. “For this anniversary we have (ANR) headsets; input capability for mobile phone and
a special model created expressly for our worldwide dealer- music; special two-tone leather interior, including leather
ship partners and their customers.” instrument panel and carpeting similar to the interior in
Flight Design’s new four-seat C4 mock-up as seen at air
Flight Design will build the special Jubilee edition in a limited shows; and a special 25th anniversary theme exterior de-
series of 25 airplanes. The specially constructed airplanes offer sign painted on aircraft (not decals) with 25th anniversary
a personal touch, a unique equipment list, and special pricing. commemorative logo.
The Jubilee treatment can be applied to any of several models
in production, including CTLSi, CTSLi (Supralight), or MCi. The program is available effective immediately until the 25th
Jubilee airplane is built with delivery occurring from February
To ensure quality and desirability, only 25 Jubilee airplane to June 2013 at the rate of five airplanes per month. For more
models will be manufactured. Standard features will information, visit www.FlightDesign.de.

New Aviator Light Pen Sheds Light Where You Need It
When you need to write and there is no light available, or see and write in otherwise pitch-darkness. It
when you don’t want to lose all your night vision, or when you is also possible to use this pen without turning
don’t want to disturb those around you, the old solution was on the light, to save the long-life batteries for
to write blind and try to decipher it later or hold a flashlight when you need them. It is also useful as a
in your “spare hand.” Technology presents a better solution, micro-flashlight.
and Wicks Aircraft Supply has it: a pen with a lighted tip.
The wait is over. The Wicks part number is WF14101B,
This ballpoint pen writes with standard black ink, and the Aviator Light Pen is available immediately,
right where its own light is shining, allowing you to priced at $9.99. Have a look.
AeroLEDs Upgrades AeroSun

for Landing/Taxi/Recognition
AeroLEDs has introduced an upgraded version of the amount of light emitted. The new units feature four bezel
its AeroSun for use in experimental amateur-built mount positions in addition to two side mounting ports.
aircraft and light-sport aircraft. It is designed for wing
mounting in aluminum and composite aircraft for landing, The AeroSun is protected against overheating with a built-in
taxi, and recognition purposes. It has built-in wigwag and protection circuit. It is also sheltered against lightning, volt-
pulsing modes in addition to its standard steady beam. age spikes, reverse voltage, and under voltage conditions.
AeroSuns sell for $325.
Each AeroSun uses one-fourth the power of a 100-watt
halogen bulb while producing an equal amount of light. For more information, visit www.AeroLEDs.com or call
The LED has a life of 50,000 hours, meaning it can be on at 208-850-3294.
all times and will never have to be replaced. It will outlast
halogen, tungsten, and HID lights.
AeroSuns are completely sealed and will operate in

temperatures ranging from -55°C to +70°C. They are 2.25
inches high, 5 inches wide, and 1.5 inches deep and weigh
only 8 ounces.
The upgrade from the previous model includes

an increase from eight to twelve LEDs within the
same size mount, which provide a 50-percent increase in
Nominations Sought For EAA

Homebuilders and Ultralight Hall of Fame
EAA is seeking nominees for induction into the 2013 Hall Aviation Center in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The nomination
of Fame. The Hall of Fame provides permanent recogni- deadline is March 1.
tion for the designers, builders, educators, pioneers,
record-setters and others who made a substantial impact Nomination forms and more information can be found at:
on the Homebuilding and Ultralight movements. Induction http://www.eaa.org/homebuilders/programs/hof.asp and
ceremonies will take place in the fall of 2013 at the EAA http://www.eaa.org/ultralights/hof.asp.
EAA Experimenter 11
T h e S e c o n d T im e A r o un d…
The Second
Time Around…
Andy Werback’s legacy of perfection By Budd Davisson
The Lancair Legacy is made for guys like Andy Werback of find such an interesting combination of traits and experi-
Sebastopol, California. It’s fast, it’s slick, and it’s just begging to ences in one personal package. Some of his interests
have a detail freak with a thirst for speed jump into its innards come in from left field, but his penchant for the technical
and create the ultimate go-fast machine. However, Andy’s side of aviation can be partially understood because of
Legacy RG is not just a machine; it’s a delightfully insane his upbringing.
combination of art, science, and hypercraftsmanship with just
a pinch of black magic and sex appeal tossed in for flavor. He said, “Dad was a Navy vet who became an aerospace
engineering professional and for quite a while practiced
Andy’s Legacy is an unreal airplane, but Andy himself is his trade for the Navy at Naval Air Weapons Station China
an interesting study. For one thing, you don’t expect to Lake, where they invent and test all sorts of new ideas. I
Photography by Chris Luvara EAA Experimenter 13

Andy and Sam’s Lancair Legacy was named kit-built grand champion at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2012.
watched what he did in his job, and from the beginning, I got me places quicker. But something was missing. By the
knew I liked tech stuff and airplanes.” time I began to understand what was missing, I got too
busy with life and quit flying for 18 years.” Sounds familiar,
After earning a degree in electrical engineering, Andy doesn’t it?
wound up as a biomedical engineer at the University of
California (UC), Davis. “I love building stuff. Almost anything: houses, furni-
ture, you name it,” he said. “So, during the period that I
“I retired recently, but for many years I worked as a firm- wasn’t flying, I gave some thought to building an air-
ware (software) developer and integration/test engineer plane. The first step in that direction came in 2002, when
on radar warning systems for Navy and Air Force tactical I went to Oshkosh for the first time, not knowing exactly
aircraft,” Andy explained. “We did a lot of flight testing on what I’d find. One thing I found was that the event re-
the F/A-18, for example. The great part was doing software kindled the urge to get back into flying. But there wasn’t
that tied together all the hardware—radar receivers, com- much challenge to it, and the thoughts of building an
puters, displays, interfaces, and so on—on some really airplane kept nagging at me. So I started reading dad’s
fantastic jet aircraft.” engineering books and looking at composite construc-
tion, à la Burt Rutan.
That certainly sounds like a logical transition into home-
building airplanes, doesn’t it? Not! Part of the time, when “I found a lot of the information in the books to be fascinat-
talking to Andy, it’s hard to keep from feeling as if you’re ing. I especially liked understanding the way things were
talking to someone whose level of technical understanding fabricated and found the technology of the 1950s and ’60s
extends far over the horizon from the rest of us. Then he’ll to be incredible. The upshot of all of this was that the build-
say something that brings him back to Earth in a very low ing bug bit me hard, and in 2004 I bought a Lancair Legacy
tech sort of way. kit, the fixed-gear version. At the time it seemed like a
huge but doable challenge. Of course, it helped that Reid-
He continued, “I started flying while I was at UC Davis, but Hillview airport, where I was building, had lots of Lancairs
I had started sky diving several years before that. For a based on it, so there was a lot of applicable knowledge
long, long time I had a lot more takeoffs than I did landings: floating around.”
My jumps outnumbered my flying hours by quite a bit.
It would be easy to say that this is the beginning of the
“I found learning to fly to be exciting even though we were end of his story—that he got his airplane, worked on his
flying C-150s and 172s. In fact, with only 85 hours, I took airplane, and finished it. Then he took it to Oshkosh and
a 172 on a cross-country from California to Chicago and other fly-ins. But that’s not the story because this was only
back. Then I bought a 182, which was a lot faster, and it his first Legacy kit. And this is where it gets interesting.

Andy explained, “When I started on the fixed-gear air-
plane, I went to the Lancair factory for their Builder Assist
program, which was incredible. You are presented with
boxes and piles of parts and one or two weeks to do a lot
of basic assembly. But everything went well and I now
have more than 300 hours on that airplane. Oh, and it took
me two years to build.”
Let’s back up and read that last line again. That’s right: His
first airplane project was a 200-mph, fairly sophisticated
airplane, and it took him only two years to build it! It should
be mentioned that he had a regular day job and wasn’t an
“airplane hermit” coming out of his workshop only when
he discovered his groceries were running low. He actually
had a life outside of his airplane building. Still…two years?
Seems incredible, doesn’t it?
“I really like to build. In fact, I like to build more than I like

flying. However, once I started flying the airplane I felt it
wasn’t nearly fast enough. Yes, it was much, much faster
than my old 182, but I was certain that, if I were to do it
again, it would be faster.”
So, here he is: His airplane is a beautiful piece of work and

cruises right at 200 mph. But he’s not satisfied. So, what’s
the logical decision at that point? Build another Legacy. Only
make this one better. And faster! To him, that meant learning
more about what he was doing. This, even though he had just
built an airplane in two years, a feat most mere mortals con-
sider impossible. So, he then did something slightly incredible.
He said, “Before I finished the fixed-gear airplane I took

early retirement. And although I didn’t need the money, I felt Landing gear details. In the course of building this Legacy, Andy earned his
as if I needed more education, so I got a job with an A&P/IA airframe and powerplant certifcate to help him learn more about building
as an apprentice mechanic. I figured the only way I was go- and maintaining aircraf.
ing to learn about airplanes was to immerse myself in them.
“I worked with him for 3 years and got my A&P. As they

say, a license to learn. Now I could time a magneto, work
on an engine, and do just about everything to every part of
the airplane. I wanted to fill in the gaps in my knowledge
and this did just that. Plus, now I knew a lot of people who
could answer my questions!”
Now he was in the process of becoming a well-rounded

builder/mechanic (the two skills are often not found in the
same individual), and he was still flying a 200-mph airplane
that he thought should be faster. So, he bought another
Legacy kit and built another Legacy.
“I found a Legacy kit that hadn’t even been unpacked,

even though it was 8 years old. But I could only work on it
after work hours. So I’d finish working on other airplanes
all day and start working on my airplane every night. I Andy and Sam’s nicely detailed cockpit.
Photography by Jim Raeder EAA Experimenter 15

knew that if I wanted to fly it, I had to finish it first. And

because I’m no 30-year-old, that meant bearing down on it.
“The first week after the kit arrived was like Christmas. But
this time I had to run a careful inventory and check every
part against the current inventory list; because being an
older kit, some stuff hadn’t been updated, and I didn’t want
to build out-of-date parts into my airplane.”
Because this was going to be his ultimate traveling ma-

chine, Andy wanted to get the project jump-started and
once again relied on the factory for that initial push.
“I took the kit to the Lancair build shop and spent another
intense week there. It was 10 hours a day working on the
kit with the build center guys looking over my shoulder. We
closed out the wing, built the tail, and fit the center section
Landing gear retract system in the lower side of the wing. to the fuselage. At the end of the week, I had something
that looked like an airplane rather than piles of miscel-
laneous pieces. What I trailered home was like the empty
husk of a cicada: It had the form but absolutely nothing
was inside of it, which was fine with me because I wanted
to do all the systems and detail work.”
If you were to ask Andy if he considers himself to be a

perfectionist, he’ll argue that he’s not. He will, however,
freely admit that he has a very clear picture in his mind as
to how parts are supposed to fit together and what kinds
of tolerances he likes to work to.
He said, “The first thing I did, as I started assembling the

basic airframe, was to fit all the components together and
start working on how well they transitioned from one to
the other. It just seemed natural that there should be abso-
Sam, Andy’s wife, brushes some shavings out of the wing interior. She was lutely zero discontinuity where one component attached to
hands on throughout the project . another, like where the wings hit the center section or how
the center section flows into the fuselage. This airplane
is just one big beautiful curve and invites a builder to try
to make it appear to be made of one piece by eliminating
gaps, joints, and mismatches. That’s not being a perfec-
tionist; that’s just recognizing how something is supposed
to go together and doing it. To do anything else, when
something is shaped the way the Legacy is, is sacrilege.
“When you’re building something like this, you develop all

sorts of tricks on how to sand straight and keep gaps even
and at a minimum. Fortunately, there were a lot of other
guys on the airport doing similar things, so I picked up
many ideas from them and developed others on my own. I
learned, for instance, that one way to make a perfect 1/16-
inch gap was to fold sandpaper around a wide putty knife
and use that as the sanding block in the gap.”
Right from the beginning Andy practiced the “weight is
Engine mount on the frewall. the enemy” mindset that, when trying to build a flawless

composite form, isn’t easy because the temptation to use the machining, but if I hadn’t gone down there and done the
fillers to get perfection goes the opposite direction. assembly myself, I still wouldn’t have it. I’m not an engine
guy by nature, but with them looking over my shoulder, I
“You do your level best to make sure the primary surfaces spent a week finishing up the engine and getting it on the
are as straight and as matched as possible so very little test stand. They didn’t give me a ‘do it yourself’ discount. But
filler is needed. Then you try hard to sand as much of it off at least I got my motor and that’s all that’s important.
as possible,” he said.
“When it came time for the prop, I went with an MT com-
“One of the keys to building light is to build the airplane posite three-blade. It was a little more expensive, but it
from the inside to the outside. It’s easy to add weight by saved 25 to 30 pounds in one chunk, and that’s a lot.”
treating the inside the same as the outside, with the same
attention to detail, and part of that detail is to not add what Even though this was his second Legacy, Andy will readily
isn’t needed. For instance, I was tempted to fancy up the admit that some things were harder than others, and he
baggage compartment with a floorboard kit (5 pounds), but was still learning his way around the airplane.
instead I made it as plain, but as well done, as I could. No
matter what you do to the airplane that adds anything, it He said, “Although the hydraulics were the toughest thing
adds weight and reduces performance. Another option I for me, fitting the canopy was by far the most tedious.
had was to use the Legacy RG adjustable pedal kit; but the You’re fitting a carbon-fiber frame to a carbon frame, and
Legacy FG rudder bars were much lighter, so I used them. it’s…well…it’s tedious. A little sanding here, a little more
Every single ounce counts. Making these choices is one of filling and sanding there.
the most difficult parts of homebuilding an airplane.”
“The retractable landing gear was nerve-racking because it
The underlying purpose of building airplanes, as defined had to be so precise. You can shim it on installation, but it’s
by EAA’s mission statement, is education and recreation, better to have the alignment right from the beginning. I had
and no one can build an airplane without learning how to to make a drill jig to guarantee drilling 90 degrees. It’s the
solve problems. kind of thing where you measure a half dozen times, take
a deep breath, and drill. That’s one of those areas where
Andy said, “For an engine I was having a 310-hp Continental there’s just no substitute for going slowly and carefully.”
IO-550N built. At least that’s what I thought I was doing. But
the engine wasn’t showing up. I’d call and there was always For the interior Andy decided to use real leather, which
a new excuse. Finally, I went down to the engine builder and can be heavy if applied via traditional methods, so he com-
invited myself to be part of the process. They’d already done pensated by lightening up the way it was mounted.
Andy concentrates on the canopy installation.
Photography courtesy Andy Werback EAA Experimenter 17

“The seats are Oregon Aero cushions that I had uphol- “When I got ready to fly it, I cut right to the bottom line and
stered, but I stitched the other panels myself to make went up to the Lancair factory. When I picked up the first
them match. I had a friend help me make cardboard Legacy at the factory, I took six hours of transition training
backing for the side and back panels that are just vel- in their RG. Then when I got ready to go in the RG, I went
croed in place. They are quite light, partially because I back up and took another 4 hours of dual, and I’m really
left them open in the back. There are lots more details I glad I did. Even with 300 hours of Legacy FG time, my first
could have added, but unnecessary details are unneces- flight in the (factory) RG airplane felt incredibly fast, and
sary weight. So…” the landing was close to being sensory overload. Between
monitoring the engine gauges and flying the airplane, I re-
Avionics is an area that some homebuilders shy away ally needed to speed up my brain. Even though I expected
from, but not Andy Werback. it, it was still a surprise.
“I did all the installation and wiring myself, which includes “I wanted more speed and performance, and I definitely
the NavWorx ADS-B system. As I was getting ready to put got it. It climbs like a bandit, and I’m seeing a cruise at
it all in, I became concerned about heat rise behind the 10,000 feet of 210 knots true airspeed at 13 gph. That’s
panel, so I added a couple of cooling fans, including one really fast! I’m flying short final at 100 knots and touching
for the EFIS. I also installed an autopilot that has two-axis down right at 75 knots. Which is also fast, but as I get more
coupling since I intend on flying it IFR eventually.” time in the airplane, that doesn’t seem as fast as it first did!
When it came to paint, Andy knew that a good paint

job is composed of three critical processes: the pre-
painting surface preparation, the actual spraying of
the paint, and the post-painting surface work. He was
comfortable with the first portion of the process, but
not doing the actual painting and finishing because he
knew a good painter is part technician, part magician,
and all experience.
“I did all the surface prep, starting with 120 to 150 grit and
gradually working my way up to 400 grit. I treated the white
WLS epoxy high-build primer as if it were a finish coat,
getting it as perfect as it could possibly be. That way, when
Juan Solario at T&P Aero Refinishing in Salinas shot the
color, it would also be perfect.
With safety important to Andy and Sam, they installed a four-point
“We put on the scheme designed by Don Barnes shoulder harness.
(www.CellarIdeas.com is his business; www.LancairLegacy.com
is his builder’s log—highly recommended) using Sherwin-
Williams Acry Glo high-gloss urethane with a clear coat.”
Time to Go Flying!
And then the day came where there were no more parts to
install; nothing to be aligned; no tiny nitpicking detail to be
finished. The Legacy was ready to fly, and Andy wisely de-
cided he needed a professional to do the initial hops: Even
though he had the Legacy FG time, he was still basically a
182, fixed-gear pilot.
“Pete Zaccagnino, a longtime test pilot, came in to do the

test hops and some of the flight tests to verify the POH
numbers. I’m positive I would have been over my head in
that environment, and indeed, he did have a slight problem When Andy’s 310-hp Continental IO-550N wasn’t coming together quickly
on the second flight, when the gear wouldn’t come up. enough, Andy assisted the engine builder to fnish the project.

“It’s really exciting to be the owner of any airplane. Howev- the right way to do things. And before anything else, it’s
er, when it’s something like this, it’s doubly so. It’s amazing to got to be safe and reliable.
think of going somewhere 500 miles away and know you can
make it in two hours. And, of course, to win grand champion “Also, there are times when the immensity of what you’re
kit-built award just makes it all that much better.” doing threatens to overwhelm you, and doubt sets in. Those
periods can kill a project, but as long as you keep moving
There are some things Andy doesn’t mention about and keep doing little bits at a time and never stop, the doubt
building the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2012 award win- is erased by the progress being made. Progress is addic-
ner. First, he had the airplane at Oshkosh 2011 (and won tive. Once you taste a little, you want more. And before
a Bronze Lindy) and listened carefully to what the judges long, you’re racing down the runway in your very own
had to say about his airplane. From the minute he started creation, and it absolutely never gets better than that.”
building the airplane, he placed great credence on the
advice of others on how to build a safe, good-looking P.S. Did we mention that he took two years to build this
airplane. So, he took the judges’ comments to heart, took Legacy, too? Oh, yeah, forgot…and while building the
his airplane home, and reworked it. And he won the Gold Legacys, he also bought a barely started Skybolt and
next time around. finished it. Something about wanting to learn welding is his
explanation. That’s almost depressing!
Andy’s story is one of determined self-education and the
pursuit of doing things right. It is also one from which oth- » Andy describes his building experiences in this
ers can learn. short video.
“Even though I had a lot of friends over to help with the
big pieces and to cast their eyes on what I was doing, Budd Davisson is an aeronautical engineer, has
looking for errors, building an airplane is basically a lone- flown more than 300 different aircraft types, and
ly pursuit. You spend hours and hours by yourself attend- published four books and more than 4,000 articles.
ing to details that you know for a fact no one will ever see He is editor-in-chief of Flight Journal magazine
or appreciate because they’re buried far down inside the and a flight instructor primarily in Pitts/tailwheel
airplane. But you do those with the same care that you do aircraft. Visit him at www.Airbum.com.
items that are right there in the public’s eye. That’s simply
Andy and Sam

enjoying their grand
champion award.
Photography by Jim Raeder EAA Experimenter 19

B a r r a c u d a!
Barracuda!
Jef Weisel and his updated Barracuda.

They say every good fisherman is born with patience.
I waited 30 years to catch my Barracuda. By Jeffrey W. Weisel
It was the late 1970s when I first became aware of the Bar- in the flying community; he kept his homebuilt, Melmoth,
racuda. I was living in Los Angeles, California, and kept my based there. Melmoth was Pete’s own design and was built
old Tri-Pacer tied down at Whiteman Airport near Burbank. to fly anywhere in the world, holding enough fuel to leapfrog
Peter Garrison was also a resident of the airport. Pete, a across the planet. Pete wrote extensively about aviation,
writer for Flying magazine, was well-known among people and I read everything I could get my hands on related to fly-
ing. One of his articles had to do with experimental aircraft,
and this particular write-up included the Barracuda.
The Barracuda was described as a fast, fighter-like aircraft,

capable of high-speed cross-country flights while also able
EAA Experimenter 21
B a r r a c u d a!
to perform limited aerobatics. Pete stated that when boredom They say alcohol and eBay don’t mix, but I took another sip
set in on those long flights, all you had to do to liven up the and started bidding. A few days later the auction ended,
journey were a few loops and a roll. This sounded to me like and I was the highest bidder, but not high enough to hit the
the perfect plane. When I saw the pictures, I fell in love with its reserve price. A conversation between Geoff and I followed,
beautiful design, Corsair-like wings, and gull-winged canopy. and soon I was on a flight to Seattle, Washington, to see the
plane and talk about how we could put a sale together.
Pete went on to say the plane was designed and built by
Geoffrey Siers. Geoffrey was a Royal Air Force pilot and I had a cold that morning, and by the time I arrived in
aeronautical engineer; he flew Spitfires, Mosquitoes, and Seattle, I was quite ill. Nonetheless we drove to Puyallup
many of the early British jet fighters before immigrating to Airpark, about an hour away, and I had my first encounter
the United States and going to work for Boeing. The Bar- with the plane I had dreamed about for so many years. My
racuda was an attempt to re-create the building techniques first impression was “Wow!” The Barracuda was not at
and flying characteristics of those classic warbirds. It all like other small homebuilts I had seen. The Barracuda
seems that he succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. is 24 feet long and has a wingspan of 25 feet. It’s more
the size of a Cherokee. I walked around and listened to
Over the years I read everything I could get my hands on Geoff describe the plane; he even showed me the saw he
about this fabled plane, but I never saw one. Constructed used to cut the materials to build the plane 32 years ago.
primarily of wood, Geoffrey only sold plans for the plane, as We agreed to fly the next day. We drove to his home, and
this was the pre-kit era. Since this was a complex aircraft his lovely French wife, Genevieve, served me a wonder-
to build, not many were completed. Geoffrey was a regular ful bowl of homemade onion soup and a few glasses of
at EAA Oshkosh, where he encouraged builders, answered Burgundy. They arranged for me to stay at a comfortable
questions, and gave advice. The Barracuda graced the inn on Gig Harbor.
cover of Sport Aviation in January 1976 and won the Best
New Design Award at the convention the same year. I did not emerge from my room for two days; I had one of
the worst colds of my life! Staying in bed, watching TV, and
Time passed, but I never forgot about this seductive air- feeling sorry for myself, I had no thoughts about the Barra-
craft. Occasionally I would see examples of the Barracuda cuda. On the day I was to fly back to Arizona, I reluctantly
over the Internet but never in person; they were just too agreed to go for a short flight in the Barracuda. It may have
few and far between. One night in 2007 while sitting at my been short, but it was memorable.
computer, browsing through aircraft for sale on eBay and
enjoying a glass of wine, I had one of the biggest surprises We climbed in, buckled up, and taxied to the end of the
of my life. The prototype Barracuda was up for auction! runway. At the time, the plane did not have toe brakes, so
tight turns were difficult. Run-up was routine, and soon
My world came to a momentary stop; here it was, the Bar- we were rocketing down the runway. At 65 mph indicated,
racuda built by Geoffrey Siers who still owned it. just a slight bit of back pressure sent us into the air. The
A new paint job and new

windows gave the Barracuda
an updated look.
22 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013 Photography courtesy Jeff Weisel

gear came up and we were climbing at 2,000 fpm. I had the systems. Bob Archer antennas were glued into the fuse-
controls; they were light as a feather. lage, and Ray Allen supplied the new stick grips. All the
hydraulic hoses were replaced, the oil cooler was reposi-
At altitude Geoff took over and demonstrated the plane’s tioned to the right side of the cowl, and a NACA scoop was
flying characteristics. I was still not well and urged him to fabricated to direct air through it. The oil temp now runs 20
be gentle with me. It’s funny, but the most memorable thing degrees cooler. Toe brakes were installed, replacing the
about the flight was not how fast we went, how easily the original breaker bar, and two new NACA scoops bring cool
plane turned, or how stable it was. The thing I remember air into the cockpit. The plane is now thoroughly modern-
most about that flight was how slow Geoff was able to fly. ized and ready for another 30 years of safe flight.
With full flaps, he was able to get the plane down to 45 mph
indicated; this was the last number on the airspeed indica- People often ask me about performance. I start by saying
tor, so it could have flown even slower! Not bad for a fighter- that this is a large plane with a fat wing and a wing area
like plane that looks like it will eat you up. Geoff later told me of 128 square feet. That makes it a pussycat to fly, espe-
he taught his son Richard to fly in the Barracuda. cially at slow speeds; however, it still gets up and goes.
I generally run the engine at 21 inches and 2200 rpm.
Back in the pattern we slowed to 115 mph and lowered the That gives me a ground speed of about 180 knots burn-
flaps to about 15 degrees. Slowing to 90, we extended the ing about 12 gallons per hour. If I want to go faster, all I
gear and made ready to land. Geoff let me do the honors.
I had about 2,500 hours of logged flight time but only two
hours of stick time in an Aeronca years ago. The Barracuda
had a stick, so this was going to be interesting. After a bit of
overcontrolling, I was able to put the plane down gently on
its tricycle gear. We taxied back, took off, and tried it again.
It just got easier.
After the flight we drove back to SeaTac, and I was soon

back in Arizona, recovering from my cold and contemplat-
ing my next move. Geoff and I talked at length on the phone
and came to an agreement. I was now the new owner of
the plane I had craved for more than 30 years.
Two weeks later I was back in Seattle. I was given a thor-

ough checkout in the Barracuda, and early the next day I
was ready to head back to Arizona. It was obviously a bit-
tersweet moment; the Barracuda had been a large part of Jef added fuel injection to the Lycoming 540 powering the Barracuda.
Geoff’s life. We said our good-byes and shed some tears, It puts out 300 hp.
and I was off to Prescott, Arizona (PRC).
The plane easily climbed to 14,000 feet, giving me a majes-

tic view of the Cascades. After two fuel stops and about six
hours of flight time, I was back at PRC.
After about 20 hours of flying I decided to overhaul the

engine. The Lycoming 540 is now fuel injected and puts out
300 hp. I replaced the prop with a three-bladed MT. The
original paint was showing its age, so I decided to repaint
it and replace the windows as well.
I flew the plane for about 20 hours more and had a minor
landing gear mishap. While fixing the gear I decided to
replace the steam gauges with a Dynon SkyView sys-
tem. I fabricated a new panel and settled on two 7-inch
screens, one for engine monitoring and one for the flight Seating for two and a generous baggage area make the Barracuda a suitable
instruments. I also installed the Dynon GPS and autopilot traveling machine.
EAA Experimenter 23
B a r r a c u d a!
have to do is burn more fuel. Landing is easy. I do not let Owning and flying this plane have simply been a joy. Ev-
the airspeed get below 75 knots, slowing down over the erywhere I go it draws a crowd. Some time ago I took off
fence. With flaps and gear down, the speed bleeds off behind a friend’s Baron. I quickly caught up to him in the
fast in the flair. climb and told him to look out his left window. As I sped past
him I did a roll. That’s what this plane was made for—and
The Barracuda was designed to hold 44 gallons of fuel, which just how Peter Garrison described it so many years ago.
equates to about three hours in the air, but that is pushing the
envelope. My longest legs have been no more than two hours My long wait was well worth it. I have finally caught the
and 45 minutes, which takes me more than 500 nautical miles. elusive Barracuda.
Barracuda designer Geofrey Siers with his Barracuda on the cover of the
January 1976 issue of Sport Aviation. Te Barracuda was named
Best New Design at Oshkosh ‘75.

EAA Experimenter 17
W h a t o ur M e m b e r s a r e B uil d in g
The Airplanes of the EAA

Homebuilt Aircraft Council
What they’ve built or are building
What better way to get to know the members of EAA’s they’ve built or are building? Here, in their own words, the
Homebuilt Aircraft Council than to see photos of the airplanes council members share their building experiences.
Gary Baker, Medina, Ohio
My first airplane project was a Pedal Eagle that I built Zeppelin at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2011. It was Amy’s
about 20 years ago for my first son, Brian. At the time, a birthday and also her first visit to anything aviation.
company offered precut pieces of wood and hardware, so
this was one of the first kit airplanes. Not having worked Currently, I’m building an RV-6. I started this odyssey
with wood previously, it took me approximately 100 hours back in 1996, but did not make great strides in the prog-
to build it. The plane is covered with decals, also offered ress until 2008, when I moved the project about 15 miles
by a company at the time. I believe the company was Avia- closer to home. I am currently working on the engine
tion Products, which still sells the products. Incidentally, installation. You can read all about my project on my
Brian proposed to his now wife, Amy, while flying on the building blog.
Gary’s son Brian in the Christen Eagle Pedal Plane. Gary works on an access panel for the RV-6.
Joe Gauthier, Cromwell, Connecticut
My first homebuilt was a Bede BD-4. It was built in my base- books or the Internet. I learned a lot with that airplane. I flew
ment between January 1969 and 1973. I made it’s maiden it for 425 hours before selling it in 1977 to start my Thorp.
flight on July 3,1973. There were very few homebuilts around
our area at that time, and I made many trips to the FBO’s Between 1977 and 1980 a group of us built a Davis DA2A,
maintenance shop to see airplanes undergoing maintenance which we flew for well more than 1,200 hours until it was sold
just to see “how things were done.” There were no Bingelis in 2010...more than 30 years with a string of partners. A good

airplane, just it was not getting used so we found it a new This project was born when one of EAA Chapter 166’s mem-
home. A Thorp T-18 was just a stack of aluminum in my shop bers acquired a partially built kit and suggested to another
during that time period. Chapter 166 builder that he should take the lead for building
the airplane. Larry Gagnon was the leader, having built an-
Then I built a Lancair 235, which first flew in 1992. The Lancair other -6 and a Kitfox previously. Preston Kavanagh, Tim Dale,
did close to 200 mph on only 118 hp. I flew Lancair more than myself, and a few others pitched in with the construction.
225 hours over the next few years and then sold it to a pilot in
California. In October of 2008, I took the airplane up on its first flight
and pronounced, “All is well,” upon landing. It’s powered by
Finally, in 1995 I got to finish the Thorp I had set it aside to a 180-hp Lycoming and the standard metal Sensenich prop
build the Davis in 1977. Today, the completed Thorp sits in my many builders use. Handling is typical of an RV-6 with no
hangar with a bit under 700 hours flight time. I still love my bad habits at all.
Thorp and doubt I’ll ever sell it as long as I can fly it.
N58Y has been flown to the Sun ’n Fun International Fly-In and
There were a few other interruptions that caused the Thorp to Expo in Lakeland, Florida, and also EAA AirVenture Osh-
be delayed so long, A Christen Eagle that needed fabric and kosh, both memorable trips. “The Project,” as the airplane is
paint, a Smith Miniplane that also needed major upgrades and referred to, now has just more than 300 hours on the Hobbs
recovering. A Taylorcraft and Cessna 140 rebuild, and some meter, and everybody enjoys flying it and sharing it with family
engine work on the Ranger engine on our Fairchild PT-19. I’ve and friends.
been busy for many years, made possible in great part to a
very understanding wife. This is a great example of the benefit of chapters, in that
Chapter EAA 166 brought this bunch together and the airplane
My latest project is a story of a few guys getting together to is the result. Sharing the costs and the benefits through joint
finish an RV-6A that was started by an EAAer whose family ownership is a great way for some with limited resources to
donated the partial kit to us on his passing. participate in this great adventure called homebuilding.
Te RV-6 built by members of EAA Chapter 166. Joe’s Torp T-18.
Randy Hooper, Nashville, Tennessee
This is my RV-8, which I completed in March 2009. With week. My wife, Malinda, and I are part of the
a travel time of about three hours from Nashville, I have regular crowd.
flown it to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh the past four years.
Building and flying the completed project is satisfying, but
In our area, we are fortunate to have a Saturday when it inspires someone else to build, that is one of the
breakfast within 30 minutes flying time almost every greatest compliments.
EAA Experimenter 27
I have another RV-8 under construction in my crowded

home shop. It’s nice to still be able to attract family mem-
bers out for a needed hand. With kit improvements and
fewer personal distractions this project is moving much
faster than the last one.
Randy and his RV-8. Working on the second RV-8.
Fred Keip, Franksville, Wisconsin
N99FK is my Sonerai IIL that I started building in 1977 “First Wing Install Final” is a photo of my current
and flew for the first time in 1986. It has a 2180-cc project, a Wag-Aero Wag-a-Bond Traveler. I started
Great Plains VW engine with a Sterba prop, and it this project in 1998, and it’s currently at the “90 percent
cruises at 130-plus mph. I’ve flown it to Sun ’n Fun done, 90 percent to go” stage. It is a scratchbuilt (plans-
three times, and it’s been to AirVenture Oshkosh 20 built) airplane and is nearly ready for cover. The engine
times (the last time in 2008). It currently has 1,330 will be a converted Lycoming O-290-G with a Sensenich
hours on the Hobbs meter and is great fun to fly. wood prop. Hopefully, it will be done on “Tuesday.”
Fred has been fying this Sonerai IIL since 1986. Fred is currently building a Wag-a-Bond.
Keith Phillips, Port Orange, Florida
My first aircraft was a modified Nesmith Cougar that I finished in Next, I began work on an SX-300. I finished this aircraft
1966. I flew it to Oshkosh in 1970...the first year the fly-in was held in June 1998, and it now has 1,400 hours on the airframe.
there. I currently have the aircraft apart and am rebuilding it. It’s a great machine designed by Ed Swearingen. Ed built

about 50 some kits in 1985 and discontinued them when I’ve also built a Pitts Model 12, whichI finished this plane
Lloyd’s of London cancelled his insurance. There are 30 of in 2002. This is a kit from Jim Kimball Enterprises of Zell-
these flying. It’s a fast (240-plus knots) aircraft with good wood Florida. Curtiss Pitts designed this aircraft around
flying qualities. We have an SX-300 type club group that the Russian nine-cylinder engine that is used in numerous
holds two formal meetings per year. Our last get together trainer and aerobatic aircraft. Mine is the 14PF version,
was in early October in Fredricksberg, Texas. We also flew which produces 400-hp. It’s basically a Pitts on steroids.
five of these aircraft to Alaska in 2007, 2009, and 2011 and It’s a great machine, too, and fun to fly. I’ve flown it to EAA
are planning another trip to Alaska next June. Oshkosh AirVenture twice.
Keith’s Pitts Model 12 and SX-300 in formation.
Dave Prizio, Tustin, California
I am based in southern California at Chino Ed and I also built a Texas Sport Cub, which we finished in
Airport (KCNO). I currently fly a Glasair Sportsman 2008. This is the kit version of the Legend Cub. This plane is
that my friend Ed Zaleski and I built in 2006. We fin- light-sport eligible. It sports a 120-hp Jabiru engine and a
ished it in early July and flew it to EAA AirVenture Sensenich fixed-pitch prop. Cruise at 75 percent power is
Oshkosh that year with the Phase I flight test just 85 knots, so long trips are something of a challenge. On the
barely complete. The project went together very other hand it will land at 30 knots, so it doesn’t need much
quickly, largely because we had built a GlaStar of a runway. This was our first experience with fabric cov-
four years previously. The Sportsman has a Lycoming ering, but we got great results and had a lot of fun learning.
180-hp engine with Power Flow exhaust and a Hartzell
constant-speed prop to cruise at up to 139 knots. At this time we are helping another friend build an RV-8, which
We have flown it to Alaska, Oshkosh, and the Idaho he hopes to fly to AirVenture next year. Now if I can just figure
backcountry, plus many locations in California. out how to get my extra-large body into the backseat of an RV-8.
Te Texas Sport Cub that Dave and Ed built. Dave fies this Glasair Sportsman that he build with Ed Zaleski.
EAA Experimenter 29
Rick Weiss, Daytona Beach, Florida
This is my Kitfox that took almost 15 years to build. representative of Delta Air Lines. I flew for Delta Con-
I was working a lot back then and got to the project nection for seven years after I “retired.”
when I could. I have about 1,800 to 2,000 hours in it.
That’s more than most pilots in Kitfoxs, but I added a I enjoy making parts from the plans. I still enjoy
lot of modifications to it as I went along. I even had the detail fabrication method versus writing a
to completely redo the instrument panel as the first check. Now I’m working on an RV-7A. It will be
one didn’t perform the way I planned. I did the whole powered by a YIO-390 Thunderbolt engine. I’m busy
project, covering, painting, you name it. The paint was assembling parts; at the moment I’m working on
supposed to be a combination of N1, the FAA’s Gulf- the dreaded canopy installation, lots of cutting and
stream IV, that I flew for many years, and the tail is drilling of holes.
Te canopy for the RV-7A that Rick is currently building. Rick’s Kitfox Model IV.
Video of the
Month
Robert Dalzell purchased this
Corbin Baby Ace in 2010 after
it was damaged in a landing
accident. He restored it over a
period of about 8 months. He says
it’s a pleasant plane to fly...handles
like a Cub, but doesn’t have the
glide of a Cub.

H in t s F or H o m e b uil d e r s
Blind Fastener Tips

By Cy Galley
There are two popular brands of blind fasteners: Rivnuts My SWAG is dissimilar metal corrosion between the
and Nutserts. They are made of aluminum and set like a aluminum structure and the machine screw. This cor-
pop rivet from one side, providing threads to fasten or hold rosion locks the machine screw to the body so that the
an item like a fairing or access panel. They work fine for a body turns instead of the screw. The torque of turning
season or two, and then, instead of being able to remove out the screw is greater than the grip of the body to
the machine screw, you’ll find the body of the fastener the structure.
turns with the screw. You can’t get the screw out.
We can increase this grip of the body in several
When this happens, you might be able to drill the head of ways. Make sure to file the notch so it seats if the
the machine screw off. This can be a laborious and frus- body has a keyway. Or, placing a drop of epoxy or
trating experience, teaching you many new unprintable red Loctite on the outside of the body before setting
words. Even the Rivnuts with a keyway are not immune to will help. Use a reamer or step drill so the hole is clean
this problem. Many builders just swear off using them by and round.
using steel nutplates if at all possible. But why does such
a neat little fastener give us such problems, and how can To combat the corrosion, use a wax like Boeshield,
the problem of the body spinning be reduced? candle wax, or an anti-seize on the screw. Use one of
these every time you remove and replace the screw.
Rivnut Rivnut with key Nutsert
Finally, we can minimize the corrosion by selecting a
machine screw that doesn’t react as much with alumi-
num. How many times do you see stainless steel screws
used with nice shiny stainless Tinnerman recessed
washers to hold on a fairing? It sure looks nice, but
there is a higher voltage potential between the alumi-
num and stainless steel than with cad-plated screws.
This difference is like battery acid and creates galvanic
corrosion, and the corrosion causes the screw to bind,
which creates the problem.
The choice is yours.
Hints for Homebuilders Videos

Composite fairings
Almost every project requires making some special composite fairings. In this episode, composite
specialist Wally Anderson demonstrates how to fabricate a quick and easy composite fairing.
Soldering Tips-Holding Wires
Holding two wires together for soldering can be a challenge, especially if they are under your
instrument panel. Mitch Zehr from the EAA aircraft maintenance staff shows how to use the
plastic top from a spray can to help make it easier.
EAA Experimenter 31
S a f e t y W ir e
Experimental Aviation
Part 2: Identifying ways
to stop fatal accidents
By Stephen L. Richey
In the first article in this series, we discussed why problems from sending more of us “west.” The best
experimental aviation is uniquely positioned to lead the way to remember how to do this is for me to CREEP
rest of the aviation world by example, if we so choose to you out. That is:
commit ourselves. The actual design application of such a
decision—whether part of a community-wide effort or not— Container
is grounded in some very solid science and engineering. Restraints
Energy absorption
The next step, now that we know some of the problems Evacuation
we face, is to identify ways to go about stopping these Post-crash concerns.

Te best way to think about safety
in your cockpit is to think about an
egg inside one of those cardboard
cartons at the grocery store. If you
drop the carton on the ground, the
cardboard crushes pretty readily, and
the egg breaks, resulting in a need for
a cleanup in aisle six.
you to stay as close as possible to the way it was

originally, in all directions. Loss of volume can
happen in several ways. The engine may be shoved
back into the cockpit, or up and back. The risk of this
can be minimized by designing the structures in the
cockpit to keep the engine in its place. The use of a
slanted “A” pillar at the sides of the windshield (as
seen in cars) is not always standard in light aircraft.
This is one of the main components to keep the
engine from moving upward and should be included
in all aircraft.
In fact, short of the wing spar, this pillar should be

among the most robust structures in an aircraft.
Assuming a frontal impact at the lower side of the
engine compartment, you want to have structures
in place that are going to keep the engine out of the
We will look at the first of these points in this article cockpit for a few reasons, the most obvious being that
and the rest in following installments. if the engine tears loose, it is likely to take the firewall
and anything attached to it (such as the instrument
The “container” here is the volume within your panel) with it. While not having such a pillar may offer
aircraft’s cockpit. The best way to think about safety a major improvement in forward visibility especially in
in your cockpit is to think about an egg inside one of a taildragger, it also is an almost sure way to increase
those cardboard cartons at the grocery store. If you the severity of injury especially to the front-seat
drop the carton on the ground, the cardboard crushes occupants’ legs.
pretty readily, and the egg breaks, resulting in a need
for a cleanup in aisle six. Now, if you place an egg Secondly, if the engine does break loose, you
in the center of a plastic bottle filled with shredded have probably just created a fuel leak in most
cardboard and drop it on the floor, the egg is much aircraft. (The few of us who spend the extra cash
less likely to break. One of the major reasons for this for lines fitted with quick disconnects like the ones
is because the “passenger” in the bottle is not directly that the military uses on its helicopters are spared
exposed to a sufficient decrease in the volume of the that problem.) Having the engine mount designed to
cabin or forced to directly impact the sides of the absorb energy in a manageable way by controlled
container. The same holds true for your aircraft. ductile or frangible failure modes but still transmit
any remaining energy around the cockpit in as
Ideally, you want no more than a 10-percent straight as a direction as possible without causing
reduction in the volume of your cockpit in the event failure of the cockpit structure is the most ideal
of a crash. This means you want the frame protecting option here.
EAA Experimenter 33
S a f e t y W ir e
A good example of this is to relate In the design I am currently working on for a light-
sport aircraft, this angle is approximately 45 degrees.
how I fell of the roof of my parents’
For those designs with a canopy, a roll bar is needed
house as a kid. (Explains a lot, right?) to keep the pilot’s and passengers’ heads from
contacting the ground in the event that an aircraft
While we are on the topic of engine mounts, another winds up on its back. Ideally, there should be one of
related design point to consider is your firewall. In these structures in front of and behind the heads of
what seems kind of counterintuitive to most when it the occupants. If you have a four-seat aircraft, there
is first mentioned, a longer deceleration path is often should also be a roll bar immediately behind the front
a better choice, assuming all other factors (velocity, seats as well, with the aft bar placed at the back of the
impact angle, the type of surface impacted) are equal. rear seats. Even among non-canopy-equipped aircraft,
The reason for this is that a longer slide across the such structures built into the frame can serve a vital
ground gives more time for the energy to be expended. purpose by keeping the roof from caving in should the
aircraft wind up on its back. Few things express the
A good example of this is to relate how I fell off the phrase “splitting headache” quite so dramatically as
roof of my parents’ house as a kid. (Explains a lot, what often happens when someone’s head and the
right?) I actually did this not once but twice, both in ground or another object get into a debate over the
the name of aeronautical science while trying to figure claim to the same bit of cabin space.
out how those funny-looking planes designed by a
guy with those epic sideburns could fly. I had seen
photos of Burt Rutan’s airplanes in a school library
I actually did this not once but twice,
book about some air show in Wisconsin. Instead of both in the name of aeronautical
just simply looking it up or asking someone, I called
the local airport and found someone with one of those science while trying to fgure out
planes. He made copies of the basic plans for me,
and I made a series of scale replicas and proceeded
how those funny-looking planes
to throw them off the roof. I learned a lot from those designed by a guy with those epic
experiments, including that my parents’ Doberman
could jump high enough to pose a hazard to small sideburns could fy.
aircraft on approach to landing.
Now, I can hear the groans from a subset of builders/
One of the other lessons was that I possess a owners of canopy-equipped aircraft. Some will
maximum lift coefficient (CLmax) roughly equivalent to argue that this will take away from the World War II
that of an ice-covered brick. That is to say not even fighterlike mystique of their plane or otherwise ruin
close to sufficient to have a decent glide ratio. Once, the look they are hoping to achieve. To these folks,
I impacted a concrete sidewalk, breaking some ribs I suggest you ask your spouse or kids what is more
and giving myself two black eyes. The second time, I important to them—you looking “cool” or you being
landed on a wicker seat. That time I escaped with just around for as many holidays, anniversaries, birthdays,
some bruises because I had a greater distance over and weddings as you can be?
which to slow down and change my potential energy
into work done. In this case I did that by turning that In our next installment, we will look at why restraints are
seat into splinters. important and how their benefits can be maximized. Until
then, fly safely.
How does this all relate to your firewall in a crash?
If the bottom edge of the firewall is either canted
forward or vertically oriented and the skin of the nose Stephen Richey is an aviation safety researcher who
and belly are torn away, the firewall can dig in much has been involved with flying starting with his time as
like a soccer player’s cleats (this is referred to in the a “junior hangar bum” with a local EAA chapter as a
crash safety community as “plowing”) and cause the child in Indiana in 1988. He has logged about 700 hours
aircraft to come to a more abrupt stop, exposing the thus far including times in ultralights and as a student
passengers and crew to more extreme impact forces. pilot in light singles. His current project is the design of
Taking the firewall and angling the bottom edge back a new composite homebuilt known as the Praetorian.
at least 20 to 30 degrees can help to minimize this risk.

EAA Experimenter 35
Un d e r t h e C o w l
Every station along a propeller has a distinctive airfoil, which

must be maintained throughout the life of the propeller.
Pick a Prop
What’s best for your aircraft?
By Tim Kern
Somewhere near the end of a build/rebuild/restoration constant-speed propellers are more complicated, heavier,
project, or whenever an airplane changes hands, the and more expensive than fixed-pitch or ground-adjustable
question of “What’s the best prop?” should come up. It’s props, and because they function quite differently, we’ll
easier to answer if the theory is clear. stick with the simpler designs. Fixed-pitch and adjustable-
pitch props are much more common among builders, and
A propeller is the link between an airplane’s engine and the they present a vastly wider range of choices.
air, just as the transmission and tires link your car’s engine
to the road. The right-sized tires and right gear ratio will give Two Factors – Diameter and Pitch –
a car its best performance; the right prop will allow the best Dominate Most Discussions
use of your airplane’s engine. Also remember that like tires, a
propeller is a wear item, so frequent inspections are prudent. A prop’s diameter is governed by the engine’s operating
rpm (or more precisely, by the prop hub’s rpm) and the
For propeller choice, the aircraft’s mission, the runways ground clearance available. General wisdom says that
it uses, and pilot preference all come into play. Because within those two parameters, “Bigger is better.” General

wisdom applies…generally. Larger-diameter props are shapes. Plus, if you have a prop strike with a wood prop it
heavier; not just because of the diameter, but also because basically acts as a “fuse” and turns to splinters, minimizing
strength and rigidity are more difficult to achieve, thus the internal engine damage. The main downsides to a wood
longer the prop. Longer props are more expensive and propeller are more frequent maintenance (frequent bolt
more subject to damage from ground strikes, and they limit torque checks) and often lower performance than a metal
rpm (and sometimes horsepower available). or composite prop. (To maintain the rigidity necessary, a
wood prop usually needs a heftier chord than would be
Aircraft speed and mission also play significant roles optimum.) Of course, the lower the airspeed, the less the
in propeller diameter choice. For example, pick two air- performance difference is.
craft with the same engine, say, a Piper Super Cub and
an RV-6, each running a Lycoming 180. The Super Cub
prop may be as long as 82 inches for short takeoff and
landing flights and slow speed capability, while the RV-6
will turn a 72-inch-diameter prop to achieve high cruise
and top speeds.
“Pitch” refers to the distance the propeller would travel in

a single revolution. (The term “airscrew” was often used
in the early days of flight.) An airplane’s propeller, in real
life, has various pitches along its length, from hub to tip;
“pitch” is an effective value only, and its measurement
differs even among manufacturers and sometimes among
their various products. Still, any published pitch number
can be useful when you’re staying in a given manufac-
turer’s product line.
Prop Materials
There’s a third really important factor: the material of
which the prop is constructed. Wood, the choice for de-
cades, has a lot of advantages: It is light, relatively durable,
resistant to fatigue, inexpensive, and available in endless A loose metal prop will destroy itself and damage the hub
Even a tough all-composite prop will be ruined when it hits When a prop is even slightly loose, it can “burn” as it rubs against the
something solid. hub causing the prop to become less efcient.
Photography courtesy Sensenich Propeller and by Tim Kern EAA Experimenter 37

Metal props, I’ve often said, are the “anti-wood.” They “Composites,” admittedly a large family, try to capture
are heavy, need to be carefully designed and manufac- the best of both wood and metal: They are light, resistant
tured to resist fatigue, are relatively expensive, and are to fatigue and erosion, have good life in the elements, can
quite finite in model availability. And—opposite the wood be made in more optimal shapes, require little inspec-
prop’s property—if you have a significant prop strike with tion and maintenance…and are expensive. Field repairs
a metal propeller, you quite likely will have internal en- are seldom needed but never recommended. Composite
gine damage. However, metal props do last longer, resist prop blades also lend themselves particularly well to use
weather and erosion better, and do not require as much in adjustable hubs in which pitch can be changed by the
attention as wood. airplane owner, at will.
How to Pick a Prop?
The easiest way to start choosing your prop is to look

at similar airplane/engine combinations that fly similar
missions. If you’re building a kit airplane, the manufac-
turer will have some good ideas, based on your choice of
engine and your likeliest flying scenario.
Your prop’s diameter must be small enough that at full rpm

the tips of your prop blades won’t be going supersonic. For
very fast airplanes, the forward speed of the airplane is a
factor; but for most of us, a simpler calculation will suffice.
An easy rule of thumb that includes a safety factor: Your
top rpm times your prop’s diameter in inches should not
exceed 212,000. (Example: A top hub rpm of 3300 will allow
a prop diameter of about 64 inches--212,000 divided by
3300 = 64.24)
Tis wood-core composite prop failed when it was over-revved at more More sophisticated formulas exist, but this is really all
than 400 mph. No propeller would survive this. you’ll need to get into the right ballpark. (Who lives that
An of-ramp excursion, even into sof earth, will ofen lead to a written-of prop. Tis one might be salvageable, but only the manufacturer will be able to tell.
38 Vol.2 N o.1 / January 2013 Photography courtesy Jeffrey Lo and by Tim Kern
close to the edge, and who has different prop choices and sometimes even “seaplane” props to consider. (Note:
available to compensate for, say, temperature and humid- the pilot’s operating handbook usually lists performance
ity? Yeah, some racers do. Are you a racer?) for only the standard prop, so when you buy any used air-
plane, even if it’s certificated, it’s important to know which
Ground clearance, particularly in a tricycle-gear airplane, prop you’re getting!)
can also be a factor. The minimum clearance from the hub
center to the ground must be measured with the nose sus- A Note on Using Two-Stroke Props on
pension at full compression and front tire flat—plus don’t Four-Stroke Engines
forget a little more clearance to clear a bump, hangar door
track, or fuel filler! Even among props of nominally identical pitch and diam-
eter, the blade design matters. Consider that a two-stroke
If you live at a high-altitude airport with a short runway and engine makes its power in a relatively narrow, high-rpm
you carry a lot of luggage, “flat” pitch (a smaller pitch dimen- band. In order to make good power, it needs to rev up.
sion allows more revolutions for less forward motion, effec- A four-stroke aircraft engine has a wide torque curve; it
tively simulating a “low” gear ratio in your car) is the only way produces useful power over a wider range of rpm. Prop
to go. If all you do is run laps at the Reno Air Racers, where designers know this and design two-stroke propellers to
you have a mile-long runway and top speed is paramount, be efficient only in their top rpm range. (If they made props
you’ll probably run the highest pitch your engine will pull. that pulled hard at lower revs, the engine would never be
able to climb up into its sweet spot!) A typical mistake is
Even in the certificated world with its FAA-limited choices, to put such a two-stroke design on a four-stroke engine.
many aircraft owners have “cruise,” “standard,” “climb,” Although (other factors optimized) it will perform okay at
Care and Feeding of Propellers

All Props Sometimes it hailed. Afterwards, the propeller had the most
• If you use self-locking nuts to mount your propeller, use extraordinary aspect. The blades looked like saws.”
them once only.
• Do not use any lube on the bolt threads, unless the prop Metal Props
manufacturer specifically calls for it; lubes can drastically Never reuse the prop bolt washers. These have a
change the tension in the bolt, at any given torque setting! specific amount of “squish” designed into them, and
• Check your prop mounting bolts for any kind of wear, the value will change after their first use. Any little nick
damage, or corrosion; at least during every annual in- needs to be (ad)dressed.
spection. (Check your hub while you’re there!)
• Always follow the prop manufacturer’s instructions and A buildup of weld and a filing down to duplicate the original
specifications. All manufacturers are happy to offer ad- shape are not endorsed by any prop manufacturer. This is
vice on the care and maintenance of their products. done only for “museum restoration” projects, where the prop
• Use only approved finishes, paints, finishing procedures, etc. will never be flown again. (No matter how good it looks, don’t
use a prop you don’t know!)
Wood Props If the propeller is painted, any exposed metal should be

Be sure your prop plate is of sufficient thickness that it does touched up with paint to prevent corrosion.
not distort, and that it is of sufficient diameter to cover the
prop’s hub. A general rule of thumb for thickness is a minimum Adjustable-Pitch Props
of 1/4 inch (steel) or 3/8 inch (aluminum). Getting the pitch the same on every blade is criti-
• Check the torque on the propeller bolts regularly. But cal. Unless the prop has a self-indexing design (e.g.,
“check” does not mean “tighten them some more.” Sensenich), be ultracareful when setting it up. Then
• Protect the propeller from the elements. Keep the after you’ve torqued and checked everything, check it
airplane indoors, or at least use a good propeller cover one more time.
whenever you’re not flying.
• Even with leading-edge protection, avoid flying in rain. Con- Composites can deteriorate in UV light. Keep your blades
sider von Richthofen’s account: “The rain fell in streams. covered when you’re not flying.
EAA Experimenter 39
full throttle (full rpm), it will be disappointing at lower rpm; are acceptable on their LSA; that satisfies the FAA. But don’t
cruise performance will suffer. believe that there is any “certification” involved.
Buying Used Balance
A lot of good deals exist on used props, but there is no way Prop balance is critical to safe and pleasant flight. The
a nonexpert can look at a pretty prop and tell if he’s getting prop is in “static” balance when it balances evenly around
a cherry or a lemon. Before you buy a used propeller from its hub. “Dynamic” balance, where the entire rotating
other than a reputable prop shop, have the manufacturer system (engine, propeller, and spinner) is balanced, is
check it out. It’s better to be disappointed on the ground often overlooked. “Aerodynamic” balance, where each
than to lose a blade in flight. blade pulls equally at any given rpm and angle of attack, is
controlled in manufacture.
A lot of metal props migrate to experimentals from certifi-
cated aircraft. Sometimes, they are great deals; sometimes, Above all, remember that your prop is one of the most criti-
they are cut down because of tip damage. Some seem to be cal elements in a safe flight and probably the most impor-
great deals but might not be. Other times, these are lovely to tant component forward of the firewall (with the exception
look at, but they contain hidden flaws (like nonairworthy re- of the motor mount). If you think something is not right,
pairs). Know what you’re buying, and if you have any doubts, check it out; use both your brain and your instinct. A prop
take the prop to a reputable shop before you buy it. failure in flight can easily be fatal.
Light-sport aircraft are another area of misunderstand-

ing. As these machines age and get re-propped for better Tim Kern is a private pilot and has written for more
performance, the older props are showing up on the market. than 40 different aviation magazines. He was a key
Likewise, many prop manufacturers will claim they’re selling builder on two aircraft projects and has earned
“LSA-certificated” props. There’s no such thing as “LSA- the title of Certified Aviation Manager from the
certificated.” ASTM compliant propellers are becoming NBAA. Thanks to Sensenich Propeller for technical
available for LSA but currently are very limited in choices. assistance in this piece.
For now, the airframe manufacturer specifies which prop(s)
Tom Aberle’s Phantom

biplane runs this
radical Paul Lipps-
designed prop at Reno.
Takeof is long, but its
top speed is dominant
in the class.
40 Vol.2 N o.1 / January 2013 Photography by Tim Kern

L i g h t P l a n e Wor l d
Pilot’s view of the ultralight runway at AirVenture. A new road is coming to the lower lef corner in this photo.
Changes Coming
to the ‘Fun Zone’
By Dan Grunloh
One year ago, I wrote an editorial predicting many being placed along the southwest boundary of the
changes to come in the year 2012 and making the convention site. We live there for one week per year,
argument that we should consider the notion that, but for the other 51 weeks Wittman Field is an active
basically, change is good. At the time I had no clue as airport and has a defense contractor on the field. A
to the many changes that were to occur at EAA. It was wide swath taken out of the already too small ultralight
merely a philosophical argument illustrated by a famous campground (used by pilots and volunteers) will
quotation from a classic science fiction film. Change is necessitate the creation of another camping space,
good, I said, because “the sleeper must awaken.” Now possibly near the ultralight barn. The runway itself
there is news about changes coming to the ultralight/light won’t move, but almost anything else could be shifted.
plane and rotorcraft area at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. The Watch for future announcements.
changes are big, and some are coming this year. A few of
us will no longer have that favorite shade tree, camping More change will be coming in the following years
spot, or airplane tiedown spot that we may have used and will include new roads and pathways making it
“down on the Farm” for many years. much easier for people to get to the “fun zone” on the
south end of the convention site. We expect a facelift
Briefly, the immediate site changes are triggered by and expansion of our area with new facilities and
a new security fence and 24-foot-wide patrol road services comparable to the rest of the convention site.
Photography by Dan Grunloh EAA Experimenter 41

Te members of the EAA Ultralight/Light Plane Council gathered for this photo before the 2012 Hall of Fame ceremonies. Lef to right, they are:
Scott Severen, Dan Grunloh, Jim House, Carla Larsh, and John Hovan.
We started 30 years ago with ultralights “down on the various boards of directors, gathered at Oshkosh for
Farm” among the horses and cows at Ollie’s farm, but several days of meetings in November.
we have added light planes, light-sport aircraft (LSA),
balloons, and electric aircraft. This year we will have In the first session of the first day, EAA Founder Paul
more charging stations for electric aircraft, and more Poberezny paid a surprise visit to our conference room and
actual electric flight than, well, anywhere! Our area is sat down for a conversation with our small group. Now 91,
the zone of excitement, youth appeal, and future growth. he sets a standard for the rest of us. He continues to stay
The cows and horses are gone. We have turbine involved, working and inspiring others. Paul said the key to
helicopters now, and the folks who plan signage at the success is focusing on the people side of aviation and that
convention site feel we need a new name. I’m pulling for EAA Board Chairman Jack Pelton will be a good person to
the “Fun Flying Zone.” guide EAA through the next transition. Later that morning
Jack also visited the council, and I came away with the
New Members Added to Ultralight & Light-Sport Council feeling that here was a person that people would be willing
to work for and with. It’s clear he hasn’t forgotten his roots
Scott Severen and I have been invited to become members in sport aviation. He and his dad built a wood and fabric
of the EAA Ultralight & Light-Sport Aircraft Council. The Fisher FP-101 back in California (30 years ago), and he flew
council members, led by Carla Larsh, are volunteers who it. Later he became CEO of Cessna, and now retired, is an
meet and provide feedback and advice to EAA on issues EAA volunteer.
related to ultralights and LSA, and to help with planning
for the ultralight area at the convention. Scott brings a During our two-day conference the Ultralight Council
tremendous amount of expertise to the group, thanks to met with Timm Bogenhagen, Chad Jensen, Sean Elliott,
his extensive involvement in the ultralight and light-sport Mary Jones, Mac McClellan, museum staff, and many
industry since it began in the early 1980s. The Ultralight others. Our meetings were a steady stream of issues and
Council, along with other EAA advisory councils and discussions, thanks to the organizing skills of Carla Larsh.

We were joined by Lee Crevier, the AirVenture ultralight was the international director of Red Bull Air Race for six
chairman, to take a look at the long-term plans for the years and knows what it takes to make a great show and
convention site, including new roads and buildings and the how to make it happen. Watch for it at AirVenture 2013.
possible expansion or relocation of our runway to better
accommodate LSA. The southeast corner of the site (the Taras Kiceniuk Jr. – Technology Innovator
ultralight area) will become one of four major “nodes”
created by new roads. EAA Hall of Fame recipient Taras Kiceniuk Jr. set the
hang gliding world buzzing in 1971 when he began
The council had an interesting meeting with EAA Vice flying his Icarus II rigid-wing biplane hang glider. It
President of AirVenture Features and Attractions Jim outperformed the Rogallo wings of the time by a huge
DiMatteo. Jim is head of a “dream team” of air show margin. Despite phenomenal performance, rigid-wing
experts tasked with reviewing the entire AirVenture hang gliders never made it into the mainstream. However,
experience from the ground activities to the flying the Icarus opened a door that made ultralights possible.
components. We talked to him about getting ultralights The Rogallo wings were not suitable for motorizing due to
and LSA into the afternoon showcase prior to the air their poor performance.
show, as had been done many years ago. We were not
disappointed. He said ultralights and LSA have terrific In 1975, John Moody put an engine on an Icarus-inspired
appeal to the youth and also to sponsors oriented to that design developed by Larry Mauro, called the Easy Riser,
demographic. This retired Navy Top Gun pilot with 5,000 and the ultralight movement was born. Taras later served
hours in fighters says we have the fun and excitement that as chief engineer on the Gossamer Albatross project for
will best appeal to the youth. He wants to have a “pit area” human-powered flight across the English Channel. For his
at air show center where all types of aircraft including contributions to ultralight aviation, he was inducted into the
ultralights, LSA, and rotorcraft can be featured and EAA Hall of Fame in a ceremony held November 15, 2012.
demonstrated right “on the 50-yard line,” as he put it. Jim There is a short video about his award—also check out the
Taras Kiceniuk with the RG-2 research vehicle built to study regenerative electric fight.
Photography by Jason Toney and courtesy Taras Kiceniuk, Jr. EAA Experimenter 43
list of previous winners. In a short acceptance speech he new manufacturer showcase, a big-name twilight air show,
said we might not have had ultralights if it were not for the and more daily activities. It will be an opportunity to gain
EAA. (Many of the early innovators were EAA members.) more knowledge about the tremendous range of technology
available in the U.S. market. We thought there were lots of
Taras is a certificated private pilot with instrument and glider models during the ultralight boom when anybody with a two-
ratings, but it’s clear that his first love is soaring. He has given car garage could start a business. Now it’s the entire world
lectures on dynamic soaring, and you can read some of his bringing in their best hardware.
technical articles at www.IcarusEngineering.com. Prior to
the award ceremony he told of his experience soaring With the introduction of lower-priced models like the
in a Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser with the prop stopped Tecnam P92 Echo Classic Light, the price pressure is
in wave lift over California. Always at the leading edge downward. I plan to check out the new Sam LS, which is
of technology, his latest interest is electric flight with expected to be shown there for the first time. It can be
regenerative capability. He thinks it could revolutionize flown open cockpit, similar to my old friend’s Ercoupe.
the sport of soaring. An electric regenerative motorglider We would slide the canopy back and enjoy a pleasant
could recharge its batteries during a descent, or simply open-air afternoon cruise. Watch for more news and
hold a steady altitude in lift, and thus store up enough photos from the Sebring Expo at www.EAA.org and on
energy to reach more distant thermals. It’s not hard to the EAA Facebook page. Please send your comments and
imagine an electric sailplane parked in wave lift charging suggestions for this column to dgrunloh@illicom.net.
its batteries for a long-distance flight.
Sebring 2013 Windup Dan Grunloh, EAA 173888, is a retired scientist who
began flying ultralights and light planes in 1982.
Who wouldn’t jump at the chance to go to Florida in January He won the 2002 and 2004 U.S. National Microlight
to attend the U.S. Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring instead Championships in a trike and flew with the U.S. World
of staying in Illinois and shoveling snow? The 9th annual Team in two FAI World Microlight Championships.
expo will be even bigger than in the past, now featuring a
SAM LS designer Tierry Zibi with the recently completed SAM-LS prototype expected to be displayed at the U.S. Sport Aviation Expo in Sebring Florida.
44 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013 Photography courtesy Haim Aviation

F li g h t Te s t in g Te c hn i q u e s
Airspeed Calibration
Ground course data reduction
By Ed Kolano
You’ve finished flying your airspeed calibration ground Get out your calculator, pencil, and paper; fun with
course flight tests and collected the necessary data. numbers awaits. Figure 1 is a suggested data grid
Now we’ll turn that raw data into a plot of calibrated with flight test and postflight data filled in, which we’ll
airspeed (VC) versus observed airspeed (VO) for your use to work through the data reduction process. The
airplane’s operator’s manual. entries in the left six columns come directly from the
test flight. The right six columns contain the results of
During each of your test runs, you recorded your VO, postflight calculations. We’ll use the 120-knot VO data
pressure altitude (PA), outside air temperature (OAT), (first two data rows on the grid) during our data reduc-
and the elapsed time (ET) required to fly between your tion explanation.
start and end checkpoints. You also made a note of your
airplane’s external configuration for the test series. A Ground Speed
stickler for documentation, knowing you will spot-check
on another flight, you calculated your airplane’s weight Calculate your ground speed for each run the same
before and after the test flight and made an estimate of way you probably do it during cross-country flying. By
its average weight during the test. knowing the course length, 7,890 feet in our example,
Photography by BW Brock EAA Experimenter 45

and the ET for test run, you can calculate the ground course length recommended in the November “Flight
speed by dividing the distance traveled by the time it Test Techniques.”
took to travel that distance.
Okay, you now have a VG of 116.87 and 126.69 for your first
run pair. Averaging these speeds removes any wind effect.
In this equation, course length is in feet, ET is in

seconds, and 0.5925 is a correction factor to have
the ground speed (VG) in knots. (Use 0.6818 for VG in The next trick is to think backwards. When you compute
statute mph.) your ground speed during cross-country planning, you
apply the forecast wind to your planned true airspeed to
Plugging our sample data from the first data row in the determine your expected ground speed. During your air-
grid into this equation, we get speed calibration data reduction so far, you removed the
wind by averaging VG1 and VG2, so your calculated aver-
age VG is also your calculated average true airspeed (VT).
Repeat this VG calculation for every test run, and enter We’ll assume your airspeed calibration test flight did not
the results in the ground speed column. occur above 10,000 feet pressure altitude or at an airspeed
faster than 200 knots, so we can ignore the compressibility
Let’s talk about wind for a minute. Comparing the effects on your airspeed indication. Now all you have to do is
ET and VG for the first set of reciprocal heading convert VT to VC, but there’s a minor inconvenience. You have
runs, you’ll note a difference of 3.1 seconds and to know the ambient air temperature, but your OAT gauge pro-
about 10 knots. That’s because there was a steady vides total air temperature. Converting total air temperature to
5-knot wind during the test—a direct headwind ambient air temperature requires you to know your calibrated
during the first run and a direct tailwind during the airspeed, which is what you’re trying to find out. Fortunately,
reciprocal run. Had this 5-knot wind been a direct most of us don’t have to worry about this circular argument,
crosswind, the actual distance traveled during the because the airspeed error created by using OAT instead of
run would have been longer than the 7,890 feet, be- ambient temperature is typically less than half a knot below
cause the airplane would have drifted downwind. 10,000 feet pressure altitude up to 200 knots.
Although you could calculate the drift angle and actual
distance, it’s not necessary. If you test only when the You can determine VC by using the table in Figure 2,
wind is 5 knots or less, the worst-case error in your along with some math. Or you can bypass the table,
ground speed calculation will be less than a quarter but the math is slightly more complicated. We’ll pres-
of a knot for the typical homebuilt airplane flying the ent both methods.

Table Look-Up Method like Figure 1. Of course, your table probably won’t have
two VC columns, unless you decided to use both methods.
The table in Figure 2 lists pressure altitudes and their Now it’s time to turn your data grid into something more
corresponding pressures. Use the pressure (P) that pilot friendly.
corresponds with the pressure altitude during your
test run along with the VT (ground speed in Figure 1) A Picture’s Worth 103 Words
and OAT to calculate VC with the following equation.
Remember, the reason for going through all this
trouble is to produce a reference that will show you
what your calibrated airspeed is when your airspeed
P is in pounds/square foot as presented in Figure 2, indicator reads any observed airspeed. Your data grid
OAT is in degrees centigrade, VG and VC are in knots, provides that correlation for several speeds, but a
and 0.369 includes the necessary standard sea level plot of VC versus VO will show you that information for
values of pressure and temperature to simplify the every airspeed.
equation. Using data from our example grid and Figure
2, the equation looks like this. Get out a piece of graph paper and draw horizontal and
vertical axes. Label the horizontal axis “Observed Airspeed”
and the vertical axis “Calibrated Airspeed.” Next, plot the
Notice the VC (table) values are slightly different from

the V C (eqn) values in Figure 1. This discrepancy is
caused by the interpolation of P from the table in
Figure 2 for the example calculation. The VC (eqn) in
Figure 1 was calculated using a standard atmosphere
table, which is more accurate than simple interpola-
tion of Figure 2. When you consider that 0.01 knot
represents a difference of about 1 foot per minute or
less than three airplane lengths after an hour of flying,
it’s probably not worth worrying about.
Equation-Only Method
If you don’t have access to standard atmosphere

tables, dislike interpolating, or would prefer to do the
entire data reduction with your calculator, here’s how.
Again, VG and VC are in knots, and OAT is in degrees

centigrade. PA is in feet, just as you recorded it on
your data grid. The numerical values account for the
necessary standard sea level values of pressure, tem-
perature, density, temperature lapse rate, and a bunch
of other constants to simplify the equation. Plugging in
the data from our example grid, we have
By comparing the calculated values of VC (table)

and VC (eqn) in Figure 1, you can see either way
works fine.
Repeat the entire data reduction procedure for your

remaining test data pairs, and your data grid should look
EAA Experimenter 47
emergency action preparation, etc. During the data re-

duction you should exercise good engineering judgment.
For example, if you noted on your test data card that your
airspeed varied 5 knots during a particular timing run, throw
away that data. If some data points seem to be well off the
faired line, go back to your data card to see why. Perhaps
you were not as confident in your timing on this run or not
as steady at the start of the timing as you were for the other
runs. “Quality” notes on your test cards can be very useful
after the flight to help explain data that don’t seem to fit.
The more data you collect during the flight, the more
confidence you’ll have in your results. Fly at least five
or six airspeeds during your test. More is better. The
speeds you select should cover the entire airspeed range
for that configuration. The test speeds don’t have to be
exact, but they should be close to your target speed. For
example, if your plan calls for a 130-knot test run, but you
corresponding pairs of VO and VC. Fair a line through the data find yourself stabilized at 126 knots as you approach the
points you just plotted as shown in Figure 3. start checkpoint, that’s okay. Remember, you’ll fair a line
through these points anyway, and there’s no good reason
If your line fits the data points well, you can extend it with to abort an otherwise good setup just because you’re off
a dashed line to show the predicted VO/VC correlation at a few knots. Just make sure you fly the reciprocal head-
speeds slower than your slowest tested airspeed. Remem- ing run at the same speed as the first. What you should
ber, however, this is only an extrapolation, and the difference not do is start the run at 126 knots and try to “make it up”
between VO and VC generally gets bigger at slower airspeeds. by ending the run at 134 knots. The goal is a rock-steady
Don’t rely on this extrapolation as a safe indication of how airspeed for the entire run. Make a note of any potentially
much faster than stall speed you are flying. Your stall speed interfering events that occur during the run because that
testing will provide the observed stall speeds for different information may come in handy after the flight to explain
configurations, weights, and center of gravity locations. apparent data anomalies.
Don’t forget to perform the same data reduction for those That’s it. The data reduction may seem a bit cumber-
airspeeds you spot-checked with your airplane at a different some at first, but you’ll master it in no time. This month we
weight. You can plot these data on your VO/VC graph to see started with elapsed time, observed airspeed pressure
how close they are to your original weight line. If your spot- altitude, and outside air temperature. We removed the
checked data points plot significantly above or below the line, wind effects by averaging reciprocal heading runs, then
you can fly another full airspeed calibration test at the second turned that true airspeed into calibrated airspeed with the
weight. Plot this line on the same graph, and don’t forget to aid of an altitude table and a calculator. Finally, we created
clearly label which is which. You can also plot lines for differ- a useful plot of calibrated versus observed airspeed. Not a
ent configurations on the same graph, if it’s not too cluttered. bad day’s work.
You now have a handy plot for your operator’s manual for » Questions about flight testing for Ed? Send an e-mail
cross-country planning and in-flight reference. Remember, to Experimenter@eaa.org with the words Flight
if you modify your airplane externally, you may have to fly Testing in the subject line, and we’ll forward your
another airspeed calibration if the modification affects the questions to him.
airflow near the static ports of your pitot-static system.
It’s a good idea to perform a spot check of a few airspeeds
after the modification. If the spot-checked data points don’t Ed Kolano, EAA 336809, is a former Marine
fall on the line, fly another complete airspeed calibration. who’s been flying since 1975 and testing
airplanes since 1985. He considers himself
A Few Words About Judgment extremely fortunate to have performed flight
tests in a variety of airplanes ranging from
During your test flights you exercised good piloting judg- ultralights to 787s.
ment concerning test site selection, minimum test altitude,

I f I C a n D o T hi s
Hal Bryan works with a cleco. Hal is EAA’s Online Community Manager.
We’re Building an Airplane!

And if we can, you can, too
By Hal Bryan
“We’re building an airplane.” been lucky enough to fly a pretty large and diverse
number of aircraft.
It feels really good just to say that.
But that’s enough about how great I am.
“Big deal,” I’m sure many of you are saying. If you’re
reading this, there’s a good chance that you’ve built one My generation saw the dawn of the personal computer
or several airplanes yourself. In fact, I can all but guar- age, so I spent a lot more of my childhood tinkering with
antee that anybody reading this has more experience virtual tools than I did with the real thing. Growing up, if
building airplanes than I do. there was real, hands-on work to be done on the family
airplane, there was a great possibility that after a few
Now, when it comes to aviation, I’m not usually the minutes of looking over someone’s shoulder, I’d see that
dumbest guy in the room. I’m a second-generation my time might be better spent fixing my dad’s computer.
pilot and I’ve been flying my entire life. I first took the That’s not necessarily a bad thing; I like to think that he
controls of an airplane when I was four and spent ten appreciates my technical skill set as much as I do his
years of my childhood living on a private airstrip. I’m knowledge of important things like wrenches and en-
a student of aviation history, and while nobody would gines, not to mention the fact that my childhood geekdom
accuse me of being an especially high-time pilot, I’ve led me into an unorthodox and very satisfying series of
EAA Experimenter 49
I f I C a n D o T hi s
careers. Granted, I know how to use the basics: ham- a tremendous appreciation for the work that went into it,
mers, drills, and screwdrivers, but not really for anything but I’ve always left with an unspoken and slightly de-
more challenging than the sort of furniture you have to pressing “But…I could never…”
assemble yourself.
In addition to being a little depressing, that’s also frustrat-
In addition to my general inexperience with tools, I’m also ing, and as it turns out, completely wrong.
an impatient, procrastinating perfectionist, which is a
spectacularly bad combination of traits. This means that When I found out that EAA staff would have the oppor-
if you want a lousy job started late and done hastily, but tunity to build an airplane, a Zenith CH 750, I was stoked.
never actually finished since it won’t live up to my impos- In fact, I was a little surprised at how excited I was until
sibly high standards, I’m your man. it hit me: I’d be working on a project that was essentially
guaranteed to succeed. Led by experienced staff builders
In spite of, or maybe specifically because of these traits, with as many as 30 people working on it at various times,
I’ve always looked at real builders and restorers with a not to mention the stellar support from Sebastien Heintz
certain sense of awe. I’m an enthusiastic spectator, and and everyone else at Zenith, this airplane will be finished
as an EAA staffer, an unabashed advocate for the real and flown, period. And more to the point, this will happen
“doers.” I can speak their language to a degree—I can with or without me, and there’s almost nothing I can do
order dinner but will never pass as a native—and for to screw it up. My only obligation is to show up, get my
some reason, I’m always an honorary member of that hands dirty (figuratively speaking), and learn. In short,
nebulous group defined as those who “get it.” Still, I given the combination of this support and the fact that
sometimes glance nervously over my shoulder, wonder- the CH 750 must be one of the simplest kits out there, it
ing if someone is going to call me out and remind me that feels as if all of us working on this project are absolutely
I have no business here. spoiled rotten. But really, it just comes down to a bunch
of EAA members helping each other out, which I think
When I’ve visited projects in progress, admired, or even is exactly what Paul Poberezny had in mind at that first
flown someone’s finished aircraft, I’ve come away with meeting 60 years ago this month.
Jef Benedict (lef) and Timm Bogenhagen check a measurement. Jef is Visual Display Coordinator for EAA’s Marketing group while Timm serves as EAA’s
Ultralight/Lightplane Community Manager and is also a Member Products Specialist.

Brian Huth (back to camera), Matt Smith and Hal ft two parts together. Brian is one of EAA’s IT Network Administrators and Matt is a Database Administrator.
With just a handful of build sessions behind me so far, single most important lesson of this project: I can actu-
I’ve already learned a lot. For example, I’ve learned ally do this.
that a cleco, a temporary fastener used to hold two
parts together before they’re permanently attached There are more people out there like me. I’m sure of it.
with a rivet, is the unsung hero of every sheet metal People who could be builders but just don’t know it, or
build. I’ve learned that deburring, the process of re- may not yet believe it. Granted, none of them are going to
moving sharp edges from metal parts and cleaning the be as wonderfully spoiled as we are, with a great work-
area around a newly drilled hole, is surprisingly easy, space, all the tools we could possibly need, and more
and also very important—a lesson that came at the hands than we know what to do with, but a tremendous
cost of just a couple of drops of blood (mine, luckily). amount of support is as close as their nearest EAA chap-
I’ve learned that rivets can be “pulled” by hand using ter. It’s just a matter of finding them, and taking a little
a big squeeze-handled tool, and immediately thereafter time to show them that everything they’ve ever thought
learned that I like pulling them with a pneumatic rivet about their ability to build an airplane is probably wrong.
gun quite a bit more. I’ve learned that understanding
the 51-percent rule is one thing, but actually feeling it EAA’s mission statement is to grow participation in avia-
in your wrists and elbows is another. tion, which means, in large part, that we want to help
make more pilots. It seems to me that one of the best
I’ve measured, marked, punched, trimmed, drilled, cle- ways to make more pilots is to make more builders. Most
coed, deburred, and riveted. I’ve broken drill bits, drilled people already get the idea that building an airplane can
holes the wrong size and in the wrong place, and pulled easily be more affordable than buying one. It’s up to all
a rivet or two that needed to be drilled out and redone. of us to help them understand that it’s not just affordable;
I’ve made some mistakes, but I’ve done a lot more right it’s also accessible.
than I’ve done wrong. My respect for those who build
airplanes has only increased as I’ve begun learning the After all, I’m doing it.
EAA Experimenter 51
Hangar Debrief
Building Your Homebuilt

Using the New FAA Major
Portion Checklist
Why should you care about
this bureaucratic subject?
By Joe Gauthier
Why should you care about the FAA’s newest (in 2009) (AC) on the subject of commercial assistance; it became
major portion rule checklist? The answer is both simple AC 20-139. Since that time, that AC has been incorporated
and complex. (How about that for polar opposites?) An into the AC on homebuilt aircraft, AC 20-27. You should get
amateur aircraft builder is required to build 51 percent, or to know them as part of your education into the world of
the major portion, of an aircraft for recreation or educa- homebuilt aircraft.
tion. The rules that allow amateurs to build their own plane
require that it be solely for educational or recreational The early checklist could be found on FAA Form 8000.38. It
purposes. Only a carefully measured amount of commer- was used successfully for years, right through the Van’s,
cial assistance is allowed. Lancair, Kitfox, and Glasair, etc. era with little fuss and fan-
fare. It worked, and life was good. The checklist was used
Fortunately we have kit companies that make it possible by the FAA for evaluating kits to be added to the FAA’s List
for many to build their own aircraft by providing kits that of Eligible Kits and further used by field personnel, when
meet the FAA rules, so you don’t have to worry about it. Or needed, to establish major portion questions when (not if)
do you? By the way, it’s okay to use prefab wheels, brakes, those issues arose.
nuts and bolts engines, avionics, paint, upholstery, etc. No
one, not even the FAA, requires the builder to mine for ore, So why did we get a new checklist in 2009? Connect those
cast metal parts, or build such things as engines, instru- dots directly to the FAA’s concern about and attention
ments, wheels, tires, brakes, cosmetics, and interior good- to commercial assistance shops (sometimes known as
ies. However, if you wish, you have the freedom to do it all. professional builders) that had been going on for a couple
years, and you would be very close to understanding the
About the Checklist reason why the FAA became pressured into doing some-
thing. Yes, the checklist resulted from blatant abuse by
We’ve used checklists to determine compliance with ma- professional shops and individual builders who recognized
jor portion assessments by the amateur and the FAA since there was money to be made building aircraft for those
early in the 1970s. The checklist came into existence in the who had the money, but neither the time nor skills to build.
mid-1970s right after the Christen Eagle showed up as a This nefarious activity was moving forward very quickly
“very” complete kit. People came to believe that the Eagle until homebuilt aircraft performance and design sophisti-
kit was far too complete to be certificated as an amateur- cation was noticed by the general aviation manufacturers.
built aircraft. An FAA/industry working group was formed, They realized there was performance available in home-
and it developed the checklist; associated techniques built aircraft that standard-category airplanes couldn’t de-
were added to the homebuilders list of required knowl- liver. The perception of safety in homebuilt aircraft reached
edge. Also, new terms were added to our vocabulary, levels that were also attractive. This dramatic upturn in
such as “tasks” and “compensation,” which we’ll explain commercial activity, and the pressure manufacturers felt
shortly. In 1996 the FAA produced an advisory circular by competing interests, worried the FAA, and it took intense

FAA Major Portion Checklist
EAA Experimenter 53
Hangar Debrief
The FAA and some members of the group believed this

detail could help manage the abuses of professional build-
ers by making it easier and more reliable to measure the
amount of work that a builder could contract with a profes-
sional and remain compliant with the 51-percent rule.
The ARC soon realized that a grandfathering, or a prior

policy plan, needed to be brought into the activities, and
it set about devising methods so that folks who had spent
years constructing their aircraft would not be regulated
out of existence by the imposition of the new rules being
put into place. We believe the provisions that were made
to accommodate those concerns have been resolved.
The new checklist is now in use by the FAA, and the FAA
website has numerous listings of popular kit airplanes,
along with the evaluations performed by the FAA’s National
Kit Evaluation Team (NKET). Many of the previously en-
countered problems became much clearer when viewing a
completed evaluation.
Before we go any further, it would be good if you take a

look at the new checklist here.
The New Terms
What are tasks? For this use, “task” is the term used on
both the old and new checklists to characterize the work
operations and components involved. It was recognized
early on that using parts count or time spent would result
interest in the work that some of these pros were doing in larger issues than the term task. The ARC discussed it
that appeared to compromise the major portion rule in FAR and recommended its continuation.
21.191(g), the 51-percent rule, as it has become to be known.
What is compensation? Paying someone for services,
Because of the relationship that the FAA, EAA, and industry goods, or cash for completing tasks on the list is commer-
have, they all got together to resolve the growing concern. cial assistance.
We’re pleased that they decided to enlist industry and
associations, as well as other individuals, to search for a What is not commercial assistance? Paying someone to
suitable solution. An Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC) help arrange the shop, set up workstations, or provide tools
was formed in 2006, and it completed its work in 2008. The and training (as long as the training doesn’t result in a fin-
results of the ARC activities were reported to EAA members, ished part for the airplane) is not commercial assistance.
and yet more new terms entered our vocabulary.
How does the homebuilder work through this maze?
The ARC members proposed a revised checklist. While As we said previously, when the FAA interacts with
some members wanted to stay with the old checklist, the general public it produces an AC (20-27G in this
others believed that adding tasks to the process would case), which has plain language and easy to follow
provide benefits in that it would allow additional detail and flowcharts. The AC also has examples of many con-
finer division of task assignment. The new checklist also cepts involved and is also available on the FAA.gov
promised to get rid of the dual checks that some FAA rep- website here.
resentatives were using. We welcomed the committee’s
proposal for an expanded checklist. The FAA accepted The 2009 Checklist Job Aid is also available on the FAA
the new checklist with the added tasks, elimination of dual website. It’s there to guide individuals through the steps
checks, more detail, and the expansion to four columns of and procedures involved with amateurs building aircraft
items. This was believed by many to be a big improvement. for education or recreational purposes.

Who Uses the Checklist? well be that more work will be done by the amateur, but it also
could be that the changes will simplify and reduce work. In any
Who uses the Amateur-Built Fabrication and Assembly event, your designated airworthiness representative or other
Checklist (2009) Job Aid? When does the FAA use it? The FAA representative may want to see the checklist as proof you
NKET, a team of FAA specialists from around the country are in compliance with the major portion rule before they issue
who travel to kit producers’ facilities, uses the checklist to the certificate of airworthiness, without which you may only
perform initial kit evaluations. have a nice piece of artwork and not a legal-to-fly aircraft.
What other uses are there for the checklist? When either Thankfully, the FAA.gov website has an abundance of
commercial assistance or significant changes have occurred information on this and other subjects of concern to all
in the fabrication and assembly of approved kits, the checklist amateur builders. We’re fortunate to have ready access
becomes invaluable. Also, any kit that has never been evalu- to this information, and all are encouraged to seek out this
ated by the FAA will be evaluated in the field at the time of cer- information and start to understand what it means to all of
tification, using the 2009 checklist. The checklist is also used us who build our own aircraft.
when someone is building a kit that has never been evaluated
or is making significant changes to a kit that has previously EAA presented a webinar on the subject of using the
been approved by either the old checklist or the new one. checklist, and you can view it here. I’m certain you will
be much better educated and informed after seeing it.
When does an amateur builder need to use the new checklist?
An amateur builder should use it when he is planning to work
on a nonevaluated kit or when contemplating using commer- Joe Gauthier is a member of the EAA Homebuilt
cial assistance on either an evaluated or a nonevaluated kit. Aircraft Council and an FAA designated
The amateur builder also should think about using the check- airworthiness representative.
list when considering changes to an approved kit. It could very
EAA Experimenter 55

EAA Prop Selection

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The Spirit of Homebuilt Aviation I www.eaa.org Vol.2 No.

Catching a Barracuda Picking a Prop

2 Vol.2 N o.1 / January 2013

Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013 I A publication of the Experimental Aircraft Association

» 12 The Second Time Around… » 20 Barracuda!

» 45 Flight Test Techniques

» 31 Hints for Homebuilders » 49 If I Can Do This

Other Airspeed Calibration Methods

4 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

AirVenture 2013 Tickets

6 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013 Photography by Jim Koepnick

Hartwig joined EAA in March 2012 as a membership services

New LODA Page Facilitates Easier

Photography by Jason Toney EAA Experimenter 7

EAA Volunteer Advisory

8 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

SportAir Workshops to Implement New Model in 2013

Dynon Announces SkyView Version 5.0, Featuring

Flight Design Celebrates 25 Years

10 Vol.2 N o.1 / January 2013

AeroLEDs Upgrades AeroSun

AeroSuns are completely sealed and will operate in

The upgrade from the previous model includes

Nominations Sought For EAA

Photography by Chris Luvara EAA Experimenter 13

14 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

“I really like to build. In fact, I like to build more than I like

So, here he is: His airplane is a beautiful piece of work and

He said, “Before I ﬁnished the ﬁxed-gear airplane I took

“I worked with him for 3 years and got my A&P. As they

Now he was in the process of becoming a well-rounded

“I found a Legacy kit that hadn’t even been unpacked,

Photography by Jim Raeder EAA Experimenter 15

knew that if I wanted to fly it, I had to finish it first. And

Because this was going to be his ultimate traveling ma-

If you were to ask Andy if he considers himself to be a

He said, “The ﬁrst thing I did, as I started assembling the

“When you’re building something like this, you develop all

16 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

Andy concentrates on the canopy installation.

Photography courtesy Andy Werback EAA Experimenter 17

When it came to paint, Andy knew that a good paint

“Pete Zaccagnino, a longtime test pilot, came in to do the

18 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

Andy and Sam

Photography by Jim Raeder EAA Experimenter 19

Jef Weisel and his updated Barracuda.

20 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

The Barracuda was described as a fast, ﬁghter-like aircraft,

A new paint job and new

22 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013 Photography courtesy Jeff Weisel

After the ﬂight we drove back to SeaTac, and I was soon

Two weeks later I was back in Seattle. I was given a thor-

The plane easily climbed to 14,000 feet, giving me a majes-

After about 20 hours of ﬂying I decided to overhaul the

24 Vol.2 No.1 / January 2013

The Airplanes of the EAA

Gary Baker, Medina, Ohio

Joe Gauthier, Cromwell, Connecticut

26 Vol.2 N o.1 / January 2013