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Hank

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Posts posted by Hank

  1. 5 hours ago, 0TreeLemur said:

    You nailed it.  I learned on steam gauges and flew behind them for almost 40 years before my first experience with tapes and intermittent indicators such as rate of turn and VSI on the Aspen.  My scan is much more in tune with pointers.  A quick glance at an altimeter, ASI, or VSI just gives me all the info I need.  A tape requires reading the numbers.  An intermittent indicator requires a lot more mental activity (1) is it there? (2) is it changing? (3) how fast? (4) if I push/pull or turn the yoke does it react?  (5) how much?  My neural network can scan steam gauges three or four times while doing all that stuff.  I am attuned to interpreting rates of changes of needles.  I miss that with the Aspen.

    That's exactly why I haven't "upgraded" to digital, I can read my steam gages faster.than I can focus on the airspeed number, to say nothing of the things that disappear! I reference my IVSI frequently, especially inside a bumpy cloud.

  2. What do fine wire plugs cost? The last massive I bought just a few years ago were $30 each, versus a set of 6 for my Ford Ranger at $17 and some change.

    I recall discussions that fine wire plugs last ~2000 hours, while massives are ballparked at ~500 hours, but fine wire plugs cost much more than four times massive plugs, so there needs to be some justification for the (significant) extra expense; a half gallon per hour for 2000 hours is 1000 gallons of avgas, which should be several times the cost of 8 fine wire plugs.

    • Like 1
  3. 2 minutes ago, Danb said:

    They have light adjustable lenses where the adjust or fine tune your vision both near and far over a few weeks, one of the doctors was a pilot in the Marines and she highly recommended them plus recommended doing the bad eye to let more light in ?

    I'm just an engineer, keeping everything running, doing lots of testing, and starting up the new models. I've read about adjustable eyeglasses but not adjustable lens implants (IOL = IntraOcular Lens implant).

    Relax and think about flying instead of this. If you have a good eye doctor and see well with hpthe lenses he prescribes, the surgeon can match it and have good results. Sounds like you have that important piece taken care of.

    Now relax and think about flying without having to crane your head in strange directions to see your new panel!

  4. 6 minutes ago, Danb said:

    Thanks Hank..helps. Getting apprehensive 

    My aunt said she was very worried for several days, and right after surgery she said there was nothing to worry about. Don't remember mom & dad saying anything at all (they had three eyes done between them).

    All new employees watched a video on our first morning at work, taken through the surgeon's microscope, with the eyeball about four feet across on the wall. Took about ten minutes. "This is what we make. Quality is important. Be sure to follow all procedures, no shortcuts!"

    You can't be put to sleep, but they give you something to help relax. There are no stitches, only eyedrops for a few days afterwards. No one does both eyes at the same time, you'll know what to expect for the second eye if you do it, too.

  5. I made the lens implants for ten years, 2004-2013. Surgery takes about 10 minutes for one eye. Never heard anyone say they didn't like it.

    Things to watch out for:

    • Many lens models are available, with a multitude of corrections. Get what you need--presbyopia, toxicity, myopia, etc.
    • Multifocal lenses are available. J&J advertises a contact lens (1/2" across) with three focal zones; in 2013, we made lens implants (1/4" across) with up to 13 focal zones.
    • Many surgeons recommend single vision lenses to engineers and pilots, because those groups are "too picky." Lucky me, I'm both!
    • Some people mix their contact lenses, one eye near and one eye far. The FAA doesn't like this. It can be done with your implants, but unlike contact lenses, they require surgery to change.

    Potential gotchas as of ten years ago:

    • Some people experience halos around bright lights at night.
    • Some lenses with multiple correction factors (myopia, non-sphericity, and toxicity combined) can create "apparitions" / "optical phenomena" at the edges of your vision, where light reflects off of the edge of the lens. If you see these after surgery, ignore them and they will go away (your brain learns to ignore them); fixate on them and stay all bothered, they will become permanent (your brain learns to pay attention to them).

    That's about all I remember. I recommend getting lenses with UV protection (they are generally some shade of yellow), and what Alcon calls "wavefront technology" and ask if you need aspherical, too. Look at your current prescription, if you need toricity there will be an axis shown (i.e., left eye 118°), which the lens will be rotated to match during implant surgery.

    Good luck and enjoy your improved vision! Many patients no longer need glasses, but some may still need readers depending upon prescription and lens features.

  6. 4 hours ago, PT20J said:

    Perhaps a picture is better to illustrate the idea:

    caster_20240326_0001.jpg.4551d7ed1a15f7a1451477bc822e53c4.jpg

     

    52 minutes ago, Shadrach said:

    Skip, What did you use to create these drawings?

    Looks like Pencil CAD to me!  :P

    Definitely a straight edge (I uses to carryna small 30-60-90 triangle in my shirt pocket) and either a compass or circle template. But it looks much better than a completely freehand sketch.

    • Like 1
  7. 5 hours ago, toto said:

    It’s an interesting document. They say several times “retractable landing gear OR controllable pitch propeller” and they mention the proposal to reverse longstanding FAA policy on complex aircraft operations by sport pilots. But I couldn’t find anywhere that they actually spell out what complex aircraft operations would be permitted. They seem focused on the need for an endorsement to operate any one of the three complex components.

    https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/07/24/2023-14425/modernization-of-special-airworthiness-certification

    I'm fine needing a complex endorsement to fly my Mooney--got it years and years ago. But qualifying the airframe as LSA would make a big difference as we all age in place . . . .

    My goal is to join the UFO Club, and doing it in my Mooney would be nice.

  8. 3 hours ago, Ragsf15e said:

    I don’t like the idea of shoving sponges into air intakes…

     

    3 hours ago, Echo said:

    Why not?  You still have overhead vent.  This worked great in the winter for me.  There was zero issue in removing them in the spring.  I had enough cold air coming throgh the eyeball at knee level that "the fix" was easy and expediant.  

    This works well in colder parts of the country. Here in Sweet Home, such things aren’t necessary--if it's too cold, just wait a couple days. We had frost Monday and Tuesday mornings, and Wednesday and Thursday were near / over 80°.

  9. 10 hours ago, wombat said:

    I don't know if putting mass on the horizontal stabilizer is acceptable.    Of course the downward force on the structure is fine (How do you think you lift the nose when taking off?) but putting even soft weights on the tail might bend the skin or crush a rib. 

    I've done that a couple of times. A case of oil on each stab, some old bound approach plates, my roll of wrenches, etc.

  10. You aren't supposed to use anything but wing jacks. Mooney says to not pull down on the tail; Lycoming says not to lift the nose by the engine hoist points; Hartzell and McCauley say don't lift the nose with a prop jack.

    So use the jack points under the wing, and the plane is supposed to magically balance while someone climbs in to operate the gear and get back out, and be steady enough to remove the wheels . . .

    We all just need large pouches of fairy dust!

    P.S.--I wouldn't lift by the engine mount! That outs force.90° to the bolts, and they aren't designed for that. Having a couple of overstretched engine mount bolts break in flight could be unrecoverable!

    • Like 2
  11. A good headset kills lots of noise, takes little effort and no W&B issues.

    My wife didn't want an in-ear headset, so I bought a set of yellow Halos (mine are black) and told her if she didn't like them that I could sell them for what I paid. She used them in a 30-minute "test flight" and told me not to sell them. 

    Halos work as well as active noise canceling headsets for a third the price, and a wifi adapter is available too.

  12. 1 hour ago, NickG said:

    Yes, he has the mod paperwork. He upgraded the engine. What are the other changes that would make and Ovation an Ovation 3?

    Tech and prop change with the engine STC. Not sure about airframe or landing gear changes.

    When did they come out with the new Max Landing Weight? And is there a difference in fuel capacity? I dunno, never really shopped for a Long Body.

  13. 10 hours ago, MikeOH said:

    Did a test flight from 1000 MSL to 11,500 MSL. OAT at take-off was 65F, I held 105 mph IAS for the entire climb and leaned for take-off EGT from 2000 on up.  Had 60 gallons at take-off, estimate 2350 total.  Pretty disappointing: 620 fpm.  With 2600 SMOH, maybe it's time to overhaul.

    My Owner's Manual says to reduce airspeed 1 mph per 1000 feet to 10K, 100 mph at sea level down to 90 mph at 10K; no information is provided any higher.  Keeping constant airspeed should reduce your climb rate.

    Unless your F is really that different from my C . . . .

  14. I left my Mooney at Wet Wings, with the canopy cover on. Handed the keys to Edison.

    Call.and talk to him about it. Fuel after the seal came from Banyan, and he took me over in his golf cart to pay the bill.

    You'll likely need to get over to the commercial airport KFLL for the ride home. Edison can advise on that, too. When I went back to pick it up, due to airline schedules I had to arrive after dark, and taxied to a hotel across the street from KXFE. Uber will likely be better, but I was there in 2010 . . .

  15. 25 minutes ago, Shadrach said:

    I estimate you’re making about 160hp at 11.5gph. Any one of these turbo diesels should do that at a lower fuel burn.

    I understand why most are skeptical. Having switched to a turbo diesel road car a few years back, I am a believer. The difference in fuel specifics are sort of mind boggling at first.  Like anything you get used to it. I’m now disappointed if I average <36mpg on a road trip in large sport sedan loaded to well over 4K. 40mpg is the goal.

     

    My Nissan Altima, running on Regular gas, gets 38-39 mpg commuting through the woods to work, 35 miles each way. Loaded on a road trip on I-85 from SC, coming across Atlanta and back to Sweet Home, I've seen as high as 41 mpg. And no stinky, greasy diesel fuel to deal with!

    Dump the SUV and you'll be shocked at the GAS mileage you can get . . . . .

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