cliffy

I may have missed the Dynon A/P as I am talking Aerocruze 100 Reading late at night after along day has its problems with comprehension :-) Reading English is a skill easily lost! Sorry But for those thinking of the BK 100 my thoughts ring true For so long we had nothing and now we are flooded with possibilities- so confusing :-) OH well back to the drawing board!

I will venture a guess that the airplanes that have worn gears or suffer an actual gear collapse have not been maintained properly for years. If the gears have been cleaned and regreased with the proper grease on schedule they will, in all, probability last as long as the airplane does. Running them dry is what causes the wear we see.

The programing is actually easy once you realize that both pitch and roll have to be set up before any taxi checks. It is all contained in very detailed sheets (2) One for roll and one for pitch. Should read it through first to get familiar with the terminology You will also have to set up the TX ports (NEMA and 2 429s) on what ever GPS you are using so the Aero 100 can read what is being sent to it. 429s only needed if you want GPSS for IFR approaches. ALL the install info comes to you on a few engineering drawings. DON'T expect detailed photos like with the Cessnas installation. Little bits of install info are scattered about on the engineering drawings for each servo. READ the drawings and take notes several times before you start the install. You might have to adjust the roll servo connection to the aileron arm to get clearance so that it rotates about the ball joints The angle of connection is tight so bolt length and washers may need to be adjusted to get a good fit. (all allowed by reference on the drawings), The control head will be the easiest part to install. Buy a very good quality insertion/removal tool for the pins and do yourself a favor and buy 10 or 12 extra ones as you will screw up a few, Pay heed to my warning of buying GOOD wire strippers for 22 ga wires. The install will take you longer than you think as you have to think about every move before you do it. For instance the lateral placement of the roll servo although called out as a dimension at only one place on the drawing will leave you pondering just how to verify that dimension once in the wing. You will need a small angle drill for the roll servo bracket holes too boot. Getting the vertical placement of the roll servo mount hole in the span- wise stringers in the wing is an exercise in frustration to do it correct. You need to drill the servo bracket holes undersize first and then match drill the backing plate holes undersize and then install the bracket in the wing and match drill one hole in the stringer, cleco it to the stringer and then drill the other end of the backing plate holes. cleco that and then redrill all the holes to the correct size for matched hole drilling. Then you install the nut plates on the backing plates (again redrilled to the correct size for the screw clearance). This is the kind of stuff not called out on the engineering drawings which you will have to figure out for yourself. Location of the holes in the servo mount is the critical dimension. This is not a quick assembly LEGGO kit but it is possible to do IF you have the determination and skill set. You can download all the info on the BK website and read ahead before you order. Get very familiar with the paper work before you order if you want to install it yourself or with your A&P.

Look at the numbers made today and compare that to the numbers wrecked every year. Its a shrinking field.

Well I'm 78 and still able to crawl into the cockpit. I have a personal limit of Day VFR and that's after retiring from 121 ops and doing all the CAT IIIs I care to do. As Dirty Harry said, "A man's got to know his limitations" and far too many of us don't know where their personal edge is. My airplane is 60 years old and EVERYTING works as it should. EVERYTHING! How many on this site who own an airplane can say that EVERYTHING in their airplane works as it should right now? That is the way it is suppose to be but all too often its not. I invested in Dynon 3 years ago and didn't look back But mine is the exception on this airport (as far as this segment is concerned) I was just at a meeting last weekend where pilots were talking about their airplanes and relaying info on how their oil pressure gage drops to zero in flight and has been for years. One guy was saying his airspeed indicator gets stuck after landing at 40 kts and yet he keeps flying it. This is the attitude that is killing our segment of aviation- trying to keep antique airplanes in the air without proper maintenance. Once the "items" become to numerous the airplane sits and rots away then becoming too expensive to resurrect.

Not saying that piston engine aviation is going away only that our segment (Cessna Piper Mooney, Beech) airframes that came about in the 50s and 60s and 70s are going away due to attrition. Its a constantly shrinking segment of GA aviation as more and more airframes go into the grave. Go to any airport a just look around at the numbers of derelict airplanes tied down. My own airport has over 20 of them. We own an fly Mooneys They ain't making them anymore, they are going away Same with Beech and the Bonanza line Same with Piper They are going away, and it goes on and on. Now Light Sport and the dark side (Cirrus) are doing well (plastic airplanes). Experimental is doing well but- our niche - old metal airplanes- is going away

What would be the cost to hire a DER to approve a gear design? That's all that's needed Then you could go OPP

My father was one of those who could make any manual machine tool sing and dance. He started during WWI and retired in the 70s as Manager of Mechanical Production for a large oil exploration company where he held 2 patents. He also bought the first Moog automatic tape controlled machining center in Los Angeles back in the early 60s. Time has a way of marching on regardless of what we want or do. We are in the inevitable decline of the airplanes built during the heyday of GA aviation (of the 60s and 70s) to a newer type/style of plastic airplanes and not traditional sheet metal construction. Brought to market by a plethora of manufacturers rather than the limited big 3 or so we are familiar with. Our form of aviation (Cessna. Piper. Mooney etc) is a dying breed. We can prop up our antique airplanes for only so long until age takes its final toll. Its no different than the hot rod culture of the 60s and 70s with the 327s and 440s, modified sedans and pickups. That too is a dying pass time as we move into more emissions/modification controls and rules. They too will be mostly gone in 25 years as the subject vehicles reach the 90-100 year old arena AS OUR AIRPLANES ARE TODAY. They don't make them any more and we kill more of them every year than what they do make. Enjoy them while you can. They will be gone in the not too distant future. Just like the skilled machinist of yesteryear.

Well maybe $10 for 500 business cards and a local business license would a swage their fears?

You also need a GOOD wire stripper for small 22 and 24 ga wire Dynon uses sub d plugs so crimpers for the pins are easy to find (@$40) Make sure you get the smaller crimpers and pins for 20 ga wire and smaller.

When the plane is up on jacks be sure to check the spindle bolt bushing for excess wear by trying to move the nose wheel fore and aft Excess wear is repairable Also the bolt nut torque is covered by a service instruction for checking its torque every annual. Be advised to find the correct torque figure as it was changed in later years to a lower figure. It also takes a lot of grease every year in the zirc fitting.

An A&P school may have one as we did in my A&P school. We had to learn how to take a reading on it. As I mentioned in the other thread- any thought of using a DER for the design approval?

The South African way works for OPP just like dealing with McFarland on engine controls. I didn't read all 6 pages but was any mention made of hiring a DER to get an approved design for the gears? Once approved by a DER any decent gear maker could make them up to the spec required by the DER. Seems just right for a group project. If anyone hasn't disassembled the actuator and inspected it as required its only a matter of time before the airplane is a hood ornament awaiting parts. My right arm is still pretty strong! .

YEP Looks like they pulled the rope on it OH well, it was good while it lasted