June 1999

June 1 - 5, 1999

Pressure test header tank. I used a regular party balloon as a pressure "gauge" and left the thing overnight. After tightening some of the fittings the tank passed on the first test. The tank was then rinsed several times with 100 to clean out the construction debris. It was then filled approximately 40% with 100 and pressure tested again which it also passed. I can now be certain it will leak after installation.

Assemble strobe light kits and install in turtledeck and belly locations. Factory strobes are the ideal but I found the price prohibitive. The strobe kit I purchased consists of a single board approximately 5" square. I found a suitable aluminum project box, which was easily modified to cut down the height, and mounted the board inside. Replacement lenses were installed on the cover, mounting lugs were installed and the flash tube was soldered in place.

The box was then wired, assembled and sealed with silicone. Finished units are mounted in position over a foam insulator with 2 #10-32 screws.

Jun 6 - 8, 1999

Clean up wiring and cable routing under panel prior to install of tank.

Apply two coats of varnish to interior surfaces forward of instrument panel.

Install vacuum regulator on firewall.

Jun 9 - 13, 1999

Install header tank and plumbing to gascolator.

A support for the horizontally mounted fuel selector valve was fabricated to take up some of the loads imposed on it. This seems prudent, rather than having the fuel lines carry the entire load, some of which would wind up being applied to the tank outlet.

Note that the selector and associated fuel lines slope continuously towards the gascolator even with the aircraft in the 3-point attitude. This will help minimize the risk of water being trapped in the system. There is a risk that water may pool in the back of the outlet T fitting and the bottom of the fuel level tube. For this reason I recommend the gascolator be sampled after the tail has been raised for 5 minutes during preflight. Of course any water in this area should be visible in the sight tube.

Jun 14 - 15, 1999

Install an electrical ground and drain tube to the tank filler neck. The drain is due to the level of the fuel filler being below the level of the upper deck. This made a "scupper" necessary to maintain the line from the firewall to the instrument panel. In fact it was necessary to fill the space between the upper deck and the fuel tank with foam to provide some support to the deck and give it that "full figured Jane Russell" shape.

Jun 18 - 20, 1999

Flox forward deck/instrument panel into place. Cover the seam with 2 layers of 6-oz cloth.

Conduct first fuel flow test. From the three-point attitude (tank 35% full) I measured 13.85 gph or 83 lbs/hr. This is slightly less than the 1.2 lbs/hr for each HP at take-off mandated by FAR 23. To meet this we would require 84 - 90 lbs/hr depending on whose HP figure we accept for the engine (70 or 75). Overall this preliminary test is encouraging as it seems likely we will have no trouble meeting the less stringent FAR requirement of providing 150% of the maximum fuel flow required at take off power.

Jun 20 - 30, 1999

Fabricate instrument panel. The main panel is 1/16" aluminum and will mount over the fiberglass panel extension of the Rand Robinson pre-fab forward deck/instrument panel assembly.

Items of note: