But it's seven dollars!
:)
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But it's seven dollars!
:)
I got a bit distracted working on the airplane, as we had some very unusual visitors to my sleepy little airport.
First, Buck Roetman was at the field, flying around and making smoke after some knife edges. Heck of a nice guy.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/buck.jpg
"Stick around an see something cool," he says.
Then a Blackhawk, which just flew in and sat there.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/blackhawk.jpg
Then...
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie...blue_angel.jpg
Turns out they're thinking of having an airshow here next year and sent one of their planes to check out the field.
Many mucky-mucks were all over them, so I just stayed out of the way and took some pics...and then got to work.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie..._repair002.jpg
So gear, she is repaired.
Finish painting the wings, fix the rudder, put the oil cooler back on the engine, mount the prop, and I'm back in business.
I'm pulling the brakes; I've got to come up with something better.
Taking advantage of some unseasonably warm weather, loads done the last couple days.
First, wings painted:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie..._repair015.jpg
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie...wrepair005.jpg
And the bottoms, which will need the transitions and the roundels to put on:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie..._repair016.jpg
(picture of the upper wing not taken! D'oh!)
The gear is repaired and needs some paint on the bottom:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie..._repair003.jpg
Oh, and new bushings in place of the brake mounts, and tubes and tires on the wheels!
The rudder was sliced at the top, the bow pulled up to something more or less straight, and a panel put in:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie..._repair001.jpg
So really, at this point I'm at cosmetics, excepting the tailwheel modification and putting both the oil cooler and the prop back on.
:)
http://www.homebuiltairplanes.com/fo...5&d=1456793538
Wrens, GA Nieuport 11
(owners)
If you cut off and saved any of your damaged roundels or tail feather cloth, I want them to hang on my wall :)
I have plans for the roundels - otherwise I'd offer one of them to you.
Anyhow, an update on the aircraft:
Wing transitions done:
Wavy tape down:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie..._repair017.jpg
Wavy tape up:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nie...wrepair006.jpg
It's not even close to historically correct, but I think it looks pretty good and was a simple solution.
Now for the non-historically correct blue trim and the dead on the money roundels!
This "Education" part of "Education and Recreation" stuff is getting out of hand. This week I'm learning how to tear down a VW engine and replace the crankshaft and prop hub.
Well that's the way these things go, I find. I wanted to install a new battery in my plane. It's footprint was different so that means a new and differently built battery tray.
Which meant I had to learn about drilling for rivets and riveting. Which meant I had to lean all about rivets, their nomenclature, how to squeeze them with a squeezer...
Then when the battery tray was finished, I figured it was a 30 minute swap out with the old. After all, the manufacturer pre-drilled the hole sin the tray for fastening it to the airplane.
What I didn't reckon on was that the builder would not use those holes. So then I had to get educated and practice drilling out rivets, size of plate nuts, size of drill bits to use for the rivets etc.
Took many weeks or reading, studying. researching, asking, practicing.
It's just the way it is I guess
Yep, it's a constant learning curve.
Oooh, pictures!
Here's my guru, Dave, surveying the task ahead. Not the engine as much as teaching my dumb butt as we go along.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr001.jpg
Hmmm, so that's what a wrist pin is...neat. "Put a finger on the...[sproing]...so it won't fly across the hangar. Did you see where it went?"
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr002.jpg
Most of the way to where we can split the case.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr003.jpg
But all the RTV Red stuff has to come off, so I spent some time with kerosene, a soft toothbrush, and some wooden sticks turning this:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr004.jpg
Into this:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr005.jpg
Valve push rod label cardboard holder thingie.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr006.jpg
Front left cylinder running a bit rich. Hmmm.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr007.jpg
Case split and we get to see some guts.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr008.jpg
Here's the prop hub, front bearing, and source of the problem:
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr009.jpg
The silver thingie right at the start of the case, behind the hub, is the bearing. There's a little cup right behind it - it looks like a beveled piece - that is a kind of splash guard, and it's warped. Indeed, we could find no way for that front bearing to get oil but by having some just thrown on it from the engine.
The prop hub just fell off without the bolt to hold it in; I thought the heat shrinking around the woodruff key would have kept it on. It may well be that the crankshaft is okay and the hub was katywhompus. But in for a penny, in for a pound, and the new crankshaft and hub will go in the engine.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/engr0010.jpg
Pulling bits and pieces off. I am sorely lacking in tools and we couldn't pull the drive gear off of the shaft...I'll carry it someplace professional and beg them to do it for me. Note Dave is in uniform for the task. :)
We're writing stuff down and marking stuff up on what goes where, and I'm making everything slow out of ignorance. Dave has been a helluva guy for displaying the level of patience with me that he has.
Frank, maybe I just missed it but what prompted you to tear down the engine? Was the prop not tracking properly?