Matronics Email Lists :: View topic - Center Section Fairing

Matronics Email Lists
Web Forum Interface to the Matronics Email Lists

Get Email Distribution Too! FAQ Search Memberlist Usergroups Register

Profile Log in to check your private messages Log in

Center Section Fairing

Matronics Email Lists Forum Index -> Kolb-List

View previous topic :: View next topic

Author Message

victorbravo(at)sbcglobal.
Guest

Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:19 am Post subject: Center Section Fairing

Subject: Center Section Fairing

 To: kolb-list(at)matronics.com

 Date: Monday, October 8, 2018, 12:58 AM

 Hi Kolbers,

 This is a progress update on getting my

 HKS Firestar configuration a little closer to Larry C's HKS

 Firestar. To refresh everyone's memory, my aircraft was not

 making anywhere near the "normal" 65-70 MPH cruise speed

 that Larry is getting, and so I am un-doing some or all of

 the things that were different on mine.

 The first big thing was that my

 original oil cooler installation was allowing a significant

 "jet" of air to be directed up through the wing center

 section. This worked great for oil temperature, but it was

 very likely creating a large amount of crag, and interfering

 with the spanwise lift distribution.

 So I moved the cooler and oil tank down

 to a different location, which allowed me to make a "solid"

 gap seal for the center section between the wing roots. Once

 finished, this gap seal will continue the top curvature of

 the airfoil across the center seciton with no gaps, all the

 way from the leading edge to the rear wing attach (where the

 U-joint is). This approximates what Larry C has on his

 Firestar, the gap seal on the top surface only.

 I made the gap cover out of .016"

 aluminum that stays attached to the fuselage upper keel

 tube. No loose parts, no Velcro, no disassembly or

 disconnecting when folding or unfolding the wings. The short

 aluminum tubes at the leading edge of the wings slides into

 the "tube" at the front of the center fairing. So any lift

 or force generated by air flowing over the front of this

 center fairing is retrained by the leading edge of the

 wings.

 The wing roots slide underneath this

 center cover. Once the wings are fully un-folded, the center

 fairing overlaps the wing roots by a little over an inch

 each side. The wings will have weatherstripping (foam tape)

 under the center cover so there is a good air seal.

 In the photos you can see a few small

 gaps, and a diamond shaped hole in the middle of the gap

 vover. The small holes will have tape to close off the gaps.

 The gaps are there so that the parts can be removed from the

 fuselage for maintenance or inspection.

 The diamond shaped hole is so that

 (with engine vibration inflight)  the center gap cover

 does not pound on the square black boxes under those holes,

 which are the HKS ignition boxes. A small patch of fabric or

 rubber sheet will be glues over that diamond shaped hole to

 prevent air leakage without anything hammering on the

 ignition control boxes and risk damage to those components.

 Although I am not anyone's idea of a

 Kolb Expert, I am guessing that this center gap cover closes

 off the hole between the wings more or further rearward than

 most plans-built Kolbs.

 Because of the many many comments on

 the Kolb list about my flight testing problems, I took this

 opportunity to resolve the CG issue by moving it forward a

 little. The new fuel tank is mounted behind the pilot seat,

 in the area where the stock "rear seat" was. So now the fuel

 is pretty much underneath the center of gravity, so even

 with full fuel I will not be as close to the rear CG limit.

 Hopefully, this will allow me to move

 the leading edge of the stabilizer back down to the stock

 position, or most of the way there, per John H's suggestion

 and the suggestions of other Kolbers..

 Bill Berle

- The Matronics Kolb-List Email Forum -

Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:

http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Kolb-List

gdhelton(at)gmail.com
Guest

Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2018 3:02 am Post subject: Center Section Fairing

Sounds like good progress,Bill. There was a long silence there. Sounds like you were doing a lot more working and a lot less talking. 

George H.

Firestar 

14GDH 

Mesick, Michigan 

gdhelton(at)gmail.com



Sent from my iPhone



 	  Quote: 	
		   On Oct 8, 2018, at 4:18 AM, Bill Berle <victorbravo(at)sbcglobal.net> wrote:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Subject: Center Section Fairing

 To: kolb-list(at)matronics.com

 Date: Monday, October 8, 2018, 12:58 AM

 

 Hi Kolbers,

 

 This is a progress update on getting my

 HKS Firestar configuration a little closer to Larry C's HKS

 Firestar. To refresh everyone's memory, my aircraft was not

 making anywhere near the "normal" 65-70 MPH cruise speed

 that Larry is getting, and so I am un-doing some or all of

 the things that were different on mine.

 

 The first big thing was that my

 original oil cooler installation was allowing a significant

 "jet" of air to be directed up through the wing center

 section. This worked great for oil temperature, but it was

 very likely creating a large amount of crag, and interfering

 with the spanwise lift distribution.

 

 So I moved the cooler and oil tank down

 to a different location, which allowed me to make a "solid"

 gap seal for the center section between the wing roots. Once

 finished, this gap seal will continue the top curvature of

 the airfoil across the center seciton with no gaps, all the

 way from the leading edge to the rear wing attach (where the

 U-joint is). This approximates what Larry C has on his

 Firestar, the gap seal on the top surface only.

 

 I made the gap cover out of .016"

 aluminum that stays attached to the fuselage upper keel

 tube. No loose parts, no Velcro, no disassembly or

 disconnecting when folding or unfolding the wings. The short

 aluminum tubes at the leading edge of the wings slides into

 the "tube" at the front of the center fairing. So any lift

 or force generated by air flowing over the front of this

 center fairing is retrained by the leading edge of the

 wings.

 

 The wing roots slide underneath this

 center cover. Once the wings are fully un-folded, the center

 fairing overlaps the wing roots by a little over an inch

 each side. The wings will have weatherstripping (foam tape)

 under the center cover so there is a good air seal.

 

 In the photos you can see a few small

 gaps, and a diamond shaped hole in the middle of the gap

 vover. The small holes will have tape to close off the gaps.

 The gaps are there so that the parts can be removed from the

 fuselage for maintenance or inspection.

 

 The diamond shaped hole is so that

 (with engine vibration inflight)  the center gap cover

 does not pound on the square black boxes under those holes,

 which are the HKS ignition boxes. A small patch of fabric or

 rubber sheet will be glues over that diamond shaped hole to

 prevent air leakage without anything hammering on the

 ignition control boxes and risk damage to those components.

 

 Although I am not anyone's idea of a

 Kolb Expert, I am guessing that this center gap cover closes

 off the hole between the wings more or further rearward than

 most plans-built Kolbs.

 

 Because of the many many comments on

 the Kolb list about my flight testing problems, I took this

 opportunity to resolve the CG issue by moving it forward a

 little. The new fuel tank is mounted behind the pilot seat,

 in the area where the stock "rear seat" was. So now the fuel

 is pretty much underneath the center of gravity, so even

 with full fuel I will not be as close to the rear CG limit.

 

 Hopefully, this will allow me to move

 the leading edge of the stabilizer back down to the stock

 position, or most of the way there, per John H's suggestion

 and the suggestions of other Kolbers..

 

 Bill Berle

- The Matronics Kolb-List Email Forum -

Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:

http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Kolb-List

mojavjoe

Joined: 23 Dec 2013
Posts: 64

Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2018 2:24 pm Post subject: Center Section Fairing

Bill do you still have two 5 gal. tanks

 	  Quote: 	
		   On October 8, 2018 at 4:18 AM Bill Berle <victorbravo(at)sbcglobal.net> wrote:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Subject: Center Section Fairing

  To: kolb-list(at)matronics.com

  Date: Monday, October 8, 2018, 12:58 AM

  

  Hi Kolbers,

  

  This is a progress update on getting my

  HKS Firestar configuration a little closer to Larry C's HKS

  Firestar. To refresh everyone's memory, my aircraft was not

  making anywhere near the "normal" 65-70 MPH cruise speed

  that Larry is getting, and so I am un-doing some or all of

  the things that were different on mine.

  

  The first big thing was that my

  original oil cooler installation was allowing a significant

  "jet" of air to be directed up through the wing center

  section. This worked great for oil temperature, but it was

  very likely creating a large amount of crag, and interfering

  with the spanwise lift distribution.

  

  So I moved the cooler and oil tank down

  to a different location, which allowed me to make a "solid"

  gap seal for the center section between the wing roots. Once

  finished, this gap seal will continue the top curvature of

  the airfoil across the center seciton with no gaps, all the

  way from the leading edge to the rear wing attach (where the

  U-joint is). This approximates what Larry C has on his

  Firestar, the gap seal on the top surface only.

  

  I made the gap cover out of .016"

  aluminum that stays attached to the fuselage upper keel

  tube. No loose parts, no Velcro, no disassembly or

  disconnecting when folding or unfolding the wings. The short

  aluminum tubes at the leading edge of the wings slides into

  the "tube" at the front of the center fairing. So any lift

  or force generated by air flowing over the front of this

  center fairing is retrained by the leading edge of the

  wings.

  

  The wing roots slide underneath this

  center cover. Once the wings are fully un-folded, the center

  fairing overlaps the wing roots by a little over an inch

  each side. The wings will have weatherstripping (foam tape)

  under the center cover so there is a good air seal.

  

  In the photos you can see a few small

  gaps, and a diamond shaped hole in the middle of the gap

  vover. The small holes will have tape to close off the gaps.

  The gaps are there so that the parts can be removed from the

  fuselage for maintenance or inspection.

  

  The diamond shaped hole is so that

  (with engine vibration inflight)  the center gap cover

  does not pound on the square black boxes under those holes,

  which are the HKS ignition boxes. A small patch of fabric or

  rubber sheet will be glues over that diamond shaped hole to

  prevent air leakage without anything hammering on the

  ignition control boxes and risk damage to those components.

  

  Although I am not anyone's idea of a

  Kolb Expert, I am guessing that this center gap cover closes

  off the hole between the wings more or further rearward than

  most plans-built Kolbs.

  

  Because of the many many comments on

  the Kolb list about my flight testing problems, I took this

  opportunity to resolve the CG issue by moving it forward a

  little. The new fuel tank is mounted behind the pilot seat,

  in the area where the stock "rear seat" was. So now the fuel

  is pretty much underneath the center of gravity, so even

  with full fuel I will not be as close to the rear CG limit.

  

  Hopefully, this will allow me to move

  the leading edge of the stabilizer back down to the stock

  position, or most of the way there, per John H's suggestion

  and the suggestions of other Kolbers..

  

  Bill Berle

- The Matronics Kolb-List Email Forum -

Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:

http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Kolb-List

victorbravo(at)sbcglobal.
Guest

Posted: Mon Oct 08, 2018 9:46 pm Post subject: Center Section Fairing

<mojavjoe(at)comcast.net>

 

 	  Quote: 	
		  > Bill do you still have two 5 gal.

> tanks ?


	


No, I do not have the 5 gallon tanks. Several Kolbers suggested that my aircraft was more tail-heavy than it really needed to be, and some of the more highly experienced Kolbers were really not happy with me raising the leading edge of the tail.



Since I was not going to use this Firestar as a 2 seater I managed to kill two birds with one stone: 



One benefit was moving the CG forward.

Another benefit was reducing parts count, fuel system complexity, and eliminating the UN-EQUAL fuel feed from the tanks.



So in order to get both benefits, I REMOVED the two five gallon Kolb jugs from the rear compartment, and found a one-piece tank that fit perfectly into the "rear seat" area. 



This one-piece tank holds 14 gallons, which I may never need to fill up completely. Maybe only for ferrying the airplane to Larry's 2019 Rock House fly-in !!!



I tried three times last night to attach photos of all this to a Kolb List e-mail,a nd all three got bounced back to me as rejected by the mail server. Last time this happened I tried to e-mail Matt Dralle and got no reply.



Bill, still working away in Los Angeles

- The Matronics Kolb-List Email Forum -

Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:

http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?Kolb-List

Display posts from previous:

	Matronics Email Lists Forum Index -> Kolb-List	All times are GMT - 8 Hours
Page 1 of 1

Jump to:

You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum