Peter,

Very nice summary. I am in the same boat, even so I am still 10 - 12 years from retirement, I have been building my L-360 carbon for 6 1/2 years in my spare time and I have been faced with the same dilemmas and revelations. I feel, that as long as I have a job to finance this hobby I'll keep working on this.

I have a question for you and other 320/360 builders and flyers:
* What is the weight of your RUDDER? (I have completed mine and it feels extremely heavy. It is fully balanced. To fully balance it, I had to extend the horn 1" forward and fill it with tungsten rods.)

Garry V. Laznicka
L-360c MK-II 85%

-----Original Message-----
From: Barber [mailto:pkbarber@charter.net]
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2008 4:38 PM
To: lml@lancaironline.net
Subject: Still Building After All These Years


It’s an anniversary! Ten years ago a truck pulled up in front of our
garage here in Reno with a crate containing the parts necessary to build
a Lancair 320 kitplane. My wife and I had little experience with
building anything, much less an airplane. Our tool collection consisted
of a few screwdrivers, a set of wrenches, and a hammer. We didn’t even
own a power drill. However, although we hadn’t spent a night at a
Holiday Inn Express, both of us had just completed a three-day workshop
on composite construction and we were prepared to put this kit together
in our spare time. Wow, were we naïve.

After 10 years and 3500 hours we’re still building. We’ve learned a lot,
we know how to use tools that we didn’t even know existed when we
started, and we have gained the utmost respect (awe is probably a better
word) for all of those who have gone before us and built their own
Lancairs. In the beginning, we believed that this would be an assembly
job (that’s the naïve part). Now we know that each Lancair, including
ours, is a hand-crafted one-of-a-kind airplane.

We’re now retired and able to work on the project for four or five hours
most days and the progress from week to week is actually noticeable. How
folks are able to build these airplanes while working a full-time job is
a mystery to us. We made little headway on our project before we retired
– much of the time was spent dusting off the airplane and trying to
remember where we were.

We are extremely grateful to Marv for starting the LML and to the many
Lancair builders and flyers who contribute their experiences and
insights to the List. Whenever we start a new task we first look through
the LML archives so that we can benefit from the experiences of the
Lancair builder community. Additionally, we have and continue to benefit
greatly from on-site advice and help from Gary Martin and Bucky Whittier.

Who knows what percentage we have completed or when this airplane will
fly – we decline to answer these questions (or even think about the
answers). The airplane is on its landing gear (outback) with the gear
doors complete and the hydraulic cylinders installed. The Mk II
horizontal stabilizer (including elevator and trim tab) has been
fabricated, but is not yet permanently attached to the fuselage. The
wings are closed and the wingtips and ailerons are complete. The flaps
go up and down under electric power, but are not yet closed. After only
a few more minor tasks (humor intended) - forward-hinged canopy, engine
installation, instrument panel, etc. - we’ll be installing our Zavatson
engine cowling and cooling system.

Did I mention that my wife Karen has measured, cut out, wet out and
applied all of the BID layups? To answer the often-asked question: yes,
she does have a sister, but unfortunately her sister has no interest in
airplane construction.

In reading the LML, it’s reassuring to be reminded that there are still
many 320/360 builders quietly laboring away in their garages, workshops,
and hangars. I am sure that when we are all flying someday, like those
who have gone before us we’ll look back with pride on our planes, even
though our projects may have taken a little longer than expected.

Peter Barber