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When building my first ES, I quickly became disenchanted with the
standard 3102 hardener supplied with the kits. The 3102 goes 'way too fast,
so it's really tough to mix a batch of any size without smoke. I had a long
chat with one of Jeffco's chemists (odd Russian name, but can't remember
it), who expressed some surprise that Lancair were still supplying the 3102.
He told me their 3176 hardener had been extensively tested by Lancair, and
in his opinion it was a much better hardener. It has a pot life about twice
as long and is not as brittle when cured. An additional factor to consider
is that the viscosity of any expoxy will gradually rise during its pot life;
a slower-curing mix stays less viscous for longer, and so will wet out
better during the working time. Also, my "seat of the pants" feeling is
that with most epoxies, the quicker the cure, the weaker the end result.
I spoke to the Lancair tech people about it, since I was reluctant to
switch to something not proven. The first time I spoke to them I was told
they had approved it. A few months later, however, I was told they had not!
These two conversations were with different people, and I'm sorry I didn't
make notes on who told me what. Anyway, I've been very happy with the 3176,
which I order straight from Jeffco, and am using it again on ES #2. The
picture gets complicated, however, since there is a 3156 hardener, which is
available from Lancair if you ask, and qualifies as hazmat. Finally, Jeffco
told me there is yet another brew being cooked up that will be sold as a
proprietary product only from Lancair.
While on the subject, why haven't we seen UV cure expoxies, I wonder?
They're widely used in industry, and would really speed up building. Think
how easy some things would go if you could cure a lay-up in 60 secs? (I
know, I just said, the quicker the cure, ......)
Finally got a reply from Lancair tech support about the turbo'ed ES --
they're checking into it. They did work up a turbo-normalized version, but
later took the turbo's off. Mark Mahnke doesn't know why. I'll keep you
posted. Still think a turbo'ed 360 might be a very nice package.
Diesels: What with all the skepticism (rightly) expressed in this forum
about new and different gas engines, I'm amazed at the apparent acceptance
of the idea of a diesel. I still haven't forgotten my experience with a
1982 Olds Cutlass Sierra diesel, which explains why I still adhere to my
lifelong oath never to buy another GM car. You may remember, GM developed
an all-new diesel design for this model, which turned out to have aluminum
heads that cracked, an injector pump that rolled over with any fleck of crud
in the fuel, no water separation system, and a pitifully inadequate fuel
filtration system. Part of the learning experience with diesels is finding
out the astonishing amount of water, crud and contamination that is normally
resident in diesel fuel, including a whole class of slime beasties that can
actually grow in your fuel tank! (Ain't evolution amazing?) After two
years, most of which was spent in the shop, I managed to get a trade-in
allowance for that car that was about what my cash discount would have been
with no trade; in other words, my initial investment went to zero in two
years. Along the way, I had the joy of a car that clanked and rattled,
belched black smoke when you stomped on it, and and stank of diesel fuel at
all times. Not my finest hour as a consumer.
No question that diesels have their place, but you mostly find them in
tractors, semi's, and boats, where there's no penalty for using lots of cast
iron. And by the way, they're not cheap, either -- I was thinking about
converting one of the old classic Bertram 31's from gas and was quoted $96K
for the two new diesels!
Jim Cameron, ES builder
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LML website: http://www.olsusa.com/Users/Mkaye/maillist.html
Builders' Bookstore: http://www.buildersbooks.com/lancair
Please send your photos and drawings to marvkaye@olsusa.com.
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