Posted for "Jim Nordin"
<panelmaker@earthlink.net>:
A alternative method to support the forward hinged canopy without the header
tank. If you want
more pictures I have 'em.
Jim
_____
From: Lancair Mailing List
[mailto:lml@lancaironline.net] On Behalf Of
rwolf99@aol.com
Sent: Friday, November 12, 2010 6:32 AM
To:
lml@lancaironline.net
Subject: [LML] Retrofitting a 360
Danny
-
Some thoguhts from a 360 builder (but not yet flying).
1) Canopy
-- If you are considering retrofitting a forward hinged canopy to
a finished 360 with a parallelogram canopy, here are some things
to
consider. The forward hinge canopy attaches to brackets which go into
"pockets" in the aft face of the header
tank. If the back face of the
header tank is flat, you will need to "make" pockets by hacking up the
header
tank. That would be a real pain, in my opinion, but anything can be
done. There are instructions for doing this with
the forward hinge canopy
hardware. My 360 came with parallelogram canopy hardware but a "pocketed"
header tank, and I
subsequently purchased the forward hinge hardware. So
you might luck out there and find a parallelogram canopy installation onto
a
pocketed tank. If the plane does not have a header tank at all you've got a
bigger problem -- no place to attach the
brackets for the hinges.
Regardless of header tank configuration, you will have to reinforce the
front of the canopy with 80 feet of
unidirectional carbon fiber. You may
also choose to trim the canopy sides to make them thinner and gain about an
inch of
shoulder room. This particular modification work should not be too
hard, but you'll trash the interior paint on the
canopy. Not a biggie, I
think. You'll also need to cut a slot in the back rest for the handle and
affix nylon
pivot blocks to the inside walls just behind the seat. Plus cut
slots into the rollover structure for the latches and make a hole
in the
side of the plane for the handle. Also cut holes in your glareshield for
the hinges. All is doable but
I'm not sure I would bother. Guesses? $1000
for materials and parts and 250 hours labor. Plus
paint. Just a guess.
2) Long engine mount -- This will probably make maintenance a lot
easier.
Will also move your CG forward and make it fly better. I think all you'll
need to do is unbolt the mount, make
sure the new mount fits in the old
holes, and move the engine and its accessories over. Then you'll need to
extend the
cowling to fill the gap. As fiberglass work goes that's not too
bad. You will have to re-do the cowling fasteners, of
course. And you
might need longer hoses in a couple of places, but that's just writing
a
check. Guesses? $500 for a new mount, $700 for materials including new
cowl fastener parts and new hoses, a
weekend for the changeover and 75 hours
labor for extending the canopy and redoing the cowl fasteners. Plus
paint.
3) Landing gear -- I have long considered the Lancair landing gear to be
the weak
link in the airplane. Tinkertoy struts supporting go-kart wheels
and bicycle brakes. Okay, so maybe that's a little
harsh but if you compare
the Lancair gear to any certified airplane of the same or similar weight and
you see Twiggy supporting the
Lancair and (fil in your favorite female WWE
start here) supporting the spam can. (wait, where was I? I lost my train
of
thoguth for a moment) Oh, yes, and it's not just the gear -- the flaps are
totally different as well. This
is a huge modification which I would stay
away from. But again, I know nothing about the outback gear. Guesses?
Megabucks
for the parts and a year or two for the labor. (Okay, maybe I
exaggerate a little.)
Hope
this helps.
- Rob Wolf
Tucson AZ