Monday 4 January 2016

RansMail #140  February 2013
[Please open up the above pdf to read all pages]
        
Rans 30th Anniversary of proto S4
"Good to hear the enthusiasm! We are planning some special celebration at Oshkosh, and our annual fly-in.  It may include flying the original S-4, a plane that is still very dear to my heart. I think it taught me more about flying than all the twins, retracts, spray planes, and kit planes that I have time in. Is there any thing we can do to make your flying of our planes more fun ?
Randy Schlitter CEO"
We Brit's might manage a little fly-in too. My S4 kit was built around 1990 so even she is ~23 and still fun. In fact  "I liked the brand so much I bought..." ..... the S6-116 with 80 hp. mike.
Mind you the 2012 UK rains have hardly eased off into 2013 - except to let it snow !
Ethanol in Fuel & Seals (Jodel Forum)
Apparently, there is not just one type of Viton, and not all are equal, from the point of view of resistance to the many unidentified constituents in Mogas nowadays. Half an hour on t'internet reveals that 'Viton' is just a generic copyright name for several fluoroelastomer products from DuPont Chemicals. (Other companies make something similar). There are at least eight sub-types, of which four still exhibit good resistance to alcohols and ethers in fuel up to high percentages. These are types F, GF, GFLT, and ETP. Types A and B, having less fluorine in them, will swell more when exposed to these chemicals. Could this explain the apparent anomaly of 'Viton' not being up to the job?
This is one document which tells the story: http://www.rainierrubber.com/pdf/Viton-Selection-Guide.pdf
There must be many operators of light aircraft who need to replace their fuel system seals to cope with intermittent Mogas use (if only to reduce the amount of lead deposition with Avgas), but strangely, none of the usual aviation suppliers appear to stock Viton O rings, and other specialist stockists will only deal in large quantities, or have a hazy idea of what subtype they stock.
EAA videos make very good watching - http://www.eaavideo.org/video.aspx?v=82010108001
Fuel Check (Jabiru forum)

I always check for 'ethanol-free' fuel. The test kit that you add water to is a hassle and takes a few minutes to settle out: the blue Fuel-Check works great but is expensive.  At home I got my wife's red, blue and green food colouring out, it's water soluble. A quick check with pint jars of ethanol-free fuel and adulterated fuel indicated that a drop of any colour food colouring will dissolve and turn the adulterated fuel the same colour. In pure gasoline, the drop just goes to the bottom of the sample and rolls around there in little globules. Now I just carry food colouring and a quart glass jar - it's easier to get a fuel sample into - and have an instant indication of either ethanol free fuel or adulterated fuel.


Brian Bell (Jackrell's Farm)-some Deer too -

Great flight on Thursday last week, wind from 300 but only a whisper, ground was hard enough except in  a few spots so kept stick well forward during taxi to unload t/wheel. Note to self: try full power on t/o roll - it normally works miracles, you'd think I would have cracked that one by now.
Area around Partridge Green not as bad re flooding as month ago. Overflew Hadfold - some gentleperson either waving at me to pop in or telling me to bugg£er off. Shoreham as accommodating as ever. Tiger Moth overflow Jackrells as I was prepping the a/c. Got about 1 hour and a bit airborne - came in for 03 off-piste. Not too much muck splattered on the a/c this time - indicating that ground had hardened somewhat.
Pete Jackson (GT450 100 h.p. Flex-wing)
Met Tim G.P. end of Jan. to do the latest tear test, a mandatory check on the trailing edge fibres of my sail - and yes it passed, thankfully. 2kg pull > on a thread about 2 mm wide - Not nice to watch. The airfield is now unbelievable... water streaming out through the field gate and so deep that almost went inside my walking boots as tried to get to the hangars. 
Clive based nearby with 80 hp Escapade
I last flew mid Jan. ago. The weather was very stable and CAVOK, so I went up for a spin around the local area. Over to Jackrells Farm to fly over at 700ft, no one there so had a look at Shipley, but no signs of life. Then Truleigh Farm and Fulking. Drew a blank there too. Headed West just North of the Downs to overfly Cissbury Ring and my house in Findon Valley, then over Jim's strip at Washington and back to Hadfold International to a lovely satisfyingly gentle 3 pointer.
I knew it would splatter my plane a bit flying that day but.............as I taxied and turned to line up at the 05 threshold the Escapade slid sideways ! I checked it with full left rudder and brake and a burst of full power. That worked well, but as I went through my pre T/O checks I knew some mud might fly. Opened the throttle and accelerated nicely to see clods of mud splattering up under my wings from the wheels........( Blast it ! ). Simultaneously, mud was thrown from the wheels forward into the prop which 'batted' it back to splatter on my screen ! I had washed my aeroplane after the last flight a few weeks previously. I have since washed it again, and this time it can stay indoors until the conditions are drier.
Rans S6 Rotax 912 Engine with oil cooler (USA). 
Simple slide on variable area baffle.

Jabiru Engines - again - (from their forum by Roger Lewis).
Some reasons why the engine is tight or gets tight are:
1. lack of lubrication - if you have low oil pressure then the oil from the big ends will not be sufficient to cool and lubricate the barrels and pistons - particularly at low rpm and at idle when there is probably no oil getting to the barrels.
With the finger nails of your thumb and forefinger gently 'pull' the piston rings away from the piston. Allow the nails to slip slightly till they get to the outer circumference of the ring. Your nails should not feel any build-up or 'ridge'. Any heat build up will also cause the ring to distort inwards at the ring gaps. Both can give increased blow by and reduced compression
2. barrel distortion (going oval) when hot.
The engine gets very tight when hot but if the torque on the base nuts are released the engine suddenly becomes free. I found that barrel trueness is very much dependent on the barrel base nuts being correctly torqued down and this torque being maintained. The through bolts and nuts are therefore critical in this area and Jabiru admit a problem with the bolt threads,their fix is a bodge with locktite 620. During rebuild, you can with a sympathetic and understanding hand, have the barrels torqued down and the torques maintained in operation. However, you must be using through bolts of the correct spec.

Alderney Flying Club will resurrect its annual fly-in in 2013, hosting a fly-in on the weekend of 28-30 June. Alderney Flying Club Chairman David Chiswell said, “The Alderney Flying Club is delighted to be able to restart our fly-in this year." 
Angle of Attack sensors (Condensed from AvMail).

In GA airplanes these are rare & we use indicated airspeed for approach and landing. One problem with airspeed is that most of us only know the right airspeed for gross weight at sea level on a standard day. If we're light, we tend to come in fast and curse the floating landing that ensues. The other end of the problem is getting too slow, or pulling the plane into a high-g-loading stall far above the wings-level stalling speed.
Four US companies offer AoA detectors.
Alpha Systems - from $700-$1300 - have sold 3000, ~40 percent in certified aircraft e.g. King Airs. It uses a pitot tube like probe sensing two relative pressures' changes calibrated to compute AoA.  But it reads incorrectly with flaps extended.
Advanced Flight Systems  $890 -  $1490. It also uses differential pressure with two 1 mm holes in the wing at about 20% wing chord & run to a transducer, then an LED display for relative angle and a digital readout of actual angle. It is calibrated for both a clean and an approach flap setting.
RiteAngle  $400 to $750. Has a pivoting vane (as used on most airliners) & measures relative AoA - dependent on a calibration flight. It must be mounted in clean air and at least 13 percent of chord length below any wing - about seven inches on an RV. Cockpit display is LED warning lights set  five percent under 1.3 Vs for the current flap position.
InAir  Lift Reserve Indicator (LRI) $450: largely similar to Alpha's system, with a mechanical indicator and no flap position correction. 
Comment. (Dave Abate). AOA indicators that measure air pressure differential at locations other than on the upper wing camber are not much more than glorified stall-warning horns & not accurate enough to ensure no stall. The boundary layer flowing over the wing is the only , dependable way to detect a stalling wing. Relying on the owner to self-calibrate one of these "differential" AOA units by a trial-and-error sequence of stalling the aircraft is demanding & too imprecise to depend on, giving I see a false sense of security,  .
Ulrich Klausing Rans S5 (Canada).

plus Visions of Central Oregon (from Pulsar forum)
Rich Shankland :-
Lockheed's sporting twin  PWR-2800-CB-16's with a 270 Kts cruise and Transcontinental range. Modelled after the  WWII Lockheed "Ventura" bomber was as fast as an airliner in the mid 50's,
History of the plane:  http://www.flightsimonline.com/howard500/Howard500history.htm   https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=6HBmeWL-or0
Richard Arkell. I hope we start to dry out soon as the runway at Chauvigny (mid France) is just too scary. The mud marks were halfway up the sidewalls of my Jodel DR1053 after my last flight so not worth the risk until it gets much better. I am going to preload the spring a bit as my clumsy application of brakes to turn starts the nose dipping, though only slight it feels terrible !
Was CZA SportCruiser --- & now SC3d ? (Seen on their forum).
Rans S4, 5 & 6 expert, LAA Inspector Graham Smith in Kent UK is reiterating his connection with this kit a/c after being the original approved importer. This time with a new Chinese owned firm and LAA approval has started. The first kits can be ready for shipping in April.  There are some  style changes & interestingly a steerable nose wheel.  He will supply just one spec kit with all the SC specific parts. Some generic parts like gascolators, wiring etc will still need to be purchased but the kit will contain parts normally classed as extras such as fitted cowls, engine mount, radiator, oil cooler. No firewall kit will be needed. The price about £21k UK. The LAA conditions include full traceability of primary structure materials & no Chinese metal in the airframe. His own SC is now 7 years old and as is the way with all things mechanical, the older they get the more important it is to have good access to spares and technical support. He intends restoring customer support as this manufacturer cares about its UK customers.

31st Jan 2013 CAP 694: The UK Flight Planning Guide
This is guidance for the completion and submission of VFR and IFR flight plans. It incorporates information previously issued by Aeronautical Information Circulars (AICs) on IFR and VFR flight and includes the latest ICAO provisions.  http://www.caa.co.uk/docs/33/CAP%20694.pdf
Stuart Ord. Re polycarbonate issues (Jan.).
Polycarbonate with or without UV-resistant coating is fairly petrol resistant IF NOT STRESSED. You can put a sample into petrol for some time and there is no change – whitening might occur and will usually disappear when it is left to dry for a few hours. However if it is stressed, e.g. bent around corners or with rivets through it, it is VERY sensitive to petrol and will fail rapidly. I lost my Rans S6 windscreen to fuel damage last summer (I still don’t know how it happened) – it was fine one evening when I put it away and the next time I saw it, there were hundreds of cracks on the front left corner where it bends from the front to the side. Some cracks were clean through the plastic and some small pieces fell out. I got samples of several polycarbonates from the various suppliers advertising sheets and they all exhibited the same stressed / not stressed behaviour. So don’t rely on the “coated” type – it’s all vulnerable. Look on the bright side – it’s so tough it will protect you against most events imaginable, is easy to cut and bend and rivet, is nice and clear as long as you don’t use polarising sunspecs – just keep the petrol off it !
It's cheaper by the sheet – I got 2m x 3m x 2mm from Bay Plastics  in North Shields for £146 delivered. More than needed,  I hadn’t realised my screen was in 2 parts – the ally strips I’d thought were for stiffening are actually joiners – discovered when I took the old screen off. I might have been better with a smaller piece just for the front, the large sheet is a real handful once out of its cardboard cover ! Polycarbonate cuts nicely with a jigsaw and fine blade. The edge is easiest smoothed using a knife blade back in scraper action. I’d intended to do some experiments with the remainder Lexan to see if anything (paint, polish, cling film, whatever comes to hand!) gives any protection against fuel but I’ve not had the time yet.
My Avid canopy lasted about 5 years before succumbing to enough cracks to make me replace it. Similar story of occasional spills on the stressed bits. I think filling wing tanks by can is a bit risky. I prefer to pump fuel to them from my jerry cans with  a hand pump.  I’m thinking of devising a sensor to tell me when the tank is full, if anyone has a better filling system I’d like to hear.
[The tightest corners of the screen curvature often show lines which can develop into real cracks, monitor them or preferably preventative crack stop drill the ends of every single one. This has also worked well for some four years on my S6-116 where the  Lexan pop rivets fixings have started many radial cracks. mike].

Avionics theft from RGV -  LAA Member Manuel Queiroz asks please watch out for these Garmins. Contact LAA 01280 846 786. www.laa.uk.com
This had obviously been planned for some time as we had conversations with the 'buyer' over a number of weeks.  On Friday February 1st he used a stolen identity with more than one card,  RGV did checks, nothing showed up until it was too late, as a retailer they're not covered and have lost ~£10,000. GTX330 Transponder S/N 84144926
SL30 NAV/COM S/N 25909181
GMU44 Magnetometer S/N 1CM009055
GSU73 ADAHRS+EIS Unit S/N 1D0001146
GDU370 Display S/N 1M9000186
GDU370 Display S/N 1M9000190
GTP59 Temperature Probe S/N 47921955

A Wankel for the UK e-Go SSDR by ROTRON ENGINES:  (London 12 February 2013, by GILO CARDOZO).
The Rotron 294cc is where it all began - first used during Mission Everest, the ultimate test of reliability and performance, this rotary engine powered Gilo Cardozo and TV adventurer Bear Grylls to break all existing paramotor altitude records and to look down on Mount Everest. Rotron Aero have been developing rotary engines from 2005 which offer benefits over reciprocating engines - such as low vibration, excellent power to weight ratios and compact. Gilo realised the potential of rotary engines for UAV’s/drones. Since 2009 the company has fulfilled numerous contracts  for specialised compact ducted fan units that operate at over 30,000 ft to range extenders for series hybrid electric cars. Rotron Aero will supply bespoke rotary engines for the SSDR aircraft designed by UK e-Go Aeroplanes. The engine is based on the Rotron 300efi rotary engine has fuel injection, early tests e show the Specific Fuel Consumptions are now around the same as 4-stroke engines with the same horsepower. It uses manifold air-temperature and pressure to measure mass air flow to self-compensate for altitude. The e-Go aircraft is expected to make its first flight early this year.

Ben Davis (Rans S6)
I try to video most flights, my youtube channel is  http://www.youtube.com/bendavis221102

Geoff Hill BMAA magazine editor sent out this video link to a feat of Japanese man-powered flight.
UK & European Touring ? Potted rules (from Aopa) flying in/out.

New Readers
Robert Lombardi. I am very keen to read up on all things Rans related.  I recently completed (Dec 11)  and gained my NPPL 3 axis microlight ticket. I trained on the C42 aircraft, I was in a syndicate for a little while at Chatteris, as I live in Cambridge. The group was great, however due to many things I decided to sell up.My brother also flies microlights & he did have a Rans s5 a few years back, now he has a Sluka. I guess I will be a pretty infrequent flyer, happy just to keep my hand in & remain valid. I'm naturally interested in the Rans range. I work at Marshall Aerospace Cambridge, now called Marshall ADG in Quality Assurance, investigations, customer complaints & audits.
Rod Geeson. Can you add e to your mailing list please, recently became involve with couple of guys who have bought a Rans S7 and I have the pleasure of doing difference training for them, seems a delightful aeroplane.
Andy ajojets@btinternet.com  Please could you include me on the mailing list for the RansMail.
Stuart Earl.  I am looking for a Rans s4, sadly my budget is somewhat limited but have spotted one for sale with some damage on 'afors', not sure how bad ? G-MWLA. If still for sale, according to G-INFO it has been de registered. I passed my test about four years ago now and it has lapsed - planning to re-take it this summer. [It belonged to Don Lees some 8 years ago. He carefully rebuilt it after being caught by a gust.on the ground. BTW.His has a useful article on wing removal for trailering in the Rans S4 Blog. mike].
Laird Mork.  lmork34867@aol.com  I found your Rans blog site. I just purchased a 2001 Rans S4 today, The wing fabric is bad.  Where would you recommend I look to find replacements?
UK CAA Safety Data - General Aviation Reports

GASCo  Flight Safety
We are a Registered Charity dedicated to saving lives in General Aviation: we run Safety Evenings and Seminars, we carry out research and we publish our quarterly magazine, Flight Safety. With the help of the CAA we have delivered free copies of the magazine, including the CAA’s publication GASIL, to flying instructors, GA aircraft owners and others but  the CAA has decided to cease publishing GASIL in any form, and it will not continue its help for our magazine.  
The next issue, Spring 2013, will be the last receiving CAA support.


After that, we can no longer send out free copies of Flight Safety but we already have a valued body of supporters who subscribe to the magazine and we will continue to publish four copies of our magazine per year if we are able to increase the number of our supporters by a modest amount.   Note that under the Government Gift Aid Scheme, we receive an additional 25% of subscriptions received from UK tax payers to further support our work.
Please help us go forward and take just a few moments to complete this short survey.  We want to reach as many people as possible in the General Aviation Community and so the link to our survey is being widely circulated by GASCo member organisations and other bodies for which we are very grateful.  It is therefore possible that you will receive more than one copy of this request for which we apologise in advance.  Please ignore duplicate requests but please do complete one copy of the survey.  It’s very short and quick to complete but the results will be of great significance.
If you know of anyone else who might wish to take the survey, please do pass the link to them. http://www.smart-survey.co.uk/s/69283JXHQD
Peter Greenrod's Slot.
My Rans S5 tyres were getting a bit on the thin side on -GD so it was time for some new ones.  My small strip, that I use occasionally in the summer, is only 140 mtrs long and the approach is a bit like an aircraft carrier so I need to use the brakes most of the time. I had practised my short grass landings locally at Brieden strip (500m) and landing on wet grass was like landing on ice, so a visit home for breakfast whilst the early morning dew was still present was out. I thought initially to get some of the same Cheng ones but after a good study tried something different. I tried a few landing deliberately on we grass and the new treaded ones are really good under harsh braking. I cannot detect any difference on tarmac.  They are the same weight and are 4 ply instead of 2 ply. I expect to still have to take care on hard dewy grass though.... 
(For those of you with lots of money with an Ipad with annual subscriptions for your aviation apps.... you can stop reading here !)
For the rest of us who are frugal with their expenditure and may have, or are thinking of getting, an Android phone or tablet, here is some good information on some excellent aviation apps. It is best to search for the program names whilst in the Google playstore.   Aircraft ADF £1  (Easy to use under stress)
Aircraft VOR £1"Fly is Fun", was called GPS_ILS (a straight runway with a green background applet) This is the best aviation app there is in my opinion, it is actually worth buying an Android device just for this program. you can trial it but only 9 euro to buy. 
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=gps.ils.vor.glasscockpit&feature=search_result#?t=W251bGwsMSwxLDEsImdwcy5pbHMudm9yLmdsYXNzY29ja3BpdCJd
One of the many features is that you can create a ILS for anywhere (with a height offset if needed) and then go practice.
Aircub0 (Airspace) free (Although F is F now has airspace)
There are other GPS ILS programs, but it is my opinion that  F is F is best
Aviation tools
Gmeter (brown icon with yellow gs) £1 (this works better on my Samsung Galaxy note though.)
AirReport
Met office
Aero weather
rainfallradar
a web shortcut to the Rain Today program.
Memory map.  Really good and free on android but you need to buy your maps (CAA one £20)  
My prime device is my phone, a Samsung Galaxy Note.
I also have an excellent 8 inch tablet for use in the Bede 4, a Motorola Xoom II Media edition at around £160. Both have all the sensors built in including a Barometer.
Old RansMails are now on line courtesy Peter Greenrod. https://dl.dropbox.com/u/4702449/Ransmails.pdf

Collected Rans S4 & S5 Tips      http://ranss4s5tips.blogspot.co.uk/
Rotax practical owner help    http://www.rotax-owner.com/rotax-forum/index
 
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