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Growing a Grumman
- Part 6
2008-10-02
Okay - after lots
of fibreglass work (ugh!) we managed to get the cowlings done, so everything
fits inside and
hopefully the baffles bringing air to the rear-mounted radiator will keep
the engine cool. After pulling the aircraft outside onto the driveway
and mounting the prop, I ran the motor for 10 - 15 minutes at low revs
only. Seems okay, but this does not give any indication regarding actual
cooling effectiveness. We will only begin to know about that once we can
drive this puppy around an airfield
The foam and glass
method of building up a cowl shape is not one that I recommend. Firstly
it is the most awful job, being very messy and itchy - the foam gets everywhere
and the glass cloth likewise. Even using protective gloves, cap and mask
etc, one's skin ends up itchy and irritated with this horrible stuff!
If I knew a better way, I would tell you about it - but unless you are
real good at shaping metal, this is it!
In addition no matter
how carefully you sand the foam to acheive a smooth and even countour,
it seems to end up far from smooth and even!
I guess the proper
way would be to make a female mould first, rather than try and mould onto
the plug - next time perhaps we will get it right!
Finally though, the
day arrived when there was nothing else that could be done in my garage
at home and the aircraft had to be moved to the airfield. I had organised
a suitable hangar through a friend who had moved his Falco F8 to a different
airfield, closer to his home, so the next task was to find a trailer.
Not so easy, as the Grumman has an extremely wide landing gear. To cut
a long story short I finally hired a towing and recovery truck, which
proved ideal and made for a simple, effortless and safe move.
Next task is to get
the tail group attached to the aircraft, reinstall the cowlings, put the
wheels back where they belong and get the brakes to work. Once that is
done I will begin taxi-trials without the wings attached in order to gauge
engine performance,cooling and reliability etc.
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More pics! Click the
image for larger (1024x768) view - I have provided the large size images
as I know you guys want to see DETAILS!
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Foam
shape with plaster coat
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Warp
Drive prop hub test fit for clearance with cowl |
All
closed up - still lots of shaping and sanding and patching to
do! |
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Spinner
on for test fit
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Everything
primed and prop fitted
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Front
view
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| Side
view |
Side
view |
Now
the air inlet slots have been cut - are they the right size
- maybe! |
| ...2008-10-22
- AND NOW FOR THE BIG MOVE!!
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Airplane
pulled out into the street, awaiting arrival of flatbed truck.
Note the mainwheels, relocated inside the gear legs so it
will fit on the truck
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Still
waiting
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Yup-
she's going to fit alright
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Hauling
airplane onto truck using hydraulic winch - real easy job!
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Up
she comes
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Almost
there
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All
strapped down and ready to go - one last detail - pay the
man for the truck!
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We're
on our way!
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| Hitting
the freeway and 50 kms to go |
Traffic
jam on freeway - normal around Johanneburg anytime of day |
Stayed
behind truck so I could keep a wary eye on my aircraft |
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Everything
looking very stable at 80 kph
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Well
here we are - safely installed in the hangar at Baragwanath
Airfield, south west of Johannesburg
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