seb7701

No dramas Doug- did get a text back from Howie's son. Empty weight of 250 and mtow of 450, so looks pretty good. Just pondering now whether to go for it..... On another note - which prop is the go? Am looking at one with a three blade aerofibre. Seems to be 65kt @5600rpm. Surely can squeeze 70kt out somehow....

Much appreciated- glad they can at least rebuild the trusty 503.... Sux that the rebuild/purchase is so darn similar. Worst still, the 650hr engine may carry on for ages or stop tomorrow.... Best start hunting for a replacement...

Seriously??? Now THAT is a lightweight!!! I saw a previous post with pages from your manual which states 207 or similar for empty. But am figuring the GR582 is a little fatter. LW is getting back to me, but indicated either 250 or 280kg. Does that sound right?

Doug, Any idea of empty weight for the GR582?? Iconfirmed the 450kg mtow...

Crikey!! That is a bargain! I was wondering what the new price was, but was thinking around the $6500+ mark ordinarily??

Thanks gents. Sounds like a lost cause. I wasn't sure if Richard was still in the engine business, but will definitely drop him a line!

Folks, I am considering an aircraft with a blue top 582 which has 650hrs on it and never had a rebuild. Question is - what life do you get from a bottom end? I am aware that a top rebuild would be no problem, but wondered whether the rest would hold up. The engine appears to have had an easy life and is still quite fine at present. Also, where can I get a rebuild these days in southern Qld? All help much appreciated!!!

Hi all. I have just been trawling a couple of the LW threads which mention various MTOW's of some LW models, including mention of the upgrade of some variants to increase the MTOW. (I am guessing the upgrade is not cheap OR easy....) Can anyone tell me once and for all, does this upgrade option involve the GR582 (one of which I am interested in) and what IS the useful load of a GR582? Does it involve certain year models? I have so far seen MTOW's of 400, 450, 544 mentioned, so am a little confused.... I am looking to see whether a GR582 will cart 185 odd kg of human beings plus , say an hour or two of fuel. Cheers, Seb

Gorgeous - always wanted one! Where in NSW will it be located?

I'm far from a LW expert, but the last Aeropowered GA I inquired about was around a 60kt cruise, which didn't exactly thrill me for a 4stroke. If you refer back to some recent Lightwing threads, Maj MILLARD and others explained the diff between the GR and GA, with the GR sounding like a better choice. If I could find a sound GR582, I would be very interested, as they seem to happily zip along around 70kt!

The Vampire in the mag at present DEFINITELY does it for me....location on the other hand is a little problematic in SA...

There is plenty of fun to be had with the single seater and whilst the drawback is the obvious, the fact is, if a Diamond takes your fancy, then I would say 'bring it on'! They are reasonably priced and cheaper than the 2 seaters and look like a ton of fun!! In many ways, I would love to have a cheap single seater hotrod in the shed (if the initial outlay was sufficient consolation for the missing seat) and then go hire a 2 seater if need be. Exactly the same reason I am looking at some singles now!

Thanks for posting. Saw it the other night on 'Bizarre Weapons' I think it was, but wanted to show some mates- perfect! Amazing bit of gear- sure they mentioned a 6hr range at some stage too, which ain't bad for a flying surfmat!

Hmm, could be interesting! Will be waiting patiently then! I'm not looking for a showstopper, but rather something sound with some room for tinkering!! Incidentally, what sort of $$ is involved in re-covering wings etc?

12lph is darn good for a 582 in anything, less a 'real' sized plane!! I am starting to get keen to find a GR582 somewhere!!

Thanks Maj - all very interesting to see, as they are proving to be an interesting prospect. That 582 looks tiny in that front end, but I like the inspection panel etc near the tailwheel. Very clever! What sort of money is involved in re-covering wings etc? Is Howie the cheapest option for that sort of stuff? Doug - that (in my book) is pretty decent performance for a 'real' plane with a 2 stroke Now, to find me a sound GR582 perhaps?

Thanks Bob and Maj! I was naturally curious as to whether the single strut was a less robust model, but appears to be of little consequence given the smaller wing area etc? What is the 'rule of thumb' cruise for a 582 version? Having sold my Drifter, I really do like what I have heard about the LW (not to mention the fact that Howie is still in business). What is the ballpark starting figure for a 582 for e.g? I have seen what looks to be a very neat 'Aeropowered' GA version in WA and a nice GR582 for around 25/26K I think?

Was looking at gumtree ad mentioned in another post where a Lightwing is included in the sale. The ad mentions a 65kt cruise speed for the Lightwing, which I immediately thought was a little conservative, even with a 582. Can someone (Doug and Maj....this means you!!!!) shed any light on that claim? I dared to ask and he was looking around $35K for the plane, which would (for that price) want to have a 912 I would have thought and thus a MUCH better cruise! Also, what is the deal with the single strut LW's? Is that an issue or just not as good as the later versions? Love to hear the low down as there are some nice examples for sale lately. Any info appreciated.

Welcome - never too late, particularly when it's been an ambition!

Fantastic detail and cool plane choice! Have to admit, just finished subjecting my kids to Iron Eagles 1 thru 4. One was still the best and still love seeing that C150 doing that tail slide-type thingy in the canyon!! Best thing since the Freedom Jet in Octopussy!!!!

Nope, quite a few bad things from what I have heard...

What are they worth?

Yep, but am trying to crank things up a little, especially outside of just meeting weekends. Would love to see the LW some time also if you feel like flying in, so give me a yell. We a always in and out of the club these days!

Clayt - just saw your location and noticed that you fly a REAL plane! Would love to have a lightwing flyer in the Roma aero club if you are at all interested. Feel free to drop me a line for info! Cheers, Seb

Thanks- sounds very logical. The hot knife idea was a ripper too! The batten tips sound like something I would break a heap of... I recall the Fisher girls having a heap, but I think someone did buy them all. I perhaps heard that Lockwoods had them? So, did I read that you remove and replace them with a little heat? I reckon my issue (if I ever do them) would be finding somewhere big enough with a nice floor to lay both wings out flat on some carpet! Did you do the vice-grip thing with the tail feathers? Was talking to a bloke last week who told me a bout a a special tool or setup that the factory used for tensioning. Apparently they had a lady doing skins for them etc too?