Skyhog

Hey Ozzie,I heard of a cheap effective one.A bloke got 2 empty 20 litre plastic roundup drums,tied about a foot of rope between the handles and had a few throws until 1 went each side of the wire and they stayed up there.It's cheaper than the $165 per ball (plus fitting,crew of 2 and the cherry picker).I also heard that the electricity company was less than impressed when it was discovered.

Howya goin' Scott?Although it would be very capable,my thruster does no trips over about 1 hour.I am 185cm tall and find it a bit cramped in the cockpit(my right leg goes to sleep after an hour).If I want to go somewhere I just hire something faster and more comfy from the local aero club.Cheers.

For sure Skydog,at YFBS there had been no GA training for a long time but AUF/RAAus was available.We had a bit of a stockpile of potential "would be if they could be GA pilots".I have recently gained my PPL and there are a good 6-8 blokes not far off getting theirs.It is a good school/club as it does the RAAus and GA in the same establishment(different CFI's).I have saved a tonne of money by doing the U/L portion before GA.

Cloudsuck,onya mate...Good reply.The Technam is an awesome aircraft and I would gladly swap my Thruster for one,however,there are a few other bills to pay first.Cheers.

Hi Skydog,4.5hrs is quick for first solo(I thought you needed 5hrs before solo)well done! I started in an old Jab and it took me 5.2hrs to first solo.You seem to have gained your PPL in a hurry at 5hrs too.It took me just over 20hrs inc flight test but some was "ferry" time to YSBK(dual)and YSCB(1dual,1solo),if I had trained in Sydney some of the ferry would be cut but they charge more per hr! Hi Cloudsuck,I love each and every aircraft and would not rubbish any of them!I have flown Archer,C152,Foxbat,Jabiru and Thruster mainly and have time in a C172 and "Teccie".All these planes have their pros and cons,but I have had a great time in all of them.To an outside GA only pilot looking at your post it would look like you think you have a superior aircraft.You say the C172 flies like a brick with wings,well try putting 4pob your "teccie" and see how a brick with no wings flies!All I am trying to say is "Horses for Courses",they all have their place.I bet you had a better time flying the C172 than going to work.

If you own and fly a Cheetah,why did you do the BFR in a Gazelle?Isn't there a reg about recency on type and BFR's,or are you still flying off your 25hrs on the Cheetah?

Cralis,sometimes when it is busy two aircraft may transmit at the same time.If this happens you will not be able to make sense of either transmission.

Rocko,I said in my first post that the gyro bloke wasn't doing the right thing.As for any kid that you've ever met not being able to resist touching things they shouldn't...a bit of discipline goes a long way.Now,the shotgun remark,that's just stupid!Finally,yes we live in a remote area and leave keys in all our vehicles all the time and the kids don't go near them,that is what have been taught.Unlike a lot of kids these days,ours do as they are told...a bit of discipline goes a long way!

BLA82,Sorry if I misunderstood but I don't think I did.It says "just off the main highway",not "on the side of the road".I will eat my words and give a full appology to all concerned if The Bushman didn't cross a fenceline into private property to look at and touch the aircraft.Just another thought...did he also check the contents of the fuel tank and the servicability of the engine?The gyro may have been force landed there late in the previous day.

Bushman,excuse me if I have missed something,but since when is it your business to enter somebody's property,snoop around and then fiddle with their aircraft(the key)?I'm not saying that the person in question was doing the right thing but if I ever found somebody on my place,uninvited,tampering with my aircraft,they would not be met in a very friendly way.

I attended a seminar about this a couple of years ago.The power company (Country energy) of NSW was trying to get farmers to pay for their own red powerline balls.From memory the smaller ball was around $75 and the larger size was about double that.On top of purchasing the balls you had to hire the cherrypicker truck and pay the wages of the blokes putting them up.They also advised that there would need to be 2 balls in each span instead of 1 in the middle which would pull the line down too far if it was half way between the 2 poles.My bill would be over $10000 to comply with this ridiculous request.Needless to say,nobody in attendance was too keen to take up the offer.

Hi,I have been running a ground adjustabe Ivoprop for about 150 hours on a 582.No cracks,no complaints,no worries.

Big Pete,the thruster would need to do well over 100kts to compare with the fuel economy of my family vehicle.You maybe right in saying it could almost do that with the wings removed,but what worries me is that it has no BRAKES.

There should not be any torque problems as the wheels are still the same distance apart,however....without the weight of the wings behind the main wheels,the tailwheel will have less weight on it.You should be fine to run it if the tailwheel is tied down,rather than just chocking the mains.

G'day Tony.I fitted the formers today and was very impressed with the improved handling characteristics,you hardly have to touch the rudder pedal to get a response.Fitting was a breeze and Lois should be commended for her fine "workwomanship".I have a fixed trim tab on each elevator(my reason for two was that I figured that if they are set the same it will eliminate any stress being put on the transverse elevator drive shaft and fittings,it had a real nose heavy feeling when I bought it)they were set up nicely before the formers were fitted but suddenly worked a whole lot more efficiently after formers were fitted.After a quick easing off of the tabs I'm comfy again.I will send the cheque for $55 shortly and you should have it by the end of the week.Cheers mate,it's been good to work with you again.

Tony.The package is here mate,I'll do my best to fit them ASAP.Talk to you soon.

Tony,thanks mate.I don't mind the small surcharge for the extra time and materials required.I look forward to receiving them and reporting back on the fitting and flying characteristics.Cheers.

Thanks Tony,we may have to pay you a bit extra for the added work you and Lois are doing.

Now that makes more sense!Cool video.

Ok Tony,here we go.I have done an illustration for you,I hope it loads OK.You should be able to zoom in alright after you open it.Like you requested earlier ALL measurements are INTERNAL.It is not to scale but all the measurements are very accurate.Cheers. PS You should receive my TOSG renewal cheque by today or tomorrow.

I'm with you Redair,all that (special) effect looks closer than the A/C!

Thanks for that Tony,will do that in the next day or 2.Cheers.

Hi Tony,Don't suppose you have had a Gemini at Watts Bridge yet to measure up for the formers?I'll take some when you do.

This happened right in front of me at 28am on Sunday.We were in Sydney for a few days and took the kids to Bankstown to check out the action.The plane was a Beechcraft Duchess and was taking off.My wife is also a pilot(with twin time)and we reckon by the way the plane was behaving it was probably an asymmetric engine failure or drill.Either way the wheels had just finished retracting as the nose was lowered at about 30ft.He established a good glide angle and we were waiting for the climb to start again,but it didn't.At about 3ft it was clear that we were looking at an incident.It touched down softly but bounced over a couple of bumps as it slid and turned close to 90deg right as it stopped 50-60m from the boundary fence.Funny thing about it though was they stayed in the plane for around 3 minutes after stopping.

David,in response to your question "VH-BEV where are you now?" It seems that a Cessna 210L with that rego has resided in Broken Hill for about the last 3 years.