Marty_d

54% of the new car market in Norway. We don't need design / test / tool / production, the vehicles are already available, just that existing manufacturers see the Australian market as too difficult due to lack of progressive policy in the area.

Hi Mark, so you coat everything in white, let dry, then mask off for colour?

Popped the new top cowl out of the mould on Wednesday - took the whole morning to get it out, despite using PVA it really didn't want to move. Bearing in mind the lessons of the first one I carefully used a series of tools including strips of aluminium, egg flip and wooden venetian blinds to break the seal. Finally got it to pop. I reckon that doing fibreglass in near-freezing temperatures probably isn't the best either, but because of the smell I can't do it in the shed - my wife works in the front part of the shed and poly resin smell goes straight through! I was trying to fit it today. I figured the top cowl would go over the outside of the bottom cowl, but when I did that there was a noticeable gap on the front corners - just couldn't get it to pull in tight. So in desperation tried fitting it under the bottom cowl - and amazingly it fits a lot better! I think I'm going to get everything fitting right, cleco it in place, then cling wrap the bottom cowl and use microbeads or some other filler to fair the top cowl to the edge of the bottom. After that's set, pull it all off and trim the edges of the top cowl which slide under the edges of the bottom so that it's easy to remove the top. What do people think - is that a reasonable solution?

I would have thought the Pipistrel Alpha Electro would have met their requirements.

I just watched the one about cutting his mould. Good tip there about putting in inspection hatch / oil door, mostly cut out the part but while still attached, tape over the inside then lay up the carbon lip under it. Also drill for nut plates before doing the last cuts to release the piece. Genius!

The burned skeleton of Thomas the tank engine.

Something wrong there. I joined last year as a non-flying member (hopefully that will change in a couple of years) and there was no mention of a doctor's certificate.

That is pure brilliance. Can't wait to see Scrappy in the air. Slow speed performance should be phenomenal.

Laid up another top cowl today (hardly the weather for it, but I knocked up a cover with a lava lamp bulb in the top to keep it warm). Had enough scraps of carbon left over to do 4 layers. Hoping for a successful release in the next couple of days!

Man that first video had my pucker factor up. That looked REALLY marginal. Hope I'm never caught in weather like that.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/jul/01/jeff-bezos-space-flight-pilot-wally-funk She sounds like a legend!

One plane that you'd find hard to kill you. As long as you keep flying over water and have a quick exit.

As opposed to the fact checking done by social media?

Bet it's not as easy to board with bullets flying around you... in any case, I'd prefer mine to be "anti-gravity", not Gravity...

Working on the cowl at the moment - https://www.recreationalflying.com/topic/28196-marty-ds-ch-701-build-log/?do=findComment&comment=508749&_rid=2988 Both the top and bottom are of carbon fibre, but I used gel coat on the top and didn't use a proper PVA release so I need to do that again. The bottom came out well though.

Looking good Kyle. The structure of that wing brings back memories, very similar to the 701. Bending the leading edge over with a strip of timber clamped to it and ratchet straps to tighten it down is the same process too.

Good luck Duncan! Looking good. What sort of engine are you considering?

Again, your comments are all probably perfectly correct IN GENERAL, now look at the specifics. 1. No one cares if a homebuilt aircraft has factory purchased plans. It's homebuilt. Build quality, components and looks will vary whether it's kit or scratch built. My aircraft has Savannah slats, Savannah undercarriage, Savannah fuel tanks, modified elevator trim, and a homebuilt cowling that bears no resemblance to the factory ones. I don't really care if it's called a 701 or not. 2. This is not a status symbol like a designer handbag or a Ferrari. They're not built in factories anyway (see above). So the question of authenticity is moot. 3. Copyright is not involved. I purchased the paper plans. What I do with them after that is my business. If I choose to give them away I can. I'm not setting up a factory to punch out aircraft kits based on 701 plans (Savannah already did that). 4. As a homebuilt aircraft, RA-AUS doesn't care if it's from plans purchased from an aircraft factory, second hand plans, or out of your own head. So the bit in your first post about not being able to register the resulting aircraft is simply not true. Anyway I think I've said enough about this - if you want to go on about it then feel free, but as far as I'm concerned the subject is closed.

There's a lot of talk about intellectual property and making sure the designer gets his dollar. Not to mention some misleading information about not being able to register the aircraft with RA-AUS. I think you're all kind of missing the point with this aircraft. This is not in any way a piece of technology that needs its intellectual property rights protected for the company to maintain a competitive advantage. It was designed almost 50 years ago and has been copied by every man and his dog, as anyone who flies a Savannah will know. It's been made redundant by the 750 and the Cruzer in any case, and by the way, the designer just died. So no, I can't see that Zenith will be too pissed off about someone getting a second hand plan instead of buying it from the factory. I don't think that any prospective buyer in the future will give a toss that the builder didn't buy the plans from the factory. I also don't think that the recipient of the plans deserves to be called a "thief". I paid for the plans in the first place and I willingly gave them away. Other people here on this site have helped me with parts and materials. So let's all just take a bit of a chill pill regarding the absolute letter of the law and remember we're all reasonable human beings who help one another.

Have a look at Ebay - https://www.ebay.com.au/b/Commodore-Vintage-Computers-and-Mainframes/162075/bn_1843604 People pay stupid prices for these "vintage" computers, and if you have a bucket of software it's worth another motza. Sell, young man, sell!

2 degrees air temp and 13 degrees water temp - I don't call that inviting!!

I don't know, Mike, but can't see that it's relevant. I've given away the original copies of the plan, which is my right to do as I bought them in the first place. If the person I gave them to subsequently goes and builds a plane from them, that's nothing to do with me. As to the manufacturer not supplying parts, it's hardly relevant with the 701 - all I've bought from Zenith are the gear/strut pickups (which can be welded by a competent person) and the wingtips / flaperon tips, which could be moulded from fibreglass/CF easily enough. Besides, Zenith are happy enough to sell bits to anyone. The only thing they probably won't do is provide builder advice if you're not the registered owner of the plans.

That one doesn't look laminated at all. Was it carved from a single piece @Thruster88?

Everything is from solar energy. Strangely enough, I'd rather eat vegetables which are concentrated solar energy and cows, which eat other vegetation which is concentrated solar energy, than lumps of coal. So why not leave the coal in the ground and get the solar energy straight from the source?

Refuelling shouldn't be a hard ask for a drone. From my limited knowledge I believe that all you have to do is meet the recipient at a specified height and location, then fly extremely stable and steady racetrack patterns.