Traveldoc

Clip will be forthcoming when aircraft is flying again. Soon. Had to replace nose ribs and leading edge after impact with tree at end of a long landing roll. Gust of tailwind, wet grass, too late on the brakes etc etc. The biggest factor was pilot inexperience. All reported to RAA and ATSB as required.

I have 2X original tyres with tubes. About 50% tread remaining. Free

Well it took a while but wheels are upgraded. Aero Classic 8.5-6 mains and Condor front. Waited until I had finished X-C training just in case cruise speed and fuel burn were going to be an issue. Bit of fiddling involved: re-drill front axle hole, new 12mm holes for the valve stems on main wheels. And of course the very primitive main wheel situation of having to reassemble and repack wheel bearings every time you take wheel off. Not to mention disc rotor attachment screws that were seized and had to be drilled out. All good now. About 6-7 psi in mains which is keeping them round even when loaded and not enough to make tube bulge out of original central valve stem hole. Aircraft rolls much easier over rough ground. Have not yet flown because of adverse winds at my high country airstrip (3700'). Also missed Narromine fly-in :-(

Thanks for giving my thread back!

4:49 on a Sunday morning Dr. Zoos! Crikey you're keen. New tyres yet to be fitted. 21 inch mains and Condor front which requires axle hole to be relocated. Phil my airstrip does indeed require some practice. Uphill to the east with tall pine trees at the boundary and nearly always a slight tailwind. Had some rather forgettable landings there last week with instructor on board....flaring too hard to allow for upslope and stalling onto the ground from too high (maybe 1m+)...splat! Later on found mud and grass embedded around brake calipers and looks like main gear spring has spread a bit...fortunately this is repairable. After that we devised a new landing strategy: long glide approach with aim point well in front of threshhold. Power on (2500 to 3000 rpm) at start of flare. Power off as wheels touch. Works a treat.

Hangar: finished. X-C endorsement: done. Savannah 50-hour service: done by LAME at some expense but he fixed the cold starting issue. As it happens the choke toggle is not supposed to stay in the on position by itself. Ferry flight from Bathurst to the farm: completed today.

Went to Narromine last year and met a chap camping under wing of Zenith 701. Thought, must give this a try......And that is the plan only 5 weeks from now....If I can get XC endorsement finished by then. Have already flown to Dubbo twice during training so no huge challenge.

Thanks pal. Hope your build is coming along OK.

Update: 13 months since taking up aviation, about 70 hours in log book. Particularly harsh winter this year with lots strong winds and cloud. Savannah going fine but still hard to start when cold. Fuel enricher toggle no better with friction gland tightened to the max. May have to invent some kind of gate to hold the toggle 'out' for starts. Have done 2 Navex flights so far with instructor, each about 2 hours. Seems that she will fly level at 85 Kt using 5200 rpm and 80 Kt at 5000, burning ~17L/Hr PULP. Have bought larger tyres x3 to fit the original 6"rims but decided to keep the smaller ones on during Nav training, for speed and better fuel burn. After that I'll be using the farm strip which is rougher and large low pressure tyres should help. Hangar 90% complete. Bit more sheeting and backfill to level the floor, sturdy gates to keep out the cows is all. Decorative touches like name placard (Hazelgrove International) and large white letters HIA painted on the roof. Maybe a small (second) windsock mounted on the front gable apex. The big windsock is down other end of airstrip next to the threshold. Looks like I will not be trained up enough to fly to Birdsville races this year as was an early plan but I'm not a risk taker and there'll be plenty of flying to do later.

Peter I already asked Xavier this question. How do you fit the Desser valve stem onto Savannah 6 inch rim? Tight clearance even for the original 6" inner tube which has a 90 degree bend. I am looking at the 22 inch 850-6 tyres but want to make sure I can use $150US worth of inner tubes. S

Perhaps pumping the throttle was the previous owners way making sure it had full unobstructed movement and was in a known position at the beginning of start procedure. In any case I now that it doesn't have to be done. Thanks. SC

Good onya Mike. These numbers/procedures are all pretty much identical to my operators manual. I pump the throttle once before cold start and turn on fuel pump until pressure 4psi. Warm up is very slow in winter down here!

Yeah Mike, the 912 never starts on first kick-over but I am holding the throttle in left hand and starter key in right. Seems that the vibration of starter motor is turning off the "choke" before it has a chance to fire up. Need a 3rd hand or maybe just tighten up the choke toggle gland. No problem with hot starting. No choke needed. I have only done about 10 hours so far in the Sav. A lot to learn. Appreciate the help. S

Similar bill from same Avionics firm for installation of new Garmin. At least I got something for that money so paid without quibble. They charge a hefty "travelling" fee for work done at Bathurst which seems doesn't seem quite right to me. Yes, I know, let the buyer beware. LAME reckoned that "radios are like engines. They go bad if you don't use them". This was not my concept of solid state electronics but I'll accept his advice and make sure I use the new one regularly!

Update Saga of the ICOM A20 repair is Icelandic in scale... Local LAME had a go then avionics dude from Bankstown. Then radio taken away to ICOM skunk works, "repaired", brought back, reinstalled ==> no different..... More farting around for weeks on end...... My new aeroplane sitting in club hangar unusable....... Eventually I bit the bullet and bought a brand new Garmin GTR2000 ( I think it was?). Installed quickly and works perfectly. Whew! Cost me nearly $3000 all up + just received a $550 bill for repair of ICOM which was not repaired and currently not in my possession. LAME told me a bit later that he has had similar trouble with other ICOM A20s and would never recommend one. THEN, after 10 weeks, I could finish aircraft familiarisation flights and do what my licence says...hurrah! Learning curve: Rotax hardly ever starts first time like the Jab engine used to: choke toggle turns itself off with vibration. Carb heat toggle a lot more effective at dropping rpm than in the Jab. Might be a good thing? Temperature gauges hardly seem to get above their lower readings at this time of year. Obviously the Rotax rpm nearly double the Jab. More like a Japanese motorcycle engine that I am familiar with. Leaps off tarmac nearly straight away. Climbs 1000 fpm easily at 50kt and 5200rpm. Had trouble at first with flaps getting "stuck on" but I was holding the release button in. Just press the button once and its OK. Noticed that rpm tends to creep up after its set at 4800. She's a bit slow in the circuit and long trips will be able to be savoured :-) Suits me perfectly! As a 60 hour pilot I'm not really qualified to make definitive statements but seems to be very forgiving and easy to fly. Taking photos is possible with hands off stick for a few seconds but I have since bought a GoPro. Have pretty much explored the territory allowed by restricted pilots certificate, time to get into the X-C training and sample a few $100 hamburgers!

Thanks. I'll send them an email. S

Hello Xavier / Peter I'm interested in doing the same modification to my Savannah VG which has MTOW 560Kg. Currently with the original small tyres. Am I correct that Aero Classic 21 inch (as well as Condor ) will fit onto original rims without modification? Can you tell me where I can source Aero Classic in Australia / (NZ). The Condors I believe are standard Cessna tyres. Cheers, Steve Cooper

Wallabadah Rock east of Murrurundi. On the property Rock Dhu owned by Peter Norvill, ex-Ag pilot and round the world in a Cessna pilot.

Thanks. Useful information. previous owner did 25 hourly oil and filter changes. I'm hearing that 50 is quite OK. yes?

Another newbie question: Source of Rotax oil filters and suitable oil at fair price? Near Sydney or Bathurst. Have serviced my own motorcycles for 30+ years including complete engine rebuilds. Buggered if I'll pay $90/hr for the LAME apprentice to change the oil. Most websites seem to recommend Aeroshell Sport oil. Any car or M/C substitutes OK? Steve

Lame reports that he moved pedals 40mm and equalised toe brake angulation. Said it was much better, at least while taxying! Radio guru to practice his black art later this week. Looking forward to testing these modifications.

Oops, updated my story in the "Just Landed" thread. Copied below: Finally flew in my own aircraft! Only 45 min worth due to stormy weather around Bathurst. Toe brakes pretty useless in current config. They work but cant actually feel them to be separate from the rudder pedals. Hopefully will be better when pedals moved forward. Quick lift off and rapid climb: 1000-1100 fpm at near MTOW. Steep turns tight and easier than on training aircraft. Power off stall very sedate. No wing drop, mushy controls, VSI jumped -200 to -1000. PFL will need some practice: slow glide speed had me struggling to get down to chosen paddock without overshoot. Felt like I could do some of the SMH cryptic crossword to pass time. My 1st ever landing hampered by brake feel but pretty short and survivable. Day 2 familiarisation flight cancelled when incoming radio calls were barely audible. LAME will sort this out next week I hope. Mr Funnel (from eBay) for Christmas. Paid top dollar. Just saw unused 2nd hand one on eBay or Gumtree for 1/2 price. Always the way for me.

Finally flew in my own aircraft! Only 45 min worth due to stormy weather around Bathurst. Toe brakes pretty useless in current config. They work but cant actually feel them to be separate from the rudder pedals. Hopefully will be better when pedals moved forward. Quick lift off and rapid climb: 1000-1100 fpm at near MTOW. Steep turns tight and easier than on training aircraft. Power off stall very sedate. No wing drop, mushy controls, VSI jumped -200 to -1000. PFL will need some practice: slow glide speed had me struggling to get down to chosen paddock without overshoot. Felt like I could do some of the SMH cryptic crossword to pass time. My 1st ever landing hampered by brake feel but pretty short and survivable. Day 2 familiarisation flight cancelled when incoming radio calls were barely audible. LAME will sort this out next week I hope.