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QuickTalk 4 - Q2 HINTS

From James Richardson:

1. (Page 8-3) Don't tape in the lower firewall because you have to cut it for the canard later.

2. (Page 8-3) Fit foam bulkheads in the fuselage and trim or bevel edges before glassing. Peel-ply all edges for tapes later.

3. I would like to show a single point refueling system that allows for filling both tanks simultaneously:



4. We used ramps for wing core support during glassing. Much sturdier than templates.


From James Massengill, #2269:

1. (Page 8-2) The fuselage shells can be drawn together for accurate mating by drilling 1/8" holes near the seam on the right and left sides and threading doubled safety wire across the width. The wire is anchored over a nail on the outside. By twisting the wire, the sides may be gradually brought together to meet their upper or lower counterpart.


From Saylor Milton, #2484:

1. Bubbles may be removed from wet layups by placing Saran Wrap over the bubble. Either work the bubble out from under the layup with gentle pushing or lifting the Saran Wrap quickly causing a vacuum, which draws the bubble up through the surface.

2. Notes from the representative of Revmaster Engines at a February Quickie Builders Forum in Mojave:

The increased demand for engines has caused production problems, i.e. keeping quality while producing quantity.

Each engine is run 30-40 minutes in the factory.

Vacuum pumps on the engine are being tested.

The Revmaster engine should go beyond 1000 hours before overhaul. The only maintenance really needed are valve adjustments and oil changes.

The turbo engine apparently has a long way to go before being a standard item. A constant speed propeller needs to be developed and thoroughly tested first before being used with the turbo engine.

To retrofit a turbo engine, you need to ship the engine back to the factory where they will fit a new exhaust system, plumbing and different oil pump. You will also have to make a new cowling to fit over the turbo parts.


From Bob McCollum, #2143:

1. I sealed all exposed foam on the baffles inside the main fuel tank with 1 BID. I didn't feel comfortable trusting it to flox.


From Jim Wilker, #2294:

1. Better provide holes in wheel pants to air up tires.


From Bob Falkiner, Q2-Canada:

1. Suggest not using any metal near the gas fillspout unless it is grounded. Especially true in cold weather operations. The ungrounded metal can act as an unbonded electric charge collector, in effect a capacitor. When charged, a spark could jump to another object, such as a gas pump nozzle.

2. (Page 8-2) During jigging of the fuselage, you can tack together the shells using hot glue and popsicle sticks. The bond is strong enough, but may be easily removed with a wide blade chisel.


From Don Keizer, #039-Canada:

1. The idea of QAC advising of the extension of the ram air tube 7" vertically on the forward fuselage or lowering the fuel return pipe 2" did not appeal to me. I would like to maintain maximum fuel capacity and not have an unsightly 1/4" pipe extending 7" in the air.<.P>


Here is a suggestion to overcome this: Construct a small overflow sump from 1/4" foam 6"x3"x1" and glass with one BID to the aft upper face of the header tank leaving a thin overflow opening 1" long and 1/16" deep for the excess fuel to overflow into the dry sump which in return will flow into the main tank through the 5/8" line. The result is a neat, low profile ram air tube on top of the fuselage that will not easily be bent out of shape. This also eliminates the necessity of the air vent hole in the filler cap as the system is vented through the return line, the sump and ram air tube. The possibility of dirt entering through the tube on top is far less than if the vent were extended through the bottom of the shell. The completed weight of the modified header tank with all fittings was 3-1/4 lbs. My main tank weighed 6 lbs.



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