Leaderboard

The next instalment in the CA510 110hp installation into a J160 is a bit overdue but here it is. The engine will require a 3” prop extension to fit nicely into the cowling. We are waiting for the extension to arrive from overseas. Once it does, the engine location will be confirmed and the mount will be final welded. In the meantime, the exhaust system has been welded up and looks very nice. The photo below shows the exhaust system mounted to the Rotax we have been using for mocking things up to keep the new Zonsen engine pristine until the final installation is ready. Hopefully the prop extension will arrive soon (it has been shipped so we are waiting for it to arrive) so that we can finalise the engine mount. Bolly is doing a special prop for us which we are excited to trial with this airframe/engine combination. The fuselage work is essentially completed but awaiting painting. The wings have been painted and are ready to go back on the fuselage. Once the engine and accessories are mounted, we will have throttle cabling and instrument wiring to do and then we are pretty well done with the installation.

Merry Xmas to all forum members, have a nice festive season and enjoy safe flights.

fantastic flying weather this morning. flew around for 3 hours in total. very calm . VID20260103095658.mp4

i spent an hour in the air on the 30th. fantastic morning but started getting bounced around in thermals as the day warmed up. photos of local wetlands and farms. looks more interesting when you're up there.

I tried control line but after a while I started to feel like I just going round in circles. Learnt RC so I could crash them further away . That way I combined walking and flying.

Mrs M has an Albatros D1-D111 1917 German fighter tucked away somewhere. She won't let me fly it without a tail-dragger endorsement... 😒

An overweight takeoff, alledgedly overloaded with toys, at the North Pole resulted in an incident today. The pilot who reportedly flies only once a year had to be cut from the wreckage but was otherwise unharmed. The type of aircraft was unknown.

It’s a very long way from Caiguna to Cue but I’m home.

We were in Kakadu several years ago..we went on a eco trip with an Aboriginal bloke..I was looking at his woomera.and I asked him what sort of resin did he use... answered with Sikaflex mate bloody good shit.. Bernie..

To end 2025 I got the thruster T85 single out for a fly. Compared to the RV, Beech23 or two seat thruster it seems a little tricky to fly, perhaps I just need to fly it more often. I did see that I had missed a piece in the fallow spray for the 2026 crop.

She is one of us, an equal, a pilot. I'm sure she will learn from her video and be better in her future flights.

I’m halfway, just 2/3rd to go. With 2340km left I should get there just after Rudolph.

Well, I’ve just ticked over 1000 hours building, and that’s just the time in the shed. All the hours on the computer investigating options and sourcing parts are not included. Probably about another 1000 to go. Funny thing I noticed yesterday. With the heatwave, it appears that all my heat shrink tubing has shrunk a little. The size that used to slide over a spade connector now just doesn’t. Now all I need is for the heat to help my gut to shrink a little… 😛

Very lucky you had your seat belt well fastened.

Ticked off my first fly for the year with an hour out to the coast and back.

In October I set myself a goal to have 2000 profiles completed by the end of the year. This gets increasingly more complicated. Wikipedia lists thousands of aircraft, but only has details pages of a fraction of them and many are variants of the same aircraft. Also, a large number listed as separate aircraft are actually licence built versions of other aircraft. I have completed 84 profiles since the beginning of December, including 15 on Dec 31, and posted the 2000th at 11:58 New Year's Eve. I think I'll wait now till a few more models are released.

pilot seen later converting van into new sleigh

After a quick trip out to the station I started on the van work. The vinyl job was stuck well but left nice shiny paint underneath. It's a long way from finished the 38°C day helped soften the plastic wrap.

Couldn't monitor the Power due to Lack of Night Venison Glasses. Nev

i did 3 circuits yesterday. it was like riding a bronco. felt safe though. i used to only fly in calm conditions but now i brave a bit of weather so i don't get a big shock if i run into any. it amazes me how well the xair handles the wind considering how slow and light it is. couldn't fly today, 40mm of rain put a stop to that.

Had to have turn around the block, 40C on the ground, 22C at 5500'. Thought it might have been a bit cooler aloft. Smooth as silk but angry looking clouds out west. A few lumps (not real turbulence) as I got down near circuit height. Unusually few aircraft in the air - Christmas shopping?? Managed a few touch & goes - all good. Bit warm, called it a day at 1.1 Hobbs😈

We’re off to Perth in the morning to fly out to Melbourne. I should land there 6:15am Sunday. My first mistake was booking a flight on Jetstar, Virgin allow an extra 15kg of luggage, that helps when you have to pack tools and car parts. That meant I had to go down to the shed for a carry-on sized bag. We got caught in the rain so we dived into an old boiler until the worst passed. There’s been a storm brewing ever since I bought this van from the auction. Hopefully, it’ll settle down soon, it’s a very long way to Melbourne and back.

Does anybody get the feeling we may have veered off from the theme of this thread? Some/many of the comments are getting a little to personal in my opinion. Perhaps it's time to call it quits and agree to disagree,

Don’t really see that French stuff as anything to special really. Each day every day over here

The 18hp mk3 Skycraft Scout only weighed 59kg empty.

Nearly fixed... Still a bit of underbody to fit... I'll regas to air conditioning first thing in the morning. The dirty panels are off the doner vehicle.

I have watched a lot of her videos and she is technically very good. Her narration is a little theatrical but not at the expensive of her piloting. My only criticism is her knowledge is a little limited on the mechanical side but she would not be the only Cirrus pilot you could make this comment about.

Well you don’t have to worry now. I did a quick rebuild in Bunnings car park. I had prepared well but after dropping a few kilograms to meet to Jetstar requirements I turned up a little short of bits and pieces. The hand luggage police were out, she grabbed my little suit case as I whipped the little tablet out to save some weight. It weighed 8.3kg “It’s a little heavy but you’ve only got one so we’ll let it go”. So I checked my suit case in and entered security, enjoyed the usual frisk of my upper left leg and made it through to the mini restaurant where I ordered a toasted sandwich. While I’m waiting for that I hear my name called so back out again to the service desk. “Mr Box you have a lamp with a lithium battery in your checked baggage”. “No, that’s my Hyundai headlamp without any battery”. “Well you’d better take it back to the oversize guy so he can take another look”. I looked around for some big bugger before I woke up to what she was on about. Anyhow the oversize guy was adamant I had a lithium battery so I had to open up. Sure enough I had a little camp lamp in there so it had to come out and into my carry-on bag. That problem was solved but then I had to go back for another upper leg frisk. Not only that but they spotted the camp lamp in my carry-on. Eventually they gave up and sent me on my way. The Hyundai is shooting along fine apart from a damaged cruise control switch. I might try to do something with that in the morning. Right now I’m camped in a little parking bay at Wail. This lousy Victorian weather makes it near impossible to boil the kettle. Yes I know I’m using old technology, lithium is much preferred as a heating source with instant ignition and being almost impossible to extinguish it takes a lot of beating.

Unfortunately, birds seem to habituate to any static deterrent if there is food and/or nesting space. They are a perennial problem in vineyards. Netting of the vines has greatly improved in recent years, but prior to that vintners tried all manner of things: kites, balloons with big fierce eyes, gas guns, hawk cries. And this: An engineer in Hawkes Bay had a bright idea, persuaded a local vintner to let him try it. They erected posts with pulleys on top round a vineyard. An endless motor driven cable ran round the pulleys, and the idea was that various scare devices (balloons, kites, flashers and noise devices) could be attached to the cable and would move constantly round the vineyard. A couple of weeks after all this went in, the vintner called the engineer and said 'We have a problem, you're not going to believe this'. The birds, and there were many, had taken to sitting on the wire, and were happily riding round the vineyard, diving down occasionally whenever an especially juicy bunch of grapes hove into view...............

Your just jealous because we are winners. We break all the records

I've experienced a couple of breakdowns on the way across the Nullarbor. The first one was an overheating engine just outside Southern Cross in the 1990's due to what turned out to be a cracked head. Wife and four young kids in a LWB diesel Hi-Ace towing a camper on our way to Victoria for a holiday. The local mechanic (Jaimie at Southern Cross Motor Mart) was a bit reluctant to help at first but then spent his Saturday morning pulling the engine apart. Vans (he called them `pie wagons') are not easy to work on as access to the engine is pretty restricted. He rang the Toyota dealer in Kalgoorlie and commandeered a new head about to go into another vehicle, gave me his old Landcruiser to go and get it (just as his wife had hooked up a horse float to collect a pony from Cunderdin for their daughter), arranged for me to take it over to a backyard mate of his in Kal to have the valves and springs assembled in his home workshop and then spend a very hot Sunday morning putting everything back together. He had it done by lunchtime (after a heavy night as he was the president of the local hot rod club and they had had their annual dinner the might before). He sat on the step with a beer while I took the van for a test run. When I came back there was water dripping out because the water pump had packed up. He didn't have a spare but said "I know who does", hopped on his pushbike and rode down to the oval where another mate of his was watching the cricket and came back with a box under his arm. Back over the pits to put the pump in, another test run, and we were back on the road the next morning and got to my parent's with the kids in just time for Christmas despite all the odds. Jaimie (and his wife Michelle) were absolutely unbelievably kind and generous. We always called in on subsequent trips. The second time was a few years later, same van but this time towing a caravan. A local garage had installed a new towbar just before we left but it turned out they had used 10mm mild steel bolts to secure it instead of 12mm high tensile bolts. As a result we almost lost the caravan not far from Caiguna when the bolts on one side sheared and a bracket failed. We barely managed to limp into the roadhouse with the caravan almost dragging on the ground. I phoned the garage back in Perth but there was nothing much they could do. The roadhouse didn't have anyone who could do the welding but they rang a workshop in Norseman who agreed to do it if we could get the towbar there. I left the family at the caravan park and drove back to Norseman and found the workshop. The young owner was very helpful (turned out he was a qualified pipeline welder so he knew how to weld). However he didn't have the right bolts, nor did any other place in Norseman, so I drove to Bunnings in Kalgoorlie and got some and the right size drill bit just in case. Back to Norseman, towbar welded and properly installed this time and an overnight drive back to Caiguna. The garage in Perth picked up the bill, which was the least they could do as we could easily have had a very bad accident. It just shows there are really good people out there who will go out of their way to help if you are in trouble.

A student conducting a solo flight in a Cessna 172 at Parafield Airport crashed into the runway. The plane caught fire, which spread to a grass fire, but the student walked away without a scratch.

Are you saying crossing the plug wires to clear the carby jets is not a good idea? 😁

No Joke is NO Joke. If you feel like a fool there's Plenty around. To err is Human. To forgive, Divine. er, or something like that. IF you haven't MADE a Mistake , chances are you HAVEN'T Made ANYTHING.. Nev

This. We appreciate the observation about the proximity of the exhaust to the oil filter. Appropriate measures to reduce or negate the proximity of the exhaust to the filter are being adopted. Future posts will show these initiatives.

Nev, I get that you post things to enhance aviation safety. To suggest that the engine or wind was a factor just muddies the water and detracts from the learning experience. The copy of the cctv i have is quite clear, the camera is tilted at a 16° angle relative to the runway , the Cessnas spinner to tailcone is at a35° angle . Wing angle of incidence would be similar. Yes the aircraft was initially climbing which would have reduced the angle of attack. Once the aircraft stopped climbing critical angle was achieved. 35°-16°=19° That will do it. This video and there are plenty more like it if one goggles "cessna 172 stall crash" should in my opinion be mandatory veiwing for all student pilots.

I think you've just described the occupant of the Oval Office.

so the ATSB will investigate a student pilot crashing a plane on a go-around where the student walked away, but won't investigate any RAAUS accidents involving deaths?

Hi BrendAn, Even though I feel a bit of an idiot, felt it's important to post my concerns in this matter - may help another Forum member.😈

I can imagine an unlicensed pilot at Ballbay, or any small town with an airstrip, would have no reason to make contact with an instructor or use an electronic flight bag if they did not want to. It is a big country and few people ask questions unless you stand out from the normal. Generally when visiting small airports local pilots are treated with respect by most visiting pilots.

Yes they do its an endorsement.

I am torn between agreeing and not with that Nev/Facthunter. Yes, there is a bias with how things get support and backing. But if it is a new idea and has merit, then it will survive. Otherwise it won't. Why is it we have to put down people trying things? It may be a piece of crap. It may not be. I'm not saying throw money at it. But at least let it be tried. It is only through trying things that we can move on from where we are to newer places and better ideas.

I just LOST a Lengthy response and I can't bring myself to do it all again right now .. Briefly. cut the Personal attacks .. It's not the way to discuss things Airspeed indicators are not that accurate on most U/Ls and you should be able to fly a safe circuit without an ASI. No marks lost IF you fly it a bit fast. It would pay to err on the high side.. You don't fly chasing airspeed also. The attitude of the Aircraft is what you direct your Effort on Consider energy management also in your flying. Experience gained helps but self debriefing in a very honest way will drive improvement of technique and knowledge base. . Career Pilots get the Full workover on check rides and New endorsements where any bad habits might have crept in. When you stop learning you will become risky. That's an exciting thing about flying. There's always More to Learn.. Nev

When turning in a strong wind, 10-15 knots with a slow aircraft 50-60 knots cruise speed there will be visual illusions of skidding or slipping in turns. Wind on the higher wing will feel like the aircraft is slipping into the turn which could make one use inappropriate rudder inputs. The rudder is for correcting adverse yaw. Adverse yaw only occurs while the ailerons are deflected to roll the aircraft, once in a steady bank with the stick back to centre the rudder should be fairly neutral. The ball is always right. I am not an instructor so this could all be incorrect.

As an ATPL pilot you would know RPT aircraft fly correct airspeed for the configuration at all times. Also most light aircraft do not have angle of attack indicators. Yes we can all agree a stall happens when the critical angle of attack is exceeded.

Tumut re-opens 19 Dec 2025 https://www.snowyvalleys.nsw.gov.au/News-Media/Tumut-Aerodrome-Reopens-Following-Major-12.5-Million-Upgrade

Highly misleading title on that video. It wasn’t the fact that it was 3D printed that caused the crash; it was the material that caused it. It would be like using cardboard for spars, and then after a crash implying that you should never have spars…

Moral of the story is don't drive a van. They seem to be unlucky. I have driven all over remote wa and NSW never had a breakdown. Then my cruiser decided to crack the head just out of Perth . Was Easy to hitch a ride home on Albany Highway. Another time we drove my wife's diahatsu charade from Albany to Gippsland VIC for Christmas. Not one problem. We got home and hit a roo in the middle of town and smashed the front in.