July, 2004 Edition          

Chapter # 407                       www.eaa407.org

          South East Idaho

 

 

Officers and Contacts:

          Hal Johansen, President                            522-7297              haledie@ida.net

        Jerry Phillips, Vice President                    523-3981              phillipsjh@asme.org

          Harold Turvey, Secretary                         785-2552              happyharold@cableone.net

          Harold Mothersill, Treasurer/Website     524-6204              lmothersil@aol.com

          Austin Moses, Newsletter                          684-3922              mosescpa@srv.net

 

NEXT MEETING:   Saturday , July 17, 2004, 10:00 A.M. @ ISU Aircraft Maintenance Technology Hangar, PIH

 

Gordon Bernier  will be the guest speaker.  The subject of his presentation will be AUTOMOBILE & AIRCRAFT ENGINES for your home built !!  Here is an experienced builder, having built a Jodell S-11, a WagAero 2+2 and currently in the process of building a Fokker D VII.  It will be most interesting to hear from someone, who “has been there”,  about the trials and tribulations of providing that much needed thrust without which we will not get airborne.  Aircraft vs Auto Engines!!!!    An Inkom  native, Gordon attended ISU and studied engineering early on and had a career at the Cement Plant in Inkom.

 

LAWLER AERONAUTIC   Owned by new Chapter members Tom and Jeanine Lawler  will provide a valuable insight into covering and finishing materials for fabric covered aircraft.   Processes, techniques and tips will be provided and perhaps a live demonstration by these experienced folks.  Hear and see it from the experts!!!

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Nominating Committee   This  year the positions of President and Secretary are up for election with a term of 2 years starting in January.  In accordance with the Chapter By-Laws I hereby  appoint a nominating committee consisting of Larry Boam, Kent Linsenmann, Harold Turvey and Gary Shipley.  Each of these gentleman have agreed to serve on this committee.  Since each respectively live in Rigby, Idaho Falls, Blackfoot and Pocatello they should have a good knowledge of the membership and potential nominees  in their geographic area.   Their function will be conducted in accordance with Article XI of our By-Laws. 

 

September Meeting Change The original plan was to go by charter bus to SLC  for a tour of Center & Approach Control followed by a stop at the Air Force Air Museum in Ogden.  I have determined, after further consultation with some chapter officers and key members, that  trying to arrange such a venture considering interest, commitments and cost is prohibitive.  However: The FAA Aviation Education office in SLC has agreed to come to PIH on September 18 where we will have an opportunity to hear all about air traffic control.  Mark your Calendar.

 

August Meeting   Just a reminder that on August 21 we will be having a Chapter fly out to the CALF-A  in Dell Montana for breakfast so plan accordingly.  If you cannot fly,  plan to drive as it is not that  far.  There will of course be more detail in the August Newsletter just preceding this event.  Again,  Mark  your Calendar.

 

Last Meeting: A big thanks to the Hoffs for hosting our meeting at their neat Rainbow Ranch  airplane facility. I  just read the minutes of that meeting, as they appear in this newsletter,  and must add that not only did I enjoy a ride in the Stearman but Bob and James gave several more rides to our members.   You may see a couple of pictures as attachments to my next monthly pre-meeting e-mail reminder so you can see who the other lucky ones were.  A perfect Day!!

            Thanks to Pacific Fighters for letting us tour their facility. Owner  John Muszala was able to attend our picnic and was responsible for arranging  the fly by of the Douglas AD by Danny Sommers  

             Nolan Getsinger showed up with two flavors of his home made ice cream and then promptly had to leave to attend a family reunion/picnic.  Thanks Nolan!!

You are always the good citizen and the ice cream was great!  

                                                                                                Hal       

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From Kent Linsenmann:

 

Hall asked me to write about my experience in building RV7A kit 328. This project started in August 2001 after I found myself without a ride to the sky. I had always wanted to try my hand at building one of the greatest kits on the market so without even a demo ride I ordered and started building. In part, Don Knouts got me off the dime when he started rebuilding his RV6 and I got a close look at these Van’s airplanes.

 

The tail kit arrived shortly after I had assembled the tools and I started in on all that shinny aluminum and bags of rivets. This took several months and some soul searching. I had to decide if I wanted to dedicate this much time to a multi-year project. Well 6 months passed between the tail kit and the ordering of the wing kit. I decided to build an airplane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Two years later and help from my family, Don, Boyd, and Steve I flew N328RV on June 14. The flight lasted about an hour. I had traveled to Oregon the week before to get some transition training from Mike Seager. We flew 7 hours over two days and I gained valuable experience in the Van’s sport aircraft. What a plane. This thing is so much fun to fly I can’t do it justice with my limited vocabulary. Without fairings on level flight at 7000 feet I observed 140 knots at 21 inches and 2300 rpm.

 

There is so much information about the FAA inspection, tools, engine, instruments, and Prop that can be provided if you are interested. Please get a hold of me, or catch me at my hanger and I will be glad to spill my guts.

 

 From the editor:

 

We couldn’t let Kent get by with the little bit of information presented above so after a little persuading, he let us in on the some of the rest of the story.

 

Kent decided on the RV7A because it is fully aerobatic and would accept the higher engine horsepower engines over the RV9A.   He chose the nose wheel for better ground handling.  He opted for the Superior XP 180 hp fuel injected engine turning a constant speed MT governor with Hartzel blended two bladed prop.  With this combination, he is airborne in about 300 feet and can land in approximately 500 feet.  His instructor trained him in the soft field approach which gets the nose gear off the ground almost immediately and keeps it off throughout most of the rollout, so Kent is confident the 7A will handle the grass and dirt strips of the backcountry.  Most of his flights will be cross-country jaunts over to the Salem, Oregon area so he will probably get to know Van’s country pretty well.

 

The hardest thing Kent experienced with the kit was disciplining himself to work on the plane every day on a consistent basis.  It is pretty impressive to finish an RV in the two years it took him, so he must have trained himself well.  He says it helped that his work is only two minutes drive from his hangar. 

 

The kit itself is complete and straight forward, according to Kent.  He especially touts Van’s customer service.  When things went bad and a replacement part was needed, Vans shipped it out quickly and didn’t charge an arm and a leg for it.

 

As for the panel, Kent installed a new Dynon EFIS along with backup steam gauges.  He especially likes the Dynon system as it is easier to scan than the larger gauges.  Radios include a UPS Combination Comm, GPS, and Transponder, with a PS Engineering CD player and intercom.

 

Of course, all these niceties don’t come cheap.  Kent says he’s invested more than $70,000 in N328RV, but certainly doesn’t regret it.  You can tell by that RV smile! 

 

Best wishes for many happy flying hours to come Kent!

 

 

E. A. A. Chapter 407

Minutes of June 19, 2004

Pacific Fighters Hanger, 2013 Foote Drive, Idaho Falls, Idaho

 

The meeting was called to order by Hal Johansen at 10:15 a.m., with 34 souls, including 4 guests attending. On July 8th and 9th, the Collins Foundation will have on display at Pocatello Airport (PIH) a B17 & B24. Hal encouraged a look, but don’t touch. The foundation may ask for help from our club. Hal asked how the website is for announcements, would like to have feedback. Bill Bailey was filling in for John Muszala for the tour of Pacific Fighters, and for the history of warbirds at the facility. A P-51C made history from a crash in England, and was recovered from the site. Pacific Fighters can take 1/3rd of an aircraft, and fabricate the remainder of the aircraft from there. Bill stressed that they do not “build”, but they fabricate. You have to be a manufacturer to “build” an aircraft. They are able to use blueprints on a computer.  Hal gave the history of a Skyshark, which is a modified Skyraider with a turbine engine and counter-rotating props. There was also an F-86D and a TBM in the hangar. The meeting was adjourned at 11:15 a.m.

After the meeting was adjourned, the group traveled to the Rainbow Ranch owned by club member Bob Hoff for a pot luck luncheon. Danny Summers flew over the picnic area in an A4D Douglass Skyraider Hal got a ride in Bob Hoff’s Stearman, which must have pleased him, according to reports of a big grin from ear to ear. The Bring-A-Buck drawing was held, with Bob Carmean being the winner, and the festivities were brought to a close at 2:20 p.m.  A big thanks from Harold Turvey to Kirk Lindholm for filling in by taking minutes at the meeting...maybe we can twist his arm into joining?