Experimenter is a magazine created by EAA for people who build airplanes. We will report on amateur-built aircraft as well as ultralights and other light aircraft.
Issue link: http://experimenter.epubxp.com/i/271000
12 Vol.3 No.3 / March 2014 BOB ROGERS' LONE STAR MUSTANG II WHAT DO YOU GET when you combine a professional man with a can-do spirit and a large allotment of perseverance, a set of plans for an aerobatic two-place, all-metal airplane, a few fac- tory-built assemblies, a bunch of metal-working tools, and a supportive and understanding spouse, then stir it steadily for 17 years? The answer is N62BT, a Mazda rotary engine–powered Mustang II. This sleek and silver little beauty is the result of slightly more than 7,000 hours of weekend work by Bob Rogers of Plano, Texas. Add in a wrecked 1986 Mazda RX-7 engine and you complicate the project even more. Bob's Mustang II is a side-by-side two-place that sits smartly on conventional landing gear. Its wingspan is 24 feet, 5 inches. It has an empty weight of 1,305 pounds and a gross weight of 2,050 pounds, which yields a useful load of 745 pounds. Fuel capacity in the two wing tanks and a fuselage tank totals 59 gallons. A 200-hp turbocharged Mazda 13B rotary engine pulls N62BT along in cruise at 170 knots while burning 12 gallons per hour. N62BT has three-axis electric trim, a Navaid AP-1 wing leveler/tracker autopilot, a Garmin SL 40 Comm, a Terra TXT 760D Comm, a Terra TN 200D Nav, and a Terra TRT 250 D transponder. Bob bought the Terra radios because of their small size, long before the company went out of business. He said they work fi ne, and he knows where to get them repaired if it ever becomes necessary. A small HP iPAQ is used for moving- map GPS navigation and display of XM weather tracking. Bob selected Anywhere Map for his fl ight software. The autopilot will track either the GPS or a VOR/ILS course. According to Teri Ann Rogers, her husband started fly- ing before he got his driver's license. "He used to ride his bicycle back and forth to the airport," she said. On their second date, Bob courted Teri Ann by asking if she wanted to go to San Antonio for lunch. When she realized he was going to fly her there, she thought to herself, "Hey, this guy is pretty neat." Bob, an attorney who spends his days keeping an eye on banking practices for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corpora- Photography by Michael Kelly Bob purchased a salvaged 1986 Mazda RX-7 automobile for $1,000 to get the Mazda 13B engine. He later sold the car body for $800, but converting the engine added years of work to his project. Bob and Teri Ann Rogers enjoy fl ying their Mustang II around the country. E A A E X P _ M a r 1 4 . i n d d 1 2 EAAEXP_Mar14.indd 12 3 / 3 / 1 4 1 0 : 3 0 A M 3/3/14 10:30 AM