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/90184
moved the push/pull latch to starboard and installed a ro- tating latch to port. These mechanisms are unlikely to fail, but the canopy still can be quickly detached if necessary. How hard was it to build that fi rst airplane? "It wasn't diffi cult," Keith said, "if you've spent as much time as I have building model aircraft. But you have to work at it like a job you love." That's where his everyday schedule commitment comes in. The RV-8 The RV-8 was a 12-year project completed in August, 2012, barely in time for Keith's 80th birthday celebration. It is roomier, heavier, and more powerful than the RV-4, and a capable aerobat at 1,600 pounds gross. Keith spreads the credit around for the completion of this airplane. It is clear from the stories he tells, the photos on his wall, and the friends who drop by his hangar every day that the community of amateur builders and GA pilots sur- rounding him is an important component of his homebuild- ing success. EAA Chapter 365 is located at KORK, and Keith and Evelyn have been members, supporters, volunteers, and con- tributors to the chapter and its activities since the early 1980s. Chapter 365 is a focal point for fl ying enthusiasts in central Arkansas and a rich resource of information, advice, and willing helpers when the occasion arises. Being part of a flying community is important, Keith said. Local airports have been able to preserve small- town American culture in ways that are rapidly disap- pearing elsewhere. "There's trust, shared interests, remarkable expertise, and a willingness to pitch in and help where you find local communities of pilots and homebuilders," he noted. But he is concerned that culture might be squeezed out as small airports set their sights on corporate jets and high-end real estate development. Keith enjoys putting the new RV-8 through its paces, which include finding the straight and level top end at 210 mph, climbing 2,000 fpm at 120 mph, and trying out a series of loops, rolls, wingovers, lazy eights, and spins. He always taxis back to the hangar with an RV grin on his face. The RV-8 is powered by a converted helicopter engine, a 180-hp Lycoming HIO-360, with a 2850 rpm redline—100 more than the nonhelicopter version. It is fi tted with a fi xed-pitch Sensenich propeller because the helicopter engine has a solid crankshaft, lacking the oil channels required to operate a constant-speed propeller. The engine had logged 12 hours when Keith purchased it. It was a great fi nd, but it had a quirk he would learn about later. The HIO-360's fuel injection system is specifi c to heli- copters. Such systems are different in one important way: They are designed to run at max continuous power and no other speed. T e RV-8 panel. No fancy avionics here; just analog instruments and a portable GPS unit. Photography by Larry Martin EAA EXPERIMENTER 33