Experimenter

SEP2014

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/378679

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EAA Experimenter 31 The longitudinal stability is nice as well. When trimmed for straight-and-level fl ight, as the nose is raised and the speed drops by 20 mph, if the stick is released, the plane gently low- ers the nose below the horizon, gains about 30 mph, and then slowly returns to level fl ight as the excess 10 mph bleeds of . The rudder is appropriately responsive but not overly so and allows good forward and side slips. At gross weight the CX5 has the same wing loading as the CX4, about 10 pounds per square foot. Solo it's less, of course, so it tends to fl oat in ground ef ect. The electric speed brake helps to slow it, working of a momen- tary toggle switch; 3 seconds for full down (about 80 degrees) and 3 seconds up. It can be stopped anywhere in between. Increasing drag reduces the fl oating tendency; however, it does af ect the pitching moment and causes a very slight nose-up pitch while producing 500 fpm extra rate of descent if the speed is kept the same. The CX5 was designed to carry two big guys (230 pounds each), full fuel (20 gallons usable), and 20 pounds of baggage and still be within the center of gravity range. It's also designed to be almost impossible to load outside the CG limits. One can have a huge pilot and no passenger with low fuel and be near the front CG limit or with a 250-pound passenger and a 100-pound pilot with full fuel and still be within the CG range. DAV ID T H AT CHER Mr. Thatcher is a man of few words, but his words are very well chosen. He's honest in word and deed. Because his every move in the shop is nearly always the exactly correct one, he never seems to move very fast, he never wastes a second, and he demands quality as well as good-looking workmanship. He gets the funda- mentals of life and ethics right—he is a truly spiritual man. Mr. Thatcher doesn't try to impress, but by not trying to do so, does. Mr. Thatcher approaches his aircraft design the same way that he approaches life. The whole idea is to have a plane that looks honest and is honest. A plane that a guy with zero experi- ence can build, with minimal tools, in a small space, and have a plane that's elegant looking, fl ies naturally, and is economical The instrument panel is designed for traditional round instruments, but ingenious builders will no doubt fi nd room for some "glass," too. Nose to nose; compare the profi les; two-place at left. The CX5 cockpit is barely distinguishable from the CX4's, but it is several inches wider and taller, measuring a full 28 inches in width (25 inches between the seatback longerons) and nearly 36 inches from the seat bottom to the top of the roll bar.

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