Experimenter

NOV 2014

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.

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16 Vol.3 No.11 / November 2014 AN EYE FOR DETAIL "I have built-in oxygen systems and a TruTrak autopilot because I plan on using the airplane for serious cross-coun- tries. And it all works beautifully." Everything about the airplane oozes quality, and its interior adds to that. William said the look is the result of the work done by Willy Sturgis of Sturgis Design in Corpus Christi, Texas, and the really nice leather that is the same as used in Porsches. That all seems very fitting, considering the airplane's performance. It is the rare builder, especially those building composite aircraft, that does his own finish paint. Part of this is because composites lend themselves so well to smooth finishes, and smooth finishes exaggerate any surface imperfection. So, most builders have a professional do the prepping and blow the final paint. However, in William's case, he did everything except actually hold the gun for the final coats. "I completed all the fit-and-finish body work myself," he said. "It was weeks of filling and sanding, filling and sanding. I got it right up to prepaint quality, applied two coats of WLS primer (one rolled on and one sprayed on) and then enlisted the help of an overqualified local painter named Dwight Tulfer of Animas Aero Designs. Together we did the final 'micro bodywork' and the final prepaint prep work. Dwight applied the paint and I assisted in any way I could. The paint is Matrix Systems Andromeda silver (metallic) with Candy Red tint faded into the tail and wingtips. Then a lot of clear coat went on, and that was followed by two weeks of color sanding, polishing, and reassembly. The paint work alone took two-and-a-half months." While the drudgery of weeks of sanding in preparation for paint can wear on a builder, William said that wasn't the biggest challenge he faced. "The most difficult part of the whole project was building and installing the canopy. Excluding any bodywork that had to be done, I have approxi- mately 150 hours invested in fitting the canopy. I knew it was going to be a real chore and I wasn't looking forward to it. But it had to be done. "The finished canopy consists of the frame, which is where the initial fitting and critical alignments are dealt with. The hinge and latch hardware are installed, and then the Plexiglas is bonded to the frame. Finally an outer skin is installed to clean it all up. Then begins hours and hours of bodywork to get all the transitions up to 'show quality.' It felt as if it was never going to end. "In August 2013, I had a friend, Ron Gregory of Ron Greg- ory Composites of Carlsbad, California, come out to Durango to oversee the final assembly and put another set of eyeballs on all the final details and critical components. At that point in time, the fabrication part of the project ended and it was time to let the flying begin. For N11LL, that was at 4:36 p.m. on September 18, 2013. At that exact instant in time, N11LL became an aircraft!" William remembers the day well. "I entrusted my air- plane to Ernie Sutter, another overqualified individual. Ernie is a career pilot and has been flying his own Legacy for about 10 years, including racing it at the Reno National Champion- ship Air Races (Race No. 66). He made the first three flights, totaling about 2.5 hours. All systems checked out and the airplane flew great! In fact, he wanted to trade airplanes. I said, 'No thanks.'" Before flying the airplane, William went through an ex- tensive transition training program with Ernie Sutter, who is a CFI in addition to being a test pilot. William said, "My first flight in the airplane was wow! It was a surreal coming together…the airplane and me. After so many daydreams, after developing so many expectations, and finally I was flying it. And the machine really delivers! Acceleration, speed, climb, views, responsiveness, maneuverability—it was an absolute thrill! "The normal takeoff is quick, with very positive accel- eration, but it tracks straight with little effort. You raise the nose at 60 to 65 knots, hold takeoff attitude, and just let it fly itself off the runway. It has some noisy airframe vibrations until the gear is raised, then everything smoothes out and you feel the acceleration again…up and away." According to William, N11LL's best power cruise is 240 knots at 8,000 feet, and he's burning about 15 gph at that speed. Economy cruise is 218 knots at 14,000 feet (Remem- ber his O2 system?) where the big Continental is burning 9.8 gph. He also said that at sea level his rate of climb at 140 knots is 2,000 fpm at gross. He reports that his normal approach is 100 knots, bleed- ing it to 90 knots over the fence, followed by touchdown at 70 to 75. But he added, "Currently, the shortest runway I'll land on is 3,500 feet, but the Legacy is capable of shorter. Even high and hot, it does really well. With density altitude at 9,500 feet, which is quite common here at Durango, fully loaded it's up and away. Sure, it takes a little more pavement, but the departure is not in question. Here at my home base airport we have more than 9,000 feet of pavement. My chal- lenge is to not get lazy and let my skills diminish. "Basically, the Legacy is everything I dreamed it would be. It's a real performer and a pure joy to fly. And it's an ex- cellent cross-country aircraft. Because of its speed, it makes a country the size of the U.S. quite manageable, navigable, and doable. And then there are the local weekend flights… flying in the mountains, out to Lake Powell…the views are amazing! I fabricated and installed three different GoPro camera mounts on the airplane—what a great video platform it is. I look forward to posting some of these online, but I gotta get them edited first." Now that his Legacy is finished and flying, what would he change or do differently? "I wouldn't change a thing!" he said. "Every time I walk into the hangar, I can't help but get a big smile on my face and a couple of butterflies in my stomach." After 11 years of building, you can't ask for any more than that.

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