| First engine run. Almost pulled the van around the airport. |
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| First Flight! |
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| It was a bumpy day for the first gear retract test, but here is the video. I try to remove some of the shake, but it still is a bit shaky. |
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| Full power climb test data |
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| Calibration of the airspeed indicator. At an indicated airspeed of 175 knots the true speed is 185 knots. Data was collected at 2,000 feet. |
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| I have expanded
the envelope: Maximum indicated airspeed 220 kts, minimum 54 kts., maximum
altitude 13,000 feet, maximum takeoff weight 2,313 pounds, C.G
from 92.6 -96.10. Not all at the same time. Ground roll for takeoff has been about 1,500 feet and landing roll in about 2,000 feet. It has been hard to keep on task with the flight testing, it is much easier to just go fly and have fun. |
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| During the first few flights the nose transit light would come on, meaning the nose gear was not all the way up. After talking with the few Glasiar II builders it was found that this is a common occurrence, especially the faster the airspeed. The problem can be seen in this in-flight photo. The faster the airspeed the more the nose gear door is twisted open, pulling the nose gear down. |
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| Close-up of the problem. |
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| He is a movie of the problem. This shows before any modification have been made. |
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| I put a fairing in front of the door made from 1/2 inch thick foam and hot glued to the cowling. The video is taken at 150-160 kts. |
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| Removed the fairing and added 3 layers of unidirectional carbonfiber to the inside of the door. The strands ran at a 45 degree angle fro the aft left tot he forward right of the inside of the door. I also added an additional support to the lower cowling between the left trunnion mount and the lower cowling. Add stiffness to door |
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| So, is the door get sucked open from the outside, or blown open from the inside. I flown with some string mounted tot eh cowling to try and watch the airflow. From this I am thinking the door is getting sucked open. If the door was blown open from the inside the string would not flow as straight as it does is my thought. String test |
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| More gear test. Back to a stock door. Stock door |