Brodhead Pietenpol Association

Original Posted By: "Michael Brusilow"
Subject: Pietenpol-List: Compression strutsPieters, Encountered a little problem this morning while seating my forward fuse gas tank. All went well except when I tightened the turnbuckle of the over the tank hold down strap I could see where this would tend to bring the upper longerons together somewhat. Fearing this COULD happen I fashoned two compression struts 3/4 X 1 forward and aft of the tank. A little added weight but a LOT of piece of mind. Have any of you done this or thought about it?Corky in La________________________________________________________________________________

Original Posted By: "Jack T. Textor"
With all this talk of Stearman-type fuel gauges, I'm surprised that Steve Eldredgedidn't pipe up with his comments. He built a clever one for his Piet andused to have photos and a narrative of it on his website at BYU (linked from GrantMcLaren's BPA website), but that link is now dead. If there is any interest,I can sketch out what Steve did and copy the narrative text onto a webpageto go with the sketches. I printed out the pictures and text back when theywere on the BPA website but the picture quality is WAY too low for me to re-scanand I think I can sketch it up fairly accurately.Oscar ZunigaSan Antonio, TXmailto: taildrags(at)hotmail.comwebsite at http://www.flysquirrel.net________________________________________________________________________________Subject: Pietenpol-List: Compression strutsDate: Sun, 10 Feb 2008 13:56:44 -0600

Original Posted By: Jack T. Textor
Jack,The inter-spar compression struts should be towards the top and bottom of the spars. The lower one will need to allow for the airfoil under-camber by either installing it away from the bottom edge of the spar or by carving the under-camber curve into the strut.Greg Cardinal ----- Original Message -----

Original Posted By: "Jack T. Textor"

Original Posted By: "KMHeide, BA, CPO, FAAOP"

Original Posted By: "Don Emch"
Although if was -8 degrees F today,I went out to the hangar and took a couple of pics of my bell crank set up. It is made to the same dimensions in plans.Again, my reasons for going with this set up first was for an antique look but it is also simpler and I dont have to worry about wear on the cable that makes a 180 degree turn on the torque tube. I have also noticed that there is much less friction on the stick. The only thing I would do differently is to raise the assy by 2" to clear the horiz stab.Dick N.________________________________________________________________________________Subject: Pietenpol-List: Re: Compression struts

Original Posted By: "Gary Boothe"
Hi Jack,I might be reading your question all wrong and may not understand what you aresaying, but since the spars are the same height the compression struts shouldwork out to be parallel to each other. If I remember right I think the bottomstrut is spaced up a little, front and rear, to keep it away from the undercamberof the airfoil. But it would still work out to be parallel with the topstrut. But I may not be understanding the question, which would be normal forme!Don EmchNX899DERead this topic online here:http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.p ... __________

Original Posted By: "Jack T. Textor"

Original Posted By: santiago morete
Well, I made some sketches based on Steve's description, scanned them and copiedSteve's narrative to go along with the sketches. Here's the webpage:http://www.flysquirrel.net/piets/sightgage.htmlI sure hope Steve will review this for accuracy because some of it was my "creativeinventing", such as the pivot hinge. Other details weren't 100% clear soI sort of drew it up as I thought it was intended, but I have NOT fabricatedone of these to see if I got the drawing correct. Pretty cool! The best partis that it is flight-tested and now also proven crash-worthy ;o)The lead-in photo on the webpage doesn't show a whole lot of detail about the sightgauge but it speaks volumes about the fun you can have in a Pietenpol!Oscar ZunigaSan Antonio, TXmailto: taildrags(at)hotmail.comwebsite at http://www.flysquirrel.net________________________________________________________________________________Date: Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:30:57 -0300 (ART)

Original Posted By: "KMHeide, BA, CPO, FAAOP"
Thanks to Santiago Morete, I've gotten the detail of Larry Williams' adaptation/simplification of Steve Eldredge's gauge and added it to the webpage I made: http://www.flysquirrel.net/piets/sightgage.htmlGreat stuff!Oscar ZunigaSan Antonio, TXmailto: taildrags(at)hotmail.comwebsite at http://www.flysquirrel.net________________________________________________________________________________Date: Mon, 11 Feb 2008 13:57:34 -0800 (PST)

Original Posted By: owner-pietenpol-list-server(at)matronics.com [mailto:owner-pietenpol-lis
Subject: RE: Pietenpol-List: Stearman-type fuel gaugeI'm still here, but was out of touch over the weekend, besides, who would want ideas for a fuel gauge solution that cost only $5 and can be made from parts you have already strewn about your garage?Thought so.So here is the bill of materials (from 10 years ago, so work with me...)36" of welding rod8" of 1/2"rigid copper plumbing pipe1 1/2" copper coupler (the kind you slide two pieces of pipe into before soldering)1-1/2" copper washer1' clear pvc tubingA corkWhite spray paintSafety wire3/8" barbed fittingA short AN5 or 6 bolt or a drain valve (optional for the deluxe model)The copper washer is soldered to the union fitting and then cut off to make a hat like fitting which can be mated to the bottom of the tank. Its purpose is to be a receptacle for the length of copper pipe, which acts as a protection to the site gauge itself. I carved away a window in the pilot facing side of the copper pipe. Paint the inside of the copper pipe white for good contrast with the indicator.My install was similar to the illustration, with a few changes. I added a 2" diameter x 1/4" reinforcement to the bottom of the tank for the barbed fitting to screw into. I used 4 machine screws fastened through the copper fitting and tank bottom with proseal to prevent leaks. I'm sure Larry's solutions works too, but I also put a cork on a length of welding rod, hinged on the rear wall of the tank, horizontal to the bottom of the tank. From that length of rod I suspended the indicator rod, aligned with the indicator hole. This way I can more accurately estimate the fuel level (one hopes) at different attitudes.Some notes after using it for ten years:Use stainless rod if you can. Moisture will eventually rust the welding rod. The PVC tube will harden and become opaque over time. I replaced mine at about 8 years, and employed the white paint for added visibility. I put a drain in the bottom of the gauge. Water will collect there, along with some sludge. Use the safety wire to assure good leak-proof seal on both ends of the pvc tubing. (barb, and drain ends). Make sure the indicator doesn't bottom out on the drain. The PVC will shrink over time and make you wonder how much fuel you really have. Give it an extra 1/2". Add fuel in known quantities and mark your gauge. Always, always fly by time, not by gauge readings. Polish the copper at annual. It looks cool.Steve E.-----Original Message-----

Original Posted By: Ben Charvet