Brodhead Pietenpol Association

Original Posted By: Clif Dawson
Hello everyone,Guess I should introduce myself since I'm new to the list. My name is MikeWhaley, I live in Melbourne FL, and I'm planning on building a Pietenpol AirCamper with a Corvair engine using William Wynne's conversion manual. Itmight also have a slightly-expanded cockpit (I'm tall enough that I haddifficulty getting my legs under the panel in the standard-sized one I triedon at Sun N Fun, and later I heard a story at the forum about what happenswhen you don't build a cockpit mockup before building the plane!) I'm not apilot (yet) and am at the stage of collecting articles as fast as I can findthem. I do have Mike Cuy's great video, very inspiring! Should have theplans pretty soon and hope to start building after we settle into a newhouse soon. My aviation experience so far comes from a lifelong interest inR/C and free-flight models, and just finding ways to be around aircraft asmuch as possible. I'm currently employed as Steen Aero Lab's webmaster (wesell the Skybolt, Pitts S1/Model 14, Knight Twister, Great Lakes, Brunton'sflying wires, and Hoffmann props among other things) and I'm also a foundingmember and webmaster for the OV-10 Bronco Association. I've always followedhomebuilt planes closely, and the Piet seems to be a great combination ofease of construction, good support, low cost, and practicality. Not tomention the fun factor seems way, way up there. Around the time I metWilliam Wynne, I realized that a Corvair-powered Piet was just the kind ofplane I had been looking for, and I wouldn't need to worry about not beingable to find good help when the inevitable problems arose in something.I do have a couple of questions for which I couldn't find answers in thearchives... guess I'll ask all you experts out there. :)How feasible would it be to build a Piet in a one-car garage? My wife and Iare looking to buy a house, hopefully we can find a 2-car garage but so farit's been slim pickin's on that front. I know that folks have managed tobuild airplanes inside porta-johns and jail cells and the like... andobviously the more room you have, the better... but what advice do you folkshave on building in a not-too-large space? I suspect in this situation oneshould build the flattest parts first so they can be stored elsewhere.Secondly, I'm trying to collect info on the feasability of obtaining mysport pilot license in a (my) Piet. Has anyone out there actually learned tofly in a Pietenpol? Again, I know that it is theoretically possible, butwould like to gather opinions on the idea from those who have either doneit, tried it, or who can offer supportable reasons not to try it.Finally, has anyone devised a way to fold the wings on a regular basis fortransport? Hangar space here is scarce, and it certainly ain't cheap!Thanks, and sorry for the basic questions I'm sure many of you have heardbefore.-MikeMike Whaley merlin@ov-10bronco.netWebmaster, OV-10 Bronco Associationhttp://www.ov-10bronco.net/___________________ ... ______Date: Wed, 05 Nov 2003 22:25:25 -0800

Original Posted By: dave rowe

Original Posted By: owner-pietenpol-list-server(at)matronics.com
Mike,Welcome to the list.Jim Wills (1 Humber Road, Blackheath, London SE3 7LT, UK) produces a set ofUK PFA approved plans of the Piet including a three piece wing with anaileron quick connect system. The quick connect consists of a metal plate inthe center section and a matching plate in the wing section (times two forport & starboard). When the wings are put on the center section these platesmatch up with close tolerance. The control cables from the alieron controlhorn on the cockpit torque tube attach to the center section plate. Thecontrol cables from the aileron horn on the wing sections attach to theplate at the butt rib end of the wing. The control cables are all preadjusted and its just a matter of butting the wing sections to the centersection, connecting the struts and jury struts and away you fly. It is meantto take about half an hour to setup. There are also fittings that allow thePiet to be trailered on the main wheels using the tail wheel as a tow hitch.The wings stow along the fuselage. There are some modifications to the buttribs which I have incorporated in my ribs. I am still not sure whether Ishall use the quick connect system. Additional weight of the steel in thebutt ribs and additional complexity for the half hour setup time may not beneeded if I hanger the aircaft somewhere, which is what I am hoping to do.Hope that helps, you've picked a good airplane and a very knowlegeable groupof guys, I am learning heaps.CheersPeterWonthaggi, Australiahttp://cpc-world.cable.nu-----Original Message-----

Original Posted By: Gary Gower
> Finally, has anyone devised a way to fold the wings on a regular basis for> transport? Hangar space here is scarce, and it certainly ain't cheap!>Hi MikeI have designed a folding wing for my aircamper. I have the fuselage andtail just about done and I am just starting on the wing center section. Thecenter section is 4 feet wide and the lift strust are tilted out so theyattach directly to the wing folding brackets at the ends of the center rearspar. The wings will fold back around the rear spar and rotate a little bitso that the trailing edge is about 2 feet higher than the leading edge.When folded it will be about 9.5 feet from leading edge to leading edge. Iam going to use a "v" strut setup with a pivot at the fuselage attach point.The wing will be held inplace with captive pins at the front spar. Thiswill allow wings to fold/unfold quickly. Still working out the datails as Igo and I plan to load test the finished wing. I'll try to keep the groupupdated on progress through the list server and my web sitehttp://users.adelphia.net/~morrisons5Good luck with your projectMalcolm________________________________________________________________________________Date: Thu, 6 Nov 2003 19:00:38 -0800 (PST)