Building an Eagle Kit from 1979, What Needs to be Changed?

[Cameron Grossl]

I've about got my work space set up and I'm getting ready to dig in.  I'll get a build thread started over on the Biplaneforum.

As for what has been done, the lower wings have been mostly assembled.  They need to be inspected, repaired/rebuilt as needed, aileron coves, linkages installed, pitot static plumbing, leading edges, and finished.  The upper ribs have been built and the spars have been glued together, but that's about it. 

My kit is from 1979 so I'm sure it will need a little more work than a new one simply because if its age.  Most of the stuff is still in its original packaging, but it has sat around for a long time.  So I know I'll have to replace some parts along the way.  I'd imagine that there are a few parts missing too.

I've spend the last month educating myself on the Christen Eagle and I've learned alot, but I'm sure there's much, much more.....  So, my plan is to keep the airplane basically stock but I do want to make improvements that have come about since my kit was manufactured 35 years ago.  Here's what I'm planning on doing as of now:

Wings:

1. Take care of the drag/anti-drag wire compression rib issue
   
2. Replace the drag/anti-drag wire washers with .080" 4130 plates
3. Install 4130 or Benny Davis titanium plates under the I-strut attach points
4. Install angle braces in the corners of the ailerons
5. Wooden leading edges with a self grounding radio antenna installed inside.   Anybody need some aluminum leading edges?
6. Move the pitot tube assy outboard one bay to help prevent airspeed and altimeter needle bounce
7. Reinforce the LH wing walk
8. Any access panels needed that aren't specified in the manuals?

Fuselage

1. Access panels for brake cylinders, flop tube, and fuel filter
2. Lower longeron mod
3. Radius plates for landing gear
4. May go with an electric boost pump instead of the wobble pump, but I kind of doubt it.
5. New lightweight lithium batter mounted up front
6. Get rid of battery mount structure behind pilot's seat. Is this structure safe to remove?
7. Move the fuel tank filler to the forward position.  I'll probably use a flush filler cap while I'm at it.
8. Open the luggage compartment up further aft.  If I do this, I'll probably install some sort of easily removable divider or some kind of mounting system to keep heavy stuff from sliding aft.  I want to keep the heavy stuff as far forward as possible.
9. I'm keeping a floorboard, but I'm going to get rid of the rubber mat.  I haven't decided how to finish them though.  I'm not crazy about the finished wood look. Thought about carbon fiber, but I don't think it will save much weight.  The factory plywood is pretty light.
10. Better passenger ventilation.  Any suggestions on this?
11. Cockpit Heat.  Any suggestions on this as well?  I ain't payin $3500 for a heat kit.

Firewall Forward:

1. AEIO360, probably with stock compression.  I might bump it up to 9.0:1.  Depends on cost.
2. Sky Dynamics 4 into 1 exhaust with breather line hooked up.  Get rid of the aluminum vent line that runs through the fuselage.  Anybody looking for a new, stock exhaust?
3. Might go with a cold air induction, but I doubt the small power gain is really worth the price.
4. Stock Hartzell metal propeller.
5. I'll probably go with the stock cowling, but I might get adventurous and go with something else.  Is the stock cowling efficient, or are there better options out there?

I guess all this leads up to.... what am I missing?  Are there any weak points, maintenance issues, structural issues, etc. on the Eagle that I'm missing here?

Thanks,
Cameron

[Gerhard Ertl]

Hi Cameron,

I would recomend to replace the origonal Prop with an MT or another wooden Prop. There are some issues with the Hub of the Hartzell Prop. It needs to be eddy current inspected every 100 Hours. But more important is that it puts very high loads on the engine and the engine mounts when you fly tumbles or snap roles. When I started to do so, may prop started losing grease after about 30 Snap roles. I repaired it once but the problem started again almost immediatly. Then i replaced the Hertzell with a 3 Blade MT prop and had no problems since. One difference is that the crusing speed is about 3 knots lower with the mt prop. This is due to the higher drag of the 3 blade prop. The positive thing is, that the mt has a higher thrust at low speed. So there is more "punch" during takeoff and the vertical up lines get a little longer.

Maybee you should also add a smoke system. This is not expensive and very easy during the building phase. Very an aerobatic plane Smoke is just cool.

regards Gerhard

[Mark Barker]

Hi Cameron

Mark Barker here in Alaska.

I finished my Eagle 2 years ago and have been flying it since.

It was started in the 1980s and was almost done, but then I bought it and finished it up.

Here are a couple of the modifications I did.

a. Strobe lights and nav lights on upper wings

b. Removed entire electrical and radio system, and put in a new style including a master relay and starter relay, and a few more circuit breakers.

c. Installed new radio and high noise intercom. Also installed an intercom.

d. Removed aft battery but left tubing and rack; installed light weight battery on the firewall

e. Install 406 ELT near original battery location

f. Floor boards were painted with clear 2 part epoxy and looked beautiful. I did not put the mats in and left them like they are. They look great.

g. Install power ports (cig liter) and power connection for portable GPS in aft cockpit.

h. Slightly modified a standard AtLee Dodge heater system and installed it. Very inexpensive and simple. I have a hose that I take out in the summer but I can move it around and point it at my face in the winter.

I. Lightweight starter and alternator on the engine.

j. Installed oil filter using an adapter

k. Added inspection rings to the fabric all over the place, and made some of my own design for the belly in case I need to every open it up.

l. Installed cub style inspection rings for the elevator horn and covered them with clear plexiglass for inspection.

There are a couple of other things I wish I would have done, but those are the big ones. I have recovered a number of Alaska cub style planes so I followed the Eagle covering manual, but did it my way, when I thought it was better. But the Eagle manual has great info on some of the particulars of covering the Eagle ------ compared to a cub. If you want any more info on the above list let me know. I am also on the biplane forum all the time. And I can send pictures.

I would love to do another Eagle, but I am rebuilding my Long Ez this winter.

have fun

Mark

[Cameron Grossl]

Mark,

I'd like to hear more about the Atlee Dodge heater system.  Can you elaborate?  Does it keep you warm in the Alaska winters?  I do want to install cabin heat in my Eagle, but I want to actually work.  I don't want to fly in zero degree temps or anything, but I would like to be able to be comfortable on a 25 degree day.

 

Also, how much did your Eagle end up weighing empty after you got it done?

 

Thanks,
Cameron

[Ron Harmon]

Ditto.

 

Ron, KAEG

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[Craig Gifford]

not to downplay a good heater system at all, but I've found in MN things are really just too drafty for a heater to really be effective in acro planes.  What is effective is 12v heated snowmobile/motorcycle gear (Gerbings). 

[Bruce Green]

My Eagle has the factory heater in it and my Skybolt had no heat and I used the Gerbhings gear. My Skybolt had a canopy over the rear seat only and in the winter, I had a fiberglass cover over the front seat, so there were no passenger issues.

When it is bitter cold, there is no question, the Gerbings wins over the airplane heat system hands down. Toasty warm no matter how cold it was outside and the heat is more or less instant. When it is only cool out, the plane heat works good and it is more convenient to use in that you don't have to get dressed, and you don't have to get a passenger dressed either.

Some other possibilities I have been pondering are heated seat cushions and a battery powered heated jacket, Milwaukee makes one that uses the same batteries as my drill. There is also on the market battery heated gloves that look nice, but are around $200. I assume those would be similar to the gerbhings without having to plug in, of course then there are batteries to keep charged.

Either way, it is worth it to get that cold air rate of climb!

Bruce Green
Eagle N110GM

From: Craig Gifford <cr...@craiggifford.com>
To: Cameron Grossl <cameron...@gmail.com>
Cc: christe...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: Christen-Eagle Re: Building an Eagle Kit from 1979, What Needs to be Changed?
Date: Wed, 5 Feb 2014 18:55:47 -0600


not to downplay a good heater system at all, but I've found in MN things are really just too drafty for a heater to really be effective in acro planes. What is effective is 12v heated snowmobile/motorcycle gear (Gerbings).


On Feb 5, 2014, at 10:53 AM, Cameron Grossl <cameron...@gmail.com> wrote:

> Mark,
> I'd like to hear more about the Atlee Dodge heater system. Can you elaborate? Does it keep you warm in the Alaska winters? I do want to install cabin heat in my Eagle, but I want to actually work. I don't want to fly in zero degree temps or anything, but I would like to be able to be comfortable on a 25 degree day.

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[Ron Harmon]

On the battery, did you go with a Lithium Iron Phosphate or an Oddessy 680?

 

Ron, KAEG

[Dan Kohler]

Just for info I am trying the new Concorde 12LSA battery in the original location. 13 pounds, good specs. Fits with the same footprint as original with only adjusting  hold down studs. It's an RG25 cut in half vertically. 

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