From the Maplewoods workshop: Steve's RV7 project: Filter air box (FAB)

The Mission:

I am building an airplane. I really can't tell you how weird it sounds to me to hear those words in my head as I type. I am keeping this blog as an adjunct to my written log, which is required to comply with FAA requirements for Experimental Aircraft construction. My son Doug is my partner in this project. There are two goals: to build the best, safest, and yes, COOLEST, airplane we can, and to allow Doug to acquire some truly awesome experiences, not to mention building skills. Thanks for viewing.

How to use this blog

The most current post is displayed on this opening page. To access the older posts, click on the "Blog Archive" on the right hand side. The drop down menu is arranged by the month and lists the posts, by title and by date posted, in reverse chronological order.

I will arrange the hypertext links to other websites I find interesting better some day, but they are at the bottom.

If you navigate to my first post, there is a link to my luthiery pages. I miss working with wood. Aluminum is nice, but it's boring. Give me a highly figured maple any day!

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Filter air box (FAB)

It was cold and rainy and miserable today. And I ran out of propane in the little heater in my hangar. However, I was reasonably productive, and I am beginning to see just a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel.

Today I worked on cleaning up some of the tangled web of wiring behind the panel, and I started work on the filter air box. What makes this a little bit harder is that the fuel injection induction is offset slightly from midline and therefore doesn't line up with the scoop at the bottom of the cowl. You must rotate the FAB slightly, and also account for vertical differences. Once lined up, there will be an extension built backwards from the scoop to intersect with the FAB to form a seal and direct all of the incoming air into the filter, minimizing air loss and drag.

Also, in the unlikely event that the filter becomes clogged (if I fly too close to an erupting Icelandic (Eyjafjallajokull) volcano, or, more likely, fly into a snowstorm), I can open a gate at the bottom of the FAB and allow air to flow directly into the fuel induction without filtering.