Hangar Flying

Checkout Barnstormers.com.  Some flying planes and projects there.
Click on Browse Ads
Click on Experimental
Click on Long-Ez or Vari-Ez.

Steve Rothert

Brian,
Got any pictures of the molds as well as the finished parts? Might be interested in making some carbon cowls.  You can email the pictures to swrothert@yahoo.com

Steve Rothert
Albuquerque, NM

Here are some other building considerations.  My Long-Ez started in my basement and was finished in a 12x22 foot garage with an 8 foot door.  Things can get a little tight towards the end of the project, particularly if you are storing the wings on the floor. It can also get quite dusty as well.  I kept and cut all my glass in a separate room in the basement.  If you plan on working during the winter time, then plan on installing some type of heater that will keep the room/project/materials no lower than 55-60 degrees Farenheit.  You can jack up the temps about an hour or so before you start working, if needed. 

Getting the plane in/out of a single car garage can be a challenge as more pieces are assembled.  At some point, one person may no longer be able to do it themselves.  A 10 foot garage door is preferable to an 8 foot garage door.

As for tools, see the plans for a list of normal hand tools.  The only thing that I bought before I stared the project was a fairly large shop vac with the large 2.5 inch hose.    Nice to have tools (particularly for metal parts) are a benchtop drill press, metal cutting band saw, disc sander.

Tony Bingelis wrote three books on “homebuilt aircraft” and they can be obtained via the EAA.  There is a wealth of information in those books and I referred to them many times.

Steve Rothert
Long-Ez N49SR

Couple other things to consider.
1) If you go back and look at the empty weights of 0-235 vs 0-320  Long-Ez, don't be surprised if you find about 100 lbs difference due to a larger prop, heavier prop extension, larger battery and the 20 lbs of weight that you carry in the nose to get the C/G in the right location.  I can barely lift my 0-320 Long-Ez with a full load of gas.  My next upgrade is an electric nose lift.

2) I don't have a fuel flow meter so can't comment on the burn rate.  I think comparable flow rates have been previously published in past issues of Central States Newsletters.

3) At the time that I bought an engine, 0-235 were in high demand because of other kits that were available in the marketplace and an 0-320 came along at about the same price.  I also considered the impact of living in the geographical location of high altitude airports and high density altitude in the summer.

Hope this helps in your decision making progress.

Steve Rothert
Albuquerque, NM

I was one of the co-authors of the forced air respirator.  Take a look at Jan 96 CSA for details.  I still have and use the one described there.

Regards,
Steve Rothert