Engine still in FL ... UPS nightmare ... Oratex start

[ksatter26]

London Ivey, the 303 guru in FL, fixed my 303 ignition problem within 15 minutes of un-crating the beast. That was last Saturday (October 28th). Today is Thursday November 2nd and UPS has still not picked up the crate for return to me. The pickup has been scheduled at least 4 times. Chris and I have spent literally hours on the phone with UPS to no avail. Chris has a confirmation number for the scheduling which he will provide me later today and I will then spend another hour or two on the phone trying to determine if and when the engine will be returned to me.

On a more progressive note: with the engine (firewall forward removed) I have lifted the airframe up so that i can get to the underside of the cabin area to pattern out the Oratex Sky Blue material.

I did a lot of measuring and laid-out the pattern on butcher paper. I then cut out the pattern and taped it in place on the firewall to verify the accuracy and mark the fuselage tubing locations to transfer to the Oratex fabric.

This has occupied my time during the mini-cold snap here in North Texas. However, we are informed that the forecast is for temperatures in the mid 70's by the weekend. I hope to try and cut the Oratex to the pattern and get the glue lines spread on both the fabric and the airframe. the real test will be actually applying heat to secure the fabric and shrink in place.

[LA F2 Flyer]

that is frustrating, but I'm sure it will arrive eventually. At least you have some projects to handle in the meantime, which will be made easier without the extra weight hanging off the nose. Keep us updated on the Oratex covering process. Everyone I've talked to has been really pleased with the ease of the process and the end results.

[Badland-F5 Pilot]

that is frustrating, but I'm sure it will arrive eventually. At least you have some projects to handle in the meantime, which will be made easier without the extra weight hanging off the nose. Keep us updated on the Oratex covering process. Everyone I've talked to has been really pleased with the ease of the process and the end results.

Yes please in the Oratex. No matter how many times I watch YT videos and read tutorials on the stuff, I always feel I'm missing something more!

Todd

[ksatter26]

The only place I find application temperatures are listed as ranges in the manual, which I find to be of little help in techniques.

Good news on the engine. It was picked up by UPS ; late but finally in the system. I should have it by the middle of next week.

Question: is the aft portion of the fuselage "closed" with fabric or left "open". I believe Peer's is closed and the one on the Badland website is definitely open.

[LA F2 Flyer]

Hi Kurt...the covering if the aft fuselage is at your discretion. Mine is actually open...I was concerned about weight, and also didn't want to create too broad of a side profile for ease of maneuverability on the ground in the event of crosswinds...whether it will actually make a difference is beyond me, but it sounded good at the time. As for the temperatures, as I recall I started at maybe 180 degrees, and maxed out at 400, without getting the gun too close to the fabric. At 400 degrees the gluing will be permanent - at the lower temps I believe you can still make adjustments if need be.

[ksatter26]

Looks good. That's what I'm shooting for.

My Oratex materials showed up with 250ml of wax. Surely that isn't enough to do the whole F-3. Any thoughts?

[LA F2 Flyer]

I didn't actually purchase the wax yet, just the cleaner spray. I still want to see how much the fabric "flaps" and may shrink tighter after the first flights. I'll wax at that point.

As for the temps, is this the chart you are referring to? I actually started low with the heat gun and slowly worked my way up over several passes. Wear decent leather gloves. I burned my fingers a few times when I had forgotten to slip them on. I used only the heat gun; I never used the iron.

[ksatter26]

Thanks. I have a heat g, the Toklo flat iron and a small hobby iron... new scissors and aa temperature sensor. I seem prepared. The lower fuselage cover is somewhat complicated around the gear legs. I'd rather not remove them. Also looking forward to the complicated flaperpn tips, really compound curves.

[LA F2 Flyer]

I actually was able to work around the landing gear brackets easily enough when I did my covering (but I did remove the gear legs and turned the fuselage upside down). However, I don't think the gear legs will impede any more than the gear crossmember does. It was just a matter of "measure twice, cut once".