The 'what to do with the plane when I get home' project list keeps going through my head.
I'm back to tri-gear-conversion with reversed stock mains as the 'first try' to make my plane a nose-dragger. The new plan (based on what I've read from here, better pictures of my plane, and a set of KR-1 (yes, 1... But the design is similar enough, IIRC, when it comes to the stock gear, for this to work) plans. I'm looking at using 2" blocks of wood as spacers to move the stick aft from it's 'stock' attachment point, creating an area behind the stick for the spring-bar, and bolting the gear into the 'down' position using brackets in place of the latch arms. Since the stock gear is bolted together, no cutting of exterior skin should be required (originally I was expecting to have to slice an access panel to get the gear out)... I'll have to re-route the aileron cable a bit, but I'd have to do that for Diehl gear anyway. I'll also have to re-route the brake lines (hydraulic heel brakes) and reverse the existing foam fairings to reduce the 'giant speed-brake' problem. If this works, I saved $1k, for the price of a little less elbow room (possibly addressable by bending of the control-stick tube into an 'S' shape, to move the handle back forward), and the plane will have a much more nose-high attitude while on the ground, than it would with the Diehl mains (the important part - prop-to-ground clearance, being determined by the nosewheel strut length, which will be the same for both configs).... I'll also be able to do this with far less tools (important since I don't live in FL, and will be working out of a U-haul storage room).... If it doesn't, I'll be out some time, and will buy the Diehl mains. I'm still using the Diehl nose wheel, for ease-of-install reasons over other options (such as fabing my own or trying to adapt one salvaged from a certified bird).... With the gear flipped and the controls re-adjusted (moving the stick back will put some slack in the cables), I'll just have to install my e-bay scavenged EFIS and radios, change out the carbeurator (it's got a POSA now, I got an Ellison EFS2 off E-bay ($200, no less), and I see this as the other major 'issue' besides tail-dragger config), and touch up some paint... I've also been told to replace the points on the mag... 'Go time' for this project is the 2nd week of my mid-tour leave, in about a month. Nothing to get in the way, at all... P.S. One question: How much space is there typically between the back of the panel and the fuel tank (Assuming the plane was built to plans, without mods)....
