KR> KFAY Class C requirements

[Ron Lee]

You should also see if Mode C is required.  There may be exceptions
that require that you notify ATC some time before flying in the airspace
so determine if these affect your hangar location (airport).

Ron Lee

KR> Out west trip

[Ron Lee]

Depending upon your speeds you might be able to get to the Mt Rushmore
and/or Devil's Tower area.  Further south is Pikes Peak.   Cheap fuel and
on field BBQ at Miami Co KS (K81).

Ron Lee

KR> Gathering trip planning

[Ron Lee]

When the distance to destination is longer than fuel/bladder capacities,
www.airnav.com is a great source for finding cheap fuel.  In my case, K81
offers $3.10 100LL and in addition has a BBQ restaurant on the field.

Full tank, full tummy and empty bladder.  Add nice weather and it doesn't
get any better.

Ron Lee

KR> Gathering

[Ron Lee]

"Just started looking at forecast for tomorrow along the route. IT isn't
looking good. The front is pretty well defined and they  are saying 60 to
95% chance of showers and T-storms along most of my route.

Joe Horton, Coopersburg, Pa."

There is always Friday and even Saturday.  Even getting to meet
me is not worth flying in bad weather!

Ron Lee

KR> Excellent weather/trip planning site

[Ron Lee]

One thing to look at the "Route" function with radar loops.
It includes winds aloft.

http://www.weathermeister.com/free/

Ron Lee

KR> Oil cooling

[Ron Lee]

I had problems with high oil temps so did three things to
improve the Exit/Low pressure side of the system.

1)  Remove unneeded "extra" heater ducting

2)  Opened up the cowl bottom about three inches to increase
the exit air opening

3)  Added louvers in the bottom of the cowl.

All three contributed to getting the oil temp down to an acceptable
level.

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Cowl_Louver_Small.jpg

Ron Lee

KR> Short report on my Gathering trip

[Ron Lee]

I made a trip this past weekend to the KR Gathering in Mount Vernon 
IL.  Pre-flight planning showed a great fuel stop at Miami Co airport in 
Paola KS.  100LL was $3.10 a gallon versus the $4.28 at my 
airport.  Scrolling down the Airnav link also showed a BBQ restaurant on 
the field.

http://www.airnav.com/airport/K81

In the aerial shot in the Airnav link the self-serve fuel pump and BBQ 
restaurant are in the ramp area at the approach end to Runway 3.  I got 
there around noon local time and they were busy.  I got the beef brisket, 
turkey and fries.  If I had to do it again I would get two orders of beef 
brisket and half an order of fries.  The fries were enough for three to 
four people.  Several planes left and arrived while I was there so it is a 
good place to visit.

After leaving Miami Co I climbed back to cruise altitude and was soon 
getting 200 knots groundspeed.  As I approached the St Louis area I 
encountered some light drizzle.  Since the outside air temp was around 40 
deg F I descended several thousand feet to preclude any possible freezing 
issues.  The area towards St Louis looked like heavier rain whereas my path 
was VFR.  The short distance to Mt Vernon was uneventful and I landed after 
5.3 hours of flight time.

The next morning was wet looking so I drove up to St Louis to see the Arch.

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Arch3Small.jpg
 


The trip to the top is in small “gopher cages” that hold five people in an 
intimate environment.  One person in my cage apparently had issues and left 
before the trip up started.  It only takes about four minutes and your only 
view is of interior structures.  Once on top you have windows that face the 
river and towards town.

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Arch1Small.jpg
 


http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Arch2Small.jpg

Upon returning to MVN I decided to fly to a few area airports.  Initially I 
was to go to Evansville IN then to KY, TN, AR and MO.  However that was 
soon changed when my fuel flows were higher than my normal cruising 
altitudes of 11500 – 13500 feet.  So I made a roundtrip to Evansville, 
refueled and went to Paducah, KY.  Both flights were uneventful and 
afforded me the chance to fly in VFR but less than 100 mile visibility.

Sunday started less than ideally when the wakeup call never came.  I 
planned on going to the Beaumont Hotel in Kansas for breakfast but was 
about ten minutes late.  They have a 2600 foot grass strip then you taxi 
about 300 yards west to the hotel.

The hotel website 
is:   http://www.hotelbeaumontks.com/

The Airnav link 
is:  http://www.airnav.com/airport/SN07

This picture shows the runway just this side (east) of the area of trees. 
Then to the left (south) end of the runway you can see the light colored 
road that heads west towards the hotel:

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont1Small.jpg
 


The next picture was taken after landing south on the runway:

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont2Small.jpg
 


The next one is a sign to at the south end that gives instructions on 
getting to the hotel:

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont3Small.jpg
 


The following out of focus picture gives you and idea what to expect after 
turning west on the road at the south end of the runway:

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont4Small.jpg
 


Here is the stop sign and hotel.  The parking area is ahead and to the left.

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont5Small.jpg

Here is my plane in the parking area and the hotel:

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont6Small.jpg

And this is closer to the stop sign.  I pulled the plane here due to large 
rocks in the parking area.  I am not sure what people do for tie downs if 
they stay there.  Personally I would prefer an asphalt area that does not 
slope down away from the road.

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont7Small.jpg

The following picture is on the runway facing north:

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont8Small.jpg

This one is facing south from the north end of the runway.  You can see 
some of the many windmills that are south of the field.

http://home.pcisys.net/~ronlee/RV6A/Beaumont9Small.jpg

I used perhaps half of the runway then went west to Benton airpark (1K1) 
for $3.30 

KR> Mark Jones Photos

[Ron Lee]

Mark, those are great pictures.  I was amazed to see the pallet
platform to load the plane.  Very ingenious.  Do keep us informed
on the cause of your problem.  It may help prevent it happening
to someone else.

Ron Lee

KR> Fuel supply

[Ron Lee]

I have a carbureted O-360 with mechanical fuel pump and in-line
electric fuel pump.  Unless I have missed it there is no fuel return line
anywhere in the system.

Ron Lee

KR> Odyssey Battery

[Ron Lee]

Common in RVs.  I have used the PC-680(?) but with a wood prop
in an O-360 engine it was not perfect in starting.  It often stopped on
a compression stroke.  Let off the starter..wait a moment then start
and it was fine.

I recently installed a PC-925 and it spins the prop perfectly.  It weighs
about 10 pounds more than the PC-680 but it has "more power."

Ron Lee

KR> Odyssey Battery

[Ron Lee]

I believe that I ordered mine from:

http://www.odysseybatteries.com/

Also look at:

http://www.odysseyfactory.com/

If you go with the PC-680 there are two terminal types (M6 bolt and SAE)

The PC-925 also has two different terminal configurations.  Note that
these can be placed on their sides.

I called my Batteries Plus and they had none in stock.

As far as which one most RVs seems to use the PC-680.  Maybe it was
my light wood prop that was problematic with that battery and made me
change to a PC-925 (10 pounds heavier).

As far as trickle type chargers here is what I use (as do others on the field):

http://www.batteryweb.com/batteryminder.cfm

Ron Lee

KR> Weather Gods/Future Gatherings

[Ron Lee]

September is much nicer than any summer month.  October may
be even better but you start having the chance of cold fronts.  When
planning a flight to Key West I found a link that shows lightning
activity in Florida.  Since that should correlate to thunderstorms and
weather I will avoid it provides a quick glance as to better weather.

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tbw/information/ltg/ltg2.gif

and

http://www.srh.noaa.gov/tbw/information/ltg/ltg3.gif

September shows a reduction from the highs of June/July and October
is even better.  Another useful link to get a birds eye view of rain is here:

http://adds.aviationweather.gov/radar/

Even this morning there is some on the mid south probably associated
with a cold front passage but it is much less than I have seen in summer
months.

http://adds.aviationweather.gov/radar/

September and October are the two highest hurricane months but personally
I would not try to plan around them.  If one happens such is life...unless you
have the gathering in Florida!

Something to consider if you are planning a date change or permanent
location.  This may require a change from your typical banquet decision to
one that polls the wider KR community.  Perhaps it is all KR-netters or
all Gathering attendees for the last 10 years or so.

Regardless, weather will always be a factor.  I am a VFR pilot and I stick
to my limitations.  You won't find me trying to penetrate a thunderstorm.

Ron Lee

KR> Preliminary 10 day weather outlook for MVN

[Ron Lee]

This forecast is not something that I would bet on but if
close it is promising for Mount Vernon.  That does not
guarantee the path between various departure points and MVN.

http://tinyurl.com/jzu6e

Ron Lee 

KR> RV versus KR control responsiveness

[Ron Lee]

Has anyone flown both to evaluate control responsiveness
similarities/differences?

Ron Lee

KR> RV versus KR control responsiveness

[Ron Lee]

Thanks Dana.  I should have mentioned why I asked the question.
It was not to start a flame war.

As it seems the control responsiveness of an RV-6A is closer to
a KR than a Cessna 172 then time spend getting used to the RV
should contribute to a person flying the KR more safely.

For a person who has never flown a KR and is about to is it
common for anyone to get that newbie proficient in KR flight to
include take-offs and landings?

Ron Lee

KR> Taxi cost at Mt Vernon

[Ron Lee]

Did not see this on the webpage.  Does anyone know the approximate
cost for a taxi from the airport (MVN) to the Holiday Inn?

Ron Lee

KR> Wheel landing a KR

[Ron Lee]

Mark Langford opined
"I'll bet landing an RV-6 is a lot like landing a KR, and they wheel land
RV's as a rule too, according to the guy I flew with today.  Maybe I need to
get on board and perfect wheel landing the KR..."

Ok Mark, will that happen at Mt Vernon in two weeks?   :)
I can bring my camcorder.

Ron Lee

KR> Sun shades

[Ron Lee]

Reference a post by Larry about adding a sunshade, I use
an Axius rectangular sunshade with suction cups that I got
at Pep Boys. It folds up into a much smaller package.

You can still see through it and sometimes I consider adding
some of that mylar like sunscreen material on top of it for
added sun reduction.

Ron Lee

KR> Flight Report

[Ron Lee]

>  I will flip the prop around tonight to see if it changes the small
>vibration I still have.

Have you considered a dynamic prop balancing?

Ron Lee

KR> W and Oil issues

[Ron Lee]

>  I will remedy that immediately by removing the 1/4
>  tube and replacing the fitting with one for a 3/8" tube. Don't have any 3/8
>tube, but I'll bet one of these RV builders down at the airport has some.


Or the KR aviation section of your local hardware store

Ron Lee

KR> Flight #4

[Ron Lee]

>I talked to Kim McCutcheon (president of the Aircraft Engine Historical
>Society and mechanical engineer A) today , and he commented that it takes
>an engine out landing to start thinking like I do now...going everywhere at
>12,000'.


That is probably good for sea level folks.  That is my normal region flying 
east
of the Rockies with 14,500 and higher going west.   Once I get to altitude I
don't normally give it up until close to the destination airport.  My flight to
Red Oak two years ago was at 17,500'

Ron Lee

KR> W & B dilemma

[Ron Lee]

At 07:20 PM 10/31/2005, you wrote:
>What have you used and where did you get them?

A  mechanic here has a set that is used by him plus many
RV builders to do their W

Ron

KR> landing a KR

[Ron Lee]

>  One thing that I am curious about is the glide
>slope lights to the runway. What glide are they set for? I had 2 decent
>landings and both times I was well below the lights.(red over red)

Typically 3 degrees.

Ron Lee

KR> W & B dilemma

[Ron Lee]

Get a good set of scales and weight each point SEPARATELY.

Locally someone here has a set of automotive scales (four) and three are
used to do the W  Placing a board between the scales may cause
inaccuracies but using bathroom scales is not the way to go.

Make sure that you are properly level according to recommended procedure.

Ron Lee

KR> BRS

[Ron Lee]

Ron, your career choice as a LIBRARIAN is fine but not relevant
to this discussion.  By "bad decisions" surely you mean something
that could get you killed dead.   I am very careful about my flying
and cancel on many occasions if I do not like the conditions.

You are right that better pilots than I get killed.  But their better
piloting skills cannot overcome stupid decisions such as the pilot
who landed in Little Rock late at night after a long day during a
severe thunderstorm.  Very dumb..and deadly.

I make up for less than Chuck Yeager skills (which I will never
have) with judgement.

And per another post, I hope that you have done the structural
analysis to verify that your BRS installation will not destroy the
aircraft upon activation.

If I were really concerned about my safety, I would wear my chest mount
reserve.

Ron Lee

KR> BRS

[Ron Lee]

At 06:27 AM 10/22/2005, you wrote:
>Your judgement is questionable? you don't know the difference between
>LIBRARIAN and LIBRITARIAN? I would not ride with you and be sure anyone
>else knows about this before they get in an airplane with you.
>Sincerely
>Jim

Jim, you need to see tongue-in-cheek humor. What the original poster meant
to type was "libertarian"..not "libritarian" which is not a word.

Hence my play on words to change that to "librarian" which is a word.

You do not know me and you apparently disagree with my position on BRS
and that is fine but it is a fact that I am a very safe pilot largely 
because of
my superior judgement.  And my piloting skills are improving due to the effort
I am taking on my instrument course.

So if you judge a pilot by his ability to spell then not only am I good there
but you are suspect! :)

Now get back to building or flying Jim and I am going back to studying for
my written test.   Grumble grumble.

Ron Lee

Do not archive

KR> battery had bulged

[Ron Lee]

>  I have now flight tested this battery and DO NOT recommend it any 
> longer. Mark
>Langford, I suggest you remove yours and replace it as well as anyone else
>who may have one.


Many RVs use Odyssey batteries:

http://www.odysseybatteries.com/

I use the PC-680

Ron Lee

KR> Gathering photos

[Ron Lee]

Try this

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jsaupe/my_photos

KR> BRS

[Ron Lee]

>Ron, I think a BRS is not an option, it must be a requirement.

That is fine for a personal decision but not a mandate.  My opinion
is that a BRS is a crutch and masks poor piloting skills or decisions.

Reference:  My analysis of several Cirrus BRS deployments.

Ron Lee

KR> BRS

[Ron Lee]

Ron,  How will I get into a flat spin?

Answer: It won't happen or has such a low probability
that it is not worth being part of a risk assessment.

My piloting skills:  Good to better than average

Pilot judgement: Superior

Flight currency:  250 hours a year the last three years

Current training: instrument rating

As I said, if you or anyone else desires to install a BRS, go ahead.
I have seen several cases where they were used were use masked
extremely poor judgement.

The aileron case may be viable if and only if detection of the maintenance
problem was undetected during a normal preflight.  That does not apply to
me since I know the status of my control system.

The argument that everyone makes bad decisions is fundamentally flawed
and cannot support a universal mandate for BRS systems. I don't make
those kind of decisions, which is why I am a safer pilot than many.  FACT!

Ron Lee

KR> BRS

[Ron Lee]

One suggestion for those who are installing a BRS.  Make sure
that you perform the required structural analysis to verify that
deployment of the BRS under all plausible flight conditions will
not result in structural failure and that it lowers the aircraft in a
position that does not result in major physical injury upon landing.

Ron Lee

KR> Revised KR Gathgering Plane List (20)

[Ron Lee]

And a token RV-6A from Falcon, CO

No longer purple!

Ron Lee

KR> Revised KR Gathering Plane List (20)

[Ron Lee]

>Guys, Not to discriminate, but this list is for KR's ONLY. We welcome
>all airplanes but if it is not a KR, it mat be treated like a red headed
>step child. :-)
>
>Mark Jones (N886MJ)

Noted.  I just cancelled my hotel reservation.

Ron Lee 

KR> Paint job

[Ron Lee]

>  I also flew over to a
>neighboring airport to get an estimate on a paint job. This guy is a
>professional and he wanted $5500 to paint it. Ha I will do it my self.

I am having part of my plane repainted a manly color for a great overall
cost.   The majority of the labor is mine prepping the paint.

I got the plane back today then the control surfaces were painted today.

And to think that I considered multiple cans of Krylon paint.

Ron Lee

KR> Next year's gathering location

[Ron Lee]

Normally it seems that around this time there is jockeying to
determine where next years gathering will be.  It is always
interesting to see the comments yet I have seen nothing yet.

Is this a deliberate attempt to deprive me of the pleasure of
reading those posts?

Ron Lee

KR> getting ready for passenger need briefing

[Ron Lee]

>I would highly recommend flying with added weight in increments first.

I strongly agree with this.  To go from never a passenger to adding 205
pounds is very unwise.

Ron Lee 

KR> Amount of paint

[Ron Lee]

At 09:27 AM 8/22/2005, you wrote:
>Netters,
> Can a KR2 be painted with one gallon of paint or should I order two
>gallons?


Are you using a brush or roller?   :)

Ron Lee

do not archive

KR> kr gathering

[Ron Lee]

>If you are a true KR die hard, you will
>arrive on Thursday, Sept 8th. Hope this helps.


And some of us will arrive fashionably late on Saturday.

do not archive

Ron Lee

KR>RED OAK - GATHERING

[Ron Lee]

>Roll Callwho is going?


I am

Ron Lee

KR>KR Gathering

[Ron Lee]

It is inside one month and no talk about it.

I am still trying to make it to Red Oak before September just because
it looks like a nice airport.

Ron Lee

KR>Being seen in flight

[Ron Lee]

>Mark mentioned his innovative visibility device.

Having flown over 160 hours since last November, I have
come to the conclusion that flying over my airport (and to/from it)
is the most dangerous place to be.

I noticed an RV coming in with flashing landing/taxi lights and it
seemed to help a lot.  The guy markets an inexpensive flasher unit
that I bought but have not yet installed.  His website is:

http://www.creativair.com/exfla/index.htm

I also have a Monroy traffic detector and tune to COS approach
after getting above the 00V traffic pattern.  All this and it is still
hazardous.   It is amazing that on a cross-country flight in CO
you may never see another plane but over 00V with a VOR about
five miles to the west, incoming/outgoing traffic, mucho students
including USAFA students and you need all options to make it safer.

So I would suggest getting the best lighting you can, install a flasher
unit if you think it helps.  The number of  "just a few seconds earlier
and" events has been way too many.  Complacency anywhere
near my airport in not an option.

I bet Red Oak will be a pleasant change.

Ron Lee