Ch 13 Nose and Nose Gear

Using a delay in the canard build I’m back on the nose. The challenge was to make a curve that leads into the minimum area that I must leave so that the head light can fully deploy left right up down. I made a card with these maximum L/R deflections and attached it to the light which is just visible in pic one.

Some plastic conduct clamped to the sides was then taped to rulers and a straight edge down the center line of the fuselage. So now I had a nice even curve ending up with its sides giving clearance at the headlight movement card. A ruler taped in place also helped. With this arrangement I just laid out a big piece of paper and drew lines as marked from the conduit. I used the edge of a pencil on the corners which were underneath the paper. Easy.

Next up came a template out of some laminex as in pic three. A couple of hours or so was next with careful shaping of both sides using a disc sander at very low speed. The curve I want is in a precise place and this will become the widest part of the nose curve with the rest of the shape falling away from these points.

Took a bit of thought. I want a shortish nose and it seems the shape is going to design itself from necessity. Its about an inch shorter than plans so far but wider more like a basketball shape rather than a pine cone. I wonder what it’s going to look like finished??

Automatic curve making

Template time

Making the shape

Quite a few days on this since the last entry. I’ve had to replace the backing piece which was just a piece of BID on a scrap that made it the right size. This time I’m not trimming it down until I really have to….yep thats why I needed a new piece!

I had to reverse where the screws went so that I can get as low a profile as possible on the top. I’m still concerned that the nose will be too high at the light’s mount however now there is room to trim it if necessary due to the re positioning of a screw mount. Wooow

Its finally in place, as low as I dare and I’ve trimmed enough material away so that the light can go full throw left right or down. I went very slowly and this took a couple of afternoons. Its re positioned as well so that the down part is a long way down and up hardly does much more than straight in line for taxi. Again this is something thats hard to see in this log but will make the light much more useful in its movement range for landing and still good for taxi.

I’m hoping I won’t need little limit switches because of the added complexity. We will see once the nose is glassed in although I can see how to do it now…well… more or less. The pitot remains a challenge and I’m still working with the submerged tube concept and want to do more testing as I’m thinking it may need to go below the peak of the light in the lower half of the dome.

In place

Turn right

Turn left

Time to find out if my headlight position will work in with the side angle of the nose. First up was to make a dummy instrument panel (IP). I was pretty surpised to see how small it is! How in the world am I going to fit all those lovely glass instruments to it.

Using my long spare ruler I can now see the angle of the nose and if you look in pic two I have drawn the plans angle on the side of the foam. Seems like my light is too high!

I had a think and feel that the pitot can go a little lower and so can the light. I also need to rotate the whole light mount so the screws end up lower. Half a days fiddling when I feel like a break from other jobs. I may have to trim the top of the mount where I have the white plastic. It should be fine.

Lots of careful cutting and I’m close to the righ spot now. Still some work to ensure the light has full movement.I’m going slowly here as thats quicker than adding material back on.

I checked in my flying plane too and after the canard the nose angle doesn’t effect the view so its pretty much aesthetics. Sure, there may be some aerodynamic voodoo happening here but if I get less or more drag either way might be correct so I’ll just go for a nice shape that works with the light.

Dummy panel

First nose angle

Lowering the light

Now to mount that light in the nose. I had some left over internal spar bulkhead from when I put that in the wrong position and needed to make a replacement. Lets say I was secretly making a future light mount rather than one of my frequently corrected mistakes in action OK?

I spent a lot of time finding and making simple stand off extensions for the guide area of the three screws. It ended up being a garden watering system feeder pipe that was just the right size. Wandering around a hardware store with a light and wires didn’t raise an eyebrow.

Then I made cutouts for easy screw access in the aluminium mount and next a few hours playing with more little standoffs to get the angle of the light on the mount adjustable. It works. I needed a down angle so the side to side mechanism had more range. Now the whole thing is set so I can do a lot of adjustments as needed.

Next was making a simple slot in the NG30’s to mount the light. Eventually it will have two 90 degree angle pieces and bolt on with just two AN3’s. I’ll show you pics when I do it.

Meanwhile I’m wondering if I’ll have to make the slots deeper to work with the nose profile and exactly how the pitot is going to sit. So I’m happy to stop now and work on the nose shaping soon knowing I can get the light correct after I have final sizes. The backing can be trimmed down a lot too when the time comes. Good result so far on a tricky problem.

Light base

Nose fitting

Simple is good

Yes this is all done over several days. While I was thinking and working on the wing core setup a nice diversion is the front light. I finally bit the bullet and made a cut in the front bulkhead to begin the fit.

Next was getting the light wired up to see what it really did and work out what combinations I needed. I made proper terminals and labeled things which means I can disconnect wires without drama. The ‘diagram’ with my Aveo Pegasus doesn’t show internal wiring but is fine for adding switches.

I used the 5 offered functions as in pic two. You can see in pic 3 it is really bright with all the options set at max. After this and some online discussion I spent time learning how to wire an on-on-on switch to function as off-taxi-landing and got all the combinations down to 3 switches. I need to source a 3P3T however. All that remains is to learn how to draw circuit diagrams. So this simple light is my first project on that towards the ‘wiring book’ for the plane.

Made the cut

Wiring adventures

Yes it’s bright

I spent another couple of days on version one of this mount to get the light fixed to the motor mount. Version one was heavier and it stuck the light out from the mount in a way that felt like too long a moment arm and potentially trouble as I bounce down runways. I needed a tighter result.

I ended up discarding the mount that came with the light, putting two very light pieces of angle aluminium back to back and then using three metal tubes as standoffs with screws doing the fastening.

The result is rock solid and the weight of the light as close to the motor mount as was possible while still allowing room for the wires to exit cleanly.

I’m extremely happy with this fitting. I still have to drill holes and rivet rather than screw the angle aluminium together and select a few bits of mounting hardware. I’ll anodise the lot when I’m closer to installing it permanently . With this section done I can look at mounting it onto the NG30’s in the nose which will then give me a beginning to how the nose shape can be done.

This is a good step forward on a problem that I’ve been thinking about since I started the build.

Lightweight base

Screws and tube standoffs

It works!

Back to the headlight mounting again. This job just sits in between others when I get a bit stuck!

The first task was to get a better fixing point on the car mirror motorized mount. It had 4 little plastic loops that looked very easy to break off. I tried removing the mount outer cover to fix some hardpoints but it looked like I’d break it for sure.

The solution was to build up all around those little lugs and I found a few curry containers that I had saved that were the right size. Then followed a couple of days cutting out the bottoms and making rings as washers and a couple of them with a bit of the sides intact. I ended up with the plastic encapsulating those lugs completely and a very strong outer fitting with a bit of give in it.

I used 5mt to set it all in place and had a really good lightweight result.

Curry containers re-purposed

Reinforcement rings

A new, strong mounting area

The front headlight has been an issue from the start of the build. Deciding what to use and where to put it. I’ve allocated plans page 13-10 in the log but this is my own modification to the plans. I need a good light for landing and always on and flashing recognition!

I’m using an Aveo Pegasus, a multi function recognition/landing/taxi LED light array, sort of all in one and really bright..

The last feature I want is to be able to aim the light for landing, then reset it for taxi and also move it left to right for after landing when trying to find those turnoffs from the runway in the dark. I’ve thought about push pull cables and servo motors. The manual cable idea is great except the cables will really be in the way of the avionics on the panel. The answer is using a car light mirror plateform. I tested five of these and have ended up with a VW part. I’ve put it in a frame, pic1, and have a switch from another mirror hooked up for testing.

This will mount in the nose ABOVE the pitot, pic 3, which means a small modification to that area of the NG30’s. This continues to be a little side project while other parts are curing! Next job will be to mount the light on the plastic moving mirror mount ….somehow.

I need to mount the light before I can set the nose shape and width. I’ll control the light angles from switches on the stick. Having the light also means I’ll need access from a large top door in the nose. All this is a bit of a mystery in terms of how it will work out.

Aveo LED & mounting test bed

Aveo LED backside

Thinking about light position

Time to start planning the nose shape. I’m using a NACA 67-025 airfoil for the shap just scaled up from a drawing. The line of the nose begins at the instrument panel so its center will really be on the lower side as shown in the first pic.

The nose length will be very similar to plans but not so pointed. I like the snub look more like a Dugong than a shark.

I had a fly in my Long-EZ JZE and noted that any curves above the instrument panel or a higher panel is going to reduce visibility. The line needs to curve away from the panel and down.

I’m wondering when to start all this as ideally, canopy, canard cover and the nose would all be done together.

Nose shape NACA 67-025

Nose length

Light and pitot shapes

There has been a huge amount of time finding a way to put in a nose light. I have also spent more than a year talking to the AVEO LED light people on this. I finally bought a very bright Aveo Pegasus.

My plan is to mount it on a car electric mirror mechanism so I can aim the light from side to side and down and center in flight via switches on the stick.

The issue has been how to fit it in a small blunt nose and the answer is to cut into NG31 as in the first and third pics. I am told by experts it is not a structural problem. Having the heated pitot in the center inside a tube and the light above is finally the answer.

Pic 2 shows the Pegasus and a mirror mount that will fit in between the NG30’s with a bit of work.

Proposed inside NG30 cutout

LED and mechanism

Proposed nose cutout

The Noselift came with molex plugs that have been nothing but grief. I traced the problem to a connector that was causing intermittent issues and really did not want these plugs in my plane. They are not aviation quality and already would cause a wheels up if left as is.

I also decided to remove the auto extend wiring and feature that came with the lift as well. I see this as potentially causing unintended gear extension during maintenance and risking the plane going over backwards.

I removed all that and its associated wire and cleaned up what I could. I’ll install the switches on the center lower panel where the manual lever usually goes. I checked wire lengths for this.

I’m using plugs purchased from my local Avionics specialists at my home airfield. It was not cheap but lightweight and great quality. The pins were .90c each! I took my time rewiring the lift and now have a plug I can trust and very carefully crimped pins.

It tested correctly and I feel much better about the installation now. I also replaced one of the limit switches with the exact same type and I have a couple of spares. I improved the clearances around the switch toggles as well.

Old wiring

Careful rewire

New fitting

Installing the rudder pedals was just cleaning up the pivot blocks and then drilling the 3/8″ holes in the NG30 middle plates in the right spot.

The pedals were pre made in New Zealand by another builder who did a great job for me. There is still a lot to do on these. I’ll set the pedal position heights after the wings and on and things hooked up so I can then position the brake cylinders exactly right for my leg length. There is adjustment but while I’m impatience to do it now it will be better later.

There is still the little .25″OD steel spacers to put in. I bought the right rob from Spruce but what they sent was the wrong OD and will not allow an AN3 bolt. Next order…..

I have to work out how to connect these to the rear pedals and do that install. For now its another step forward….pardon the pun.

Pedal left

Pedal right

Both pedals