V-77 practice

I flew a few takeoffs and landings in Bret’s V-77 a few weeks back to get current again.  Hopefully I will fly my V-77 first flight in the next few weeks.  Here is one of my landings a neighbor filmed:

https://youtu.be/DvBZ0KMyd14

Paint booth now history

I had 1/6 of the original size paint booth used to paint the V-77 still standing for painting smaller items like fairings and cowlings.  David, the young man who bought the Voyager a few years ago, had new landing gear fairings shipped here from Univair.  We got some of the painting accomplished when he was here around Thanksgiving.  With the recent warm temperatures, I got them finished. With that task complete as well as the V-77 painting finished, I decided to take down the 10x10 paint booth this morning.  I had just enough paint left from when I painted the hangar floor in April for the area now opened up.  It may take some getting used to the extra space!

Floor painted

Floor swept

Part way through the tear down 

V-77 runs

We calibrated the compass this afternoon with help from Wade and Nathan.  Then we tried to start the engine.  We had a minor leak in the primer line.  Once that was fixed, it fired up on the second try.  We have an issue with the prop control not working.  I got some photos from Bret of his installation, so maybe that will help.

Here are a few photos and 2 videos one shows the first attempt to start.  The second shows the engine actually starting.  Yay!

Compass calibrated

Engine running

First attempt at starting:

https://youtu.be/9qFckEOP9kY

Second attempt:

https://youtu.be/TBr5gl1k3F4

Compass installed

I attached the compass to the mount this morning.  Steve came over after lunch and we tried to calibrate it, but the plane kept working its way down the ramp as we rotated it to various headings.  At some point I gave up and decided we needed to wait for Wade to come by.  Apparently it is not as straightforward as I hoped.  We got the flying club’s Kabota and pushed the plane back up the ramp and into the hangar.

At the bottom of the ramp

Back in the hangar

Cockpit view

Compass attached

A human drill press

I went to Halstead this morning and Mark drilled new holes in a few of the Airloc fasteners.  He did this freehand without a drill press and was extremely accurate.  With those, I was able to get the copilot side of the cowl fastened with the exception of one fastener.  We will try that one again tomorrow.  I also glued the compass mount to the windshield.  I’ll let that dry overnight and install the compass tomorrow.  We have some warm days coming so maybe we can also swing the compass.

Third fastener from left not in yet

Compass mount glued in.  Plastic in place to protect things.

Mark drilling one of the Airloc fasteners.

Eight years and counting

It was 8 years ago today I handed over money and loaded the V-77 into a 26 foot U-Haul with the help of my good friend Jim.  Then it was the long drive from Florida to Kansas.  We arrived home in the early hours of Dec 17, 2017…. and work began.  Now we are really close to wrapping up the restoration.  The glue to attach the compass mount to the front window came in today… 2 days early.  I have marked my proposed location.  The longer Airloc fasteners also arrived today.  I finished the pilot side attachment, but need Wade to look at the copilot side.  We have a minor fit issue.  I am going to Halstead tomorrow and Mark will drill new holes in 2 of the fasteners.  I bought the longest they have, but we need 2 slightly longer to account for a patch we installed.

Compass attached to mount

Pilot side of cowl attached

The compass mounts in the center of the blue

The magic glue to hold the compass to the window

Friends drop by

Friends John and Bob dropped by to see the Gullwing this afternoon.  Bob had seen it previously, but it has been a while.  I think they were both impressed with the size.  I also painted the compass holder flat black this morning.  I just sprayed another coat and will see how it looks in a bit.

John (L) and Bob

Compass holder

Another compass approach

After ordering the uAvionix magnetometer, I read the installation instructions online and discovered they included a statement that a wet compass is still required.  Must not be a true magnetometer.  Rats!  So, back to the drawing board.  I also installed my I-pad to see what effect it had on a compass…and it was significant.  That meant we would need to glue the compass to the windshield as there is nowhere else to put it.  I played around with locations and think above the control wheels is the sweet spot.  Far enough away from steel and the IPad, far enough forward it should not be a head strike item.  I went to Halstead today and Mark helped make a compass mount.  It is simple but functional.  I stopped at Lewis Street Glass on the way back and they recommended Loctite AA 312 for glue.  I have that ordered and it will be here Wednesday afternoon.  In the meantime, I’ll get this painted flat black.

The final product….need to shorten the screws 

This is the potential location to mount the compass

Sheet metal after Mark used his punch

Mark using a hole punch to make a compass size hole

Compass not calibrated

We rolled the V-77 out today to calibrate the magnetic compass.  We knew this might be an issue due to all of the steel in the cockpit area.  We had wrapped some nickel shielding around one of the closer supports to the compass.  Apparently that was not enough.  We had the airplane on an east heading and got that calibrated, when we rotated to north, it still indicated east.  Oops.  One possible solution included mounting the compass in the center of the windshield….but then you might hit your head on it when entering or exiting the front seats, plus it is a challenge to get something that heavy to stay attached to glass.  The other option was to get a magnetometer.  The FAA changed the rules a few years ago and removed the requirement for a wet compass if you have an electronic heading corrected by a magnetometer.  So, I ordered one this afternoon….it will be here Monday.  Stay tuned!

East heading calibration underway

David ran the external compass to help us get aligned

Exhaust fixed

I went to Halstead this morning and Mark welded the hole in the exhaust in about 30 seconds.  Now to get it reinstalled.  The longer Airloc studs for the cowling won’t be here until Monday according to the tracking.  Let’s hope they are wrong and get here sooner.  I took some pictures of the interior tonight.  I will send them to Mike at Mike’s Custom Upholstery in Wichita so he can see the final product of his handiwork.

Mark welding the exhaust hole closed 

Cuff fits

David came over tonight and gave me a hand with the lower cowling as I finished the installation of the canvas cuff Mark made last Saturday.  It fits perfectly.  Here are a few shots.  There is excess material at the bottom to allow for movement between the engine and cowling.

Tailwheel fixed

Wade installed the new tailwheel today on the V-77.  Let’s hope this one lasts longer than the previous.  He also installed two “shoulders” the upper cowl rests on.  This will minimize the strain on the piece that hold the two upper pieces together.  Wade also discovered a hole in one of the exhaust manifolds.  I’ll take that to Halstead tomorrow and have Mark weld it shut.

Hole in exhaust 

New tailwheel and tube

Shoulder on pilot side

A new cuff

The aluminum cuff and 5” SCAT tube (see November 10, 2025 entry) Mark and I made didn’t work out.  There just isn’t much room between the bottom of the carburetor and the lower cowling.  Plus you need some flexibility as the engine moves around a lot, especially on start up.  So, we went back to the original design and made a cuff out of canvas.  I went to Halstead today and Mark helped me make one.  He has an industrial sewing machine and knows how to use it.  In other news, the tailwheel tube arrived Thursday, but I am still waiting on the tire to arrive.  It was supposed to be here yesterday…maybe Monday now.  I flew on Wednesday with Bret in his V-77.  I greased on 3 landings, so quit while I was ahead.  I’ll save the other good landings for my V-77.

The metal plate that holds the fabric cuff to the cowling

I need to glue the plate to the cuff yet

In the sewing process

Mark has it all pinned together