A New Project

[Wyandot Jim]

Well Guys,
I was getting pretty board without a project. So Grandson Chad came up with one for us to do. It is called a Carbon Cub FX-2 by CubCrafters. Since Chad has been flying these around the country to earn extra money he is very familiar with the performance and what the finished plane will sell for. This isn't your Grandfather's Piper Cub for sure. :wink:
We will be going to Midland TX. to pick it up on Saturday and bring the kit back in a 26' U-Haul truck.
The plan is for Chad to live with us for his time off from Texas A&M this summer, which he will be graduating from in Dec, so we can work on the plane. Since he will only be going to classes two days a week in the fall it will allow him more time here. It will probably be a 6-9 month project. Most kits are being completed in 900-1200 hours. Most all of the major components are finished and all of the required parts are included in the kit. This makes it a whole lot easier than when I was building my Starduster 45 years ago. I enjoy working on this type off construction and looking forward to passing on my skills to Chad. There are not many old Farts left that have the type of skills required for this type of project. This will also count as time spent towards Chad's FAA A&P License that he has been working towards.

 

[bogus bill]

They have one out here that the BLM use`s to shoot coyotes. Good luck! What engine are you going to use?

 

[Wyandot Jim]

The engine is 180 HP and is built for experimental aircraft and is owned by Continental. The engine is a Titan 341 which is a stroked O-320 Lycoming

 

[bogus bill]

Sounds like it will be a real powerhouse STOL plane. Cruise or climb pitch? Any chance for auto gas?

 

[Wyandot Jim]

As far as the STOL it does pretty good. The Valdese STOL Competition was won it's category by one like we are building. Take off 29' landing 75'
Yes you can run mogas in them but I don't because it doesn't have any lead in it which is not good for the engine. When the EAA did the MOGAS testing it still contained lead and NO Ethanol. Not worth the chance of killing a $35,000 engine :wink:

 

[bogus bill]

Good luck with that project. I am envious. I cant build a bird house. I have a close friend that like you, lives on his own strip and always has a couple three projects going. He restored my Citabria and the picture is of it in front of his hanger. I think I picked it up that day a few years ago. It was a long term project. I had to sell it a year ago for health and financial reasons. It is a 1971 GCBC. I bought it in 1976 from a glider tow. Had a metalized tri pacer before that. Cracked it up. A embarrassing story. Both had/have the 0320 150 hp lyc. I miss the Tri pacer. Useful load was close to double and it was about 10 mph faster. If I had it again I would have converted it to tail wheel and give it pants. The broker that picked up my Citabria last year showed up with one like your building.
https://s19.postimg.cc/lfydq3p2b/20140715_080150.jpg

 

[graygun]

Glass cockpit too...impressive even more...have fun!

 

[Jimbo357mag]

I have seen a lot of videos of those Carbon Cubs, Impressive. All metal frame, carbon fiber cowl and parts with fabric covering. Right? That is really some project for the summer. Good luck. I hope everything goes smoothly.

 

[caryc]

I'm a little confused here. Do they produce it to the point you show in the first picture and then you finish it or do you just get a truck full of parts and start from scratch?

Is it sheet metal on the body and wings or some other material? I was wondering if it's aluminum, does it come with the kit already formed or do you have to form it?

Built lots of model planes but never one I could climb into. :mrgreen:

 

[Wyandot Jim]

I'm a little confused here. Do they produce it to the point you show in the first picture and then you finish it or do you just get a truck full of parts and start from scratch?

Is it sheet metal on the body and wings or some other material? I was wondering if it's aluminum, does it come with the kit already formed or do you have to form it?

Built lots of model planes but never one I could climb into. :mrgreen:

Cary,
No the wings are not completed. The rest of the airframe is pretty much as you see it. But there are a bunch of parts that you have to install. The airplane is fabric covered not aluminum covered.

 

[steve1701]

Please take lots of pictures and keep us informed with your progress.

 

[caryc]

I'm a little confused here. Do they produce it to the point you show in the first picture and then you finish it or do you just get a truck full of parts and start from scratch?

Is it sheet metal on the body and wings or some other material? I was wondering if it's aluminum, does it come with the kit already formed or do you have to form it?

Built lots of model planes but never one I could climb into. :mrgreen:

Cary,
No the wings are not completed. The rest of the airframe is pretty much as you see it. But there are a bunch of parts that you have to install. The airplane is fabric covered not aluminum covered.

Thanks, as steve1701 said, pictures along the way would be great. In my younger days, I worked in three different aircraft job shops. They made parts like elevators, flaps, doors and all sorts of small stuff. The boss would give you a set of drawings and point you towards the sheet metal rack and let you have at it. The latest one I worked at had most any kind of equipment you could want. Sometimes we even made our own form blocks to form sheet metal parts in his press. Believe it or not we actually made some form blocks out of hardwood, for use in his press with big hunks of rubber to push the aluminum down on the blocks. The senior guy in that shop was retired. He was an aeronautical engineer and used to be TWA's head of maintenance. I learned a whole lot of stuff from him. It was fun and interesting work. That's where I learned to make jigs and templates and how to layout a flat pattern. The boss that owned Hemet Aircraft Manufacturing Co. finally retired himself and sold off all his equipment.

 

[wolfsong]

Wow! And I was feeling proud of myself for repairing and refinishing an old end table for Juanita the past couple of weeks.

Color me humbled.

 

[blackhawknj]

At first I thought it was Wonder Woman's invisible airplane.

 

[caryc]

At first I thought it was Wonder Woman's invisible airplane.

I never could get that. What good did it do for the plane to be invisible when you could still see her sitting there flying it?

 

[#1rugerman]

Cary’s she was eye candy, the plane was not.

 

[bogus bill]

[I never could get that. What good did it do for the plane to be invisible when you could still see her sitting there flying it?] Thats so. She also has the golden lasso that when she puts it around your neck you are compelled to tell the truth. Unfortunately she would slap me down!

 

[caryc]

Cary’s she was eye candy, the plane was not.

It would make more sense if her costume was invisible. :shock:

 

[blackhawknj]

It's a comic book. Her Invisible Plane is sort a stealth fighter.

 

[bogus bill]

You gotta check this out!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vHQCipF-IQ