EAA Sport Aviation - September 2011

TEXAS ZENITH CH 701 NEARLY FIVE YEARS AFTER purchasing my kit, I finally completed and flew my Zenith STOL CH 701. As advertised, the airplane really takes off with only 100 feet of runway and is quite maneuverable and a joy to fly! A Rotax 912ULS 100-hp engine powers the plane. The light airframe affords a great power-to-weight ratio and allows initial climbs up to 1,500 fpm. Included on the panel is a basic VFR setup with a Tru Trak attitude direction indicator. I decided to modify the original airplane design by developing my own electric flap system. I also purchased the bubble doors to add extra cabin width. Thanks to Dennis McCright for all the great technical expertise, Mark Hensarling for the awesome paint job, Dave Jones and “Joe Cool” Ruiz for all the help, the folks at Zenith Aircraft, and especially my wife, Diane, for her patience and support.

Daniel Ginty, EAA 797718; Conroe, Texas;

E-mail: txpilot@consolidated.net; Technical Counselor: Donald Brewer & Dennis McCright

PENNSYLVANIA GLASTAR GLASTAR N355TC WAS COMPLETED in 2008. With about 140 hours on the Hobbs meter we are very happy with it. Our GlaStar is powered with a 160-hp Lycoming IO-320- B1A. Because of the aft induction on this engine we installed an ECI cold-induction sump and Van’s RV air intake for a clean cowl. This was a creative solution but led to some challenges, namely the “one change leads to another” commonly experienced in homebuilding. In my view, the key to building an airplane is to never look at the entire plans or manual at once. After all, you can only build it one piece at a time.

Todd and Tom Copeland, EAA 685497; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; E-mail: n355tc@yahoo.com

MISSISSIPPI RV- 6 AFTER 23 YEARS OF construction my RV- 6 took flight on a beautiful fall morning, November 9, 2010. There were no surprises in the handling characteristics or in the performance of the 160-hp Lycoming O-320 engine, which I overhauled in 1997. The instrument panel is what some might call “retro” in that I have steam gauges and vac-uum-operated flight instruments. My concessions to modernity include a Garmin 396, a JPI analyzer, and a lift reserve indicator. Lest one think that Van’s was selling the ultimate slow-build kit in 1987, know that my other hobby is woodworking and that I continued to be active in my profession until I retired in 2002.

Jeff Justis, EAA 3559; Oxford, Mississippi;

E-mail: jeffjustis@bellsouth.net; Technical Counselor: Lawrence Jenkins

MAINE RV-9A

MY RV-9A (N337CW) TOOK its first flight on May 17, 2010, after a six-plus-year build. Phase one test flying took place in summer 2010 under a stretch of uncommonly awesome fog-free weather on the coast o’ Maine, and I now have 70 hours of converting 100LL into pure fun. Beginning in fall 2003 as a quick-build tail kit at the Alexander Technical Center in Griffin, Georgia, the building pace of N337CW quickly slowed to a normal, steady crawl. But I loved every minute of it, and at least the family always knew where I was. This project would not have been possible without the undying support and help from many, especially my wife, Cate, and kids, Lee and Caroline, who mostly grew up with Dad’s airplane in the home shop. The Van’s standard kit is powered with an Aero Sport Power/ Superior O-320-D2A swinging a Sensenich fixed-pitch prop and is equipped with Light Speed plasma electronic ignition on the top plugs. The plane is set up for day/night VFR, and the panel sports a GRT Sport EFIS, Vision Microsystems VM 1000C engine monitor, and Garmin SL40 comm and GTX 327 transponder.