---------------------------------------------------------- Europa-List Digest Archive --- Total Messages Posted Thu 05/27/21: 8 ---------------------------------------------------------- Today's Message Index: ---------------------- 1. 07:37 AM - Vents (again) (n7188u) 2. 09:24 AM - De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers (Mallard) 3. 10:54 AM - Re: De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers (n7188u) 4. 11:13 AM - Re: Re: De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers (davidjoyce@doctors.org.uk) 5. 01:52 PM - Re: Vents (again) (Martin Olliver) 6. 02:21 PM - Re: Vents (again) (n7188u) 7. 06:10 PM - Re: Re: Vents (again) (Bud Yerly) 8. 10:59 PM - Re: De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers (Paul M 383) ________________________________ Message 1 _____________________________________ Time: 07:37:00 AM PST US Subject: Europa-List: Vents (again) From: "n7188u" Hello dear Europa forum members, First let me say I hit the 40hrs mark in my monowheel and so far its flying great. I will add though that learning to land the monowheel (in asphalt) has been a huge challenge. I can do perfect landings in gentle conditions but when not so gentle I am still quite apprehensive. But I admit I wasn't an experienced tailwheel pilot to start with and it just took a bit of time to get up to speed on the proper techniques to fly a TW aircraft, set aside the monowheel nuances. But I am getting there and haven't broken anything (yet). Now to the old subject of vents. First a little rant: Why in the world didn't Europa tell us where to put, in detail, a simple NACA vent? Yes I know, because us Europa builders are "The Few and The Brave" :) I intently read Bud Yerly's comments on vents which, as always very educational, but I really don't want to turn the installation of a vent into an experiment and poke 5 holes into my fuselage before I find a proper location for it. End of rant. Now, I know a lot of people liked the ultimate vent but not sure if the new version is currently available and not sure I want to spend the money for such nice vent (maybe I should). In any case I think that a design for a simple NACA vent, even if not ideal or ultimate, should be available for those of us with no pockets left (or sewn shut by our significant other). With that said, can I please get some feedback on those who have NACA vents that work well? I really could use detailed location and design dimensions. I also could use feedback on how you dealt with the thick(er) fuselage sandwich and the scoop LE lip. I want to follow Buds advice to not place it in the chord line but higher. A nice place would be right in the fuselage seam line but I think it would interfere with the removal of the cockpit module. Since my interior is already painted (yes, I know, big mistake) I would like to minimize how much I bugger up the interior surface so just making the NACA cutout, carving the foam off the edge, filling with flox and bonding a painted scoop inside with adhesive on its own flanges would be a clean solution. The exterior is still unpainted so no harm messing with that side of the fuselage wall. Thanks for the help. Chris Read this topic online here: http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=502068#502068 ________________________________ Message 2 _____________________________________ Time: 09:24:47 AM PST US Subject: Europa-List: De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers From: "Mallard" Has anyone on the forum De-Coupled the Flaps & Outriggers on an XS Monowheel? If yes, can it be done after the aircraft has been built? If yes, what is involved? Thanks in advance James -------- Seat of my pants Read this topic online here: http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=502071#502071 ________________________________ Message 3 _____________________________________ Time: 10:54:56 AM PST US Subject: Europa-List: Re: De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers From: "n7188u" This is an interesting topic which I am also interested. My interest is in that I am of the opinion that the monowheel could become easier to land in gusty or crosswind conditions if the flaps could be decoupled from the gear. How many airplanes have you flown out there where they recommend leaving full flaps when dealing with windy conditions? Now, in fairness to the design, I am very new to the monowheel and still learning. I may find that as I gain more experience it becomes more controllable during landing in such conditions. My issue is not directional control, it is that when the wind is gusty I can't make the airplane stay on the ground once I land. The combination of a light airplane with lots of lift and full flaps makes it want to get up in the air again even if speed is low. One thing to keep in mind though is that the flaps are only down 26 or so degrees so it's not too extreme. Seems enough though to give you a few nice scares when it gets back in the air when you really really slow. At the very least it's annoying. I guess one way to achieve that is to fix them in the down position but that's so ugly. I think I saw a picture of a monowheel out there that has them decoupled. Chris Read this topic online here: http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=502072#502072 ________________________________ Message 4 _____________________________________ Time: 11:13:38 AM PST US From: davidjoyce@doctors.org.uk Subject: Re: Europa-List: Re: De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers Chris, Two suggestions to avoid bouncing: firstly hold off until the speed has decayed enough that you touch down tail wheel first. Effectively avoid putting the wheel on the ground, holding off just off the ground until the plane lands itself. If you touch down too fast the AOI is inevitably such that you touch main wheel first and you cannot avoid a bounce. Secondly if you have a reasonable amount of runway to play with you can touch down with the throttle slightly open and shut it at the point of touch down. I prefer the first of these approaches but it does take a while to get really comfortable with it. If you do decouple the flaps and gear, you have one extra thing to get wrong and will add considerably to your chances of landing wheels up when you find yourself stressed or distracted. Regards, David Joyce, GXSDJ On 2021-05-27 18:54, n7188u wrote: > > This is an interesting topic which I am also interested. > > My interest is in that I am of the opinion that the monowheel could > become easier to land in gusty or crosswind conditions if the flaps > could be decoupled from the gear. How many airplanes have you flown out > there where they recommend leaving full flaps when dealing with windy > conditions? > > Now, in fairness to the design, I am very new to the monowheel and > still learning. I may find that as I gain more experience it becomes > more controllable during landing in such conditions. My issue is not > directional control, it is that when the wind is gusty I can't make the > airplane stay on the ground once I land. The combination of a light > airplane with lots of lift and full flaps makes it want to get up in > the air again even if speed is low. > > One thing to keep in mind though is that the flaps are only down 26 or > so degrees so it's not too extreme. Seems enough though to give you a > few nice scares when it gets back in the air when you really really > slow. At the very least it's annoying. > > I guess one way to achieve that is to fix them in the down position but > that's so ugly. > > I think I saw a picture of a monowheel out there that has them > decoupled. > > Chris > > Read this topic online here: > > http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=502072#502072 > ________________________________ Message 5 _____________________________________ Time: 01:52:58 PM PST US Subject: Europa-List: Re: Vents (again) From: "Martin Olliver" Hi Chris. My thoughts on vents. In My first Europa I fitted the "Ultimate Ventilator" They worked very well and as the vent opens into the airflow you can fit it where you like within reason. Ultimate Ventilator went out of business.. However Trevor Poulter has produced a far superior product. I would recommend you buy a set. Information on them is on the Europa Club web site. Read this topic online here: http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=502074#502074 ________________________________ Message 6 _____________________________________ Time: 02:21:58 PM PST US Subject: Europa-List: Re: Vents (again) From: "n7188u" Thanks for the reply. I would inquire but the Europa Club web site says "Following a successful initial run of 20, a further batch is being considered, subject to interest." so it kind of sounds like it's not available right now. But I haven't really email to ask. But are NACA scoops really that bad in the Europa? RVs use them and my LongEZ has a tiny one that provides air to the entire cabin. Works really well! Chris Read this topic online here: http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=502075#502075 ________________________________ Message 7 _____________________________________ Time: 06:10:15 PM PST US From: Bud Yerly Subject: RE: Europa-List: Re: Vents (again) Chris, Two comments: There is nothing wrong with the NACA duct. They work well. The only issue I have is they take room to install properly. They work great in conjunction with an air deflector or ball shut off, but it is somewhat long and protrudes into the cockpit. Properly ducted and maintainable, they are great. The only reason I liked the Ultimate ventilator was it is easy to install and is acceptable for use in the Europa lower windscreen and or side of the aircraft. Not perfect but it allowed me to have an easy to direct airflow into the cockpit that still sealed when at altitude with minimal effort. As far as Mono landings/decoupling the flaps and gear: David Joyce is spot on. Eric Trombley has a slick setup, but it is not retrofittable easily. He did much work to make it full proof. The mono is unique. It is not a tail dragger at all. It is a monocycle with a cheater wheel on the rear. Think of it as a conventional with stiff gear that are placed six inches apart. I wrote about my technique. Like David, I touch tailwheel first. If you cannot comfortably fly the plane into ground effect and hold it inches above the runway until the speed bleeds off and continue to slow until the tail wheel touches first, the landings can be sporty. The Europa has honest and light controls that allow the pilot to precisely fly the aircraft in formation with other aircraft and in formation with the runway. In my opinion, you must learn to slow flight precisely down the runway constantly correcting for the winds and turbulence while holding exact fuselage alignment with precise small rudder inputs until reaching the landing attitude (which is still above the stall I might add) until the nose has raised high enough to allow the plane to settle tail wheel first which will immediately drop the main wheel to the runway. Don't relax the stick. Keep the stick back and don't relax until in the chocks. Wheel landings are not an option. One must be patient with a fixed pitch prop set IAW the Rotax manual on a 912/914 engine. There is much float due to residual thrust in the flare with a fixed pitch cruise prop. This keeps your plane flying much longer than is normal (or tolerable in my opinion). Much has been discussed on this and some may approach as low as 55Knots. At 55Knots the plane is behind the power curve and only 10 knots above the stall when loaded. The sink is quite pronounced unless power is kept on. Once in the runway proximity, nose high, if the power is cut over a hard surface runway, it is very easy to drop in and if not in exact runway alignment, it can get sporty. Like many others, I'm comfortable with a 60 KIAS stabilized approach. Your inflight final approach RPM is normally still a high 22-2400 RPM even at idle. I put the nose on the aimpoint and pull a bit of power, if still on, to cross the threshold about 55 IAS and concentrate on maintaining runway alignment. I maintain a slow flight attitude as close to the runway as possible and retard any power remaining and patiently wait for the float to diminish and try to get a two point landing. If the main touches first I just keep flying the plane and keeping it straight until it finally settles. Never relax and keep flying through the rollout. A constant speed prop tends to cut out that painfully long float over a hot hard surfaced runway. The blades flatten and with an idle of about 1600-1800 static and allow a simple throttle retard and a smooth round out to the landing attitude. A fully finished airplane with a slick paint job has excellent slow flight characteristics so practice. Consider setting tire pressure to 16PSI to reduce bounce. Grass strips are more forgiving to land on. Less float and a bit softer bounce if any provided it is a smooth runway. Enough of my ramblings. You can read my paper on landing the mono on my website and on the Europa Club website. . Bud Yerly -----Original Message----- From: owner-europa-list-server@matronics.com On Behalf Of n7188u Sent: Thursday, May 27, 2021 5:22 PM Subject: Europa-List: Re: Vents (again) Thanks for the reply. I would inquire but the Europa Club web site says "Following a successful initial run of 20, a further batch is being considered, subject to interest." so it kind of sounds like it's not available right now. But I haven't really email to ask. But are NACA scoops really that bad in the Europa? RVs use them and my LongEZ has a tiny one that provides air to the entire cabin. Works really well! Chris Read this topic online here: https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fforums.matronics.com%2Fviewtopic.php%3Fp%3D502075%23502075&data=04%7C01%7C%7Cc3dd7e1544874cf2ad0208d921560d90%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637577475746291041%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&sdata=QqanU2mLgrlajXYJTpLHqOvR0NRqfJzSc3SCe3Jcv%2B0%3D&reserved=0 ________________________________ Message 8 _____________________________________ Time: 10:59:53 PM PST US Subject: Europa-List: Re: De-Coupling Flaps & Outriggers From: "Paul M 383" Mallard wrote: > Has anyone on the forum De-Coupled the Flaps & Outriggers on an XS Monowheel? > If yes, can it be done after the aircraft has been built? > If yes, what is involved? > > Thanks in advance > James I don't know if it can be easily done after completion (anything can be done with enough money and time!) but Justin Kennedy and Ted Gladstone did it during their build... Also don't know what is involved, sorry! HTH, Paul G-PLPM XS Mono 912ULS Read this topic online here: http://forums.matronics.com/viewtopic.php?p=502078#502078 Attachments: http://forums.matronics.com//files/g_zted_4_136.jpg ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Other Matronics Email List Services ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post A New Message europa-list@matronics.com UN/SUBSCRIBE http://www.matronics.com/subscription List FAQ http://www.matronics.com/FAQ/Europa-List.htm Web Forum Interface To Lists http://forums.matronics.com Matronics List Wiki http://wiki.matronics.com Full Archive Search Engine http://www.matronics.com/search 7-Day List Browse http://www.matronics.com/browse/europa-list Browse Digests http://www.matronics.com/digest/europa-list Browse Other Lists http://www.matronics.com/browse Live Online Chat! http://www.matronics.com/chat Archive Downloading http://www.matronics.com/archives Photo Share http://www.matronics.com/photoshare Other Email Lists http://www.matronics.com/emaillists Contributions http://www.matronics.com/contribution ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- These Email List Services are sponsored solely by Matronics and through the generous Contributions of its members.