Jump to content

Looking at a flying O320 Cozy III


Recommended Posts

To all,

 

I have been looking at purchasing a flying Long EZ for the past several months when I discovered an O320 powered Cozy III in my area for sale. One of the Long EZ builder/owners I have been speaking with told me to look into the "balast issues of the Cozy." He said that when he was building his Long EZ back in the 80's he also looked at the Cozy and heard about balast adjustments that needed to be made when going from pilot and passenger to pilot only.

 

Is this a real issue? If so, please explain.

 

Could someone please comment on this?

 

Thanks,

 

John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Of course this is true. CG for both the Longez and the Cozy is somewhere in the backseat along with the fuel. While pax, luggage and fuel change the CG somewhat in both the Longez and Cozy, they are not really significant enough to move around ballast. In the front seat of both the Longez and Cozy, the mass that sits out there is on a fairly long moment arm (seesaw). If you change pilots in the Longez that are not the same size, you will be swapping some ballast. For most of us Longez pilots, we don't really let too many people fly our planes----so swapping ballast is no big issue. The Cozy, on the other hand, has another seat next to the pilot----and that seat could be occupied by nobody---or a 200+ pounder. With that much change at the end of the moment arm, you are going to need to reballast. Not a big issue for me in the Cozy---just swap the ballast in the nose to the backseat when needed. Does not take too long.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information