Jim Cullen

Do you still have your 70% complete airframe? Why not continue with it? I'm sure you could do it over better the 2nd time around, but that would cause me some anguish. Hi Jon: Thanks again for the benefit of your wisdom. I'll probably use some of the parts that I already have. The centersection spar, elevators, wheel pants and winglets turned out great and I'll probably use them. I have concerns about the attach tabs on the main gear strut. When I clamped the tabs after the layups, I may have applied too much pressure and squeezed out too much of the epoxy, resulting in a dry layup for the tabs. I'll probably rebuild the main gear leg assembly. The canard will also get rebuilt. It came out heavy and I got artsy by trying to put the position lights behind colored plastic lenses (similar to the ones in the Glasair wings) in the tips and I'm not happy with the way that they came out. Also, I was working too cold and the skins are heavy (and maybe weak). The wings will get rebuilt. I got caught up in the middle of the hardshell debate and used the technique to build my wings. Honestly, I think they're fine and many Long-EZs were built with this technique. I even did a series of peel-strength tests that were reported in the Central States publication that showed that a hardshelled layup had better peel resistance than one normally made. The debate seems not to have been settled. Still, I think I'll redo the wings. As for the fuselage, I tried a lot of modifications. some were great, others were crummy. Rebuilding the tub won't take that long and I can do a much better job by learning from my experinece. Also, I had a funny experience one day while standing in the tub while it was supported on sawhorses. I stepped on the floor in the area where the forward gear bulkhead meets the right fuselage side (I weigh about 210) and I heard a ripping sound. Don't know if it was delamination, tearing fiberglass or what. I examined the area visually and couldn't see any problems, but I think I'd feel more comportable redoing the fuselage tub. I also got about half way thru the canopy. I was making the forward portion tilt forward and I was making the aft portion a permanent structure epoxied to the fuselage -- with a rollover structure and two gull-wing doors with Glasair latch hardware. I was pretty happy with the way things were going until I botched cutting out the gull-wing doors. I need to rebuild the canopy but will probably stay with my modified design. Enough for now. I'm doing a parts inventory to see what I still have. I understand that Brock is closing its doors? Do they have any parts left if I need to reorder some? Tailwinds, Jim

Hi Jon: Many thanks for the reply! Here in las Vegas, things tend to get pretty hot in the hanger over the summer months. Can you think of any disadvantages of building the entire plane with MGS 285 and the slow hardner? Aircraft Spruce shows that the H-287-S slow hardener has a 4-hour pot life. That sounds ideal for doing fuselage sides or wing skins, if I'm working alone. I have one of the Sticky stuff dispensers and, rather than futzing with mixing the slow and fast hardeners, could I just stick (pun intended) with the slow hardener for the whole plane? Tailwinds, Jim

Hi Group! I started bulding a Cozy Mk IV many years ago (Plans #0076), got about 70% of the airframe done, and then gave up because of a bad series of allergic reactions to the epoxies. I had used Saf-T-Poxy II, a Hexcel epoxy that went by a number (no name) which I forget, and a third epoxy that I also can't remember. I'll also confess that my personal protection was pretty poor (latex gloves, no respirator, etc.). The fuselage has a kind of bluish, greenish, brownish, yellowish color. Anyway, I've been building a kit car (Classic Motor Carriages MG-TD) lately and have been using EZ-Poxy and far better protective equipment (butyl gloves and a carbon canister respirator -- religiously) and am happy to report that I have had no adverse reactions. As a result, I'm thinking of going back and re-starting my Cozy Mk IV. Because my technique has improved over the intervening years, I'll probably start the project from scratch and not reuse much of the previously done fiberglass work (except the elevators and centersection spar, which came out beautifully). My question is: What epoxy are you guys and gals using nowadays? Is EZ Poxy OK? I understand that there is a new epoxy that has a long pot life -- which is useful if you're skinning a wing by yourself. I wouldn't want to attempt this with EZ-Poxy -- it has too short a pot life. What do you like and how can I learn more about the properties of the currently advocated materials -- especially the temperatures that I have to hold while working the layups? Are the new materials approved by Nat Puffer? Many thanks for your help. Tailwinds, Jim