Stepped away from the build but got the engine ordered

The past couple weeks have been a blast..  Bekah and I stepped away from everything and enjoyed ourselves in Hawaii..   A good time for me to prove to the world that I do get away from work and the airplane for the important times.  We had our 5th Anniversary in Hawaii..  It was great...

I completely stepped away from the airplane..  But that point might be argued, due to the Dynon, PSE, and Vertical Power Install Manuals that I had printed and ready to review during the trip.  Bekah read her books while I freshened up on my install intelligence..  Worked great..   Also, I was able to get the engine ordered from Aero Sport Power..  I won't tell you the cost of this thing, but I can assure you it is more than you think.   Probably about 3-4 times more than you think.   Maybe even more than that..  Those who are building know what I am talking about..

Below are the Specs..  It should be here in late Jan.

Aero Sport Power Ltd. New IO-375 (195 HP) Horizontal Induction Engine Includes:

Superior Cylinders with standard 8.0 to 1 compression ratio, One Slick Magneto and Harness with Light speed Plasma II + Crank Triggered Electronic Ignition, Spark Plugs, Sky-Tec Light Weight Inline Starter, Plane Power 60 Amp Alternator, Precision Silver Hawk Fuel Injection, Fuel Pump, Camshaft and Lifters, Superior Cold Air Horizontal Induction Sump, Connecting Rods, ECI Crankshaft, Dynafocal Type 1 Crankcase, Ring Gear, Inner Cylinder Baffles, Dipstick and Tube, 90 Degree Spin on Oil Filter Adapter and Vacuum Pump Adapter Housing.  Engine to be painted yellow, cylinder black bases and gold alodined fins.  Inverted oil modifications.

Constant Speed (M1S) Outright

Using Superior Components with Roller Lifters

Battery Box, Master/Starter Relays

Last night I drilled more holes in the firewall and installed the battery box and relays.  I actually completed everything I had planned outside of the copper bar that connects the two relays.  This copper bar isn't included in the Firewall Forward kit which is frustrating so I will need to order separate.   Also, I cheated a bit and painted the internal components black, where most builders paint these the same as the firewall.   I think in my case the black looks good with the other sandstone color and part of my plan is "sporty/industrial" if that is such a theme..  My internal nutplates and stiffeners fit that theme well.  ;-).  Also, just for those who are new to this, the Relays connect direct to the battery and are really just huge switches that can carry tons of load which would melt smaller switches.  These big switches are activated by smaller switches on the panel.

Firewall Forward Kit is here

I received the firewall forward kit from Vans.  I basically ordered the standard kit for the IO-360 with Horizontal induction, but pulled the Governor, Oil Cooler, Alternator, Exhaust and a few other small dollar items out since I am going somewhat custom on these items..  This cut the cost in half and of course made it possible to ship in a much smaller container.  The kit has much of the fuel/oil line and mounting items for the engine.  Also the battery tray which is the first thing I put together.  I also did some additional wire runs for the Aileron Trim, and as well started to look at the Starter and Master solenoid..  These will be mounted to the firewall in the next couple days.

Firewall Penetrations and Heat Selector Box

While I wait for some shipments, I took the time to work on some odds and ends on the firewall.  First the two upper holes with the red fire sleeve are for wire pass throughs.  Basically on the right will be the high power wires and on the left will be the engine sensor wires.  For all the holes I used new hole saws from Lowes.  They worked well and the 1 1/8 inch saw cut 5 holes and can still go for more.  The firewall is made of stainless steel and is quite sharp and hard to cut so I am glad these hole saws worked well.  It was a bit tricky I actually used a fairly fast speed and boe-lube to make it cut fairly cleanly.   All the holes came out well.  These pass throughs are about 1 inch above the top firewall cross angle and 1.75 inches outside of the upper ribs.  These spots should work out with no conflicts.

The next stepw as 3 cable pass throughs that will be for the Mixture, Prop Speed, and Throttle.  These were placed per the plans and came out well.  The throttle is the one by the heater box down low on the firewall.

Finally I cut the 2 inch hole for the heatbox.  I was worried about this one, but other than lots of noise, smoke and sharp edges it went really well.   I just used emory cloth to clean up the edges and dull the sharpness..  On all the holes I can run my fingers without risk of cut, that is effectively deburred.

I also hooked up the cable for the heater box and worked it a few times.  Functions smoothly.