Sorry about the weather - here (SoCal) the temperature did not get that low.
We, too, bought the kit while still doing our primary training. With the
scheduled lessons every Sat & Sun the "shall we build or shall we fly"
question was answered easily. Without the regular lessons we have more time
to build but currency suffers. Short of winning the lottery there doesn't
seem to be an easy way to both fly a lot and build a lot.
---From one engineer to another, this is one time that technology (as opposed
to design) is probably the least important factor in finding an appropriate
product. Having endured a few C clamp devices on my head I went shopping
(at AOPA Expo) for a new headset with comfort in mind. I tried on just
about every headset on offer at the Expo and found only one manufacturer's
line that seemed to accommodate my head, Pilot. Every other manufacturer
incorporates the same scheme of a two point attachment of the headband to
the earcups, a feature that restricts the movement of the earcups so that
there is always a mis-alignment of the earcups with the skull. Pilot uses a
single ball joint at the center of each earcup for three degrees of
freedom - what a difference in comfort! (Please, no comments about how
badly misshapen my skull must be)
Since it is difficult if not impossible to judge comfort with a short trial,
the only way to find a comfortable headset is to wear one for a couple of
hours. Try to borrow a headset for trial before you buy, even if the only
time you can wear it is while building your Europa.
After you find something comfortable then worry about ANR, the audio quality
of the music from your on board CD player, etc.
You are on the right track about doing the wet work (layups) but when the
temperature rises you will find that the working time is reduced
significantly.
I have mounted a Whelen strobe/position light in each wing tip (still
debating how to do the fin, however). If you would like, I can e-mail
details and pictures of the attachment scheme I used.
Best regards,
Rob Housman
A070
-----Original Message-----
Behalf Of EuropaChris@netscape.net
Subject: Headset recommendation?
Hi gang! Yesterday the thermometer hit 49 degrees here in Wisconsin (F,
that is), and it was a *fine* day. Fine enough to get me to the local
airport and sign up for flight lessons. Yes, I know, we are building a
plane and we can't even fly yet. That is what happens when you get a couple
of engineers on a project....:-) Learning to fly is the easy part. It just
takes time and money.
So, I need to buy a good headset that won't break the bank. I've done a
little research and Lightspeed keeps coming up, specifically the QFR series,
either passive or active. From what I've read, they are comfortable,
durable, and the customer service is excellent. Lightspeed was started in
1996 by a group of Tektronix people, and as I have a 1962 Tek 535A
oscilloscope in mint condition that still works perfectly (over 70 vacuum
tubes!), I've got a soft spot for Tek.
The price certainly is right, and you can see them here:
http://www.jaair.com/mailorder/default.asp
Just wondering what others are using and/or recommend?
As a side note, we finally started on the wings over the past month. For
the rib/skin reinforcements, Sue had the idea of laying up a large section
of bid on plastic wrap, say 2' wide cut at 45 deg. and then layup the second
layer on top of that, and then just cut 2" strips, rather than trying to
work with individual 2" strips that never keep shape and fray badly. Other
than trying to work with too large a section of glass at one time, the idea
works incredibly well. Just whack off a full length of 2" wide bid, and cut
to length as you need it. The only suggestion I would make is to only layup
1' wide and then do a second layup. Fortunately, our basement is about 62
degrees, so it gave us enough working time with the glass. After we were
done, I put heat lamps and a small electric heater near the wing to keep the
temp around 70 for 24 hours.
Now to figure how to mount those Aeroflash strobes in the wing tips...
Enjoy!
Chris
A159
http://webmail.netscape.com/
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