Time: 1.5 hrs
Did some miscellaneous stuff on the firewall today. I finished installing the TCU, Redid the install of the gascolator with the new bracket that finally showed up, and finally installed the Rotax fuel pump cover.
Jean from Torrance TAF and Jim G (a pilot friend who has built a Sling 2 and a Lancair) came by a few days ago to check out the progress. Jean and I spoke a lot abut the engine and various stuff I needed to do. They both were very happy with the work that I’ve been doing and were extremely encouraging. At times it’s been a struggle to keep the project moving forward from both a time standpoint and financially. So it was nice to be able to talk to seasoned builders to gain some prospective. Thanks for coming out and the spending time.
I had ordered an aluminum fuel pump bracket off Amazon a while ago and it finally showed up. I liked it better then the other bracket I had, so I decided to use it. The bracket was for a 2″ fuel pump, but with the rubber I added (from an Adel clamp) it fits very well. I like that it mounts to the end mount in 2 places so the gascolator doesn’t want to spin.
It was pretty quick mounting the TCU. I was going to use nylon type locking nuts to secure it to the mount brackets, but because of the rubber stand offs on the TCU being somewhat fragile, I ended up using standard nuts and washers and used Loctite (blue) on them.
Cut out done and M6 rivnuts installed for the Rotax fuel pump box. I’m going to use the case from the 912, Jean was able to find an extra one at the office. I was hoping that I could have just used the holes that were there for the original TAF fuel pump mounting bracket, but the holes were just a little off from lining up and I didn’t want to mess around with trying to elongate the holes and them enlarging them. I put the new holes in line with the original ones, just up about an inch. I also found that Goo Gone works well on removing the glue after the insulation material is cut away.
Now just waiting on the Master Relay from Aircraft Spruce which shipped out on Friday… Oh and the engine mounting hardware from TAF which should be here this coming week as well.
I still need to work on the mounting of the fuel pumps and the plumbing. I’m thinking maybe I can use the TAF plumbing and just add on an AN fitting to the in and out. I think that all the various tees and elbows that I’d need will be both expensive and too large to all fit in the pump box. For mounting I’m going to make a small stainless steel plate that fits in the pump box and use maybe 1/4 bushings to stand it off from the back of the case. I can then use Adel clamps to mount the pumps to the plate and the plate will get mounted using the same screws as the pump cover.