Builders guide

Verhees Delta Mk1

version 1, febr 2010

Contents page
A Description 3
B Limitations 3
C Building 4
1 Introduction 4
1.1 Accuracy 4
1.2 Working with aluminum 4
1.3 Working with steel 6
1.4 Making boltconnections 7
1.5 Assembling the structure 8
1.6 Building sequence 8
1.7 Coordinates 8
2 Building the mainspar 9
3 Building of the outerwings 10
4 Building of the centre section 12
5 Building of the elevons 18
6 Building of the rudder 19
7 Main landing gear 19
8 Tailwheel 19
9 Controls 19
9.1 Rudder controls 19
9.2 Elevon controls 20
9.3 Brake 20
10 Fuel system 21
11 Canopy, bottomwindows, inspection ports 22
11.1 Canopy 22
11.2 Bottomwindows 23
11.3 Inspection ports 24
12 Engine installation 24
12.1 Possible engines 24
12.2 General considerations 24
12.3 Propeller 25
13 Cowling 25
14 Electrical system 25
15 Instruments 26
16 Finish 26
17 Weighing 28
18 Road transport 28
D Flying 29

Appendix A List of drawings 32

Appendix B Guidelines for use of non DIN or ISO hardware 33
Appendix C Bill of material 34
Appendix D Photogallery 35

2
A Description

Single seat flying wing in delta shape. All structure and loads, except for the pilots' head are
carried inside the wing.
Construction: aluminum monocoque
Engine: tractor piston engine with propeller 50-80 HP

Structure:
The aircraft is transportable by road. Therefor it is divided in a centre section and 2
outerwings wich can be folded upwards.
A mainspar runs behind the pilot to 2/3 span, part of the mainspar is in the outerwings. A
second spar, the front spar, is 800 mm ahead of the mainspar and runs to 1/3 span.
The mainspar has hinges in the top girder and quick connections in the lower girder for
attachment of the outerwing. The front spar ends in a hinge for the outerwing.
The trailing edge of the outerwing is taken by a pin in the centre section.
The torque forces on the wing are taken by the rear part of the centre section. To prevent
undetermined loadsituations the front and rear part of the centre section are connected in a
flexible manner.
From the front spar to the firewall there is a tunnel in wich the landing gear is retracted and
that takes the loads of the engine and landing gear.
A vertical stabilizer, the fin, is combined with the canopy
Underneath there is a bellyfin that takes the tailwheel.

Landing gear:
Monowheel type taildragger.
Mainwheel (front) retractable and steerable, suspension by rubber spring element, constuction
in steel
Tailwheel non pivoting and suspended by rubber chords.
Tipwheels suspended by steel torsion rods.

Controls:
Flight controls are 2 elevons (elevator and aileron combined) and a rudder. Conventional
central stick that controls the elevons and pedals for the rudder, rudder pedals and gear pedals
are separate.
Brake lever on the stick.

B Limitations and dimensions

Max weight 340 kg

max load +/- 6g
manoeuvring speed 115 kts
never exeed speed 160 kts
max gear extension speed unlimited, however extension is only possible below 110
mph
max demonstrated crosswindcomponent 10 kts, 18 km/h
centre of gravity limits 80-200 mm aft datum
wingspan 4500 mm
length 3250 mm (with Subaru engine)
height, gear retracted 1300 mm (without antennas and pitot tube)

3
height on the ground 1500 mm (without antennas and pitot tube)

C Building

1 Introduction:
You are going to build an aircraft. Many things are important in aircraft but the most
important item is the safety. Therefor you must be absolutely sure that what you produce is
made correctly. If in doubt repair or make a new part. Work accurate and check dimensions
etc before fixing things.

1.1 Accuracy:
An aircraft is not a precision machine, in general there is a tolerance of +/- 2 mm. However
for screwconnections this tolerance must be tighter. The position of the crews must be within
0,5 mm from the indicated position and the holes must have tight fit.

1.2 Working with aluminum

When you have never build an aluminum aircraft before it, is recommended to get some
practise first. If possible you can help someone who is building an aluminum aircraft or get
some lessons in an aircraft mechanic school. If all this is not possible get some aluminum
sheet and practise at least the riveting.

Aluminum has the advantage that it does not need a climatised workshop, but you need to
keep it dry to prevent corrosion.

1.2.1 Cutting
Small cuttinglengths can be done by hand with sheetscissors. For long lengths these are not
suitable. Acceptable methods are
-electric nibbler, do not use the electric scissor type, they wrinkle the sheet.
-plasma cutting device, if available this is a quick way of cutting, always move the torch
along a ruler or pattern. Sand the edges to make them smooth to prevent micro cracks.
-lasercutting by a specialised company. The drawings have come with a CD on wich the
cuttingfiles of all major components. You can send them and the sheets to such a company
and let them cut your parts. Sand the edges to make them smooth to prevent micro cracks.
Tell the guys to give you back the waste as well, you can use it for small parts.

1.2.2 Folding:
The aluminum 0,6 mm sheet must have a bending radius of at least 3 mm. If you use a
standard folding bench get a knife with this radius. You can also make your own folding
bench. The longest part is 1,5 m. The prototype is build with a folding bench made of
hardwood.
The folding of the fixation rims on the wingribs has to be done around a wooden rib that act
as a mould and can also be used when assembling.
Folding is only allowed once, don't bend the matarial back and forth, this will weaken the
material.

1.2.3 Preparing rivet connections:

The general way of working is to fix a part on one spot by drilling a hole and put a cleco
fastener through the hole. After the first hole the second can follow in the same plane as far

4
away from the first as possible. Make sure that the sheets lay together, if not, one of the
distance of the two holes in one part is more than in the other and the first will wrinkle when
you put in the rivets. Make the holes at spots where a future rivet will be, especially in the
outer skin
When necessary you can clamp the parts together first using pliers, clothes-pegs, clamps,
magnets with steel blocks or a helper.
After every act check if you did it correctly.
The rivets must be at least 10 mm from an edge or folding and at least 10 mm from each
other.

After alignment of the part in this way and if it is sure that this is the right position and that
no other part has to be riveted with the same rivets the rest of the rivetholes can be drilled, this
can also be done outside the structure, if that is easier, using the first 2 holes as a guide.

Always drill the parts together so that the holes are aligned.

Two types of rivets are used, one with protruding head and flush ones. The flush ones are for
the outer skin to become a smooth surface, the protruding ones for internal connections.

If the connection is to be made with protruding rivets you can drill holes of Ø 3,3 mm and use
1/8" clecos.
If flush rivets are to be used drill holes of Ø 2,4 mm and use 3/32" clecos. After drilling
deburr and then dimple the holes. After dimpling the holes must be drilled to Ø 3,3 mm and
deburred again. Drill from the countersunk side so that the burrs are on the protruding side
and then deburr with a piece of sandpaper or a file instead of a deburring tool.
If you have to drill holes in an assembly that is already riveted, the holes between the sheets
have to be deburred all the same. This can be done with a sawblade. Be sure that the burrs are
all removed. The sawblade has to be grinded on the sides to prevent scratches on the
aluminum.

Only thicker material (more than 1,5 mm) wich cannot be dimpled must be countersunk.
Watch out, the top angle is 100°.

1.2.4 Riveting:

In rivetting the stem of the rivet is pushed to form a head. With the used 1/8" rivets this head
must be Ø4, 8 mm (1,5D). In order to achieve this the stem must be 4-5 mm (ca 1,5D) longer
than the total thickness of the material. There is a chance that the formed head is not
concentric with the hole and with longer stems this chance is greater.
While forming the head the rivet will also get a bigger diameter so that it fills the hole
completely and even puts some preload on the surrounding sheet so that the connection is
stronger than just a pin-in hole connection.

Before establishing a rivet connection, the sheetsurfaces must be free of burrs and particles
and be treated with primer. The best is to rivet when the primer is still wet.

After putting in the rivet the sheets must be hammered together (adjusted), this is especially
important with flushed rivets because only then the sheet will form properly around the head.
Use adjusting tools as in drawing 07-001-0 RIVETING TOOLS.

5
Put the riveting hammer on the head and the tool over the stem and let the hammer make a
few strokes, with a flushed head you can also hammer with a hand hammer on the tool while
supporting the head. The head can be supported with a flat piece of iron with a mass of ca 1
kg (make sure that the top of the iron is smooth).

There are 3 ways of riveting:

-with pneumatic hammer
-with hand hammer
-with rivet sqeezer

The third way is the best, but it can only be done on a free edge and it requires a rivet
squeezer, these devices are available as hand powered or pneumatic/ hydraulic.

With a pneumatic hammer put the hammer on the head and hold a pice of iron (called bucking
bar) against the stem on the other side, this is called "reaction rivetting". It needs some
practising, especially the pressure on the bucking bar. You may not push back the rivet by the
bar but on the other hand you may also not let the hammer work on an unsupported rivet, then
you will hammer a dent in the sheet. Care has also to be taken that the hammer will not get off
the head.
The formed head must be concentric with the hole in the sheets, this is depending of the
position of the hammer, more than the position of the bucking bar. If the hammer is not in line
with the stem you get a head that is not concentric. This is not good and the rivet has to be
drilled out and done over again.

Protruding heads have to be done with a special tool in the hammer suitable for the head while
flushed heads must be done with a tool with flat head (or a little bit convex). There are also
tools which adjust themselves to the angle of the surface.
Flushed rivets have to be done with 2 persons, one has to hold the hammer and the other must
hold the bucking bar. The one on the bar has the toughest job and must be the leader. In
practise the adjusting and rivetting will be done in one job for a certain rivet. Clearly give
commands to the one holding the hammer when to adjust and when to rivet. Just hammer for
a second, look at the result and when necessary hammer again.
Protruding heads can be done by one person, hammer in one hand, bucking bar in the other.
With flush heads the tool of the hammer has to be fixed on the sheet by one hand.

As bucking bar you can use a piece of iron of say 5x5x2 cm. This will not fit everywhere but
you can take some other shape depending of the needs. There are also sets of bucking bars for
sale.

With the riveting by a hand hammer the stem is hammered and the head is held. This is good
for smaller parts and flushed rivets. Do not hammer directly on the stem but use a piece of
rod. The head can be supported with a flat piece of iron with a mass of ca 1 kg (make sure that
the top of the iron is smooth).

1.3 Working with steel

1.3.1 Cutting of 4130 steel parts:

When you use laser or plasma cutting of this material the edge will harden and can cause
cracks. So the shape has to be oversized 2 mm then grinded off. The files on the CD are
already 2 mm oversized.

6
You can also use a saw or angle grinder to cut this material.

1.3.2 Bending
Steel 4130 of 2 mm may not be cold bend. Some parts however are bend. There can be cracks
on the outer surface. Therefor this outer surface must be treated. Just melt the surface in the
outerbend with the welding torch so that cracks will be welded.

1.3.3 Welding:
All welds of 4130 steel have to be done with the TIG process.
If you are a welder who is not very good in TIG welding you must find someone who is.
Always use the proper filling material.
Don't let the material cool down too rapidly, avoid draft in the workshop and certainly don't
put it in water to cool down.

The welds need no heat treatment for this aircraft.

1.4 Making bolt connections:

1.4.1 Tight fit bolts:

Some connections of f.i. the wing hingeplates are connected with bolts. These bolts have to
be tight fit to prevent play and to make sure they are all contributing in taking the load.
The bolts have a diameter of 1/4"= 6,35 mm.
Work as follows:

Drill the holes first as Ø6 mm in the steelplates with the plates clamped together, then place
the steelplates on the right spot on the aluminum angle and drill holes Ø 6 in the aluminum.
Best is to use a drill press instead of a hand held drilling machine.
Then put 1 M6 bolt in 1 hole and work the other one with a reamer. Best you take an
adjustable reamer and make the holes fit for the 1/4" bolts. The AN bolts don't have close
tolerance so the best way is to make the hole fit for a particular bolt and use that bolt later for
that particular hole. The bolt must get in with some resistance, you might use a hammer but
only use light tapping. You can also use NAS bolts wich have close tolerance.
The straight part of the shaft must fill the hole, the end of the thread must be outside the hole.
When the nut cannot be screwed tight use more washers. Always place a washer under the
head. The bolt s have to be tightened lightly only, strong tightening reduces the strength.

1.4.2 Other bolts:

Metric bolt connections are not tight fit, they take a load low enough to be taken by friction.
You have to tighten these screws according to the torques for that size of bolt. However it is
advised to drill the hole no bigger as the diameter of the bolt. If the bolt loosens there will not
be a great amount of play.

All bolts have to be locked, the best way is to use self locking nuts with plastic insert. When
this nut is screwed off you must use a new one since the plastic ring is worn, at least at the
flight safety related places like control rods. Therefor, for connections that have to be
unscrewed every inspection, use other means of locking, such as double nuts or safetywire. Be
careful with locking glues like fi loctite. If you check the screw to be sure of the tightness the
locking is gone for a great deal and there is no way to check that.

7
1.5 Assembling the structure
The aluminum sheet is very flexible when it is not fixed yet. So care has to be taken that f.i.
the ribs of the wing get fixed on the right place, sometimes this is hard to see, you have to
drill the hole from the outside while the rib is on the inside.
Thereforethe ribs have to be fixed to wooden ribs when pre-assembling, pre-assembling
means the drilling of rivetholes and fixing the sheet with clecos.
You can also use steel frames etc to make things easier, bear in mind that making a frame is in
most cases far less work than trying to put all together out of loose pieces that are flying
around everywhere. Later on it will be explained how to build the outerwing around a jig.
When you want to pre-assemble a rib to the skin this is good trick:

Drill the 2 (or more) postioning holes from the inside, then you are sure that they are in the
right place in the rib, put a cleco in each hole before drilling the next one.
Take off the skin and draw a line on the skin, mark the place of the holes and drill them (make
sure the holes will be in the flange of the rib and not in a gap)
Draw a line in the middle on the ribflange.
Put the skin on the rib again. You can drill the holes in the rib as well by using the line as a
guide to see if the rib is well positioned. Place clecos in every other hole to keep the rib in
place.

1.6 Building sequence:

Some parts must be adapted to others wile building.

In that order the shape of the skin of the centre section must be made fit to that of the
outerwing and the hinges of the elevons also to the outerwing.

For this the right building sequence is:

1 mainspar
2 outerwings
3 centre section
4 elevons
5 rudder
6 fuel system
7 installation of engine
8 electrical system

The landing gear and control system can be made at any time

The reason for only installing fuel and electrical system etc after assembly of the rest is that
you will not fix them in a way that they can't get out again.

1.7 Coordinates:
In the drawing coordinates are often mentioned. They indicate the position from the aircraft's
datumpoint. This point is located on the centreline of the rootsection at the front spar (see
drawings).
The X value represents the distance from this point in lengthwise direction, to the rear is +,
the Y value is the spanwise distance and Z is the height, + is upwards.

8
2 Building the mainspar

This is the most important part, it will determine the strength of the aircraft, if the aircraft will
have the right anhedral and if the wingpins will fit properly.

2.1 preparing of steel parts

Cut out the parts and weld them together, also for the winghinge at X 0
Make the bores for the ball joints and bolts according to drawing.
Drill the holes for the screws Ø6,0 mm, twin plates like on the centre section side should be
drilled together using the close tolerance wingbolts for positioning.
Then shotblast the parts with fine steel grid (take care not to damage the bored holes) and
paint them with primer.
Now install the ball joints, glue them with Loctite 638.

2.2 preparing the aluminum angles 1"x1"x1/8"

Cut them to length. The ones of the centre section have to be bend. Bending of an angle is not
easy and can best be done with a rolling machine and wheels specially for this size of angle. If
this is not an option you can bend the angles over a mould but you will notice that the angle
will not only bend in the desired direction but also in the other direction. This should be
corrected every time while bending. Take care to bend the material only once. If it is bend too
much it cannot be bend back, this will weaken the material.

2.3 Assembling
Draw the outline of the spar on a workbench of at least 2 m long. Lay the webplates and
angles 1"x1"x1/8" in position and fix them with clecos on a few positions, also the vertical
angles. Only drill holes where rivets will be. For positioning on the bench, nails can be used.
Place the steel parts in the right position, together with the necessary filling pieces and with
the hinge bolts in place and drill the holes Ø6 mm for the screws in the aluminum. Always
drill and fix with M6 screws before drilling the next hole. It is difficult to use a drill press so
take care to drill the hole straight and square.
Now the holes have to be reamed, see §1.4.1. For this the spar need not be fixed on the bench
but the parts must stay together.
You can make the joints of the 2 outerwings to the centre section one by one.
Now the most careful job is done and all parts can be assembled. While drilling and riveting
the angle to the webplate the steelparts must be assembled.
Leave out the rivets in the middle like on the drawing because later the vertical fins are going
to be attached here.
Now the fillingpieces must be riveted to the angle but the heads may not protrude, so drill the
holes according to the drawing, rivet the piece and file away exess material of the formed
heads. While drilling and riveting the screws must be in place.

2.4 Wingpin guiding:

Install the wingpin guiding as drawn and check with the bolt or a proper pin if it runs
smoothly (add some oil to prevent wear)

The wingpin pullrod as shown on dwg 01-002 can be made later.

9
3 Building of the outerwings

3.1 Cut out all ribs and spars and fold them according to the drawings. For folding of the ribs
use a plywood rib cut out in the right shape, use the 1:1 drawing of the ribs for making the
plywood rib. The plywood should be rigid and straight, 8mm is recommended. Fix the
plywood with screws to the rib.

3.2 Prepare the rib at Y 770 by making the rivetholes for the stringers and doublers. Do not
yet rivet these parts.

3.3 Ribs at Y 1500 and 1875 are split. While assembling the wing we must be sure that the
assembled rib has the right shape. For this they have to be connected temporarily by steel
strips 20x2. Prepare the connection on the workbench, keep the centreline straight.

3.4 Make a jig according to the drawing.

3.5 Fix the wooden moulds used for the folding on the ribs. Put the ribs over the jig and
connect the split ribs of Y 1500 and 1875.
Place the jig stable on the floor, fixing to the floor would be the best but of course is not
always possible. Lock the ribs on the right place and in the right angle to the jig using pop-
rivets or screws and bend steel strips.
Check if all ribs are in line.

3.6 Position all spars and fix them with a few clecos

3.7 Position one half of the elevon hinges, the ones at Y 770 and 2230 with clecos according
to drawing and fix the one at Y 1500 with clamps or a magnet. Each time the half that is
above the rib
Put 4 sewing threads through the screws and through the holes of the inner hinge fix them at
each quadrant of the holes.
Now you can see if the middle hinge is in line with the rest. Position the hinge and mark 2
rivetholes on the rib. With a 0,5 mm drawing pencil is the best way. Drill the holes accurately
using the marks.

3.8 Put the extension for the rear wingpin in place. Drill a hole of Ø12 mm in the right place
through the hingeplates and rib (better take the hingeplates out for this job) and through the
extension, the drill must be square to the rib

3.9 Now all rivetholes can be drilled, if some are hard to reach you can do it when the pieces
are taken out.

3.10 Take apart the parts and deburr the holes.

3.11 Put the parts back together and place all rivets, but do not yet rivet the stringers on rib
Y770 and the extension for the rear wingpin.

3.12 Place the tipwheel according to drawing. The springsteel rod can always be taken out or
in, so you have to check after installing if it all works but after that remove it for further work
on the skin.

10
3.13 Now the skin of the tip can be prepared. Before that check if the ribflanges are all in line
with the skin, check also the rearspar flange. Bend the noseradius in the skin using a tube to
bend it around. Use wooden planks to clamp the sheet to the workbench and to bend it.
Corrections of the radius can be made by hand.
Wrap the skin around the ribs and check if it fits well, there should be some excess material
on all sides.
Fix the skin with clecos beginning from the nose on a few places necessary to let the skin
follow the ribs. Drill Ø2,4 for 3/32" clecos

3.14 Prepare the upper skin. The upper skin is in fact too big for 1 sheet, therefore a small
piece must be added, this is to be done before putting the skin on the ribs.
Bend the noseradius around a tube. This is a heavy job and will require at least 3 persons.
Clamp the sheet on the workbench with a heavy wooden beam of 4 cm wide or with a
rectangular tube. Then place a tube of ca Ø40 mm in front of the beam and bend the sheet
around the tube by using a wooden plank or rectangular tube.

Check the rib and rearspar flanges.

Fix the skin in the same way as the tip skin. At the rib Y 1875 where the 2 skinparts come
together drill the skin from inside using the existing holes. Let a helper push the sheet to the
rib from the outside (use a piece of wood, don't drill in his/here fingers!).

3.15 Prepare the wing hinge at X 0, make the parts, position the aluminum parts on the first
rib and inside on the skin, fix with clecos. Position the steel plate according to drawing, it has
to be checked if the hinge line through the 2 hinges makes the right angle with the trailing
edge, mark points according to the drawing and measure. When the steelplate is in position
mark the rivetholes. Then take the parts out and rivet the steel plate to the aluminum brackets
outside the structure.

3.16 Take off the skin and drill the rows of rivetholes in the sheet, deburr the holes

3.17 Rivet the winghinge at X 0 to the internal structure

3.18 Place the tip skin again. Drill the holes in the skin and anchorplate for the tipwheel

3.19 Fix the lower skin on a few places. Then place the upper skin again and drill the holes in
the seam between the upper and lower skin. Remove the lower skin again and drill the rows of
rivetholes.

3.20 Meanwhile the rivetholes in the ribs can be drilled using the method of 1.5

3.21 Do also for the lower skin

3.22 Now all rivetholes are in place and they can be dimpled. Dimple also the holes in the
ribflanges.

3.23 Riveting of the skin:

First the extension of the rear wingpin must be riveted to the skin.
Then rivet the skin on the tip but not yet the seam at Y 1875 and not yet the lower part.
Now the upper skin can be riveted (is the extension already riveted?).

11
3.24 Rivet the stringers of rib Y 770 and the extension for the rear wingpin

3.25 Paint the inside with primer as well as the inside of the lower skin.

3.26 You can rivet the lower skin as well but depending of the country where you register
your aircraft they might want to inspect the wing before closing. This inspection can be
combined with the one for the centre section, see 4.46.
Almost all rivets can be of the solid type, bend the skin open to reach on the inside, work from
front to rear. At a certain point you will not be able to reach inside so the last 5 or so have to
be pop rivets.

The other wing can be made using the same jig.

4 Building of the centre section

4.1 The aircraft as drawn is suitable for pilots with a leg length of 110 cm and a shoulder
height of 64 cm measured with the following method: Sit down on the floor with your back to
the wall and your legs flat on the floor and measure the distance from your heels to the wall,
this is the leg length, and measure the height of the top of your shoulders to the floor.
Pilots with higher shoulders have to sit lower and pilots with longer legs have to sit more to
the back and a bit lower. For shorter pilots the seat shall be as drawn, for very short pilots the
seat can be adapted when the aircraft is finished.
For longer pilots the lowest point of the seat together with the seat triangle and seattube must
be lowered according to following formula:
∆Y -((leglength - 110)x0,3+(shoulderheight-64)) cm
and put to the back according:
∆X = (leglength-110) cm
In the cuttingfiles and the 1:1 partsdrawing the sideplate is drawn for 2 cm more shoulder
room. If this has to be even more you have to cut them by yourself.

Make the seat side plates and bottomplate and assemble them with clecos

4.2 Assemble the seat and the mainspar with clecos

4.3 Make the spar at X 0. Make a drawing on the workbench first. Make the screwconnections
according to 1.4.1

4.4 Make the tunnel with its stiffners and engine mount angles, they can be riveted already

4.5 Assemble tunnel and spar at X 0 and rivet. Put in the bearinghouse of the control stick.

4.6 Assemble tunnel and spar at X 0 to the seat. Make sure all is straight and in right position.
Use the jig and mark the Z 0 Y 0 points on mainspar and tunnel.

4.7 Drill the holes for the engine mount (depending of the engine you are going to use).
The holes that take the vertical and forward forces must be like on the drawing. For taking the
sideloads drill holes in the front face of the firewall + angle, do this later.

12
13
4.8 Assemble firewall to the tunnel. Mark the Z 0 Y 0 point on the firewall and use the jig to
line up the firewall with the tunnel and mainspar. Rivet the firewall to the tunnel.

4.9 Assemble the channels for the pilot's feet, do not fix the bottomplates to the ribs. Put the
pianohinges for the bottom windows in as well.

4.10 Put in the cockpit sideribs (walkway on the port side) and the ribs between the spar X 0
and the firewall.

4.11 Attach the front part of ribs at Y 700 to the mainspar and spar X 0

4.12 Put one outerwing onto the centre section. Because you have to do this often you can
best use pins from steel Ø10h9 with a tapered end instead of the bolts

4.13 Check if flange of the rib Y 700 is aligned with the skin of the wing. If this is not right
cut off the flanges and make new ones to the rib. Check also the flanges of the firewall, and
the ribs between X 0 and the firewall, best use a long ruler. This is most important for the top
and nose part because it is in sight for admirers of your aircraft. Check also if the
bottomplates of the footchannels are in line and fix them.

4.14 If it is OK pre-assemble with a few clecos the front part of the skin with the outerwing
attached. The edge of the centre section skin must be under the outerwing skin edge.

4.15 Take the wing off, and drill the rest of the holes, then take the skin off, dimple and rivet
the skin. Mind the strip on the mainspar for connection of the rear skin, it has to be riveted
together with the front part of the skin.

4.16 Do so for the other side as well.

4.17 Now work on the bottom: The easiest way is to make a stand according to the drawing so
that the centre section can be put on its side. Keep this stand even when the aircraft is finished
in case you want to do large maintenance. Use pins with tapered end to fix the stand, these
pins must go in easily to prevent wear. Clean and oil pins and holes before installing.
At this stage you can assemble the seat tube, seatbelt attachment points etc.
If the seating has to be more to the back the seattube has to be shorter and the seat triangle has
to be adapted.

4.18 Put in the small lower part of the skin, watch out, it has to follow the wingsection and not
the seatbottom!, put the top edge horizontal. Install the case for the bellcranck, mind the
distance piece for the bolt of the bellcranck, put it in before riveting.

Now the tailsection can be assembled, leave the jig in at all times.

4.19 Prepare the belly fin, put it together according to the drawing.

4.20 Prepare the bottom of the vertical fin (X 800-1700, Y 0, Z 200) and fix it to the mainspar
with clecos, mind the right angle and be sure it is in line with the centreline.

14
15
4.21 Put on one outerwing and the rear part of rib X 700, align the rib with the outerwing, the
top surface is most important. Fix with clecos. Remove the wing and check if the rib is in line
with the front part.

4.22 Do so with the other side as well.

4.23 Place the front rib (X 800) and the port skin of the fin and fix with a few clecos.

4.24. Prepare the 2 rear top skinparts and fix with some clecos to the mainspar, the rib and the
fin bottom.

4.25 Put the rear walkway in. Do not fix it yet to the mainspar

4.26 Now the bellyfin has to be lined up with the vertical fin. First attach the fin to the
mainspar, be careful not to bend the little first rib of the bellyfin.
Then the bellyfin should be attached to the walkway (port side) and upper skin (starboard
side). Check if the trailing edge is in the right position to the rest. Best you put the structure
on its side and fix a thread between posts alongside the structure at the height of the centreline
(Y 0). Align the thread so that the distance from the centreline on the firewall is say 500 mm
(Z -500). The rear point of the bellyfin must be 500 mm from the thread as well. (see fig 2)

4.27 Next step is to put the lower skin on. First the starboard part (the largest part). Put the
skin on and fix it with a few clecos, to the bellyfin only the starboard side for the time being.
Now put the port lower skin on but only fix to the bellyfin, fix the starboard skin at the same
time.

4.28 The rear part of the centre section acts as a torque box. When the lower skins are not
fixed the box can torque (when the jig would be removed). So to be sure that the left and right
wing have the same angle of incidence now is the time to check. Therefore put the structure
rightside up on supports in a way you can still get underneath, attach the wings (with the
lower skin attached) and check if the wingtips have both the same angle of incidence. Use the
centreline of the ribs and a watergauge. If corrections are necessary remove the lower
skinpanels, loosen the screws of the front and middle connection of the jig, put the structure
straight and tighten the screws again. If large corrections should be made it might be
necessary to drill the jigholes a bit larger, but in that case something has gone wrong earlier.
Now put the bottom skin on again using only the old holes for attachment to the bellyfin and
new holes for the rest.

4.29 Prepare the angle that takes the rear wingpin and fix it to the rib Y 700.

4.30 Put together the rest of the fin, take care to align things properly, also the lower rudder
pivot must be installed.

4.31 Now put in the rest of the parts in the rear centre section like stiffners, connection plates
etc.

4.32 Take the tailsection apart, dimple the holes and you can start riveting, first the vertical fin
but not yet the top rib. Then the top skin, walkway and bellyfin. Be sure not to forget parts,
especially those you can't reach anymore when the structure is closed

16
17
4.33 Rivet the stiffners to the lower skin.

4.34 Paint all inside with primer.

4.35 Now the walkways have to be filled with PUR foam. Take 2 component PUR foam with
a density of 50 kg/m3. Put the structure on its starboard side with the walkway horizontal.
Check if all holes in the lower side are closed, if not close them with tape. Calculate how
much is needed and only mix this amount. Pour it in through the holes right after mixing,
divide the stuff lengthwise by pooring in different holes. Now wait until the foam is cured. If
the chamber is not completely filled add some foam. Now the foam that has come out of the
holes can be cut away.

4.36 The top rib of the vertical fin can be placed, mind to rivet the top rudder hinge first. Also
rivet the fixation for the wingstrut first. Only the first rivets from front can be riveted with
solid rivets, the rest has to be done with pop rivets.

4.37 Install the rudder lever and check if it can rotate freely.

4.38 The bottom skin can be riveted as well but depending on the rules in your country there
might be an inspection necessary first.

4.39 Remove the jig by cutting the tube.

5 Building of the elevons

These must be made fit to the outerwing

5.1 Prepare the top skin and ribs.

5.2 Fix the hingeplates with bearing to the first rib and the one at the tip to the top skin with
clecos and clamp the first rib to skin. Fix the rest of the ribs except Y 1500 to the skin

5.3 Atach the elevon to the outerwing, There might be some grinding necessary on the
hingeplates to let it all run free.
Fix first rib to the skin.

5.4 Fix the middle hinge to the outerwing, now you can see where the rib 4 (Y 1500) should
be. Fix the rib in the elevon.

5.5 Stabilise the elevon in the right shape with f.i. a wooden bar and fix the middle hinge to
the rib.

5.6 Remove the elevon from the wing.

5.7 Put the lower skin on, watch out that the elevon is in the right shape, laying it flat on the
workbench is not the right shape! The radius on the lower skin has to be pre-formed.

5.8 Check if the elevon still fits to the outerwing.

18
5.9 Make the connection for the control rod.

5.10 Pre-form the lower skin for the trim tab

5.11 Drill all holes, dimple and deburr.

5.12 Paint all inside with primer

5.13 Rivet the elevon together, the lower skin cannot be riveted (except rib Y 770) so it has to
be done with pop rivets.

6 Building of the rudder

Now you have made the aircraft this far successfully the rudder must be a piece of cake.
Make the rudder as drawn. The leading edge can be hard to bend but it is allowed to make
multiple (8) folds instead.

7 Main landing gear.

Make and install the landing gear as drawn.

Take special care that the ball joints of the stabilising rods have enough freedom of
movement, even if the steering deflection is at the most. Check before installing the spring
element so that you can check this in the positions of suspension unloaded and fully
compressed.
Check if the triangle and the rod are in line when the gear is locked, best is to mark the
locking holes when all is in the right position installed in the aircraft, take the parts out and
drill.

The prototype has a simple sheetsteel wheel but you can also go for another type, as long as
the tyresize is the same. The loadrating is 200 kg with a max loadfactor of 3,0. The brake
must be able to absorb an energy of 130 MJ without overheating. If the engine will be hand
swung there must also be a parking brake.

8 Tailwheel.

Make and install as drawn.

Instead of the indicated wheel you can also take another type, loadrating is 140 kg, loadfactor
3,0.

Here is a tip for installing the hook to the bungee cord: Put the end in a bench vice and pull
the cord. While pulling wind a thread around the cord and fix it with a knot at the end. Then
cut off the part of the bungeecord that comes out of the windings.
Now the end can be put into the hook using a screwing motion.

9 Controls

9.1 Rudder controls

19
9.1.1 Make the guidewheels and fairlead as drawn.

9.1.2 Make the rear end of the cable and fix it to the rudder lever.

9.1.3 Lead the cable through the fairlead and guidwheel, if this has to be done when the
tailsection is already closed, use a small wire to pull the cable through the fairlead.

9.1.4 Make the rudder pedals together with the wheel pedals and install them (the landing gear
must be in place).

9.1.5 Determine the length of the cable and make the cable terminal.

9.1.6 Assemble the cable and return spring

9.1.7 The cable is pulled by the feet of the pilot and by a spring so that the cable is never
slack. In order to keep the rudder trimmed while flying there must be another spring made of
bungee cord that is pulled when the pedal is pushed. Make the end fixation adjustable for
trimming. You can fly without these bungees but there will be almost no feel and especially
when things get excited you want the rudder to be straight.

9.2 Elevon controls

9.2.1 Attach the elevons to the outerwing. Now the end stop for the down position has to be
determined and installed. Elevon deflection as on dwg 04-003. For installing the stop it is not
necessary to remove the elevon.

9.2.2 Make and install the stick, bellcranck and rods from stick to bellcranck as drawn, watch
out, port and starboard bellcracks are different!
Check the system for freedom of movement, watch out not to stress the ball joints.

9.2.3 Install the rods between bellcranck and elevon (the wings have to be attached and folded
up and the elevons installed). The nut for the balljoint in the elevon has to be put in via the
hole in the leading edge of the elevon. The hole in the rod for installing the screw of the rear
balljoint has to be on the bottom side.
Check if the balljoint is not touching the structure. Carefully lower the wing and check if the
controlrod does not touch structure. With the wing low check the system. The rods must be
adjusted that in full down position the stick is 1 cm from the instrument panel. Of course,
when both elevons are level the stick must be in the middle.

9.2.4 Determine the position for the stop in up position. This stop is on the rib Y 700 and
limits the travel of the bellcrack.

9.3 Brake:
Mount the brake handle sideways to the left, if mounted to the front it will hit the instrument
panel.
If you want to install a parking brake put the lever high on the left side of the instrumentpanel
so that you can reach it standing next to the aircraft.

20
10 Fuel system:

10.1 Prepare the tanks.

As tanks 30 ltr plastic transparent cans are used. The dimensions of the cans must be
40x33x27 cm.
The port can must have a fillopening, , a connection for the interconnecting tube and a
connection for the fuel line to the engine. The latter must have a finger strainer. The starboard
tank must have a connection for the interconnecting tube. Make the fittings according to the
drawing.
On the top of both tanks there must be a 1/8" connection for the ventline.

10.2 Interconnection and drain.

The 2 cans must be interconnected via a tube that runs behind the seat. In this tube there must
be a connection for the drain since it is the lowest point in the system. This tube can best be
made from stainless steel and must have a diameter of at least 12 mm. If possible make the
drain on the other side than the exhaust.
The drainvalve can be put on one side and more towards the nose and connected with a hose
so that you don't have to crawl under the aircraft while draining. Keep the hose as low as
possible.

10.3 Make the tankplatforms as drawn.

10.4 Install the tanks. Make sure the tanks don't touch any protruding parts. Put a piece of fuel
resistent foam or plywood between tank and mainspar. install straps and put them tight. The
edges of the straps should be covered, f.i. with rubber trimming.

10.5 Install the fuel line. You can use an aluminum tube Ø10x1. The connections should be
made with rubber hose. Use automotive hose, aircraft hose can't stand automotive fuel.
The fuel line should run on the port side along the outside of the seat and then straight on to
the firewall, kept the fuel line low.

10.6 Fuel shut-off valve

Install a fuel shut-off valve right in front of X 0 in the fuel line so that you can reach it in
flight.

10.7 Fuel pumps

In the fuel line an electric boostpump must be installed. Best place is next to the rudder
pedals, you can reach the pump easily when the bottom window is removed.
If your engine does not have a pump of its own you must install 2 electric pumps for safety.
As pumps can be used f.i. the Facet pump, but check if your engine likes the intermittent way
of pumping (for most floatcarburettors it is OK).
Most common pump failures are:
1 electric failure
2 clogging
3 leaking membrane
4 broken checkvalve
In order to prevent starvation by clogging the pumps can best be placed parallel. For case of a
broken checkvalve: there are 2 of them in series.
There is no remedy for a leaking membrane, only that the Facet pump does not have a
membrane but a piston.

21
10.8 Strainer.
Install a strainer with drain in front of the firewall. Install in a way that it does not protrude
under the structure, you don't want a fire in case of a belly landing.

10.9 Ventlines.
It is important that the ventline can not accumulate fuel or moisture, so there may be no part
that is lower than the rest. The 2 tanks have to be connected for the following reason: If the
aircraft standing on the ground rolls from say left to right then fuel will flow from one tank to
the other. The excess air and vapor will go out one tank and if it is discharged outside this
vapour is lost while it is in fact good fuel (there is always an equilibrium between vapor and
air above the fuel level). If the ventline is connected to the other tank this vapor is put into
that tank.
Connect the ventopenings of both tanks via a tube Ø6 mm that runs from one tank to the spar
X 0, then across the tunnel and to the other tank. From there a T is installed in the line and the
ventline led through the rib Y 700 and then down. The end is bend toward the nose so that the
tanks are pressurised. This is necessary because the cockpit will be pressurised as well (there
are bigger holes in the bottom of the aircraft than in the upperside and also air intakes for
ventilation pressurise the cockpit). If the tanks are not pressurised the walls will bend in.

11 Canopy, bottomwindows, inspection ports

11.1 Canopy

11.1.1 Make the canopyframe as drawn. The 2 sidesheets have to have an edge to wich the
window is attached. The sheets must follow the shape of the wing so they have to be worked.
With a copper hammer on a steel anvil hammer on the edge until the material is stretched
enough to have the right shape. Do not place the top skin (above the window) yet.

11.1.2 Put the canopyframe in place on the aircraft and then take the right shape of the
window and top skin together with a sheet of cardboard. Mark also the position of the rib on
the paper.

11.1.4 Draw the shape of the window on the lexan and of the top skin on aluminum sheet and
cut them, the top skin must have 2 cm excess material at the rear side. Mind that the window
and topskin have 2 cm overlap.

11.1.5 Fix the window on the frame with clecos and after that the top skin. You can't put on
the topskin when the window is fixed with clecos to the rib, so remove the clecos there and
drill one hole in the middle of the top skin. Fix the top skin, window and rib with that 1 hole
and do the rest later with the canopy taken off.

11.1.6 Remove the canopy, drill the rest of the holes and attach the window and top skin, the
top skin can be riveted. The window has to be attached with M3 screws and aluminum strips.
The M3 screws are countersunk, so dimple the aluminum strips and drill a countersunc hole in
the lexan.
Lexan is weird material, you can bend it and strike it with a hammer and the material will stay
in one piece, however if you put a constant stress on the material, after a year or so it will

22
crack. So do not tighten the screws and use locknuts or locking glue to prevent the nuts from
coming off. If you want to make it really nice you can fix the window with bushes wich are
0,1 mm longer than the thickness of the lexan.
The curve in the window will also cause trouble if not treated well. For relaxing the stress the
window has to be heated. This can be done with a hot air gun (used for stripping paint).
Before working on the canopy try on a piece of lexan how long and at what settings you have
to heat the material. Bend the testpiece and after heating and cooling it must stay in that
shape.
If you can use a furnace in wich the canopy fits this would be the best.

11.1.7 Make the locks and positioning blocks as drawn and also the reinforcements. With the
prototype the lever on the outside is made from a doorlever of a Citroën 2CV that has a lock
inside and is streamlined. If you can't find this antique part you have to invent something else.

11.1.8 Trim the edges so that the cockpit fits nicely on the aircraft. The front edge of the
window and alu strip may not touch the skin of the aircraft. At the rear side the aluminum
must overlap the vertical fin with 5 mm

11.1.9 Adjust the locks and open and close the canopy several times when seated to be sure it
works OK. For closing put the canopy in place and pull it backwards for the rear locks to
engage, then engage the front lock, opening is in reverse sequence. The opening must be done
without hesitation or chance of jamming. There is nothing more terrifying than being locked
inside an aircraft that you want to abandon.
The lever must be overcentered when locked.

11.1.10 A canopy is not something to joke with, loosing it in flight can put you in severe
trouble, so be sure the locks work all right and check the canopy regular.

11.1.11 As you can see the canopy is not hinged to the aircraft. When you have to bail out you
can easily get rid of the canopy. For maintenance it is also a lot easier.
Before getting in the canopy is placed on the nose. To prevent it from being blown away by
the wind there is a hook attached to the firewall that holds the front and at the rear there are 2
balljoints DIN 71802 wich can easily be taken apart, the ball fixed to the spar X 0 and the cup
to the canopy.

11.2 Bottomwindows.
On the left and right side of the cockpit there are removable panels which can be made from
lexan, however when you use a liquid cooled engine the cooler has to be at the place of the
starboard panel. Making the panels from aluminum will be lighter but you won't be able to see
straight down. The windows are not necessary but can be convenient for spotting the signal
square on an aerodrome. Up to you to decide. If you make lexan panels make the part
underneath the tanks from aluminum, the lexan can't stand fuel.
At the front the panels slide into a slot, at the sides they are fixed with pianohinge and at the
back with screws.
Attach the lexan with aluminum strips and M3 screws but don't tighten these screws (see also
11.1.6). Make sure that the bottomwindows fit nicely to the outerwing. Together with the
pianohinges an angle 20x20x0,6 must be riveted for more stiffness. In the forward angle there
must be a hook for locking the wingpin in the pulled position.

23
11.3 Inspection ports
Make the inspection ports as drawn. You can place and remove them without tools.

12 Engine installation

12.1 Possible engines are:

Subaru EA 71, 1600 cc 50 HP
VW 1800 cc, 60 HP
Jabiru 2200, 80 HP
ULPower UL 260i, 90 HP
Rotax 582 (2 stroke), 60 HP

12.2 general considerations:

12.2.1 The aircraft has the tendency to be nose heavy, so don't install heavy engines and place
the engine as far back as possible.

12.2.2 Place the propshaft on the centreline of the root section, if you place it higher the
aircraft will heavily roll to one side with full power and low speed.
There should be 2° sidethrust to compensate for propeller slipstream. For engines with
clockwise rotation (seen from cockpit) this should be to the right and visa versa. Keep the
propellerhub centered and offset the back of the engine.

12.2.3 The prototype has the Subaru.

However the VW is most recommended, it will fit in nice, is light and simple and has
sufficient horsepower. You can make the carburator on top of the engine, making intake
manifolds simple.
To save weight it is recommended not to install a starter, in that case you can use a light
battery installed in the tail.
Put the engine as far to the back as possible, if you use a magneto put it through the firewall
(but make a stainless steel cup around the magneto so that the firewall is closed). Check first
if things don't interfere with the gear retract triangle. Perhaps better is to make double ignition
with a battery system. If you do so you must have means to retard the ignition when starting,
if not the prop will hurt your hand.
Install a lightweight alternator that fits directly on the cranckshaft.

Instead of a VW you can also take a Limbach, which is in fact a VW with a different camshaft
so that the engine delivers its power at a lower speed.

12.2.4 The Jabiru does not fit in as nice as the other mentioned engines, because of its deep
oilpan and carburetor that is build underneath, the cowling has to be deeper as well.
Furthermore the engine has to be placed more forward than desired because the landing gear
is right where the intake box is. The Jabiru requires a battery for starting. This battery can be
placed behind the seat. Take cables that are large enough.

12.2.5 The UL260 engine has also a deep oilpan but has no carburettor down under, so it can
be build close to the firewall. For the battery the same counts as for the Jabiru.

24
12.2.6 If you install a watercooled engine the cooler has to be placed in the wing at starboard
side in a tunnel with an outlet valve to be able to control the cooling. Make the tunnel in a
way that it can easily be taken out in case you have to work in the cockpit. Make the tunnel
flush with the skin.

12.2.7 When you designed the engine different than the Subaru you have to design the engine
mount and calculate it (or let an engineer calculate it).
If you want to install the Subaru engine contact the designer for drawings of the engine
mount.

12.3.4 The holes that take the vertical and forward forces must be like on the drawing. For
taking the sideloads drill holes in the front face of the firewall + angle.
Screws are M8 or AN5.

12.3 Propeller.
The maximum diameter is 1400 mm. A 2 blade propeller will give better performance than a
3 blade. The pitch should be suitable for the rpm and speed, for instance the cruisespeed is
120 kts = 62 m/s and the cruise rpm is 3000 = 50 rev/sec the net pitch is 62/50 = 1,24 m. The
actual pitch can be the same because in practice the slip is 0.
On take-off the engine must develop its max power wich it only does at its max rpm, now
max rpm cannot be achieved with a fixed pitch because it will overspeed in cruise but at least
80% of the max rpm must be there while running static. If the engine cannot achieve that the
pitch must be less, don't cut the tips from the propellerblades, you will get more rpm but it
won't help in climbing.
Good figures for a direct drive engine are 3000 rpm static on the ground, 3000 rpm or a little
more in climb and 3200 rpm in cruise.

13 Cowling
The cowling can be made of aluminum, this is not a big job but requires some creativity to get
an acceptable form with only single-curved sheet, or of epoxy with glassfibre, this is a lot of
work but you have absolute freedom of shape.
The cowling is to be fixed to the edge of the firewall with M6 screws or f.i. Dzus fasteners.
When the engine is an aircooled one not only airintakes are necessary but also outlet
openings. If you place them underneath make them in a way that the airflow draws the hot air
out. Just an opening in the bottom is not good, the cowling is also part of the wing and has
overpressure underneath wich blocks the airflow.

Most cowlings of light aircraft are divided in an upper and lower half, but consider a right and
left half like the prototype has.

14 Electrical system

This depends on the kind of engine you use and of the electrical equipment you want.
However some kind of electrical system is necessary for the trim system and boostpump.

14.1 Battery
Depending of the engine you will need a certail capacity. If the engine is started with
electricity you need a big one wich requires maintenance. This can best be placed behind the
seat. Bear in mind that in case of a crash it will become a bullet. General consideration is to
have it fixed so that it will stay in place with 9 g forward decellerationand also +/- 6 g vertical

25
as a result of normal flight loads. Put the battery in a fibreglass cage vented to the outside.
This is for 2 reasons: 1 when the battery leaks the acid will not damage the structure, 2 the
hydrogen gases formed when charging can't get in the cockpit. When the battery is not needed
for starting you can place a much smaller battery, best a dry cell battery placed in the tail. The
prototype has 2 dry batteries in both sides of the tail near rib Y 700, reachable via a port in the
rib. The reason for placing in the tail is 2 fold: 1 for the centre of gravity, 2 in case of
explosion or leaking of the battery the position in the tail will do the least harm. The reason of
placing them near rib Y 700 is that in case of a crash they are less likely to hit the pilot

14.2 Electric wiring.

Keep the wiring away from the tanks. Use aircraft wiring, these are made of stainless steel
and can stand the vibrations better and have teflon insulation that can stand higher
temperatures and more kinds of chemicals than the normal PVC insulation. Use proper
terminals and fit them with good pliers suitable for the terminal.
Lead the cables in such a way that they cannot be chafed, use rubber bushes to feed cables
through metal parts and use plastic cable channel to put the cables in. Binding cables together
is common practice but not to be advised since you cannot check every cable and in case of
modifications or failure it is a nightmare.

14.3 Trim
The trimsurfaces on the eleveons must be controlled by a servo. The prototype has servos
from radio controlled model aircraft, and a double servocontroller. With this controller both
servos are controlled at the same time and there is not only pitch trim but also aileron trim.
One advantage of this system is that there is no need for feedback of the trim position, you
can see that from the position of the lever. In case of malfunctioning: the control forces are
not that high that you can't fly when the aircraft is out of trim.
Take watertight servos with at least 0,5 Nm torque.

14.4 Avionics
The instrument panel is too smal to take the radio and transponder. You can fix them to the
strut of spar X 0 but it takes away bagage area.
The prototype has them fixed under the port cockpit edge. They are of the flat and wide type
used in most commercial aircraft.
If you want to install a GPS this can be placed in the right side panel, use an external antenna.

14.5 Antennas
14.5.1 The com. antenna can best be placed on top of the vertical fin, the fin acts as a dipole
and it gives good receipt.

14.5.2 The transponder antenna must be placed underneath, the prototype has it on the port
side underneath the tailsection. The station that checks the installation can have some trouble
receiving the signal because the aircraft is so low to the ground, just lift the tail up a bit then.

14.6 Glass panel

Check your choice with the available space, also with gear up. Protect the equipment from dirt
and water coming from the landing gear.

14.7 Landing gear warning

If you don't install it now you will after the first gear up landing. You can use a red light or a
sound warning, however; this must be heard through the headset making things complicated.

26
15 Instruments

15.1 In the central instrument panel the flight instruments shall be installed: airspeed, altitude,
vertical speed (not required) and compass. The slipindicator can be installed behind the tunnel
wall with a cut-out where the sightglass is. Consider installing 2" instruments when you want
more instruments like an artificial horizon.
Protect the instruments from water and dirt thrown up by the wheel, f.i. with a canvas hose

15.2 The left panel is meant for switches, fuses and engine control levers so that you can
handle them without taking the right hand from the stick.

15.3 The right panel is for engine and system instruments depending of your needs. Some
instruments can be placed underneath the starboard cockpit edge if you want.

15.4 Pitot tube.

Static and ram air port must be on top of the fin, because that is the place on the aircraft wich
is least effected by the aerodynamic pressures.
Make a drain possibility in the lowest point of the lines from the pitot tube.

16 Finish

16.1 Paint
The aluminum can be painted in any color or left bare and being polished. Take care not to
apply too much paint because of the weight, make the paint layer as thin as possible, some
colors like white and yellow need a thicker layer than others and are to be avoided.
When you want to paint the aircraft in several colors do not apply one color over the other for
weight saving.
Before painting there should always be a primer for good sticking and corrosion prevention.
A polished aircraft looks very nice and is light but has a few disadvantages: it becomes very
hot in the sun, is sensitive to corrosion and needs maintenance. When you live in a country
where salt is sprayed on the roads in winter and you want to take the aircraft home you have
to protect the aluminum, this can best be done with silicon oil from a spraying can. Once there
is silicon oil on the aluminum it can never be painted.

16.2 Interior
Leave the interior as sober as possible for the following reasons:
- it only costs weight
- you don't have to impress your passenger
- it is far more easier in maintenance
- fighter aircraft don't have upholstery

Only a good cushon to sit on would be nice. Adapt the thickness of that cushon to your length,
You must sit as high as comfortable to have the best view over the nose.
The back rest is a simple piece of 8mm good quality plywood.

27
If your legs are not too long you can wear a parachute, if you don't wear this parachute there
must be a filling piece instead, this can be made from polystyrene foam.

17 Weighing

With all equipment installed and oil and coolant in the aircraft must be weighed (Don't forget
to put on the canopy).
Put a platform under the tailwheel so that the aircraft is horizontal, check with a watergauge
on top of the vertical fin. Place scales under main and tailwheel. Balance the aircaft at the tip
so that there is no force needed to hold the aircraft. Read the scales. From this the total mass
and centre of gravity (cg) position can be calculated with the formula:
x = distance from X 0 to cg (positive to the rear)
F1 = mass on mainwheel
F2 = mass on tailwheel

x = (F1 x 647 - F2 x 1605)/(F1+F2)

With the prototype x = 90 mm and total mass 210 kg.

This empty cg position figure shall not be much less.

Because of the flying wing design the take off and climb performance is depending on the cg
position, the further back the better the performance.

18 Road transport
The Delta has folding wings for road transport so that you can take the aircraft home and save
hangarage. To keep the wings in folded position a bar (fi made from rectangular tube) must be
placed on top of the fin and the wings can be attached to this bar using the blind rivet nut you
made in the outerwing.
Because of the monowheel the aircraft will not be stable when the wings are folded, so you
have to make a stabiliser. The stabiliser has to keep the aircraft level but may not support the
aircraft, that has to be done by the wheels (see photos for the solution made for the prototype).
The aircraft has to be pulled onto the trailer with wings down, than fold 1 wing, the centre
section fixed to the stabiliser and then fold the other wing.
The aircraft can best be placed nose back on the trailer, in that case the sidewind forces will
act between the axle and the car instead of all the way to the rear. To prevent that you must
push the aircraft over the wheels of the trailer the entrance is over the coupling, so you must
remove your car before taking the aircraft from the trailer.
For most of the maintenance the aircraft does not have to be taken from the trailer, you can
even make a support for the fuselage jacking point wich fits to the trailer so that you can
check the landinggear or change a tyre.
The aircraft can best be fixed at the rear to the bellyfin and sideways by means of belts (if not
all the sidewind forces will act on the tailwheel). At the front the mainwheel can be locked by
means of a steel belt over the tyre and sideways with a bar or belts to the landing gear arm.
The elevons have to be fixed to the centre section by bars (f.i. made from tube).
See photographs for more details.

28
D Flying

Now the aircraft is finished and all the paperwork is done the great day of the "roll-out" is
coming near.

First you have to test all systems and especially the engine.
Do make prolonged runs and watch temperatures, if they get too high on the ground they
might also get too high in the air.

Meanwhile you can learn low speed taxying. Keep direction with the gearpedals, normal
taxying with your feet low and when more force is needed you can put your feet on the top of
the pedal. Also try to keep the aircraft level with the ailerons.

If taxying hides no secrets and the engine is tested you can try high speed taxying. Fasten
your seatbelts and put enough fuel in the tank just in case you get airborne, also for this reason
do it on a runway. Accelerate the aircraft until 50 kts (60 mph, 90 km/h) with elevator pulled.
Keep direction with the gear pedals an keep the wings level with the ailerons. Mind to brake
in time!

If you feel comfortable taxying the first flight can be done. Be sure you are capable of flying a
stange aircraft for the first time solo, test it with other types of aircraft, take a type you have
never flown before and an instructor, reed the manual of that aircraft and tell the instructor to
keep his mouth shut and only to interfere when you are about to crash. If you are able to fly
that aircraft the very first time and land it properly you passed the test. If not you are not
suitable for flying a single seater, let alone do the first flight in the Delta.
Tailwheel experience is not necessary.

You can also hire a test pilot of course, let him read this part of the instructions and let him do
the taxying practise.

If you are an aeromodeller you can buil a model first and fly with it to learn the particularities.

For the first flight take a long runway (3 km would be nice), a day with nice weather and not
much trafic, preferably a non controlled airfield. Let some helpers watch you and have a car,
cellphone and fire extinguisher at hand.
Now first some theory: The Delta sits tail down on the ground. While taxying the tail can't be
raised because the mainwheel is way up front of the cg, the aircraft has to be flown off deck in
this attitude. When you would apply too much elevator up the lift of the wing will be
diminished and the aircraft will not get airborne or at a very high speed. When there is too
little elevator up the tail will rise, this causes bouncing. If this happens just pull.
So you must find the right position of the elevator, this is a matter of experience but most of
the times a little "up" will do. If the aircraft starts bouncing pull a little more and when it does
not get airborne push a little.

At first best is to make some hubs over the runway first although opinions on this matter
differ, even amongst professional test pilots. Prepare as if it is a regular flight just in case you
use too much runway and have to go on, so enough fuel and strapped in.
After the normal preflight checks line up and apply throttle. Let the aircraft accelerate, keep
direction with the gear pedals, keep the wings level, apply slight up elevon and try to get
airborne. As soon as you feel the aircraft lifts cut power and land, keeping the same nose high

29
attitude. While taxying back you can think of what happened, perhaps you needed to put in
some rudder?
Now try again but keep the aircraft in the air a little longer, don't let the speed build up to
prevent from overrunning the runway. Make the first flights with reduced power.
In landing put the nose high enough to let the tailwheel touch first, if the mainwheel touches
first the aircraft starts bouncing, the cure is then to pull.

After that you can let the aircraft climb a little and land again. At the end of the day you can
have made flights to tree top height (50') and made landings from this altitude.

Check the aircraft, now you are ready for the first real flight.
Take off as you have done before and climb out with a speed of 80 kts or more. Compensate
for the engine torque with rudder.
At altitude you can pull in the landing gear and start playing. Make some turns to get a feel of
the aircraft. Test the rudder and you will notice that right rudder gives right yaw but left roll.
This is normal and caused by the anhedral. If everything is OK you can perform a stall. You
will notice a buffeting at very high angle of attack followed by a wingdrop. This wingdrop
must be counteracted by the ailerons. The wingdrop is caused by reverse flow induced by the
high deflection of the elevon so diminishing the elevon deflection breaks the reverse flow.
Later on you can check things out with wool fibres.
The speed indication can be off by the high angle of attack (position error) but it is important
to note this speed because the approach speed must be 20 kts above.
Note also the trim settings so that you can adjust them on the ground

If you have flown for say 20 minutes it is time to land.

Make a normal pattern and lower the gear on downwind, check the lock. Check also the brake
and put on the boostpump.
The speed on final must be 20 kts above the noted stallspeed wich will be around 70 kts. Mind
that the airspeed indicator can give too high or too low readings due to the position error
because the aircraft has such a high angle of attack.
A good guide is that the landing point is just visible over the nose. Not only fly on
instruments but use your feel, if the controls are sloppy the speed has to be increased. Do not
apply rudder and don't try to sideslip, you can try that at altitude but not on final.
Put your feet on the rudder and wheelpedals at the same time.
Flare as with a normal aircraft but keep the aircraft off as long as possible. Because you had a
fairly high approach speed the aircraft will float, so wait until the speed is off. Let the
tailwheel touch first.

Congratulations, all your builing effort has paid off finally.

In later flights you can test the aircraft further and see what the best approach and climb
speed is, how you can make short field and dead stick landings, what the best take off
technique is etc.
Determine also the drift down curve and climb curve (note the vertical speed at various speeds
and make a graph).
You have to test the aircraft at high speeds as well. Accelerate until the speed reaches the red
line (vne) and apply elevon and rudder to feel if there is any instability which might cause
flutter. If this is the case don't go any further and investigate the cause first.

Do check the aircraft after every flight the first time to be sure all stays in one piece.

30
Here are some tips for various manoeuvers:
Take-off: pull in the gear as soon as there is a positive climb to reduce drag, climb out with
best angle of climb and after clearing obstacles climb with best climbspeed.

Soft field take-off: start with full up elevator. When the take-off speed is reached push the
stick until the aircraft gets airborn.

Normal landing: Aproach with a speed that the touch down point is visible over the nose wich
will be around 70 kts. At short final reduce speed to 60-65 kts, let the aircraft descend and
flare just above the ground.

Short field landing: Aproach with normal speed or slightly lower and at ca 10 m above the
runwaypull the nose high and let the aircraft sink, of course, don't stall the aircraft. The low
speed prevents the aircraft from floating. Don't be afraid; the aircraft will not sink abrubtly.

Power off landing:

Practise this, it can save your life in case the engine quits.
The aircraft will sink with almost the same sinkrate in a speedrange between 60 and 100 kts.
So the glide angle can be controlled with the speed: the more speed the better the glide angle.
So keep up speed (100 kts) and keep landing gear in until you are sure to make the field, then
reduce speed and lower the gear or keep it in when you have to land outside an airfield.
Do not sideslip

31
Appendix A, List of drawings

nr mod. title size scale

00-001 0 ASSEMBLY A1 1:10
00-002 0 STEEL PARTS A0 1:1
00-003 0 CUTTINGFILES A2 1:20
01-001 0 CENTRE SECTION A0 1:5
01-002 0 MAINSPAR A1 1:2
01-003 0 SPAR X 0 A1 1:2
01-004 0 TUNNEL A1 1:2
01-005 0 BELLYFIN A1 1:2
01-006 0 CENTRE SECTION DETAILS A1 1:2
01-007 0 CENTRE SECTION PARTS 1:1 SHEET 1 A0 1:1
01-008 0 CENTRE SECTION PARTS 1:1 SHEET 2 A0 1:1
01-009 0 CENTRE SECTION PARTS 1:1 SHEET 3 A0 1:1
01-010 0 CENTRE SECTION PARTS 1:1 SHEET 4 A0 1:1
01-011 0 INSPECTION PORTS A3 1:1
02-001 0 OUTERWING A1 1:5
02-002 0 OUTERWING DETAILS A1 1:2
02-003 0 OUTERWING RIBS 1:1 SHEET 1 A0 1:1
02-004 0 OUTERWING RIBS 1:1 SHEET 2 A0 1:1
02-005 0 OUTERWING PARTS 1:1 A0 1:1
03-001 2 MAIN LANDING GEAR A1 1:2
03-003 1 LANDING GEAR ARM A3 1:2
03-004 1 LANDING GEAR STRUT A3 1:2
03-005 0 LANDING GEAR TELESCOPE A3 1:2
03-006 1 LANDING GEAR RETRACT TRIANGLE A3 1:2
03-007 1 LANDING GEAR MOUNTINGPLATE RIGHT A3 1:2
03-008 1 LANDING GEAR MOUNTINGPLATE LEFT A3 1:2
03-009 1 MILLED PARTS A2 1:1
03-010 1 PEDALS A2 1:2
03-012 0 RETRACT LEVER A2 1:2
03-014 0 TAILWHEEL A3 1:2
03-015 0 TIPWHEELS A3 1:2
04-001 0 ELEVON A2 1:5
04-002 0 RUDDER A3 1:5
04-003 0 CONTROLS A1 1:2
04-004 0 ELEVON SKIN 1:1 A0 1:1
04-005 0 ELEVON AND RUDDER PARTS 1:1 A0 1:1
05-001 0 FUELTANKS A2 1:2
06-001 0 CANOPY A1 1:2,5
06-002 0 CANOPY PARTS 1:1 A1 1:1
07-001 0 RIVETING TOOLS A3 1:1
07-002 0 JIGS A3 1:10
08-001 0 ELECTRIC DIAGRAM TRIM A3 1:1

32
Appendix B, guidelines for use of non DIN or ISO standard hardware

Bolts:
Bolts quality 8.8 have a tensile strength of 800 N/mm2 (114000 psi) and a yield strength of
640 N/mm2 (91000 psi), comparable with AN bolts
For quality 10.9 these values are 140000 and 128000 psi respectively and for 12.9 these
values are 171000 and154000 psi resp., comparable with NAS 11 series.

explanation of used DIN nrs:

DIN 931: bolt with cylindrical shaft
DIN 933: bolt with full thread
DIN 6921: bolt with hexacon head with flange
DIN 6923: hexacon nut with flange
DIN 1481: straight hollow pin, slotted, made of spring steel
DIN 71802: ball joint, detachable, ball with threaded stud, house with internal thead

For bearings the equivalent in anglo-american dimensions can be taken

Materials:
S 235: mild low carbon steel, yield strength 34000 psi, good weldable
C 45: hardenable carbon steel (0,45 % carbon), yield strength 80000 psi, not weldable
St 52 (or S355): low carbonsteel with yield strength 50000 psi, good weldable
42CrMo4: high tensile steel, tensile strength 170000 psi, yield strength 107000 psi

Werkstoff S: rather soft polyethylene with low friction and wear

Citroen 2CV: Strange looking french car from the past but designed in the 30's by an
aeronautical engineer, so light and streamlined (some parts though), the doorhandle is used for
the streamline and weight.

Tolerances:
The ISO tolerance system works with letters and numbers, f.i. Ø10H7 means that the diameter
must be between 10,000 and 10,015 mm. You can search via internet..

33
Appendix C

Bill of aircraft construction materials airframe

Aluminum 6061T6 or 2024T3 alclad

The 2024 quality is preferable due to the higher strength and better corrosion resistance and
polishability of the alclad layer.

sheet 0,025" 4'x8' (0,6 mm 1,22x2,44 m) 19 pcs (1 is spare)

angle 1"x1"x1/8" (25,4x25,4x3,2 mm) Length 5' (1,5 m) 10 pcs
angle 5/8"x5/8"x1/16" (16x16x1,6 mm) Length 5' (1,5 m) 4 pcs
tube Ø3/8"x0,035" (9,5x0,9 mm) Length 8' (2,4 m) 1 pc

steel 4130
tube Ø7/8"x0,065" (22,2x1,65 mm) Length 6' (1,8 m) 5 pcs
tube Ø1,5"x0,12"(38x3 mm) Length 2' (0,6 m) 1 pc
tube Ø2"x0,065" (50,8x1,65 mm) Length 2' (0,6 m) 1 pc
bar Ø3/4" (19 mm) Length 1' (0,3 m) 1 pc
sheet 0,08" 72x18" (2mm 1800x 460) 1 pc

rivets (AN 426 is with flush head)

AN470AD-4-4 2 lb (1 kg)
AN470AD-4-5 500 pcs
AN470AD-4-6 200 pcs
AN470AD-4-8 200 pcs
AN426AD-4-4 2 lb (1 kg)
AN426AD-4-6 200 pcs

bolts & nuts

AN 4-11 16 pcs
AN 4-7 6 pcs
AN 4-6 14 pcs
AN 4-15 4 pcs
nuts AN 365-428A (1/4"-28) 40 pcs
washer AN 960-416 (1/4") 150 pcs

tools
cleco fasteners 1/8" 50 pcs
cleco fastener 3/32" 50 pcs
cleco pliers 1 pc

34