Brodhead Pietenpol Association

Brian Amato

Thanks Ken. I appreciate everyone on this forum for helping each other.
I just came back from the welding supply store where I bought some threaded adapters for a small jewelers welding set I have. I'm going to see if that will be better for this fine work. I'll let you guys know more tomorrow.
B

Brian Amato

Oscar...and guys who have responded, yup, you're right about the "thin yet strong and light" concept. I'm doing it just like the plans. So, follow up question: You guys who HAVE already made your control horns, and did the welding yourself, what did you use to weld them with? I only have o...

Brian Amato

This has probably been covered in depth before but I'm not finding it in the archives: Anybody come up with a clever way to form the concave shapes in the left and right control horn pieces? I made the horn for the rudder last nite and, altho it didn't come out too bad, it's more a series of bends t...

Brian Amato

Oscar...you're right. Does sound a bit wrong some how, doesn't it. Sentence structure was never my strong suite. Kind of like the old gag: "She has freckles on her but, she's lovely" Be careful where you put the comma :) Work on the Piet really is coming along nicely. All tail feathers now...

Brian Amato

Neat??? I think it looks like a train wreck. So does my wife.

Brian Amato

Great...I CAN open PDFs
Thanx

Brian Amato

Friends walk in my shop and say "What in the h*** are you building in here?

Brian Amato

Thanks for that nice reply. No....when I said "stick it in the vise and hammer away" I'm really more careful than that. I put soft jaws in my vice with built-in radiused corners. Stress risers: Yup, I'm aware of them too. Grain direction: bend perpendicular to the grain, am I right...not W...

Brian Amato

I think I'll start making some of the many metal fittings we need on a Piet. When I built the Corben Jr. Ace, I didn't pay too much attention to what state the metal stock was in before I bent it; I just cut it to the required width and length, stuck it in the vice and took a hammer to it until it w...

Brian Amato

Hey Oscar....my lame-o computer, or me....can't seem to open any of those docs. What do I need?
Brian

Brian Amato

Might be interested. How much do ya need for them? Shipping from where?
More to the point....are you building a legal eagle? I've been watching that one too, for quite some time.
Half a VW engine in it?

Brian Amato

The stuff I posted is labeled "Aircraft Grade" plywood. Now, of course, anybody can label anything they want how ever they want. Reminds me of the time I was building a little sailing dingy from some plans I had purchased from a well known designer/builder/book author out in Maine. I asked...

Brian Amato

Just passing along a tip that might help some of you guys out, looking for a good price on 1/8" ply for gussets. I found this on-line and ordered 3 sheets. Nine bucks and change for three of them. About the same again for shipping but still cheaper than I've found anywhere else. I have no veste...

Brian Amato

I called Andrew Pietenpol (grand son of Berny) yesterday and ordered the plans for the 3 piece wing. Nice guy and very forthcoming with information.

Brian Amato

Door Skins: yup, I went to both Menards and Home Depot yesterday and they have no idea what door skins are. The closest they had was luan ply which is just under 1/4". Used as under layment mostly. Some sheets are pretty close to 3/16 but some can run thicker and stand proud of the rabbit. Than...

Brian Amato

One other thing (at the risk of beating this thing to death)...those of you who DID use 1/8' ply for your gussets, where'd you buy it? Did you find a big box store or some local outlet that sells 1/8 or did you have to pay the long dollar to have it shipped from A/C Spruce or the like? Any tips?
Brian

Brian Amato

Brian I agree with you, I thought that the wood tail was the hardest part of the plans to understand. Attached some pictures of mine that may help. I think most all of the corner gussets are inset into the rabbited side beams. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1Y1jVZb7qxbRDJETmtZQnF6RTA/view?usp=sh...

Brian Amato

Pat...I can't open any of those. What do I need?

Brian Amato

Our friend Oscar (Taildrags) recommend nut plates to me and that's what I used. I found some terrific "aircraft grade" 6-32 nut plates on e-bay for not much money. (photo attached) and they worked just great. Let me back up here....I'm using the cast aluminum hinges Oscar sells and they ar...

Brian Amato

Guess I figured out how to attach photos to a posting. I'll try to attach two more. This is how I did a very tidy job of routing for the hinges we can buy from Oscar: The extra pieces of wood clamped to either side of the wood to be routed are there to provide extra bearing surface for the sole of t...

Brian Amato

This is the neat little router attachment on my Dremel tool.

Brian Amato

Well...I was going to post some photos of how slick my little dremel router base (that I use for routing the cavities for pearl and abalone in guitar work) worked out for me. I used it to make very precise routes for Oscar's lovely cast aluminum hinges but.......the forum won't let me post photos wi...

Brian Amato

A lovely way to put it. And I agree.
Guitar making is the only project making hobby I have that, after its done, it doesn't just look pretty or hang on the wall or, what ever: it sings !

Brian Amato

Thanks Taildrags. I didn't make myself clear. It wasn't the hinge gap I was looking for...that's called out on the plans. I meant the end gap between the aileron and the wing rib and I think you're right: I think 1/2" AFTER fabric would be fine. Not enough to allow too much wind whistling thru ...

Brian Amato

Thanks so much Terry

Brian Amato

Another aileron question (at the risk of driving you guys nuts): If you look at the plans, specifically drawing#5 that shows the ribs, wings and ailerons, it shows that ailerons are nothing more than conventional full length ribs with the addition of "spruce aileron beams", braces and a st...

Brian Amato

Thanks so much for the reply ! The great thing about the internet and the photos you can find out there, is, you can see about 4 different ways guys have approached the same problem. Not all the same...not one right one but not wrong either. I tend to get obsessive about stuff and I have to reel mys...

Brian Amato

Also, don't I want to sheet the tail end of the main ribs, on the aileron side, to "box in" the area where the ailerons are going to live, as well as the tail end of the ribs that actually become the ailerons?

Brian Amato

Ah....gotcha !

Brian Amato

I just discovered what may be the perfect gusset material...if we even need to worry about it. You're right: 1/8" thick gussets do drop down into the 3/16" rabbit and leave a little lip. Doesn't seem right. But then I grabbed a scrap piece of luan plywood from my scrap bin and discovered t...

Brian Amato

OK....I thought I had this all sorted out in my noggin but now I have another question. Reading Piet stuff the other day....can't remember what site...the guy said you have to build all the ribs in the normal way, in the jig, with gussets...except the last 6 ribs. Leave the gussets off one side of t...

Brian Amato

Just bumped into this one on Matronics. I haven't tried it yet but thought it worth tossing out here: The subject once again is T-88. Good stuff. One concern is thermal resistance. Try this. Then tell me what you think: glue a piece of 1.5mm ply to a piece of wood let it cure. Use your covering iron...

Brian Amato

Thank you Oscar! You are absolutely right and good of you to remind us all of the intent of the whole concept of "Home Built Aircraft". Having said that tho, and as you pointed out, that does not mean the FAA is going to approve of, nor should we be dumb enough to use Library Paste to stic...

Brian Amato

Fair enough Lownslow. I like your argument. But one last question: If Titebond-3 is not formally recognized by the FAA.....but neither is T-88, what is it that makes the FAA "like" T-88 better then? Just because a bunch of guys have already used it so it has "history" we have to ...

Brian Amato

Really don't mean for this to be a can of worms...but the more we all learn, the better I'd say. Exterior? Here's the word from the folks who make the stuff: Titebond III Ultimate Wood Glue is the first one-part, water cleanup wood glue ever offered that is proven waterproof . The waterproof formula...

Brian Amato

One more thing about the glue: Just so nobody thinks I'd risk safety over cost let me say this: The difference between using something like T-88 over Titebond-3 can't be 5 cents a rib. No...what I am trying to do is keep the build as close to the spirit of it, as Berny would have it, as I can. Berni...

Brian Amato

Thanks Terry.
And...Navy here

Brian Amato

Thanks much for the reply
Brian

Brian Amato

This has probably been beaten to death before but I'm not finding what I'm looking for in the archives section so.... Glue: Lots of guys are using T-88 with good luck and I have too in the past. But then I started reading about guys using Titebond-3 with great luck too. Squeeze it right out of the b...

Brian Amato

I'm not nearly that far on my Piet but it will have a Model A engine in it. I'm big into Model A cars....I drive a newly restored 1931 Tudor Sedan and President of the local Model A Club. I run my GAV at about 3/4 of a turn out for almost all my driving. I wouldn't think it would be that hard to rig...

Brian Amato

Hey Dunrite..... Don't feel like you're the only one. I'm 71 also and, altho I've built an airplane like the Piet before, I'm having a tough time sorting out a lot of what you will find in the blueprints. If you haven't already, get yourself a copy of the "Flying and Glider Manual", origin...

Brian Amato

Looks great. Can't wait.
Brian

Brian Amato

ArthurD: Now THAT makes a whole lot more sense then just making a hollow control horn for no apparent reason other than "they look really neat". And I like the idea of forming them around that rod. One other thing? One of our members welded his edges together withOUT welding rod....just &q...

Brian Amato

Thanks for the reply. I'll try to find the West Coast Piet site now.
Brian

Brian Amato

I'm writing in hopes one or more of you will jump in here and lend some of your expertise to the business of making aileron, rudder and elevator control horns. Now, I'm as much a romantic as the next guy and if making the horns according to the plans is a nod to Bernie's way of doing it back in 1929...

Brian Amato

Found this on YouTube and thought it worthy of passing along:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2b2-pgHeqk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2b2-pgHeqk&t=8s

Brian Amato

I'm in Traverse City, Michigan. After messing around with other airplanes including building a Corben Jr. Ace, I'm finally getting to building a Piet. Got all the ribs done and starting on the tail feathers. I'm also the guy who sells the Official Pietenpol Data Plate on Ebay and elsewhere. Got the ...

Brian Amato

Rick....beautiful work. Thanks for posting.
Brian

Brian Amato

Every time I read from the old "Flying and Glider Manual" articles about the Air Camper, supposedly written by Bernard himself, I often think: "this does not sound like the style of talking and writing from a quiet, reserved, country boy mechanic. I think somebody else wrote this stuf...

Brian Amato

Oscar....got my hinges yesterday and they look great. Thanks so much.
Brian

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