Corvair College #9
November 11-13, 2005
Mike Hyers of Fayetteville, N.C., checks out Mark Langford's Super KR-2S. Because of Mark's extensive Web site and
tireless work in support of the KR community, his plane is one of the best known KRs in the world.
The three KR pilots on hand with their planes. This photo
is very similar to one we took at Corvair College #8. We're looking forward to more KRs at the next College.
Pat Green's Pietenpol on a low flyby. The photo is not distorted; Pat's vertical fin is 10" taller than standard, and
he has 5 more feet of wingspan. The Pietenpol is a very flexible design, and it has tolerated countless modifications
over the years. It's worth remembering though that very few of the modified Pietenpols fly as well as Pat's plane does.
Pat had a lot of experience with model aircraft design before altering the Pietenpol's layout.
Jack Cooper brought down his KR-2 firewall forward package to the College. He needed an intake manifold to mate an
Ellison to his layout. We built this the day before the College. Jack's motor mount also required extensive rework, not
because of layout, but due to very poor welding. One of Jack's friends had good naturedly offered to help him out, but
did not have the skills to produce an airworthy part. Jack, Mike Hyers and myself did a lot of rapid surgery
on Jack's mount to make it airworthy. Over they years, I've made hundreds of motor mounts for many, many different
designs. I honestly want to say that given time, anybody could learn how to weld their own motor mount, but I seriously
want to discourage anyone from seeking help from a person who has never built a motor mount that has flown before. I've
fixed a handful of mounts every year, but most builders end up throwing away their time and money with welders from outside
aviation. Jack's a good friend, and I'd always help him out, but don't detour your project with a problem like this. The
prop on the front of the motor is from a McCulluch drone and is not intended to fly the plane.
Above, I'm fitting the carb flange to the intake manifold on Jack Cooper's engine. We used one of our stainless steel
intake manifolds as the basis of Jack's intake, even though he has bolted on flanges on the heads.
On Saturday night, most people took a break and socialized. Half the fun of coming to the College is getting to know
your fellow builders. This is much easier without the compressor running.
Steve Withem, 601 builder from Spencer, Ind., having a great time at the press. Actually, Steve wore a smile all weekend,
and seemed to be the kind of guy who enjoys himself all the time. We enjoyed his company also.
Mike Whaley took this photo of Steve Makish's unpainted cowl and spinner just before sunset. The horizontal lines in
the spinner are the joints in its fiberglass layup. All spinners on Corvairs need to have front and back plates like this
one does. Steve's propeller is an Aymar-Demuth.
Before sunset Saturday, the full moon came up as the 601, KR-2S and Cleanex took off to perform a roaring half
hour of group flybys. Mike Whaley took this photo of Bill and Dan in the pattern.
Perfect weather, good friends and planes.
As the sun set, three Corvair pilots did roaring flybys above the hangar row. The sound alone was worth traveling to the
College for.
I looked closely at this photo to see which plane it was. The setting sun and the bright sky make it hard to tell.
In the end, it doesn't really matter whose it was. The most important point of the College is that we're here so that
this can be you next year. To make this your reality, you'll need persistance and craftsmanship. These are the two
unchanging requirements that have been around as long as there's been experimental airplanes. We'll be here with the
technical assistance, parts and encouragement. As you make progress on your path to flying off into your own sunset,
you'll be in the good company of your fellow Corvair builders everywhere. We'll see you next year.
Corvair College #16
Corvair College #14 Part 1
Corvair College #14 Part 2
Corvair College #14 Part 3
Corvair College #14 Part 4
Corvair College #13
Corvair College #12 Part One
Corvair College #12 Part Two
Corvair College #11
Corvair College #10 Part 1
Corvair College #10 Part 2
Corvair College #10 Part 3
Corvair College #10 Part 4
Corvair College Canada
Corvair College #9 Part I
Corvair College #9 Part II
Corvair College #9 Part III
Corvair College #9 Part IV
Corvair College #8 Page 1
Corvair College #8 Page 2
Corvair College #8 Page 3
Corvair College #8 Page 4
Corvair College #8 Page 5
Corvair College #8 Page 6
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