It's been eight days since the first flight of N188PD, and I've managed to put on just shy of 10 hours total flight time in that period. The Mattituck TMXO-360 appears to be broken in, using almost no oil, with cylinder head temps of 350 degrees at 8,000 and 75% power. I plan to do an oil change tomorrow, make sure there's no metal in the filter, and service it for the start of the REAL flight testing.
Although I was nervous about putting a brand new engine on a new airframe, and having to break it in right away, I have discoverd one great benefit - since you don't want to make a lot of power changes, and want to run a steady 65-75% power for breakin, that pretty much means that you get to fly around, feel out the plane,and play with the avionics while the rings seat themselves. If I didn't have to observe this break-in period, I probably would have jumped right into the traditional flight test series and spent most of my time flying precise profiles and recording data. As it is, I have been able to enjoy the airplane, enjoy the view, and enjoy the ride! Now that I've got that done, I can concentrate on the work (and don't get me wrong - it's work that I also enjoy!). A few observations so far,from a person who made his first RV-8 flight just 10 hours and 8 days ago...
1) The RV-8 is everything that people say it is - for those still building, it is SO worth it. I've already seen 187 kts TAS at 8K and 75% power - that's just what Van claims for the 180 HP motor. Climb is spectacular. It is a trick to keep it from climbing into the 2000' floor of our class B airspace. Fortunately, I've got a quick exit corridor, and can get up high within ten miles.
2) If you are familiar with Grummans...what the two-place is to the four-placers...the RV-8 is to the two-place! For those not familiar with Grummans, the two-place was probably one of the most resonsive generally-produced planes on the market. It makes a Tiger feel like the family sedan. The RV-8 does the same to the Yankee!
3) Visibility could not be better! We have had great weather this week, and I can hardly wear dark enough sunglasses. Sunglases and a dark helmet visor are just about right! The nose is very low in level flight, and you can easily see the ground in front of you. The parachute kind of makes it hard to twist around to see back, but I can tell that without it, the view will be amazing.
4) I can't say enough good things about the GRT EFIS! So far, I have barely tapped it's capabilities, but the few times I thought I'd found a problem, it turned out to be me. I thought the "Highway in the Sky" wasn't working, but I had just selected a color I couldn't see in the sunlight. I flew an ILS (in bright sunshine) to Galveston today, using the HITS...ANY kid who plays video games could do it! All the engine instrumentation works,and the graphical EGT makes leaning a snap. The percent power calculation is worth it's weight in gold!
5) I flew out to New Braunfels and back yesterday (it's in my test area!), and that gave me some long straight lines to check out the Tru-Track Pictorial Pilot. It worked exactly as advertised, in both heading and nav modes, and there I sat, in my glass-topped throne, cruising above Texas at 9.5K, with my elbows on the canopy rails. I could get used to this!
6) Integration testing of the avionics in the workshop pays off...I have yet to find anything that didn't work. Aside from getting the Tach setting right in the EIS, I haven't had to fix anything - just learn how to use it all!
7) I'm closing in on hands-of flight by slowly squeezing the right aileron trailing edge. She is still a little left-wing heavy. Don't want to go past the sweet spot!
8) I did a little manuevering at th eend of today's flight, just pullign some steep turns and a couple of Chandelles...Oh boy, this is going to be great....
What a plane! Tomorrow....climb tests begin!
Paul
Although I was nervous about putting a brand new engine on a new airframe, and having to break it in right away, I have discoverd one great benefit - since you don't want to make a lot of power changes, and want to run a steady 65-75% power for breakin, that pretty much means that you get to fly around, feel out the plane,and play with the avionics while the rings seat themselves. If I didn't have to observe this break-in period, I probably would have jumped right into the traditional flight test series and spent most of my time flying precise profiles and recording data. As it is, I have been able to enjoy the airplane, enjoy the view, and enjoy the ride! Now that I've got that done, I can concentrate on the work (and don't get me wrong - it's work that I also enjoy!). A few observations so far,from a person who made his first RV-8 flight just 10 hours and 8 days ago...
1) The RV-8 is everything that people say it is - for those still building, it is SO worth it. I've already seen 187 kts TAS at 8K and 75% power - that's just what Van claims for the 180 HP motor. Climb is spectacular. It is a trick to keep it from climbing into the 2000' floor of our class B airspace. Fortunately, I've got a quick exit corridor, and can get up high within ten miles.
2) If you are familiar with Grummans...what the two-place is to the four-placers...the RV-8 is to the two-place! For those not familiar with Grummans, the two-place was probably one of the most resonsive generally-produced planes on the market. It makes a Tiger feel like the family sedan. The RV-8 does the same to the Yankee!
3) Visibility could not be better! We have had great weather this week, and I can hardly wear dark enough sunglasses. Sunglases and a dark helmet visor are just about right! The nose is very low in level flight, and you can easily see the ground in front of you. The parachute kind of makes it hard to twist around to see back, but I can tell that without it, the view will be amazing.
4) I can't say enough good things about the GRT EFIS! So far, I have barely tapped it's capabilities, but the few times I thought I'd found a problem, it turned out to be me. I thought the "Highway in the Sky" wasn't working, but I had just selected a color I couldn't see in the sunlight. I flew an ILS (in bright sunshine) to Galveston today, using the HITS...ANY kid who plays video games could do it! All the engine instrumentation works,and the graphical EGT makes leaning a snap. The percent power calculation is worth it's weight in gold!
5) I flew out to New Braunfels and back yesterday (it's in my test area!), and that gave me some long straight lines to check out the Tru-Track Pictorial Pilot. It worked exactly as advertised, in both heading and nav modes, and there I sat, in my glass-topped throne, cruising above Texas at 9.5K, with my elbows on the canopy rails. I could get used to this!
6) Integration testing of the avionics in the workshop pays off...I have yet to find anything that didn't work. Aside from getting the Tach setting right in the EIS, I haven't had to fix anything - just learn how to use it all!
7) I'm closing in on hands-of flight by slowly squeezing the right aileron trailing edge. She is still a little left-wing heavy. Don't want to go past the sweet spot!
8) I did a little manuevering at th eend of today's flight, just pullign some steep turns and a couple of Chandelles...Oh boy, this is going to be great....
What a plane! Tomorrow....climb tests begin!
Paul
