EAA Chapter 563
The Beacon
April, 2023
The LifeLine Pilots will speak at the chapter meeting this Saturday to discuss how chapter 563 might help with their show at 3MY this fall.
Greg LePine has repaired both bench band saws. The Jet (green) has a new blade, and the Sears (gray) has a new drive belt. A smaller, 10 inch band saw was not to be found. If you've borrowed it, let Greg know when you expect to return it.
Rich Gilbert's Onex has left the hangar and has been replaced with Tim Threw's RV-7. The RV is in for nose gear and variable pitch propeller servicing. Ron Wright's single in the northwest corner of the hangar should be done by the end of April, and it's place will be taken by the fuselage of the teen's Zenith Cruzer. The big table, where the Cruzer fuselage currently sits, will be used to assemble the Cruzer's wings.
We need volunteers to audit the chapter's financial operations from 2022. Please speak to the president or treasurer.
Lightspeed, the maker of aviation headsets, has a program in which chapters get a cut of sales from purchases made via links on the chapter web site. The treasurer plans to arrange this, and a page will be added to the web site.
The first rally in several years is set for April 29 in the morning. A rally had been requested by the Flight Club at Dunlap High School. It's not too late for more volunteers, both pilots and ground. Please contact Todd Moore or the chapter e-mail. Volunteers will need to register with EAA Headquarters before Todd can assign them to the event. If not already registered by HQ to work with youth, that will also need to be completed. Both registration procedures are done on the EAA web site.
The committee to select this year's nominee for a Ray Scholarship met at the end of March to decide. Five worthy candidates were interviewed. The board voted to offer a prize of $1,000 to each of those not selected. The names will be given after HQ approves our nominee.
The wing kit for the teen's Zenith Cruzer is to be picked up April 17, and we could use a volunteer with a covered trailer to fetch it. The project will cover fuel and food for the trip.
As mentioned last month, the elevator control routing has proven nettlesome in the Zeniths. Mike Simmons has been working on a redesign based on that of a builder near St. Louis, and chapter member Craig Hittle was kind enough to modify the factory parts.
In the factory design, the elevator crank pivots on the rotating aileron torque tube. Craig severed the ears on which the crank was to pivot and also replaced the bolted end of the crank's push-pull tube with a welded fitting for a swivel joint. He even painted it. The crank can now be mounted on the airframe, eliminating a condition where the elevator cables tend to rub on each other.
Currently, the teens are assembling the cabin onto the fuselage. An unfortunate choice in the assembly sequence of the cabin floor will slow things this week, but much of the cabin should be riveted in place by the time the wing kit arrives this month.
One labor intensive part in building an airplane is preparing the skins for paint, and several of the teens have been using Scotch Brite to etch the surfaces of finished components, such as the empennage surfaces.
The VMC Club meets Sunday at 6:30 in the hangar. The IMC Club is delayed a week this month and meets at 6:00 on the 16th.
HQ wants each chapter to participate in a national Flying Start week, and Todd Moore is working to arrange one for May 20. HQ provides the curriculum, and we would use the FBO conference room. HQ recommends Eagle Rides be offered if there is enough interest among those signing up. Advertising materials for the event are available from HQ, and they suggest contacting local media.
An effort is being made to either update the chapter's moribund Facebook page or remove it.
Most of the chapter members have sent in their dues for 2023. Mailed reminders will have to go out to those who've not.
There have been no further rumblings about the CAF's B-29 Fifi stopping at PIA.
eaa563.org
Mt. Hawley Airport, Peoria, IL