ORIGINAL: cmoulder

Nose ring

OK, here is mine, such as it is.

It is probably a bit bulkier and uses more material than necessary, bit I figure it is always easier to remove excess than to have to go back in and beef it up.

The nose ring itself is made of 4 sheets of 1/32'' birch ply laminated together to make a 1/8'' 12-ply - very rigid. As can be seen, I didn't line the inside of the ring with anything, just tried to get a very close fit between the hole and the crankcase so that there is no slop.

I got in 4 long flights last Saturday and it held up fine, with sound levels the same as before and no knocking or other unusual noises. The spinner moved around very little before, but now there is virtually zero movement. The only adverse effect is that one of the cowl screws loosened a bit.

The cowl was weighed before and after the modification and the difference was 26.5 grams. After the various mods I've done with the coupler, canopy, nose ring and fuel tank, the plane's current AUW is 10lb 11.7oz. I put in a 16-oz tank but I think I will go back to the 12-oz tank eventually.