"Never leave well enough alone." Raymond Loewy
This page is for restoration, modification, repair, and development projects of mine, both past and present. To those familiar with Raymond Loewy's designs, you will understand why I picked that particular quote. Like Lowey, I find it difficult to leave things the way they are just because that is (or was) they way it was always done. I was often quite frustrated while working for the Government as a Propulsion Engineer because of the "that's the way it was always done." mentality.
I've been flying and working on Grumman Tigers, Grumman Cheetahs, and American General Tigers since 1978. There are very few aspects of the repair, service, and modification of the Grumman-American AA5x that I haven't tackled. What amazes me is the number of really bad ideas that were approved during the original development. Every time I work on these planes, I think of soething that could have been done better to make the plane easier to work on, faster, easier to fly, you name it.
If you are thinking of avionics upgrades (Garmin 430/530, audio panels, transponders), replacing your windows or windshield, perhaps a new interior, new interior plastics, overall paint (not done in house), FWF restoration, engine overhauls (by LyCon Engine Overhaulers), 150 to 160 hp STC conversions for the Cheetah, air-oil separators, increased capacity oil coolers, electronic voltage regulators, increased capacity alternators, digital tachometers, as well, as the the usual upgrades like wheel pants, strobes, or any number of upgrades, mods or improvements, just give me a holler. The shop rate is $80/hr.
2006: Power Flow Exhaust (short stack) System on a Traveler:. You can almost hide the tailpipe on a Traveler.
2006: Power Flow Exhaust (short stack) System on a Tiger.
2006: Firewall Forward, 1978 Cheetah and a few other FWF projects.
2006: Comparison of JPI and EI engine analyzers. This is one of those Ford vs Chevy topics. Both are good at what they do. I've owned my share of Fords. I'm a Chevy man now. Likewise, I think the PC and it's Windows software is fine for some, but not good enough for me. I feel the same about the EI.
2005: Canopy headliner. This is how I do my canopy headliners. I get rid of the center plastic piece.
2005: One piece arm rest and a much cleaner looking interior..
2004: Kikaska Instrument Panel Overlay.
2003: Instrument Panel Restoration. Without a doubt, the most striking thing that can be done to a Grumman is to give it a really Bitchin' panel. I did the panel on the most perfect Tiger (see below) and the results are most impressive. Since then, I've replaced a lot of plastic instrument panel overlays with Kokaska metal overlays. Usually, as part of the overlay replacement, I install a new eyebrow with UltraVison strip lights and NuLites on the primary six instruments. The result is a really nice panel. The instrument panel in these photos is in an AA1C (actually, the last AA1C made). The possibilities are endless. (02/03)
2003: Baffle installation on a Tiger. I had a lot of folks asking for detailed, step-by-step instruction on baffle installation. Whell, here it is. There are 34 pictures. Plus one pic of a PowerFlow muffler assembly. Note: On the average, I replace the baffle seals on a Cheetah or Tiger about once a month. On the last several installations, for some reason, the front metal baffles (that should never see any damage) are found with large, ball-peen, hammer marks, or very badly dented, or twisted and torn. I'm also seeing a lot missing metal baffle parts. Also, you can reduce CHTs on #3 and #4 by cutting back the metal baffle straps around the bottom of the cylinder head adjacent to the CHT probe hole. Remove about 1 to 1 1/4 inches of the strap, cut the outer edge back on a 45 degree angle to about half way across the edge. Call for details.
2001 American-Chanpion 7GCAA Citabria: I, for all practical purposes, inherited a basket case project Citabria in 1998. At first, it looked like a simple project; fabric can't be that tough. One small step turned into another and before I knew it, I had replaced damn near every part in the plane. It's hard to believe now that I spent over $65,000 in new parts for this plane. Everything metal was powder coated. The plane was absolutely beautiful when it was finished. More-than-likely, my last fabric plane. . .Right Front, Left Front
Vacuum Filter Mod. Have you ever tied to replace the vacuum filter and said to yourself, while trying to figure out how to hold the nut and turn the screw at the same time, "What stupid SOB made changing the vacuum filter a two man job?" Well, I did, a number of times. In the early eighties, I turned the screw around, locked the bottom cup in place with the existing brass spacer tube (shortened by 3/8 inch), and a jam nut. The top cup was held in place with a wingnut. From then on, replacing the filter took only a few minutes. Check it out.
Most Perfect Tiger. This Tiger was a complete, ground up, restoration. New engine - ported and polished - delivered 203 hp on the LyCon dyno. New interior too. Weighed in at 1497 lbs. I re-did the instrument panel, too. This is the most impressive instrument panel you've ever seen. It's installed in Travis' airplane. It's a full-up IFR / GPS package. Cost? Over $30,000. If he gets lost with this, he shouldn't be flying. (3 / 2002)..
Instrument Eyebrow: Have you noticed on the Grumman-American Tigers and Cheetahs (and AA1xs too) how the plastic eyebrow (that cheap piece of junk that houses the intrument lights) warps and cracks within months after it's installed? Well, I hated it. So... I had a new one made. Wanna see more? (since 1998)
Some engine pics: This engine is one from a Cheetah I restored a few years ago.
1st Pic, 2nd Pic, 3rd Pic, 4th Pic (4 / 1999)
Restoration of the engine firewall: 1st Pic, 2nd Pic I removed everything before I repainted the firewall (including ALL 32 nut plates that hold the cowling on). The engine mount was powder coated, the engine baffles were stripped, bead blasted, and painted with Imron. (6 / 1998)
Modern Parking Brake Installation : Do you hate the stupid parking brake they used on the Pre '78 Grummans? I did. So, I installed the later style. It was a LOT of work. But worth it. (3 / 1998). By-the-way, the replacement brake master cylinders for the AA5x series prior to 1978 use the '78 and later style master cylinder. There is NO PROVISION for the parking brake on these master cylinders. The installation of the newer brake master cylinder is approved. The conversion over to a parking brake, IS NOT. Now, does that make FAA sense or what? Of course it does. Do a half-assed job of completing the approval.