Tons of Info Blog! – Aeromarine-LSA

Been a while, but I made the decision to get important stuff done rather than taking the time to write blogs. And I also prefer to report on real progress rather than plans to make progress. But before we get to the topics of interest, let’s talk about the weather.

In the time I have been in the Czech Republic I experienced three 100-year floods. last week was the third and it came within an inch of flooding out our factory basement where all a lot of the important CNC equipment is located. It was impossible to move the equipment, and sandbags would have been useless so we moved what we could and installed a big pump. But we dodged that bullet. Some of our workers and friends got flooded so we did have some down time. Back to business now for the most part.

Here is my friend’s hangar & workshop in the next airport south.

I filled up a suitcase full of Merlin parts, mostly the new fuel system, and returned to Tampa just in time to prep for the next weather event. Hurricane Helene was pointed toward Tampa. It hit the coastline pretty hard with storm surge flooding. But hit up north even worse.

Not so bad a few miles inland where I live. The lake storm surge was maybe 6 inches, and the wind knocked down a few twigs and blew over a lawn chair.

As soon as the storm passed, I drove to our Mobile, AL build center to bring parts and protocols to Paul and his team. The priority is the new fuel system for the Vtwin engine. We are installing this system on one Merlin in Czech and two in Alabama so we can nail down the installation and conduct parallel flight testing to make sure we have it right.

This new system has an immersible fuel pump so the fuel itself cools the pump. It has a pressure regulator built in so we can eliminate the fuel return line. Plus, it has a fuel filter, and a fuel level sensor. This is a perfect solution. All we need to do is nail down the tank upgrade installation which was not as easy as it sounds. We made trial installations while I was in Czech and again in Alabama. I now have a draft upgrade manual written.

Briefly:

Remove inboard nose rib
Remove inboard fuel tank end cap rib
Remove fuel and sensor fittings and clean rib
Cleco in place the steel drilling template
Drill pilot holes, cut out rectangle
Sandwich in 2 reinforcement plates and the inside rivnut plate with plenty of fuel tank sealant. Let cure 24 hours
Install fuel pump assembly using the custom gasket and plenty of fuel tank sealant. Let cure 24 hours.
Re-install fuel tank end rib with plenty of fuel tank sealant. Let cure.
Pressure test tank and reseal any leaks
Install new inboard nose rib along with top and bottom rib reinforcements and rib angle.
Prepare fuel pump power and fuel sensor leads to plug.
Repeat for 2nd wing
Re-install to your Merlin, connect fuel line and electrics
Install fuel line T and firewall elbow fitting. Install gascolator and 2nd fuel filter. Connect to engine EFI fuel rail.
Fuel pump power is a left and right toggle switch for now. We will change to a rotary dial as we catch up with the wiring harness and circuit board production.

After making this retrofit myself, I have come to the conclusion that this work is best done by our build center team in our Alabama shop. For most builders, it would be much easier to remove the fuel tanks and UPS them to Alabama. Or bring us your wings. Or maybe we can have one of our technicians visit you. Next week I will go to Dayton to make a fourth installation and see how it goes in the field. Regardless, we now have an action plan and are building more upgrade kits so we can get on with finishing and flying Merlins!

For new production most of this work is already done. Just the final step of the fuel pump installation, pressure testing, and wiring remains.

For now, we are preparing the fuel upgrade kits and soon flight testing the new system. Then we will make a plan for each Merlin. And we can finally finish aircraft in our build program and get them out the door. We have another container of Merlin’s getting ready to ship along with Merlin Lite kits and TrueLites. We need the room!

Here is a big dump of photos of Merlin Lite parts and assemblies. We will finish and fly two Merlin Lites in the Czech Republic. One gas and one electric. We will be completing the flight testing to comply with the European 120kg ultralight rules. Both short and long wings will be in the flight program. The electric power system is designed and just waiting on component delivery.

Due to changes in technology, we will be using a Uavionix tailBeaconX for our ADSB out solution. We designed and molded a new vertical stabilizer fairing to accept this device. And it has a bonus taillight.

This might not seem like a big deal, but I think it is. Snapvents stopped production over a year ago. And finally, a company stepped up and put this vent back into production. It is really nice in the Merlin as you can bring is a LOT of outside air from both sides into the cockpit. The bad news is it comes from the UK and costs 3 times more. But still worth it. In stock now.

Back to work.

CHIP