Cockpit

Cockpit


	Here I am getting ready to bent the seat sling. i am using my 36" brake. Note that I was able to add another clamp in the middle through the seat belt hole. 5/13/00
	Here is the seat freshly bent. 5/13/00
	Here I am test fitting the seat sling. As you can tell I am building dual control sticks. 5/13/00
	I made my instrument panel a little differently that called for in the plans. First the panel is vertical rather than at a 30º angle. Second the cross tie at the bottom of the panel is facing down rather than up. 5/13/00
	Here is the pilot's eye view over the glare screen. 5/13/00
	As you can see there is plenty of knee room. I also plan to install a small subpanel in the center where I will place the throttle, trim, mixture, carb heat and fresh air vents. . 5/13/00
	Here is a look under the panel at the cross tie. The connector plate is the same but the flanges on the crosstie are pointing down. 5/13/00
	Here are some of the instruments that I would like to put on my panel. Unfortunately these are not functional. They are from a 707 simulator. 5/13/00
	Here is what I am thinking my panel will look like. Counter-clockwise from the far left: RiteAngle 2000 , MicroEncoder , Artificial Horizon , GPSMAP 295 , EIS , GTX 327 transponder , IC-A200 . I printed pictures of the items on my color printer and stuck them in the right spot. 5/13/00
	Here is the rotationally molded fuel tank I just received from Sonex. 5/13/00
	Here is another view of the tank. You can see the filler neck that will extend through the firewall. 5/13/00
	Here is the subpanel that I made to give me a little more panel space and to move the throttle to a more comfortable position. 5/13/00
	I had to reinforce the sub panel with this vertical member to stiffen it up. 5/13/00
	To make things more handy I made a couple of shelves in the baggage compartment. This will be a nice spot to store a headset, quart of oil, cordless drill and other items I don't want rolling around in back. 5/13/00
	You may also notice from the previous picture that I screened off the baggage compartment to prevent items from falling back into the tail cone. I used perforated aluminum sheet that I got at my hardware store. 5/13/00
	I also did not want items getting jammed in the elevator controls so I made a guard around them. I will still be able to access/inspect this area when the seat is removed 5/13/00
	It is not shown in this picture but I cut an inspection holes into the side of this rear guard so I would have access to the pushrod bolts. 5/13/00
	Here I have install the upholstery kit. You have to rivet a couple of snaps on the top of the seat back but otherwise everything is held on with self-adhesive Velcro. You can also see the seat/shoulder belts. 1/19/02
	Here is a close up of the panel and the fabric cover for the glarescreen. I had to special order the fabric cover since I made my panel vertical rather than with the standard tilt. However, Jeremy was happy to accommodate my special request. 1/19/02
	You may have noticed the fire extinguisher I installed on the left side wall. The bracket that came with it was heavy and would not have held securely on bumpy days. So I made a light weight bracket and used Velcro straps to hold it in place. 1/19/02
	The extinguisher is a 14 oz. Halon unit that is rated for electrical and gasoline fires. In this position I might not even need to take it out of its bracket to extinguish a fire. Wicks part# FE-400. 1/19/02
	The ergonomics of this cockpit are nearly perfect for me. The stick falls right into my hand and my throttle hand rests nicely on my thigh. The subpanel works out great for me but anyone with longer legs may have their knee bumping the bottom of this subpanel. 1/19/02


	CAUTION: This web site is in no way a publication of Sonex, Ltd. or any other corporation. All products mentioned are not necessarily recommended for use, but are included for informational purposes only. Builders tips and instructions are not meant to replace the plans and instructions from Sonex, Ltd.. All Builder's tips and instructions are presented only as a source of information and a forum for exchange and the sharing of ideas and construction methods. NO responsibility or liability is assumed, expressed, or implied as to the suitability, accuracy, safety, or approval thereof. Any party using the suggestions, ideas, instructions or examples on these pages, does so at their own risk and discretion and without recourse against anyone.

	All content Copyright © 1999-2002 David Koelzer. All rights reserved.
	Sonex^tm is a registered trademark of Sonex Ltd.
	Webspace provided by MurkWorks Incorporated