My Wooden Airplane
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6/15/2012 - 6/24/2012

Motor Mount (Version 2)

After looking at the engine on the plane (with spinner), I decided that the cowling
would be easier to fair into the fuselage top if the engine was lowered by about an inch.
So, I disassembled the original mount and started over (it was relatively easy, since everything was only tack-welded at this point). Once I figured out where the bottom
"tray" was going to go, I tacked it into place temporarily.

From there, I fit the rest of the tubes and finish-welded everything. When I was done, I decided to test it for strength, as recommended by William Wynne in his conversion manual. Believe it or not, it held up very well to 1000+ lbs. of downward force (provided by my lovely wife Rachael)! Although I couldn't take a picture of it, after this test, I simultaneously stood on a 2 x 4 sticking out of the right side of the engine, simulating an additional 300+ lbs. of torque load. I realize things look pretty messed up in this picture, but you'll have to believe me that the only thing that didn't hold up well to the test was the supposed "1000 lb. capacity" engine stand. Even the steel tube used to provide the leverage got permanently bent! (Notice the additional tubes attached to the bottom of the engine stand to prevent it from tipping over.)

Total Time: 45.0 hrs.