fabric and tube by the ocean.

Hello All.

I'm contemplating building a float plane - west coast of Canada. I've flown
mostly C-180 and C-185 on floats, so I have a pre-conception that aluminum
is a good material for the salt water environment. Murphy's a good choice
and local too. I like Zenair's 801 as well.

Been intrigued for years with the Bearhawk - now in kit form. Seems to be a
good balance of cost, utility and mission. Am I prejudiced to think that
steel frame and fabric is just bad around salt water?

Thanks,
Ed.

On 05 Dec 2003 02:41 PM, Ed Bryant posted the following:
Hello All.

I'm contemplating building a float plane - west coast of Canada. I've
flown mostly C-180 and C-185 on floats, so I have a pre-conception
that aluminum is a good material for the salt water environment.
Murphy's a good choice and local too. I like Zenair's 801 as well.

Been intrigued for years with the Bearhawk - now in kit form. Seems to
be a good balance of cost, utility and mission. Am I prejudiced to
think that steel frame and fabric is just bad around salt water?

If it is not properly protected, aluminum will be destroyed in a
corrosive environment just as certainly as tube and fabric will. Your
Cessnas most likely had the factory seaplane option which included
corrosion proofing not found on the standard models.

At least with a tube fuselage, if it rusts you can cut out the bad parts
and weld in new tubing. With an all aluminum bird getting rid of
corrosion might be a real headache.

I'm building my Bearhawk for exactly the use you propose: Flying the
Alaska coast with landings in the salt water. The all-aluminum wings
will be alodined and primed prior to assembly, and the steel tube parts
will be either powder coated or epoxy primed and then covered with
modern polyester fabric. I don't anticipate any problems over and above
what you would expect from an all-aluminum airplane. I will most likely
be in my mid to late 30s when I finish it, and I expect to pass it down
to my kids someday.

----------------------------------------------------
Del Rawlins-
Remove _kills_spammers_ to reply via email.
Unofficial Bearhawk FAQ website:
http://www.rawlinsbrothers.org/bhfaq/

"Del Rawlins" wrote in message
...

I'm building my Bearhawk for exactly the use you propose: Flying the
Alaska coast with landings in the salt water. The all-aluminum wings
will be alodined and primed prior to assembly, and the steel tube parts
will be either powder coated or epoxy primed and then covered with
modern polyester fabric. I don't anticipate any problems over and above
what you would expect from an all-aluminum airplane. I will most likely
be in my mid to late 30s when I finish it, and I expect to pass it down
to my kids someday.

I remember when I was in my mid 30's and landed at Half Moon Bay; just
because it was mentioned as an alternate airport in "The High and the
Mighty". My buddy and I were stretching our legs walking the tiedowns when
we came across what could have been a nice looking Cessna 170 B. The tires
were low on air and the windows were clouded with age. Sitting in the salt
air next to the Pacific Ocean had evidently taken its toll.

I bent to avoid the flap and tried to peer in the cabin, but the Plexiglas
obscured my view. I happened to look up at the underside of the wing and
noticed a mold spot on the paint. I pointed it out to my flying partner
while pressing my forefinger on the spot. It went through the aluminum up to
my knuckle, making a ragged 3/4" hole in the skin.

What a shame. Oh - not the airplane. It's a shame that it was thirty years
ago. I suppose youth is being wasted on Del, just like it was on me. At
least I take a whiz every morning at 6:00 and a dump at 7:00. I just wish I
could get out of bed before 8:00.

Rich

On 05 Dec 2003 04:02 PM, Rich S. posted the following:

I bent to avoid the flap and tried to peer in the cabin, but the
Plexiglas obscured my view. I happened to look up at the underside of
the wing and noticed a mold spot on the paint. I pointed it out to my
flying partner while pressing my forefinger on the spot. It went
through the aluminum up to my knuckle, making a ragged 3/4" hole in
the skin.

That sounds like an Alaskan airplane for sure. The salt air on the
coast just destroys any metal that isn't well protected. For example,
in my driveway there sits a 30 year old truck with no original body
panels except for the hood, which I was able to save. Price of living
and working less than 100 yards from the ocean, in the rain capital of
the world.

What a shame. Oh - not the airplane. It's a shame that it was thirty
years ago. I suppose youth is being wasted on Del, just like it was on
me. At least I take a whiz every morning at 6:00 and a dump at 7:00. I
just wish I could get out of bed before 8:00.

LOL. I'm not sure exactly how to respond to that.

----------------------------------------------------
Del Rawlins-
Remove _kills_spammers_ to reply via email.
Unofficial Bearhawk FAQ website:
http://www.rawlinsbrothers.org/bhfaq/

On 05 Dec 2003 02:41 PM, Ed Bryant posted the following:
Hello All.

I'm contemplating building a float plane - west coast of Canada. I've
flown mostly C-180 and C-185 on floats, so I have a pre-conception
that aluminum is a good material for the salt water environment.
Murphy's a good choice and local too. I like Zenair's 801 as well.

As an afterthought, the ONLY reason I would consider the Zenair 801 is
because, IIRC, it is constructed primarily of 6061T6 alloy which has a
much higher corrosion resistance than the 2024 used in the Bearhawk
wings and your Cessnas. I just don't think I could tolerate the
terrible looks or the lack of speed. Shoot, with a Bearhawk or a C-180
you would probably save enough time just on account of the cruising
speed difference to build another airplane after the first one corrodes
away. 8^)

----------------------------------------------------
Del Rawlins-
Remove _kills_spammers_ to reply via email.
Unofficial Bearhawk FAQ website:
http://www.rawlinsbrothers.org/bhfaq/

I just checked the Murphy site and they use 6061-T6 as well.

"Del Rawlins" wrote in message
...
On 05 Dec 2003 02:41 PM, Ed Bryant posted the following:
Hello All.

I'm contemplating building a float plane - west coast of Canada. I've
flown mostly C-180 and C-185 on floats, so I have a pre-conception
that aluminum is a good material for the salt water environment.
Murphy's a good choice and local too. I like Zenair's 801 as well.

As an afterthought, the ONLY reason I would consider the Zenair 801 is
because, IIRC, it is constructed primarily of 6061T6 alloy which has a
much higher corrosion resistance than the 2024 used in the Bearhawk
wings and your Cessnas. I just don't think I could tolerate the
terrible looks or the lack of speed. Shoot, with a Bearhawk or a C-180
you would probably save enough time just on account of the cruising
speed difference to build another airplane after the first one corrodes
away. 8^)

----------------------------------------------------
Del Rawlins-
Remove _kills_spammers_ to reply via email.
Unofficial Bearhawk FAQ website:
http://www.rawlinsbrothers.org/bhfaq/