Paul could you please post the drawing for the oil pan and
include the
materials and dimensions?

I'll be using a mount almost identical to the CH-801 you
previously
designed. Also same for the S-beam? When fabricating the
S-beam what radius
is desired for the bend please? Does one use a hole saw for
the lightening
holes or a fly cutter? Thanks a bunch. I have an autocad
viewer, so should
be able to view a .dwg or .dxf file.

C. Smith

Here are some old designs but they may need to be adjusted
your type of airplane.


Paul Lamar


What is the material & thickness for the oil pan?I'm assuming 6061-T6,
but not sure on thickness.

I did make note of 0.063" 4130 -- so will place that on the next
Aircraft
Spruce Order.

C. Smith -- as to hole saw or fly cutter:  I'd recommend the hole
saw, as
you are cutting through a weld bead on the 4130 box.  I guess you
could
clamp the two pieces side by side and cut the
holes before bending the 4130.Make sure Paul has everything
designed for your 801 before you start cutting.  On the photos is
look like
the tubes are welded in place into the beam, so I suspect a milling
machine
with a fly cutter will come in handy to "surface to top" to keep
everything
equal when tightened down.

Tom

How good are you at welding aluminum. Some people can weld beer can :)

Anything from .049 up to .1875 will work with some weight trade off. I
suggest a little tig practice to see what you can do. Check the oil
pan bolt
pattern as the RX8 engine differs from the 13B. Use the bolt center
finders
and tap the aluminum down on top to center punch the holes. A carbon
fiber
oil pan will work with high temp epoxy and with the upper center
hard point
type mount found on the 801 and the BearHawk.

If it is a Zenair 801 I have an improved  mount for that using the
upper
center hard point. I'll redo the old dwgs.

Don't get me wrong. If you have a 801 mount this new one will not be
worth
retrofitting. The only way to get the airplane done is freeze the
design at
some point and build it. Both mounts will work.

Paul Lamar

I'm building a CH-640, not an 801. They do share the firewall with the
exception of the upper center mount point. 640 is a low wing,
whereas the
801 is a high wing, and the upper point is there to help transmit
the loads
to the spar, as I've been told by Zenair. I only said that it is
very close
to the 801 mount. Don't need the upper point, so no need to re-do.
I'll be using light weight center and end housings, so I'm just
starting
with the S-beam to use in a test stand/mock-up until all the fuel
injection,
MSCD ignition is finalized. Once a final installed weight is
determined,
then we would go ahead with finalizing mount design for the 640.
So the s-bean is fabricated in 2 C-channels? I don't see the cross-
section
dimensions, just the long  view. What is the bend radius please?
I've done a bit of tig welding, will be purchasing my own welder
soon, but
have access to some nice equipment at work.
Thanks for the tips Jerry, Tom, Paul.
C. Smith

OK that will require a rear motor mount of a different design.
Are the firewall angle back and hard point dimensions the same as the
801? If not I will need a sketch and the the distance from
the firewall to the prop flanges as well as the position
of the thrust line.

The S-beam length is going to be a function of the cooling system
chosen. Side rad or bottom rad? One must find out if everything
is going to fit in the cowl :)

Paul Lamar



I'll get the numbers and drawings organized for you in as soon as I
can.
C. Smith

Not that you need to do it the way I did, but for me 1/8" 6061 T6
aluminum worked well.  It is both strong and easy to weld. If you
don't use 6061 T6, you will experience considerable warpage.    The
pan flange and any face that bore a  weight bearing bracket (rear
strut, rear beam) would  have to be 1/8" minimum.  Plus if  you ever
want to set the engine on the hanger floor on the oil pan, thinner
aluminum might dent.    Jerry