Jon Croke
As the founder of HomebuiltHELP.com, Jon Croke has produced instructional videos for Experimental aircraft builders for over 10 years. He has built (and helped others build) over a dozen kit aircraft of all makes and models. Jon is a private pilot and currently owns and flies a Zenith Cruzer.
The Inside Corner on Reducing Stress
It is common practice for builders to cut openings in aluminum aircraft structures. Popular examples include creating inspection or access panels in the wings...
Debunking Deburring
If you are building an aircraft kit that requires drilling holes into metal parts, there is no doubt that the subject of deburring will get mentioned.
Learning To Identify Solid Rivets
Nearly every homebuilt aircraft kit has at least a few solid rivets helping to hold it together. Some kit designs use thousands of these—others,...
Which Fabric Are You Going To Use?
If you are building a fabric-covered aircraft, you have multiple fabrics to choose from: polyester, Dacron, Stits, Ceconite, Poly-Fiber, Superflite or Oratex. Which one...
Taking Your Engine’s Temperature
Your aircraft’s engine requires monitoring of various temperatures for you to know that it will continue to purr along reliably for the entire flight....
Badland Aircraft Speeds Up Production
Badland Aircraft, a manufacturer of Part 103 legal ultralights with folding wings, have been working through an order backlog that has customers waiting months...
Flight Sensor Pack
RADIANT Technology, headed by James Wiebe, has just announced a new pocket-sized artificial horizon instrument. Measuring less than 3” square, this extremely portable unit...
On the Level
A few months back in this very column, I suggested that pilots should keep a “retired” smart phone in their aircraft as an all-in-one...
That’s Shear Nuts
The aircraft bolts we use to build our projects will always be paired with an appropriate nut to complete the mission of holding components...
Consider a Second Look
I would chance a guess that most aircraft kits are primarily built by one person. While some projects are constructed by groups or teams...
In Case You Missed It
Light Stuff
Columnist Dave Martin flies one of the best-selling Special Light Sport Aircraft (factory-built), the Flight Design CTSW. Although he encounters a few surprises, transition training for pilots new to the design would likely alleviate such things.
Alternative Energies
Sun n Fun 2011 opened with stormy skies and a tornado, but the Green Space area offered a ray of sunshine at the rain-soaked event. By Dean Sigler.