| 1. What is the airfoil section? |
4412 (Same as a Luscombe)
I've actually never flown a Luscombe, but I often
say it must be a great flyer because it has a Zippy Sport airfoil |
| 2. What is the chord length? |
47.625 inches |
| 3 What is the thickness of the main spar? |
5.5 inches |
| 4 Where is the center of the main spar located in%
of chord? |
22.3% |
| 5. What is the thickness of the rear spar? |
2 inches |
| 6. Where is the center of the rear spar located? In
% of chord? |
85.3% |
7. I am very interested in buying building plans of
the one-place airplane Zippy Sport. Please send me your offer with more
information about the plane, for example:
dimensions of the cockpit. |
-
Cabin width at Seatback 22 inches
-
Cabin width at Instrument Panel Station 22 inches
-
Height from lower longeron to rear carry through 36 inches
-
Height from lower longeron to front carry through 36 3/4
-
Lower longeron to cabin ceiling 40 inches ± 1 inch
-
Door opening 28 3/4 wide x 33 inches
-
Seatback to Firewall 63 inches
|
| 8. What is the wing construction? |
-
Spruce Spars
-
Formed aluminum ribs
-
Aluminum Leading Edge
-
Fabric covered
-
Blind Rivet attachment vs. Rib Stitch
-
Alternatively, ribs can be constructed from plywood (stacked
and band sawed)
|
| 9. What is the fuselage construction? |
Welded 4130 Chrome Molly tube
|
| 10. What Engines have been used? |
-
HKS-700e 4 stroke
-
Rotax 503 w 3.0, 2.58, 2.238, and 2.0 reductions
-
Rotax 508 4 stroke w 3.0
-
Rotax 532 with 2.58
-
Rotax 582 with 3.0 and 2.238 reductions
-
Cuyuna 430 R with 2.0 reduction
-
VW 1200
|
| 11. I need to know if I'd fit in it. I am 6'2"
and 195 lbs. |
The fit should not be a problem for most frames. There
is an abundance of room in the forward part of the cabin which can accommodate
very long legs. See No. 7, above for dimensions. If a builder has a long
torso, the cabin height can be altered marginally during construction.
The width sounds narrow just to look at the numbers, But at 5' 10" or so,
with weight varying from 160 to 220lb, I seem to fit in just fine, even
with winter clothes and such. |
12. Is 650 hours pretty reasonable
build time for someone who has experience building
or is that figured as a first time builder. |
That is very difficult to predict because variables
like weather, tools, and facilities also have an impact. The Zippy requires
very little in the way of specialty tools. Time spent covering, painting,
...detailing, can vary wildly. Having said all this, the 650 hours is a
pretty fair estimate for an experienced builder, or a resourceful, mechanically
inclined individual. |
13. I think I saw some where
that the
wings can be folded. Correct? |
The Zippy Sport was an entry in the Dupont/Western
Flyer design contest, judged in 1983. One of the requirements of the contest
was a means of wing folding. The Zippy has such a feature that basically
involves:
Remove the wing root attach bolts
Remove wing strut lower bolt to fold strut against
the bottom of wing, or remove 3 bolts each, and thus, the entire strut.
Wing pulls out, away from root on telescoping tube
attachment at the rear spar.
The aileron connection automatically disconnects (tapered
pin at aileron root engages or disengages corresponding hole in aileron
horn)
The wing is then rotated, leading edge down, and swung
back to a separate cradle bolted forward of the tail.
In folded position, the tip of the wing slopes up
to the rear of the aircraft, above the horizontal stab.
From a practical standpoint, the best value of the wing
fold mechanism would be in compacting the aircraft for storage, to save
hangar space.
For transport, wing removal is the popular course
of action. |
| 14. How many flying? Any used ones available? |
A quick search in landings.com under model shows eight.
There are likely a few others registered with something else listed under
model. Occasionally one pops up for sale. There was one on barnstomrers
just before Oshkosh (July 05) |
| 15. Where do you carry the fuel, and how much? |
A standard 6 1/2 gallon tank mounts in the fuselage
forward of the instrument panel. There is room for a 4 1/2 gallon
auxiliary tank behind the seat above the top longerons. |
| 16. Experimental, of course, don't have ADs, but still
I wonder if you have sent advisories to owners/builders? |
Before we purchased the design, there were some early
revisions to plans that were sent out by the designer. These have been
included with subsequent serial numbers. Other than the use of various
powerplant packages, there has been no known, or official design change
for over twenty years. |
| 17. What is the highest-time ZS flying? |
Once upon a time, our 83ZS probably was, if we actually
caught up to a builder in Texas. At that time, we were coming up on 400
hours. That was years ago, and flight frequency has varied over the years.
83 ZS now has approximately 700 hours. It would not be surprising if there
are a couple 1000 + hour examples out there. |
| 18. Is it a kit or just plans? |
Just plans. Presently, there are no prefab Zippy Sport
components offered by Green Sky Adventures, Inc. Though a kit is not out
of the realm of possibility, promotion of our Micro Mong kit is presently
a higher priory. Advances in technology in the last couple decades particularly
in affordable CNC part production, and availability of a light weight dependable
4 stroke, may effect future decisions |
| 19. Room for some baggage in this plane? Is
it very CG sensitive--this can make baggage pretty problematic |
There are a couple cubic ft available that may
be used for baggage ahead of the rudder pedals. Or, the auxiliary fuel
tank could be replaced with baggage area. Small areas may be built in as
desired. Our Zippy Sport has flown with forward or aft fuel only,
with pilot weights from 160 to 220 lb. ...easily from 15 to 30 percent
of MAC. The Zippy is neutrally stable at best (if stable is good) in roll,
pitch, and yaw, declining in that order. Elevator stick force is very light
and seldom annoying in any situation for local flights. A bungee trim can
be used for extended flight. We often selectively burn off fuel for pitch
trim. Baggage? Keep in mind, utility category at 680 lb does not allow
for massive amounts of baggage. Dropping back to Normal category helps
in that regard, but then rough air penetration speed and maneuvers must
be more carefully taken into consideration. |