I submitted the following email to Luis for inclusion in the KR 50th
Anniversary Project. My KR-2 project is not exactly in the "...lived
happily thereafter" category. Would I do it again? Absolutely! The
collective knowledge, wisdom and experience I have available to me now would
shrink the time line to about a tenth of what the original took. That said,
now the KR-2(s) does not meet my mission requirement. So, on to other
projects.
Luis,
Attached is a photo of my KR-2, N6242. This KR-2 had been converted from
conventional retract gear to fixed tri-gear prior to first flight. The gear
legs are by Dan Diehl. Wing skins are from Dan Diehl. Engine is a 2180 cc
VW produced by Steve Bennett at Great Plains Aircraft, rated at 76 hp. The
wood 52 X 52 prop was made by Ed Sterba. Flaps per the plans were manual
lever operated for first flight and subsequently converted to electric
actuation. The oil cooler was obtained from Great Plains and then converted
to the RevMaster oil cooler system for much better cooling operation after
the first flight. Cockpit instrumentation include a Dynon D10A flight
display and Grand Rapids EIS. Cruise speed is 142 MPH at 2800 RPM and 2000
foot MSL; stall is 61 MPH. Empty weight is 760 pounds; max gross weight is
set at 1130 pounds.
Modifications include forward hinged canopy, welded aluminum fuel tanks in
the wings, all push rod flight controls, conversion from two-place to
single-place cockpit for much improved ergonomics, moving the engine
2-inches forward for improved center of gravity, and Air-Fuel ratio meter
for positive mixture control.
N6242 was totaled by the insurance company due to collapse of the Diehl nose
strut during roll-out on a normal landing on November 6, 2019. The FAA
Washington FSDO determined a material failure as a result of faulty
manufacturing of the strut by Dan Diehl. The FSDO indicated there were 7
previous failures for these struts on their records. The aircraft was still
in Phase 1 testing at that time.
N6242 had been based at St. Mary’s County Airport, K2W6, Leonardtown, MD,
Regards,
Sid Wood
smw...@md.metrocast.net
44180 Honeysuckle Lane
California, MD, 20619
cell phone 240-538-8465
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