I love the color scheme for your airplane and can understand frustration over crappy / insufficient documentation. I think my video of the threadripper editing pc build shows that pretty well. The engine is painted the *perfect* color!
I maintained a small fleet of Piper Navajo chieftains in Alaska during the 90's, the Lycoming 540 is a real good power plant. In the turbo version it produces a reliable 350 horsepower.
Thanks for the comments of your experience with the Lycoming 540. I also cannot think of a more reliable and better performing engine for my application.
Wow! What was your build time? > 500 , >1000 hours? Did you build from scratch or get a kit? Did you opt for the more expensive quick build kit? How was your build experience? Were parts pre-fitted together easily, pre-drilled an only required cleco rivets, I like that they show flush cleco rivets so that there are no dimples every where. How was the landing gear assembly? Did you get the standard tail dragger landing gear of is your an upgraded version. I am curious if the landing gear can accept Alaska Bush Tires 29" or 33" ?
It's a kit. I've been building since June 1, 2018. I build about 3 to 4 hours every day. Landing gear is phenomenal. My tailwheel is an upgraded T3 Tailwheel. Nothing wrong with the kit tailwheel. Yes, it can accept 33's.
Bearhawk Life Excellent! I’ve read the bearhawk info says 260 max. I was wondering if there’s some kind of airframe limitation or something. I figured something north of 260 and maybe approaching 300hp would serve it well. Especially with the i0-540 weight. Your build looks amazing. I’m both impressed and jealous.
@@smashke1234 I've heard of others going to 300hp, or more. I'm sure my 273hp will be plenty and probably more than I will need. Thanks for the kind words.
Bearhawk Life I used to tow banners with a Stinson that had an O-540 which will be somewhat analogous to your airplane. That thing was a spaceship. You will probably be lighter with a bit more punch. You are going to love it.
How did you go about purchasing the engine? It seems pretty undisclosed online as far as where and how to get an engine for experiementals. And if you don't mind, how much should someone budget for FWF parts that don't come with the Bearhawk kit?
I didn't have any real issues finding experimental engines online to purchase. I chose Lycoming because I would be buying an experimental directly from the manufacturer. There are other experimental engine builders out there that will take an existing core and beef it up however they see fit and call it experimental. For me, my choice for going with Lycoming was because they would be conservative and safe. For example, they only go up to 9:1 compression. There are some engine builders that will go up to 12:1. As far as the FWF budget, I purchased a RV-10 FWF kit from Vans as it is closest to my IO-540 setup. They sell these on their website. However, you should go through the Vans FWF kit one part at a time to decide what you want. I really like their baffling kit, and other parts, but I chose to buy the exhaust system, control cables, airbox separately.
For the money Lycoming asks for they should have printed the manual. Thats total B.S.! Your required to have that manual and they as the engine manufacturer should have provided that manual to you with the purchase of your “New” engine. 40-50k and they are got cheap to print the manual. It would make me wonder what else they may have skimped out on to save money? If the details are everything and they didn’t provide a manual. It does make one question their purchase and it does put skepticism on the product. Lycoming has been around a long time. Thats true. It’s also true that in Aviation complacency kills. So the longer they have been around the more complacent they can become. Continental is the same way. Our clubs Rotax 912is came with a manual just saying lmao! Great airplane though! You have done fine work on the airframe Sir! Congrats! Thanks for sharing your Lycoming experience. Also they weren’t going to pre run the engine for 3 hours unless you requested it? That just sounds sketchy. Please keep us updated especially when it comes to your new engine. 🍻
In their defense I will say that Lycoming does not typically ship a brand new airplane engine to someone working out of their home garage. While that might be changing these days with more and more homebuilts on the scene, their primary end point is almost always the certified aircraft manufacturer, or, professional installation facility that has no need for a general operators manual that I am referring to. The professionals work from the dedicated manufacturer Aircraft Service and Maintenance Manuals. These are only available to certified A&P IA designations. Again, I was referring to the Operators Manual. As far as the 3 hours on the test stand... Manufacturers always run their engines on test stands before they ship. These tests are usually 30 minutes or so. My request was for an additional 3 hours to further the break in and in-factory monitoring. Lycoming says some people want this additional time, others do not. I have no concerns about Lycoming or the engine itself and do not feel that I was jipped.
In terms of innovation that haven’t done anything. I’m glad they are catching up with the companies that are being innovative. Let’s start making the Lycoming’s 100 lbs lighter and offer full FADEC from the factory! When they do that for the experimental market I’ll stop talking trash, ha!
What was the cost of this since experimental variants are always cheaper. The typical price I saw was 50k so I started looking at converting and ls3 due to higher torque,hp,lower weight, better fuel burn,and newer technology but converting a car engine to a plane engine seems unsafe to me no matter how much I read on the contrary.
I bought the engine directly from Lycoming. So there is no cost savings there. The number you saw was slightly less than what I paid. This is an experimental engine built by Lycoming. I felt that I were going to buy an experimental engine, why not buy it from the manufacturer? Car engines run at much higher RPM's. That did not feel comfortable to me.
@@robcaldwell5586 ok thanks. I was looking down the car engine alley because from what I read the reduction gears prevent prop damage and you only run the engine at about half throttle. Supposedly this lasts longer than the tbo of a lyc but it feels TOO experimental for me
A company modifying the Murphy Moose has put alot of resources behind utilizing the LS3 as well. They mention the bearhawk as candidate amongst a handful of backcountry STOL. I would love to see a real-life comparison of true numbers between bearhawks between io-540 and the 435 horse LS3 from moose mods. Guessing it would have 13-14 gph on LS3. If Mr. Caldwell sees this I wonder if you have heard of other Bearhawks owners and what GPH and range they are getting? You mentioned 700-800 range in the experimental video I just remembered. The plane looks extremely impressive.
@@jberg411 The company you are talking about is Bull Moose. www.moosemods.com/ ua-cam.com/video/4RLifbACl5U/v-deo.html Brapp be Gaming There are at least two companies which sell a PSRU to bolt on an LS3 and make it work as an airplane engine. One is www.aerotechllc.net/ls3-aircraft-engine.html but I don't see any examples of their product flying in finished planes. Geared Drives, AKA Auto PSRUS has many flying planes using their products. www.autopsrus.com/ They sell Firewall Forward packages for several models including the Bearhawk. ua-cam.com/video/3V8V3Ojb4fE/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/D4z5bZemWhw/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/ZsoMn-ZRr58/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/k_1XSpFHRhg/v-deo.html This video by Flight Chops is about a group of backcountry Fliers in Canada. At the end of the video, a guy comes flying into the gravel bar they are on in a V8 powered Bearhawk. On another note... one option, I am also considering (in addition to the V8) is a Turbo normalized Subuaru EZ3.0 engine. Geared drives also make PSRUs that will fit and work with Subaru engines. ua-cam.com/video/k-mNd71Bk3I/v-deo.html
Thanks for the RV10 firewall fwd kit tip.
You bet!
Beautiful engine. Beautiful paint scheme. Enjoying your journey!
Thank you, John! Glad you enjoy it!
I love the color scheme for your airplane and can understand frustration over crappy / insufficient documentation. I think my video of the threadripper editing pc build shows that pretty well. The engine is painted the *perfect* color!
Awesome! Thanks for the kind words!
I maintained a small fleet of Piper Navajo chieftains in Alaska during the 90's, the Lycoming 540 is a real good power plant. In the turbo version it produces a reliable 350 horsepower.
Thanks for the comments of your experience with the Lycoming 540. I also cannot think of a more reliable and better performing engine for my application.
Awesome looking engine and great progress!
Appreciate that, Corral! (Sorry for the late reply...)
Drill the bolts head through the side with a small bit and use wire ( safety wires) to keep the bolts from backing out
Drill a hole through grade 8? That's why they make them with holes already.
Thanks for the tip! (Sorry for the late reply...)
That thing is going to be a rocket.
It'll be a pick up truck in the sky... with a big motor! Thanks, Joses! (Sorry for the late reply...)
Bearhawk Life No worries. How did you like that Maule btw? Did the flaps seem to be effective?
@@josesbox9555 The Maule was ok. I did not see any problems with the flaps.
Awesome progress! Where can I pick up a copy of the Firewall Forward Plans (RV-10) you used?
Thanks Skywalker! I purchased the FWF kit directly from Vans Aircraft.
Any chance you weighted this engine before it was mounted on ur BH?
I am looking for a actuate weight for angle valve 540
I did not. I do not have a proper set of scales.
Wow!
What was your build time? > 500 , >1000 hours?
Did you build from scratch or get a kit? Did you opt for the more expensive quick build kit? How was your build experience? Were parts pre-fitted together easily, pre-drilled an only required cleco rivets, I like that they show flush cleco rivets so that there are no dimples every where. How was the landing gear assembly? Did you get the standard tail dragger landing gear of is your an upgraded version. I am curious if the landing gear can accept Alaska Bush Tires 29" or 33" ?
It's a kit. I've been building since June 1, 2018. I build about 3 to 4 hours every day. Landing gear is phenomenal. My tailwheel is an upgraded T3 Tailwheel. Nothing wrong with the kit tailwheel. Yes, it can accept 33's.
How many horsepower ?
Lycoming says 273. Experimental engine 9:1 compression, port and polished, roller tappets, etc.
Bearhawk Life
Excellent! I’ve read the bearhawk info says 260 max. I was wondering if there’s some kind of airframe limitation or something. I figured something north of 260 and maybe approaching 300hp would serve it well. Especially with the i0-540 weight. Your build looks amazing. I’m both impressed and jealous.
@@smashke1234 I've heard of others going to 300hp, or more. I'm sure my 273hp will be plenty and probably more than I will need. Thanks for the kind words.
Bearhawk Life I used to tow banners with a Stinson that had an O-540 which will be somewhat analogous to your airplane. That thing was a spaceship. You will probably be lighter with a bit more punch. You are going to love it.
How did you go about purchasing the engine? It seems pretty undisclosed online as far as where and how to get an engine for experiementals. And if you don't mind, how much should someone budget for FWF parts that don't come with the Bearhawk kit?
I didn't have any real issues finding experimental engines online to purchase. I chose Lycoming because I would be buying an experimental directly from the manufacturer. There are other experimental engine builders out there that will take an existing core and beef it up however they see fit and call it experimental. For me, my choice for going with Lycoming was because they would be conservative and safe. For example, they only go up to 9:1 compression. There are some engine builders that will go up to 12:1.
As far as the FWF budget, I purchased a RV-10 FWF kit from Vans as it is closest to my IO-540 setup. They sell these on their website. However, you should go through the Vans FWF kit one part at a time to decide what you want. I really like their baffling kit, and other parts, but I chose to buy the exhaust system, control cables, airbox separately.
For the money Lycoming asks for they should have printed the manual. Thats total B.S.! Your required to have that manual and they as the engine manufacturer should have provided that manual to you with the purchase of your “New” engine. 40-50k and they are got cheap to print the manual. It would make me wonder what else they may have skimped out on to save money? If the details are everything and they didn’t provide a manual. It does make one question their purchase and it does put skepticism on the product. Lycoming has been around a long time. Thats true. It’s also true that in Aviation complacency kills. So the longer they have been around the more complacent they can become. Continental is the same way. Our clubs Rotax 912is came with a manual just saying lmao! Great airplane though! You have done fine work on the airframe Sir! Congrats! Thanks for sharing your Lycoming experience. Also they weren’t going to pre run the engine for 3 hours unless you requested it? That just sounds sketchy. Please keep us updated especially when it comes to your new engine. 🍻
In their defense I will say that Lycoming does not typically ship a brand new airplane engine to someone working out of their home garage. While that might be changing these days with more and more homebuilts on the scene, their primary end point is almost always the certified aircraft manufacturer, or, professional installation facility that has no need for a general operators manual that I am referring to. The professionals work from the dedicated manufacturer Aircraft Service and Maintenance Manuals. These are only available to certified A&P IA designations. Again, I was referring to the Operators Manual.
As far as the 3 hours on the test stand... Manufacturers always run their engines on test stands before they ship. These tests are usually 30 minutes or so. My request was for an additional 3 hours to further the break in and in-factory monitoring. Lycoming says some people want this additional time, others do not.
I have no concerns about Lycoming or the engine itself and do not feel that I was jipped.
In terms of innovation that haven’t done anything. I’m glad they are catching up with the companies that are being innovative. Let’s start making the Lycoming’s 100 lbs lighter and offer full FADEC from the factory! When they do that for the experimental market I’ll stop talking trash, ha!
What was the cost of this since experimental variants are always cheaper. The typical price I saw was 50k so I started looking at converting and ls3 due to higher torque,hp,lower weight, better fuel burn,and newer technology but converting a car engine to a plane engine seems unsafe to me no matter how much I read on the contrary.
I bought the engine directly from Lycoming. So there is no cost savings there. The number you saw was slightly less than what I paid. This is an experimental engine built by Lycoming. I felt that I were going to buy an experimental engine, why not buy it from the manufacturer? Car engines run at much higher RPM's. That did not feel comfortable to me.
@@robcaldwell5586 ok thanks. I was looking down the car engine alley because from what I read the reduction gears prevent prop damage and you only run the engine at about half throttle. Supposedly this lasts longer than the tbo of a lyc but it feels TOO experimental for me
@@michaelazelton9320 go check out www.autopsrus.com/ they have everything you need for an LS3 conversion.
A company modifying the Murphy Moose has put alot of resources behind utilizing the LS3 as well. They mention the bearhawk as candidate amongst a handful of backcountry STOL. I would love to see a real-life comparison of true numbers between bearhawks between io-540 and the 435 horse LS3 from moose mods. Guessing it would have 13-14 gph on LS3. If Mr. Caldwell sees this I wonder if you have heard of other Bearhawks owners and what GPH and range they are getting? You mentioned 700-800 range in the experimental video I just remembered. The plane looks extremely impressive.
@@jberg411
The company you are talking about is Bull Moose. www.moosemods.com/
ua-cam.com/video/4RLifbACl5U/v-deo.html
Brapp be Gaming
There are at least two companies which sell a PSRU to bolt on an LS3 and make it work as an airplane engine. One is www.aerotechllc.net/ls3-aircraft-engine.html but I don't see any examples of their product flying in finished planes.
Geared Drives, AKA Auto PSRUS has many flying planes using their products. www.autopsrus.com/
They sell Firewall Forward packages for several models including the Bearhawk.
ua-cam.com/video/3V8V3Ojb4fE/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/D4z5bZemWhw/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/ZsoMn-ZRr58/v-deo.html
ua-cam.com/video/k_1XSpFHRhg/v-deo.html
This video by Flight Chops is about a group of backcountry Fliers in Canada. At the end of the video, a guy comes flying into the gravel bar they are on in a V8 powered Bearhawk.
On another note... one option, I am also considering (in addition to the V8) is a Turbo normalized Subuaru EZ3.0 engine. Geared drives also make PSRUs that will fit and work with Subaru engines.
ua-cam.com/video/k-mNd71Bk3I/v-deo.html