At the last EAA meeting one of the members announced that he was going to give away his Acrosport 1, minus engine, wheels and tires, and radio. If nobody was interested he would scrap it. The airplane was damaged from a runway excursion a couple years ago, but doesn't seem to have any major damage. He said he had landed and was rolling out and the left landing gear collapsed. The bungees gave out and the airplane headed for the sagebrush.
The shock strut was bent and the brush ripped the brakes off. The brush tore half a dozen holes in each lower wing. The tailspring is bent and the tailwheel hit the rudder and bent it. The bottom cowl is wrinkled and the tips of the wood prop are shattered. The fiberglass nosebowl also needs patching.
Anyway I went and looked at it later. It was completed in 2010 and has about 150 hours on airframe and engine. The owner built it and obviously knows what he is doing and takes pride in his work. I have been looking at small aerobatic biplanes and joined this forum recently to learn more about them. Nobody else showed any interest so it is now mine. It didn't make sense to separate the engine, an O-320, and then have to find another one so I bought it. He also generously decided to give me the wheels and tires.
I read the thread about replacing the bungee struts with spring struts and am thinking about doing that. The owner built a new bungee strut so I suppose I will use it to start with but the spring strut seems like a good idea. The owner also straightened out the rudder so it just needs fabric.
One thing I am wondering about is a canopy. It is snowing today and it is to cold to fly open cockpit. The owner used to fly a Pitts in competition. He has a Pitts canopy with the rails hanging on the wall. I don't know if he wants to sell it. I asked but I don't think he has given it any thought. If he does sell it, could the Pitts canopy be adapted to the Acrosport?
I know it didn't happen without pictures so here you go. First the airplane as I first saw it and second, in my garage.
The shock strut was bent and the brush ripped the brakes off. The brush tore half a dozen holes in each lower wing. The tailspring is bent and the tailwheel hit the rudder and bent it. The bottom cowl is wrinkled and the tips of the wood prop are shattered. The fiberglass nosebowl also needs patching.
Anyway I went and looked at it later. It was completed in 2010 and has about 150 hours on airframe and engine. The owner built it and obviously knows what he is doing and takes pride in his work. I have been looking at small aerobatic biplanes and joined this forum recently to learn more about them. Nobody else showed any interest so it is now mine. It didn't make sense to separate the engine, an O-320, and then have to find another one so I bought it. He also generously decided to give me the wheels and tires.
I read the thread about replacing the bungee struts with spring struts and am thinking about doing that. The owner built a new bungee strut so I suppose I will use it to start with but the spring strut seems like a good idea. The owner also straightened out the rudder so it just needs fabric.
One thing I am wondering about is a canopy. It is snowing today and it is to cold to fly open cockpit. The owner used to fly a Pitts in competition. He has a Pitts canopy with the rails hanging on the wall. I don't know if he wants to sell it. I asked but I don't think he has given it any thought. If he does sell it, could the Pitts canopy be adapted to the Acrosport?
I know it didn't happen without pictures so here you go. First the airplane as I first saw it and second, in my garage.
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