----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]----
I might get in devils kitchen with writing this , but I would not go through all the pain of converting to an 415-D unless there is a good reason for it. Reason number one would be - you got a wonderful O-200 for the Coupe , reason number two - you really intent to fly the plane within legal limits of a max gross weight of 1400 pounds (unheard of) and therefore want to raise the limits. Because almost every Couper I talked to does not care about gross weight anyway. Most fly alone, where a 1260 Gross is sufficient and if you fly with two 200 pound people, you are overweight anyway, no matter if in a 415-D or -C, it is just a matter of how much you are overweight.(provided you take off with full tanks) The airframe is not changed when converting to a 425-D. The plane will not fly better or climb better (unless you add a new engine) - it rather has some new limits to it, which the main one is the elevator limitation, giving you trouble flaring at (formerly) normal landing speed. If you plan only to take occasionally someone with you to a sightseeing flight, you can save you the hassle to go through the pain of changing the trim tab, the elevator up limit, the landing gear (depending on serial number) the stainless steel sheet over the fuselage tank ( you need to remove the tank to get access - not an easy task) plus a few other things I can't think of right now, and just make some weight an balance calculations instead and fuel accordingly. For the service letters from Ercoupe check here: http://ercoupers.com/service/default.html You might also check the conversion option to the later model 415-E here: (depending on serial number) http://ercoupers.com/cgi-bin/ceilidh.exe/337s/?C3d149aefbyd9-4534-975-00.h tm Have a good night. Hartmut N3330H ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ed Burkhead" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>; "Coupe-List" <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, January 19, 2004 7:50 PM Subject: [COUPERS-FLYIN] RE: ercoupe conversion ----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]---- David, I'm not a mechanic so I can't give you a detailed answer. I know that you need to replace the metal sheet over the fuselage fuel tank with an identical one made of stainless steel. This is labor intensive because of the difficulty of bucking rivets and getting access so you can do that. There are some other things that have to be done that are much les in cost, labor and time. You have to change the up travel of the elevator from 13° to 9°. This makes about a 5 mph increase in actual touch down speed but otherwise isn't a big deal. The log books need to have notations made and the metal data plate must be modified (replaced or re-stamped with a metal stamping kit). Skyport has a kit for the change with everything you need. It has long been debated whether its necessary to send the paperwork to the FAA because this is something EXPLICITLY allowed by the type certificate A-787. I'll forward this to the [email protected] mail list and you can watch the better answers there. ( If you're not a member of the list, you can join at http://www.ercoupers.com -- highly recommended!) Ed Burkhead http://edburkhead.com/ [EMAIL PROTECTED] (remove the QQQ) -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, January 19, 2004 9:59 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: ercoupe conversion Dear Sir: I am contemplating the purchase of an ercoupe model 415-C and was wondering exactly what an upgrade to the model 415-D entails. Also, what parts would I need to purchase and where would I purchase them from. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you. David ------------------------------------------------- This mail sent via WebMail at Columbia Power, Columbia, TN ========================================================================== == == To leave this forum go to: http://ercoupers.com/lists.htm Search the archives on http://escribe.com/aviation/coupers/ ========================================================================== ==== To leave this forum go to: http://ercoupers.com/lists.htm Search the archives on http://escribe.com/aviation/coupers/
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