Extended baggage

Motivation

The Bearhawk has great potential to be a hauler of large cargo, even more so than as-designed. To haul e-bikes or 500 gallons of popcorn, it definitely increases the utility of the aircraft. Another Bearhawk builder friend identified the opportunity to create the ultimate extended baggage and completed this mod. Visual evidence:

This documented and approved modification to the Bearhawk fuselage removes the "V" tubes at the flap cable "Y" split station and replaces them with an inverted dog-leg structure, which allows a large pass-through area. This makes is easier to haul long or bulky items, or even for a person to sleep in the fuselage with the rear seat removed. It necessitates moving the flap "Y" cable routing one station rearward, as well as another pulley bank. Care should be taken to limit weight at this station for CG considerations, however.

The modification is approved by Bearhawk designer Bob Barrows.

Tasks

1. Cut out the V-tubes - DONE
2. Clean up the remnants of V tubes and welds - PARTIALLY DONE
3. Build and weld in dog-leg structure - TO DO
4. Build new pulley bank for next station aft - TO DO
5. Build pulley bracket for elevator cable redirect - TO DO
6. Build and weld on new fairleads - TO DO
7. Build and weld on new flap pulley bushings - TO DO

1. Cutting

2. Clean up

The flap pulley bushings must be moved.

Remnants will be ground off and smoothed out. A new fairlead will be added here to route the cable.

3. Dog Leg Structure

4. Add Pulley Bank

5. Add Pulley Bracket for Elevator Cable Redirection

This bracket and pulleys changes the angle of the cable run to even out the elevator cable tensions. My friend included a DXF file for the weld-on bracket.