Here are a few things I’ve done on my GlaStar that others might find interesting.
Brake Actuator Support Straps
As one applies the brakes in a GlaStar, the forces are ultimately transferred to the fiberglass fuselage. If your feet are as big as mine, you may want to reinforce this application of force by tying the brake back to the metal cage. As you can see in the image below, a 3/4″ wide piece of .063″ aluminum with a quarter twist in it was used along with an Adel clamp. This is easy to do, doesn’t cost much nor does it add much weight to your aircraft.
Electric Flap Motor
I plan to have my wife fly my GlaStar®. In fact, she tells everyone that the kit is mine, but the plane is hers. In any event, if you want to add electric flaps to your plane, Image
2 gives an idea of how I adapted a Cessna flap motor for use in the GlaStar. This is a tried-and-true motor that is pretty much bulletproof. There are microswitches on each end of the travel, so you can adjust the motor to stop on each end of the flap travel. These flap motors are readily available at most aircraft salvage yards for $100 or so.
Be sure to get the arm and switches that control the movement.
Brake Pedal Alignment
As per the instructions in your GlaStar manual, if you make straps that have the same length as your brake cylinders and little offset strips, you can use a threaded rod to set up the geometry of your brake pedals for dual brakes (Image 3). One of the offset strips will have to have a notch cut in it to go over the left foot torque tube, but if the holes in the strap are the right dimension, you don’t have to try and measure through that tube.
Flaps Fabrication
Rather than using 1x4s to support your flap while doing the top side, try 2″ foam as shown in the image below. I found it to be cheaper and easier to use, while providing a lot more support.
