Hi Josh,

Thanks for the kind words about my wild child 701. I Had to upgrade the front axle and forks  as the original design was too light for my EA81 engine. I broke the axle and lost the front wheel on an rough runway.

Good eye catching that detail.

Cam

No problem Josh. I have pretty thick skin. Also, I am not known for my diplomatic skills. I basically just say what I think. But I do try not to say things that are not accurate, and I try to label my opinions as opinions.

I do not have a Viking engine. When I was building my CH-750 I looked at the Viking. This was when Jan was first getting started with the Hondas, about 10 years ago. I settled on the UL Power and went that route. But before I got it in the air, Just Aircraft came out with the SuperSTOL and so I sold my near complete airframe to Norm, who did put a Viking on it (and is very happy with the engine). For the SuperSTOL I went with Rotax. In my opinion that is the best engine for the Zenith.

I too feel bombarded by Jan's constant posting of "Viking-is-the-greatest" stuff. In my opinion he is his own worst enemy. But I do like him personally and I try to set aside his aggressive marketing. He himself is quite guilty of bashing other engines, sometimes in misleading ways. I know he has turned people against him on that basis alone. I think he may recognize this as a shortcoming, as he has started giving his assistant more of the "public relations" stuff.

I am not completely sold on the Viking either. My main concern is not how long will it last, but how will it fail, when it does fail (and all engines fail eventually). Will it give warning, so that it can be taken out of service before disaster strikes, or will it fail suddenly? It would be really interesting to know how the marine applications hold up, and what eventually breaks.

Anyway, no hard feelings here. More snow to shovel.

Thanks for the comment on my front fork and yes, it was backwards. Castors much better in the proper position.