Post 20: The Skeleton of a 6G Wing: The Canyon Lightning™ Spar Assembly Phase 1

April 26, 2026

Why I'm trading 40lbs of aluminum for 13 feet of black gold.

Phase 1 of the Canyon Lightning™ wing spars is off the bench! Standing at 13 feet long and 7 inches tall, these are the primary load bearers for a 6G rated air frame.

In a traditional legacy build, a wing spar set this size made of aluminum tubing or heavy plywood could easily top 40-50 lbs. That's dead weight that robs you of fuel capacity, climb rate, and STOL performance.

My carbon-hybrid spar skeletons are coming in at a fraction of that. By the time I finish the carbon wrap, I'll have a complete wing set that is 40% lighter than the legacy competition.

Why the "thin and light" strategy wins:

1. Performance: Every pound saved on the wing is a pound I can put into a 4-stroke V-twin engine or my 26-inch bush tires.

2. Ease of use: Since the wings are so light, one person can install / uninstall them in minutes. no more '3-man crew' just to get the plane out of the trailer.

3. The 6G standard: Don't let the weight fool you. The Douglas Fir and foam core you see here is just the mold. The IM2 UD and twill-weave carbon wrap I'm lashing it with has 10,000 lbs of tensile strength.

Current Build Status:

Today the Douglas Fir caps and foam shear webs were epoxied and tape-compressed to ensure a unitized bond. In a few days my resin should arrive and I can turn these wood skeletons into aerospace-grade structural weapons.

It's time to redefine what a part 103 bush plane can do.

Stop dreaming. Start cutting. Fly carbon.™