mstull
R.I.P.
I hesitate to unveil a design that didn't work out, but I thought y'all would get a kick out of my latest experimental U/L. Maybe (I'm sure) y'all will have some suggestions. This is my 8th original design, my first with a tractor engine. It used the same high aspect ratio wings off my pusher.
The ring tail didn't work out. It oscillated/fluttered in yaw (at about 1 Hz) when the plane reached about 35 mph. Moving the universal joint all the way to the leading edge of the ring didn't help. So I decided to abandon the ring tail concept. That was the main experiment that would have made this plane really stand out. Without it, there's nothing experimental enough to make it too interesting.
I learned a lot from this plane. I wanted to try a tractor engine, since I had never built one before. Pushers have some major advantages like an unobstructed view, no need for a windshield or other pilot protection, and no dirt in your eyes from the prop wash. Building this tractor design strongly affirmed my preference for pushers. I'm still trying to get all the dirt out of my eyes and ears.
The top hinging control stick was another experiment that didn't really work out. I'm sure I could get used to it fairly quickly, but I would avoid making another one like that if possible. It seemed awkward and unintuitive.
Some ideas worked out like I expected: A really big prop accelerates a lot of air just a little, so the prop wash isn't much faster than ambient. The low mounted fiberglass seat worked great. The free-air cooled Kaw 340 worked fine, and seemed to have more power than my fan cooled one.
I could fairly easily stick a conventional tail on the plane. But I'll never like the tractor engined plane as much as my old pusher. So I'm considering scrapping the whole project. I saved my old fuselage, so I can quickly put that plane back together.
There are some minor improvements I've designed for that old plane. This would be a good time to make them. I even already bought most of the materials for them.
I like to move forward with my U/L designs. If I can find enough improvements for my old pusher plane, I could feel like I'm progressing. That plane was quite excellent... the best (for me) legal U/L I've ever seen or heard of. With a few improvements, it could be an ultimately perfect U/L. And that could be a worthy goal.
So I'll be contemplating and pencilling out my options over the holidays, which I enjoy very much.
I think I can make the ring tail into a kite {%->}
Have a merry Christmas.
The ring tail didn't work out. It oscillated/fluttered in yaw (at about 1 Hz) when the plane reached about 35 mph. Moving the universal joint all the way to the leading edge of the ring didn't help. So I decided to abandon the ring tail concept. That was the main experiment that would have made this plane really stand out. Without it, there's nothing experimental enough to make it too interesting.
I learned a lot from this plane. I wanted to try a tractor engine, since I had never built one before. Pushers have some major advantages like an unobstructed view, no need for a windshield or other pilot protection, and no dirt in your eyes from the prop wash. Building this tractor design strongly affirmed my preference for pushers. I'm still trying to get all the dirt out of my eyes and ears.
The top hinging control stick was another experiment that didn't really work out. I'm sure I could get used to it fairly quickly, but I would avoid making another one like that if possible. It seemed awkward and unintuitive.
Some ideas worked out like I expected: A really big prop accelerates a lot of air just a little, so the prop wash isn't much faster than ambient. The low mounted fiberglass seat worked great. The free-air cooled Kaw 340 worked fine, and seemed to have more power than my fan cooled one.
I could fairly easily stick a conventional tail on the plane. But I'll never like the tractor engined plane as much as my old pusher. So I'm considering scrapping the whole project. I saved my old fuselage, so I can quickly put that plane back together.
There are some minor improvements I've designed for that old plane. This would be a good time to make them. I even already bought most of the materials for them.
I like to move forward with my U/L designs. If I can find enough improvements for my old pusher plane, I could feel like I'm progressing. That plane was quite excellent... the best (for me) legal U/L I've ever seen or heard of. With a few improvements, it could be an ultimately perfect U/L. And that could be a worthy goal.
So I'll be contemplating and pencilling out my options over the holidays, which I enjoy very much.
I think I can make the ring tail into a kite {%->}
Have a merry Christmas.
