rtfm
Well-Known Member
Hi,
Remember how when you were a kid, and you used to see something (a new bike, those crazy new roller blades, that new mobile phone...) and you just HAD to have it? HAD to. You drew pictures of it in your school books. It was the topic of your conversations. It lurked in the shadows of your consciousness, and crept full-blown into your thoughts when you lay down at night?
Usually these mind-invading passions ameliorate into the more measured attractions which fill our mature years. But not always. The moment I saw the McGinnis wing on the Synergy aircraft I was a kid again. I just wanted one. HAD to have one. And since I'm right at the beginning of my construction phase, I thought I could incorporate it. And blow away years of careful thought and planning. Such is passion, right?
But one thing the years HAVE taught me, is that while we can't seem to control these bouts of passion, we can confidently expect them to soften into manageable desires with time. It hasn't happened yet, but I'm sure it will.
One of the ways I'm trying to help the process along is to try to be realistic about it.
For one thing, I have no idea what lies behind the wing design. What angles, how high, what airfoils? How does it fly, how does it stall, how does it handle cross wind landings, rough field landings? Then there are the questions about how to build the bloody thing. And then there are issues around getting that oh-so-carefully crafted tail end of the Razorback to look half-way decent if I chop the tail feathers off. Makes the Razorback look a bit like the rear end of a plucked chicken. Not nice.
I think my initial flush of craziness about how sexy this wing looks, coupled with the promised improvement in performance will have to wait till I hear from John (or someone else) what the guidelines are to designing the thing. I'm not talking absolutes, but guidelines. Compromises. Compromises. It will definitely have to wait till I figure out how to physically construct it, which at the moment baffles me completely.
I don't even know if a plane with this wing obeys all the usual design formulae. Will my Neutral Point, Static Margin, Tail volume etc calculations apply? If I could satisfy myself on the above questions, I'd consider using this wing on the Razorback. But only then.
In the meantime, it is probably wise for me to continue with the Razorback in its current form. I'll keep the Avatar for a bit, though, just to remind me of what the NEXT plane might look like...
Sigh.
Duncan
PS I have come across this interview with John, in which he explains very simply what the Synergy aircraft is all about. Well worth the watch.
YouTube - Team Synergy‏
Remember how when you were a kid, and you used to see something (a new bike, those crazy new roller blades, that new mobile phone...) and you just HAD to have it? HAD to. You drew pictures of it in your school books. It was the topic of your conversations. It lurked in the shadows of your consciousness, and crept full-blown into your thoughts when you lay down at night?
Usually these mind-invading passions ameliorate into the more measured attractions which fill our mature years. But not always. The moment I saw the McGinnis wing on the Synergy aircraft I was a kid again. I just wanted one. HAD to have one. And since I'm right at the beginning of my construction phase, I thought I could incorporate it. And blow away years of careful thought and planning. Such is passion, right?
But one thing the years HAVE taught me, is that while we can't seem to control these bouts of passion, we can confidently expect them to soften into manageable desires with time. It hasn't happened yet, but I'm sure it will.
One of the ways I'm trying to help the process along is to try to be realistic about it.
For one thing, I have no idea what lies behind the wing design. What angles, how high, what airfoils? How does it fly, how does it stall, how does it handle cross wind landings, rough field landings? Then there are the questions about how to build the bloody thing. And then there are issues around getting that oh-so-carefully crafted tail end of the Razorback to look half-way decent if I chop the tail feathers off. Makes the Razorback look a bit like the rear end of a plucked chicken. Not nice.
I think my initial flush of craziness about how sexy this wing looks, coupled with the promised improvement in performance will have to wait till I hear from John (or someone else) what the guidelines are to designing the thing. I'm not talking absolutes, but guidelines. Compromises. Compromises. It will definitely have to wait till I figure out how to physically construct it, which at the moment baffles me completely.
I don't even know if a plane with this wing obeys all the usual design formulae. Will my Neutral Point, Static Margin, Tail volume etc calculations apply? If I could satisfy myself on the above questions, I'd consider using this wing on the Razorback. But only then.
In the meantime, it is probably wise for me to continue with the Razorback in its current form. I'll keep the Avatar for a bit, though, just to remind me of what the NEXT plane might look like...
Sigh.
Duncan
PS I have come across this interview with John, in which he explains very simply what the Synergy aircraft is all about. Well worth the watch.
YouTube - Team Synergy‏
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