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  1. T

    The future is direct drive

    To answer that question, "preferable" needs to be defined in the context of the auto engines capability to remedy the shortcomings of the aero engine. For me the biggest issues with aero engines are they are unjustifiably expensive, have poor fuel efficiency, and (to a lesser extent) are not as...
  2. T

    Series hybrid questions

    Unless they have dramatically reduced their pricing in the last 2 years this figure is way off - and I'm too lazy to verify it. But last I checked (a couple years ago) they were selling just the motor for about 2000 Euros. But the big expense is the controller, which they do not make (although...
  3. T

    Series hybrid questions

    I think you have this backwards Aerowerx, supercapacitors (unlike capacitors) can supply high charge/discharge rates, with very high power density. As such they are good candidates for series hybrid. One of the big limitation of batteries for the power output needed for the kind of motor we...
  4. T

    Series hybrid questions

    I don't see how a parallel gives you any more benefit that a regular ICE turbocharged, or electric supercharged. The great benefit of a hybrid system is not in reducing weight or cost, but in the flexibility it gives in the overall aircraft design, as karoliina and Autoreply have pointed to...
  5. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Thanks Himat. One thing I was wondering about relative to the extra drag, on takeoff the wing is going to be highly loaded, but at cruise it won't be and will not need that extra area, which will be added drag, maybe not double with the increase in speed??? because it won't be lifting, but still...
  6. T

    That heavy engine ...

    I understand the error I was making now. I was looking at the Neutral point of the Quickie independent of the rear wing, as in the case of the downlift tail. In other words I was just considering the Neutral point would be relative to the front wing, (as is in a conventional wing), and being...
  7. T

    That heavy engine ...

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPw-3e_pzqU Topaz, I've missed you. :grin: Point taken, but I'm not about to go up in any aircraft without it being sussed out first, one way or the other. But that is exactly the cultural theme on this board. The methods of aircraft design are treated as an...
  8. T

    That heavy engine ...

    This is not true of the Rutan Quickie. It has a CG aft of the Neutral point and is stable. And as others here have said it is possible to have a stable airplane in this configuration. If you can prove it otherwise please do so, as I would be sincerely grateful for the education since all I've...
  9. T

    That heavy engine ...

    So you make the wing smaller and the tail bigger. Why not? Why would you get more relative lift in the tail? If you're talking about prop wash (slipstream) that is not at issue here. Besides wouldn't your elevator compensate for it?
  10. T

    That heavy engine ...

    I apologize for the comment I made to TTF, it was out of frustration and immature. Yes, but why did they choose to balance around that point with a negative lifting tail, instead of a positive one by locating the CG aft of that point and using a positive lift tail? Is there an aerodynamic reason...
  11. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Does the trim drag increase as speed increases? And the amound of trim required is related to the length of the arm (distance between the tail and Neutral point) longer arm means more weight which contributes to drag. Perhaps I am over exaggerating the efficiency losses of the downlift tail and...
  12. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Unless with your CG aft of Neutral you have a positive lifting tail. Correct? but have you considered the possible reason a lot of smart people have not done it yet Bill? Could it not possibly be that the reason a design with a CG aft of the Neutral point allowing for a small positive lifting...
  13. T

    That heavy engine ...

    You seem sincere so I'll respond even though it is getting painful. Read the sentence you are responding to as being true again slowly. "it is possible to have an engine at the front of an airplane, in a conventional design (with a wing and a tail), and have that tail be NOT downward...
  14. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Again this is the case with the Rutan Quickie. which BTW does not need an "artificial pitch stability system". If you had a tandem design, where the forward and aft wing with some distance between them, could you not have the CG at the neutral point and yet still have stability? I don't know...
  15. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Another amazingly untrue statement. They didn't design a tail first and say, now if we can only find a heavy engine at the front we can balance it. They created the downward lifting tail BECAUSE they had a heavy engine (which they decided to place at the nose as the best place to put it)...
  16. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Which is funny becuase you made a comment based on what I said without actually having read what I said, or you obviously did not understand it. You're the one that said it, not me. If it is not true then tell me you did not mean it.
  17. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Hopefully at least you are not bored. :) Bill, I think you mean this the other way around. Unless by "ahead" you mean aft of the CG. Is that true at high speeds? Also, you can have smaller area of tail to lower drag but to keep stability you need to extend the arm which adds weight. Perhaps...
  18. T

    That heavy engine ...

    This is a ridiculously untrue statement. What you are saying is that it is possible to have an engine at the front of an airplane, in a conventional design (with a wing and a tail), and have that tail be NOT downward lifting. How could that be true?
  19. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Re: Is electric propulsion worth it? I'm sorry if I'm not making myself clear. Let me try again. Keep in mind that the context of my point came from the "electric" thread regarding piston engine vs electric motors, and conventional designs vs potential designs for greater efficiency, such as...
  20. T

    That heavy engine ...

    Yes the Predator is an interesting design for unmanned, but if you added a pilot where? The front would be the obvious place but that would not work.
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