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  1. T

    Gusseted aluminum tubing

    Hi all, So, there are a few different ways of building a fuselage. Wood I hate. (We just don't get along!) Welded Chromoly is good but hard to source (down here, I'm told) and quite expensive, especially given I'd need to pay a certified welder to do the job. Riveted sheetmetal aluminum - quite...
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    Itty-bitty hangarless aircraft challenge!

    Okay... so here's the thing. I wanna get into the air. Got a pilot's licence but can't afford to use it. Did the numbers on owning a plane but 1) Can barely afford even the purchase price of even the lower end of ultralight aircraft and 2) the ongoing costs are still sizeable. So, the thinking...
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    Hunks of metal in your Pou..

    So, on Jolly Roger, in 2003 at one of the Flea Fly-Ins, there was an unfinished (what looked like) HM293 built with welded metal structure. It looks more like metal that aluminium (but I'm no expert so I could be wrong.) Here is the link: http://jolly.roger.2.free.fr/and020.htm Does anyone...
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    Dan Raymer's book

    So, I guess that many of you who don't have a degree in Aeronautical Engineering are working from Dan Raymer's book "Simplified Aircraft Design for Homebuilders." i asked the the wife to put it on the Christmas list. She must have done some initial investigation because a short while later...
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    Quick question - no need for a full thread....

    ... and a total newb question here, so please forgive me. Q. Is it possible to have a high Vne/Cruise and a low stall speed? Does an increase at the top end of the scale automatically lead to an increase at the bottom end? Is such a thing possible without things like variable geometry a la...
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    Which is more efficient - bullet shape or pure teardrop?

    So, what do the wind tunnel tests show? Which is more aerodynamically perfect - a standard bull-shaped design (e.g. Winton Facet Opal) or an actual, pure teardrop shape which actually bulges at the front and then tapers towards the back? What do the experts say? Thanks, Thunderchook.
  7. T

    Magnus effect / Flettner wing etc.

    So, what's the consensus here? Never gonna happen? I've seen a number of proposed designs, talking as if they're real, actual working aircraft or, at least, prototypes. All of them are either models or nothing more than concept art boasting unrealistic performance figures. Does anyone here...
  8. T

    Another dumb noob question...

    Has anyone tried coating a particularly critical load-bearing structure (like, say, a wing spar) with this Line-X coating? https://youtu.be/30Q4HK7wcJE Weight penalty? Benefit/deficit ratio? Apologies if this has been asked/discussed before.
  9. T

    Any Paraglider/PPG experts here?

    So, as interested in anything that defies gravity, these ultra-simple flying machines have piqued my interest. I don't know much about them, but I do know that their canopy can collapse, rendering the pilot a victim of gravity. Is the soft, fluidity of the canopy a requirement? Has anyone...
  10. T

    Woopy fly - ram-air wing

    So, does anyone know the numbers on this kind of aerofoil? is there a way to use it without it being a weight-shift control arrangement?
  11. T

    Struts vs. Cables

    Hi all, So, I got my butt into a WB Drifter to do a Low-Performance, Tailwheel endorsement and notice one thing - you cut the noise and you *literally* have to point your nose at the ground to stop your speed washing off in a split second. This aircraft has cables everywhere. And yes, I know...
  12. T

    Beefed-up Sandlin Goat?ther

    Beefed-up Sandlin Goat? Okay, so given that Mike Sandlin doesn't actually distribute plans, rather technical drawings to be followed and/or experimented with, what are the projected results if one were to take that GOAT drawings, intended to be built out of bolt-together aluminium, and replace...
  13. T

    Any ornithologists here?

    Becoming slowly fascinated by the whole "Mother nature got it right in designing birds! Why don't we copy?" It would seem that birds use a number of techniques, most of all variable geometry. Does anyone here understand the finer points? e.g. I don't see any birds with a vertical fin. How do...
  14. T

    Circular planform wing

    Okay, so we've done the tandem wing to death. What about the good Ol' Flying Saucer look-alike? There are several working examples, most recently the David Rowe U.F.O: https://youtu.be/eFgr90LobAQ Now, in this video https://youtu.be/WKiQqORDnJQ ... the guy states that a circular planform is...
  15. T

    Strengthening with adhesive?

    This might sound totally stupid, so forgive me if it does. So, I know that welded tube is waaay stronger than riveted. I also know that learning to weld is difficult and quite a skill to be mastered. I am under the impression that if you want a welded frame, you're often best sending it to a...
  16. T

    Tandem wings (Yes, again.... Sorry!)

    *ducks to avoid the shower of abuse, empty beer bottles and tin cans* So, I've trawled through several threads and picked up one or two things about tandem wings, but I really don't see why they aren't more popular. I understand that if you don't get the centre of gravity correct, then they...
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    Annoying Newbie Questions..

    Sorry... *ducks* Just curious, but, apart from the fiddly nature and complexity of initial design and construction of composites (compared with wood or metal) are there any major cons and drawbacks? e.g. How do different types of Composite material rate Strength:Weight ratio-wise compared with...
  18. T

    Composite reinforcement of other materials.

    Hi all, Just another "what if?" question that somebody may have already run the numbers on and so can offer a qualified opinion on.. I was watching that old 1980s video of Burt Rutan and his buddy demonstrating manufacturing processes of composites and they showed a metal-constructed wing...
  19. T

    Can someone point me to the thread for the Canadian version of the Texas Parasol?

    I like the Texas Parasol and the Loehle Sport Parasol. I'd prefer a bolt/riveted aluminium frame. Thanks.
  20. T

    Any Affordaplane builders here?

    Like the look of it, and how it's constructed. Interested in stories on building and how it eventually flies. Thanks.
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