rtfm
Well-Known Member
Hi,
I took time off from building this Saturday past, and drove out to the airfield I hope to be flying out of once the Razorback is finished. I met a guy there who has hangar space, and who is a flying instructor. Has been for decades. I've struck oil, thought to myself. A hangar, a great little airfield, AND the main man can get me back up to speed and train me on tailwheel aircraft at the same time.
But there the bubble burst.
First off, he asked what type of engine I was planning to use. I said I was going to use the Thunder Chief - knowing full well that he wouldn't have heard of the engine. No matter. I expected a discussion about the pros and cons of various aircraft engines vs auto conversions to ensue. What I got was a 20 minute lecture on how the "912" was the ONLY engine to use. And he should know, because he'd been flying for over 40 years. The '912'. No exceptions. No discussion. When I finally got a word in, I pointed out that if I ever wanted to produce kits, I could not specify an engine which costs $20k (AUD) for a plane which was aimed at ordinary working-class flyers. Five more minutes of lecture ensued explaining how a used '912' would cost only $10k AUD. Till I changed the subject by pointing out that I couldn't specify a used engine in a new plane.
Sheesh...
And then he started on the design of the plane itself. It was too close coupled. So I asked him to define 'close coupled'. Which he couldn't do, except to say that someone who'd been flying for as long as he had could see it a mile off. I tried to speak about tail volume coefficients. I tried to explain about trade studies I had done. But I hadn't been flying for 40 years, so it was a waste of effort on my part. I was then alarmed to learn that it would crash on landing. Because at the AoA required in the landing configuration, the tail would be blanketed. Just like the Bede. I tried to talk about the angle at which the blanketing extended from the trailing edge of the wing, but not being backed up by decades of experience, this didn't hold much weight.
At this point I happened to get a phone call from my wife asking if I'd be coming home for lunch. Yes. Thank goodness. I excused myself and drove home in a bit of an angry mood.
Regards,
Duncan
I took time off from building this Saturday past, and drove out to the airfield I hope to be flying out of once the Razorback is finished. I met a guy there who has hangar space, and who is a flying instructor. Has been for decades. I've struck oil, thought to myself. A hangar, a great little airfield, AND the main man can get me back up to speed and train me on tailwheel aircraft at the same time.
But there the bubble burst.
First off, he asked what type of engine I was planning to use. I said I was going to use the Thunder Chief - knowing full well that he wouldn't have heard of the engine. No matter. I expected a discussion about the pros and cons of various aircraft engines vs auto conversions to ensue. What I got was a 20 minute lecture on how the "912" was the ONLY engine to use. And he should know, because he'd been flying for over 40 years. The '912'. No exceptions. No discussion. When I finally got a word in, I pointed out that if I ever wanted to produce kits, I could not specify an engine which costs $20k (AUD) for a plane which was aimed at ordinary working-class flyers. Five more minutes of lecture ensued explaining how a used '912' would cost only $10k AUD. Till I changed the subject by pointing out that I couldn't specify a used engine in a new plane.
Sheesh...
And then he started on the design of the plane itself. It was too close coupled. So I asked him to define 'close coupled'. Which he couldn't do, except to say that someone who'd been flying for as long as he had could see it a mile off. I tried to speak about tail volume coefficients. I tried to explain about trade studies I had done. But I hadn't been flying for 40 years, so it was a waste of effort on my part. I was then alarmed to learn that it would crash on landing. Because at the AoA required in the landing configuration, the tail would be blanketed. Just like the Bede. I tried to talk about the angle at which the blanketing extended from the trailing edge of the wing, but not being backed up by decades of experience, this didn't hold much weight.
At this point I happened to get a phone call from my wife asking if I'd be coming home for lunch. Yes. Thank goodness. I excused myself and drove home in a bit of an angry mood.
Regards,
Duncan
