Hello from an aspiring pilot and experienced DIYer

[ddsrph]

Take a look at the legal eagle. I don’t know what rules you are dealing with but in US it’s a ultra lite so no license needed to fly. Uses 1/2VW and requires all types of aircraft construction methods. Wood, steel tube, sheet metal and fabric. A great first airplane for skill building and would be economical to build.

 

[FishHawk]

Take a look at the legal eagle. I don’t know what rules you are dealing with but in US it’s a ultra lite so no license needed to fly. Uses 1/2VW and requires all types of aircraft construction methods. Wood, steel tube, sheet metal and fabric. A great first airplane for skill building and would be economical to build.

I'd like a two seater since I don't have flying buddies with airplanes, and I would have to get a sports pilot license here anyway. You have to have one for everything, even solo gliders. The two seat eagle is interesting though. Still, I like closed cockpits and airplanes like a Jodel D11. Simple and easy, but more practical.

 

[BJC]

I can’t speak to your specific situation, but many Brits and Europeans come to Florida to learn to fly quickly and much more economically than at home.


BJC

 

[FishHawk]

I can’t speak to your specific situation, but many Brits and Europeans come to Florida to learn to fly quickly and much more economically than at home.


BJC

What's is the price of getting a sport pilot license in the US?? Around here, the education package costs 3000 euros if paid fully up front, and I'm willing to pay for that. The full cost is likely to be higher, there are always hidden costs.

 

[BJC]

Sorry, I don’t know. There are lots of flight schools that stay busy teaching foreigners. I missed the Sport Pilot criteria, though, so that certificate may not be as economical in the USA as it is at home for you.

My friends and neighbors, who ran an aerobatic and upset recovery training program, had a considerable number of foreign students. They are retired now.


BJC

 

[blane.c]

Of the hvx-_mds.docx read the last paragraph first.

The HBA will only allow 10 attachments at a time so the last one with last paragraph is next post.

Also note the propeller pdf.

So two people, one VW engine, you may consider a two place motor glider, it might be the best option.

 

[blane.c]

So this is the one to read the last paragraph first.

 

[blane.c]

Inexpensive dynamometer.

VW power is pretty well known but if you want to check your build.

 

[blane.c]

And one last one for now but important.

 

[FishHawk]

Inexpensive dynamometer.

I'll get to reading everything as soon as possible.
Is a liquid cooled engine an option? I'd love to use a boxer from a Subaru, but it seems that they are used for bigger airplanes.

Edit:
I am talking about an aircraft about the size of a Jodel D11. That might change, but gathering info can't hurt.

 

[blane.c]

The Jodel D11 is powered by a direct drive 200 cubic inch engine normally? So a 1.3 liter VW is 79 cubic inches. The 1.3 liter doesn't have much of a chance in a Jodel D11 does it? It will over heat and you will be flying a glider in short order.

 

[Vigilant1]

I'll get to reading everything as soon as possible.
Is a liquid cooled engine an option? I'd love to use a boxer from a Subaru, but it seems that they are used for bigger airplanes.

Edit:
I am talking about an aircraft about the size of a Jodel D11. That might change, but gathering info can't hurt.

Yes, liquid cooled engines are used successfully on many aircraft. In general, to take advantage of the greater HP per cc liquid cooled engines are capable of, you must run them at higher RPMs than a direct drive prop can accommodate ( the prop tips shouldn't exceed about 0.8 mach). So now you need gearing to slow down the prop RPMs relative to the engine RPMs. These Prop Speed Reduction Units (PSRU) add weight and about 1000-2000 euro to the cost. And you'll need a radiator, which also adds weight.
For these reasons, in the 60-80 hp cheap engine market, VWs are very popular. They are relatively light, they are relatively cheap, they don't need a radiator or PSRU, parts (including parts needed to make big ones) are widely available and cheap in many places, and they are simple and easy to worlk on. They have been used on airplanes for at least 6 decades, and the path to a successful conversion is well known. If you have more money to spend, then Rotax 4 stroke can work. In Europe, BMW R1100 to 1150 motorcycle engine conversions are popular. But, again, you'll want to use an engine that is known to work in the plane you choose, with a well supported path to success. Don't let the engine "tail' wag the airplane " dog".
Check into the Jodel D18 and D19. It uses a Jabiru 2200 engine which puts out 85 hp. It is a little stronger and a little lighter than the 2180 cc VW engines (which you can build from parts). Maybe some builders are using the large VW engines successfully, I don't know. The D18 and D19 will accommodate 2 people and is reportedly, like all Jodels, a very good airplane.

 

[blane.c]

Not necessarily suggesting this particular one but it has one thing to my liking 50 inches wide cabin.

Anyway small VW's engines might not power it but larger VW or a Subaru should.

WHISPER MOTOR GLIDER | Aircraft Spruce

 

[FishHawk]

Yes, liquid cooled engines are used successfully on many aircraft. In general, to take advantage of the greater HP per cc liquid cooled engines are capable of, you must run them at higher RPMs than a direct drive prop can accommodate ( the prop tips shouldn't exceed about 0.8 mach). So now you need gearing to slow down the prop RPMs relative to the engine RPMs. These Prop Speed Reduction Units (PSRU) add weight and about 1000-2000 euro to the cost. And you'll need a radiator, which also adds weight.

I found a diesel 1.9 td Jodel D11 on this forum. Does that mean I can use an inline engine that I know and have rebuilt and worked on extensively? I thought that a boxer engine was the only possibility. Using a long stroke Honda B series engine would make me very happy, or I could ask for directions from the guy that built it and go for a 1.9 td route like him. Then I'd be full French and own a Jodel with Peugeot engine and a Renault car lol. It obviously works and 1.9 td is one of the best and most reliable engines. Is added weight at the nose problematic in terms of handling?
I think I'll go for a Jodel build, I just have to decide on which Jodel. It seems easier for a novice to build it out of wood.

 

[n45bm]

Hello everyone. I joined this forum to entertain myself and instead I found my next big project.
I am a software developer, with a side business of knifemaking.
I've always loved DIY projects, from as small as building IKEA kits, to building a buggy from scratch with a transplanted fiat 128 engine.
Recently I've found myself without a hobby, and I contemplated building a custom motorcycle on Honda CB platform, but after the full buggy build while keeping the cost under 600 eur, it's rather mundane.
An aircraft is a challenging project where I hope to be able to fuse all of my past experiences.
I will need strong support and info, and you seem like the right guys to ask.

I'm looking to build a two seat airplane strictly from plans like Jodel D11 or something very similar. Yesterday an opportunity popped up, but I wanted to ask first and not act on impulse. I can get a fully functional VW 1.3 boxer engine for 100 euros. Should I get it, and does it have enough power? Or is it better to buy a used aircraft engine and not have headaches with conversions? The budget is a very big consideration.

Well, you could at least taxi at a good clip with a 1300 cc VW. Don't plan on flying it though, unless you have a looong runway and like to fly at tree top level, carefully, maybe.

 

[blane.c]

Others can elaborate more but more weight may be OK but to much weight is LETHAL. It becomes harder or impossible to recover from a spin if to much weight is on the nose. So be careful.

Another thing ... moment arm, so you could put a heavier object on the nose if you are able to put it's center of weight further aft thereby reducing it's moment arm.

 

[Vigilant1]

Is added weight at the nose problematic in terms of handling?

The extra weight can certainly be a problem.
In your shoes, I would probably first learn about the D11 and see if you'd like to build one. And if you'd also like to own and fly one (a very different question). Learn about the engine weight of the recommended O-200 engine, and then contact the person who put this alternate engine in his plane and find out everything you can about it. Then, try to locate other D11 owners (and, better, builders) and see what they think about the alternative engine idea.
I do think you are focused on the engine when that is a fairly small part of the whole picture. Or, it could be a big part, if you let it. Unless the path is well known, putting a water cooled engine in a plane designed for a light air cooled engine might add several years to your project.

 

[blane.c]

There is a saying ... change one thing, change everything.

 

[blane.c]

So my two cents about the engine. First it ain't just an engine, it is the engine and the propeller and the motor-mount and the cowling and all the little gizmo's and widgets that make it happy. There are a lot of gizmo's and widgets. So it is the double edged sword find an engine and figure a way to put it in an airplane or find an airplane and figure out what engine you can afford to put into it either way you are doing it the hard way.

First define your mission.

 

[fly2kads]

Take a look the Aeromomentum engines here:
https://aeromomentum.com
They seem to be very well developed, and the proprietor is a member here. Even if you don't choose one of their products, it will still give you an idea of what a modern automotive engine will wind up looking like when adapted for an aircraft. Their AM13 could work in the D.11 or similar airframe.