Canuck Bob
Well-Known Member
Hello again, I was active a few years ago but ended up in combat with cancer. I'm in good shape and ready to fly and build again. I'm rebuilding a traditional Fly Baby again and casting about for a build after that. I'm fond of the forward swept wing planes like the Cygnet and Pottier P130. Another design that intrigues me is the older Team Airbike.
Here's my question regarding electric power. When looking into my simplistic design study it struck me that moving the engine or motive power source to the CG was a good thing. Could a person build a forward mount prop configuration with an electric motor and power it from a small generator located elsewhere?
The thing I value most from flying is visibility. I trained in an open UL Breezy style plane. A little too open for the western Canadian climate. The other problem was I experienced three Rotax moments including two forced landings, one at 200 feet on departure. Thus the purchase of a Fly Baby with a low hour Continental A65.
My parameters are Canadian UL so 45mph stall, 1100#s max, and generally light and a decent sized wing. In doing a very amateurish safety study I decided not to place the powerplant high and behind the cockpit cage in UL pusher style. However getting the pilot well forward with an engine up front is more than tricky. If this scheme has any validity, probably unlikely, the power unit could be mounted low to the rear and prone to ejecting itself under the plane instead of onto the pilot in a crash.
Edit: I was directed to the active threads and they are outstanding. I missed you folks!
Here's my question regarding electric power. When looking into my simplistic design study it struck me that moving the engine or motive power source to the CG was a good thing. Could a person build a forward mount prop configuration with an electric motor and power it from a small generator located elsewhere?
The thing I value most from flying is visibility. I trained in an open UL Breezy style plane. A little too open for the western Canadian climate. The other problem was I experienced three Rotax moments including two forced landings, one at 200 feet on departure. Thus the purchase of a Fly Baby with a low hour Continental A65.
My parameters are Canadian UL so 45mph stall, 1100#s max, and generally light and a decent sized wing. In doing a very amateurish safety study I decided not to place the powerplant high and behind the cockpit cage in UL pusher style. However getting the pilot well forward with an engine up front is more than tricky. If this scheme has any validity, probably unlikely, the power unit could be mounted low to the rear and prone to ejecting itself under the plane instead of onto the pilot in a crash.
Edit: I was directed to the active threads and they are outstanding. I missed you folks!
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