Radio Vacation and Update.

[scarr]

Will you be on the air today Gil?

[gil]

Hi, no, today is our last day... I have a nice video coming up, of the trip, making a few contacts with the Weber MTR...

Gil

Sent from my SM-G928F using Tapatalk

[gil]

Oh boy, what am I getting into :o

Gil.

[cockpitbob]

Mmmmm.  I so jealous.

I assume you've checked out the International Pietenpol Association.http://www.pietenpols.org/

Their archive of news letters has  lot of great building info.

[gil]

I assume you've checked out the International Pietenpol Association.

Sure did! It will be a background project... My primary objective is to get a sailboat again, but having something to do with my spare time, on top of radio, will be nice. Maybe I'll even finish it someday if I'm not too old by then ::)

Gil.

[caulktel]

Oh boy, what am I getting into :o

Gil.

That's great Gil, everybody needs something to dump their money into :) I cant think of anything better.

Joel
N6ALT

[gil]

everybody needs something to dump their money into

I know I'll eternally be broke, but kicking the bucket with more than $100 on my account would be worse :o

Gil.

[cockpitbob]

everybody needs something to dump their money into

I know I'll eternally be broke, but kicking the bucket with more than $100 on my account would be worse :o

Gil.

Building the plane will SAVE you money.  Wood, Dacron and fasteners aren't very expensive.  It's going to take so much time to build it that it will prevent you from doing all sorts of other things that cost money :D.

[caulktel]

Gil,

What engine will you use? I just watched a couple of Pietenpol videos, one had a 65hp Corvair engine and the other one had a Model A engine, both were great. I have also seen VW engines used.

Joel

[gil]

It's going to take so much time to build it that it will prevent you from doing all sorts of other things that cost money

LOL, you might be right :o

What engine will you use?

No idea! It's really going to be an easy-peasy project... VW is too light and not enough torque, unless you use a reduction drive. It'll fly, but not well and the nose would be very long. A good ol' Continental A65 would work. If I'm rich by then, a Verner five-cylinder radial would be awesome. Ultralights in France are limited to 60kW (80hp), so choices will be limited. The Ford A is great but that big radiator in front of the cockpits is a no-no in my book. If I want a bigger engine I can always redo my pilot's license (my US license isn't accepted here) and register it as an experimental, though ultralight would be better since there is no medical and it could matter in a decade or two...

What's interesting is that a 40hp Ford model A works as well if not better than an 80hp VW... Food for thought... Drag is a b-tch... You need a large diameter prop on that plane, and a direct drive VW isn't going to swing it...

Anyway, changes of me actually getting to the engine installation phase are slim... We'll see in a few years... If I can get a boat I will be gone for 2-3 years in the middle of it, so... It's all conjecture at this point. I only bought the plans...

There sure would be a dipole in that wing, as long cross-country flights at 70mph can be, well, long... CW too, no less.

Gil.

[cockpitbob]

Yup, stay air cooled.  Not only is there more weight and more to go wrong in a water cooled engine, but those Model-A engines aren't that reliable and I have to wonder if there's anyone in your part of the world that knows about them, like how to pour new babbit main bearings.

Aside from that, to me the biggest negative would be the radiator right in front of me.  Besides making spotting traffic a problem (constant s-turns as I fly?) I fly to sight-see.  What I love about parasol planes is you have all the fun and style of a bi-plane, but without that bottom wing getting in the way.

[gil]

The difficulty here is that max gross weight is 450kg, 991Lbs... So the plane would have to be very very light... No alternator, battery, starter, no electrics, light fabric, and all the tricks possible to lose weight, including myself! The biggest issue is that a lighter engine would stick too far out. A Ford model A weighs around 265Lbs.
Empty weight is presumably 625Lbs with Ford-A, but people end-up with 650 to 750Lbs. I would have to end at around 590Lbs empty with a lighter engine and longer nose... Quite possible.

Gil.