Whose airplane is it anyway?

On Sun, 18 Mar 2007 23:25:24 -0400, Ernest Christley
wrote:

Richard Isakson wrote:
"Richard Riley" wrote ...

Well, do check with them for your own peace of mind, but there ain't
nothin - and I do mean nothin - that he can do. It's faintly
theoretically possible that if you include his name in the registered
name type of your airplane he could have grounds to sue you, but it's
never happened and probably never will.

Just to be on the safe side, call it something else when you register
it.

Frankly, the big change that needs to be done to your airplane is it
needs fixed main gear and a lower ground attitude. One man's opinion,

Yet, as Lieutenant Edwards found out a great deal of care must be taken when
you're dealing with changes in the center of gravity of flying wings.

Rich



I've taken painstaking care not to move the CG or change the airfoil,
sweep or angles of the wings. I have made the nosegear fixed. That

Lordy, When I flew Jack Yoder's Barracuda, there wasn't much he hadn't
changed and it flew well. The wind root sections that contain the gear
were modified to symetrical air foild as he went to wide profile tires
for dirt strips and the root thickness wasn't enough to hold the
wheels. I'm not sure if he moved the wing a bit on that one due to CG
of not. If the CG falls in the correct place on the wing it's usually
considered a good thing.

OTOH he put a 260 HP 6 on a GP4 designed for a 180 HP 4. It was a fun
air plane to fly. It took some doing with no break out force or stick
gradient in pitch. Roll forces were just fine. He had moved the wing
but it could still end up in an aft CG situation. Tiny tail and aft
CG is not a good combination.

saved me 10lbs, lots of complication, and several failure modes. It may
cost me a couple kts, but I consider them kts well spent. If I knew
then what I know now, the main gear would be aluminum leaf springs.
There's lots of weight in the gear retract mechanism, but its fairly
evenly spread forward and aft of the CG.

As for changing the ground attitude...you've got to get it high enough
to put a prop on there. I do have less than 9 degrees nose-up, which is
the limit. It's just under 8, if I recall correctly.

Much nose up attitude when on the gear can make for some interesting
take offs in *some* planes.

Actually in some areas we have a lot of leeway and onthers very
little.
On some planes you can move the wing fore, or aft to fine tune the CG
with no problem and on others the change in coupleing can be
pronounced.

Any time you change something from the original design you may end up
in untested territory, unless it's a popular mod.
Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com

"Richard Riley" wrote

Even 8 is begging for pitch diversion on landing if anything goes
wrong. A little bounce and you're off to the races. It doesn't have
to have that high nose attitude - just a longer, fixed nose gear. A
lot of the gear design is left over from the original design goal of
making it roadable.

Are you sure about that? Are you taking the delta wing's need to come down
nose high, to slow down to reasonable speeds for landing? How about getting
the nose high enough for takeoff? If the nose were much lower, how fast
would you need to go, to get enough elevon effectiveness to lift the nose
for takeoff?

My guess, and forming an opinion from reading flight reports on the Dyke, is
that the unusual attitude is not a problem. While landing, you land nose
high, and the speed becomes whatever is necessary to get a good sink rate.
You don't come down fast, because you won't, if you are too fast. If
anything, a bounce is a non incident, because you mush right back down after
you bounce back into the air.

That is my take, anyway. I would want to fly one, before I went messing
with the landing gear geometry.

I do think fixing the gear is reasonable, though.
--
Jim in NC

As I recall the little metal tag that FAA wants visible on the aircraft has
a space for the A/C MFR. That is where you put your name. You are the Mfr.
and therefore entitled to do the condition inspections and all modifications
consistant with your airworthiness cert. I didn't find any approval blank
for Canadian Home Rotors when I made modifications to my helicopter. They
did ask me not to call it a Safari if I was making un-approved mods.

Stuart Fields
Experimental Helo magazine
P. O. Box 1585
Inyokern, CA 93527
(760) 377-4478 ph
(760) 408-9747 publication cell
"Ernest Christley" wrote in message
...

I have just been informed by the designer of the aircraft that I am
building that there is a possibility that he may not allow me to use an
alternative engine. Granted that weight and balance, as well as power
requirements must reasonably lie within allowable ranges, what is the roll
of the kit or plans manufacturer in the final homebuilt aircraft? Will the
FAA award him the power to veto my airworthiness certificate?

Right on.

The manufacturer is Ernest Christley and the proper engine is the one he
specifies. Just before his first flight, he has to look in the engine
compartment and confirm that he has the correct engine.

Colin

http://www.eaa.org/homebuilders/list..._La%20Beau.asp

The Delta Dyke referenced above has a fuel injected Mazda engine in it.

All the designer can do is send you certified mail, and all its good for is
covering his six if you buy the farm in the airplane you built in deviation
from his plans, etc. There's nothing he can do to stop you from flying it.

"Ernest Christley" wrote in message
...

I have just been informed by the designer of the aircraft that I am
building that there is a possibility that he may not allow me to use an
alternative engine. Granted that weight and balance, as well as power
requirements must reasonably lie within allowable ranges, what is the roll
of the kit or plans manufacturer in the final homebuilt aircraft? Will the
FAA award him the power to veto my airworthiness certificate?



--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com

"Juan Jimenez" wrote in
:

All the designer can do is send you certified mail, and all its good
for is covering his six if you buy the farm in the airplane you built
in deviation from his plans, etc. There's nothing he can do to stop
you from flying it.

Or, in your case, not flying it.



ALC