Mini-500 parts selling on eBay

I see Mini-500 helicopters selling on eBay, but much less these days.
Is there someone in the marketplace that can sell me parts if I was
compelled to buy the incomplete one selling now?

Roger that "Other Kevin". They have taken out some high-time pilots. The
engine has been known to Seize, which also makes your rotor not turn. This
makes an autorotation extremely difficult.

Some words just don't go together in a sentence, like "Affordable" and or
"Cheap" and "Helicopter". Mini 500 buyers are lured by Affordable and Cheap.

I have a htm file that was a several year study of Mini-500 accidents.
Pretty interesting read. One in particular, the ship caught on fire when the
owner went inside his house to get something. He thinks his Crescent wrench
slipped off the ship and fell on the battery causing it to short out and
catch fire. Totalling the ship. Then they make the statement "the ship had
been for sale for quite a while".

I have never flown a Mini 500.
Ron Snipes
New Bern, NC





"planeman" wrote in message
oups.com...
I see Mini-500 helicopters selling on eBay, but much less these days.
Is there someone in the marketplace that can sell me parts if I was
compelled to buy the incomplete one selling now?

Dear Ron,
Thank you for trying to help contribute to the Mini-500 history, but I'm
afraid you have posted some statements that are not accurate. Please
allow me to help:


Ron Snipes wrote:

Roger that "Other Kevin". They have taken out some high-time pilots.


The fact of the matter is that no Mini-500 has crashed due to improper
design or bad flight characteristics. The only accidents have strictly
been from pilot error, improper assembly or owner modifications. As all
helicopters ever designed and flying, the Mini-500 has had a few
problems from design oversights on my part, but none has caused an
accident, and all were corrected and the upgrades made available to the
owners for free or at our cost.

The high-time pilot you may be referring to was Allen Barklage in St.
Louis MO. The facts behind that is he had seized his engine a week or so
before, due to him installing the wrong engine jetting. After seizing
the engine, he installed the proper jets and restarted the engine and
began flying the helicopter again, without repairing the engine. The day
of the crash, the helicopter still had the same damaged engine. He took
off, and rather climbing to a safe altitude to clear a power line
complex, he flew just feet over the top. The engine finally failed, and
Allen tried to autorotate the helicopter to the other side. The distance
was to great, and the helicopter blades stalled and nosed into the
ground. No helicopter built with a single engine could have made the
distance. Pilot error.


The engine has been known to Seize, which also makes your rotor not turn.
This makes an autorotation extremely difficult.


True, the engine has seized, but only to improper jetting, low octane
fuel or improper maintenance. No Mini-500 Rotax engine has just failed
due to the engine design, demand or application.

I don't know who told you the rotors would not turn if the engine quits.
That is not true. If the engine quits, or is powered back at any time,
the clutch will immediately allow the rotor system to continue turning,
allowing for full autorotation capability. In fact, the Mini-500
auturotated as well or better than most helicopters, as demonstrated at
air shows all over the world, and by customers that built and operated
Mini-500's according to factory specifications.


Some words just don't go together in a sentence, like "Affordable" and or
"Cheap" and "Helicopter". Mini 500 buyers are lured by Affordable and Cheap.


Correct. People in general have no business building helicopters. I was
a fool to think so.


I have a htm file that was a several year study of Mini-500 accidents.
Pretty interesting read.


So do I. In fact, we did a complete study up to the point where we
closed the doors, and even posted the accident report here on the
newsgroups for all to see. I will post it here again separately from
this post.


One in particular, the ship caught on fire when the
owner went inside his house to get something. He thinks his Crescent wrench
slipped off the ship and fell on the battery causing it to short out and
catch fire. Totalling the ship. Then they make the statement "the ship had
been for sale for quite a while".


That is true, but you forgot to mention that this owner had dowsed his
Mini with a highly flammable solvent, and while he was in the house
making a phone call in the middle of his cleaning operation, that is
when the wrench left inside the engine compartment mysteriously fell on
the battery contacts. One more thing, he had full insurance coverage
worth twice what the aircraft was worth, and he got paid.

His Mini-500 had been for sale, and he was asking way to much. It was
insured for twice as much as what he could have sold it for outright.
I'm glad you see through it too.


I have never flown a Mini 500.


Thank you for qualifying your statements. There is nothing wrong with
commenting on a helicopter you have no experience with, but still, the
statements need to be corrected. I hope I have helped your better
understanding on the topic.

As for the guy that originally asked the question about places to buy
Mini-500 parts, no, there is nowhere to purchase parts. I might add that
this is a good thing. Even if you could buy parts, the Mini-500 should
not be flown without a factory that continues to flight test and keeps
track of ongoing issues common to all helicopters operating.

Most sincerely,


Dennis Fetters

As for the guy that originally asked the question about places to buy
Mini-500 parts, no, there is nowhere to purchase parts.

Most sincerely,

Dennis Fetters


THANK YOU!!!
That is all I wanted to know!
I wish everyone else could have been as polite and helpful.
I'm going back under my rock.

Regards, Larry

planeman wrote:
As for the guy that originally asked the question about places to buy
Mini-500 parts, no, there is nowhere to purchase parts.

Most sincerely,

Dennis Fetters



THANK YOU!!!
That is all I wanted to know!
I wish everyone else could have been as polite and helpful.

And Fetters has been extremely threatening and abusive too. His comments
are always self-serving, the style just depends on what he's after at
the moment. Don't be gullible.

I'm going back under my rock.

You should stick around. The replies you got from Kevin, Shriver, and
Ron were aimed at keeping you alive, that's all.

Regards, Larry

There was a rollover CH-7 Angel being parted out on eBay recently, did
you see that? A *much* safer bet.

Cumulous wrote:
planeman wrote:

As for the guy that originally asked the question about places to buy
Mini-500 parts, no, there is nowhere to purchase parts.

Most sincerely,

Dennis Fetters




THANK YOU!!!
That is all I wanted to know!
I wish everyone else could have been as polite and helpful.


And Fetters has been extremely threatening and abusive too. His comments
are always self-serving, the style just depends on what he's after at
the moment. Don't be gullible.


Please Cumulous, copy and post something I said that was "extremely
threatening and abusive" that was out of line or not true. Please do so,
and back up your insults. As for self-serving, sure. It is mine, and
everyone's right to speak out on untrue comments or insults made by
inconsiderate people as yourself.

Dennis Fetters

"planeman" wrote in message
oups.com...
As for the guy that originally asked the question about places to buy
Mini-500 parts, no, there is nowhere to purchase parts.

Most sincerely,

Dennis Fetters


THANK YOU!!!
That is all I wanted to know!
I wish everyone else could have been as polite and helpful.
I'm going back under my rock.

Give Den a kiss when you ge there. He's sure to be occupying the same space.


--
Beav

Reply to "beavis dot original at ntlworld dot com" (with the obvious
changes)

As for the guy that originally asked the question about places to buy
Mini-500 parts, no, there is nowhere to purchase parts.

Most sincerely,
Dennis Fetters

Parts at Muna's Treasures on eBay
Certainly you ain't most sincere

wrote:



As for the guy that originally asked the question about places to buy
Mini-500 parts, no, there is nowhere to purchase parts.

Most sincerely,
Dennis Fetters


Parts at Muna's Treasures on eBay
Certainly you ain't most sincere


I'm sure since you're doing the research, you have seen that
munastreasures offers sales assistance to people, and they have sold
many items for others, including aircraft and other aviation related parts.

Why would you assume something sinister about them selling Mini-500
parts for somebody? Anybody? The owner sold me the transmissions, engine
and other parts for a project where I needed them, and asked
Munastreasures to sell the rest of the aircraft for him. He is selling
it all because he had developed health problems after he purchased it,
and it was just sitting around. What are you referring to as it is not
sincere, our what business of it is yours anyway?

I told the guy the truth. Don't buy a Mini-500 because there are no
parts available. You didn't see me saying, "sure, sure, buy that
Mini-500, I'm sure you'll find the other parts".

Most sincerely,

Dennis Fetters

Originally Posted by Dennis Fetters

Dear Ron,
The fact of the matter is that no Mini-500 has crashed due to improper design or bad flight characteristics. The only accidents have strictly been from pilot error, improper assembly or owner modifications. As all helicopters ever designed and flying, the Mini-500 has had a few problems from design oversights on my part, but none has caused an accident, and all were corrected and the upgrades made available to the owners for free or at our cost.

...

In fact, the Mini-500 auturotated as well or better than most helicopters, as demonstrated at air shows all over the world, and by customers that built and operated Mini-500's according to factory specifications.

I have never flown a Mini 500.

Thank you for qualifying your statements. There is nothing wrong with
commenting on a helicopter you have no experience with, but still, the
statements need to be corrected. I hope I have helped your better
understanding on the topic.

Most sincerely,
Dennis Fetters

Thanks for a very nice posting, Dennis. Although I have never had the opportunity to fly a Mini-500, I wouldn't hesitate to do so, given the opportunity. I think there are many people out there who love to pick on the Mini-500 simply based on heresay. The facts you provided should help clarify things a bit.

I often just don't understand why people are so hard on you and the Mini-500. They don't seem to pick on B.J. Schramm, even though he unfortunately died in his own machine.

Accidents happen, and they happen to ALL brands of helicopters. Most of them are not related to the airframe or engine, but to the pilot's skills (or lack thereof). I have a few hundred hours in Robinson R-22s and I still hate doing autos in them because everything happens so fast, whereas autos in the Hughes (Schweizer) machines are so slow and easy.

Anyway, just thought I'd say "Hi." Nice hearing from you.

Ed Newbold, CFII ASEL
Columbus, OH
http://enewbold.com/