Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Discussions related to float plane models.
Dirt Torpedo
Posts: 574
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 10:53 pm

Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Unread post by Dirt Torpedo » Fri May 27, 2011 11:23 pm

Well the floats are a bit bigger than necessary and I've almost doubled the AUW, but she had unlimited vertical before I turned it into a caricature.

I think it looks kinda cool, and am hoping it can handle a ltitle rougher water than it otherwise might with smaller floats.

My wife wonders about it getting airborne, while I wonder more about it surviving a blender or a knife edge spin. :lol:

User avatar
retiredVTT
Posts: 5599
Joined: Wed Oct 01, 2008 9:59 pm
Location: Bedford, NS,CANADA
Contact:

Re: Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Unread post by retiredVTT » Sat May 28, 2011 12:31 am

Cool Jeff ...maybe you could try it on wet grass just to see if it's ready...we usually have lots of wet grass lately..!

Bill
Bill
HEFA #5
MAAC #13708

saboo
Posts: 592
Joined: Mon May 18, 2009 3:48 pm

Re: Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Unread post by saboo » Sat May 28, 2011 2:00 pm

Those floats are not oversize. A rule of thumb at one point was float length about 70-80% of the fuse length. They look about right. The ones that were on a DC3 were really large. The Caravan turbo prop has a float option and so do the Twin Otters that Borek Air run. The Twin Otter has large floats so your floats look just right.

One of the float makers in the US, I think EDO, is located on an airport with no water near by. If the take off is with non-amphibian floats they aim for early morning take off so the dew has the grass really wet. If it is too late in the day, they have been known to put STP on the bottom of the floats and take off in the long grass. I don't think they are successful at landing on the grass. ;-)

Saboo
Nothing like the smell of electrons in the morning ;-)

Dirt Torpedo
Posts: 574
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 10:53 pm

Re: Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Unread post by Dirt Torpedo » Sun Jun 12, 2011 7:55 pm

The maiden flight on Porters Lake came close to ending in a bath, but the damage was limited to some bending of the struts and losing the tip of the right side aileron.

It was somewhat humbling to find out how dependent I've become on flying with the prop instead of the wing. My poor little MX2 is such a pig with all this extra weight, and I forgot to come off of 3D rates.

I'll see what I can pull out of the video and stills when I get home tonight.

Dirt Torpedo
Posts: 574
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 10:53 pm

Re: Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Unread post by Dirt Torpedo » Sun Jun 12, 2011 8:10 pm

Video will have to wait for a bit but here's some photos.

Dirt Torpedo
Posts: 574
Joined: Tue Mar 16, 2010 10:53 pm

Re: Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Unread post by Dirt Torpedo » Sun Jun 12, 2011 11:18 pm

Here's the maiden "flight" -- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Twx5_05fkGA

User avatar
lawndart
Posts: 211
Joined: Thu Oct 02, 2008 1:27 pm
Location: Halifax

Re: Been thinking about doing this for a while...

Unread post by lawndart » Mon Jun 13, 2011 5:00 pm

Wow Jeff, that was exciting!
------d-a-v-e---------------- >}-

Post Reply