t_andrews

Bottle of champagne for when one lands out and as ballast...?

Weight shift is all about bias. Whatever your weight, the proportion of cheek shift is the same. As long as you're not fatter on one side then the other...

Youtube has in it's infinite wisdom, seen fit to extend the video time and size limits. I have taken advantage and posted a few videos that were not public due to those constraints. One is from a Snowy frozen cove with a slushy LZ, and the other from a PPG demo flight at a balloon fiesta. Both take place in New Brunswick, Canada. Balloon fiesta Demo: [youtubevideo] [/youtubevideo]Snow Tow 2010: [youtubevideo] [/youtubevideo]Enjoy until the copyright police drag me away.

Let me start with some warnings: 1) I don't suggest anyone come barreling in on full fast trim 2) Speed kills 3) cartwheels are for gymnasts 4) no one can run 50kph+ 5) insert reason here That said, I know inertial energy is your best friend to trade for lift, and on a Fusion a full slow flare leaves something to be desired for flare authority (Nil wind conditions for sake of discussion). My preference is a neutral trim landing for the added energy that can be bled off for a flared one step landing. Full slow trim removes this energy from flare, however much it slows you prior to that event, it does leave fewer reaction options to unforeseen air variables. I do know pilots that prefer a much faster trim setting then that as a tool they have picked up with experience to further extend ground effect glide and progressively control their flare. While this is something that is certainly a risk vs reward situation tempered with experience, I make this post to solicit comments and stories on the matter. Some folks are taught in training to stay on some brake until a couple wing heights, then let off to increase pendulum speed and use that to trade for a more progressive flare. This applies more to a conventional wing then one which can be tuned in flight for glide speed. The effect is the same - more ground speed on final to use/bleed off as lift for a more controlled, less timing dependent flare. My challenge to you is to discuss the heck out of the topic. Wheelers are disqualified from wheeled input, although their thoughts are as valid as footslappers. I sit in anticipation.

2-1 is the way to go. Still plenty of feedback pressure. Inputs still higher then brake pressures at neutral trim, perhaps by 20-30%, but the resultant turn isn't the same anyway so apples and oranges. I've been ranting about it as much as possible without coming off as a flake. I'm glad someone's listening A few of the maritime reflex squadron has converted from the stock setup and they all say they will never go back. Once again for the stragglers: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=5151&p=34083&hilit=advance+ears#p34083 and pictures: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3389&p=23650&hilit=advance+ears#p23650

Circling vehicles in the corners of a landing field works nicely to orient and home a lost para-owl with sufficient light to get them down safely. Yes, it washes night vision, but that's the point when landing zone is known, just not visible at night. Ask me how I know, but regs won't let me tell you. Cheap stealthy high risk alternative might be a static field strobe and motor mounted LED floods good for a 100 feet out or more. A couple 4D cell mag lights with a 3/5W LED bulbs would do, one beam, one wide. Wheels. Rollcage. Radio(s) "I lived" Champagne. In either case a foray far afield would lean pretty heavy on backlit GPS, which will not help picking out reference lights on the ground. It has most certainly been done, however hypothetically

One of my flight goals with the fusion was to fly with (only) the hang gliders. Last year this was realized, and on post flight beer swillage I learned that the friend on a hang glider that had been flying beside me had been yelling "I'm parked!". So (for his COG setting) the Fusion 29 at max certified load (105kg) has all the penetration of a hang glider. I landed with a large grin - a couple times. I'm not saying a conventional wing can't do the same, but if it does it is nowhere near as easy as dumping trimmers. I was flying @ 105kg in a sky mountain harness with no bar. I wish I had landed to swap to the free flight harness and added that ballast and bar, but hindsight and all that. [youtubevideo] [/youtubevideo]

Finally posting on starting capabilities of the shorai LiFe batteries.... When I got mine, I installed it, and left it as I didn't want to mess with a charger that might cause problems. That, and I was curious about their claim on self discharge and shelf life. My homebuilt electric pack used a car jump starter kit 7AH battery originally, and I (over a couple months) kept tapping the "check charge" button I carried over to the paramotor. It stayed green (13v+) for the duration it sat. Factory charge with no top up. When I got to using it, it spun my mini2 over almost exactly like the original lead battery on full charge. After ten minutes of motor charge time and a cool down, it spun it like it was really supposed to - like 20-30% faster on whirl over. Amperage rocks. Quite happy with it so far and pleased to not need to trickle charge every so often. I'm liking Lithium Iron. For the needs of a paramotor, Lithium Polymers have too much hassle/risk attached to them. Just sayin.

I have a Colorado 300 I will let go for 200CAD or (currently) 125GBP and shipping. PM if interested. https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=11019

Still air will challenge your reflex trained launch technique, but certainly offer less concern for condition induced pilot input. As a DHV 1 from the year 2000, it has response characteristics built in back then. High input forces, slow response and quick reinflations that come with significant surge. If it's in good condition, no line stretch/shrink and all that it will probably fly just fine with careful and progressive inputs to learn how it flies under your loading. If you're outside the weight range, expect very rapid surges and equally violent pilot damping required. The safety built into a DHV1 for reinflation can gift wrap you if you're not ready for it, or educate with an assymetric collapse. Smooth power (as you've surely been taught) application and removal in calm conditions and why not fly it? Kite to confidence, apply motor and make it earn it's keep. Keep an open mind about how it flies tho, as it's ten year old technology and your training didn't prepare you for that.

Vibration can be generated through a misaligned engine pulley as well. Yes, they're usually conical, self aligning, but install them a bit too loose and ptoing they go just a little cockeyed. That or a spec of dirt under pulley. If you can check runout on it while slowly turning prop by hand, it may be the source of your remaining hi rpm vibes. This shows up in flight as a cyclic (wumwumwum) harmonic with engine speed as the pulley loads and unloads the belt. Quite often only those on the ground pick up on it as pilot is overcome by wind and prop noises. It will kill your main bearings eventually and wear your belt sooner. It may kill feeling in fleshy bits temporarily... Find yourself tightening drive belt more often then you think you should?

Short answer is: When it needs to be replaced. If your cylinder looks ok, piston skirt looks ok, piston top looks ok, consumption is ok, then it's ok... Problem is, many don't check it and end up with failures as time to replace (piston, rings, cylinder). Compression tests, leakdown tests, plug hole inspection, intake/exhaust port inspections all add up to preventative maintenance. These days a mate is likely to have a scope to check inside the cylinder without teardown, crankcase from exhaust side even. So if it ain't broke, check that it ain't about to break and fly on! For Moto-X folks that redline all the time, and need never break it in a race, sure, 20-25hrs *is* preventative. Expensive, but preventative. Manufacturer specs are a guideline, and one for which there is no recourse even if they're followed and a failure results (YMMV). Par example: Mini2 (plus) manual says never exceed 1076EGT on takeoff as max temp. LOL Well, if you adhere to that one you'll be running an awful long way and most would see 1300+ where the power is. http://www.magictrikes.us/files/Manual_Mini_2_Plus.pdf (leeched link, thanks magictrikes)

Silly pilot, leeside is for birds.

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2503 Many manufacturers have coil signal voltage running thru the kill switch, which may or may not be close to or nearly touching a push to talk switch in dominant hand. This is kinda like playing your ipod with the earplugs wrapped around a sparkplug lead (ok, extreme example). Resistor plugs and caps can suppress the RF from the coil, but as noted above do add load to high energy ignitions. One step at a time in troubleshooting. First suggestion would be to do some proximity testing with a wireless friend around your running paramotor and determine where your largest interference is coming from. If everywhere, an 'R' plug, then resistor cap mayu be in order. Do note some of the resistive concerns however: http://www.ultralightnews.ca/articles/r ... dplugs.htm

Suggest this was a thermic induced collapse. When pilot flies past pylon first time, it's leaning in the other direction (gopro lense bending notwithstanding). Wind changes in that time span pretty much scream thermic activity, and it was likely the first pass that induced the release. Ouch either way.

I won't say it again as it's been said: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3389&start=75 Lose the knot, and some of the effort...

No helmets! No reserve! rebels....

Ouch. This is identical to my injury, save the compound fracture. No flying story for me. Greasy WHEELCHAIR ramp! DO: get the cast replaced at least once during initial heal. Early on - don't mean the half cast - the fibreglas cast @ two weeks having it. DO: take as much ibuprofen as your stomach can stand to keep swelling down - esp while sealed up in a cast. Acetaminophen and pain meds just masked the symptoms for me. I say replace cast because mine came off with a pressure ulcer evident (5wks) and that spot has held up my recovery I think (could have just been the extensive ligament damage - syndesmotic injuries SUCK). I am still limping a full year out and foot launch remains out of the question at present. Luckily wheels are fair game here. A couple things I wish I had gotten long before I did- for the pain: http://www.tensproducts.com/proddetail.asp?prod=TETRA for the ligament rebuild assist: http://www.tensproducts.com/proddetail.asp?prod=US1000 I wish a speedy recovery, for both of us although I've lost hope for mine a year out. Bonus: I got to keep the shiny hardware when it had to come back out.

The search function will expose some reading for sure. I'd post a link, but flood control might snag it. keywords should do it... or... Google has some lovely suggestions: review http://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=4&ved=0CEEQFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.paramotorsuk.co.uk%2Farticles%2Fproductreview8.html&rct=j&q=trekking%20parawing%20paramotor&ei=9mjMTYiCBcnw0gH89OyUBA&usg=AFQjCNHAHLdBULR6XP3Llx3K1hdzyxjacA&cad=rja In the context you ask about: http://www.bikesandkites.com/ppg_flight_log.html List goes on. good luck.

They can charge from any constant differential charger - solar, wall wart 12v charger, system charging. Desulphating or 'smart' chargers deliver pulses to crack crystals which are a no no for lithium iron cells. Do be careful about maximum voltage applied however as there is a limit in the manual. Many solar chargers can exceed this without a voltage regulator. Cold starts have the added benefit of heating the battery in lithium iron, making your second whirl much more likely a start then a lead acid, which simply gets worse. Internal resistance thing. In flight chargers can be wired in for cell/gps/radio, but word of warning - the 12v cigarette adapters often contain resistive elements to create a voltage drop to 9v/5v/3v - these are effectively heaters and will suck your battery dead often without a charge load connected. Part of pre/post trip if you use them. If they're plugged in, they're draining your battery. More questions answered here: http://www.shoraipower.com/t-faq.aspx

Shorai just installed in my rig replacing the lead acid. Nice finish, well provided padding to replace virtually any current setup even if you chose more capacity (x2+). Can't comment on starts yet as just now installed. This is the light replacement we've been waiting for that charges in flight without flames.

Sounds like you already took your lesson from the event. Rotor may even have been the cause of your overshot landing as the headwind fell off and you entered ground effect. It's not that rotor will smack you from the sky, but that it has no predictable nature within it. Air can go down, up, sideways and every combination with varying degrees based on steady wind, gusts and the mixture of the two. Always best avoided, but mountain wave is rotor - just on a scale that has predictable edges. Sometimes it is better to pick a "windshadowed" spot then stay in a place where thermic turbluence is more likely to remove your support from an unrecoverable height. The best answer is the one that works for you and the conditions you're dealing with. Your latest risk paid off, and still is as you're learning more from it actively. Good on ya. Gratuitious link with pictures: http://www.paraglidingforum.com/viewtopic.php?p=184959

The TTS oil is not recommended for the mini2 primarily for break in as it *can* impact ring seating and bearing tempering. If you break in with a conventional oil, this issue is moot, but manufacturers just say don't do it across the board. Who can blame them for not putting conditionals in the manual. Less oil means more fuel, which means more fuel to cool cylinder, effectively richening mixture as the fuel is not displaced by oil for a given jet metering. Folks can lean out and seize or hole a piston when they were already on the edge of mixture just by adding "a little extra oil to be safe". Know your limits (get an egt). Most tuned engines are only a couple hundred degrees from meltdown when running well... The best oil is the one you use regularly and mix correctly- dino oil or synthetic. +1 on the avgas comment: 1) runs cooler 2) stores better 3) doesn't have additives (ethanol) - per the pump gas

I think you'll find that some three blade props are quieter/noisier then two blade props. You may also find that some three blade props make less thrust then two blade props and verse vica. As noted, there are so many variables attached to the prop that change, it's more then an art to match prop to engine, then redrive, then application, then economy, then noise - and then modify those parameters in order of YOUR importance. I remain convinced that the ONLY way to have it all in the eyes and ears of the pilot is to have an in-flight adjustable prop. Economy is tied directly to rpm of the engine/redrive/prop, but distance economy factors in wing efficiency, prop efficiency for a given trim setting's speed (and prop rpm required) in flight, any lift encountered and how it is handled/ignored, your happiness level for the day etc. etc. Some prop talk in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=1958 The answer to your question is ultimately yours alone, since you make the decision on what levels of each parameter are acceptable. With an inflight adjustable, you tune on the fly for the biggest grin of the moment. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it (until sufficiently convinced there is a better way, which could happen at any time).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_breeze