Check this out

[jordy]

Rotax Top Mount Kit for Drifter

 

Hey guys I found this while surfing and thought why the hell not?

 

Cooler

 

Cleaner air

 

Handling??

 

Anybody had any experience?

 

 

[Guest Maj Millard]

Yes good idea, I have never really liked the way the 503 hangs on just a single tube. The 582 however, on say the Australian Drifter does have a fairly sustantial chromemoly engine support mount, which is the way to go. As I've said before the engine mount has to be strong enough to hang onto the engine, after you've lost a prop blade or part thereof...............

 

ABTW.....Just knock the IGN switches off you say ?....won't work as the engine gyrations have severed the electrical (ground) wires,... OK so we'll turn off the fuel !...most early Drifters, even so called CASA approved ones, don't have a fuel shut off. So what now ??? no choice but to wait till the engine departs, or stops, and hope it doesn't hit you on the way out !! Then we'll see if we can fly what's left without the engine weight in place.

 

 

[Guest ozzie]

Some time back at Wang a Drifter had it's engine cover come out of the storage bag and hit the prop. before he could shut down the aircraft became uncontrollable and crashed. i think the boom was cut.

 

ozzie

 

 

[Quick]

Ive got a mount for a 532/582 which is right way up. I was concerned that the thrust line would be impacted severly but with the mount we have its only two inches higher. Im going to do it when I can.

 

 

[farri]

Rotax Top Mount.

 

Thanks Jordy, Just noticed this one , better late than never,I gues.

 

I suppose it`s been tested but sorry,I`m not sure,doesn`t look right sitting on top of the tube.

 

COG is higher to start with,how would it affect the performance of the AC as compared with the underside mount?

 

I have never had the slightest problem with the motor hanging underneath and I`ve used up 1 503 and 4 582, now 170hrs on the current 503.

 

More difficult to get at anything on the motor,don`t see the need for the change,If it aint broke,don`t fix it.

 

Frank,

 

 

[facthunter]

Pusher Prop problems and out of balance Forces.

 

check NO foreign objects can go into the prop. Scares me at the possibility. The usual result is one blade off or part of and then the boom gets cut. There are enormous out of balance forces possible. Recall an instance of a Chipmunk losing one of the prop blades near lake Macquarie. Engine straight out of it and it stalled and fluttered down into the water. With the lighter weight the descent rate was much less than normal when stalled and I believe it wasn't fatal. Nev.

 

 

[boleropilot]

well my 582 has always been upright (installed at the factory) so i really don't get the inverted thing

 

Kiwi (legendary Drifter Hero of Flying Tigers fame) recently upgraded his 503 (inverted) to a 582 - and he inverted that too !!!

 

never really got that but he know more about Drifters than i will could ever hope to accumulate

 

his Drifter is a real low weight machine, no electric starter etc - when he tours (he's been to Avalon from YBOA) his toothbrush is sawn in half to save 10 grams !!!!!

 

btw, on the subject of engine failures, Kiwi says:

 

"there are only two kinds of Drifter pilots - those who have had an engine failure, and those who haven't had one - YET!!"

 

Kiwi walks with a noticeable limp, courtesy of the kind of event referred to above

 

which is why i practice engine failure drills just about every time i fly

 

every time i start to relax and think "gee, this is nice" i automatically pull the throttle and find somewhere to put her down

 

right down to 100 feet, to make sure ima doin it right and not taking the option at 500 feet of "yeh i reckon i cooda made that paddock ok"

 

on another tangent, have yous een the stuff on the 'web about fitting Suzuki 3 cylinder motors to trikes to replace 582s?

 

also popular (in Europe and Canada) is the BMW R1000 conversions - now that gives me a woody

 

problem is it would cost about the same as the value of me Drifter ...

 

cheers for now

 

BP

 

sorry, forgot to mention:

 

i've had two prop encounters of the nasty kind

 

one was an instructors seat cushion - he forgot to take it out of the back seat when he got out and i went on to do some solo work)

 

the other was part of an exhaust spring - now i make sure my red silicone gunk (and safety cable) is set up so that if a spring breaks (and they do, regularly) the prop will be OK