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Geoff_H

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Everything posted by Geoff_H

  1. Geoff_H
    In the past CASA (NTSB?) Have done the engineering to determine the cause of failure, especially when a death is involved. The lawyers just have to prosecute, engineering investigation is free! Yes it is worst case, but it can happy. I would love to assist, its my professional career and my hobby, but the risk is s problem for me.
  2. Geoff_H
    Before people were mentioning that the design of various aircraft was too heavy. The problem is that often the design of the wings looks only at the main spar. In reality often the wing skin adds to the strength and the main spar can be reduced in size and weight. To design a spar takes minutes using my program, but to add in the added strength of the skin requires a finite element analysis. This is slow and expensive. Most people opt for the simple design, and add some weight. I am doing this with my design.
  3. Geoff_H
    My total net worth is over $4m. Lawyers would come after it all. Well worth it for them. I am retired, I don't want to live in poverty, I also want to continue to fly, an expensive hobby.
  4. Geoff_H
    No documentation is the only way. All data told verbally. The Jandakot issue was a small part failure, nothing to do with anything else.
  5. Geoff_H
    Yes it certainly would. I have involved with PI over the years and no broker has ever offered PI for a job. I usually get the company wanting my skills to get coverage from their PI insurer to cover me. It worked well.
  6. Geoff_H
    The engineers PI company settled out of court to the deceased relatives is what I was tolf
  7. Geoff_H
    Sorry I thought that you were referring to aircraft in general.
  8. Geoff_H
    What about the fuel pump parts that caused the Jandakot crash? Fairly recent too. But also who wants to be the first. PI is a real problem for all engineers that consult.
  9. Geoff_H
    Tend to disagree. A single seat canard would be able to achieve 200mph on 130hp. That is if designed aeodynamically! The Mooney 201 is a four seat metal aircraft that is designed very well, it gets 200mph on 200hp. With fibreglass much more aerodynamic designs are possible. Must be constant speed prop and retractable.
  10. Geoff_H
    A divorce lawyer charges $700/hr, no promises, an engineering consultant charges around half this and must promise success or get sued by the guys that charge $700/ hr. Lawyers are the ones that have screwed it up for all of us. I love designing aircraft, doing my own aircraft at present, but it is too risky to do it for others. I cannot even sell the design of my aircraft.
  11. Geoff_H
    Often a sale is made as building errors occurred in the early stages of construction. Now everything needs to be modified to allow for the error. So much time now involved that the person gets disillusioned at the work involved and passes the project on, hoping to get their money back. Suggest that you spend a day or two and go over any purchase possibility with a tape and level and look for modified parts. Worth it if it just that the previous builder has lost his medical, which is probably the most common reason given.
  12. Geoff_H
    I see the problem with getting a retired professional engineer to do the design work is professional indemnity insurance. The insurance only covers claims made from the year in which the engineering error was discovered. Claims can be made up until 7 years after the design was made, i.e.design now fault found 7 years then you are only covered if you have cover in that 7th year. At around $7k to 10k per year it means that it would cost me at least $50k to do such a job. Not worth it, and the liability cannot be off loaded by an agreement not to litigate, someone's family could litigate if you are dead. I suggest that you go to a consultant company, they will have PI and someone to check calculations.
  13. Geoff_H
    The ASIC card is nothing much more than a money making system. I had to get a Port ASIC to work on a plant on Sydney Warfs. As I already had a security clearance from the aviation ASIC I was able to get a Port ASIC with the same expiry date as the aviation one, is no additional security clearance required. I forget the exact numbers but I got a discount of around$20 in $200. So the security clearance is worth$20 to them? I have no idea but it seems that the cost is phone along with most other costs in aviation.
  14. Geoff_H
    There is no such thing as a dumb question, only dumb answers! With that I will prove my stupidity. A long exhaust will have more internal and external drag! The internal will reduce HP except where it is done to tune an exhaust to increase cylinder clearing rates. Most noise comes from the propeller so I would expect only slight decrease in noise with a weighty, loss producing system. I actually liked the Vxx engines with each exhaust port just ducted individually outside the cabin. The guy that designed the Cozy IV (taken from a LongEze by Rutan) recommends that you only add to an aircraft anything that when you throw it in the air it stays up. Bit extreme maybe. Saying that my little two strokes are getting tuned exhausts, but for power reasons.
  15. Geoff_H
    Any reply on blade material and cooling method? This is what affects the efficiency the most. When at Siemens we paid for the blade technologies to Pratt and Whitney, it involved exotic materials and very fine cooling holed that delivered uncompusted air to the leading edge of the blades so that the sir formed a blanket between the cooled combusted air. OK we were after 45% efficiency, but lower quality blades can only take a lower temperature and it is this temperature that controls blade life and efficiency. I am truly interested and would like you to succeed.
  16. Geoff_H
    A 25% efficiency is what the numbers suggest. Low for a modern gas turbine. Having been involved in the design of gas turbines for Siemens in Florida I can see that a low efficiency GT is possible with basic tools. The TIT for such efficiency is quite low, what are you expecting and what materials and cooling are you using for your Turbine Inlet blades? The blades and combusted are the expensive bits. I hope that you can get the price so low, but that is not my experience but am hoping that you can!
  17. Geoff_H
    The gas turbine and the piston Engines have a lot in common. The compression ratio, one from displacement the GT from how good the compressor is. A high efficiency GT will generate 250psi at the combustion chamber. The high efficiency GT has a compression ratio of around 15 to 1. As with a piston Engine the GT be less effective at altitude by the same ratio as a piston Engine. So a high efficiency GT will use a lot less fuel at altitude.
  18. Geoff_H
    Gas turbines are great. Providing that the compressor gives a high pressure and the cooling of the blades allows a high inlet temperature. Otherwise the weight of the turbine is low but the fuel load for any travel distance is huge.The Cri Cri has had several models built with model jet engines ( a Turbine with fewer turbine blades, well almost) had elementary low pressure compressors, and are extremely inefficient, limiting flights to not much more than flight minimum reserves.
  19. Geoff_H
    A person once told me that the two most exciting days in the ownership of an aircraft was the day you bought it and the day that you sold it.
  20. Geoff_H
    Having been in the business of Commissioning Manager on large sites for many years I was responsible for site safety procedures and enforcing them. I found that it was impossible without accountability and trace ability. Persons that transgressed the safety rules were sent for retraining, several transgressions resulted in banning from site. Documentation was essential. Everybody had to complete check sheets, these sheets were not tick a box, all too easily done and not traceable, a value whether it be a number or a quality were required at all times. These values were subject to frequent spot checks. The end result was commissioning without any errors, seems impossible but true, the cost of documentation was large but the overall cost was cheaper than previous methods. For safety we should be looking at the management of safety, not the Hi Vis jackets etc.
  21. Geoff_H
    I needed an ASIC Sea Port Clearance, you can use your aircraft one as the ID and security check provided that the Port expiry date will coincide with the aircraft ASIC. Hence no security or identy cost. The Port one offered was only around$60 cheaper! So how much does it cost to make an ASIC card? We are told that they are just covering costs...Does that mean that they are so inept at making the final document or are they just making a profit that they are not telling us about. CASA should justify their costs and expenses, a little transp
  22. Geoff_H
    Many documents on aircraft fibreglass finishing for aircraft talk about Featherfill as a final filler. It is nearly $300 per US gallon. I can't find any data on its weight compared with the general automotive style spraying putty. Is Featherfill lighter than spraying putty? Does it have any other properties that make it better to use? Has anyone had any experience with Featherfill? Any one used spraying putty?
  23. Geoff_H
    I have been trying to read the CAO's that apply to RA. What a convoluted set of documents. I don't think that I will ever understand them.
  24. Geoff_H
    I tend to agree with the 3% chance of finding those 3 items. I am quite prepared to accept a project that is well on its way or an aircraft needing an engine change, I am building a composite but its going to take several years, I have spent nearly 2 years on the design, made my first tail, far far too strong on failure testing so redesign and remaking. I really want some thing to fly until the composite is completed.
  25. Geoff_H
    Budget is around the $30k mark. I used to pay$5k per year for hangaring. Now that I am retired I was hoping for an aircraft that I could trailer home, if not a smaller aircraft that would cost less to hangar. Single seat would be OK, a project nearly complete or just needing some work would be good. Not sure that timber is my bag but either metal or composite would be suitable. I would prefer something that cruised over 100 knots. The sonex and Onex looked good, the Onex probably would cost a lot less to run.
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