Return-Path: <13brv3@bellsouth.net> Received: from imf18aec.mail.bellsouth.net ([205.152.59.66] verified) by logan.com (CommuniGate Pro SMTP 4.1.8) with ESMTP id 3078347 for flyrotary@lancaironline.net; Sun, 14 Mar 2004 09:56:42 -0500 Received: from rad ([68.221.170.60]) by imf18aec.mail.bellsouth.net (InterMail vM.5.01.06.08 201-253-122-130-108-20031117) with ESMTP id <20040314145642.WWZJ10536.imf18aec.mail.bellsouth.net@rad> for ; Sun, 14 Mar 2004 09:56:42 -0500 From: "Russell Duffy" <13brv3@bellsouth.net> To: "'Rotary motors in aircraft'" Subject: RE: [FlyRotary] Re: Nothing ever goes Smoothly! (RV-thingies) Date: Sun, 14 Mar 2004 08:54:39 -0600 Message-ID: <006e01c409d4$46f3b530$6001a8c0@rad> MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_006F_01C409A1.FC594530" X-Priority: 3 (Normal) X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook, Build 10.0.4510 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2800.1165 Importance: Normal In-Reply-To: This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_006F_01C409A1.FC594530 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable I don't mean to butt my nose in where it doesn't belong, and I don't=20 know much about those RV-thingies you guys are flying around in, but=20 didn't you say you were up against a Vne of 210 in the last race? Have=20 you added some duct tape since then, or have you 're-rated' your = airplane? In the old builders/flight manual, Van used to suggest that everyone = test their Vne speed to something like 20 kts beyond Vne. The concern seems = to be control flutter, so the test was to go to a nice safe altitude, in = calm are, and establish a speed well below Vne. You then took your hand off = the stick, and gave the stick a sharp bump with your hand in each direction (left, right, up, down). The idea was that this would induce flutter if = it was going to happen. You then repeated the test at very small speed increments, until you made it to something like 20 kts above Vne. The = idea was that you should be able to stop any flutter that occurs by slowing = down, but only if you were just barely in the speed range that allowed it to happen. =20 =20 At some point, Van realized that this test scares the crap out of = people, and there were enough planes flying to prove that his Vne numbers were = safe for any reasonably well built plane. From then on, he stopped = recommending that the flutter test be performed. =20 =20 I would like to be able to fly my RV-3B above the stated 210 mph Vne, so = at some point, I may do the flutter test. The scary part about the RV-3 is that it's the only RV without counterbalanced elevators. One of my = eventual plans is to add counterbalances similar to the RV-4. =20 =20 Cheers, Rusty =20 ------=_NextPart_000_006F_01C409A1.FC594530 Content-Type: text/html; charset="US-ASCII" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Message
I don't mean to butt my nose in where it doesn't belong, and I = don't=20
know much about those RV-thingies you guys are flying around in, but =
didn't you say you were up against a Vne of 210 in the last = race?  Have=20
you added some duct tape since then, or have you 're-rated' your=20 airplane?

 In the old builders/flight manual, Van used to = suggest=20 that everyone test their Vne speed to something like 20 kts beyond=20 Vne.  The concern seems to be control flutter, so the = test was to=20 go to a nice safe altitude, in calm are, and establish a speed well = below=20 Vne.  You then took your hand off the stick, and gave the stick a = sharp=20 bump with your hand in each direction (left, right, up, down).  The = idea=20 was that this would induce flutter if it was going to happen.  You = then=20 repeated the test at very small speed increments, until you made it to = something=20 like 20 kts above Vne.  The idea was that you should be able = to stop=20 any flutter that occurs by slowing down, but only if you were just = barely in the=20 speed range that allowed it to=20 happen.   
 
At=20 some point, Van realized that this test scares the crap out of = people, and=20 there were enough planes flying to prove that his Vne numbers were safe = for any=20 reasonably well built plane.  From then on, he stopped recommending = that=20 the flutter test be performed.  
 
I=20 would like to be able to fly my RV-3B above the stated 210 mph Vne, = so at=20 some point, I may do the flutter test.  The scary part = about the RV-3=20 is that it's the only RV without counterbalanced elevators.  One of = my=20 eventual plans is to add counterbalances similar to the=20 RV-4.  
 
Cheers,
Rusty=20    
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