Re: [COUPERS-FLYIN] Flight test question for LSA Coupes

[Hartmut Beil]

----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]----

Ed

 

My plane has in addition to the required VFR Instrumentation:

a T&B -old but not heavy.

a radio

a transponder

a VSI

one Landing light

I also keep a handheld GPS with me on Cross countries.

Except the T&B, I consider all other things important when flying.

 

I was wondering how my Coupe gained almost 100 lbs over the 50 years in service and I can only explain it with the prop being used (McCauley +12 lb), the radios ( + ??), spin on oil filter, landing light (+ 1.5 lbs), and the metal covering of the wings (+32 lbs).

 

I don't want to remove the upholstery to gain a few pounds, need to sit on something when flying.

 

This is the challenge when designing a new Coupe - lose weight to give room for payload.

 

I would start by choosing a lightweight diesel (jet fuel) turbo engine, which will give you the opportunity to use smaller tanks, since diesel holds 30 % more power than gasoline. A lightweight 3 blade prop in addition and you might have saved some 100 pounds already.

 

 

Hartmut

 

 

 

 

----- Original Message -----

From: Ed Burkhead

To: Coupe-List

Sent: Sunday, October 12, 2003 3:12 PM

Subject: RE: [COUPERS-FLYIN] Flight test question for LSA Coupes

----[Please read http://ercoupers.com/disclaimer.htm before following any advice in this forum.]----

 

Hartmut wrote:

> However - back to the calculations. If a Coupe stalls at 40 with 1175 lb

> and at 48 with 1260, one could estimate that it would stall at 45 miles

> (39kts) when being 1236 - still to high . So, to fit the Sport Pilot

> requirement, a Coupe would have to have a max gross weight of 1200 lb.

> Not too bad if the Coupes would weight 600 lbs empty, but mine is

> 920 lbs empty - end of game.

 

Hartmut,  it’s NOT the end of the game.  Think about ways you could lighten your plane.

 

My Coupe was 895.  It had these things that could be removed to lighten the plane:

old, heavy artificial horizon

old, heavy DG

old, heavy turn and bank

rate of climb

old, heavy upholstery

firewall and sidewall upholstery

heavy carpet

heavy battery (replace with a lighter one)

dual landing lights

rotating beacon

 

I could have lowered the empty weight by 30 lb., maybe much more.  I wouldn’t have to fill the tanks with all 24 gallons of fuel – I could save 50 lb. easily that way.

 

Dave Johnson once made a project of making his plane as light as possible.  I don’t know what he got it down to but I bet it was a lot lighter than it started.

 

I will be surprised if there aren’t a lot of Coupes which could get down low enough to fly solo (and maybe even duel with non-fat people) within 1232 lb.  I think the stall speed will be the stopper though we’re not too far from that since Sport only requires a stall speed at or below 39 knots (45 mph).

 

 

Ed Burkhead

http://edburkhead.com/

[EMAIL PROTECTED]    (remove the QQQ)

 

 

==============================================================================
To leave this forum go to: http://ercoupers.com/lists.htm
Search the archives on http://escribe.com/aviation/coupers/

==============================================================================
To leave this forum go to: http://ercoupers.com/lists.htm
Search the archives on http://escribe.com/aviation/coupers/