Leaving off the alternator part of it is all one needs to do in order to preserve the flexibility on ADS-B. A wind turbine and a solar panel should suffice. A magneto ignition requires no power. An odyssey battery can make many many starts between charges. So I think we have a viable option. As to those who have evolved the simple original concept of a KR1 into highly complex platforms, cool. And I wont even "reserve the right to say I told you so" when some part of that complexity is cited in an NTSB report. The more I bat the options around, the more I like Ken Rand's 310lb 1200cc N1436 which is my PC wall paper!
> Date: Fri, 30 Jan 2015 20:44:36 -0600 > To: krnet at list.krnet.org > Subject: KR> Electrical systems > From: krnet at list.krnet.org > > Probably 98% of experimental airplanes have a battery, alternator, and > starter for several reasons...it's a lot more convenient, it's a lot > more flexible, and it's just plain safer. > > I had a total of three takeoffs and landings on my plane and was turning > climbing out on crosswind when I pulled the mixture knob way back > instead of the throttle. Stupid, yes, but the engine quit instantly. > If had not had a starter, that would likely have been the end of my > airplane, right there! > > Troy Petteway has thousands of hours in everything from Citations to > Champs, and he accidentally killed his KR engine while out in the hills > of TN. He didn't have a starter, and the plane was damaged landing on a > narrow farm road that most people wouldn't have even made it to. When > he rebuilt the plane, it had a starter, battery, and alternator! > > The story of the guy hand-propping and only one chock on place...not > terribly unusual. He's lucky the prop didn't get him in the process. > > If you charge your battery every night, what do you do when you fly to > OSH or SNF and it's a 3.5 hour flight, then return a few days later. > It's bad enough to worry about running out of fuel, but to have your > ignition quit before you thought it would because it's 30 degrees colder > than you've flown before...stuff like that will get you! > > Why stack the odds so high against yourself to save a few pounds? We > are not operating in a realm where 20 pounds is going to mean we fly or > not. > > Of course I'm not telling you how to run your life or your > airplane...all I can do is point out the obvious downside, but I reserve > the right to say "I told you so"... > > Mark Langford > ML at N56ML.com > http://www.n56ml.com > >
