On 1/10/2023 5:47 AM, colin hales via KRnet wrote:
Get into a spin with 50 gallons of fuel in long wing fuel tanks and I
expect it won't come out. With half tanks, role to the right or left,
a bit of side slip and the weight shift could be dramatic.
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I greatly admire Colin and his super human accomplishments with his KR
but this one point might be a bit over stated. First of all no one will
be putting 50 gallon of fuel in the wing of a KR. My "guess" is 15
gallon max as that in each wing and 20+ in the fuselage would be 50+
gallons. That I suspect is a reasonable limit. Secondly, any tanks in
the outer wing must be properly baffled. Baffling holes must be as
small as possible to prevent sloshing. The only limit on going small is
slow filling of the tank. My baffles are approximately 1/2 of a 3 inch
hole and could have been made smaller. See photo below. In a
coordinated turn the fuel remains in place. There are performance areas
we avoid on every flight and think nothing of it. How often do you
avoid stall speed when greater than a foot or two above the ground. You
fly the airplane with consideration to handling concerns. Heavy wings
with fuel, no stall / spins. If it come to that to avoid a crash you've
made more than one mistake already.
Don't rule out wing tanks but build them with known concerns for effects
on handling and do it safely.
Larry Flesner
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