StanFoster Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 I have enjoyed flying my Helicycle for almost 3.5 years now, and fly year round here in Illinois. My weather extremes have been from 4 degrees F to 104 degrees F. I have a laser mounted on my collective that shows exactly how many degrees of collective pitch my rotor blades are at. Typically it takes 10 degrees of collective to HIGE and 11 degrees to HOGE. The 104 degree day, I loaded my butt and full fuel just to see how it would perform. It took 11 degrees of pitch to HIGE and around 12 degrees to HOGE. It still had plenty of power and I was no wears near max TOT even flying at 110 mph in it. Well yesterday the temps were negative 15 F......and I wanted to see how it performed. I entered the following in a density altitude calculator....-15 F 30.44 barometric pressure -25 dewpoint 750 ASL......and came up with a density altitude of a negative 5000 feet! Super charged air for sure and I could sure feel it pulling my Helicycle outside. I lit the turbine and after warm up....lifted to a hover and saw my rotor blades only need 9 degrees of pitch HIGE and 10 degrees HOGE. I flew for a while and it was a very beautiful flight flying over the recent 5 inch snow we had. If you go to YouTube and look up HelicyclePilot....you will see the latest videos I have just uploaded. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikemv Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 Stan, From your posting above: Typical HIGE 10 degrees HOGE 11 degrees-15F 9 degrees 10 degrees+104 11 degrees 12 degrees So with a variation of 119 degrees only 2 degrees difference, how do you use this across the range as a performance indicator? From Typical (flying year round, what is typical?) only one degree between typical and either extreme. What does this mean to you for judging performance? Do you have an indicator for power? Power applied? Best wishes, Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeroscout Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 If I had a helicycle I'm sure I wouldn't be doing very much in the way of amassing data about it. But I'm glad there are guys out there that seem to enjoy what seems to me to be mundane. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeliNomad Posted January 4, 2014 Report Share Posted January 4, 2014 I always enjoy Stan's posts...keep it up buddy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MLH Posted January 5, 2014 Report Share Posted January 5, 2014 If he has a fuel flow gauge, the horsepower can be accurately estimated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StanFoster Posted January 5, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 5, 2014 (edited) Mike- Typical is more normal temperatures....50 to 80 degrees. That's when its usually around 10 degrees of pitch to HIGE. I do not have a torque meter, but the machine is designed to have the belts to start slipping around 100 horsepower. Aeroscout- That's fine if its mundane to you....but you aren't the one flying it anyway. This machine was a very rewarding to build....then fly.....and continually to modify. Mundane means to lack excitement...or be ordinary. Neither of those will never apply to me. How ordinary is flying a helicopter built by your own hands? It is the most excitement of any machine I have ever flown. Edited January 5, 2014 by StanFoster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tradford Posted January 5, 2014 Report Share Posted January 5, 2014 Stan, your pathway through the trees reminds me of the entrance to the bat cave. Very cool! Your videos definitely help tip the meter towards the experimental as the rotor craft de jour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aeroscout Posted January 5, 2014 Report Share Posted January 5, 2014 Mike- Typical is more normal temperatures....50 to 80 degrees. That's when its usually around 10 degrees of pitch to HIGE. I do not have a torque meter, but the machine is designed to have the belts to start slipping around 100 horsepower. Aeroscout- That's fine if its mundane to you....but you aren't the one flying it anyway. This machine was a very rewarding to build....then fly.....and continually to modify. Mundane means to lack excitement...or be ordinary. Neither of those will never apply to me. How ordinary is flying a helicopter built by your own hands? It is the most excitement of any machine I have ever flown.In no way do I think you or I flying your helicycle would be mundane. If I had one, and I am fantasizing about it, I would fly the he l l out of it and thoroughly enjoy every minute of it. I just wouldn't be amassing data on it. It's not my thing. It's more of a test pilot thing, and I think it's mundane, but totally necessary. I'm just glad there are people like you that do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StanFoster Posted January 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2014 Tradford- I have wanted to build and fly my own helicopter for 30 years. I first saw a Scorpion that B.J. Schramm designed....but they had a lot of issues...and not enough power. I wasn't fond of the long belt going back to the TR. Then there are the Rotorways....which I heard too much maintenance per hour.....just wasn't interested in them. But in 2002 I saw Doug Schwocherts new Helicycle with the Solar T62 turbine engine in it ...and I was hooked. I made a promise to myself to evaluate this ship for 5 years....let them get most of the bugs out of it....upgrades..etc.....plus talk to many of the pilots. I found almost all were having excellent results....and when I would mention maintenance.....there just isn't much to do to them. Nothing like finding out for myself....so I was convinced it would be a good experience and I ordered my kit and received the first shipment in Feb 2008. I was flying it September 1st 2010, and have enjoyed almost 3.5 years in it now. I have had extremely minor maintenance to it..... The single biggest problem I have had took 2 hours to fix. One of my elastomeric bearings was dragging and needed the castle nut loosened a partial flat. This moves the rotorblade out a few thousandths...so I had to do the same procedure to the other blade. Its has never let me down on all my cross country flights......I did have two flameouts in my first 6 months of flying...which turned out to be nothing but my low idle stop screw was set too low.....and if I was pulling a lot of power...and dropped the collective....the fuel control arm would go to idle and suck itself out of fuel. Turn of a screw and I have tried to make it quit with no success.....so I have been happily flying this thing since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fleman202 Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 Very very cool videos! Do you mind if I ask where you are located? We also just got the same storm and the landscape looks very similar. How easy are heli-cycles to build? Do you need a lot of aviation maintenance background? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MLH Posted January 9, 2014 Report Share Posted January 9, 2014 The manufacturer www.helicycle.com claims 800 hours assembly time. Here are a couple of builders logs. http://www.mykitlog.com/johno509, http://www.mykitlog.com/users/index.php?user=ylf&project=1937 Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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