Not at all. You have to pay attention to your airspeed in the climb. You're not going to get very high, but it will work nicely for 50 ft obstacle avoidance
Thanks. Music is way too subjective and individual, I recommend to everyone not to use it, or use it sparingly. Similarly, I hate videos where the sound volume is too low so I work to improve recording volume or edit the sound to make it louder
nice video, however, i do have to say, this plane is severely under-powered. Any overpowered overweight ultralight (rotax 503) gets off the ground in 6 seconds, trust me, this is my bible on assessing performance. The maximum time is 12 seconds and that is always a smaller 2 stroke OR any of the 4 stroke lawnmower mods like the briggs vangard 23 hp. The thumpair 4 stroke single is close to 6 seconds, which I was surpised at, your STOL performance is a staggering 20 seconds, I am hard pressed to even find another ultralight that has that performance or requires that much runway. Les Holman at 275 pounds still gets his legal eagle up in 13 seconds with the briggs and stratton. I think you need to consider the above as you continue with that vw powerplant.
my plane flown by others, with either a kawaski 400 or rotax 503, i dont know, 9 seconds. 2 stroke 4 stroke doesnt matter. thats proven by the thumpair and briggs (top rpm 4400 with 1.8 to 1 redrive). ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-fn2hEtDPB8k.htmlsi=TYpCyTWmYApzs-Kd
What you see is typical for the 1/2 VW engine which is known to have an anemic climb rate of about 400 ft per minute, and I will grant you this configuration with me at the seat is hitting max gross weight. All that said, I have been making best use of the kit I bought knowing full well the limitations of the VW engine. This kit turned out to be a near total pig, once I got it flying I was pretty unhappy with it and made a big boy decision to make the best of what I had. I know full well the capabilities of 2 stroke engines and went for the vintage sound of the 1/2 VW. Building and flying planes is all about tradeoffs, and I as a fully informed builder made the decision I was happiest with. Consider me fully considered, and thanks for the comment.
Wicks used to sell piccolo tips that I put on my Glasair. It was definitely quieter, but the holes were bent in the opposite direction to yours. Their explanation wasn’t that wind went down the holes but that the extended hole lips acted like little cowl flaps creating a vacuum reducing back pressure.
Hell yes. I've gotten to know a bunch of Belite owners, none are happy. I made the best of it though and through lots of effort made it a pretty decent plane.
@@JimPfarrmy ultracub caught fire under the dash none of the wires were crimped the fuselage was twisted the prop was off another engine had marks from a different hub it was out of balance the plane would vibrate across the hanger floor at idle the wing root on left side had about 3/8 to 1/2 inch slack up and down wheels kept coming apart even with locktight on the bolts brakes kept locking up the list goes on I didn't touch it for 3 months I went over the the hanger it was in and the rivets holding fuselage to the cab area pulled through just setting in the south Texas heat and the plane collapsed in the middle James saw a sucker and capitolized
That sucks!! Yep, Weibe is a piece of work and he's hard at it again trying to sucker people into buying his next creation. He started a Patreon to bill folks out of their money.
@@JimPfarr I really liked James he seemed like a real airplane guy . Guys with aircraft have always been kind of a big family but like I said he saw a sucker. The paperwork says as is I should have know but I have always tried to take ppl at their word
This is a Belite Ultracub, it is no longer being made. It has flaperons, combined flaps and ailerons. You asked me this before on another video, why are you asking me again?
@@JimPfarr THANKS FOR REPLY MAYBE THE SOUND ON MY PC IS BUGERED UP :; - ) I SEE MANY OF THESE BUILDS CRUSED AFTER TAKEOFF AND LANDINGS. I AM ALSO ENGINEER AND WANT TO KNOW IS IT NOT BETTER TO BUILD WING BIGGER WITH WOODEN RIBS AND WITH ONE FOOT FLAPS AND AILERONS LIKE THEY USE IN SUPER STOLS LIKE THE LITLE STOL PLANE
This is not my design, it is a kit I built called a Belite Ultracub which was based on the original Kitfox Lite. As in all engineering there are tradeoffs between performance and capability. Bigger wing is heavier, more drag, requires more engine power. This plane is an ultralight and weighed 320 pounds, so the weight must be kept to a minimum, and has very little STOL capability. The engine is small (40 hp). Thus the flaperon is a convenient compromise for this style of aircraft.
You actually trust a belite ? I bought a yellow ultracub in 2012 it was the right color a big junky lemon ! I like James but he saw a sucker and capitalized 25 k down the drain it is a total piece of trash belite should be shut down this cheap garbage looks good but sucks can't fly a deathtrap biggest financial mistake of my life
You bought a belite ultracub hmm hope you had good luck I bought a yellow ultracub ,in 2012 it was the right color it's a junky lemon from day one biggest financial mistake I ever made dangerously built aircraft
Oh yah, built it from scratch. Ok design, but the company (and the owner) was as sketchy as the day is long. Flew good when the engine was in proper tune, but I had to fly at max gross wt. Crashed last August with an engine problem and sold the whole thing for peanuts.
@@JimPfarr yea it's an awesome look but the way the fuselage attached to to cab area is sketchy James put a used prop on it and it was way out of balance you could see an imprint from a different hub on it the fuselage was twisted the left wing root had 3/8 inch slack up and down on takeoff you would hear a clunk when the air lifted the wing all the wiring had loose connections and it caught fire 4 times underdash before I found the problem needless to say just the Texas heat destroyed the sailcloth and even melted the cheap glue the wings were put together with I only had 2 wright brothers flights and 1 2 mile round thru the pattern at 250 ft before I had to pretty much give up and park the junker sad I really like James and Cathy but they saw a sucker and capitolized
Sorry to hear that you got sucked into the Weibe charade. Come join my Badland/Ultracub page on Facebook, the Badland planes are a cousin to the UC and a huge improvement (owned by Chris Deuel - an outstanding indivdual)
Had to get a set of vice grips for sheet metal work, they have a pair of 3 inch wide metal plates attached for small work. Wasn't a key part of the video soooo ...
Jim: If you don't mind my asking ... what was your weight when you filmed this? How much did the plane weigh? Or if you prefer, what was the combined weight getting off the ground? The weight makes a huge difference for takeoff.
Total gross was close to 550 pounds. The Ultracub with the 1/2 VW is known as a poor performer, partially due to wing loading, partially due to design, and partially due to the inherent performance limitations of the engine.
Just saw the video. In the piccolo test I could hear the prop causing pressure pulses in the air, I could not in the other ones. Would be interested in seeing what the restriction did to the manifold pressure...if weight was no issue, would a header joining the pipes together be considered...? Thanks for doing this interesting experiment.
That's an interesting observation, thanks for pointing it out. I think you're right, combining the exhaust stack into a single pipe might be worthwhile. I know they do this in Europe where noise concerns are a bigger issue. I never looked at the manifold pressure but intuitively I think the piccolo exhaust would lower the pressure, and impact performance. Combining the exhaust in a Y under the engine, then applying the piccolo modification would yield good results for both noise reduction and higher manifold pressure.
Yes you bet, lapped the valves after the new guides ... but not until AFTER ran it for a little while and noticed the poor compression. Predictably, after lapping the valves the engine performance improved noticeably.
You may have static coming from the engine and spark plug wiring. Be sure your engine block is grounded to the frame because rubber shock dampeners will insulate the engine from the frame. Shielding over spark plug wires is a good idea, but be sure the shielding is also grounded to the engine and frame.
The YO-3A was a propeller reconnaissance plane that flew silently to the ground at 1500 ft. It used a long muffler that fed into a piccolo exhaust tube. That plane was based on a glider and observed troops in Viet Nam who, had they heard it, could certainly shoot it down. Here is a video of the restoration project starting at the muffler: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rIhK8PWRMbI.html Other quiet features are not discussed in the video except the mention of a three blade variable pitch propeller designed by Swedish Ole Fahlin which replaced a six bladed one. Narco traffickers used q-tips on the end of the propeller blades which was a trick they learned from CIA advisors. You don't want to mess with your propellor but the propellor tips are the source of shock cones. Domestic lawnmowers have crap mufflers and rely on low rpm to keep the noise down. The main acoustic things are not create shock waves in the first place and the next is to set up acoustic negative interference.
Makuni carbs are simple and easy to adjust. Hard to sink because there spread out. Check valve lash, timing, advance mec. Idle air screw. To big of prop. 4 strokes like it lean. I'll be there because I have a 45hp to mount an run. Wondered the same.
I really like this video. I do have a question for you and hopefully you can help. I have a cb radio in my semi and have led headlights, everytime that I turn the headlights on I get radio interference through my cb. Will these ferrite collars help with interference and where should I install them? On the power cord or coax to antenna? Radio is wired direct to the batteries of the semi. Thanks in advance.
The ferrite core would go on the power cord to the radio. You may have current being induced on the power wires by other electrical components. Place the core as close to the radio as you can, that will do the most to trap and reduce the noise.
Well you got a new rebuild motor, and you finally no the real oil leak that good. Good luck on fixing that oil leak hope you do well thanks again for showing telling see ya next time see ya bye.
Good deal on doing the springs, I’ll do that thanks for showing telling got the same other deal to. Well watch the rest of you and maybe learn more see you later see ya bye .
With an emergency parachute and careful weight management you can build an UC to stay below 278 pounds (Part 103 compliant). The 1/2 VW is on the heavy side but that's the price we pay for having a 4 stroke engine.
Good video! In my plane (@KUES) I notice that if my daughter plugs in her iphone to one of the 2 usb jacks in the adapter that is in the old lighter socket (24V) I get radio interference. Do you think a core around the usb cable might do it or just replace the usb adapter jack? I noted that the other usb jack in the adapter does not create noise. Thanks.
If you can get behind the panel and put the ferrite core on the wires then you'd be better off. I don't know if putting a core on the cable would work but it would be super easy to try.
Try this addition to your piccolo tube. Install a larger tube over the piccolo tube. The larger tube to be capped off at the bottom end, forcing all of the exhaust to reverse direction in the, exiting up near the bend of the smaller tube. The result is that the exhaust pulses from each of the holes along the length of the piccolo tube exit the larger tube further apart in time. Therefore, instead of hearing hearing one loud, short pop, your
I do not fly with a compass so I don't know for certain how it would affect one. The magnetic cores are not terribly strong so I expect very little effect on a compass outside of a 2 or 3 inch radius
I just seen one for sale online, $20. from a private sale. I use to setup/operate a 90 ton 8ft. bed, computer interface, to include fixed/programmable back stops/tonnage, multi die bed set up, all for multi-bending per part. Long runs. Great video, I may buy this little press brake, or the next bed length up. More so", I will make an adjustable, full length "adjustable back stop to work with it. A way to hold different positioned back stops, along with different lengths(depths), edge's to be formed, set. I may incorporate a "angle stop on each end of the brake press, to physically stop me at specific angles, something I can just drill out holes at specific angles and put a "pin in a specific angle hole", one on each end of press brake. I like this... very cool is the facts of it's , "inexpensive, portable, compact and easily mobil characteristics!" Thank you.
Funny though note: In the past, I've always used a steel ruler edge on the end of the wood work bench, but "HEY!!" ":D!" "Not no more!" "Lol!" Awesome... Keep learning about tools folks, the more you utilize them, the more independent, self sufficient you become. Though... there is a reasonable limit, it's nice, when able to afford and have businesses you can trust, to "To give them local businesses some business..." It's what we do. Be safe, work smart, be efficient, and... "don't get eliminated!" (Word's from an older version of Whacked Out Sports", Host Kenny and another host, it was of a Japanese recorded series, translated for us, "loved it!"
I have a 54 x 24 with a slight modification to narrow the tip by 1/4 inch or so. My engine is a 86 x 94 (bored and stroked) so I'm getting around 42 hp.
@@JimPfarr appreciate it, is your prop a culver? I have a old woods and was told the pitch from some of the older manufacturers was not as precise as those like prince or culver.
@@Frank-uj5cr Yes a Culver prop. I've spoken to Alaina Lewis there on several occasions, she'll customize a prop for you to meet your unique performance requirements.
My quicksilver XL would easily get off the ground in about 100 feet. And Would land really short thanks to the spoilers or spoilerons but they could be deployed at the same time which was great for getting you on the ground. I often wonder why more of the STOL pilots are not using spoilers?
Sorry, I don't have that data. Sadly I don't have a team of engineers on hand, and aside from that nobody typically provides this kind of hard information for ultralights.
