Rotorcraft.

[Chuck Ellsworth]

I far prefer rotorcraft to fixed wing, however they really are different, for instance here is a small bit of info.

The Robinson has a central flap hinge, the teeter hinge and a pair of coning hinges. It flaps about the teeter hinge and cones about the coning hinges.

The coning hinges relieve bending stress on the hub. All teetering rotors ought to have coning hinges to avoid hub cracks.

Anyone here interested in rotorcraft, especially gyroplanes the most fun machines you will ever fly.

[Slick Goodlin]

I flew with Neil at Gyro Ontario when they were in Guelph.  Seems like a super guy with an awesome machine and even if you just do an intro flight with him it's totally worth it.  Some day I'll get my gyroplane license but unfortunately they're so few and far between I'd pretty well have to own one myself. 

The FAA has an excellent (free!) book about gyros which is worth reading for anyone who is even remotely interested in the things.  It explains all of that rotor speed and stability based on thrust line stuff and how negative G will murder you.  It's kind of a flight training manual combined with freaky autogiro aerodynamics.  I call it "From the Rotor Down."

With all this gyro talk I think I'm going to have to pick up some Greek on my way home from work.

[Chuck Ellsworth]

The best intro into the world of Gyroplanes can be found at this site.

http://www.rotaryforum.com/forum/index.php

I suggest you read as many of the posts by Chuck Beaty as possible as he is excellent at explaining the aerodynamics and  physics of gyroplane flight.

By the way when I was in the flight training business in Canada I had planned on adding Gyroplanes to my school and went to the USA and got a FAA Commercial Gyroplane Pilot License, I believe it was in 1992 that I passed the final test which was the actual flight test.

If I ever leave Canada and decide to do flying training again it would be with Gyroplanes.

[nlaubach]

Hi all,

This is Neil from Gyro Ontario.  As far as i can tell, there are only four active gyro instructors in Canada and i run the only school outside of QC.  I have a CPL(H) and also a gyro FI rating.  I have students that range from 60yrs old beginners to 20,000 commercial guys ad have come from as far away as BC and Yucon.

I have only been flying gyros for four years, but I've clocked up well over 1,000hrs in them in that time.  I'm not an engineer, but I am happy to answer any gyro related questions if i can. 

Thanks for the kind comments Slick.

[ScudRunner-d95]

Welcome to the Forum!

I think ever since I watched Mad Max many years ago with that gyrocopter in it I wanted to take one for a rip.

[img]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-o_0cbfU6oLM/U ... rior+3.png[/img]

hopefully no dudes in assless chaps or hockey masks involved though.

[nlaubach]

I have not heard about the book mentioned above, but i do know "The Rotorcraft Handbook".  It's also an FAA publication (now out of print) nd available as a .pdf here - https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policie ... 083-21.pdf.  The last few chapters talk about gyros and even though it's old, the information is still valid.

[Slick Goodlin]

I have not heard about the book mentioned above, but i do know "The Rotorcraft Handbook".

That could very well be what I read.  I can't check now because my iPad wants to explode when I open a file that large but the first couple pages seemed familiar.  Either way, it doesn't take long to plow through he gyro section and it gives a lot of insight if you're thinking of tryi one out.

[Chuck Ellsworth]

Once again almost everything you want to know about gyros can be found in the rotorcraft forum.