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-   -   Toilet paper bombing (https://vansairforce.net/community/showthread.php?t=112362)

Toobuilder 04-26-2014 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by turbo (Post 874541)
why not take out the cardboard center. i would hate to damage my plane while having so much fun. :)

You're looking for a streamer as the roll unwinds. without the cardboard tube, you just have a wadded up mess. This also happens if you aim for the bottom of the streamer rather than the tail and cut the tube free. Also, if you make a last second correction and pull too much "G", the wake of the aircraft will wad it up as you pass.

And I have pulled much toilet paper out of the cowling, pitot tube, air filter and brace wires of my Hiperbipe.

Toobuilder 04-26-2014 08:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TThurston (Post 874581)
Are there any federal regulations that apply to dropping things out of airplanes?

Yes. You probably shouldn't do it over downtown Los Angeles or a crowded football stadium.

ColoRv 04-26-2014 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newt (Post 874585)
and have too much power to weight ratio.

- mark

Oh come now, that's not even possible. Too much power isn't within the reach of man. :-)

donaziza 04-26-2014 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by newt (Post 874585)
The gliding club where I learned to fly was based out of a sheep paddock in South Australia. The field was infested along the fence lines with paddy melons, a totally inedible wild melon about the size of a softball. Must've tasted bad, even the sheep left them alone.

We had an ES-59 Arrow, a wood and rag sailplane which could be flown without the canopy.

It became something of a tradition to toss paddy melons overboard at the top of a winch launch to see if you could bomb the safety cage of the winch. The cage was made out of steel mesh; a direct hit would cause the paddy melon to basically liquefy, showering the winch driver with bitter smelly fruit pulp.

By the time I joined the club, the winch safety cage had been replaced with a sealed enclosure made out of checkerplate and polycarbonate, causing the practice to fall out of favour: Hitting it would scare the heck out of the winch driver with a massive bang, but if they didn't get any in their hair then what's the point? :D

The old Arrow was great fun for toilet paper streamer cuts. VNE was 128 kts, but it was so draggy that it was almost impossible to get that fast without a vertical dive. Thermal up to 7000 or 8000 feet, toss out a roll, see how many times you could cut it by the time you were down to 2000, then find another thermal and start again.

In an RV I'd worry about overspeed, these planes are too slippery and have too much power to weight ratio.

- mark

Of course one could easily overspeed the airplane. This then becomes a test of one's pilot skills and still being able to cut the streamer. Makes a better pilot of you, or at least me anyhow.

Buggsy2 04-26-2014 09:35 AM

Many years ago I tried this a few times in a J-3 Cub. Never could get the hang of it...either the TP wouldn't unroll properly, or I couldn't attack it properly.

One time to overcome the unrolling problem a friend and I unrolled most of it first in a huge bundle and dumped that overboard. It looked like a huge piece of lint drifting in the sky. Still couldn't hit it :( It took forever to climb with two aboard the J-3 so we were too impatient to get lots of altitude.

Which reminds me of a gripe with Vans. Why don't they make a model with an opening door or canopy in flight? Aside from throwing things out, there's nothing like a warm summer evening with the door and window open on the J-3, hard forward slip to landing...

Snowflake 04-26-2014 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TThurston (Post 874581)
Are there any federal regulations that apply to dropping things out of airplanes?

In Canada the wording is something to the effect that the operator of an airlpane must not drop anything from that aircraft that is likely to cause hazard to persons or property on the ground. It seems unlikely that a bog roll would cause any damage, even if you somehow forgot to undo that first stuck-down piece and it fells out as a closed roll.

Toobuilder 04-26-2014 11:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Buggsy2 (Post 874617)
Many years ago I tried this a few times in a J-3 Cub. Never could get the hang of it...either the TP wouldn't unroll properly, or I couldn't attack it properly.

One time to overcome the unrolling problem a friend and I unrolled most of it first in a huge bundle and dumped that overboard. It looked like a huge piece of lint drifting in the sky. Still couldn't hit it :( It took forever to climb with two aboard the J-3 so we were too impatient to get lots of altitude...

The trick is to get a foot or two unwound first. Too much and it will tear, not enough and it won't unroll. "Brand" also makes a difference. The cheap stuff is hard to keep together going over the side. It's also good to throw it out in a turn so you can see it fall for the first attack. After that, it gets easier to keep track of.

Paul Tuttle 04-26-2014 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snowflake (Post 874622)
In Canada the wording is something to the effect that the operator of an airlpane must not drop anything from that aircraft that is likely to cause hazard to persons or property on the ground. It seems unlikely that a bog roll would cause any damage, even if you somehow forgot to undo that first stuck-down piece and it fells out as a closed roll.

Someone on the ground could get wiped out. :D

claycookiemonster 04-26-2014 12:52 PM

Things don't always go as planned...
 
Finding a way to carry and release bags of flour or even Estes rockets is fun to contemplate, no doubt it'll be done. It's worth remembering that surprisingly, things don't always fall to earth, at least not initially:

http://www.military.com/video/milita...1000788900001/

The moment of interest is at about 0:30 into the recording.

1. The most important aspect of using gravity weapons for fun is to ensure they stay with you without fail throughout all possible flight regimes (spins, stalls, full rudder deflection yaw rates and hard landings, because you never know) until you tell them to go away.

2. The second most important aspect of carrying bombs for fun is to make sure they ABSOLUTELY AND POSITIVELY go away when you tell them to. A "hung" bag of flour probably won't be an issue, however a "hung fire" rocket (if someone goes there) would be a hazard to ground personal if you return in that state. Also, referencing the video, who knows what other issues could arise from a flour "bomb" stuck in your bomb bay.

This is where all the safeties and circuits and red/green lights and Master Arm Switches come from on military aircraft: knowing what you've got and knowing FOR SURE when you don't have it anymore.

Getting your "bombs" to hit the target is the least of your worries, plus that's the really fun part requiring hours and hours of practice and generating tall tales and outright lies; but only after you've got #'s 1 and 2 nailed down.

I really hope someone, or many ones get working on this. Nothing more fun than a Bomb Comp!

Mike S 04-26-2014 12:53 PM

Fun, but potential danger..................
 
A word of caution here----------

I watched a C 172 come within about 10' of rolling up into a ball once out at Soggy Dry Lake------------they got so wrapped up in chasing the TP that they almost hit the ground. Of course, dry lakes dont give you much of a horizon/depth reference but still, be careful if you do this.


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