Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevin Horton
I recommend you read all the comments on this thread. In particular, pay close attention to posts 23, 25, 27, and 42. |
Well, engineering vise and responsibility vise this whole thing is beyond belief when applying normal industrial norms and conduct used everywhere in every industry on this planet.
The owner/builder has sole responsibility for the structural integrity of the aircraft, no one else. Vans is in this case only a subcontractor, a consultant and a supplier of parts.
In any other industry, Vans SB would be considered only an idea, a vague suggestion. It will remain so until Vans idea was substantiated by Vans showing actual calculations. Actual calculations put forward in a report showing the weakness of the original design and the improvement of the new design. This is the normal way because Vans has no responsibility whatsoever in this matter. It is the manufacturer, the owner/builder, who is to decide if these calculations are good enough, are they done correctly, are they done with appropriate software, and most importantly, are they done by someone with adequate training, experience and understanding. This is not for Vans to decide or mean or suggest anything about, they are only doing a job here.
I'm not saying Vans mod is bad or anything, it probably is as good as it gets -
probably. The point is that the whole process is NOT an engineering process based on facts and data. It is a system based on believe and hope and something I would call misplaced awe of Vans and blind faith. Again, the builder/owner is sole responsible here, Vans have
no responsibility.
Now, there are some aeronautical engineering types here as well as very seasoned and experienced mechanical types. They have looked at the two suggested mods, and their impression is that Vans mod is by far the better one. That carries some weight, because you don't need to do a full FEA to see the basics of the two mods. The structure is not that complex. But, the complete lack of visible and obtainable facts and data and number crunching engineering is still here, so it is still a system of believes, far away from the engineering world I am used to.
OK, I got that of my chest
I see this in many other parts of the experimental scene. An open system of sound engineering and practical experimentation being replaced with an obscured system of believe and blind faith towards some kit manufacturer who has no responsibility whatsoever for anything but the profitability of his company. This is wrong on so many levels.
The fix
Linear Mode
