J

JMRV7

Member
I know it doesn't seem RV related from the title, but did anyone else watch the new episode of Monster Garage last night on Discover? The project is to take a car and make it fly. :) Going to be a 2 part episode, with the 2nd and final episode next Monday night.

Last night they built the wings. Announcer did a half-ok job of describing how ribs, spars, wing skins, riveting, etc works.. They actually did build the spars themselves, as well as formed their own ribs with wooden forms, aluminum and mallets.. :)

They only showed 30 seconds or so of actual riveting (with bucking bar)..

Next week they get the engine running (Lyc. O-320, from a hurricane-damaged plane in Florida), put the wing skins on, build the tail (twin boom style), and of course fly it.. :)
 
Yeah, I watched it. It will be pretty cool to see the next episode where they will actually attach the wings, engine, and tail to the plane.
I'm very curious to see how long it takes him to liftoff, and then how far down the runway he is able to fly.

As I've never had to build ribs myself, it did give me some ideas on how to build them if I ever need to.

Ron
RV-9A
 
But then there are the unanswered questions:

Who is the designated 51% builder?

Will an A&P mechanic need to inspect for annual, or can a certified auto mechanic do it?

And the big one; have they yet found a DAR willing to sign off on it before flight?..

Oh wait, there's a bigger one; who's going to take it up for it's first flight? :)
 
Jesse James

True to his persona as a bad ass, bucking all the rules, Jesse James said on Jay Leno, regarding this episode, he could not wait for the paper work and no one was going to keep him from flying his Monster. He also had one flight lesson! :eek: He said it was not problem. We shall see; Flying a pusher car with wings, one lesson. On Leno they showed a clip of Jesse taking the runway and starting the takeoff roll. If you watch the show Jesse drives all the finished "monsters". :p

Oh, boy great image of flying. Don't get me wrong I like the show, Jesse and the weird creations, but what works in making Choppers or cars into boats or boats into cars does not work for flying. I have to laugh. I will be watching it next week. Since he was being interviewed on Leno I guess he survived, but don't know if he got airborn. Fro m the first show the thing is going to weigh well over 3000 lbs and has a 150/160hp Lyc with a fixed pusher prop. The wing looks like about the size of a RV, may be a little larger with no flaps. Wing loading (weight/area)? Power to weight ratio? Any bets if it flys? Tune in next week on Discovery channel Monday Night.

Cheers George
 
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Jesse James' flying car

I have some information that was provided on the AOPA website several months back. According to that information he did fly it but only about 5 feet off the runway. He touched it back down onto the runway before he reached the end. According to the article he was scared to take it any further than that and has no plans to ever fly it again. Also according to the article I read it did not have any rudder controls. It sounded like a machine that had only one purpose, to sensationalize the Jesse James mystique and get all of us aviation nuts to watch his show.

RVBYSDI
Steve
Just unpacked my project in the shop.
Thanks Ken for the good work so far.
 
gmcjetpilot said:
Fro m the first show the thing is going to weigh well over 3000 lbs and has a 150/160hp Lyc with a fixed pusher prop.
Click to expand...


Yes, it weighed 2700 pounds WITHOUT wings, a tail, the engine, fuel OR Jesse. :eek:

My guess is that it'll do a loooong roll down the runway, lift up 20 or 30 feet, then bounce to a landing.. :)
 
Without giving away the ending, all that pesky FAA paperwork was avoided by the craft never getting out of ground effect. Pretty similar to Howard Hughes' one and only flight of the Spruce Goose. He said he'd "leave the country" if it didn't fly. Well, yes it flew, but....
The latest issue of Popular Mechanics has a decent article on the Jessee James/Monster Garage craft.

Doug
RV-4 wings
 
Did anyone else laugh when they uncrated the 0-320 to lift that heavy beast? As soon as they did that, I knew they were just trying to get in to ground affect and thats it.
 
Spoiler alert

They showed the result on Jay Leno last Friday night! I will not tell you but lets say the General Lee on Dukes of Hazards flew further. :mad: I guess I have to go see Jessica Simpson in the Duke of Hazards movie remake to see flying cars. You will have to tune in this Monday night to see the full meal deal. No one dies. G
 
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