I didn't formulate the question...
Oh.
Why not design a release...
Because...
http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14903
New Lookout Release--preliminary test
JD Guillemette - 2009/02/13 03:24:15 UTC
Sweeeet!!!! Looks good to me.
I like the bent gate bar, as Marc suggested that should make release force many times less than tow force, if not nearly independant of tow line force.
Nicely done Lookout! Elegant solution!
As in most cases, the simplest designs work best.
- In aerotowing it's considered poor form to DESIGN a release. You're supposed to just weld together the first thing that pops into your head, make sure it's simple and the gate is bent, pronounce it the pinnacle of human achievement, throw thousands of copies into the air, and provide your customers with a list of well-lawyered disclaimers an inch and a half thick.
http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24534
It's a wrap
Paul Tjaden - 2011/07/30 15:33:54 UTC
Quest Air has been involved in perfecting aerotowing for nearly twenty years...
- As Bent Pin Paul tells us, Quest Air has been involved in perfecting aerotowing for nearly twenty years. What microscopic chance does a mere mortal with practically no in-flight experience trying to pry Bailey Releases open during lockouts have to improve on what they've already perfected?
Davis Straub - 2011/07/30 19:51:54 UTC
I'm very happy with the way Quest Air (Bobby Bailey designed) does it now.
- Bent Pin Davis is very happy with the way Quest Air (Bent Pin Bobby Bailey designed) does it now.
http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=22308
Better mouse trap(release)?
Jim Rooney - 2010/12/16 18:47:05 UTC
A few years ago, I started refusing to tow people with home made gear.
I like the idea of improving gear, but the lack of appreciation for the world they were stepping into didn't sit with me.
- I'd have to make it at home and that wouldn't sit well with Bent Pin Jim.
http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24534
It's a wrap
Lauren Tjaden - 2011/08/01 02:01:06 UTC
For whomever asked about the function of a weak link, it is to release the glider and plane from each other when the tow forces become greater than desirable -- whether that is due to a lockout or a malfunction of equipment or whatever. This can save a glider, a tow pilot, or more often, a hang glider pilot who does not get off of tow when he or she gets too far out of whack.
As Bent Pin Lauren tells us, we have a weak link which will always release the glider and plane from each other when the tow forces become greater than desirable -- whether that is due to a lockout or a malfunction of equipment or whatever. This can save a glider, a tow pilot, or more often, a hang glider pilot who does not get off of tow when he or she gets too far out of whack. And all for the price of two or three pennies worth of fishing line. So why bother?
...that is sprung open?
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TUGS/message/1149
aerotow instruction was Re: Tug Rates
Tracy Tillman - 2011/02/10 20:08:32 UTC
Anybody who is truly a good pilot, in any form of aviation, knows that the knowledge, skills, and judgement you have in your head, learned from thorough instruction from a good instructor with a good curriculum, are the best pieces of equipment you can fly with. Good equipment is important, the best equipment is a well-trained brain.
As Bent Pin Tracy tells us, a truly good pilot with a well-trained brain will never get into a situation in which it's important to have a release that springs or can be pried open.
http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=22540
LMFP release dysfunction
Diev Hart - 2011/07/14 17:19:12 UTC
I have had issues with them releasing under load. So I don't try to release it under a lot of load now.
See? Bent Pin Diev has a well-trained brain so he won't try to release under a lot of load now. As in most cases, the simplest solutions work best.
Carve it out of a block of aluminum or titanium with a CNC mill.
Sorry. You just went beyond tubing cutter, hack saw, hand drill, file, and needle and thread. Out of my league.
The only thing holding it closed is the line running down to the base tube.
That sounds like a rather critical adjustment. So unless the mechanism is rigidly bolted to the keel - an idea I don't like at all - you're gonna have problems because there's a lot of motion between the harnessed-on mechanism and the keel.
And that motion is a good thing because it allows the mechanism to stay aligned with the direction of pull.
And if you bolted the mechanism in place you'd require inner sleeving at the mounting point and the pilot wouldn't be allowed to adjust the trim for different tugs.
Also...
You're adding structure to a mechanism that's in the airflow and I'm trying to minimize drag. The bungee is invisible to the wind.
Furthermore...
The bungee isn't that important. I'd NEVER again put one in a faired basetube and would think good and hard before going in a round one.
And it's a lot easier to just increase the mechanical advantage of the core mechanism than it is to boost the effect of the pilot's pull with a bungee or spring. In my current design all I'd need to do would be to incorporate a longer pin (but that's the best I could do off-the-shelf (and way more than sufficient for the loads with which we're dealing)).
Thanks for the suggestions though. It's always good to look at different approaches - whether or not they fly. That's the only way things ever advance beyond Flight Park Mafia Bent Pin Perfection.
Please comment on this design.
It was a noble effort by a clever and competent machinist and would probably work safely in any circumstance one could encounter. BUT...
I tested this thing and worked pretty extensively with Tim on modifications and refinements and it was a real nightmare. I could write a Russian novel's worth on it but I wasted way too much time as it is. So, in short...
It's SAFE but not ROBUST. You're not gonna have trouble getting off in a high load situation but you might hafta buy a replacement before you go up again.
After a few zillion hours of trying to come up with modifications and patches I suddenly asked myself why I was jumping through all these hoops to pamper a slap-on (nice) piece of junk when it was a zillion times easier, safer, cheaper, better to just do the job right and build it in - which, using a two and a half dollar pin, a tiny scrap of aluminum tubing, and some Dacron leechline, I had already done.
