Holy smokes. That's pretty awesome.



Entire article here.

That is totally BA, but I bet the GPH burn is pretty high. I think I'd prefer the good ol' 912. Still pretty cool though!

This airplane really needs to be seen to be appreciated. I had the pleasure to actually meet and spend some time with Scott at his home field, with a standard build 701 also present. The subtle, and not so subtle differences between the two are phenomenal. While the 701 will likely never answer to beautiful, it can be made prettier, as Scott has proven. As a kit builder, With emphasis on "kit", I really appreciate the work that went into fabricating this plane, and the craftsmanship displayed. To top it off, Scott and everyone I met there are a class act. Genuinely good people to be around. The technical hurdles, and the quality of the end product make me curious to see what the "next" project will be...I plan on dropping by to see.

KB

I got to fly in the first one ever built way back in the mid 80's ('86?). It was truly impressive then, and I can only imagine it has gotten even more remarkable.

But the cabin noise was positively startling...has it changed at all in that regard?

It is really impressive to see the effort some people put in to building toys! A straightforward kit is a challenge in, and of itself, but adapting a turbine power plant and then making all the other mods is divinely insane!

I subscribed to his channel last year. Can you say REVERSE???

I can sincerely appreciate the time and effort that went into this. Definitely a Po' Boy Pilatus!

But the actual hands-on performance is not any better in those videos than the videos of 701's with the stock recommended engine.

If I am recalling correctly, the 701 airframe and the Simonini Victor 110HP 2 stroke would give rocket ship performance on less buy-in cost, and equal or less fuel flow, than the 701/912 combination.

Our departed BCP member, and really nice guy DIRTSTRIP (RIP) had the Simonini 90HP engine, and he said to me that it made his 701 a rocket ship with very good fuel burn.

EZFlap wrote:But the actual hands-on performance is not any better in those videos than the videos of 701's with the stock recommended engine.
.

I guess when you're approaching the limits of performance, it's hard to show any visible improvement.
Like a 100m sprinter, once their time gets down to 10 seconds, there is no conventional way to cut another 20%. Same goes for short takeoff rolls?

Is that particular turbine, what ever it is, really that much lighter than a Rotax 912S that it requires the motor mount to be extended so far? Did they add weight or length behind the center of lift for other reasons; like longitudinal stability? The stock 701 really does like to fly with it's ass hanging out to the side quite a bit. Which requires more rudder, which adds more drag etc.

Still, boy oh boy would I like to have one of those on mine. And and older Ferrari too.

Four stroke engines are obviously the best choice for these little guys when ALL the factors are figured but a light 2 stroke sure has some advantages. After having exhausted myself trying to get ahold of the Simonini distributor for North America I've concluded that, at least here, Simonini is vaporware. Hirth on the other hand now has a water cooled 100hp three banger for lots of money. It can be had with fuel injection but I'm not sure if it's fadec operated. With the exception of Rotax, none of these small experimental engine companies are run on anything like a standard business model. I think that's why Rotax gets the big money. They aren't screwing around hoping that the next sale will finance the next build.

EB

Yes, exactly. Spending 13 or 20 gallons an hour, to get the last 2% of performance (if you get it), is not "sustainable" to use a modern PC term.

Racing vehicles and DoD black projects and space vehicles can justify the expense, most of the rest of us cannot.

After reading the EXPERIMENTER article, I am awed by Scott Ehni's achievement. Wow. But it's a one-off showplane and not a "daily driver".

Emory Bored wrote: After having exhausted myself trying to get ahold of the Simonini distributor for North America I've concluded that, at least here, Simonini is vaporware.

Damn... I'm disappointed to hear that. There was some guy in Florida who was supposed to be the guy for Simonini. Maybe HE is the vaporware, not the engine itself.

If I had the !($*% money I'd be tempted to go after that position and be the US distributor. Apparently the Simonini is the engine of choice for the 25-30HP Paramotor crowd.

EB if you are interested in a Simonini, call the US distributor for the paramotor engines in Utah. I am sure he can go around the other guy, or get one himself, or light a fire under the other guy, etc.

I actually had an e-mail confab with Mr. Simonini himself and he assures me that they make engines. He thought the guy in Florida was up to it. I've sent at least three e-mails and made a dozen calls to a ringing phone but no luck with contact. Same with the folks in Canada.

If you have the info handy let me know here or via PM how to contact the Para motor guy in Utahr.


EB

As a side note to the discussion EZ, that Hirth is a new design and they are pretty proud of it. Hirth has a pretty bad reputation but all that was before the current distributor took over and was always with the air cooled motors. Maybe I'm naive but I think they have it figured out finally. The funny part is that Simonini is using Bing carburetors and Hirth has DelOrtho! Holy Cow. I remember those damn thing catching fire on my old Ducatis way back in the olden days. As far as I can tell it still has slide type metering and would be a bitch to tune. Especially at altitude here.

I'd still like to see a Simonini in person. Utah is pretty close.

What makes a Simonini better than a Rotax 2-stroke, other than being the alternative for people who don't like Rotax?

There are so many used 582 and 618 engines out there to be had, with a ton of parts, knowledge, and resources to back them up. I like to see new engines hit the market as much as any hopeful but given the struggle to even buy a new Simonini, how do you think the service would be in the event of a problem? I'm guessing not great.

Simonini has 840CC and develops it's 110 horsepower in a power band much like the 582. The 618 was discontinued by Rotax due to it's power band issues and reliability. The 670 Rotax built by a guy that calls himself Rotax Ric is an option for the 701 at 92 hp for takeoff. It has a different exhaust valve setup that I don't really understand. I have talked to Ric though and he's nothing if not passionate about his engines. I have looked and looked on the net for some negatives about the guy and they are just not out there. Joey's 582 is a Rotax Ric build. For me though, there is no substitute for cubic centimeters. Hirth has a top notch dealer up your way. Oregon Aircraft Design in Willamena, OR

EB

I've put my life in the hands of the 2-stroke Rotaxes many times, and I've sung their praises many times for reasons of weight and simplicity, but the 912 series has such a great track record. I can't think of a reason to not go that route other than price.

Zzz wrote:I've put my life in the hands of the 2-stroke Rotaxes many times, and I've sung their praises many times for reasons of weight and simplicity, but the 912 series has such a great track record. I can't think of a reason to not go that route other than price.

Agreed. I hope it doesn't come down to a price issue for me. But it might. I'm really not much of a worrier about most things but this issue I worry about.

Emory Bored wrote:I actually had an e-mail confab with Mr. Simonini himself and he assures me that they make engines. He thought the guy in Florida was up to it. I've sent at least three e-mails and made a dozen calls to a ringing phone but no luck with contact. Same with the folks in Canada.

If you have the info handy let me know here or via PM how to contact the Para motor guy in Utahr.


EB

This is the guy I was thinking of, but unfortunately he has apparently been "dissed" by the guy in Florida.

http://usparamotornews.com/dell-definat ... ni-dealer/

He has many videos on youtube showing him flying and cavorting around with Simonini engines.

Update: I just spent a few minutes looking up this guy Dell Schanze. Apparently he is a major scumbag, with a long list of serious safety and judgment violations in air sports, and a trail of "legal troubles".

This ass**le may actually be Jim "Zoom" Campbell, after plastic surgery and hair bleach.