I've seen these regs before and they're a little vague. For example, all the Sonex designs are listed as LSA compatible http://www.sportpilot.org/learn/elsa.html but I think most of them fly faster than 138 mph (and Sonex sells the Jabiru and other big engines so they can go faster). So Sonex's ads and the EAA make people believe a Sonex is OK for sport pilots, but a lot of the ones on the market will be too fast.
So if someone buys a used Sonex or other amateur built plane that's on the usual LSA list and it turns out to be faster than it should be, is he just supposed to promise not to go faster than he should in it? Or is he out of luck because the builder listed the top speed as faster (or does a builder have to give the top speed to license an experimental? He may not even know yet). I suppose a KR is similar, except Rand-Robinson exaggerated its promises in the other direction -- for years they gave 180 mph as the cruise speed when I suspect most planes don't go faster than 140 or so, and so would qualify as LSAs. The CX4, the other plane I'm thinking of building (which will definitely get out of the house when done) seems to be unusual among modern LSA planes because the prototype stalls at 40 mph -- MUCH slower than the 51 mph you need for an LSA, and its top speed is 135 mph with a 1700 VW. My confusion about what I want to build got even worse yesterday when I saw the latest Kitplanes magazine, with another possible choice as its cover story -- the Panther. This is a new single-seat LSA-compatible plane that hits 165 mph (with a Corvair engine) and the fuselage looks almost exactly like a KR-2 made of aluminum. Mike Taglieri On Fri, Jan 31, 2014 at 11:35 AM, Dj Merrill <deej at deej.net> wrote: > On 01/31/2014 02:21 AM, Mike T wrote: > > These two designs aren't as far > > apart as they seem, because a KR-2 can also be LSA compliant. It already > > makes the LSA stall speed if you keep it light, and I could use a smaller > > VW engine (or just adjust the throttle so the carb doesn't open all the > > way) to get it down to the LSA top speed someday. I think the LSA law > > would le me fly the plane fast for now, then slow it down to make it LSA > > compliant if I ever get sick of getting medicals. > > > Just a clarification, but the LSA rules will not let you fly it fast now > and then slow it down to LSA specs. The rules say that the aircraft > must ALWAYS have met LSA specs in order for a Sport Pilot to fly the > aircraft, or a private pilot not requiring a medical. > > You also would not need to put a throttle stop on the carb, or use a > smaller VW engine. The LSA rules say that it can't exceed 120 kts "with > maximum CONTINUOUS power". As the aircraft manufacturer, you can define > the maximum speed allowed, and you can label the panel with the max RPM > in level flight, which may be lower than the max RPM that the engine is > capable of. This allows you to use full power for takeoff and climb, > and only have to throttle back once you are at your cruising altitude. > There are existing aircraft that do this, including the infamous Carbon > Cub with its 180 hp engine: > > http://www.cubcrafters.com/carboncubss > > Note at the bottom of that page: > > "180 Horsepower for takeoff and climb up to 5 minutes - 80 Horsepower > for continuous operation. It is the pilots responsibility to operate the > aircraft in accordance with the pilot operating handbook and aircraft > placarding. There is NO governor or limiting system that controls the > engines power settings" > > > Here is an overview of the LSA regs if you are curious: > > http://www.sportpilot.org/learn/final_rule_synopsis.html > > -Dj > > > -- > Dj Merrill - N1JOV - VP EAA Chapter 87 > Sportsman 2+2 Builder #7118 N421DJ - http://deej.net/sportsman/ > Glastar Flyer N866RH - http://deej.net/glastar/ > > _______________________________________________ > Search the KRnet Archives at http://tugantek.com/archmailv2-kr/search. > To UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to KRnet-leave at list.krnet.org > please see other KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html > see http://list.krnet.org/mailman/listinfo/krnet_list.krnet.org to change > options >
