syon
Heliman
Location: tualatin,OR
| different material for different application.Not here to bash, but just giving insight to what is becoming a proven method on material use.
G10 and other composite, when they take a hit, or are stressed, may not manifest itself as " visible damage", such as stressed, fractures, and the likes.
where as metal has a life to it, depending on how its cut, tooled, etc
obvious damage is from anything that produces warpage, such as heat.
(laser cutting, band saw cutting, or even machined from stock).
If one performs regular "scheduled maintenance" on a helicopter, then the life span is increased, but this requires close observation to critical components.
critical components should not fail under normal usage, and definitely should not fail from workmanship, which really covers alot of ground.
then theres the material selection.
Material selection plays a huge part in helicopters, in all aspect of aviation, however, if the part looks good, it doesn't mean its going to perform, after all there is no specs on the part or assembly, something that is required by FAA on normal aircraft.
If manufacturers were to spend the time using quality, best practice designs for any given material, they would see their profits soar, not only because of good customer service, but because their parts, workmanship, and material are guaranteed.
My biggest stab in all this is (and everyone elses), the helicopter can not be a quality machine unless quality engineering, and quality materials are used.
Best practice in this day and age dictates that aspect.
If a customer is spending money on the same replacement part time and time again, then something is obviously wrong with the design.
If the problem is rare, then i would place the issue with the operator of that particular helicopter.
Seeing that there is a majority of issues with various helicopters on the RC market, my biggest concern is, how come no one is spending $$ on R&D, to ensure that their production model is going to perform for the average joe cameraman? The warranty is voided the minute you add something on such as a generator or any other accessory.
How can a warranty be guaranteed if the helicopter is not guaranteed to perform under different tasks?
the answer lies here:
Material
Engineering
Documentation
Part life span
Best Practice for maintenance
Classification of helicopter (capability of the product, and not the theoretical " this is what it can do, but you need this and this and this..."
This isn't isolated to just bergen helicopters, i see the problem across the board.
and my thinking is, if the owners buy these things, there should be an statement in the warranty stating that this is an unproven helicopter or airplane, routine part failures, design elements are theoretical at best, even tho it flies, but not for a very long time, unless you, the owner of the helicopter, make the needed re-design of various parts on the helicopter itself to improve the life span, and to attain the actual ability for the helicopter to fly without wondering if this or that is going to fail, and cause bodily and/or property damage, nevermind the damage to the helicopter due to a part failure.
I do think several re-design of various components are in dire need to improve the reliability and safety of this helicopter.
Now i am going to sit back, and watch all the hate emails fly at me over this flak...
a heli is like a marriage, most of the time it works, the rest it don't. |
