OV9

Bit of press coverage today

Not that there's much actually true in the article beyond the basic premise (functional necessity due to the politics of funding/sponsorship)

Was there a law firm involved? I'm not sure I've seen anything about firms in England collapsing recently.

Nope, that's one of the "inaccuracies".

Real story is the company providing the craft are getting greedy. They've seen how much dough Discovery are dropping on logistics ($3m+) and are trying to squeeze them at the last minute.
The press coverage is designed to generate a bit if leverage to get over the current impasse.

Well...there has been a bit of a development...

Thanks to ongoing in-fighting about money (between just about every party involved except the teams themselves), the production company have now parted ways with Discovery (despite the latter having already ploughed a lot of dough into the project).

The good news is that Nat Geo have picked up where Discovery left off, but the bad news is that because time is so tight the whole expedition will now be postponed for a year until 2020
To be fair, this is absolutely the right decision. Last week we were looking at having to collect, build and modify 2 craft and deliver them to Southampton in under 10 days - IMO a deadline too tight to be comfortable with reliability/safety.

Despite the disappointment of no going in 2 months time, there are several very strong positives out of this development:
1) Now we get to build the craft we actually want. They will have proper power, additional buoyancy, taller skirts, enclosed canopies, and *praise the lord* heating. They will also be properly tested in open water in a whole variety of wave/weather conditions. I like this because when we do it, it'll be in craft *WE* designed and built, rather than ones borrowed and hastily modified, and when we bring the record home to Scotland, it'll be unequivocally *OURS*.
2) As a nice little sweetener to the new deal, we own the social media rights to all the footage to do with our team, with the production co doing all the filming and shiny shiny bits to make the content. This means we get to do 8 episodes Roadkill-style cocking about with somebody else's chequebook to play with as part of the build-up/preparation . Even better, any revenue made from these 8 episodes will go straight into the kitty for bigger/better kit (and/or coke and hookers).

So, in the spirit of cocking about with somebody else's chequebook, we're off down to Lancashire tomorrow to collect a cheap second hand craft to serve as our R&D mule. There's also a working Fireblade engine sitting on the floor in the garage (to give an idea, the Marlin you saw me playing in in the earlier video had 38bhp for lift and drive, the Fireblade has c.150 and the current Rotax engine could be repurposed as a dedicated lift motor). Oh, and as an aside, the current world hovercraft speed record was set with only 110bhp in a less aerodynamic body

All sounds good really at the end of the day - I realise you're probably chomping at the bit to get going but as you say, you now have the chance to do it right and bring that record back to Britain...

It did seem a bit of a rush - when you first mentioned it, I wasn't sure how much prep the rest of the team had already done; since that appears to have been pretty much none, a year to get the whole thing running smoothly and safely is definitely a good thing.

You mention enclosed canopies; I thought that was a no-no due to the risk of the craft simply sinking and being unable to get out. Do you now have time to make survival cells?

Jobbo wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 9:26 amYou mention enclosed canopies; I thought that was a no-no due to the risk of the craft simply sinking and being unable to get out. Do you now have time to make survival cells?

When we were bolting them to existing craft (i.e. somebody else's that we'd have to give back), we were pretty limited in terms of fitment design (time pressures didn't help either). Now, we can design the body/canopy together from the outset to allow a range of escape options.

Favoured option at the moment is kind of t-bar design with double side panels attached with o-rings on posts. That way, in an emergency, all the o-rings can be quickly cut leaving an escape route either side.

Nefarious wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 9:51 am

Jobbo wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 9:26 amYou mention enclosed canopies; I thought that was a no-no due to the risk of the craft simply sinking and being unable to get out. Do you now have time to make survival cells?

When we were bolting them to existing craft (i.e. somebody else's that we'd have to give back), we were pretty limited in terms of fitment design (time pressures didn't help either). Now, we can design the body/canopy together from the outset to allow a range of escape options.

Favoured option at the moment is kind of t-bar design with double side panels attached with o-rings on posts. That way, in an emergency, all the o-rings can be quickly cut leaving an escape route either side.

Explosive bolts, fighter jet style!

Goose, eject eject! Watch the canopy!

DeskJockey wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 9:55 am Explosive bolts, fighter jet style!

I was thinking similar - although more the type of mechanism that inflates Life Jackets on contact with Water...

We're talking about Nef. I'm sure he's got a couple of Saturn V boosters lying around, that suitably modified, can provide canopy removal if needed.

Raccoons tail on the antenna ?

Still insanely jealous.

Dave!

Ill not tell you the engine ebay link he sent to me yesterday

Suffice to say horsepower was plenty on it.

scotta wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 4:12 pm Ill not tell you the engine ebay link he sent to me yesterday

Suffice to say horsepower was plenty on it.

What, this one you mean?


Shaft drive 1200bhp, £4500. Seems like a very sensible purchase to me...

Nefarious wrote: Tue Dec 11, 2018 7:07 am

scotta wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 4:12 pm Ill not tell you the engine ebay link he sent to me yesterday

Suffice to say horsepower was plenty on it.

What, this one you mean?


Shaft drive 1200bhp, £4500. Seems like a very sensible purchase to me...

Cletus McFarland is doing a jet into a car which may have some handy snippets in.

Dave!

Nefarious wrote: Tue Dec 11, 2018 7:07 am

scotta wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 4:12 pm Ill not tell you the engine ebay link he sent to me yesterday

Suffice to say horsepower was plenty on it.

What, this one you mean?


Shaft drive 1200bhp, £4500. Seems like a very sensible purchase to me...

To power a Hovercraft ?

Is it still technically hovering if you’re at 10,000 feet?

Nefarious wrote: Tue Dec 11, 2018 7:07 am

scotta wrote: Mon Dec 10, 2018 4:12 pm Ill not tell you the engine ebay link he sent to me yesterday

Suffice to say horsepower was plenty on it.

What, this one you mean?


Shaft drive 1200bhp, £4500. Seems like a very sensible purchase to me...

If it’s going on the back of a hovercraft does it really need shaft drive rather than it’s own thrust?

Looks like a turboprop? In which case it needs to drive a prop.