Builders,
Rachel Weseman just put up a video link on the Panther website of 7 minutes of Dan flying very smooth aerobatics in the panther, from the point of view of a Go pro camera mounted on the wing. It is a very nice piece of work, you can find it on their site at this link:
http://flywithspa.com/happy-thanksgiving-from-spa/
If you have any issue getting it to load, you can also access it directly on youtube at this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byqO0t82bF0#t=180
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It is worth considering that I always told people that you could do a loop spin and a roll, and many other basic aerobatic maneuvers with a Corvair with our standard oil system, without any issue, the engine would not lose oil pressure. A number of people on internet discussion groups, people with no flight experience in Corvairs nor an understanding of what a coordinated turn is, vocally claimed otherwise. I know the video will not convince them, but hopefully it will show any open-minded builder that the gold oil systems really do work for 99.5% of the flying homebuilders do.
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For another very interesting video by Rachel, get a look at the Panther flying in formation with 180 HP Lycoming RV’s:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXuZKH4C1Zk
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You can also get a look at air to air video of Ron Lendon’s 2,850cc 601XL, shot from the Panther at Barnwell College #27:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeliNRl-7g0
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Above, a rear view of the engine. Behind the harmonic balancer is an alternator driven off the crank through a flexible coupler. The Weseman’s sell this directly, but the system is integrated into our manual/numbering system as P/N 2950. It retains the balancer and cannot put bending loads on the crank.
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I have never been a fan of belts on the back of the engine, but this system does not use one. The alternator is the same Yanmar unit we traditional use on the front of the engine. Although it is driven at crank speed, the unit makes it’s full output by any flight rpm, and the output exceeds the needs of almost all Corvair powered planes.
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There is a misconception that having the alternator on the back improves cooling. Back to back tests showed that the change was negligible. Many things on experimental aircraft cannot be ‘eyeball judged.’ They have to be tested. Anything that involves airflow or aerodynamics can not be reliably evaluated by eye. The primary attribute of the rear alternator is simplicity, and it allows a slightly narrower cowl line on single seat and tandem seating planes. If you are building a plane with J-3 ‘eyebrow’ cooling scoops, it is easier to fabricate the ductwork with the alternator in the back, but it has been done both ways.
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For further reading:
Corvair power for Panther and Sonex reference page
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You can read all the detailed information on the SPA website at this link:
http://flywithspa.com/panther.html.
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