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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 11:00 
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Joined: 12/22/11
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Company: Modular Solutions, Inc.
Location: ISO @ Kinston, NC
Aircraft: Rocket, Harpoon
Flying it yesterday with the temps approaching one hundred degrees it still performed like a bat out of hell. I just can't adequately describe the performance. I will try below but please keep in mind I am not a writer.
Taxing out I put just a hint of Beta in the prop to keep it from accelerating and taking off. This angel wants to fly and has the capabilities to do so on a whim. Controlling it during taxi was relaxed and non-eventful. Actually it was much easier than my Baron. With the center line trust washing the tail it was very responsive. Preflight checks done minus the mag check and we rolled out onto the ramp. Time to blast off! As I pushed the throttle forward the acceleration was tremendous pushing me deeper into the seat as the throttle advanced. Unlike a Baron that you have to keep on the ground till Blue Line, this baby took flight instantly. Once you past stall she is off and gone. Rotation was just a couple of hundred feet from the initiation point. Gear up and then pull it back and the more I pulled the more she climbed. Mind you this was a 100-degree day in South Carolina or very close to it. VSI was at 2500 and there was still more left as we climbed out at 130knts. Within seconds it seemed we were over 3500 feet and the air started to cool off. As the air cooled more for our benefit than hers she kept pulling and pulling and pulling. Since this was going to be a short trip we leveled off instead of climbing up to 10K. At this point the speed started building dramatically / exponentially. I kept finding myself trimming down to keep the nose level as the speed increased. We were not even at Full Throttle and we were already at the top of the green arc. It was turbulent that day so to keep it out of the yellow I pulled back on the throttle. Fuel burn settled in at about 35 gallons per hour. It did not take us long to get to our destination which was only 40 nautical miles away. Pulling it back to idle I was doing normal Baron speeds at just a little over the fuel burn I get with my Baron. But oh man when you drop the throttle she is gone. The engine is very smooth too. A turbine fan beats the living hell out of 2 engines with 6 pistons each reversing direction a couple thousand times per minute. The cabin was surprisingly quiet and there was no smell of jet A. We reached the destination so fast I felt like I was in a Time Warp. The approach and landing were non eventful except not having to worry about shock-cooling the engines we pitched over and down we came. The big prop out front acting as a speed break held us right where I wanted at 130knt. Full flaps and gear down she kept plowing through the air with the slight bump in pitch that we have come to expect in our Barons. She quickly settles back in with the mannerisms of any Baron and keeps them all the way till landing. Here is where it gets fun. No brakes just use the Beta on the prop to decelerate. Depending on how comfortable you are with your face in the dash is how much Beta you use. You can easily stop her in a 1000 feet if need be.
Now I'm sure at some point I'll get used to her and I will want to go faster but right now I'm telling you this plane is a real fire breather. The only thing I've flown that approaches this performance is my Harmon Rocket II and she is no slouch but this baby will haul ass literally and figuratively. Whatever you can put in it; be it a party of six and full of fuel or your family of four full of baggage and fuel she will tote it with ease and grace, all the while laying down some blistering speeds.


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Eric Rouse

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 11:08 
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Company: Modular Solutions, Inc.
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Rick mine in not pressurized there were only two of those made out of the six.


Bob from what I understand that article had a lot to do with the FAA stopping the conversion. It was just too much in their face and I believe it caught Beech's attention too who obviously has issues with it.

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Eric Rouse

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 11:22 
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Joined: 07/24/13
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Excuse me if I don't convey my emotions very well, I am not a writer...
I'm Envious as H*ll!
I am also very happy for you. Congratulations!

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 11:24 
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Joined: 01/30/09
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Location: Oklahoma City, OK (KPWA)
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What is the advantage of this plane, in your opinion, vs a conventional pressurized turboprop?


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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 11:25 
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Location: Doylestown, PA (KDYL)
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Rick mine in not pressurized there were only two of those made out of the six.

Yeah I know, I covet the P conversion. :thumbup:
It's good you don't have a P, cuz I might have had to get you fitted for a pair of cement sneakers :bud:

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 12:00 
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Eric

IMO the advantages are:

Experimental
Faster speed
Greater useful load
Cheaper by a long shot from the next closest turbo prop with much better load and performance.
Fuel burn on trips (especially long ones) is less than what a Baron can do it on because you get there in way less time.
Jet A is cheaper and available everywhere.
Kicks a turbine bonanza's butt in all aspects
Performance, Performance, Performance!!!
Plus its just Awesome!

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Eric Rouse

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 12:38 
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...Unlike a Baron that you have to keep on the ground till Blue Line...

:scratch:


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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 12:56 
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Is it a converted 58P? Cool idea but IMHO if you're going turbine you're going to want it pressurized.

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 24 Jun 2016, 21:18 
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Joined: 11/27/09
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Location: Knoxville TN
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So what does the conversion cost all in?

What is the tbo on the engine?

When is hot section due and at what intervals?


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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 25 Jun 2016, 07:36 
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No hot section on Walter's and TBO is a complex calculation. But long story short.....around 2500 to 3000.

Now that GE owns them you can forget about it. Used to you could buy these Walters for under 40k now they are up near 100k.

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Eric Rouse

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 25 Jun 2016, 09:45 
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Username Protected wrote:
No hot section on Walter's and TBO is a complex calculation. But long story short.....around 2500 to 3000.

Now that GE owns them you can forget about it. Used to you could buy these Walters for under 40k now they are up near 100k.


Sounds like GE bought Walter to get a cheap turbine off of the market. More proof turbine costs are a factor of gouging and ownerous certification rules. Otherwise you are looking at lower cost than two 520 remans.

So what is the total cost to convert a 58?


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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 26 Jun 2016, 09:37 
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I would estimate in today's dollars around 250k. If you could do it.

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 26 Jun 2016, 12:29 
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Joined: 10/10/14
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Location: St George UT
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How does the Piper with the nose turbine compare?


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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 26 Jun 2016, 16:53 
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Location: CMB7, Ottawa, Canada
Aircraft: TBM - C185 - T206
Why clip the wings and had fuel tip tanks?
Im sure a 58P single turbine could probably be done in Canada.

Buy an older TBM like this for probably around $650k and runit part 91 with only an annual in the US.

http://www.controller.com/listings/airc ... ta-tbm-700

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 Post subject: Re: Going the Harpoon route instead of certified.
PostPosted: 27 Jun 2016, 09:53 
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Company: Modular Solutions, Inc.
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Cliff the useful load of a Piper full of fuel (531lbs) is the pilot and one passenger with very little to no baggage left over.

Marc I hear ya but now you are jumping up in the price levels to the point you could just buy a used TBM. You are picking up the section of the wing where the motors were hung so that is just more induced drag slowing you down. Therefore removing the 3 feet on each side gives it 20 more KNTs. The fuel tank tips fly so there is no penalty, therefore adding more fuel at no penalty increases range. For me the attractiveness of this plane is the cost effectiveness to get into and operate versus the performance.

I realize it is not the plane for everyone but for me it is a great fit.

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Eric Rouse

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