Gas powered TriCopter?

I have built a few Helis in the past but never a Tri or Quad Copter.  They seem very cool.  Has anyone heard of or thought about a Gas powered TriCopter?  It seems like it would work, and now I really want to try.  I have not come up with a good reason not to do this and for a big TriCopter, I think it would be straight forward.

Jason in Hawaii

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  • This sounds like a Good Project, Jason did You got any further than just asking for info ?
  • Good point with the RPM gov and the vari pitch. I was kinda thinking the same thing. I have seen a few Electrics that are done with Vari pitch heads too. They work nice. That might be a good way to start out and see if it works.

    Thanks

    Jason in Hawaii
  • The main issue would be with the weight, but not because of lift - it's the inertia that gets ya :-) gas/glow engines have much higher response time, they need more of it to rev up. That means you'd probably never get a fixed pitch unit in the air. You'd need variable pitch. And a pretty good RPM governor to keep it all in sync.

    A hybrid solution might also be of interest to you :)

    I've only heard stories about a gas powered tri. Someone's grandpa somewhere in the Czech Republic, in the old commie days, build a gas powered tri with mechanical gyros, got arrested by the secret police, came out clean, and as he was flying it over a field it got shot down by a hunter who thought it was a duck. The original storyteller promised to provide pictures but hasn't been heard from since, so it could very well be just an urban legend.
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