01-06-2026, 01:04 AM
I believe I saw that @Daniel Misner (family) had accomplished this, maybe he can chime in on it.
With having a semi-rigid rotor system, it's better to have a raised mast in order to improve CG limits. We could also improve cyclic authority this way as there's less of a concern about blades striking the tail boom; but that would also require a different or modified swashplate and flight control design. The lower excess of blades straps would have to be cut back as well to allow for greater teeter angles. If you look at the Robinson helicopters, there is a lot of space between the blades and the tailboom due to the tall mast with much better CG limits (most certified helicopters have at least double the CG limits that rotorways do, which is why many do not need ballast weights). However, they also incorporate a tri-hinge design to allow the blades to cone in order to reduce loads at the blade root and maintain balance... There is a greater risk of mast bumping with this design, however.
Another solution is switching to a three-bladed design which may not require a taller mast but it would need to be beefier to handle the loads. That would also greatly improve CG and eliminate the risk of mast bumping... But at an increased cost, added weight and space. A better powerplant would be desirable if going that route.
All of these would be major modifications and it'd be best to get an experienced aerospace engineer to assist. But it's definitely something I'd like to see, particularly a fully articulated 3-bladed design with a Lycoming, similar to the Cabri G2!
With having a semi-rigid rotor system, it's better to have a raised mast in order to improve CG limits. We could also improve cyclic authority this way as there's less of a concern about blades striking the tail boom; but that would also require a different or modified swashplate and flight control design. The lower excess of blades straps would have to be cut back as well to allow for greater teeter angles. If you look at the Robinson helicopters, there is a lot of space between the blades and the tailboom due to the tall mast with much better CG limits (most certified helicopters have at least double the CG limits that rotorways do, which is why many do not need ballast weights). However, they also incorporate a tri-hinge design to allow the blades to cone in order to reduce loads at the blade root and maintain balance... There is a greater risk of mast bumping with this design, however.
Another solution is switching to a three-bladed design which may not require a taller mast but it would need to be beefier to handle the loads. That would also greatly improve CG and eliminate the risk of mast bumping... But at an increased cost, added weight and space. A better powerplant would be desirable if going that route.
All of these would be major modifications and it'd be best to get an experienced aerospace engineer to assist. But it's definitely something I'd like to see, particularly a fully articulated 3-bladed design with a Lycoming, similar to the Cabri G2!