81–90 of 178 posts
Did he spend any time modeling the physics of a helicopter control system? It would have to be of the most complex control systems to model. You don't just build a helicopter. Maybe he should have begun by building a scaled-down version instead. Maybe he did all of this due diligence, and just overlooked some unfortunate minor detail. Some of the comments here are blaming materials failure.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
>I get frustrated sometimes when the parts I need have to ship from China and take a month. But they are cheap and they’ll arrive eventually. This remind me of the time when some local makers were ordering parts from aliexpress it was talking on average 30-40 days to arrive at their door and they were only ordering the parts that could not be substituted easily. Then one day government of India decided to ban aliexpr…
I was not aware Aliexpress got banned. What is the next best alternative?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It seems rather unlikely that others would be encouraged by his death.
Don't you think there will be others who will think "he was killed because of X Y Z, I can do better" ?
He didn't have a helmet or so much as a seatbelt in the helicopter. The tail rotor flew off, hit the main rotor at a high speed, which knocked him sideways, out of the fuselage. It was at this point his head came into contact with the spinning main rotor, likely killing him instantly. A seatbelt seems like it would have saved his life. It was recorded, which is how I know this, I honestly wouldn't suggest looking for…
I am also a farmer and inventor based in India. Problem is that we do not have many tools, indian made tools cost 3-4x of Chinese tools and have 2x worse quality on average 80% things which exist in West (made in China) does not exist in India on top India doesn't make many things. Plus we suffer from too many middlemen problem, where the end product is inflated away beyond the affordability of masses. Not everything…
I work in Ag-Tech and I've got some interest in India, seems like a growing country (though still with a lot of issues as you point out...)
Would love to hear about what you do.
>The inventor taught himself the basics of aeronautical engineering using YouTube and over two years built a single-seater helicopter using a car engine and scrap metal. I am speaking without enough knowledge. But I have to wonder if this serves as a harsh criticism of Youtube. I do understand Youtube is a mixed bag of resources. More structured learning might have resulted in better understanding of material strengt…
This was my first reaction too but probably every DIY/educational video I’ve seen on YouTube has had strong warning disclaimers before introducing the material. Generally most people would be extremely cautious around industrial machinery that moves at high speeds, let alone ones that you design yourself. The higher the stakes, the higher the caution should be. I don’t know how that got lost here, he seems to have ha…
In a professional setting, you have at least two forces ensuring your safety. Your own survival instinct is one. The other one is your boss being liable for accidents at work. Even if you feel super comfortable with your practice, there are other people who'll try to prevent you from doing something stupid - and they have power over you, because as your bosses, they can deny you the access to the workshop.
With a solo op, that second force is missing.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
This was my first reaction too but probably every DIY/educational video I’ve seen on YouTube has had strong warning disclaimers before introducing the material. Generally most people would be extremely cautious around industrial machinery that moves at high speeds, let alone ones that you design yourself. The higher the stakes, the higher the caution should be. I don’t know how that got lost here, he seems to have ha…
People get used to industrial machinery too. Reminds me of the old saying, that a carpenter loses their finger when they stop respecting the saw. In a professional setting, you have at least two forces ensuring your safety. Your own survival instinct is one. The other one is your boss being liable for accidents at work. Even if you feel super comfortable with your practice, there are other people who'll try to preven…
Simply because after working for 10 hours straight he was tired as hell. But life doesn't pause because you're tired.
Probably the number 1 accident maker - tiredness, both mental and physical. Reduces your cognition and reflexes, which results in injuries and death.
Creating an almost-working helicopter with this level of resources is a huge achievement — it’s like a 5 foot guy making a slam dunk. To a seven footer it’s “just a helicopter” but honestly the world has lost a great talent.
It's like building an E-Bike, drone, car, boat, anything else - people will say "that's nice, but you can just buy a better one cheaper". And if your design has some good ideas, a big factory will just copy them.
He didn't have a helmet or so much as a seatbelt in the helicopter. The tail rotor flew off, hit the main rotor at a high speed, which knocked him sideways, out of the fuselage. It was at this point his head came into contact with the spinning main rotor, likely killing him instantly. A seatbelt seems like it would have saved his life. It was recorded, which is how I know this, I honestly wouldn't suggest looking for…
I am also a farmer and inventor based in India. Problem is that we do not have many tools, indian made tools cost 3-4x of Chinese tools and have 2x worse quality on average 80% things which exist in West (made in China) does not exist in India on top India doesn't make many things. Plus we suffer from too many middlemen problem, where the end product is inflated away beyond the affordability of masses. Not everything…
Never going to forgive flipkart for killing ebay india, it was a heaven for tinkereres.
A helicopter is an inherently unstable machine that wants to crash.
Back in the 70's people would design and build radio controlled helicopters. They'd wreck them constantly while trying to learn to fly them. Being able to hover one was quite an accomplishment.