Recoil PreRotator Photos!!!

[Brian Jackson]

Hello fellow rotorhead brethren

I just got back from the KIMO Nationals today in Three Rivers. Spent some time talking with Tim Blackwell and examining his new recoil pre-rotator. What a neat device! Remembering that there was a discussion recently about this on this forum, I took quite a few detailed close-up images of it that I'd like to share with you all.

I processed the images to make them as large and crisp as possible, while maintaining the file size for posting here.

Enjoy!

Brian Jackson

[Brian Jackson]

...more pix

[Brian Jackson]

...last 2. The first shows a newer version of the tooth design and a StarBee Black Beauty head. The second photo is a stereolithograph part that will be used to create the sandcast mold for mass production. Quite an impressive undertaking. What a nice guy Tim is too. Really took the time to explain things in detail.

Hope the photos looked OK.

Regards,
Brian Jackson

[Alan Coats]

Thanks, Brian!

Those are some very good photos.

Looks like a clever, lightweight design. The big question - how much will they cost? Also, what will one weigh?

Alan

[Brian Jackson]

Don't know the cost or weight, but I'd bet money it'll be considerably lighter, perhaps by several times, than a PTO Wunderlich.

[StanFoster]

Brian: Good photos and that looks like a very inovative design.

Stan

[Brent_Brown]

In the other post Tim said it should less then the price of a rotorhead? I hope that it is like 500 or less. It goods good. Looks about 4 pounds to me.

thanks

[KDOG]

OOOOOOH! Me want, me want!!! Thats a really smart idea, now we just gotta get it produced!!! Good talking to ya Brian....

[REDHORSE556CES]

Looks closely akin to a pull-starter for a lawn mower.

[GeorgeBass]

Another individual passed this website on to me.
It is the source, and the description of, the 'new'
Recoil-type pre-rotator shown in the photos here.

http://www.starbeegyros.com/productd...p?ID=181&kits=

The price is also there, and the weight. However,
it is N_O_T below the $500 dollar mark. Too bad.

Seems the harder we try to stay legal in the U/L
category, the more we are "encouraged" to go to
another level, by either pricing, or requirements.

(I.E.: no training available in U/L's now.)

George Bass

[NoWingsAttached]

We saw this at Mentone, and thought it looked like a decent enough construction job.

[dabkb2]

Do you have to use the complete head or can it be adapted to a Brock head

[Bob]

Thanks Brian !
Good info and photos !
good work !thank you for the help !
...
Bob...

[M. Pearce]

Bob,

Well it should be in production by now.

The pictures was taken and originally posted in the ninth month of 2004.

[donshoebridge]

The pictures that Brian posted are of one of the units that Rufus Howard and Tim built a few years ago. That head is now currently mounted on PRA #81's tow glider. Some of you may have seen the glider down by the museum this year at Mentone.

Rufus, Tim and I were refining the design of this head right around the same time Brian took those pictures. The plastic part that you see is actually an FDM part - Fused Deposition Model. Basically, is was built with a CNC hot glue gun machine in layers, .010" at a time, from the bottom-up. I suggested making that assembly from a single piece an aluminum casting since (at the time) all of the parts were machined from individual raw materials. We were thinking "production" so a casting made sense at the time.

Rufus Howard was the original designer of this head system. Within the past couple of years, Rufus sold the rights of this head to Dana Lynn of StarBee Gyros. Dana is now producing this head.