EAGLE R&D
TURBINE PROGRESS REPORT
FINALE
Past reports on our progree in redesigning and rebuilding the Solar T-62 Turbine for use in the HELICYCLE© have included the following:
1. Our organizational and magagement plan: i.e. The critical path.
2. The design phase
3. The tooling phase
4. The machining and assembly phases
5. The dyno testing phase which was covered in a 45 minute video featuring a dyno run.
We have to admit, this project was underfunded from the start due to the fact that the engines had to be sold for a ridiculously low price in order to attract enough customers to create a critical mass. There were no significant extra funds such as borrowed money, investment capital, venture capital or company R & D money available to make this project happen. We had to complete this project with the funds in hand and we were very fortunate to be able to do so.
The engineering challenge alone should have used up the total budget for the project, not to mention the tooling and production costs. What we're really saying here is that the success of this project is God's own miracle. How our tiny team completed all this work in less than one year seems impossible. In fact, as one of those participants, I really don't see how we did it. I can only praise God that we did not run out of money before we finished.
We are shipping these power plants along with all accessories by the 15th of august, 2003. As you can see by photo #1 we are ready to do that now. We stopped our activities just long enough to place these engines in several rows to document their completion for our present HELICYCLE builders and our future customers.
We mentioned in the Kerosene Fever video we planned to develop our own hot section turbine wheel so we could rebuild our customers turbines inexpensively down the road. In photo#2 we are making our presentation of our newly designed turbine wheel to a group of approximately 25 of our builders at Homer Bell's Helicopter Fly-In in July 17-21 of 2003
This is an Inconel investment casting which we will machine, grind and balance prior to installing our power plant for testing. When the tests are completed we will make a production run of these wheels. The current overhaul prices from other sources for this rotating assembly is $10,000.00 or more. We will be able to perform this service for our customers for approximately one-half that price.
Please stay tuned.
B. J. Schramm
