Firewall Reinforcement

Can anyone tell me what the best course of action would be to
reinforce a composite firewall so that it can withstand the weight and
stress of an engine being mounted to it? Would support braces be
sufficient? Should I sandwich the composite material with wood,
aluminum, or stainless plates? I would like the lightest possibility,
but it also needs to be very strong and rigid.

Thanks.

An open ended question if ever I saw one !!

Give me more details .... type of airplane, type of composite materials,
methods of composite construction used in the forward fuselage, engine type
and weight, type of engine mount etc etc. In particular does the fuselage
have any longerons ???




"Ballchain" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone tell me what the best course of action would be to
reinforce a composite firewall so that it can withstand the weight and
stress of an engine being mounted to it? Would support braces be
sufficient? Should I sandwich the composite material with wood,
aluminum, or stainless plates? I would like the lightest possibility,
but it also needs to be very strong and rigid.

Thanks.

Sorry, I guess that question was a little too broad.
The airplane type is a one of a kind design I'm working on. I'm still
deciding whether or not to use fiberglass, carbon fiber, or a
combination of the two in the construction. The forward fuselage will
be made from the same. I'm hoping to use the Lycoming O-320 with a
dynafocal mount. I'm assuming the engine weight to be between
260-280lbs. The forward fuselage will be reinforced with a hull made
of one or both of the composites listed above.

I hope this is a little more informative. The design isn't very far
advanced, so all of this information is preliminary...that's why I'm
doing research and getting advice right now.

Thanks.


"smjmitchell" wrote in message . au...
An open ended question if ever I saw one !!

Give me more details .... type of airplane, type of composite materials,
methods of composite construction used in the forward fuselage, engine type
and weight, type of engine mount etc etc. In particular does the fuselage
have any longerons ???




"Ballchain" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone tell me what the best course of action would be to
reinforce a composite firewall so that it can withstand the weight and
stress of an engine being mounted to it? Would support braces be
sufficient? Should I sandwich the composite material with wood,
aluminum, or stainless plates? I would like the lightest possibility,
but it also needs to be very strong and rigid.

Thanks.

Sorry, I guess that question was a little too vague. I'm just trying
to get a basic idea of what methods are used. The airplane is a
design I'm working on. I plan on using a Lycoming O-320, which I'm
guessing weighs between 260-280 lbs. I plan on mounting that with a
dynafocal mount. I'm undecided as to what material(s) I'll be using,
so it could either be fiberglass, carbon-fiber, or a combination of
the two, some parts sandwiched with Nomex, and others probably not.

The forward fuselage will have a hull mounted to the center made of
the above mentioned materials for strength.

Everything is in the preliminary stages, so I'm just trying to do
research and get some advice right now basically.

Thanks


"smjmitchell" wrote in message . au...
An open ended question if ever I saw one !!

Give me more details .... type of airplane, type of composite materials,
methods of composite construction used in the forward fuselage, engine type
and weight, type of engine mount etc etc. In particular does the fuselage
have any longerons ???




"Ballchain" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone tell me what the best course of action would be to
reinforce a composite firewall so that it can withstand the weight and
stress of an engine being mounted to it? Would support braces be
sufficient? Should I sandwich the composite material with wood,
aluminum, or stainless plates? I would like the lightest possibility,
but it also needs to be very strong and rigid.

Thanks.

On 7 Nov 2004 15:16:12 -0800, (Ballchain)
wrote:

Sorry, I guess that question was a little too vague. I'm just trying
to get a basic idea of what methods are used. The airplane is a
design I'm working on. I plan on using a Lycoming O-320, which I'm
guessing weighs between 260-280 lbs. I plan on mounting that with a
dynafocal mount. I'm undecided as to what material(s) I'll be using,
so it could either be fiberglass, carbon-fiber, or a combination of
the two, some parts sandwiched with Nomex, and others probably not.

The Glasair family uses both a firewall reinforcement rib and a belly
pan reinforcement rib about a foot or so behind the firewall. They
use them in both the G-III and the Super II with the smaller engine.
The reinforcement ribs and the engine mount attach point
reinforcements are much thicker/heavier in the G-III than in the
Super-II, but then again the G-III is designed for a much larger
engine.

No Nomex up there but the firewall is a Rochelle (sp?) foam sandwich.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com

The forward fuselage will have a hull mounted to the center made of
the above mentioned materials for strength.

Everything is in the preliminary stages, so I'm just trying to do
research and get some advice right now basically.

Thanks


"smjmitchell" wrote in message . au...
An open ended question if ever I saw one !!

Give me more details .... type of airplane, type of composite materials,
methods of composite construction used in the forward fuselage, engine type
and weight, type of engine mount etc etc. In particular does the fuselage
have any longerons ???




"Ballchain" wrote in message
om...
Can anyone tell me what the best course of action would be to
reinforce a composite firewall so that it can withstand the weight and
stress of an engine being mounted to it? Would support braces be
sufficient? Should I sandwich the composite material with wood,
aluminum, or stainless plates? I would like the lightest possibility,
but it also needs to be very strong and rigid.

Thanks.