Started building first ring

Half of a ring built from balsa wood

So after all of the calculations and design work I have started to build the initial 2 foot test structure.

I’m really anxious to see if this idea will even work. There’s a reason these kind of models aren’t that common. Trying to get a rigid frame structure, with the weight constraints and limited lift makes it quite a challenge.

You might have noticed that my work so far hasn’t been very precise. I haven’t been accounting for the width (1/8″ and 1/16″) of balsa wood beams in my designs up to now, and have been working primarily from a wire frame design.

There are so many variables to consider. Glue, bevel cuts in the wood, excess material along the seams of the gas bag. All of those things matter, but it would be a monumental task to do all of that math. So I am basically working on rough estimates here, and not exact numbers (even though I’ve used a lot of decimal places at times!).

So I will plug along here and build the test frame, then cover it, then make the gas bag, then weigh the whole thing, then fill the bag with helium.. And we will all see if it works and lifts the weight it is supposed to.

I could be on the right track, or it could fail miserably. Either way, it will all be posted here for you to see. If it fails at least we will hopefully learn something from it. 😀