This has become far more important now that Power Sport is no longer

around with their professional looking $30,000 installations.
Paul Lamar

Forgive me for not being up to date.
What happended to Power Sport?

Peter Laurence

Bad business plan. The experimental AC market was not ready for a
$30,000 firewall
forward rotary engine package. I tried to talk them into selling bits
and pieces when
they started five years ago but they would not listen. Their ego had
shut
down their brains ability to logic and reason. It takes a lot
of auto engines, and aircraft engines for that matter, successfully
flying around before the firewall forward buyers will step up to the
counter.
And then the price must be right.

Pilots are a conservative bunch as it is their butts on the line.

The Soob market did not happen over night. Several firewall forward
suppliers went out of business or bankrupt in the process.

Paul Lamar

PS4 wrote:

(personal note, I would like to know if you will actually post this and
not take editorial liberty with content that is important to us all.)
Paul,
We have always enjoyed reading the chat that passes through this line,
rarely if ever have we bothered to respond to statements found here,
and generally we at Powersport appreciate what good work you do to
promote the many rotary projects out there. On the other hand when you
propagate misinformation such as this you serve only to damage all,
(and make yourself look foolish when it is found out that you have no
idea what you are talking about). The fact will not change that the
Powersport installation is far superior and therefore the price is well
justified. It is my humble opinion that you should take some of your
own advice and don't let your "ego shut down your brains (sic) ability
to listen to logic and reason." Just as is the case with most of the
aviation industry Powersport has experienced some financial
difficulties, but Powersport is working them out and primarily an
insurance issue with our computer (ECU) supplier has set us back
temporarily. We are in the process of working out a new computer system
and soon all will be back on track. Again to be clear, beware of wrong
information and expertise that may not be. After all "YOUR butts are on
the line!"
Respectfully, The Powersport crew.

Tedd James
612-676-0118 Office
612-840-1717 Cellular
612-617-7743 Fax

Have you bought the assets of Power Sport Tedd?
I don't recall you being part of the team a year ago at OSH.

Another factor in the stumble is the fact that Power Sport management
never acknowledged the viability of the $200 Ford planet gear set. Tens of thousands
of hours have been accumulated in the air with the Ford planet gear set in Ross
and Tracy gear boxes. No way can you cut a custom set of gears and produce
a PSRU anywhere near the cost of a PSRU built around the low cost Ford planet set.
You will also play hell making a spur gear PSRU anywhere near as light weight
as a planetary for the same torque rating. Therefore Power Sport was forced to 
set the price on their heavier PSRU at about $6500 which made them very 
uncompetitive with the Ford based products.

We had a big battle on here with Power Sport bad mouthing the planetary
several years ago. Power Sport's dire predictions of planetary failures 
never came true. Ironically the low cost Ford planetary contributed 
to their downfall. 

Speaking of Power Sports responding the last email I got from Ray was 
something to the effect he thought installing rotary engines in airplanes 
was a good hobby but not a good business.

Paul Lamar
 
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