Jet Powered Hijinks

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjS8btFb9RA]

This jet powered carousel is brought to you by the Madagascar Institute. They convene, or collide, to create large scale art, sculptures, and rides. This one seems to fit the last definition. The two gentlemen are strapped to a jet powered carousel. It actually looks pretty fun, but we would have been needing some fresh shorts after the jet bursts into flames near the end. He didn’t seem too concerned, he wasn’t screaming and flailing his arms at least.

21 thoughts on “Jet Powered Hijinks

  1. Lol, that’s awesome. I’m surprised that these engines didn’t seam to heat up too much. Most homebrew pulsejets I’ve seen end up glowing cherry red after only a few seconds. I guess the airflow must help.

  2. A+ for creativity and imagination. A+ for the engines and A+ for the application idea.

    F- for design and implementation. To the three people in the video: If you plan to keep at this, make sure you’ve each declared an heir so they know who to deliver your Darwin award to.

  3. @buzzkill
    It would have to really gentle; lest the swings wrap themselves around the central pole.

    Of course, he could replace the ropes/chains with rigid metal poles on hinges. Or mount thrusters of some sort on the front of the swings.

  4. As a professional helicopter maintainer I can’t help, but worry a little about plane of rotation on those engines. If the compressor section should fly apart during the middle of a run, shrapnel is going to get everyone nearby. Well everyone, but who ever is riding in front of it. That’s the least likely time for the compressor to critically fail like that I know, but still. Especially considering the flame out during the run I can’t imagine these are very safe engines.

    As to a brake, yes it would be a good feature. Most helicopters have a brake for the rotor. It just happens that when you apply it when the rotors are at near full speed bad things happen. So long as it wasn’t applied above say 10% of maximum rotation everything would be fine.

    A brake could also serve to hold the seats still, until your ready to spin up. This would mean fewer people standing around when the engines are being spun up. Which just so happens to be the time said engines are most likely to explode in a deadly cloud of shrapnel.

    Finally: Yes despite how absurdly dangerous that thing is it’s whicked awesome.

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