pariah
Senior Heliman
Location: West Valley City, UT - United States of America
| I'm sure Align doesn't want to be known as the company whose blades fall apart mid-air, so I'll echo divot's comments. With a larger (and heavier) blade, the forces involved go up a great deal (it's not linear). As a result, what worked fine for 600 mm can fail catastrophically at the 700mm range.
I think you also have to take into account "startup costs" for a new blade size.
Typically, it'll cost more to manufacture the first "new" design of any model - and then as experience in manufacturing that model grows, the cost will go down as yields go up.
Sure, a manufacturer can amortize the cost over the model's lifespan, but not all manufacturer's choose to take that path. Gazing into the future has lead to some famous missteps, so many prefer to always profit from the blade, and let the cost fluctuate, instead of losing money at first, and making up for it when production is in "full swing"
Either way - sticking to a particular manufacturer (for anything - helis, cars, electronics) is a good way to get yourself gouged. You don't get points for being a loyal customer, no discount, nothing. So shop around.
--
Helicopters & Women: The last thing I want is one whose head has a few loose screws. |
That doesn't mean I still don't want cheaper options if they work.
I already have sets of 690/710 SABs, Vs, Radix and Rotortechs for my other 90s... I was just curious about the Align blade options since in the past their blades have been a few dollars cheaper than the competition.
