The Kinetic 60 is the first all composite airframe designed specifically for dynamic soaring and my first true commission, full from scratch design to part to include all design, drawing, part file fabrication, part file coding, materials handling, CNC machine ops and shipping.  Given the task, no existing reference points existed.  The customer provided sections from the late Habe Norbert, which converted to native geometry were distributed across the wing span varying camber and AOA along the way.  The optimized section schedule resulted in an optimized wing which was mounted on its angle of least drag.  The stab, having 0 camber was mounted parallel the airframes line of level flight.

Being entirely new, the airframe was first rapid prototyped in foam, built and flown before committing to permanent molds.  Successful on the first iteration, male plugs were then CNC machined and shipped.  The customer converted them to female molds and fabricated from there.

Success was literally immediate; reviews were over the top and records were set and repeatedly broken.  Popularity was also instant and developed a near cult following.

Excellent as is with demand still, production was very short lived and only a few were made.

Asking for a copy of the model as payment, the commission went entirely and wholly unpaid.  In fact, the customer went on to claim full credit for both the design and artwork.

Lesson learned; don’t get carried away on the thrill of being engaged.  Send renderings, never artwork.  Turn over working artifacts only after you are paid.  If you are good with CAD, prepare to overhaul drawings sent to you.  Your customer is extremely likely far more than amateur.  That’s one component in why you are needed.  If the submitted design is flawed and you can prove it is, change it and stand on it.  If they don’t like it, don’t do the work.  It’s far better to lose the commission than go through with it to poor reviews.  Always go long.  The people you want to work with are the ones that do their research first.  They will find and come to you. Stay with it and practice daily; seriously.  It wont take long for the full community to realize who has been doing the work all this time.

I may revisit this as is with minor changes, but the 60″ span form factor is now incorporated into a full update; FPS.  The project was covered in RCSD; ‘365 to One’ to very high review.