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The Gyroscope Forum |
23 November 2024 21:45
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Welcome to the gyroscope forum. If you have a question about gyroscopes in general,
want to know how they work, or what they can be used for then you can leave your question here for others to answer.
You may also be able to help others by answering some of the questions on the site.
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Question |
| Asked by: |
dave english |
| Subject: |
help on bbc science board re space drive |
| Question: |
Can we have some gyro experts to answer an arguement on the bbc science boards please.
the not rocket science board, thread "so much knowledge".
Its about using a gyro as a space drive amongst other things. try
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cgi-perl/h2/h2.cgi?state=threads&board=science.noticeboard&&sort=T
or
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cgi-perl/h2/h2.cgi?state=view&thread=%3C1097849212-19425.24%40forum0.thdo.bbc.co.uk%3E&board=science.noticeboard&sort=Te&offset=25
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| Date: |
16 October 2004
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| report abuse
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Answers (Ordered by Date)
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| Answer: |
Sandy Kidd - 22/10/2004 10:58:44
| | | Dave,
Had a look at the site out of curiosity, and even saw your comment referring to the “Forum” and the “Gyroscopic Propulsion” section.
Not impressed at all with the some of the comments on that site.
Saying most of the contributors are childish is being much too kind.
Most of them are right, because they know they are, and I will not get involved with that lot. A total waste of time!
To carry out this experiment properly costs a fair bit of money.
I have seen this experiment carried out with a purpose and precision built gyroscope weighing about 1kilo and costing a few thousand pounds when it was made about 20 years ago.
This gyro was about 150mm in diameter.
As much as possible of the mass of the gyroscope was confined to the rim.
The disc itself was precision bored all over in an attempt to remove as much material as possible without weakening the structure of it.
It was mounted on a hardened and tempered precision ground silver steel shaft about 3.5mm in diameter.
The shaft was about 150mm long, precision ground and honed to a tapering stylus like sharp point.
All in all, the finest passive gyroscope I have ever seen.
The gyroscope was designed to run on the face a glazed ceramic tile.
I saw this thing of beauty run many times, the point of the shaft not deviating at all from the axis point of system rotation, irrespective of the system inclination.
Amazing to watch. The eyes do not lie.
On the other hand I have also seen the same experiment carried out on TV, again, many years ago, with a toy gyroscope mounted on top of cheap and nasty plastic Eiffel Tower type thing, all sitting in a tray of icy water.
No guarantee at all that the axis of precession rotation stayed in the same place.
In fact I bet it could not.
The plastic base was probably not even flat.
A cheaply made mass produced novelty item.
An experiment conceived by amateurs.
Many viewers, who did not know any better, must have been sucked in with this shoddy demonstration, which was set up specifically to discredit Eric Laithwaite.
Of course it slid and slithered around in unison with gyroscope precession, with the attendant presenter’s comment “Look there is the centrifugal force”
This is what we are up against.
Sandy Kidd
22/10/04
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| Report Abuse |
| Answer: |
Harvey Fiala - 27/10/2004 20:29:57
| | | Dave: I read your question. I have not been familiar with the bbc science board. I searched for any words relating to a gyro or a space drive and could not find anything. Please state the step by step details to help me find the subject you are interested in. Thanks. Harvey Fiala
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