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Featuring "Deep Dark Planet" by Heidi Phillips
| MAACS Videos |
Episode 22 - The End of MAACS
The Moving Axis AirCraft Simulator was finished in October of 2008 and this was a
time to celebrate. We had overcame many challenges to reach this point. We
built and experimented with 12 different designs for a motion flight simulator and
had pushed the limits of our little company. Now it was finally done. People sent
cards and emails that said "congratulations on your achievement" and "well
done." We had a roll-out party and people got to try the simulator and they had fun.
But I wasn't satisfied with it. I knew that I could build a better motion flight
simulator and I wanted to start immediately, but I didn't manage the expenses very
well for the MAACS project. I charged all the building materials on a credit card -
bad idea. I also took money from my personal savings for living expenses during
the construction project. If that wasn't enough, the economy fell into a deep
recession throughout 2008 so we were selling fewer Do It Yourself videos. We
had planned on earning money by taking the MAACS to airshows so I could pay off
the credit card, but I took too long to build it and missed the whole 2008 airshow
season. As it turns out, we couldn't have made a profit with MAACS anyway, the
expenses would have been too high (like business liability insurance and such) .
Now I'll tell you about the end of the MAACS.
I needed a place to store MAACS for the winter. It couldn't stay in my garage. I
asked around for someplace I could store it for free, but everyone was freaking out
about the recession, and they weren't in the mood to talk about free stuff. So I
partially dis-assembled MAACS and took the fuselage off the base. I wanted to
raise it vertically and chain it to the garage wall. At one point, I lifted up on a part of
the nosecone that I forgot was not structural and I busted off part of the nose.
[show nose]
That's not really fatal, I built this thing from scratch, I can certainly fix it....but why
bother to fix it? Why spend any more time and money on this project? It would
never generate revenue - it failed as a business experiment.
That's no reason to quit, though, quite the opposite. The MAACS experiment
served a very important purpose. By working on this simulator, I got the idea for a
far better simulator. As its happened so many times before, I had to work on the
mediocre idea before the great idea would reveal itself. Everything I don't like
about the MAACS, I can correct by building a new flight simulator, but that takes
me back to the story.
In October of 2008, I had other problems to deal with. I needed money and health
insurance, so I had to get a job. And this is where the MAACS story ends. I got a
job at the same hardware store where I had spent all that money on building
materials for the MAACS project.
So now what? In a pevious video, I told you about my role models. So, I ask
myself, if my role models were here, what advice would they give me?
The Moving Axis AirCraft Simulator was finished in October of 2008 and this was a
time to celebrate. We had overcame many challenges to reach this point. We
built and experimented with 12 different designs for a motion flight simulator and
had pushed the limits of our little company. Now it was finally done. People sent
cards and emails that said "congratulations on your achievement" and "well
done." We had a roll-out party and people got to try the simulator and they had fun.
But I wasn't satisfied with it. I knew that I could build a better motion flight
simulator and I wanted to start immediately, but I didn't manage the expenses very
well for the MAACS project. I charged all the building materials on a credit card -
bad idea. I also took money from my personal savings for living expenses during
the construction project. If that wasn't enough, the economy fell into a deep
recession throughout 2008 so we were selling fewer Do It Yourself videos. We
had planned on earning money by taking the MAACS to airshows so I could pay off
the credit card, but I took too long to build it and missed the whole 2008 airshow
season. As it turns out, we couldn't have made a profit with MAACS anyway, the
expenses would have been too high (like business liability insurance and such) .
Now I'll tell you about the end of the MAACS.
I needed a place to store MAACS for the winter. It couldn't stay in my garage. I
asked around for someplace I could store it for free, but everyone was freaking out
about the recession, and they weren't in the mood to talk about free stuff. So I
partially dis-assembled MAACS and took the fuselage off the base. I wanted to
raise it vertically and chain it to the garage wall. At one point, I lifted up on a part of
the nosecone that I forgot was not structural and I busted off part of the nose.
[show nose]
That's not really fatal, I built this thing from scratch, I can certainly fix it....but why
bother to fix it? Why spend any more time and money on this project? It would
never generate revenue - it failed as a business experiment.
That's no reason to quit, though, quite the opposite. The MAACS experiment
served a very important purpose. By working on this simulator, I got the idea for a
far better simulator. As its happened so many times before, I had to work on the
mediocre idea before the great idea would reveal itself. Everything I don't like
about the MAACS, I can correct by building a new flight simulator, but that takes
me back to the story.
In October of 2008, I had other problems to deal with. I needed money and health
insurance, so I had to get a job. And this is where the MAACS story ends. I got a
job at the same hardware store where I had spent all that money on building
materials for the MAACS project.
So now what? In a pevious video, I told you about my role models. So, I ask
myself, if my role models were here, what advice would they give me?
| Buy the CD or MP3's at CDbaby |
