Is Wider Cabin Width Possible for Bearhawk 4 Place?

[Denali]

Is a wider cabin, say 44 or 46 inches, realistically possible in 4 place BearHawk ?

One hates to wander away from the proven designs of Bob Barrows. I also understand that a so called "small change" can often cascade into numerous "other" modifications having to be made to accommodate the initial "small change". I recall reading somewhere that a 1 or 1 1/2 inch width increase had been done to a BH ; I just can't recall the thread.

According to the website: http://bearhawkaircraft.com/Bearhawk/BHspecs.php
the cabin BearHawk 4 place width is listed as 42 inches.

[jaredyates]

Have you ever sat in a Zenith 750? I sat in one with doors that poofed out a little and made for much more arm room. I don't know if something like that would meet your goals, but with something like doors, you can experiment with much less consequence than with the structural bits.

[alaskabearhawk]

I'm trying to find a comparison chart that I had of the Bearhawk cabin width superimposed on other popular aircraft. It's pretty dang wide already. More width means more weight, drag, etc, etc.

[Chris In Milwaukee]

Is this the one you're thinking about? C185 vs. Bearhawk https://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v2/JMICUz...comparison.JPG Chris

[alaskabearhawk]

The link doesn't work for me.

[Chris In Milwaukee]

Let's try the direct approach then :-)

[Denali]

I am sure that a 42 inch cabin width works fine for many people, but others may wish for more room. The Cessna 185 cabin width is not exactly generous either. Here are some links showing cabin dimensions. I find it interesting that Rans Aircraft in their latest LSA design of the S20 has a 46 inch cabin width listed under their specifications. It's clear that people today are bigger, and the older we get it seems the more likely we become a tad wider. Here are some cabin width specifications as stated by the manufacturer.

http://www.dreamaircraft.com/site/?c...tundra&lang=EN Tundra 4 place is 44 inches
http://rans.com/aircraft/kits/s-20-raven.html Rans S-20 ( 2 place ) is 46 inches
http://www.zenithair.com/stolch801/performance.html Zenith 801 4 place is 44 inches
http://www.bearhawkaircraft.com/Bearhawk/BHspecs.php Bearhawk 4 place 42 inches
https://www.backcountrypilot.org/for...bin-width-1218 Cessna 180, 182, 185 Cabin Width Discussion

I for one would welcome a slightly wider Bearhawk cabin if it could be done without tipping the basic design apple cart.

[Chris In Milwaukee]

I'm with you on that one. A Bearhawk the width of a Cherokee Six would be a wonderful thing :-)

[alaskabearhawk]

Hey Chris...that's the one. Thanks!