Quote:
Originally Posted by PeterS
Would it be worthwhile building a faired hump into the rear section, right behind your helmet?
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These kind of humps were on race cars and late model open cockpit aircraft (like the Boeing F4B-4 / P-12E or P-26) back in the day - doubling as headrests, dinghy storage, or hiding the turnover pylon.
The round shape of a head / helmet is the issue here - round shapes at the rear cause extra drag and lead to buffeting (non-symmetric Coanda effects), and should really be avoided. (*)
You could try to cure the helmet - some helmets have aerodynamic features that make the air detach.
Or you could make the helmet into the forward part of a teardrop shaped hump - works best if it's made so that the helmet is usually directly against the fairing.
(*) Due to time constraints, one of the members once made a round (instead of teardrop) boattail for his trailer, and it caused instability to the point he removed it again.