meglin Posted February 18, 2023 Share Posted February 18, 2023 Dear colleagues, can you tell me how much are the wheel pants for the RV in demand? Which material is preferable - fiberglass, carbon fiber? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facthunter Posted February 19, 2023 Share Posted February 19, 2023 They look beautiful Meglin. Pity I don't have an RV but plenty do.. More so in the SAAA. where the weight limit doesn't restrict like it does Here . Regards Nev 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgmwa Posted February 19, 2023 Share Posted February 19, 2023 Vans supply fibreglass wheelpants. They are optional kit items but nearly every RV has them. Pilots sometimes don't install them if they are flying off grass or rough surfaces but you won't find many RV's that don't have them. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueadventures Posted February 19, 2023 Share Posted February 19, 2023 14 hours ago, meglin said: Dear colleagues, can you tell me how much are the wheel pants for the RV in demand? Which material is preferable - fiberglass, carbon fiber? Look nice work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meglin Posted February 26, 2023 Author Share Posted February 26, 2023 (edited) How good this work can be objectively judged only after: 1) comparing the weight, 2) comparing the condition after five years of operation in harsh ultraviolet conditions. Heated fiberglass epoxy provides significant advantages on both counts. Edited February 26, 2023 by meglin 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Koreelah Posted February 28, 2023 Share Posted February 28, 2023 Those are very impressive wheel spats. I built my own, which are not as neat, but it taught me to admire good workmanship when I see it! In our slower aircraft, well-designed spats can reduce drag as much as a retractable undercariage. My flight tests showed a reduction of up to 13% in fuel burn. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgmwa Posted February 28, 2023 Share Posted February 28, 2023 On the RV-12 which cruises at 110-115 knots they add about 4-5 kts to the top speed. On the faster RV’s that cruise at 150-170 kts I believe they account for about 9-10 kts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meglin Posted August 13, 2023 Author Share Posted August 13, 2023 So there is a benefit after all. The fairings also protect the airplane structure from rocks and dirt flying off the wheels. And appearance, of course. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skippydiesel Posted November 19, 2023 Share Posted November 19, 2023 On 26/02/2023 at 8:27 PM, meglin said: How good this work can be objectively judged only after: 1) comparing the weight, 2) comparing the condition after five years of operation in harsh ultraviolet conditions. Heated fiberglass epoxy provides significant advantages on both counts. Hi Meglin, The wheel pants on my Sonex weigh almost 2 kg each. What do yours weigh? & could they be adapted for a Sonex? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meglin Posted November 19, 2023 Author Share Posted November 19, 2023 I don't remember the exact weight right now. I'll have to look in the records. I think they would fit many airplanes with similar wheel sizes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meglin Posted November 20, 2023 Author Share Posted November 20, 2023 RV-7 main fairing - about 900 g. RV-10 main fairing - 1830 g. RV-10 nose fairing - 1450 g. With nuts terminated. I apologize for the use of the SI system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now