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Buzzing sound at cruise speed

00Dan

Well Known Member
I have a mystery buzzing at cruise speeds. It doesn’t occur during climb or when I slow down. I think it’s my canopy and it’s coming from behind me.

Anyone encountered anything similar?
 
Mine is doing the same thing, it’s coming from the rear area where the canopy skirt meets the fuselage. I haven’t come up with a good solution yet, when my wife is riding in the back she stuffs a blanket or a hoodie back there and it stops.
 
Mine is doing the same thing, it’s coming from the rear area where the canopy skirt meets the fuselage. I haven’t come up with a good solution yet, when my wife is riding in the back she stuffs a blanket or a hoodie back there and it stops.

At least I’m not alone! I put some weatherstripping in that area after I landed on a hunch that was the general area. I’ll be interested to see if that proves sufficient.
 
Not sure if the wing root fairing is the same as an -8 but I had the rubber strip come lose in the middle section on the R wing and it created a buzzing sound above 175 kts. Put a strip of Gorilla tape on the back side of the fairing to help hold the rubber strip in place. Problem solved.
 
To pinpoint the location of the noise you might try using a stethoscope. Remove the bulb and solid wire end and replace it with a couple feet of rubber hose and the end with stiff straight open plastic tube. The tubing needs to be open all the way to the earbuds. It's very directional and you should be able to find the exact location.
 
The foam weatherstripping from the auto parts store I installed on the rear canopy skirt may have done the job for me. I didn’t have any buzzing on today’s flight. Hopefully it’s not just a fluke.
 
Vibrating wheel pant bracket

On my RV4 I had removed my wheel pants and went up for a flight. Somewhere around 150 mph I don't remember exactly what speed but I heard this loud buzzing and it scared the you know what out of me. I quickly pulled the power back and it went away. I picked up speed and it was back. I immediately returned to the airport and landed. The only thing I had done was remove the wheel pants. I put them on and went for a flight and there was nothing. Took them off and it was there again. I realized that it was probably the backing plate that holds the old style wheel pant on that was vibrating like a tuning fork. Removed the plates and nothing since. But it certainly got my attention.

Tim
 
My buzz fix

My RV-4 canopy did that also, and rudder inputs at speed would change the pitch. I have rubber bulb seal down the straight sides of my canopy, but nothing on the curved skin sides in back, as I let them be "outflow areas". At the very AFT end of the canopy, I made a cork/rubber sheet seal that matches the skirt contour. Its only about 3" long and 1/16" thick. That is the only contact point where the skirt skin touches the fuselage. Buzzing immediately stopped.
 
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