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RV-9A Canopy Problem

Flyer2017

Active Member
I bought our plane about 3.5 years ago. Since then we have been to OSH 3 times and put several hundred hours on her. After some time, I noticed a slight light gap showing between the canopy and the part it rests on on the left side near the panel when flying. Over the last year, the gap seems to be getting a little bigger. I don't think the canopy is suddenly going to depart the plane but wanted advice on how to close the gap, if possible. I've read many threads about how tedious and frustrating it is to adjust the canopy position while building and thought some of you might have a solution. The pictures show the canopy from each side both open slightly and closed and locked. Also a picture of light showing through the gap.

I've never tried to put pictures on a post so I hope I followed the directions correctly. Thanks









 
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Joe: If those gaps weren't there before I think I might be looking at what's going on with the fwd canopy retention pins and how they are interfacing with the goose neck canopy arms and the brass bushings in the holes where the pins nest. I don't see how the canopy could rise up like that unless the bushings in the goose necks have become elongated or are missing. Can you push the canopy back down with it closed and latched in the down position?

If it were me I think I'd be removing the canopy to check out what's going on in that fwd attach area, it fairly robust and shouldn't be doing that or at least that's my thoughts.
 
Was it latched?

The one picture of the left side showed it unlatched. If it pulls down tight when latched, I wouldn't worry about it.

If you have that gap while latched, time to figure out why and correct it before your next flight.
 
I had a gap like that on my 2009 7A with about 1000 hours on it. Turned out the the U channel had cracked right where the pivot support went through. I ended up replacing everything forward of the side rails
 
Assumptions

I don't think the canopy is suddenly going to depart the plane but .....

I would not make that assumption. If you get air under the front edge, it will be like one of those mattresses you see on the side of the highway. I like N269Sd's comment. Something is amiss.
 
Thanks to all for your comments and suggestions.

I took a closer look at the left hinge and the area around it. I found that the angle welded on the left side of the hinge has a crack in the weld that is allowing the left front side of the canopy to flex slightly. I'm sure I need to fix it but not sure if I can take off the canopy, grind down the weld and reweld without ripping the canopy apart. I wouldn't do the welding - I'd leave that to an expert. See pictures below.






 
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I built a 7A tip up which should be the same construction as the 9(A). There was an option to add stiffeners to the front of the canopy frame. These stiffeners kept the frame from wallowing and weakening the frame. Were those installed on your tip up? PM me your email and I can send you some pictures of the stiffeners as I was installing them. Also some of the canopy assembly that might help. I don't use a hosting sight anymore because they all seem to go away and I have lost many pictures I posted over the years.

Roberta
 
Did the original builder install the canopy jettison mechanism or just use pins or bolts to hold the canopy hinges? I would think if you can remove the entire canopy and frame, you should be able to repair the problem. I installed the jettison feature just to make removing the canopy easier. There should be some removable pin securing the canopy.

Roberta
 
Roberta. If you mean the three stiffening panels with the lightening holes in them. It does have them. I sent you my email address for the build pictures of your 7A and I've replaced the previous pictures with ones that should show up in my posts.
 
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Tip up canopy issue

Hello Roberta: I need to remove my canopy and inspect connect points for cracks. I Plan to remove jettison pin, and wonder if reinstalling the pin requires removal of any sheet metal to reinstall. Or is the pin reinstall fairly straightforward. My plane was finished and certified in 2005.

Mark S

Rv9a w Titian IOS 340
 
Mark, this depends on your specific build but you should be able to push the pins back in without much trouble. You may need to reach up behind the panel to guide them in place. Take a look back there and see what it looks like.
 
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