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Hardpoints under wings

FresnoR

Well Known Member
This is my official plea to Van's for universal hardpoints under the wings. How cool would that be! Thinking luggage pods, supplemental fuel tanks, bicycles, electric scooters, skis, AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles... The aftermarket crowd would go crazy with options. Ah, so awesome...
 

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Just me

If you want hard points, just put them in during the build. I think someof the tie down stock on a few ribs near a spar would be sufficient.
 
If you want hard points, just put them in during the build. I think someof the tie down stock on a few ribs near a spar would be sufficient.

Mike Patey did that on the Carbon Cub he built (Scrappy), and hangs a couple of electric dirt bikes. Watching him engineer and build that wing was fascinating.
 

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Use tie down fittings

Use tie down fittings. Also, check your Operating Limitations.
 
Stores Jett!

Well, having flown several aircraft with hard-points under the wings in the past I can assure you it has been done on several civilian production aircraft, most notably, the venerable Cessna's and more recently on the Air Tractor AT-802U. https://802u.com/
Having several sorties in the mighty Duck (0-2), Birddog (0-1) and having fired Rockets off them I can assure you they're formidable. Their combat record in SE Asia and other countries is exemplary. Additionally I witnessed an RV4 with under wing tanks visit a fly-in years ago, another cool mod, (yes a Vans aircraft with under wing stores, kinda.)

I say get the drawings for the Cessna 0-1/0-2 Hard-points, reproduce them for the RV15 and offer the "0" version. With the Maule MX7-180 ISR aircraft in the Tunisian AF, and Tucanos out there, ya never know when you might need some 2.75 Rockets...or an AIM-9X!
:)
V/R
Smokey


The Mighty Oscar Deuce

Combat Air Tractor

RV4 with More
 
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Smokey!

Where did you get that picture of the -4 with the cargo pods? I've been dreaming of those for a few years ever since I saw the Mike Arnold videos on YouTube where he's building them. I've searched VAF multiple times and can't find much info on them. I actually started to build my own at one point.
 
I've always wondered about small fuel tanks under each wing. Would be a fun project, but I wonder about the practically. How much fuel would they really hold. How much additional plumbing, pumps and electrical would be required. It's a fun idea to explore, but I'm sure there's better ways to carry more gas.
 
I wonder about the practically. How much fuel would they really hold. .

I suppose that would depend on the design from Vans. If they could work the hardpoints to handle 50+ pounds each, that's a pretty good amount of spare fuel. Naturally, you'll have to watch the useful load.



If you want hard points, just put them in during the build. I think someof the tie down stock on a few ribs near a spar would be sufficient.

I see what you are saying, but the weight and drag of bicycles/pods/etc would be something I would want professionally engineered into the design. Who knows what kind of these loads or factors impact a design not intended for it.
 
Pod Belly...or vice versa

I suppose that would depend on the design from Vans. If they could work the hardpoints to handle 50+ pounds each, that's a pretty good amount of spare fuel. Naturally, you'll have to watch the useful load.
I see what you are saying, but the weight and drag of bicycles/pods/etc would be something I would want professionally engineered into the design. Who knows what kind of these loads or factors impact a design not intended for it.

The most logical place to place extra weight (gear/fuel) is where they have already engineered and tested in the field. My missionary pilot friends at MAF and elsewhere have fitted belly pods to ALL their field aircraft including the Kodiak. One has even been installed on an RV10...http://www.motorcyclepilot.com

Carbon Fiber Aftermarket belly pods are already available for Super Cubs and Maules from Carbon Concepts and others.







Just sayin, why invent something new?
:)
V/R
Smokey
 
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I love it, and the belly could also be a great spot.

My basic request is really to have Vans pre-engineer these points and have them built into the stock design. That way, from day 1, it’ll be available to all 15 owners and future owners without retrofitting.

There is such an amazing aftermarket industry out there for experimental aircraft. I am sure these groups would love to have common mounting points for whatever it is they sell. Where the owners don’t have to structurally modify their aircraft to fit. This would be an industry first and could help set the 15 apart from other high wing companies.
 
I love it, and the belly could also be a great spot.

My basic request is really to have Vans pre-engineer these points and have them built into the stock design. That way, from day 1, it’ll be available to all 15 owners and future owners without retrofitting.

Yep, that would be useful. But I bet it scares the heck out of the kit manufacturer because it would give customers another opportunity to do something really dumb. "Hey, look Bubba! I hung a VW Beetle under the -15."
 
Yep, that would be useful. But I bet it scares the heck out of the kit manufacturer because it would give customers another opportunity to do something really dumb. "Hey, look Bubba! I hung a VW Beetle under the -15."


Kyle, I know this post is old but I just saw it :D - Pretty funny, but you know what I always say . . . "can't fix stupid" so you definitely can't engineer around it.:rolleyes:
 
I've always wondered about small fuel tanks under each wing. Would be a fun project, but I wonder about the practically. How much fuel would they really hold. How much additional plumbing, pumps and electrical would be required. It's a fun idea to explore, but I'm sure there's better ways to carry more gas.
If you treated it as a way to carry more gas to use while on an extended trip with multiple legs, rather than a way to extend the range of a single flight, then you could just make them essentially wing-mounted jerry cans. Get to your destination, pop the pod off, and pour the gas into your main tank.

That would be a lot simpler, and I daresay less prone to issues, than plumbing in two more tanks that would need plumbing, and probably electricity and pumps, to transfer into the main tanks in flight.
 
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