Hi all,
I am getting ready to bond my canopy skirt in place. I bought a Todd's canopy (after cracking the Van's canopy) and sikaflexed it on. Process was much helped by all the posts here.
Van's canopy skirt didn't fit well at all. I tried a bunch of cuts and slices and eventually cut off the enter rear (past about where it jogs up) along with all the area that bonds to the canopy on the sides. Laid up new fiberglass so it fits like a glove.
I drilled about eight holes on each side and then clecoed it to the canopy frame. No holes in the canopy plexiglass. I put it back on the plane and the fit is very good. Now the question arises, how best to bond the skirt to the frame and the canopy.
In bonding the canopy, I put in a spacer of about 1/8-3/16. I am very confident of the strength of the bond. The skirt is a much tighter fit to the frame. If I put spacers in, then it will not meet the fuselage correctly.
I had thought that I would put a layer between the canopy and the skirt, with the standard roughing up of the plexi. I was going to basically build a filet around the junction of the canopy frame with the fiberglass skirt, going about a third of the way around each side of each upright and the long runners. Also a filet along the bottom of the plexi/skirt line.
This will be a substancial amount of adhesive, hopefully not a significant weight gain. Does this seem like a reasonable approach? How have others applied the adhesive?
The second question is what to use for a bonding agent. I could go with sikaflex again. It is expensive and has a very short shelf life. I could use 3M 5200, which was recommended by Todd to bond the canopy. Yahoo RV listers have advocated 3m Scotchweld 2216B. Any experience with any of these?
Thanks, as usual for all the help I get here.
,
Michael Wynn
RV 8 Finishing
San Ramon, CA
I am getting ready to bond my canopy skirt in place. I bought a Todd's canopy (after cracking the Van's canopy) and sikaflexed it on. Process was much helped by all the posts here.
Van's canopy skirt didn't fit well at all. I tried a bunch of cuts and slices and eventually cut off the enter rear (past about where it jogs up) along with all the area that bonds to the canopy on the sides. Laid up new fiberglass so it fits like a glove.
I drilled about eight holes on each side and then clecoed it to the canopy frame. No holes in the canopy plexiglass. I put it back on the plane and the fit is very good. Now the question arises, how best to bond the skirt to the frame and the canopy.
In bonding the canopy, I put in a spacer of about 1/8-3/16. I am very confident of the strength of the bond. The skirt is a much tighter fit to the frame. If I put spacers in, then it will not meet the fuselage correctly.
I had thought that I would put a layer between the canopy and the skirt, with the standard roughing up of the plexi. I was going to basically build a filet around the junction of the canopy frame with the fiberglass skirt, going about a third of the way around each side of each upright and the long runners. Also a filet along the bottom of the plexi/skirt line.
This will be a substancial amount of adhesive, hopefully not a significant weight gain. Does this seem like a reasonable approach? How have others applied the adhesive?
The second question is what to use for a bonding agent. I could go with sikaflex again. It is expensive and has a very short shelf life. I could use 3M 5200, which was recommended by Todd to bond the canopy. Yahoo RV listers have advocated 3m Scotchweld 2216B. Any experience with any of these?
Thanks, as usual for all the help I get here.
,
Michael Wynn
RV 8 Finishing
San Ramon, CA