What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Question on pitot mast location

flyenforfun

flyenforfun

Well Known Member
Hey I wanted to ask about the location of the pitot mast for those who have something like the dynon AOA pitot tube. I bought the safeair1 mount and am trying to determine where to locate it. The instructions say to mount outboard of the bell crank inspection plate, and it seems that most people are putting it in this location. Has this caused any issues with tie down ropes? This puts the pitot mast outboard of the tie down ring and it just seems like I will always have problems keeping the tie downs from hitting my pitot. Has anyone put this mast inboard of the bell crank inspection plate? Is there any reason I shouldnt do this? Too close to the control rod?

Thanks for the help.

-Matt
 
No issues

Just working on the wings, but no clearance issues at all with the tie down. The tie down is 8 inches to the left of the the pitot mast. The tie down hole is closer to the inboard part of the wing that the pitot mast is..

Cheers,

Don
 
Matt,

I installed my safeair mast just like Don did. I have tied my aircraft down a few times since I have been flying and although it is "near" the pitot, it isn't a concern or issue for me.

As for the safeair pitot mast, I am sure you have seen the service bulletin for them??? Mine was the batch that is prone to cracks in the weld, I have been checking it and have found no cracks yet. But, once the warm weather comes I will take safeair up on their offer and swap it out for the new upgrade mast.
 
Don Patrick said:
Just working on the wings, but no clearance issues at all with the tie down. The tie down is 8 inches to the left of the the pitot mast. The tie down hole is closer to the inboard part of the wing that the pitot mast is..

Cheers,

Don
Click to expand...

I mean when you land at an airport and have to tie the plane down, do you think the rope will go right across your pitot mast.
 
SmilingJack said:
Matt,

I installed my safeair mast just like Don did. I have tied my aircraft down a few times since I have been flying and although it is "near" the pitot, it isn't a concern or issue for me.

As for the safeair pitot mast, I am sure you have seen the service bulletin for them??? Mine was the batch that is prone to cracks in the weld, I have been checking it and have found no cracks yet. But, once the warm weather comes I will take safeair up on their offer and swap it out for the new upgrade mast.
Click to expand...

Just ordered it last week. I suppose this would be of the new batch? It appears to be anodized blue if that tells you anything.
 
Yup! The blue is cool:cool: and yellow is .....jello!:confused: Well....you get what I mean, the yellow cracks, I just couldn't think of a good rhyme to tell you the BLUE is the upgraded weld.

And back to the other tied down question. Yes, it comes close, but it works.

I actually like having the access to the pitot tide close to the access panel.

One thing I recently had a minor issue with when timing down my airplane was in KHXD. They have metal cable stretching om one end of the ramp to the other. When you tie down over that cable it lifts up when you tighten the tie down ropes which then lifts this cable and it comes directly under the back end of the wheel pants! You really need to push the aircraft forward so the cable does scrape up under the pants.

Other then that I have used the tie downs in grass with no problem and using the eyebolts in concrete ramps with no issues.
 
Pitot/Mast Position

I was encouraged to see someone else exploring where to position their Dynon heated Pitot/AOA. I have the same Dynon tube for my RV-7A project, and while researching other builder installations I also came across anecdotes regarding concern with interference from tie-down ropes or chains. I eventually came across a solution I?d like to recount to the group.

The standard position for the Van?s pitot in the bay between the 9th and 10th ribs is attractive due to its inspection hatch, but is clearly out of the question for the Dynon product. Moving outboard one bay (between the 10th and 11th ribs) is the next logical installation location. The SafeAir1 instructions say to position their mast in this bay, next to rib #10. Some builders concerned about the interference issue move their installations out closer to the 11th rib, to get further away from the tie-down. But access issues arise the further we get from that inspection hatch in the standard bay next door.

So here?s a solution that appeared to address adequate clearance from tie-downs, and provide a means for service and inspection. If the installation is moved outboard one more bay, between the 11th and 12th ribs, we are sufficiently far enough from the tie-down to avoid interference. And a fourth access hatch could be easily created there by fabricating a hole and cover using a VA-195C hatch doubler and VA-195D cover, as is used in the leading edge stall-warner installation.

I inquired with Van?s support regarding engineering or safety concerns with this type of implementation and got two responses. Both felt the installation would work fine without any structural issues, but stipulated that they had never officially tested a modification like this. However, they also pointed out that plenty of builders have done something similar without apparent ill effects.

I?m kind of not-there-yet, so haven?t pursued this myself, but I would be interested to know to why this wouldn?t be a suitable solution for a Dynon installation.
 
flyenforfun said:
Hey I wanted to ask about the location of the pitot mast for those who have something like the dynon AOA pitot tube. I bought the safeair1 mount and am trying to determine where to locate it. The instructions say to mount outboard of the bell crank inspection plate, and it seems that most people are putting it in this location. Has this caused any issues with tie down ropes? This puts the pitot mast outboard of the tie down ring and it just seems like I will always have problems keeping the tie downs from hitting my pitot. Has anyone put this mast inboard of the bell crank inspection plate? Is there any reason I shouldnt do this? Too close to the control rod?

Thanks for the help.

-Matt
Click to expand...


Different airports have different tie down block spacing. They also don't always park you between them.

Somedays your tiedown will be inboard, some days it'll be out. I wouldn't worry about it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top