Aft Canopy Seal?

[Noah]

Is there supposed to be any type of seal between the rollbar and the canopy in a tipup RV-7/9? I could find no reference to a seal on any drawing or in the manual. If not, what prevents the wind from whipping around and whistling through there? What keeps the rain out? What keeps the canopy bottom from being scratched if it simply rides on the metal rollbar?

[USCANAM]

Noah
If you'd come to the open house last month, all your questions would have been answered by seeing our tip up.
Found this shot taken during construction. We fabricated a metal strip to cover the join.

By USCANAM
We'll make a special tour for you and Fred anytime.
Jack

[Noah]

Thanks for the response Jack, and sorry we couldn't make the open house - I had a family get together I couldn't get out of. Your photo shows a Targa Strip, no? Any type of seal used with it?

For those of you not using a Targa strip, do you find the cockpit drafty due to a lack of a seal at the aft canopy? Whistley (is that even a word ) ? Where does the water go that enters the gap between the canopy and the window? Wouldn't it drain into the baggage compartment ??

[flion]

I think it depends largely on your canopy attachment. Attaching the canopy to the roll bar directly would leave you little room for any seal material; maybe just a thin strip to keep from scratching. I went with Sika, so there is some space between the roll bar and the front canopy for seal. But I still went with the 'targa' strip to cover the gap for aesthetic reasons as much as extra sealing. It was a simple matter to do a glass strip; you can see what I did at http://www.flion.com/flionwiki/index.php5?title=Canopy