Canopy Gap

[RV6AussieNick]

Hi Guys,

I am fitting my second canopy after the unthinkable happened with my first, yep cracked..

I have done a search to see if there is any info on the gap between the fwd tip up and the rear canopy, i did find a post that recommended 1/4in gap to prevent canopy pinching, that seams a bit big, what gaps are others using that have proven not to be a problem with canopy expansion.

I am also interested to see what ways others are finishing off there gaps, covered gap or not, i'm rebuilding my RV6, the canopy originally had a weather shield that covered the gap, i'm thinking of just having a open gap with a internal seal for rain and wind.

Any photo's or suggestions will be a great help.

Cheers,

[robertahegy]

I think my gap was about 1/8". I carefuly fit and polished the edges and used a P-seal held by the edge of the aft section to seal the canopy. You can see the seal as a white strip along the canopy gap. It doesn't pay to go all the way down with the seal as the vertical edge will just shear it off. Water will just shed naturally at that steep angle.

Roberta

[Snowflake]

I'm looking for a solution here too... Mine seems to make a horrific whistle in the passenger's ear in flight. I'm hoping to avoid putting anything on the rear bow, as that's where you hold/sit/slide past when getting in and out. I'm thinking a P-shape piece attached to the underside of the plexiglas at the rear of the tip-up portion would work... Carefully placed so it rubs against the front face of the rear bow when it's closed. This could also run all the way down to the longerons without being at risk of binding as the canopy closes.

My rear bow on the tip-up portion is held to the plexiglas with screws and nylocks, so I could possibly use them to help anchor, rather than rely on an adhesive which will soften in the sun.

[bkthomps]

sikaflex and don't primer the areas you don't want to to stick to

[bruceh]

On the RV-7,9 plans DWG 49, Section C-C it shows the gap between the 2 parts of the canopy as 1/32".

[Rupester]

... sitting out in the sun the Plexi expands and your canopy will be sealed tightly shut. This has happened to more than one RVer at fly-ins and such. when I did mine, I found a fair amount of info in past posts that said 1/16" absolute minimum ( and some say that's insufficient), but closer to 1/8" is better.

[RV6AussieNick]

Thanks guys for your input, Roberta I like the clean look of your canopy, where did you get your p seal from, how big is the bulb,

Cheers,

[Rupester]

...but Roberta's P-seal looks like the one from Vans ... the one they sell for the front edge of the T-U canopy. The one I got from Vans is white in color and looks to be the same size/dimensions.