[flybye]

The height of the front of the fairing is above the vertical section of the leg. The fiberglass is in contact with the 45 degree upper section.This means that the diameter of the hole I would need to cut is much greater than if the fairing was lower. I used a 7/8in spacer on top of the tire as per the plans and the distance aft of the axle is correct at 16". Lowering the fairing would work but can I afford to reduce that spacing with the tire at the top? Another option is to build an extension to the bottom end of the nose gear leg fairing that would conceal the hole. Are there any other solutions out there?

 

[647jc]

From your pictures it appears the pant is sitting way too high in relation to the tire. Are you sure the spacing from the top of the tire to the pant is correct and that you are using the right size tire? Way too much of the tire is also exposed below the pant. I'll include a picture of mine for comparison.

 

[flybye]

Fairing height

Joe,
The spacing between the tire and the fairing is according to plans at 7/8in yet it looks as though I need to come down by 3/4in for the fairing to be cleared at the front to pivot around the vertical part of the gear leg. I'm going to Sun-n Fun next week so I'll get a chance to make comparisons.

 

[panheadmark]

Did this two weeks ago...

I put a very small 7/8 inch piece of foam on the center of the tire and mine came out much lower than your photo. I also riveted the brackets to the pant.

Mark
9A #91317

 

[Greg Arehart]

And you will have to trim a considerable amount of the fairing around the tire where the tire comes out the bottom.

greg

 

[BigglesRV7A]

Robin,

Did you level your fuselage (longerons) and then set-up the rear pant section according to the plans. I cannot recall the measurement to the horizontal centre line on both sides of the pant section though it was in the order of 6 inches at the centre of the trailing edge. It appears this is not the case in your photo and may account for the 'tip-up' effect at the front of the pant. Take a good look at the plans for this. Also from memory what I found useful was a 'dimple' where the axle location would be. If the pant is aligned correctly this will sit directly over the centre of the axle location though you do not drill this out at all. I then drew a line (using masking tape) from the centre of the trailing edhe of the pant (vertical section of ~2") through this dimple mark to the front of the pant. May be worth your while checking this as from your photo it is certainly not normal to have this positioning.

Greg (Down Under RV-7A)

 

[gasman]

Joe,
The spacing between the tire and the fairing is according to plans at 7/8in yet it looks as though I need to come down by 3/4in for the fairing to be cleared at the front to pivot around the vertical part of the gear leg. I'm going to Sun-n Fun next week so I'll get a chance to make comparisons.

Are you sure that you have the correct tire mounted for the nose wheel?

 

[flybye]

Robin,

Did you level your fuselage (longerons) and then set-up the rear pant section according to the plans. I cannot recall the measurement to the horizontal centre line on both sides of the pant section though it was in the order of 6 inches at the centre of the trailing edge. It appears this is not the case in your photo and may account for the 'tip-up' effect at the front of the pant. Take a good look at the plans for this. Also from memory what I found useful was a 'dimple' where the axle location would be. If the pant is aligned correctly this will sit directly over the centre of the axle location though you do not drill this out at all. I then drew a line (using masking tape) from the centre of the trailing edhe of the pant (vertical section of ~2") through this dimple mark to the front of the pant. May be worth your while checking this as from your photo it is certainly not normal to have this positioning.

Greg (Down Under RV-7A)

Greg, Yes the setup follows the drawing, fairing is 6 13/16 above ground at the aft tip, axle is 5 1/2 above ground which would indicate that the tire type and inflation are correct, longerons are level and there's no weight on the tire. Also, I've a question about the line you describe, the drawing shows that the mid point of the trailing edge is above the axle height by 1 5/16
so I'm not sure how such a line could be used in positioning the fairing. The only way I can lower the front of the fairing is by reducing the clearance to the tire to less than the recommended 7/8in.
Thanks for the comments.

 

[Janekom]

Here is mine as well - just to confirm.

I would re check all measurements and decrease the size of the spacer block.
Good luck.

 

[BigglesRV7A]

Robin,

The rear starting point for the line was the 6-7/8" point on the plans. Do you have the dimple in the rear spat which confrims location of axle. Is this dimple over the axle? Failing this I would check with Vans directly as I'm sure they would have had this question previously.

Greg

 

[flybye]

Advice from Vans

They suggest reducing the tire clearance. Not keen on this solution but we have to do what works. I'll also need to tip up the aft end to make it all fit.


Hey Greg, I used to work at the Peter MacCallum Clinic Melbourne in the 80's. You have it all there - brings back great memories.

 

[L.Adamson]

They suggest reducing the tire clearance. Not keen on this solution but we have to do what works. I'll also need to tip up the aft end to make it all fit.

You're wheel pant still looks about 1" farther back, than pics from others. With everyone using the same product, and apparent success..............I'd stand back and look at the big picture again, before making compromises.

Here is a pic of the 9A that I've flown.

 

[Greg Arehart]

Perhaps a stupid question, but is there any chance you have the fork mounted upside down or something else incorrectly placed that would make the wheel too high? (Maybe look at the plans and confirm that the welding was done correctly? possible they welded it upside down also) Looking again at you image, it is clear that by the time you shift the fairing down enough to clear the gear leg, it will be rubbing the tire, so there must be some fundamental issue here. And I agree that the fairing looks a bit far aft, but that is unlikely to be causing such a huge problem. I'd call Vans if there still is no obvious solution.

greg

 

[Pilottonny]

Main gear fairing?

From the stop-screws in the top of the fork you can see that he has the fork the right way up. How would a wrongly welded fork pass inspection? You are not using a main gear fairing are you?

Regards, Tonny.

 

[BigglesRV7A]

Robin,

You still haven't said where the 'dimple' in the sides of your fairing is located. This should be right at axle position if you have everything aligned. I did reduce the height of the spacer on top of my tyre to achieve this though not by much. I am not home for another 10 days however can email a picture then if you would like.

PS I live in Gippsland....220klms East of Melbourne and a great place to fly.

Cheers, Greg

 

[flybye]

Dimple alignment

Robin,

You still haven't said where the 'dimple' in the sides of your fairing is located. This should be right at axle position if you have everything aligned. I did reduce the height of the spacer on top of my tyre to achieve this though not by much. I am not home for another 10 days however can email a picture then if you would like.

PS I live in Gippsland....220klms East of Melbourne and a great place to fly.

Cheers, Greg

I hadn't noticed those dimples but they measure 6 in above the floor. If they are supposed to be at axle height, that makes the fairing 1/2 in too high. I did discover that the mounting brackets are pressing very firmly against the fairing. This splays out the FG and tends to lift the front. I have bent them closer to the wheel which brought the front down by 3/16 in. If I use a 1/2 in spacer on top of the tire and raise the aft end of the fairing 1/4 in, I have a setup that has the fairing touching the leg where it should, on the vertical section. This should work, albeit with reduced tire clearance.