[Tandemdad]

I'm a new RV7 owner and was at the avionics shop and the technician took off the access panel in front of the windshield to look at avionics. He mentioned something about "strange that no gasket on this plate" and mentioned that I might want to have it covered up if sitting outside in the rain. the plate has ALOT of screws holding it down. has anyone had any issues with water seeping through this access panel dripping on the avionics?

 

[uk_figs]

There are some threads on here about this and multiple suggestions from a thin Vaseline coating to blue RTV etc. I can attest that it does drip a little when flying through rain with no sealant and I use a Bruce's cover that covers that area when parked outside. I am hangered and generally don't fly into rain (catto prop) but do plan to do the vaseline trick during the condition inspection this year.
Figs

 

[scard]

I agree with the avionics tech's comment. Yes, you should do some kind of form in place gasket. Do some searching, most of us have done it.
(Having flown in a lot of rain with a RV9A with forward access panels)

 

[Desert Rat]

There's lots of ways to do it, but the installation instructions for those panels have you create a gasket from fuel tank sealer. You apply the sealant, then a layer of plastic wrap (Saran Wrap) to act as a mold release then screw the panels down. Once the sealer dries you remove the panels and peel off the Saran Wrap, leaving a permanent gasket thats been formed in place.

 

[planenutz]

There's lots of ways to do it, but the installation instructions for those panels have you create a gasket from fuel tank sealer. You apply the sealant, then a layer of plastic wrap (Saran Wrap) to act as a mold release then screw the panels down. Once the sealer dries you remove the panels and peel off the Saran Wrap, leaving a permanent gasket thats been formed in place.

This.

You don't need to get too carried away with the sealant otherwise the panels can be very difficult to remove later and you can deform them peeling them up. I only placed sealant around the outside rim (1/4") and didn't seal under the screws as they can have a dab as you put them in, if necessary.

 

[mburch]

DanH had a great idea for this area, which I copied successfully.