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Tilt Up Canopy Locks

Radioflyer

Radioflyer

Well Known Member
I'm not too familiar with how the tilt up canopy is locked. I recently saw a video where the pilot was flying with the overhead roll-bar lock apparently undone. Then I saw an RV6A with tilt up canopy that had the fuselage side lock and the overhead locking handle. Are these redundant or are both required?
 
Radioflyer said:
I'm not too familiar with how the tilt up canopy is locked. I recently saw a video where the pilot was flying with the overhead roll-bar lock apparently undone. Then I saw an RV6A with tilt up canopy that had the fuselage side lock and the overhead locking handle. Are these redundant or are both required?
Click to expand...
Both are required.
 
Yes, both!

When the tilt up canopy opens in flight, results vary everywhere from inconvenient to fatal. Happened to my wife in our RV-6 when she was flying a Young Eagle and the airplane pitched down so violently that her headset went overboard. She was left to hold the canopy with one hand, fly the plane with one hand and try to retrieve the headset with one hand. After getting the airplane stabilized, she got the headset back inside but it was broken. Could not get the canopy latched again. Landed safely but OMG. Canopy closures are A Big Inspection Item for me on any tilt up RV. That said, the RV-12 does fine on just the center latch.
 
JDeanda said:
When the tilt up canopy opens in flight, results vary everywhere from inconvenient to fatal. Happened to my wife in our RV-6 when she was flying a Young Eagle and the airplane pitched down so violently that her headset went overboard. She was left to hold the canopy with one hand, fly the plane with one hand and try to retrieve the headset with one hand. After getting the airplane stabilized, she got the headset back inside but it was broken. Could not get the canopy latched again. Landed safely but OMG. Canopy closures are A Big Inspection Item for me on any tilt up RV. That said, the RV-12 does fine on just the center latch.
Click to expand...

Wow, scary to even read about. Glad I asked.
 
RV7: roll bar latch not used except for cooling during taxi. I have forgotten to secure the side latch the side on a couple of occasions. The canopy opens 1/4” with a tiny bit more ambient noise. What’s that noise? It can be closed and latched easily by slowing down and increasing AOA. Slight inconvenience but definitely not a catastrophe.
 

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Floog said:
RV7: roll bar latch not used except for cooling during taxi. I have forgotten to secure the side latch the side on a couple of occasions. The canopy opens 1/4” with a tiny bit more ambient noise. What’s that noise? It can be closed and latched easily by slowing down and increasing AOA. Slight inconvenience but definitely not a catastrophe.
Click to expand...

That roll bar latch mostly definitely should be used in flight as a safety back-up.
 
Mel said:
That roll bar latch mostly definitely should be used in flight as a safety back-up.
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Mel is absolutely correct.

Recently I replaced the weather strip on my tip-up crash bar/canopy interface, but used stripping that was a hair too thick. I thought I had pulled the canopy down fully before locking the side handle, but the left side hook disengaged just after lift-off. The closed top handle kept the canopy from opening.

Another time, I missed closing both latches before takeoff (human factors: Distraction and Checklist Discipline). On liftoff, the canopy opened about 2 inches, and I could not pull it down due to internal/external air pressures. I throttled back a bit and climbed straight ahead several hundred feet, then bunted the nose down slightly. This put enough air pressure directly on the front and front-top face of the windscreen to push the canopy down. I then could latch the side and top latches. My Before Takeoff flows changed from that point on.
 
Important point

scrollF4 said:
Mel is absolutely correct.

Recently I replaced the weather strip on my tip-up crash bar/canopy interface, but used stripping that was a hair too thick. I thought I had pulled the canopy down fully before locking the side handle, but the left side hook disengaged just after lift-off. The closed top handle kept the canopy from opening.

Another time, I missed closing both latches before takeoff (human factors: Distraction and Checklist Discipline). On liftoff, the canopy opened about 2 inches, and I could not pull it down due to internal/external air pressures. I throttled back a bit and climbed straight ahead several hundred feet, then bunted the nose down slightly. This put enough air pressure directly on the front and front-top face of the windscreen to push the canopy down. I then could latch the side and top latches. My Before Takeoff flows changed from that point on.
Click to expand...
Sid/scrollF4 makes a good point here for those of you with new-2-you tippers. That is: the hook latches must engage fully and without forcing. The teardrop seals specified by Vans are a low force to seal but foam compression seals are NOT.

I had the same issue as Sid, and found that if too tight, the lock/hold mechanism will be forced and may not close fully. The "hook" is shaped to be self energized when fully closed and air loads are applied. So - be sure yours is adjusted properly and remove/replace lower rail seals as needed. Even with the safety handle closed it is a rude awakening when it pops open 40 ft off the runway as you reach climb speed. I will guarantee that you will never forget to secure the latch properly again.
 
Radioflyer said:
I'm not too familiar with how the tilt up canopy is locked. I recently saw a video where the pilot was flying with the overhead roll-bar lock apparently undone. Then I saw an RV6A with tilt up canopy that had the fuselage side lock and the overhead locking handle. Are these redundant or are both required?
Click to expand...

If that video was the same one I saw where a beautiful new RV goes up for a first flight….all I could see was that unlatched top handle!
 
From my RV6 builders manual the top canopy handle serves several purposes, one of which is to provide a safety latch:

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I for one can tell you that a canopy opening in flight is really NO big deal. Yes the plane pitches down a bit, But, not scarry
I took off once with out it latched
Opened up just at lift off. went to altitude, slowed down with full flaps as slow as I could go and was able to latch the canopy.
Second time I was tooling along at 7500 feet WOT and pow it popped open again. Slowed down as before and relatched the little sucker.
NOW, I took some time and fixed it right
It ain't no big deal.
Instructor says FLY THE PLANE when #^*%$( happens, (remember????)
Your luck may vary Art
 
so if you don't have this safety latch in place to catch the canopy at just a crack open.... what happens?....does the canopy open wide from aerodynamic pressures?

or is it more like a door in a cessna, and the relative wind holds it nearly closed? (non-event)
 
Blw2 said:
so if you don't have this safety latch in place to catch the canopy at just a crack open.... what happens?....does the canopy open wide from aerodynamic pressures?

or is it more like a door in a cessna, and the relative wind holds it nearly closed? (non-event)
Click to expand...
It opens a couple inches and stays there. No problem controlling the airplane. To latch it either slow seup and pitch up a bit, then secure the latch……or land and do it. Either way the airplane is very controllable.
 
Brantel said:
If that video was the same one I saw where a beautiful new RV goes up for a first flight….all I could see was that unlatched top handle!
Click to expand...

Yep, that’s the video I saw. Me too…couldn’t forget the latch not locked fore-aft.
 
Tip up RV7 canopy roll bar safety latch and hot weather

I am a fairly new owner of an RV7 with a tip-up canopy. During taxi during hot weather, I have used the safety roll-bar latch to hold the canopy open by resting the latch on top of the roll bar. However, this is scratching my paint and also has caused the canopy to "fall off" of the roll bar once or twice. Is there a good way to keep the canopy open a crack or rest the safety roll bar latch on the roll bar during taxi without scratching the paint? One friend suggested gluing a small piece of old inner tube rubber to the latch to provide some friction so that the latch does not slip off of the rollbar. Does anyone have any other suggestions?
 
I put a strip of thin mylar on the roll bar edge where the handle latch rest when in the taxi position with double sided tape. Hardly noticeable and protects the paint.
As a sailplane buddy for a piece. Its the stuff they use to seal the control gaps.

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