A possible 'simple' solution!
Hey folks,
I have not forgotten about the tests we all discussed a few weeks back, the data points sent to me, and nor have I forgotten about the generosity of the college teacher and his aviation students who volunteered to conduct the tests.
However, I recently found out that there may be a really easy solution to the problem at hand. While a l do a huge amount of in-house manufacturing (vacuum-forming, assembly, etc), all of my acrylic and polycarbonate work is done by another facility. Think of the included rear -12 window that Van's provides: that is precision cut-out, on a VERY expensive multi-axis CNC router. While I haven't seen the Van's rear windows being made, it is the exact same final result that I have produced for my windshields that we manufacture. Anyway, I don't wish to dole out hundreds of thousands for the CNC when I can have it done by someone already owning the machines. Let me give you a quick background on where I am heading with all this nonsense, that so far has nothing to do with fuel on an RV-12 window:
I recently was courted by the largest acrylic and polycarbonate producer in the world. They were formerly known as GE Plastics (if that tells you anything about their size) until they bought the company from GE and changed the name. I was anticipating this meeting with the new company for almost 2-weeks, and planned to ask about the fueling issues on the polycarbonate as soon as we hashed out all the details of my business. I was speaking to the GM of the facility, surrounded by engineers, and when I told them the RV-12 issue, and he immediately said "That's a no-brainer. That's a simple fix!" He proceeded to rattle off a part number of some product that seemed like it was 20-digits long. Of course I[had no idea what product he was referring to. But as he elaborated, he said to think of any gas pump in America. All the signage on the pumps, let's say where a pump may say 'TEXACO'....that's polycarbonate material. And it is final-covered in the material I was told about. Think of an actual gas pump being subjected to fuel for years, yet you never see any signage on the pumps that is crazed or distorted.
The solution he mentioned is exactly what some folks proposed early on: it's a clear specialty film that can be applied to the polycabonate sheet, in the area that would possibly be splashed by fuel. It wouldn't need to cover the entire rear window. I was told it is crystal clear, and while it would be easier to apply it with the back window still flat, it would be possible to apply the material once the window is bent and installed. I was told that the film is a highly specialized substrate, with a specialty adhesive backing. I asked if it was similar to a window tint, and was told yes, but that fuel would melt a typical window tint film in a heartbeat.
So here's what I'm now proposing we do: they ordered me a sample sheet of this specialty material, and I should have it within a few weeks. They didn't stock it in their Dallas facility. I will send this new material up to the college (testing) folks, along with the samples of scrap polycarbonate. We will find out VERY quickly if it performs as stated, but I have tremendous faith in the guys that told me it was THE solution to the problem.
If it works, I would think that Van's could possibly look at providing a small die-cut piece of this material with the kit, and the problem of the window crazing talk will quickly diminish? We will see. I will notify Van's of our findings. If it performs flawlessly, I will see what I can do about being able to provide the material to folks who already have their pink slips. For those (like me) still building, we'd need to ask Mel or one of the other DAR's if we can apply it before installing the window. It's what I would consider purely 'cosmetic', but I don't know the specific rule that the Feds require the DAR's to follow. I'll also gladly provide the magic part number / manufacturer of this material, once I get it. Then while the tests are being done, perhaps we can do some online research of the product in the interim.
Really sorry for the loooong post, guys. But I wanted to fully explain where we are at, and let you know the solution sounds extremely promising.
Take care,