Wheel pant question

[uk_figs]

Now I have some hours on the engine and temps have stabilized I am working on the wheel pants, I notice on a number of builder photo's that there is a hole on the outside which I assumed was for access to the retaining bolt but according to the drawings this bolt is safety wired to the cotter pin so you still have to remove the front half to get the bolt off.
Also how do people get to the tire valve (it seems like I have to add pressure frequently) with the pants on

 

[Janekom]

Dave, The holes are to get to the valve by means of a flexible extension tube. You might need a valve cap removal tool as well if you choose to leave the caps on. On the second RV7A we built, we have decided to make no holes and rather take the front half of the pant off to get to the valve.

 

[Ironflight]

I'm like Jan - I take the front half of the wheel pant off to get at my tire valve. I use Michelin Air Stop tubes, and rarely have to even check my pressure more than once every 3-4 months, which is when I have to flip the tires on the rims anyway.

Louise's -6 has access holes in the pants, with "button plugs" to close them out. With a long air fill adapter, that works OK as well.

Paul

 

[Rick6a]

......how do people get to the tire valve (it seems like I have to add pressure frequently) with the pants on

I installed spring loaded covers on the wheepants and I am glad I did. I do (mostly) use em BUT there is another side to that coin.

One thing about the real world utility of using a tire valve extention thru a small hole in the wheel pant: It can sometimes be a pain to locate the tire valve hidden deep inside the wheel pant and align the valve with the hole in the pant. You almost always have to move the aircraft forward or backward to some degree to get the valve to line up with the hole. Repeat the process for each tire. On occasion, it is easier to simply remove the forward half of the wheel pant to access the valve, especially when the alternative is crouching or laying under the wing atop cold soaked concrete or parked outside. Like so many other elective choices, personal preference is yours to decide.

 

[Jeff Vaughan]

Wheel Pant tip

Pierre Smith gave me a tip which I will pass on.

When the valve is lined up with the hole mark the tire with a small white mark that lines up to the split in the wheel pant halves. Next time you need to fill the tires line the mark up to the split and presto the valve is lined up with the hole.

Thanks again Pierre for the tip

 

[BillSchlatterer]

How about the nose wheel pant tow bar holes ?

Wondering if anyone is doing anything special about the holes used for the tow bar. It seems most are adding some washers to the bolts to lessen the chance of it slipping off, but man,,.. those big holes on each side look draggy and a little unfinished.

If you put the spring loaded covers on the holes, does the paint chip, or are they hard to use ???

Any other thoughts about the tow bar holes?

Thanks Bill S
7a finishing

 

[uk_figs]

Access the tire valve

I decided to drill the access hole today and it is in a similar location to Rick's picture, went to Napa auto parts store to get an extension to be able to put air in tire and found no such thing the only extension that would come close to working had a swivel nut on the end which would require a wrench to tighten, not very practical through a 3/4 inch hole. I guess an aircraft spruce search is in my future.
I test flew after installing the pants (gear leg fairings not yet installed) and the ball seems to be off just a fraction to the left requiring a pound or two of pressure to center. Any tips to correct this or do I wait until the fairings are installed to check final trim? (or am I being way too anal)

 

[kevinh]

I test flew after installing the pants (gear leg fairings not yet installed) and the ball seems to be off just a fraction to the left requiring a pound or two of pressure to center. Any tips to correct this or do I wait until the fairings are installed to check final trim? (or am I being way too anal)

I think you should adjust the pant position to get rid of the yaw they added. Otherwise when you add the leg fairings you might inadvertently add a yaw that 'straightens' things out but you would be adding unneeded drag.

I had the same problem and it is pretty easy to get them all straight before going to the leg fairings. tweak, fly, tweak, fly...

 

[Janekom]

Dave, Here in South Africa most big truck tyre companies have those flexible extensions in stock. Sorry to hear you cannot get it there/

 

[Bob Axsom]

Holes are not required except for tires

I do not have any open holes in my wheel fairings except to allow the minimum necessary tire to stick out for ground operations (see photos). Every three or four weeks I have to add air to the tires and the mains only require that the forward portion of the fairing be removed. The entire nose wheel fairing needs to be removed for adding air. I do not use a tow bar - with a little practice it is not necessary.

Bob Axsom

 

[uk_figs]

tweaking the pants

Kevin
When you tweaked the pants did you just redrill the holes in the pants that match to the inside (brake side) bracket?. Was there a particular orientation that you found that introduced the yaw. I followed the instructions ref the alignment but it was awkward to snap lines and measure the lateral dimensions accurately.