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CG Testing

MED

MED

Well Known Member
What are folks using as ballast when testing for CG? I suppose something dense that won't "flow" and would be easy to get into the baggage compartment? Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.
 
MED said:
What are folks using as ballast when testing for CG? I suppose something dense that won't "flow" and would be easy to get into the baggage compartment? Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.
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40lb bags of water softener salt worked for me. Have also used bags of sand.
 
Bags of dogfood. Bags of kitty litter (oil absorbent). Suitcases or duffel bags loaded with cast iron weights. Bags of water. Cases of bottled water. Bags of steel or lead shot. I shy away from flammables like cases of motor oil.

More work, but if you're up for it and have a truck or trailer, buy 1,000 lbs of play sand at the local bulk landscape supplier and bag it yourself. It is cheap that way.

All of these things should be properly secured.
 
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Sugar

Believe it or not, 25lb bags of sugar was the cheapest per lb I could find when doing mine. And it was easy to find and easy to get rid of when I was done.
 
Thanks to all for the suggestions. It looks like almost any dense (or sweet :D) stuff has worked. I guess I was concerned about it shifting aft during stall testing as I have not installed tie-downs, but the deck angles must not be too high.
 
Tie it down!

If you get into a spin, the stuff will certainly find a new place. The std RV wing stalls at about 21 deg, so you?re starting out with a fair angle...if it rolls over, you?ll be wearing that ballast. Best to tie it down.

Be careful!
 
I bought 40 and 60 lb bags of water softener salt from Home Depot Aviation Supply, and I kept the receipt. 3x 60 lb bags placed/strapped down next to me (passenger seat removed) equaled a 180 lb passenger. A 40 lb plus a 60 lb bag equaled the 100 lb max cargo weight behind the seat. Each bag went into its own tightly-tied trash bag to keep free salt out of my airplane. Strap 'em down!

When I was finished, I returned it all to Home Depot. Free ballast! :cool:
 
To continue the theme of using the Home Depot aviation department I used 40lbs bags of mulch. I needed the mulch for the house so I killed 2 birds with one stone.

Day to day I use a 5 gal collapsible camping water ?cube? as ballast when I?m light.
 
I went with bags of concrete..."Quikrete" brand at Lowe's, $3.25 for a 60 lb. bag. Very dense; a 60-lb. bag is pretty compact! Probably a good idea to put them inside plastic trash bags, so a tear in the paper bag won't make a mess.
 
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