What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

Protecting flap paint during retraction

T

Tim Lewis

Well Known Member
Are those of you with flying RV-10s protecting the leading edge of the flap from being scratched as the flap slides against the underside of the wing top skin during flap retraction? I used UHMW tape on the flap in my RV-6, but I don't like the way the UHMW tape cracked over the years.

Thanks,

Tim Lewis
RV-6A N47TD, 1070 hrs
RV-10 N31TD - painting done!
 
Tape underside

Tim

I found that the tape cracked quite quickly from UV. The two solutions I've seen are to:
- tape the underside of the skin rather than the flap
- buy good quality leading edge tape (expensive)

Peter
 
Todd, Peter,

Thanks for your suggestions. I heard the "UHMW to underside of wing skin" recommendation from several RV-10 builders at OSH this week. That's what I'll do.

Tim
 
Not sure what you are REALLY worried about........ we have no problems! And no tape etc etc etc
 
FWIW, I did both sides, under the wing overlap and on the flap leading edge. Flap seems to retract and extend very smoothly with no scratching. Not flying yet but the tape's been on for over a year and the flaps have been run up and down many times. Just used a 1/4" overlap with the flaps retracted (cosmetics!) so that just a sliver of the tape shows when they are up.

Another idea might be to tape extension marks (10 degrees, 20 degrees) far enough out on the flap that you can see them from the cockpit and then put the flap tape over them, sealing them in. Good reference for a takeoff setting for short field takeoffs or a minimum flap setting for crosswind landings. etc. etc.


Lee...
 
Stainless Steel Tape

I put stainless steel tape on the leading edge of the flap and the plastic tape on the underside of the wing skin. No problem in over 5 years but I do see traces where contact is made during the flap deployment and retraction so Bare paint would get worn. You are right to be concerned.

Bob Axsom
 
flap scratching

I found out about using a strip of felt (thin) under the trailing edge of the wing skin from an old friend. It eliminates scratching and seals the gap.
walmart sells sheets of felt with adhesive already on it. Just cut into strips.

warren arter
rv-6,7A,8 and now 10
 
Try This

On large aircraft we use Teflon filled polyurethane paint on the flap rub areas. It is the same color as the base coat so doesn't show up more than a few feet away. Same color, but a slight texture difference. Any of the aircraft paint suppliers should be able to fix you up.
 
I found that the tape wanted to peel/roll whn put on the underside of the skin. The cause turned out to be a small area of tape edge had some adhesive and this made it stick to the flap as it came up. I ended up putting it on the LE of the flap after my right flap started to stall the flap motor because the tape was strong enough to hold it to the skin for a few seconds.
 
logansc said:
Another idea might be to tape extension marks (10 degrees, 20 degrees) far enough out on the flap that you can see them from the cockpit and then put the flap tape over them, sealing them in. Good reference for a takeoff setting for short field takeoffs or a minimum flap setting for crosswind landings. etc. etc.


Lee...
Click to expand...

An old trick for setting flaps for short/soft field takeoffs is to deflect an aileron full down and set flaps to match. That is very close to the optimum flap setting for a max performance launch in the two-place RV's and would probably work well with the -10 even though the flaps are designed differently.

For a time I had degree markings on a flap but never found a need to look at them.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top