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Plenum Kit options

B

b432291

Active Member
I have the Sam James cowl and plenum baffle kit.

At the time I bought it, the plenum kit was a piece of fiberglass and some fullsize drawings that you made the metalwork from. This did not turn out well for me.

Are there any other options for a ready to assemble plenum baffle kit?

Ted
 
O-360 straight valve, carburated, I do not believe its a long cowl, fixed pitch Catto prop with 1.5" (I think) extension.

I have no issues (or install issues) with the James Cowl & carb intake, which I intend to keep, but those metal rings I would like to connect to something else.

Ted
 
Plenums

Ted,
I did the SJ cowl/Plenum/intake for my -6.
I was happy with the cowling and intake parts/instructions.
But the plenum fit and paper cut out plans for the baffling were very poor.
I did buy the Vans baffling kit and had several unused pieces but the computer cut pieces are wonderful to work with. You do have to do fiberglass work to get the plenum to fit correctly as well. How much is up to you and what you will accept as acceptable.

I wish there was a KIT that was bolt on. I do not know of one.
 
Bob, I'm right there with you. Looking for a plenum kit with Van's level fit and finish. Maybe VAF as a group could come up with a design or two and use it towards VAF expenses.
I (my own opinion here) would like VAF to host all the photos and files (and maybe that happens now) so they don't disappear when the links go stale in a few years. But that costs $$$ in equipment and increased bandwidth. Quite expensive.
 
b432291 said:
Bob, I'm right there with you. Looking for a plenum kit with Van's level fit and finish. Maybe VAF as a group could come up with a design or two and use it towards VAF expenses.
I (my own opinion here) would like VAF to host all the photos and files (and maybe that happens now) so they don't disappear when the links go stale in a few years. But that costs $$$ in equipment and increased bandwidth. Quite expensive.
Click to expand...

Matronics has been hosting it's own photos for years, supported only by donations. Almost all other forums host their own photos, including automotive forums that have much higher traffic than any aviation forum.

I guess since it's Texas, the expenses are bigger, like everything else.
 
b432291 said:
Bob, I'm right there with you. Looking for a plenum kit with Van's level fit and finish. Maybe VAF as a group could come up with a design or two and use it towards VAF expenses.
I (my own opinion here) would like VAF to host all the photos and files (and maybe that happens now) so they don't disappear when the links go stale in a few years. But that costs $$$ in equipment and increased bandwidth. Quite expensive.
Click to expand...

What is needed is a mold. Several people have used the Van's top cowl as a form to make a throw away fiberglass plenum top. From that they make a wood form box that is identical to the installed baffles. The throw away piece of fiberglass is than the bottom of the box. Some prep to make the inside smooth and you have a plenum mold. The problem is these are all one off.

I used the James cowl and plenum on the RV-10 and made the baffles per the James instructions to fit the plenum. Not all that hard and I recommend the products. For the RV-8 project however I decided to stay with the Van's cowl and make a plenum. I'll do the above procedure. I'll see how hard it is to make a reusable mold if anyone is interested.

I suspect the hardest part is making the transition from the plenum to the cowl inlets. The James Cowl rings and plenum make this easy. I'm stealing ideas from others that have made a plenum for the stock cowl.

Carl
 
Mould

It's a pity you are not in the UK, I made my own plenum and have a Mould.

I used the Van's baffle kit as a starting point and the plenum top is screwed to this. I reshaped the cowl with 5 inch circular intakes and used neoprene to join the cowl to the plenum.


It works very well.
 
Multiple Molds

Carl Froehlich said:
What is needed is a mold.
Carl
Click to expand...

I will be back making some parts in 6 months if enough people need them. For now I have to finish my airplane. The following molds are for parallel valve, RV7, long cowl. Don't know about the clearance for the short cowl. Some checking would be in order. The cover has a stiffening core, post curing to 250F and is vacuum infused. The inlets are layups with vacuum bagging. The total weight is about equal to the baffle material roll provided with the baffle kit.

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One inlet:
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Plenum Cover - Post cured part is darker.
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Last edited:
Bill,
I can go measure my SJ cowl tonight, what is the key dimension for short cowl/long cowl? If I have a "long cowl" quite interested in sending some C-notes for a copy of those most beautiful parts. Are you using Vans parts for the metalwork, or making your own?
Ted
 
b432291 said:
Bill,
I can go measure my SJ cowl tonight, what is the key dimension for short cowl/long cowl? If I have a "long cowl" quite interested in sending some C-notes for a copy of those most beautiful parts. Are you using Vans parts for the metalwork, or making your own?
Ted
Click to expand...

Ted, I sent PM (email) if you can send me one, it will give me your email. I will email a printable template you can use to check the contour of the cowl at the face of the #1 head/barrel, just in case you might have the short cowl. I don't know how Will shaped that one compared to the longer one.

I used the Vans baffle kit and have templates for making some parts on the front to mate to the plenum. Both sides and back of the Vans baffles are used as well as the under head/cylinder pieces. All mods are related to mating with inlet diffusers.

Meanwhile, just measure the distance from the front face of the head out to the plane of the cooling air inlet. Either side is ok, just tell me which one you measured.
 
Last edited:
Ted, those measurements (VAF and your photo link) are consistent with my SJ (known to be ) long cowl.
 
Thank you Bill.

I do happen to have the Van's Baffle kit, so I guess I'm ready in that regard. Please PM me when (I know you are not able to make parts immediately) and where to send the money...

Ted
 
Ted,
I did the James Plenum on my 0-360 and used the Long Cowl, which looks nicer than the stubby one in my opinion.
I did use the Saber 2.25" extension on the prop.
Vans baffling kit trimmed down and some front end parts not used.
The Engine cooling Plenum does not come in a long cowl version so I had to extend the intakes. I know that is not the best from a design/airflow perspective but it works. (done two of them)
The other mod I did following others before me was to let the plenum overlap the baffling so the screws go in from the top instead of the sides. Much easier to seal two flat surfaces then sliding one in place to screw horizontally.
This was a TON of glass work, not hard, but a lot of work.
I really like the looks of Bill's work and would surely use his parts if available.
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Made mine out of .060 2024 and vans baffle kit for the angle valve, not flying yet but full power run ups the CHTs are with in 10 deg, 380
20160521_1126020_zpsiyxpliiv.jpg
 
Ted, I purchased a Plenum kit from Bill and have to say the quality, design, fit and finish are outstanding. The Van's plenum side metal works great with just a few tweaks. Bill provides templates for the two front pieces along with clear directions on putting it all together. You will be very happy with one of Bill's kits, which he sold me for the same price as the Sam James plenum, which requires a lot of rework.

Frank


Building an RV-7A
 
English Wheel

Bret,
VERY nice work!
Did you use an English Wheel to make those intake transitions from the .060?;)
Seriously, I followed your thread on them...nice work.:D

You did install a 1/4 turn very far up front. I stayed back a few inches for fear I could not flex the top cowl over it that close to the front.
 
Diffusers, glass, I give Dan H all the credit for all the stuff he has written over the years, I just hope I built them on par with his theories. On the Skybolts, the first two do not have the retaining ring installed for that reason, I just pull the first two out when removing the upper cowl.
 
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