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Wheels canted in

JDA_BTR

Well Known Member
I am wrapping up the cowling and looking at the gear fairing instructions. The wings are not on yet. My wheels are true fore/aft but they are further out at the top and in at the bottom than you would expect. It is as if the gear needs to be bounced hard a few times to spring the legs out a bit.

Is that normal at this point? Should I wait for things to settle before doing the fairings?
 
As you add weight the gear will spread out. Don't do anything until you see it under full load. Also, if you had it up on jacks and just let it down, you need to let it roll a bit for the tires to get to their equilibrium (with weight on them) position.
 
It is called camber and is normal for any of the RV's at light weight. In your case, I suspect you don't have the engine or wings on, which would remove some of the extra camber.
 
I?ll wait for the camber to settle.

Can the wheel pants be done at this point or is it necessary to wait? Would enjoy not crawling under the wing to do it.
 
I?ll wait for the camber to settle.

Can the wheel pants be done at this point or is it necessary to wait? Would enjoy not crawling under the wing to do it.

Yes, you can do them now, because you want to align them for minimum drag in flight, e.g., unweighted.
 
I?ll wait for the camber to settle.

Once you get the wings on it will look normal, I had the same concern.

Can the wheel pants be done at this point or is it necessary to wait? Would enjoy not crawling under the wing to do it.

You will remove the pants and put them back on no less than 1 BILLION times during the fitting process, will be a lot easier now. We did ours and just put them on a shelf until paint. Just now put them back on at 20 hours of flying.
 
I can confirm that the exaggeration is only off by about 7 orders based on experience with my RV7.
 
You're supposed to raise the plane off of the ground when installing the pants to simulate in flight. Raise and level.
 
Another approach ...

It is called camber and is normal for any of the RV's at light weight. In your case, I suspect you don't have the engine or wings on, which would remove some of the extra camber.

I found a lot less camber after a few Phase 1 landings, but YMMV. (My landings are smoother now.) IMHO

And this is an economy benefit, you wear out only the outside treads, then swap the tires and wear the other half.
 
What?s the best way to support the plane with engine on and wings off for wheel pant work? Not going to lift the engine. What about a strap around the mount at the firewall for the front and a tall sawhorse for the tail?

Could support the center spar somehow too I guess.

Any pics?
 
I made up two wing jacks using Harbor Freight hydraulic cylinders (plans are available in the forums). Then, I installed cradles on top from Bogert and lifted the plane by the wing roots. I padded the cradles with foam. Made it easy to work on the wheel pants, and with the cradles, it was very stable. Oh, and I also made up a tie-down for the tail using a furniture dolly and some pavers from the home supply. The tail tie-down is needed to get the nose wheel off the ground.
 
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