G?day Everyone,
I?ve been test flying my 7A over the last few weeks and starting to form the opinion that it is a bit slower than I expect.
I have a 180 hp updraft engine and Hartzell Constant Speed Prop - with blended airfoil. The gear fairings and wheel pants are not fitted yet.
I have been treating the engine nicely for 10 hours or so but performance seems slow. The ASI has been calibrated and found to be correct. Also the TAS calculated by the EFIS aligns with ground speed from GPS.
Last weekend I was able to get her to 7000? PA and do a couple of runs. With Prop 2600, WOT, leaned for best power, OAT 5 degrees C maximum observed TAS was 149 kts. CG was towards the forward end (170lb pilot + half tanks).
According to Vans I should see around 175 kts in this configuration so I am down approximately 25 kts.. I expect about 12 kts of this can be made up by the installation of gear leg fairings etc.
I have also observed the elevators are not neutral in this configuration. The horns sit approximately 0.5 - 0.75? down. I.e. to neutralise the elevators requires I push forward on the stick resulting in 1200 fpm descent rate or so.
I have no heavy wings and all the control surfaces/fairings are in alignment. The rudder seems to be in trim as well.
My first thought was that the shim on the HS may need adjustment, but the more I think about it that may not be the case. Should I wait till the fairings are on to asses what is required? What should I check first to find some more speed? Am I just overthinking this at this point in the process?
Thanks
Richard
RV7A ? Phase I Flight Testing
I?ve been test flying my 7A over the last few weeks and starting to form the opinion that it is a bit slower than I expect.
I have a 180 hp updraft engine and Hartzell Constant Speed Prop - with blended airfoil. The gear fairings and wheel pants are not fitted yet.
I have been treating the engine nicely for 10 hours or so but performance seems slow. The ASI has been calibrated and found to be correct. Also the TAS calculated by the EFIS aligns with ground speed from GPS.
Last weekend I was able to get her to 7000? PA and do a couple of runs. With Prop 2600, WOT, leaned for best power, OAT 5 degrees C maximum observed TAS was 149 kts. CG was towards the forward end (170lb pilot + half tanks).
According to Vans I should see around 175 kts in this configuration so I am down approximately 25 kts.. I expect about 12 kts of this can be made up by the installation of gear leg fairings etc.
I have also observed the elevators are not neutral in this configuration. The horns sit approximately 0.5 - 0.75? down. I.e. to neutralise the elevators requires I push forward on the stick resulting in 1200 fpm descent rate or so.
I have no heavy wings and all the control surfaces/fairings are in alignment. The rudder seems to be in trim as well.
My first thought was that the shim on the HS may need adjustment, but the more I think about it that may not be the case. Should I wait till the fairings are on to asses what is required? What should I check first to find some more speed? Am I just overthinking this at this point in the process?
Thanks
Richard
RV7A ? Phase I Flight Testing