Baffled by the Baffle / Snorkle Intersection

I've finished dry fitting the baffles around my ECI IO-360 (RV-7A) with cold air induction and have begun fitting the fiberglass snorkel. I was not surprised by the significant modifications that it appears will have to made to the snorkel in order to fit around the alternator and starter based on earlier posts. After all, at this point what is a bit more fiberglass misery.

What has surprised me and left me a bit vexed is the extremely tight fit where the snorkel attaches to the left front inlet ramp. At this point I have two issues, first, I just don't seem to have enough room to cut the hole for the filter and still have a reasonable amount of edge margin to attach the top plates that secure the filter in place, let alone a nice gap for the seal material between the cowling and inlet ramp.

The second issue is the diagonal bend across the inlet ramp. Per the instructions, I put in a slight bend diagonally across the ramp so that it matches with the lower lip of the cowling, which it does nicely. But now the filter has to bend slightly to fit since the cut-out goes across the bend. I can do this, but when I called Vans they said there is no bend and the filter should lie flat. Have I missed something in the instructions or has anybody else faced this "challenge". Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

hi todd,

your setup sounds very similar to ours...
here's parts of how we did it:
http://www.flyvans.com/log/2009_02_26_baffling.html

the baffling is done by now, i should make an update once in a while... i prefer building right now, as it's getting ever closer to the finish ;-)

among other:
- we had to modify the snorkel to clear the alternator
- modified the snorkel to clear the cyl 2 oil line, although in retrospect we might have passed without that.
- cut off the unneeded brackets from the starter case to clear the snorkel
- the snorkel to deck mount is quite a bit different from the plans.
let me know if you need more details than on the pics.
we're not flying yet, no long term experience yet.

rgds,
bernie

Todd,
I have a Superior with cold sump. Installation is probably similar to yours. I discarded the 1/4" spacer and used a thin gasket on the FAB/Fuel servo. This moved the FAB slightly aft. With gentle persuasion I managed to get it installed with retaining clips and minimal cowl inlet lip trimming. I also had to hack the FAB, trim the rubber on the K&N filter and do new glass work around my alternator and starter.

Rocky

Thanks to you both for the photos... I thought I was losing my mind but it looks like a case of fitting a size XXL filter into an XS space. I think I have a pretty good idea of what needs to be done now. Although I am going to move forward with the supplied filter I don't wonder if a slightly more rectangular size might work better.

-Todd