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Grove (Standard) Gear Leg Fairings

Andy Hill

Well Known Member
Looking to install the standard Grove Gear legs. I have seen them installed with both the standard Vans fairings (where the thicker legs do alter the profile noticeably), and the Rocket fairings (wider / thicker profile). The Rocket ones seem too "thick" i.e. do not really wrap closely around the legs.

With the Vans leg, the aft edge of the fairings tends to get trimmed. By little / no trimming, does this fit well around the Grove leg?

Any thoughts / advice / experience appreciated...
 
Looking to install the standard Grove Gear legs. I have seen them installed with both the standard Vans fairings (where the thicker legs do alter the profile noticeably), and the Rocket fairings (wider / thicker profile). The Rocket ones seem too "thick" i.e. do not really wrap closely around the legs.

With the Vans leg, the aft edge of the fairings tends to get trimmed. By little / no trimming, does this fit well around the Grove leg?

Any thoughts / advice / experience appreciated...

I used Mark's F1 rocket fairings. They are a little too thick, as you surmise, but I was able to modify mine to fit perfectly without too much trouble. What I did was I "sliced" them in half along the leading edges with a thin cutoff wheel. I then sanded off approximately 1/32" from the edge of each half, then taped them back together. Finally, I laid some West with microfiber filler into the leading edge (I opened the taped joint while doing this to ensure epoxy was worked into the joint) then I laid a couple of layers of fiberglass tape along the inside of the leading edge. Finally, I clamped the trailing edge together, squeezing it slightly by placing the clamps 1/2 to 3/4" in from the edges. The result is perfect, and this alteration was surprisingly easy to do (about 90 minutes each, not including cure). The fairings fit the legs perfectly with a nice continuous airfoil shape and no "hard spots" caused by forcing it around the gear legs as you would get with stock vans fairings.

Skylor
 
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I also used Mark's fairings and they worked out well and look nice.

I did it differently. I made foam "ribs" around the gear leg by using clay dams. Taped the leg in place and then poured closed cell pour and mix foam inside. When set, I pulled the fairing off and then finished the foam to the thickness and shape I wanted. When that was done it was simple to glue the fairing to the foam and then the back side seems. Very stiff and secure.
 
I also used Mark's fairings and they worked out well and look nice.

I did it differently. I made foam "ribs" around the gear leg by using clay dams. Taped the leg in place and then poured closed cell pour and mix foam inside. When set, I pulled the fairing off and then finished the foam to the thickness and shape I wanted. When that was done it was simple to glue the fairing to the foam and then the back side seems. Very stiff and secure.

Originally I considered using something to shim or fill the space between the leg and the fairing, but I decided that I really didn't want to leave the fairings thicker than they need to be because the result would be greater frontal area and drag than required. In the end, I think my modification was quicker than forming the clay dams and filling with foam. The end result of my method is really nice. You can't even tell that the fairings were split and rejoined, and they required absolutely no filling on the outside after rejoining them together.

Skylor
 
Skylor

I did not mean to imply that the way I chose was better, only that it was different.

I am happy with with mine and hope you are with yours. When I am out of Phase 1 I will be happy to race you. :D


8CW

Sorry no pictures, but it was simply taping the inside of the fairing not to stick. You could use clay or seat foam scraps or more tape to set the bottom portion of the foam. Mix, pour it in, and let set. Then sand to the shape you want. Leave one long rib, 2 ribs, 3, ribs, your choice. When I was done shaping, I left the nose and trailing edge foam and then a very thin layer over the gear (see thru).

Also, FWIW, I did a test with the foam and left it submerged in a pale of water for 2 weeks to see how much it would absorb. Practically nothing, just a couple of grams for a 4" x 5" x 3" square which is probably the water left in the surface depressions.
 
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RV8RIVETER,

Same here, just giving some insight into the thought process I used to arrive at my method. It's all good.

I'll try to get some pictures of my fairings this week.

Skylor
 
How did you guys anchor the gear leg fairing vertically? I've seen where the Rocket guys put a tab in the top of the fairing and use a rubber strap to anchor it to the engine mount. That allows the fairing to float a little but keeps it from falling down onto the bend at the bottom of the gear leg. I understand that the intersection fairings will fix it rotationally, but doesn't is need some method of holding it up?

Also, how did you decide where to mount the fairing (fore and aft)? I thought I'd look at the ratio of where the gear centerline is on the RV-8A fairing and use that as a guide. Does that sound reasonable?
 
How did you guys anchor the gear leg fairing vertically? I've seen where the Rocket guys put a tab in the top of the fairing and use a rubber strap to anchor it to the engine mount. That allows the fairing to float a little but keeps it from falling down onto the bend at the bottom of the gear leg. I understand that the intersection fairings will fix it rotationally, but doesn't is need some method of holding it up?

Also, how did you decide where to mount the fairing (fore and aft)? I thought I'd look at the ratio of where the gear centerline is on the RV-8A fairing and use that as a guide. Does that sound reasonable?

In my case, the fore/aft position is pretty much set by the fit of the fairing to the gear leg. The intersection fairings fit snugly enough that they hold them in position vertically.

Skylor
 
Two screws

How did you guys anchor the gear leg fairing vertically? I've seen where the Rocket guys put a tab in the top of the fairing and use a rubber strap to anchor it to the engine mount. That allows the fairing to float a little but keeps it from falling down onto the bend at the bottom of the gear leg. I understand that the intersection fairings will fix it rotationally, but doesn't is need some method of holding it up?

Also, how did you decide where to mount the fairing (fore and aft)? I thought I'd look at the ratio of where the gear centerline is on the RV-8A fairing and use that as a guide. Does that sound reasonable?

There are probably lots of ways to skin this cat. I used a screw from the gear inspection cover and 1/2 of a nut plate. Two screw to fasten them to the plane and two to hold them together.

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