![]() It’s a quick job to rivet on the attachment nutplates … The screw holes and countersinks are folded into the carbon fibre … a neat touch : ) The FWD/AFT spat joint is adjusted by sanding to provide a consistent paint gap. I did this because it’s easier to gently flex the FWD/AFT spat components when fitting them together. There is a cutout guide for the wheels, but until I’ve received the 6″ wheels back from Beringer I’ve just removed a small portion. The inboard bracket is orientated rearwards, different from the Vans U-01418 INBD Wheel Fairing Brackets which face forwards. The four circular components are standoffs … used on the inboard bracket to provide clearance around the brake calliper. The kit includes attachment brackets, so the Vans equivilent components are not used.Īfter priming/painting I attached the nutplates. The halves fitted very well, with minimal sanding/filing of the joint required. The kit includes milled glass fibers, microballoons, and graphite powder which is mixed with epoxy resin to bond the two halves. The aft portion of each spat is supplied in two pieces which have to be bonded together. The kit of parts is of a nice quality, and clear instructions are provided. I weighed both spat/lower fairing combinations and discovered that the larger Sky Design version was a few grams lighter than the Vans version … thanks to the carbon fibre. Here is a picture of the Vans kit spat, and the larger Sky Design version. They’ve been designed by Ken Krueger (chief engineer at Vans during the development of the RV14), who has done a great job combining functionality with aesthetic appeal, keeping in mind aerodynamic efficiency.īut being realistic it’ll probably increase cruise fuel flow a small amount.Īll aircraft design is a compromise, and we reckon this is one worth making. But having seen this picture of a RV14 with them fitted, we reckoned they look just fine. The spats are larger, so maybe not as pretty as the stock Vans. … and Sky Design’s spats offer much more ground clearance both fore and aft. … the main advantages being larger wheel/ground contact area for better operational robustness on softer grass strips … Of course opting for larger wheels/spats has its advantages and disadvantages … Happily they have agreed these changes, subject to flight testing, so we’ve got the green light to go ahead and install. Since here in the UK our Light Aircraft Association (LAA) is responsible to the CAA for kit built aircraft, I had to officially apply for modifications, for both the wheels and spats. Well it so happens that Sky Design Engineering in the US have produced an excellent solution, offering a carbon fibre spat kit which fits the RV14 and 6″ wheels. But we enjoy flying into UK grass strips throughout the year, so think 6.00×6″ wheel size might be a good option.īut of course this means that larger wheel spats will be required. The RV14 is designed around 5.00×5″ wheels, which is fine for tarmac and well prepared grass. So why have we chosen different wheel spats … or wheel pants as our US cousins call them?
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