REFLECTOR:Gear Speed

[reflector@tvbf.org]

OK, I thought the doors were the limiting factor on gear extension speed.

The hydraulics are working fine. After landing I took the nose access door
off, lifted the nose up, gave the tire a wack and it came right down.  I
taxied off the runway with the fire truck leading the way.

I'll leave the hydraulics powered on, but I'll tape the switch in the down
poisition just to be sure my gear up automatic procedure after takeoff
doesn't cause me to try that with the alumimum plate where the geard doors
used to be.

After sifting through the parts I think I figured out what happened.  The
nose gear got caught on the top edge of one of the main gear guide bars
inside the nose.  I had always thought the gear came up way to high, the
bottom of the casting just 1/2 to 1/4 from the top of the bars. I think
the stop on the nose gear hydraulic ram is to short. Some how the nose
gear was at teh right angle and a bump in flight allowed it to flex upward
enough to catch the edge. There was a large dent on the top of one of the
bars from teh hydraulic pressure trying to pull the gear down. Once it got
caught up there it twisted slightly and the oposite corner caught on one
of the finse of the oil cooler which has a small shiney spot and black
aluminum dust wher it was wearing on the nose casting.

I will put a longer stop bushing on the nose gear ram to lower the spot
the gear comes to when retracted to insure it can't get up there anymore.

I'd fly with the gear up and the front doord gone but the guide bars were
broken/ground off during the landing so its not safe t retract the nose
gear until I do some extensive rebuilding.

It was a stressfull experiance but also kind of a non event. I'm glad I
was in a Velocity for this kind of accident.

No FAA involvment as far as I know.

I wonder can I stil buy gear doors for the Standard RG?  Both of mine are
pretty wasted.

Merry Christmass to all,

Scott


> With the main gear doors removed, and the front gear doors gone :-(
> proceed
> at normal power settings.
> The Vne for the fixed gear Velocity is 200 knots - and although the gear
> design is somewhat different between the RG and FG ... there is not a
> great
> deal of difference in strength.  Be sure to tighten the shimmy dampener
> nut
> to specs (don't know if things got loose during the landing).  If
> hydraulics
> were at fault (and not fixed for the flight home), safety wire the main
> gear
> and nose gear overcenter mechanisms into the down and locked positions,
> and
> pull the gear pump circuit breaker.  If hydraulics are working, disregard
> this suggestion.
> Terrible Christmas present!
> Glad everyone is okay!
> Scott B.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <scott@tnstaafl.net>
> To: <reflector@tvbf.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, December 24, 2003 12:38 AM
> Subject: REFLECTOR:Gear Speed
>
>
>> I landed at CXP yesterday with my nose gear up.  I tried for 1/2 an hour
>> to get it to come down but it refused. Long story I will tell later when
>> I'm a home.
>>
>> Nobody was hurt, me and my wife.  Though she was shaken up quite a bit
>> by
>> the event.
>>
>> The plane handled it well.  Its truly amazing how far the nose drops
>> without a nose gear. A considerable amount of the nose was ground off,
>> and
>> of course the nose gear doors were trashed which were open.  It ground
>> off
>> a couple inches of the speed brake as well though it still functions.
>>
>> My question is about gear extended speed. I'm going to have to fly home
>> from Cason City, NV to Grants NM with the gear down.  About a 3.5 hour
>> flight at normal speeds.
>>
>> I've installed a temporairy aluminum plate over the gaping hole where
>> the
>> geard doors and some of the surrounding fusalage usde to be.  I've
>> removed
>> the main gear doors and taped the brake lines to the gear legs.
>>
>> I'm assuming the speed limit was done to keep the gear doors on and
>> since
>> i"m flying without them I can now go as fast as I can peddle.
>>
>> Anybody see anything wrong with that?  I'd call the factory but I'm
>> pretty
>> sure they are closed for the holidays.
>>
>> Scott
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