REFLECTOR: Front fixed gear question

[Ron VelocityXLFG]

I spun my front wheel up with a die grinder to check for balance worked real well.
I had to add quite a bit of weight to get mine balance also. Rim diameter is so small compared 
to the tire that a small amount of weight doe s almost nothing .

Ron

From: Dennis Martin 
Sent: Wednesday, May 23, 2012 10:23 AM
To: Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list 
Subject: Re: REFLECTOR: Front fixed gear question

Thanks for the tips, Grover. I followed all of the points you mentioned. Without question one sleeve of weights was not enough to balance my wheel. I was surprised how much lead it required, but what to do? The wheel is now balanced  - as perfectly as can be done without using a pro balancing machine. No tire shops or even motor cycle shops could do it. I'll conduct some fast taxi tests before flying again and keep you all informed. My V is grounded another week - the PSRU is in the shop.

Dennis



On Tue, May 22, 2012 at 10:26 AM, Grover McNair <grover at mcnairperformance.com> wrote:

  A note on balancing wheels: Weights should be put on opposite the low spot. That would be 180 degrees from the bottom point. An equal amount of weight should be used on both sides of the wheel to avoid a dynamic imbalance.

  In balancing a car tire, it rarely takes more than 3-4oz. Usually 1-2oz. One stick of stick on weights is 1.5oz. They are segmented in .25oz pieces.  If you use more than a stick, I would be very concerned that something was wrong with the structure of the tire or perhaps it might have a bad flat spot. Normally balancing a small aviation tire should take less than 1oz.

  Grover McNair




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  From: reflector-bounces at tvbf.org [mailto:reflector-bounces at tvbf.org] On Behalf Of Dennis Martin
  Sent: Tuesday, May 22, 2012 12:08 PM


  To: Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list

  Subject: Re: REFLECTOR: Front fixed gear question 


  Definitely install washers. I called factory to make sure. I installed two fairly thick washers on my fixed gear Elite, and it works great. 

  Here's a true story. A friend from Salt Lake City flew down to Provo area where I'm located (40 miles). His front tire went flat and asked if he could borrow my front gear fork, wheel and all. As we installed it on his retractable and resisted the urge to retract. I noticed the slop in the wheel and suggested we fix it. He laughed it off, but almost wet his pants when he landed in SLC. Horrible shimmy he'll never forget.

  BALANCING FRONT GEAR: I took advice of one of our builders and used adhesive lead weights to balance the front wheel. I bought the weights from the local auto repair shop for $1.50 a sleeve. Very easy task - just leave the wheel on the fork and jack up the front of the plane a few inches. I spun the wheel to find the "bottoming" spot - then marked it with a magic marker. Each time I spun the wheel, the mark ended up at the bottom with 100% consistency. I added weights to the bottoming spot until the wheel behaved. My wheel was way out of balance and required about two full sleeves of weights, so buy two or three sleeves. Also, apply weights in the center of the aluminum wheel and move outward both left and right. Cut weights in half to make them fit the outside part of the rim where spokes get in the way. 

  All the best,
  Dennis




  On Tue, May 22, 2012 at 8:00 AM, Chris Barber <cbarber at texasattorney.net> wrote:

  My hangar mate noticed a concern regarding my front gear on my fixed gear SE.  Since I am doing some cooling mods before continuing high speed taxi, it gave him the opportunity to mention it to me before I careen off the runway....



  Anyway, I have had the front gear installed for years.  I included the two spacer that go on each side of the axel that help hold in the bearings inside the rim.  What was noted was that there is about a quarter inch space on the axel that allows the bearing to move out of the wheel even with the spacers in place.  It still rolls ok but it does allow the wheel to shift a bit back and forth on the axel as it moves.  I hope I am explaining this ok.



  Is this ok, or should I install a couple of shims/washers to keep the wheel from shifting back and forth?



  Thanks.



  Chris




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  -- 
  All the best,
  Dennis


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-- 
All the best,
Dennis



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