REFLECTOR: Gap Seals, fences, zig-zag tape

[Douglas Holub]

Sounds like a good idea, Al. Have you got a picture?

Doug Holub
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Al Gietzen 
  To: 'Velocity Aircraft Owners and Builders list' 
  Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2009 11:57 AM
  Subject: Re: REFLECTOR: Gap Seals, fences, zig-zag tape




  Anybody flying with aileron gap seals?  Notice a great improvement in

  climb and responsiveness?



  Scott;

  I have flown with the gap seal on, off, on again; and find no detectable difference.  I suppose it depends on whether there is much of a gap in the first place.



  He's using the zig-zag tap in front of the rudders and says it more than

  doubled the effectiveness of them at low speeds.  No noticeable

  reduction in cruise.   Said he saw them on Klaus S. EZ.



  Double the effectiveness sounds like too big a change to be true.  OTOH; I have never really felt that I had a lack of rudder response - but I guess I've managed to avoid landing in strong cross winds.



  He also said the trailing edge fences were a dramatic improvement with

  no cruise speed penalty.



  I have a fence on the in-board end of the aileron.  I can't tell you how much difference it makes because I put them on before ever flying.  I had seen enough tuff-test info on EZs, and observed oil drop tracks on Velocity, to know there is span-wise flow under flow separation at high angles of attack. A fence could only help, and give better aileron authority at low speeds.



  Al



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