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UltraStar gap seal

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Dana

Joined: 13 Dec 2007
Posts: 1047
Location: Connecticut, USA

Posted: Mon Oct 26, 2009 5:52 pm Post subject: UltraStar gap seal

I thought I would share my wing center section gap seal experience.



I've heard reports ranging from "it flies just the same without it" to "it 

flies awful without it".  The previous owner of my plane said the former, 

though he had little fixed wing flying experience.  I made one when I 

bought the plane, from heavy clear vinyl velcroed on, and never flew 

without it, until tonight.



I just finished installing a new strobe light on the boom tube, just above 

the rear wing attach points.  It interfered with the gap seal, but I've 

always intended to try flying the plane without it, and as it was a calm 

evening and I was running out of time, I decided to fly without it.



Never again!  The takeoff roll was long, and the elevator seemed strangely 

ineffective.  I should have aborted right there, but I took off 

anyway.  Climb performance was much worse.  Normally I climb at about 450 

fpm; without the gap seal the best I could do was 300 fpm and that at a 

much higher airspeed than normal, so it was a long flat climb before I 

could turn crosswind over the hill that's under the traffic pattern.  Took 

more power than normal to fly level, too, and the stick still felt very 

wishy washy.  I flew a fast steep approach and got it down OK.



I then trimmed the gap seal around the strobe as I should have done in the 

first place, put it on, and took off again.  This time the plane flew like 

it's supposed to fly, and I enjoyed a beautiful sunset flight.



-Dana

--

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have said, "Hey, forget email! With this new telephone invention I can 

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williamtsullivan(at)att.n
Guest

Posted: Mon Oct 26, 2009 6:06 pm Post subject: Ultrastar gap seal

Dana- Thanks for the timely and informative letter.  I am about to make the gap seal for my FS, and was wondering just how effective they were.  I was going to make it out of aluminum, and just had a blow-out on the waterbed matress.  The old mattress supplied enough thick, tough vinyl for a couple of seals, so I will try both.  The mattress vinyl is the right color, too.

  

                                                  Bill Sullivan

                                                  Windsor Locks, Ct.

                                                  FS 447

 [quote][b]

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flykolb(at)pa.net
Guest

Posted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 2:55 am Post subject: UltraStar gap seal

Dana,



Then how do you explain texting? 



Dennis



Do not archive

-Dana

--

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have said, "Hey, forget email! With this new telephone invention I can 

actually talk to people!"

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Dana

Joined: 13 Dec 2007
Posts: 1047
Location: Connecticut, USA

Posted: Tue Oct 27, 2009 3:04 am Post subject: UltraStar gap seal

At 06:45 AM 10/27/2009, Dennis Souder wrote:

 	  Quote: 	

Then how do you explain texting? 

>   If email had been around before the telephone was invented, people would

>have said, "Hey, forget email! With this new telephone invention I can

>actually talk to people!"

I can't... I guess I'm a traditionalist; I'll stick with my big keyboard. 

-Dana

do not archive

--

  Chaste: why virgins run.

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