Yes, I have camlocks. It's probably made worse by the fact that we've had the uppers and sides off so much lately. Maybe the right side is the only one to replace and the left is OK. I use your technique of putting the top on and fastening the sides then installing the screws, which helps a little. I'll talk to my A&P today and see if he thinks we can use the Skyport blanks and new Phillips-head Camlocks. My concers with Univair pieces is what Mike said-- they may be made too well to fit easily on an airplane where the stringers are just a little out of alignment .
Thanks, Dave --- In [email protected], Hartmut Beil <hb...@...> wrote: > > > Dave, all, > > > > "Hartmut's appear to fit much better and it didn't seem as if he struggled as > much to re-fasten them." > > > > I had situations where the cowling simply would not fit, no matter what I > tried. > > Since I discovered the art of how to attach nose, front and top cowling, I am > having no problems with my side cowls. > > > > It starts with carefully attaching the (stringers) supports that are holding > the nose bowl ring in place. > > On my Ercoupe, the cowling had been retrofitted a few times and there are a > few holes to many in these strips. Locating the proper hole is key for the > rest of the action. > > Then fitting the nose bowl is easy. It should fit without any strain or > force. The holes do line up when all is ok. The bottom cowl was never a > problem. > > > > Fitting the top cowl with the sides hanging down is the big last thing to do. > > I put the cowling on the top, make sure the rubber grommet fits nicely the > tank filler and then after lining up the holes on both sides I close the > cowling with the camlocks. > > If the cowling is properly aligned now, I can easily screw the top cowling in > place, if something is wrong, the screws don't fit. If I can't get them to > fit this way, I double check everything or have to start over. Using force to > line up the holes will create tension somewhere else and as a result you have > trouble closing the side cowlings. > > > > Dave, if your side cowls are just straight sheet metal, then it had been a > lousy retrofit. Do you have the camlocks on them? > > My brother bought the blank side cowls from Skyport. They fit perfectly, > looked good and he had no problems with them. They are also easy to polish > for a nice appearance. > > > > > > Hartmut > > > > > > > > To: [email protected] > From: bigbrownpi...@... > Date: Fri, 2 Oct 2009 03:21:41 +0000 > Subject: [ercoupe-tech] Re: New Side Cowls-- Univair or Skyport? > > > > > > Ed, > > We think the side cowls were made from stock because they lack the rolled > lip on the forward edge that my A&P says should be there. The left one is > sort of OK, but the right one has a stop-drilled stress crack and is very > difficult to close. Both are using an extra sheet metal screw that the > previous owner used to hold them flush at the front lower corner. I agree > about using Phillips-head Camlocks, we were looking at that tonight when we > were done installing the mags. Mine would fail the "snug at the front and > bottom", at least from the aspect of having a uniform fit. I would say they > are "bowed out" throughout the cross-section, which may be the problem if > they were > made from flat stock. They actually do fit better at the back and I usually > start fastening the camlocks there and struggle in the middle two, then the > front one comes easy after the middle two are in. > > Hartmut's appear to fit much better and it didn't seem as if he struggled as > much to re-fasten them. > > Thanks, > Dave > > --- In [email protected], "Ed Burkhead" <ed@> wrote: > > > > > > Dave, > > > > Can you further define how your side cowls are "poor-fitting"? > > > > The fit of Coupe side panels is special. It is snug at the front and bottom > > but bellies out in a specific shape at the rear. This is part of the design > > to provide low pressure in the lower chamber to improve cooling. > > > > I always had to start connecting my side panels at the front camloc (we > > replaced the dzus very happily), then worked back. Other planes need a > > different pattern to most easily connect them. > > > > If you have dzus fasteners, consider changing to camloc and fitting them > > better than what you have now. I don't know if your current fasteners can > > be repositioned easily enough for that to be a good solution. And, if you > > change fasteners, try to get the Phillips head type to save your side panels > > from slipped screwdriver damage. > > > > If this doesn't apply, then please tell the forum more about your fit > > problem so the experts can give the best possible help. (I'm not any kind > > of mechanic and am a klutz with screwdrivers. > > > > Ed > > > > > > > > > > > > _________________________________________________________________ > Show them the way! Add maps and directions to your party invites. > http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowslive/products/events.aspx >
