Parking on the ramp for a couple days in the winter

J

joen6171b

New member
Looks like I'm going to have to commute for work from Buffalo, NY to Columbus, OH a couple times a month this winter. Whats everybodys opinion about parking on the ramp for 2-4 days then flying it home? I think the 2 hour flight should dry it out on the way home before I put it back in the hanger?

Joe
N8545R
14-19-3A
 
I have a Bruce's cover that covers the wing root and out past the gas filler doors. I just had a good laugh. I went to Bruce's site to get a link and for it and when I navigated to the covers for the Cruisemaster and Cruiseairs what did I see but a picture of my Crusair taken at OSH 2008 with my cover on it. It is the green one.

http://www.aircraftcovers.com/gallery_popup.php?info=cPath=1_5_104_105&tplDir=fallback&img1=bcm-2.jpg&desc1=Extended Canopy Cover w/12 Wing Extensions, Engine & Wing Covers&img2=bcm-3.jpg&desc2=Extended Canopy Cover with Wing Extensions&img3=&desc3=&img4=&desc4=&img5=&desc5=&img6=&desc6=&img7=&desc7=


Kevin
 
I have a Bruce cover for the crate. I use it at OSH and Blakesburg it has the wing root extensions. I'm not impressed! It is water repellent but not water proof. It's a hard rains a gonna fall. Water runs downhill and you get the picture. Lynn the crate :shock:
 
That is correct, they are not supposed to be waterproof. This is from their web site.

QUESTION: Is your cover waterproof?
ANSWER: You do not want a cover made from “waterproof” material like a plastic tarp. “Waterproof” materials do not breathe and will trap moisture and condensation underneath the surface of the cover, which will cause damage to the glass and to the paint.

Our covers are treated for water-repellency and UV protection and are water repellent enough to stop any leeks that may be occurring. Furthermore, our covers are breathable. This means that water is allowed to breathe through the cover or wick away off of the surface of the plane. After a heavy rain, you may feel some dampness on the underside of the cover. But this moisture will not be trapped under the cover, it will breathe out and dry quickly.

Kevin
 
Right you are. All in all the Bruce cover is the best and does a nice job for a short stay. Lynn the crate :p
 
I don't think any significant damage from moisture or sun should occur in Columbus in the winter. It's too cold to grow spores even if moisture penetrated the wood. A heavy snow could make it sit on its tail. If serious water/snow finds its way into fuselage cavities or control surfaces and freezes W & B or flight control balance/movement could be affected. Double check that proper drain holes exist and that they're clear. A heated hangar for a couple of hours could solve a lot of problems and provide a place for a good preflight.
 
If there is a lot of snow on the airplane, I will have to put it in a hanger to melt it, before I make my way home. $40 a night in CMH.

Joe
N8545R
14-19-3A
 
And if you coordinate, mention you're buying gas, paying overnight tie downs, they may do it for even less for a couple of hours. Nothing to loose.
 
Once home you may want to remove the access covers to let everything dry out easily- especially the tail where corrosion has been discovered on a few Vikings. I'd even say to remove the wing farings, but it's such a PIA... :roll:
 
I have a 74 Viking, had not heard about rust in the tail. There is an AD about cracks on the braceing for the horizontal and Vertical When I restored my Cruiseair I had a rusted out tail post and the lower section of the rudder. Of course the plane had not been uncovered for 35 years.
One of the problems with our cloth planes is in the rudder, We all should have drain holes at the bottom but the lowest place you can put a hole is just above the frame work. It will still hold a little moisture. I have never worried about leaving either plane out for a trip because it will be flown and will dry out. I have had both planes out in rain over the last 10 years(cruiseair) 3 years ( on this Viking 5 on last Viking) that the seats had to be dryed out to get in,and so far wood looks great. :lol: :lol:

Sure miss JB
 
Hi Randy

I was getting the cracks in the tail confused with rust- in fact, I thought the cracks were caused by corrosion! I need to pay better attention in class I guess... :roll:

I tend to worry about moisture (maybe too much) as you can tell by the gyrations I would go through to ensure there wasn't any water left in the structures.
I checked out a Cruisair (N200B I think) once and the trailing edges of the wings were absolutely mushy (or so they seemed to me). My thought is they had been full of water once too often. It soaked in and eventually rotted the wings.
Someone on this board bought that plane eventually. I always wondered what happened to it. It had hydraulic LG retraction and a roll-up window (IIRC) on the pilot's side. Neat! 8).

Yessir- I miss JB too...
 
It had a roll up window and no Hydraulic gear( electric motor) a flush mount door, no baggage door, cross wind landing gear, custom panel with IFR instruments and all engine and cowl flap main flap controls between legs of pilot and passenger,and brakes both sides. It is sitting in my hanger in pieces. The guy I bought it from screwed me and removed all the paper work and data plates before we got there to pick it up.It was in a box with other parts when I looked at the plane a week before. I have the log books only. He then moved from the airport by the time i figured it out.
Lucas bought almost all the firewall forward engine stuff a couple of years ago and a guy in I think Indiana bought the Adjustable prop. I am still down $600. The wings are no good. I have thought about selling the other stuff off but it is hard to get rid of a collectible. The only Item missing is the tail wheel fork. :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
So Randy publish the name of the clown who pulled that on you. We can make him famous on the Internet. What goes around comes around. :!: Lynn the crate
 
Why in the world would he DO such a thing :!: :?: :!: :?:
Did he feel it was an experimental setup and was trying to protect himself from a lawsuit?
I looked at it and the guy actually wanted me to fly with him around the pattern! Yikes! :shock: He said it was a perfectly sound aircraft. Even being a newbie at the time I could tell it had rotten wings.
He's the kind of guy that gives people a bad name.
 
The guy I dealt with bought it from the guy in Georgia. He tore it down found to much damaged covered some of it up and put it up for sale. He rebuilt airplanes for a living. He built one of just a few ? Drew a blank on the plane. Single seat sit almost in the tail killed a lot of pilots built for racing. big radial engine. He moved to an airport close to Kansas City I was told. :lol: :lol: :lol:
 
Granville Brothers (gee bee).
According to the guy that built the R-2 replica, the Gee Bee crashes were more to do with shoddy workmanship than design problems (IIRC).
 
I talked to a guy several years ago about this plane and he was honest about saying it was a project, but what got me interested in the add he posted was the dual brakes. I had spent a lot of time trying to fit dual brakes in my Cruisair, and had givin up, so I wanted to know how he had done it. He told me that the plane had been damaged in an accident and that the factory had replaced the forward few inches of the fuselage with a section of Viking fuselage. He said it was all documented and was going to send me photos, but he never did. I didnt realize it was the same plane that Randy has untill Randy listed all of the options. I had never heard of crosswind gear on a Bellanca before, so it perked my memory. It would be a great project for someone to restore ,but a BIG job._____Grant.
 
The crosswind-geared Cruisair was featured on the cover of B-C Contact! issue 11-2, with a follow-on story in 11-3 by Stephen DuPont, who had flown her in 1948-49.
Wishing you and yours a very Happy New Year,
 
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