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RV-8 - Baggage Door Strut...

 
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Matt Dralle
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Joined: 08 Nov 2005
Posts: 26320
Location: Livermore CA USA

PostPosted: Thu Nov 26, 2009 8:25 pm    Post subject: RV-8 - Baggage Door Strut... Reply with quote

Dear Listers,

The stock front baggage door on the RV-8 doesn't come with any means of holding it open other than your arm. Since I'd already experienced what happens when the latch pins are in the "latched" position and the door suddenly slams shut (dents and scratches), I really wanted to find a nice strut of some kind that would hold the door open, yet be relatively easy to install/replace/use.

Some browsing in the McMaster-Carr on-line catalog turned up what turn out to be the absolute *perfect* part for the job. The strut unit is made for tool box lids and has pre-installed mounts on each end that work perfectly on the RV-8 baggage door with no modifications whatsoever. Incredible, really. The best part is that in operation, and using the mounting dimensions shown in the pictures, the strut will securely hold the door open AND closed! Its amazing actually! At about 2" from closed the geometry of the system has nearly zero pressure open/closed and then at the last 1" or so, slightly pulls the door down. Note that the latch pins are still needed to hold the door securely closed. Conversely, after about 3" open, there is enough push in the spring to gently open the door all the way and then hold it open very nicely. If you have an RV-8 and want a baggage door strut, look no further. This is the perfect ticket:

McMaster-Carr Part Number: 11615A14

Here is the on-line web page for the part:

http://www.mcmaster.com/#11615A14

At $34.75 (circa 2009) its a little pricey, but its stainless steel and did I mention - works PERFECTLY on the RV-8 front baggage door! Buy one now!

I used three standard LP4-3 pop rivets on the top attachment hinge to the side of the baggage door, and two #8 platenuts and screws on the lower attachment.

For the correct geometry, you'll want to mount the upper hinge exactly 11/16" from the bottom of the door as shown in the pictures. The lower hinge should be mounted exactly 8.0" from the exterior skin of the fuselage as shown in the picture.

<br>
Matt Dralle
RV-8 #82880 N998RV
http://www.mattsrv8.com - Matt's RV-8 Construction Blog


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Matt Dralle
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rv8builder



Joined: 02 Jan 2009
Posts: 56

PostPosted: Fri Nov 27, 2009 5:42 am    Post subject: RV-8 - Baggage Door Strut... Reply with quote

Thanks for passing this along Matt.

Have a great weekend,
Dale
do not archive

On Thu, Nov 26, 2009 at 11:24 PM, Matt Dralle <dralle(at)matronics.com> wrote:
Quote:
Dear Listers,

The stock front baggage door on the RV-8 doesn't come with any means of holding it open other than your arm.  Since I'd already experienced what happens when the latch pins are in the "latched" position and the door suddenly slams shut (dents and scratches), I really wanted to find a nice strut of some kind that would hold the door open, yet be relatively easy to install/replace/use.

Some browsing in the McMaster-Carr on-line catalog turned up what turn out to be the absolute *perfect* part for the job.  The strut unit is made for tool box lids and has pre-installed mounts on each end that work perfectly on the RV-8 baggage door with no modifications whatsoever.  Incredible, really.  The best part is that in operation, and using the mounting dimensions shown in the pictures, the strut will securely hold the door open AND closed!  Its amazing actually!  At about 2" from closed the geometry of the system has nearly zero pressure open/closed and then at the last 1" or so, slightly pulls the door down.  Note that the latch pins are still needed to hold the door securely closed.  Conversely, after about 3" open, there is enough push in the spring to gently open the door all the way and then hold it open very nicely.  If you have an RV-8 and want a baggage door strut, look no further.  This is the perfect ticket:

       McMaster-Carr Part Number:      11615A14

Here is the on-line web page for the part:

       http://www.mcmaster.com/#11615A14

At $34.75 (circa 2009) its a little pricey, but its stainless steel and did I mention - works PERFECTLY on the RV-8 front baggage door!  Buy one now!

I used three standard LP4-3 pop rivets on the top attachment hinge to the side of the baggage door, and two #8 platenuts and screws on the lower attachment.

For the correct geometry, you'll want to mount the upper hinge exactly 11/16" from the bottom of the door as shown in the pictures.  The lower hinge should be mounted exactly 8.0" from the exterior skin of the fuselage as shown in the picture.
Matt Dralle
RV-8 #82880 N998RV
http://www.mattsrv8.com - Matt's RV-8 Construction Blog



- The Matronics RV8-List Email Forum -
 

Use the List Feature Navigator to browse the many List utilities available such as the Email Subscriptions page, Archive Search & Download, 7-Day Browse, Chat, FAQ, Photoshare, and much more:

http://www.matronics.com/Navigator?RV8-List

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