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Gap Seal Departs from my Super Cub!

WindOnHisNose

WindOnHisNose

BENEFACTOR
Lino Lakes MN (MY18)
Darrel Starr was helping decorate Santa's super cub right after the decorating gathering and he noticed that the gap seal on the right horizontal stabilizer was missing. It was in place prior to the last flight I had made prior to the decorating, and I have no idea what induced it's departure.

Have any of you had this happen? Geez, they don't give these things away, and I don't understand what might have contributed to the loss of the gap seal.

Randy
 
Saw them departed off a J3. A J THREE..!

Heard the pilot say he was flying it in kind of a skid, as he was trying to keep RPM's off red line, so's he could keep near full power on to break in a
cylinder.
 
I am less than thrilled with my Cubcrafters gap seals too. They tend to scrunch up or down in the slot and pucker up and look like hell. I haven't lost one yet but it could happen as Randy experienced. It is just not a well made product. And if you need another piece, Cubcrafter's idea of pricing is to take the total original price and divide by 3. They charged me about $80 for a replacement piece. I called, told them I was a long time customer & pissed. So they lowered the price but sent me a piece all kinked up from the end of the roll. The kinks have never come out completely. No way to treat good customers.
 
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They replaced the vertical piece along my rudder for free after it departed with no questions asked......and I'm a short time customer.....

add a dab of silicone, just in case......
 
Getting ready to install the seals on my machine thought about silicone and was wondering which side you shoud adhere to stab or elevator or both
Thanks
 
Ive never had a problem, through rain, snow, or sunshine, they deliver...,,, Im guessing Randy and Darrel fly a little more radical than I do.......or maybe it got a little Reindeer poop on them and made them slick in spots.... You havent been around Tim or Glenn have you? They might be trying them out...
 
If you're going to stick it to something, stick it to the stab. 1) the stab doesn't move (well, a tiny bit) 2) it is upwind and the seal will trail behind it.
 
PerryB said:
If you're going to stick it to something, stick it to the stab. 1) the stab doesn't move (well, a tiny bit) 2) it is upwind and the seal will trail behind it.
Click to expand...

Think about what you said. The elevator moves against the stab. The motion will be equal on each edge if the seal.
 
Never had one depart, or come close to it. As part of my preflight, I always check them and un-smoosh them and center them. I think you do need to check them.
 
I had one of the outboard sections come off on take-off as Cathy was driving down the highway, she saw something depart the aircraft. Never did find it.

I would not use silicone, never be able to paint it or touch up. I thing the 3M weatherstrip adhesive one the horizontal stab might be a solution.
 
I put mine on about two years ago. There was enough on the roll that I had a spare, I cut each one about 1" short to get the spare. They have never come off, they do have some wrinkles but that just makes the rest of my plane look better. Stan at CubCrafters told me to take them off every year and wash them off and the fabric as well to get the sand off them.
 
Mine have stayed on so far. I wonder if the colder climate has anything to do with it? However I flew mine in 10F not long ago and still there.
 
C-YQK said:
Getting ready to install the seals on my machine thought about silicone and was wondering which side you shoud adhere to stab or elevator or both
Thanks
Click to expand...


leading edge in my opinion-- we are talking about a dab of silicone--you are not siliconing a shower here--a dab on the ends and maybe one in the middle---this in my opinion will not ruin my day or my paint job as I don't plan on repainting anything, especially the areas where the gap seals are placed, and I bought the gap seals right after buying new tail feathers and spending hours on the fabric and painting them--i have a super cub not a Lamborghini...

I am also a huge supporter of Velcro where needed.....strips as gap seals for leaks on my door, strip of velcro to hold my sliding window shut-as it will creep open in flight and I found myself constantly shutting it---velcro holds my nano to my panel, the back of my phone is a sheet of velcro--it has it's place too in my plane and truck, i even have some wrapped around a pen in my plane and truck so I always know where one is at....the back of my iPad mini is a sheet of velcro, a stretchable band gets velcroed around my leg, it has velcro stitched into it, then I just stick my iPad mini to that and it's a velcro knee board, easily passed back to the wife when she wants it or if i want to stow it.....even that map pocket to the right of my iPad is bent sheet metal just big enough for a sup and two maps--that too is velcroed on!!!
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function before fashion is my motto
 

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schnell49 said:
leading edge in my opinion-- we are talking about a dab of silicone--you are not siliconing a shower here--a dab on the ends and maybe one in the middle---this in my opinion will not ruin my day or my paint job as I don't plan on repainting anything, especially the areas where the gap seals are placed, and I bought the gap seals right after buying new tail feathers and spending hours on the fabric and painting them--i have a super cub not a Lamborghini...
Click to expand...

Never know where you might have to make a repair, besides 3M Weatherstripping adhesive is designed for this type of material and can be easily removed and cleaned up if need be.
 
You are right but to belabor the point--we are talking about the size of a dime at most--if a repair/repaint is to happen it's highly safe to say this section will have to be removed/scuffed whatever to repair/repaint the damage anyway--in my case loosing a piece of gap seal as I did and adding a dab silicone is what another motto I go by
most likely versus least likely

Most likely is that a dab of silicone is; not going to ruin my day or my paint job and risk loosing another piece and then get pissed like Mr. Starr did and have to pay additional money versus least likely that a dab of silicone will ruin my paint job-so again, it's like adding a mod--will you use it 90% of the time or very often or save wear and tear? If so then do it as opposed to worry about the weight gain etc

most likely vs least likely

but yes, you are right there is a chance it could give you an issue if a repaint had to happen--but highly unlikely in my world-as looks don't matter so much:)
 
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SteveE said:
Ive never had a problem, through rain, snow, or sunshine, they deliver...,,, Im guessing Randy and Darrel fly a little more radical than I do.......or maybe it got a little Reindeer poop on them and made them slick in spots.... You havent been around Tim or Glenn have you? They might be trying them out...
Click to expand...

E will they stay on when your plane is inverted :lol:
 
Had one blow out on a slip somewhere over Nenana. After replacement the ravens ate them up. Have not reordered the third set yet....
 
schnell49 said:
They replaced the vertical piece along my rudder for free after it departed with no questions asked......and I'm a short time customer.....

add a dab of silicone, just in case......
Click to expand...
I also lost the Vertical piece. They replaced at no charge.
 
I just received a very nice phone call from Vera at Cubcrafters. She apologized for the treatment I got back when I first installed the gap seals, tore one and tried to get a replacement. This happened early in their offering of these seals and apparently they had not settled on a pricing policy. Also she said that the gap seals that have departed in flight seem to be early ones. A year or so ago they slightly changed the seals -- not sure if it was material or profile -- and they haven't heard of any of the later seals departing a plane. So, to make it right, Vera is sending me gap seals made from the latest material, enough to replace all three strips. Wow, I am impressed. Any outfit can make a mistake. It is how they recover that shows their class -- and this is a first class response.
 
Steve-N1964S said:
Randy-

First Miss Moo Holstein now the gap seal.............what's next?

Steve
Click to expand...

Now, Steve Bob, that was a low blow.... :)

Vera has kindly sent replacement seals for my horizontal stabilizer. The feeling I get from her response is that they changed manufacturers of the gap seal and that there have been other "departures" since that change.

...whatever, Vera and Cubcrafters have been responsive and I, like Darrel, appreciate this.

I am ready to offer free semen analyses for Cubcrafters employees....

Randy
 
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