Should wide,flat trailing edge be included in Chord?
I know most of you guys on this section aren't into SPADs but you could probably answer my question.
When a typical SPAD- FLAT BOTTOMED wing is built using 2mm corrugated plastic board, the trailing edge is formed by gluing the top layer to the bottom layer. This produces a flat spot about 2" wide and 4mm thick onto which the aileron is glued to the last 1" of this wide Trailing Edge. The aileron is say 1 1/2" wide. Therefore, the whole trailing edge width is now about 1" plus 1 1/2" = 2" wide and is flat.
On a typical Balsa FLAT BOTTOM wing, the aileron is actually an integral part of the airfoil shape as it is wedge shaped and built into the wing, not an added on piece to the TE.
Question: Would such a wide flat TE have little lift of it's own?
If it does not , then could I deduct at least part of the TE width from the Chord width?
It seems to me that the reason for including Ailerons in the Chord width is since they usually form part of the airfoil shape and hence produce part of the overall lift of the wing. Including the Aileron dimensions then is necessary to calculate wing loading.
In my SPAD wing scenario, if the aileron and part of the TE are really not producing much lift, why should I include them in the Chord to determine Wing Loading? They may not be really lifting much, if any, weight to begin with.
Matt Bourdeau