Wheel pants, that is. I just converted to carbon gear and those pants are starting to look like unnecessary ballast. Not to mention maintenance/repair. My airplane is a little underpowered and I need to shed some weight.

Wheelpants are things designed to be removed on the third flight...

I will not use wheelpants again, they are hard to maintain and can cause the plane to nose over if any problem happens, from the little rock that gets stuck between the wheel and wheelpant to the wheelpant getting loose so that it flips and you actually land on it...

No wheelpants are lighter, cheaper, and easier on the nerves.

I feel better now.

Yeah but most airplanes are so ugly without wheel pants!

I have to agree with saddler, plane with out pants that are suppost to have them are flat out ugly! Please leave them on and find some wieght some where else to lose a little wieght.

Wheel pants can be a pain but a little time getting them on and some lock tight and they will stay in place for a long time[8D].


good luck with whatever you deciede

Chad

ha ha....That's a really funny name for a thread!
The anwer to the Q should I remove my pants? is always yes........uh, sorry.......
Anyway, I make my wheel pants removable by not just drilling a hole but making a slot (article in M.A.N. last year) and then I keep them off for practice and put them on when I want to look "spiffy."

I couldn't agree more. If it is a scale plane, make it look scale. If it is a fun fly, then go without the wheelpants spinner etc.

And if installed correctly, you shouldn't have any problem with them anyway.

John

It's a DP Extra. I've already decided to keep them off. Sorry. Aesthetics doesn't carry much weight with me (pun intended). I am leaving the spinner on though. That would just be wrong.

I don't have too much trouble with them. They always get little cracks in the corners and fill up with grass though. If I can't stand the appearance or don't notice a difference in performance, I'll put them back on.

Wheel pants do have aerodynamic qualities about them. I won't fly a plane without them...but each his own. I beleive they cut down more drag, and that IMO is more benificial then the slight weight penalty of having them. If your tearing them off guys.........ummm...errrr.......could it be something your doing?
True, they can be a bit of a pain, but once you have the mountings secure, if you don't bump them around...on the ground, or elsewhere...they should stay put for quite a while. Also...if your just going to leave them off...what's next....spinner.....canopy....a few tears in the covering.....the challenge is having everything intact...go ahead...I challenge you to try and keep them on....and if they come off....fix them..and if they come off again...fix again...do that enough...and a few things could happen....#1. You'll get very good at fixing/mounting them, #2. You will get very good at keeping them intact on the aircraft, #3....you'll never never touch one again My 2cents. Now..go fly!

Really though..they are there for aerodynamic reasons I think.

Yes you are right.

They also provide lift during knife edge flight

I don't use wheel pants because I have had several planes flip over in tall grass because the grass gets caught up in the pant. I have seen pants on a Sukhoi that was made for grass fields. I would recommend that type of pant for you plane.

Only remove your pants if you have good looking legs !

Mine are all shiny and covered with oil [:@]

OK, I'm eating my words now. It just looked too horrible without the pants and those stupid wheels dangling on the end of the gear leg. I put them back on before it ever left the hangar. I'll live with the 2% weight penalty.

that is funny , LOL.


You just have to get used to keeping an eye on them


Chad

I wish my plane had more drag for slower downlines, maybe then I could make the 2 of 4 followed by opposite snap...

That is another reason to keep em off for me.

Try using the B&B wheel pants brackets. They do add 2 oz. of weight total though for 2 wheels. Put them on right and you'll never have any problems. I put a set on a Giant Stinger with g-62 on magneto for 500 flights and never touched them. Honest.

Only if your name is Bill Clinton and you're in the Oval Office...

hahahahaha, Good one

If She has ...

Thats now more than a bit interesting to me I did come in a bit rough but maybe it was the tall grass that made my GP Extra flip and break my new production style Bambula 22x8; that Mike Dooley V.P. of RC Showcase had 'personally' balanced for me. Gee......Guys and Gals is their a ritual or some thing when one looses his---first I.M.A.C. gasser prop?? [8D]

I have found an easy, inexpensive way to secure the wheel pants and it has worked for years. Instead of drilling a hole through the pants for the axle to pass through I cut a groove in them where they will sit on the axle. Still need to epoxy in a hardwood back plate. Then drill 4 small holes (2 on each side of the gear) that will accept two nylon wire ties. Sit the pants on the axle, pull the ties through the pants, around the gear and back through the pants holes on the other side of the gear. Snug up the ties, cut off the excess and you have a vibration / shock absorbing mount and if you land "firmly" the ties break off before the pants can cause the plane to flip or do more damage. They will sit slightly higer than the conventional method but barely noticeable and on grass fields it really looks just fine.

At least it has worked for me on all size planes over a lond period of time.

Thanks,
Mike

Using wheelpants can actually keep you from using a programmable mix for knife edge or coupling. I know the 2.6M Composit-ARF's, that pilots were noticing when they took off their spinner and wheelpants a more severe pitch tendancy, but once they put them back on it went away.