Aluminium fuel tank?

[Kyle Communications]

I could buy new tanks. It was my stuff up when I fitted the main outlet fittings trying to get them as low as I could in the corner in the well they molded in there. The first tank that I did I ended up elongating the hole to get the fitting in flat against the rear wall was the main offender with leaks but when I found it I redid all the tanks to make sure. The only way to fix it properly was to put O rings inside the tank on the fittings I did this on the bad tank and to be honest it seems to be ok but the other tanks which I had resealed one is leaking. I has pee'd me off I never liked the fuel tanks anyway they are made from a greasy style of plastic which will not accept a sealer properly. I even used Proseal and a tank leaked the fuel went between the tank wall and the fitting because even pro seal wouldnt stick to the tanks. I think I can make a better set of tanks that are lighter and also will sneak about 5 or so litres of extra fuel into the new tank maybe... also there will not be any sealing problems as better fittings are available and sealers like pro seal will actually stick to the resin. That is my excuse and I am sticking to it

 

 

[rgmwa]

Well the recent tragedy in Lismore on the RV test flight proves their tank may need some looking into as that is what split and burnt only the centre section of the aircraft....now I am thinking about going back to Kevlar and the extra workk

The RV-12 is designed, built and tested to meet the ASTM standards required for an SLSA aircraft, including drop testing the tank. However no tank (or pilot) is likely to survive a Lismore type crash.

rgmwa

 

 

[metalman]

Well the recent tragedy in Lismore on the RV test flight proves their tank may need some looking into as that is what split and burnt only the centre section of the aircraft....now I am thinking about going back to Kevlar and the extra workk

So would just about any aircraft on the market since the wright brothers if its stalled at a couple of hundred feet and hitting the ground nearly vertical,

 

And I would ad for the moderator. I DIDN'T BRING THIS UP

 

Refer post #48

Really turboplanner, and yet thousands(8188 as of today, that's flying numbers they've sold more than three times that number of kits) of RV's are flying around without the reputation of being fire hazards, dumb luck perhaps or maybe the aeronautical engineers at Vans know a thing or two about designing aircraft,

 

 

[sain]

You may also find this link useful:

 

http://www.ronleclerc.net/fuel-system.html

 

Which is discussing a CH701/750 fuel tank. He is using 5052H-32 0.032" aluminium.

 

 

[turboplanner]

The RV-12 is designed, built and tested to meet the ASTM standards required for an SLSA aircraft, including drop testing the tank. However no tank (or pilot) is likely to survive a Lismore type crash.rgmwa

I've found useful information on the drop test for transport rotorcraft, which is based on 80% capacity and a drop height of 50 feet

 

I've also found ASTM standards for various things, but not a drop test specification; it may be within one of the other tests, but you have to spend $70.00 to buy the standard to see an index. I couldn't find any reference to any tank test on the VANS site or RV12 material.

 

Can you give me a link to the drop test, or reference to it that you found?

 

I've also found the US automotive standard which specifies a drop height of 30 feet, but want to get the information correct before posting.

 

 

[rgmwa]

I've also found ASTM standards for various things, but not a drop test specification; it may be within one of the other tests, but you have to spend $70.00 to buy the standard to see an index. I couldn't find any reference to any tank test on the VANS site or RV12 material.Can you give me a link to the drop test, or reference to it that you found?

Sure. Post #4 below by Scott McDaniels (rvbuilder2002). He's a Vans employee and one of the Vans `Skunk Works' prototype and maintenance team.

 

http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=75042&highlight=ASTM

 

rgmwa

 

 

[turboplanner]

Thanks, I'll do some more work on it.