Many thanks Steve!

My recently purchased X Air Hanuman/Hawk is 2009; going on 13yrs old. It is red exterior but with only 146hrs on airframe and Jabiru 2200.

The Dacron still looks good, I'm no expert but looks like a solid 8.5/10.

Always stored inside hangar and still is.

When I google "Dacron", I don't get much Info with regards to specifics. I lost a piece of paper from the original owner, with make and model of exact covering but I thought it said not to exceed 1000hrs of direct UV exposure.if I do the math, plus 5-10%, I have about 400/1000 UV direct UV exposure.

I heard about spraying some kind of exterior household paint, but I think I'd need a spray gun with a fine tip/nozzle to prevent dripping and have to calculate how much more weight I am adding to the plane. If I had to make.my own colour choice, it would be matte grey or matte green, almost like an aggressive military look on a somewhat 'cute' looking plane.

There are currently some areas on my Hanuman whereby the covering looks like it should have been stretched tighter, to give it a better look.

Based off the year of my covering, it is viable to try and apply a heat gun to the covering, in efforts to create a tighter look and feel? If so, how exactly do I tighten this covering? What's the procedure?

Moreover, with reference to the bungee cords, you are saying each side to be 10mm thick diameter bungee chord by about 5 feet in length, and to achieve 4 laps or turns around each bolt?

Do I have to use a car jack to lift the rear of the plane in the air to allow maximum sag/stretch, and then wrap the bungee chord as tight as I can around the bottom and top bolt on each side, 4 wraps for each bolt?

Thanks again,

Justin

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From: [email protected] <[email protected]> on behalf of Steve Rance via groups.io <steve-r@...>
Sent: Saturday, November 20, 2021 6:40:42 AM
To: [email protected] <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: [XAIR] X Air Hanuman bungee cord rear landing gear and sail cloth

?

I did own a XairH called Hawk in UK. Very nice aircraft but I considered the main undercarraige to have poor geometry. I measured my old bungee at 1460mm x 10mm over the loops. It needs maximan stretch (4 1/2 turns from memory) on all 4 to avoid aircraft sagging and that can be a struggle. I tried using 12 bungee I had to install longer bolts to accommodate the thicker bungee. Worked OK for a while but the bolts bent under the strain so reverted to original. I found using original bungees they had to be so tight that they were at their limit of elasticity.

I bought the cord from ebay but had to experiment with length to get the best fit.?

I tried some years ago a uv treatment for Dacron. I cut 2 new blue samples and pinned them to board, left in sunny position all summer, treated sample No. 1 every month 2nd was untreated but half masked from sun. After 8 months the treated sample had faded same as no. 2.?

I was in France years ago and a French flying Instructor told me his Dacron covered planes were all sprayed with polyester paint on exposed surfaces from new and they were left outside all season and appeared in good condition fabric wise. No real answer other than to keep it in hanger when not flying and you could get 10 years use. Some colours are more prone, blues, reds etc. Whites probably better but I have no data.?

Steve?

On 20 Nov 2021 04:22, Justin Gregoris <jgregoris789@...> wrote:

Good day everyone,

Does anyone have specifications of make and model and size needed for each rear side of the bungee cord landing gear as well as installation instructions they can send me or describe to me please?

Also, what is the make and model of the sailcloth? How many years or hours is it good for and how many hours is it good for in direct exposure to UV sunlight?

Any uv protection sprays I can apply to it, that also clean it? I heard Lucas Slick Mist is a great product?

Your help is greatly appreciated, as always.

Justin