Wing Tape - Does Thickness Affect Performance?

No, this is not SPAM as the subject line might lead one to believe.
;-)

I have seen lots of wing tape. Many of the advertisements are for very
thin and flexible tape which conforms to the curves of the wing.
However, the cost can be prohibitive, especially if you assemble often.

A friend of mine (very high time & competitive pilot) uses 3M
electrical tape. We got to talking about it and we agreed that this
high quality tape is very flexible, has good temperature properties and
not very expensive. Easy to find also.

The only issue then was the thickness. Wouldn't the edge of the think
tape affect performance? The friend pointed out (correctly) that the
tape runs perpenticular to the span of the wing and thus the tape's
edge is parallel to the air flow. Thus no performance issues.

Any thoughts? What about with bug whippers?

Enjoy, John

PS There is one issue with 1/2" wide electrical tape - whether it is
wide enough to bridge the gap. It all depends, I suppose, on the fit
and finish of your glider.

ContestID67 wrote:


However, the cost can be prohibitive, especially if you assemble often.


The only issue then was the thickness.

I / we own toys that cost a hell of a lot of money, mine more than the
purchase price of my house.
The idea of a bit of tape being expensive boggles the mind.

Buy six rolls from Mike Bowlus. It's great stuff. His hats are great
too.
Legal disclaimer, I don't work for Mike.

Make sure all your overlaps don't give you an additional tape leading
edge, ie: on AS-W27 or similar, start at the trailing edge and overlap
the three pieces on each side.

Jim

"ContestID67" wrote in message
ups.com:

No, this is not SPAM as the subject line might lead one to believe.
;-)

I have seen lots of wing tape. Many of the advertisements are for very
thin and flexible tape which conforms to the curves of the wing.
However, the cost can be prohibitive, especially if you assemble often.

A friend of mine (very high time & competitive pilot) uses 3M
electrical tape. We got to talking about it and we agreed that this
high quality tape is very flexible, has good temperature properties and
not very expensive. Easy to find also.

The only issue then was the thickness. Wouldn't the edge of the think
tape affect performance? The friend pointed out (correctly) that the
tape runs perpenticular to the span of the wing and thus the tape's
edge is parallel to the air flow. Thus no performance issues.





Actually, I believe that not all the airflow is parallel to the
streamline. For instance, on the top aft half of the wing or so there
is a low pressure area and I think that pulls air from the fuselage area
somewhat laterally out onto the wing.




Any thoughts? What about with bug whippers?





Nope, I think you need to try alt.sex.insects.bondage group for that.





Larry

01 "zero one"

LS-3a USA

I / we own toys that cost a hell of a lot of money, mine more than the
purchase price of my house.
The idea of a bit of tape being expensive boggles the mind.

Speak for yourself, some of us are in this sport because its cheap fun.
I only taped the Cherokee a few times this year. my longest flights
came without tape.

Tape drag not a huge effect, but can add up to 10 or 15 points over the
course of a contest. That's why many top Euopean contest pilots use a
special putty compound to smooth over the tape edges. It's a bit
tedious for a single day's flying, but if you're going to stay
assembled for a week it's not so bad.

On Jan 22, 3:13 pm, "ContestID67" wrote:
No, this is not SPAM as the subject line might lead one to believe.
;-)

I have seen lots of wing tape. Many of the advertisements are for very
thin and flexible tape which conforms to the curves of the wing.
However, the cost can be prohibitive, especially if you assemble often.

A friend of mine (very high time & competitive pilot) uses 3M
electrical tape. We got to talking about it and we agreed that this
high quality tape is very flexible, has good temperature properties and
not very expensive. Easy to find also.

The only issue then was the thickness. Wouldn't the edge of the think
tape affect performance? The friend pointed out (correctly) that the
tape runs perpenticular to the span of the wing and thus the tape's
edge is parallel to the air flow. Thus no performance issues.

Any thoughts? What about with bug whippers?

Enjoy, John

PS There is one issue with 1/2" wide electrical tape - whether it is
wide enough to bridge the gap. It all depends, I suppose, on the fit
and finish of your glider.

What a nonsense...

wrote in message
oups.com...
Tape drag not a huge effect, but can add up to 10 or 15 points over the
course of a contest. That's why many top Euopean contest pilots use a
special putty compound to smooth over the tape edges. It's a bit
tedious for a single day's flying, but if you're going to stay
assembled for a week it's not so bad.

wrote:

Tape drag not a huge effect, but can add up to 10 or 15 points over the
course of a contest.

Got any evidence for that?


Dan

wrote:
Tape drag not a huge effect, but can add up to 10 or 15 points over the
course of a contest.

How many days would that be? Can you also tell me how many points it
costs for the drag of an open airvent and an extended pee tube?

Andy

Gosh, is it April already?

--
Hartley Falbaum


wrote in message
oups.com...
Tape drag not a huge effect, but can add up to 10 or 15 points over the
course of a contest. That's why many top Euopean contest pilots use a
special putty compound to smooth over the tape edges. It's a bit
tedious for a single day's flying, but if you're going to stay
assembled for a week it's not so bad.

On Jan 22, 3:13 pm, "ContestID67" wrote:
No, this is not SPAM as the subject line might lead one to believe.
;-)

I have seen lots of wing tape. Many of the advertisements are for very
thin and flexible tape which conforms to the curves of the wing.
However, the cost can be prohibitive, especially if you assemble often.

A friend of mine (very high time & competitive pilot) uses 3M
electrical tape. We got to talking about it and we agreed that this
high quality tape is very flexible, has good temperature properties and
not very expensive. Easy to find also.

The only issue then was the thickness. Wouldn't the edge of the think
tape affect performance? The friend pointed out (correctly) that the
tape runs perpenticular to the span of the wing and thus the tape's
edge is parallel to the air flow. Thus no performance issues.

Any thoughts? What about with bug whippers?

Enjoy, John

PS There is one issue with 1/2" wide electrical tape - whether it is
wide enough to bridge the gap. It all depends, I suppose, on the fit
and finish of your glider.

wrote:
Tape drag not a huge effect, but can add up to 10 or 15 points over the
course of a contest.

Has that ever been scientifically measured?

Ian