New 7ECA Owner

S

Sector95

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 22, 2022
Messages
46
Location
Oregon
Hi everyone, just took delivery of my own 1977 7ECA yesterday! This is my first plane, and I'm very excited.

Currently on the waiting list for hangars in my area, so unfortunately it's tied down outside for the time being. If there are any recommendations on how to protect the paint and fabric from the elements for the next couple of months, I'd love to hear them!

Also, this plane has cabin air vent intakes on the leading edge of the wings, and it looks like they might be oriented in a way that rain would easily get into them on the ramp. Is this a valid concern, and if so, are there plugs available for those or something I can use instead? I have blue painters tape over them for the time being.

Anyway, looking forward to the adventures to come!
 
Hello <<insert name here>> and welcome to the site! Congrats on being a new plane owner!

Now let's see a picture of that beautiful 7ECA!

Blue tape will not hold up to rain and the green tape will only do slightly better. Aluminum "speed" tape will stay put but won't be as easy to remove when you want to get airflow. Duct tape and clear packing tape will leave sticky residue.

Would you mind posting a photo of what those vents look like from the front of the wing and from inside the cabin? I've heard of them but have never seen them on an airplane. Thanks!
 
Howdy, and Welcome to the Forum.

If you are storing outside, I would suggest a good set of Wing/Fuselage/Tail covers to protect the finish.

My bird is a 1972 7ECA Citabria, and one of the previous owners kept it outside in Cape Cod, Massasschusettes. Needless to say, The paint is faded badly and will need a recover in the next 5 years or so. I still can not get the paint to buff out and be shiny. Project for this summer.

This is one of the hazzards of keeping it outside in the elements, faded paint and fabric deteriation. I know a few folks who buy the Harbour Freight moving blankets and put them on the bird with Green tarp (With silver back for UV protection) over the entire aircraft. But, some of these birds do not fly regularly. Have to secure any covering nice and tight to keep from moving in the wind and rain and snow.

We all would like to see a picture of your new found ride. Happy Flying

Ken "Cowboy" Winiarski
Cowboys Air Ranch (84ME)
 
Just for a couple months? Fly it a minimum of weekly, hit it with Pledge monthly, and hang in there. My Cub was covered in 76, repainted in 81, and since then has been stored outside maybe ten years (five since the new paint). Flew it every day - only apparent damage was rusty spark plugs. I can still see reflections in the paint.
 
Outdoor storage concerns are water intrusion and UV degradation. Sun is probably not super intense in Oregon, so it should be fine for a few months. As Bob said, best thing you can do for water intrusion is fly it once a week, so water does not settle and sit in low areas. Area around the greenhouse roof and wing roots tends to leak, so I would consider protecting that area from rain. Bruce makes a nice travel cover for a few hundred bucks that covers the greenhouse roof, wind screen, and wing roots, and will come in handy for overnight trips even after you get your hangar.
 
Thanks for the replies!

Loud and clear, here are a couple of pictures from the day we flew her home! :D

PXL_20220406_025551481.webpPXL_20220406_023157548.webp

I have that cabin cover from Bruce on order for trip use, saying 3-4 weeks, it just occurred to me that I could potentially ask them to build the cover to extend over those vents... We'll see. We're supposed to get a good amount of rain starting Friday, so I'll be checking on the plane periodically to look for leaks during this time. It's been very well taken care of through it's life, but having always been in a hangar, it's probably hard to know if it leaks. Overall, glad to hear that it'll likely be fine for a couple of months; it's original fabric so I guess I was a little more paranoid than I needed to be!

I've read quite a bit about people using Pledge on airplanes, does Pledge also protect from UV? I was going to throw some automotive wax on the plane as a layer of protection as well, but if Pledge is just as good, sounds faster.

In the first picture you can make out the little circular intakes on the wings for the air vents. I'll get a better picture today when I'm out there.
 
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