I'm building out an FT Explorer and I haven't found a way to do wheels on it in a way I'd like, so it's going to be a belly lander.
What are some ways I can protect and extend the life of the bottom from all the landings? My area tends to have a lot of gravel landing spots.
I'm building out an FT Explorer and I haven't found a way to do wheels on it in a way I'd like, so it's going to be a belly lander.
What are some ways I can protect and extend the life of the bottom from all the landings? My area tends to have a lot of gravel landing spots.
Belly landing on gravel is gonna be rough for sure. You could try buying some plastic folders and cutting and gluing them to the bottom of the plane as a skid plate for the bottom of the plane. It will wear through at some point though. You could also try a couple skids on the bottom made of plywood and strengthened with CA. That would last a while. I think that just doing standard tricycle landing gear would be more fun, easier, and would last longer.
If I don't have wheels I try to catch it before it touches the ground.
It's a fun thing to do provided your plane is slow and gentle. Only try this if the propeller is in the back or you are using a folding one. Just remember to cut the throttle and glide to your hands.
Fiberglass tape is a much easier method, or reinforced packing tape (which is the same from my understanding) from pretty much any department or supplies store.