Club Homepage Forums Classified Ads Buy & Sell - Everything But Airplanes Wheel pants: Answer creates problem

Bill,

G'day

Wow..... that does make for a pleasant suprise, as usually... I find that all I manage to be in of late, is....well... in the Sh*t

Cheers

Hey! Hey! The light bulb has illuminated! Here we have been discussing wheel pants for a good period of time now. And some of you have complained that you could not get to the valve stem to service air? This seemed really really odd to me? For when we owned 72G, I just did not remember servicing the tires being that tough of a chore? And, yet another complaint was of taking their airplanes into rough fields with pants on? Again, a mystery for me? For we never experienced any difficulties with 72G?

Now, here I am trying to decide if I want to install the "old" style wheel pants in which I am in the process of refinishing. Or trading them off for a set of "new" style pants? So here I am going through the pictures on the Club website comparing various aircraft with various pants. When the light bulb flashed in a dazzling brilliance! How obvious yet I never noticed it before!

Here is my discovery: (I'll use N5872G and N3221V (Thanks John and Andrew!)

Do ya see? Look at the ground clearance between the two styles? See?

Well! That just made my decision. We do quite a bit of rough field work and sometimes taller grass and or weeds, sagebrush, etc. We can use all the clearance we can get. Plus, I like the easier accesss for servicing the tires. So, I am purchasing backing plates to install the older set that I am now refinishing! (Thanks Matthew and Bengie! )

I am now in the market for a set of 1971-1973 wheel pants brackets. PN's 0441201-5 and -6.

Does anybody here need a set of 1974 or newer wheel pants brackets?? P/N's 041225-1 and -2.

Bill, looking at the 2 pictures it seems that the old style pants have more ground clearance, but I think it's misleading.

You see, the clearance is around the middle of the wheel, but the 2 tips of the arc or curvature are still low and closer to the ground. If you draw a line between the 2 tips of the old style pants, the clearance between the new and the old is just about the same.

I prefer the new style.

What about these Bill?? I thought these were the factory pants for a 71 model until the "blunt" ones you show on 21V came into use.

Seems there are three types eh?

[Linked Image]

Brian best described the differences in a previous post:

There are four distinct versions of wheel pants, all take different mounting plates. The ones in your photo are for the flat gear, 1968 and earlier, these are "tuna" shaped. The 1969-70 had a different style as shown on the attached early Aerobat photo, then there are the 1971-73 type that I have on my plane- these have distinctive "flats" over the top curve, and all 1974 and up are the rounded current style most Cessna's have.
I have an extra set of the 71-73 style I will be selling soon.
You can put the newest style on any tube gear 150/152 so long as you have the matching mounting plate. I've seen the newest style on the earlier tube gear planes, as some owners like the little door for the valve stem, the ability to have a brake cuff fairing, or they were simply the only set-up they had available......................................................

I'll differ with Brian slightly about backing plates. 1966-1970 appear to have the same backing plate. 1971-1973 have a different plate, which is the same as the 1966-1970 plate, with the exception of a notch cut out of the center for installation on the tube gear. So, the 1971-1973 backing plate should fit all prior year of pants and gear to 1966. 1974 and newer pants have an unique backing plate that will only fit that style of pant. Though this plate should fit all prior year model gear to 1966.

So, for example. To fit the pre 1968 pants, like we have presently. To our 1975 airplane. I will use the backing plate from a 1971-1973 model. Clear as mud now?

Jim!!!


Show off....

I am spending wayyyyyyyyyyy to much time in the parts book! See changes as noted:

I noticed that, owning A '63 model myself, but I didn't want to say anything, since you seem to be having so much fun!

Perhaps you could purchase a set of each year and compile a photo array explaining the differences in each one. I sure Mike Arman could use the information in Volume II of his next book.

Shoot, he may even pay you $10.00 for the information and you'll get photo credits?!?!

Or, you could pass the information on to Royson or Charles for the archives.

Bengie

Ya know Bengie, Justina and I were kidding around saying that we should put three differing pants on Mr. Ed. An early model, mid model and late model. One red, one white, and one blue. So the airplane would have a different look depending on which direction that you were viewing it! Could be a real conversation piece and a lot of fun! But how long do you think it would take before somebody would get a burr under their saddle and........................................