Twin Astir water ballast tanks

[Nick Kennedy]

Does anyone out there know how to get the water ballast tanks caps off/open
to fill? They have a 1/8 inch hole in them to spin the around, but several
us have tried to get them off/open but no luck..
TIA
Nick Kennedy

[[email protected]]

On May 23, 5:44*pm, Nick Kennedy > wrote:
> Does anyone out there know how to get the water ballast tanks caps off/open
> to fill? *They have a 1/8 inch hole in them to spin the around, but several
> us have tried to get them off/open but no luck..
> TIA
> Nick Kennedy

If they will turn, they should be able to be lifted out. The only
thing holding it in is a nylon 'cage' below the cap, that should flex
inward to allow removing the cap. It requires a stud to fit the hole
without much slop. Be careful because the 'cap' is somewhat fragile.

[Bill Daniels]

> wrote in message
...
On May 23, 5:44 pm, Nick Kennedy > wrote:
> Does anyone out there know how to get the water ballast tanks caps
> off/open
> to fill? They have a 1/8 inch hole in them to spin the around, but several
> us have tried to get them off/open but no luck..
> TIA
> Nick Kennedy

If they will turn, they should be able to be lifted out. The only
thing holding it in is a nylon 'cage' below the cap, that should flex
inward to allow removing the cap. It requires a stud to fit the hole
without much slop. Be careful because the 'cap' is somewhat fragile.

If it's like S-H gliders, the 1/8" hole is really a threadded hole into
which a tool (or metric bolt) can be threadded to form a handle with which
to pull the cap out of the hole. The cap is likely to be just disk of ~1/8"
(3mm) thick plexiglas which can be replaced easily.

BTW, what are you guys in Telluride up to?

Bill D

[toad]

On May 23, 8:44 pm, Nick Kennedy > wrote:
> Does anyone out there know how to get the water ballast tanks caps off/open
> to fill? They have a 1/8 inch hole in them to spin the around, but several
> us have tried to get them off/open but no luck..
> TIA
> Nick Kennedy

If it's the same cap as a single Astir, which I have.

I use a L shaped piece of coat hanger wire to lift the cap out. I
then tape the plug down, making sure that the hole is not covered.

If it's the same system as the G102, then there is no valve in the
wing and there is a pipe in the wing that fits into the fuselage (with
a Volkswagen shaft seal) and a dump valve in the fuselage. This
means that the water will cross fill between wings and you have to
keep them level before launch.

Todd Smith