Canopy/Cowl cover

[milotron]

Hi, 

What is the recommendation for canopy/cowl covers for a plane parked outside all year long?  I had a Kennon cover that must have been 15 years old, but is ripping and won't clean up any more.  I see that they don't do covers any more.

Bruce's, Aero covers, or ??

 

And before you say it, a hangar is not an option....

 

Thanks,

[201er]

I'm pretty happy with Macs. It's well designed/fit but the durability on it isn't terrific. Price is good.

[DCarlton]

I took my last aircraft cover to a boat sail and canvas shop to use as a template for a new one. It’s lasted 2-3 times as long as my previous covers.   

[Ragsf15e]

Bruces covers and cowl plugs have been great for me but it’s only outside away from home.

[mcarterak]

Bruce's! They usually have discount codes around Sun 'n' Fun and Oshkosh. 

[milotron]

Does anybody have a cover with the extended engine cowl cover?  How does it fasten in the front?  

(from Bruce's website)

[mcarterak]

It's velcro under the nose bowl, and then there are straps to secure it underneath. I think some variants have snaps that you install on screws near the root fairing and snap to those. 

Edited February 26, 2023 by mcarterak

[BobbyH]

I really like the Bruce's cover on mine, which is also outside because hangars are not available in this area without a multi-year wait.  Mine snaps in the front and has a strap underneath the empennage.  Options for cowl covers are available, along with wing and tail covers too. 

[N201MKTurbo]

I was doing some maintenance on a Cherokee 140 with a Bruce's cover. I hate that thing! It is impossible to put that thing on with more than a 5 kt cross wind. You get it all spread out, then jump down to fasten the clips and it is laying on the ground wrapped around the plane next door! There have been two times I just stuffed it in the cabin and let the owner deal with it.

Anybody have any secrets for doing this?

I think the antennas and OAT probe may hold it in place, but the Piper didn't have anything.

[RobertGary1]

Been a Bruce's customer for 20 years. My last cover didn't last 2 years. They told me "Sorry the fabric wore out and we don't cover that". So I bough a mac at less than 1/2 the price. The mac doesn't feel as substantial as the Bruce's but so far its outlasted my last Bruces. I'm not paying double any more after that for Bruces.

[milotron]

Has anybody used these ones?

https://aerocovers.ca/canopy-and-cabin-covers/

 

[Ned Gravel]

2 hours ago, milotron said:

Has anybody used these ones?

https://aerocovers.ca/canopy-and-cabin-covers/

 

All of my covers are from them.  Winter cowl cover.  Canopy cover to protect the windows and windscreen.  Wing covers for winter and elevator covers also for winter.

Great people to deal with and good products. My canopy cover lasted 15 years before this winter totalled it. 

[milotron]

5 minutes ago, Ned Gravel said:

All of my covers are from them.  Winter cowl cover.  Canopy cover to protect the windows and windscreen.  Wing covers for winter and elevator covers also for winter.

Great people to deal with and good products. My canopy cover lasted 15 years before this winter totalled it. 

Thanks, dropped you a PM.

[PT20J]

Here's why I like Bruce's: My airplane had two previous owners. The first owner bought a Bruce's cover in 1996. The plane was mostly hangared, so it didn't get used that much. The second owner had a 406 MHz ELT installed with a new antenna that the cover didn't accommodate. I called Bruce's in 2019 and they had the specs on the original and told me to send it to them with measurements for the new antenna and they modified it for free. Last year it started showing it's age and I purchased a new cover. I didn't have to send them any measurements; they had it all including the ELT antenna modification and it fits perfectly. I didn't go to Oshkosh, but they gave me the discount anyway. So often these days I deal with companies that have no concept of customer service. It's a pleasure to deal with a company that understands how to treat customers well. 

[Pinecone]

 I bought a Mac's insulate cowl cover.

I placed the order online and heard NOTHING from them.  And then  one day, it showed up.

I later find out, there is an option to have a oil door flap.  I would have loved to have had this, but did not see it on the page to order.

Nice cover, but NO communications from the company.

[T. Peterson]

On 2/27/2023 at 1:04 PM, N201MKTurbo said:

I was doing some maintenance on a Cherokee 140 with a Bruce's cover. I hate that thing! It is impossible to put that thing on with more than a 5 kt cross wind. You get it all spread out, then jump down to fasten the clips and it is laying on the ground wrapped around the plane next door! There have been two times I just stuffed it in the cabin and let the owner deal with it.

Anybody have any secrets for doing this?

I think the antennas and OAT probe may hold it in place, but the Piper didn't have anything.

A wife to hold it in place till you can get off the wing?

[N201MKTurbo]

4 minutes ago, T. Peterson said:

A wife to hold it in place till you can get off the wing?

Sure, if we are going somewhere, but to hang out with me at the airport, she isn’t that way…

[T. Peterson]

1 minute ago, N201MKTurbo said:

Sure, if we are going somewhere, but to hang out with me at the airport, she isn’t that way…

I get that! I actually invited my wife to come to the hangar with me a couple of days ago. I just wanted to clean up the plane and the hangar a little bit and I told her she could just come and read a book while waiting. That was a “no thank you”!

[carusoam]

Putting a cover on in a breeze… deserves a whole other thread… 

Whichever cover you go with…

Consider a few things…

1) Sunbrella material… lasts a decade outdoors…

2) The best nylon thread probably won’t go the whole decade… getting it Re-sewn may be part of your ownership experience… Plane-covers used to include that…  unfortunately, Plane-covers retired from the business…

3) Get a zipped door… as soon as you have the cover on… you remember exactly what you forgot inside… or you can’t remember if you unplugged something or turned it off…

4) Make sure the cover extends forwards enough to cover any access panels up front…

5) Tail cover… get something to keep the birds from building a nest in the tail…

6) Nostrils… fill the holes to keep birds off the engine… something to tie them together so the prop will pull them out when it turns…

 

PP thoughts only, not cover manufacturer…

Best regards,

-a-

[Pinecone]

9 hours ago, carusoam said:

something to tie them together so the prop will pull them out when it turns…

I was watching the A&P/IA of the shop on my field put in cowl plugs that way and made a comment.

He told me of on owner in the field (no names) that forget to take them out and the string pulling them out, doing some damage to the plugs.  He was not happy.

So he changed how he put them in, the string would not pull them out.  And yes, he managed to forget and took off with them still in.  Cooked a lot of things under the cowl.

[mcarterak]

4 hours ago, Pinecone said:

He told me of on owner in the field (no names) that forget to take them out and the string pulling them out, doing some damage to the plugs.  He was not happy.

So he changed how he put them in, the string would not pull them out.  And yes, he managed to forget and took off with them still in.  Cooked a lot of things under the cowl.

I'd rather damage the plugs than melt down the engine! My plugs from Bruces have the silly little flags on them. They look goofy, but they're effective at catching your eye from the pilot's seat.

[Pinecone]

That was the point.

Cheaper to replace the plugs.