National Aeronca Association Bulletin Board

...or "Ball", Slip indicator, or what-ever you call it....what's the deal with them?
Every Aeronca has one, did they come from the factory with one?
I've looked at most suppliers and have found that none are FAA/PMA'd.
Is that not necessary ???

Personal opinion: I wouldn't worry about it. I'm not sure any of the instruments, etc. were 'certified' when the Champs and Chiefs were built.

Mike Berg

I bought one from someone on ebay for $10 since my plane never had one either and the instructor I had for tail wheel suggested I get one.

WWhunter wrote:I bought one from someone on ebay for $10 since my plane never had one either and the instructor I had for tail wheel suggested I get one.

Well did it help the Instructor??

It must have...he signed me off.

I don't think they were installed at the factory, but were added by many owners later.

Here's a picture of 3 styles of Slip Skid indicators I have.
The top is the one that was installed on my Champ when I bought it. Its the big 6" one from Wag Aero. The bottom 2 were found on E-bay and both rebuilt by me. I used dental picks and a magnifying light to scrape out the old material and remove the glass tube and then clean and paint the housing. I then used white caulk to set the glass tube back in and painted the markings on the front. I only painted the marks and not the numbers as I don't think they are necessary and it was much too difficult.

The top 2 weigh the same, both are 3oz. and the small miniature Rieker is 1oz.

I like the middle one because it looks older, like it fits the style of the plane better.

While I don't necessarily agree with it I think it was Bill Piper who said "I don't care where the ball is as long as it's in the airplane" in regard to flying a J-3.

Mike Berg

Anyone here mounted one so the guy in the back seat can see it? If you're flying/instructing with a tall drink of water in the front seat, it's hard to see it from the back.

lundq wrote:Anyone here mounted one so the guy in the back seat can see it?

Chiefs don't have that problem! Another good reason chiefs are "better"! LOL

I just couldn't help myself....the door was wide open!

Was going to say that but the morning coffee is just starting to work.

Sedans do not have that problem either!

Joe A

James, ...thanks for staying on subject and posting a photo, Great!

But you "Chief guys" are always quick to jump in.
You know, ....something I noticed is...they're still building tandem seat (as in, Champ) airplanes....strange!!

Jim

If you check out some old photos and cockpit layouts of 7AC's they indeed come from the factory with a small "slip & skid" indicator located in the center of the instrument panel just about the cross member support tube. This gage was only 3 or 4 inches in width and was useless to the instructor in the rear to see.

Personally I like the sightly larger 7 inch indicator for a more accurate reading, but the true "seat in the pants" feel is the real indicator.

DC Krog

Kudo's DC. You shouldn't ever need a slip indicator. You can feel things in your butt much quicker than the gauge. Need more ways to keep pilots looking out the window, instead of keeping their eyes inside. It is so easy to fly a champ with no instruments at all.
Let it fly off the ground when it's ready to fly. Climb out at 3 point attitude gets you 55-60. Wings level at cruise. Feel pressure/weight on left butt cheek, left pedal until it centers the weight on both. Pressure/wieght on right butt cheek, right pedal until it centers the weight on your bottom. Throttle off glide- wings level or leading edge slightly lower than trailing. Feel the airplane. Look outside to see who's going to hit you!
Rear seat pilot feels things way before the front seat person does, especially in a slip or skid