Description
This is an improved eyeball vent designed as a drop in replacement for the stock aluminum vents on the Christen Eagle II. On my Eagle, the stock vents would not stay pointed where I wanted because of the natural vibration that is present during flight in the side panels. This design allows you to clamp the vent in place once you get it pointed where you want. I was also dissatisfied with the stock eyeball vent’s longevity. My rear vents were worn out after only 130 flight hours. Below is a list of pros and cons as I see them when comparing this vent to the stock Eagle Wemac vent.
Pros:
- Stays where it’s pointed because of collet style clamp design
- Lasts longer, only two moving parts that are clamped together during normal operation. No parts moving around and rubbing against each other.
- Flows more air that the stock Eagle vents. No butterfly valve to inhibit airflow. There is also a velocity stack on the back side of the vent to help increase airflow.
- Seals completely off for winter operations. No air leaks.
- Better angle built in to the vent to get the airflow where you want it.
- Much cheaper than buying new vents.
- A little lighter weight than stock.
Cons:
- Doesn’t look as nice as the stock aluminum vents.
- Not as user friendly as the stock vents. The stock vents don’t have to have their function explained for your passenger to be able to operate. These probably will.
- Doesnt throttle the airflow as well as the stock vent. It works great at fully open and fully closed, but it doesn’t do barely open very well.
- Even though they are cheaper than the stock vents, I think they are still expensive for what they are. Not much I can do about that though. Printing costs are what they are.
If you use the arrows to scroll through all of the pictures, you'll find some drawing/operation/assembly instructions. There is also a video where I walk you through assembly, operation, and installation of the vents. Or you can click on this link to download the drawing/instructions in pdf format here: https://app.box.com/s/n28h4vruav5j8ou9qjkima5mx6twmahf
Or, you can get to the youtube video by clicking here: https://youtu.be/UCC1Ya-BuHw
These will work on other aircraft too. If you want a scoop made into the vent, I can do that. Contact me for any custom design you might need.
Cameron Grossl
I've been doing engineering and design work professionally for 18 years. I currently work as Engineering Manager at a tooling and custom machinery builder. Most of these components for sale here came about during the build of my Christen Eagle II, N216HP. If I happen to make a few bucks to help pay for my airplane habit, that would be great.