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I used my cracked canopy to test canopy exit tools

selhardt

Well Known Member
Well, I finally got up the nerve to do it.

I started with my cracked canopy clecoe'd to the frame and screwed and clamped to some saw horses. My shop temperature was 88 degrees here in balmy Minnesota.

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I had purchased some options that I thought that I would fly with, along with one from my tool box that I thought might work too.

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I purchased these from the folks at
http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=LH01

I then donned some safety glasses and gloves and crawled under the canopy with my tools. I was careful to be as close to where I will actually sit as possible to make sure I didn't have more leverage than I really would. I first made 3 hammer blows on the right side of the canopy. The blows resulted in 2" by 3" pieces flying away opening a hole large enough to get my hand into and after there were holes, further blows resulted in larger pieces flying away.

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I then made 2 blows to the left side of the canopy with the Pick. The first blow only resulted in a mark (actually 2 marks due to bounce) on the canopy.

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The second blow resulted in a crack in the left side. There was bounce back on all blows with the pick.

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I finally tried the spring loaded center punch on a part of the canopy further back and could never create a crack or hole with it - go figure.

In disposing of the canopy, I tried breaking it up with both the hammer and pick. The hammer tool was by far the most effective. It nearly always resulted in a piece physically flying away from the canopy opening a hole, while the pick NEVER did.

There may be cooler hammers available, but for $15 bucks, this one is pretty good!

YMMV as always.
 
You are the first one to do such a thorough test Scott. Thank you very much. Was it Vans canopy or Todd's?
 
Wow, that was painful to watch. I know you said that canopy was cracked but it still looked awfully good in the first photo. :)

Thanks for the update and finally some real data on breaking a canopy.
 
Hammer Time

I have been carrying one (Hammer) in my airplane for about two years but was never sure it would actually be effective since it was designed for tempered glass like you have in a car window. There was actually a discussion of it in a previous thread with varying opinions on its effectiveness. So thanks for doing the test. Makes me feel a bit better about the prospect of having to do this for real.

Chris
 
Scott,
I am willing to make a small donation to your canopy replacement fund for the information you provided.
Do you have a PayPal account?
 
Unexpected!

I would never have thought that hammer would do that well - but that is why we do testing! Bravo for giving some real-world experience to what has been an often-debated, never proven issue here.

I have one of those hammers, but rarely carry it. Might just have to change that after these tests results....

Paul
 
Great test!

I was one of the naysayers regarding the effectiveness of the hammer, based on some testing a leading auto magazine did to junkyard windows.

It is good to hear that the hammer actually works.

Thanks for performing that test!
 
As a former EMT, I have experience breaking things...including plexiglass. That's why I carry an Estwing camp axe in my RV7A. It's attached to a loop on my seat belt and kept to my left between the seat and the side panel. It shouldn't be able to hit me in a crash, but should also not be able to get away...

I keep it in its leather case and its blade end is sharpened like a razor...I have tested the blade end, it's capable of cutting 1/8" thick stuctural AL angle...in case Ihave to chop through the fuselage. The Estwing axe's handle is rubber covered steel, so there'll be no breaking the handle with vigorous use...
 
Thank you!

As a devout sceptic, I thank you for providing us with hard data. Hammer it is! I love the VAF!
 
great post

I have a tool similar to the pick. Fortunately I've never had the opportunity
to see how ineffective it would be. Just ordered the hammer.

Thanks for posting.
 
Since that little hammer did such a good job of breaking the canopy, I suspect the passenger control stick will easily blow out a huge hole. My passengers are briefed to use the control stick to smash the canopy if we ever come to rest upside down.
 
Awesome Post! I love VAF! Thank you Scott!

Now for some stories! :)

I used to fly P-3's... we had crash axes on them. One of my Flight engineers told me a story about when he got to go to the bone yard for a 'live test' on an old airframe... they chopped away for 30 minutes at the aluminum skin where the engineers had painted a dotted square for an "chopped out" emergency exit (albeit much heavier than what we use in a Vans) and barely made it across the top... of the about 18x18 square... the test was called complete.

They then hit the plexiglass side windows and it all went flying. The front windscreen (very thick) was a bit tougher but they got through in minutes...

On a side note, I have a friend who is also a Coastie Pilot, who was a cop prior to joining the USCG... he cares the hammer pictured in his side pocket of his truck and has used it, or one like it, numerous times to bust out car windows and effect rescues. He swears by them.
 
Thank YOU!

"Please send thanks to the RV guy who did this test from all the Long-EZ folks like myself.
It opened my eyes to real data.
Thanks
EJ N36EJ Long-EZ"

Ditto here Scott!
N762BH
 
Way back a long time ago when I was still working, I was stationed at the crash station at John Wayne airport in Orange County, Ca.

I had numerous training exercises in aircraft rescue, and the best tool we had of opening plexi canopies was an axe. I have even cut through fighter jet canopies over an inch thick with an axe, it was a lot of work, but did the job.

The first unit in your photo, that you called a "pick" is listed as a "strap cutter" by the manufacturer. It is what we used to call a seat belt cutter in the fire service. Looking at the photo, it appears to have a screwdriver tip on the end of the handle, also a common thing in fire service tools.

The spring loaded center punch is very effective at removing tempered glass windows-----I carried one for many years in my turnout coat. As you found out, it is worthless on plastic.

Bob Brown has the correct idea, IMHO, the axe is going to do the best job.
 
Scott,

Thanks for doing the test. However, with the canopy pointed upwards, there really shouldn't be any problem exiting the aircraft, unless the darn thing was just stuck, or maybe if you were in the air and wanted to jump from a burning airplane, so thanks for testing that situation. Anyway, do you think you could get another canopy, turn it upside down, and try to break through it while standing or balancing upside down on it? That would really be helpful. Oh, and how about doing it under water.

Tracy.
 
Why a special tool?

Why a special tool for this, what about the fire extinguisher? will a couple of blows with it not make a big hole in the canopy?

Regards, Tonny.
 
Very Funny!

My second canopy has been successfully glued! Not a hole in it anywhere! I'm going to leave it to other interested souls to do the inverted underwater test!

I thought of adding a 4th item to the list of things to test - a #40 drill bit but thought it too close to home.

I'm sure that there would be lots of things that your could beat your way through a canopy with if necessary.

While I was beating it apart to throw it away (I know - just typing that hurts kind of where my wallet is) really only the silly hammer made any holes. Especially toward the rear where it is thicker. I could crack it with nearly anything, but the hammer would routinely pop out a hunk.
 
We cracked my canopy on purpose, too. Video!

Thank you, Scott! We did this to my canopy, too. Since mine is a side-by-side RV-7A, I thought I'd add my experience to Scott's for additional data points. I already had this posted in another thread, but since this thread is more directly related to cracking a canopy, I'll re-post it here, too.

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I was fortunate to host a monthly meeting of Chapter 105 here in my shop. The highlight of the meeting was a demonstration of a canopy cracking hammer on my canopy. It was my first canopy, which I accidentally ruined, and I had to get a new one. (ouch! That really hurt, and it was expensive) We put my original canopy to good use, though, allowing it to be used as a demo to test this tool. I made a YouTube video of the demonstration, and posted it online.

There were actually 2 tools tested... the first one was a "thumper" or clicking type, and it had little effect on the plexiglass. But the second one, the orange hammer, worked quickly and effectively. And this was with the canopy hand-held by chapter members. As you will hear Len Kaufman explain at the end, we suspect that a canopy securely fastened to a frame would break even easier and with results similar to what Scott has shown... pieces flying everywhere. I plan on carrying one of these in my plane when it's finished!

Here's a link to my page discussing the meeting. The video is at the bottom of the page, if you scroll all the way down:

Chapter 105 meeting, January 2012

Mine was a Vans canopy, too. And my new one is glued in place with SikaFlex. No holes in this one!
 
updated links

This is a great thread, and no doubt the little hammer works from the two demos (the OP and the Youtube demo).

Also good thoughts about an axe.... So for sure the heavier the better, but something neat and not too heavy for the cockpit? So I was wanting something just a bit heavier than the little hammer. Maybe being over conservative?

There are links to a flyboys page that no longer works (the link) - I think I found the tool here: http://www.flyboyaccessories.com/Chisel-Style-Canopy-Breaker-p/2201.htm

Anyone have any views or experience on that one they would share?

JP
 
While I haven't tested the Flyboy Accessories canopy breaker on the expensive Plexiglas around here, it is a copy of a military design from the 60's. We've even sold bulk orders of them to overseas customers, whom we assume are military or related.

You could certainly carry any number of items that would open that Plexiglas. I like Smokey Ray's solution, but your rescuers might not be keen on the flying bullets.

There is something to be said about having a dedicated tool for the canopy cracking.... something that won't be taken out of the plane, and that is always in its dedicated location. Something to consider. You don't want to be looking for it when you need it!
 
While I haven't tested the Flyboy Accessories canopy breaker on the expensive Plexiglas around here, it is a copy of a military design from the 60's. We've even sold bulk orders of them to overseas customers, whom we assume are military or related.

You could certainly carry any number of items that would open that Plexiglas. I like Smokey Ray's solution, but your rescuers might not be keen on the flying bullets.

There is something to be said about having a dedicated tool for the canopy cracking.... something that won't be taken out of the plane, and that is always in its dedicated location. Something to consider. You don't want to be looking for it when you need it!
Vince
Has your Canopy breaker been tested?
Or has it been used in a real life situation?
I have a Russian copy of USAF or is it USN Canopy knife, but would be interested in a small item such as yours for another aircraft.
John
 
Hammer

I have wondered if a 16oz rip hammer (on sale for $2.99 at HF) with a more horizontal plane than a claw hammer wouldn't be effective. A grinding wheel could even sharpen the rip side, if needed, and you would have a significant hammer effect with the 16oz hammer with a good grip. It could be stowed fairly easily and still be accessible.

The things that you think of when looking through a HF ad.......

John
 
Canopy breaking tool

I carry in my RV3B a RIGHT ANGLE tin snip. It is heavy like a hammer, has great handles for gripping and leverage, when it’s in closed position the tip is a strong point like a glass breaker tool, and as a bonus, it can cut thru sheet metal!
 
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