Mar 09, 2024     Week 40 - (30 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers

While the Rans continued to demand attention, some signifiant progress has nonetheless been made on the Cessna in the last couple of weeks. The wings, tail feathers, and some other parts were sent to the paint shop in Pennsylvania. We also started installing insulation between the panel and the firewall. We are using 3M 4014 Sound Dampening panels. They are self adhesive and go under the glare shield and along the sides of the boot cowl area. More will go inside the wing root area and inside the doors. Another on-going project is the electrical system. New solenoids were installed on the firewall and battery box. After much trial and error, the new STC gascolator was also finally secured in place. Finally, this weekend the process of getting the Cessna back on its gear was begun. With some effort, the main gear legs are mostly installed. The large snap rings on the upper legs are awaiting a different tool to install. Meanwhile, the nose gear was bolted in place and work was begun on installing the new Cleveland brakes. She should be finally sitting on her own gear soon.

  Feb 17, 2024     Week 39 - (15 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers

Work continues on the Rans S-12XL, but we still made some progress on the Cessna. Our A&P/IA returned with the right rivets and completed installation of the bracket on the horizontal stabilizer. The brake master cylinders were also cleaned and overhauled with new O-rings and seals. They're ready to reinstall. The process of installing new insulation has also begun but I didn't get any photos of that. On Monday 2/19 the plan is to send the wings and some other parts to Pennsylvania for paint.

  Jan 20, 2024     Week 36 - (15 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers

Not too much has been done on the Cessna the last couple of weeks. That's because we needed to bring in the donated Rans S-12XL to begin changing out hoses in preparation for its condition inspection. But a few things got done. Parts were gathered and inventoried for the nose gear rebuild and installation. On the firewall, the auxiliary power plug and fuse set were installed. The task of re-riveting the attach bracket on the rear spar of the horizontal stabilizer was begun. This is part of complying with AD80-11-04, Service bulletin SE79-49. Bucking the rivets proved difficult and hard on the arms. More to be done on that.

  Jan 06, 2024     Week 35 - (20 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers

The first order of business this week was to complete installation of Service Kit SK152-24 to comply with AD 2009-10-09 R2. This involved installing the bumpers on the rudder horn. The parts were prepped last week. The new bumpers are riveted on, but the instructions also require sealing the installation with Pro-seal to help prevent corrosion. Pro-seal is thoroughly nasty stuff and tends to get on everything, but our guys did a nice job with it. It was used to not only seal the bumper to the horn but was also applied to each individual rivet. The rivets were then squeezed by hand and each rivet checked with a gauge. The next project was installation of the new (to us) windshield. The first step was application of adhesive felt around the edges of the glass. The windshield was then fitted in place. The retaining strip that runs along the bottom edge was originally riveted in. We decided, with our A&P/IA's approval, to use stainless steel screws and fiber lock nuts instead. We can do this since we now have easy access to the interior side for installing nuts and washers. A small amount of clear silicone sealant was applied to each hole and a small white nylon washer went under each screw head. In other news, the AV-30s and tail surface tips have arrived. And the propeller passed inspection and was able to be overhauled.

  Dec 30, 2023     Week 34 - (20 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers

The main focus this week was work to comply with the rudder horn AD (AD 2009-10-09 R2). This AD requires the installation of a kit to replace the rudder stop bolts and bumpers with larger versions so that the rudder cannot be accidentally moved past its normal limits. Without the installation of the kit the airplane would have to be placarded against doing spins. The old stop bolts and bumpers were removed. New stop bolts and a new backing plate were installed, all according to Cessna Service Letter SEL-27-02 and Service Kit SK152-24. The rudder horn and new larger bumper were prepped for installation. The nuts for the engine mount bolts installed last week were also torqued according to maintenance manual specifications and torque seal applied. While we were looking at tail surfaces, we inspected all of the tips and found cracks in all of them. The decision was made to replace them all.

  Jul 08, 2023     Week 27 - (8 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers

Work on the Cessna has suffered a lot of interruptions lately, including the chapter hosting the Ford Tri-Motor. But a few things are moving along. We have a strange hole through the horizontal stabilizer that some time in the past was improperly repaired with something like Bondo. In consultation with one of our A&P/IAs we discussed the possibility of doing proper patches or maybe having that part re-skinned. In order to get a cost estimate for re-skinning, we thoroughly cleaned the stabilizer and took photos to send to Royal Aircraft in Hagerstown. Depending on the cost, we'll decide what to do. Meanwhile, the fuselage has been prepped for transport to the paint shop in Pennsylvania for stripping. That may happen as soon as this coming week.