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Bird strike wing damage how to fix???

RickWoodall

Well Known Member
A good buddy had the unpleasant experience of smashing a swallow bird today. Here is the damage. There is no hole, just a good dent just outboard of fuel tank, and ribs seem to be ok.

Any suggestions on how best to fix? He has a few trips planned including wanting to go to KOSH this week. Need to figure out how best to tackle this one quickly and properly.
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Thanks.
 
Pull the tank

Best fix, pull the tank and work the dent out...quickest fix, fill it with some bondo and put aluminum speed tape over it...may match the polished skin pretty well. Believe it or not, that's how we do interim repairs on the big jets when birds or hail damage the skin.
 
I helped a friend fix his 4 following a turkey vulture bird strike earlier this year.
We replaced the skin and several ribs and added a doubler on the outboard spar support. Total cost was about $500.
I did make sure there was no spar damage due to the size of the bird strike. There was no forward or aft sweep. I used the plumb bob procedure.

Planning was much different than the typical building process as we had to use some cherry rivets due to limited accessibility which you don't normally encounter in the building process.

Here's the VAF thread.http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=94981&highlight=bird+strike
 
Talk to some of the local auto body guys, they might have a good suggestion how to pull the dent out. Then use bondo.
 
Remove the ball from your trailer hitch, remove the fuel tank, reach in through the rib holes and gently work it out as close as possible, with the ball..then Bondo the remaining small dents.

Works on our ag airplanes:)

Best,
 
Magnetic english wheel, outstanding idea! I have some super strong magnets from a 50kw electric motor project, they should be perfect to remove some rivet driver marks on my wing (oops).
 
Call a paintless dent repair guy. The auto body/collision repair shops and car dealerships should have some good contacts. I just had about a dozen hail dings fixed that way. They disappeared completely. Otherwise, push ding out as much as you can and fill and sand. Good luck!

Jerry
RV-8 N84JE
 
Hello Rick,

I had a very similar strike. I was able to buy a set of body and fender tools from Harbor Freight and work most of the dent out. I then filled the area with aluminized dent filler from spruce. Like your friend's, mine wasn't painted and my painter was able to work his magic and the dent is gone.

Mine was further outboard and I was able to reach in from the wing tip. doesn't look like he will be able to do that. I would try a broom stick handle with fender tools taped to it. Use patience.

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I would consider cutting a new access panel in the wing bottom - you would have excellent access to fix the dent.

I didn't say I would DO it - I said I would consider it... :D
 
Dent repair

I had the same problem. I hired a "paint-less dent removal" guy (west side of Indianapolis) he worked the dent out in about 30 min with tools that pushed the dent out. It was 3 bays in from the outside (I removed the wing tip). That was two years ago and it still looks great.
 
Dent repair

Hi Rick,

I had almost exactly the same situation . . . polished airplane with a dent in almost exactly the same spot yours is in. The dent was that same size/amount of damage as well.

I took it to our local metal expert (guy at the airport who does a lot of aircraft restorations) and he put a "standard Cessna" inspection hole in the bottom of the wing, and slowly worked the dent out from the inside of the wing. No magnets or dent pullers (not that I wouldn't try that, though).

After the fact, you can't even see the previous damage unless you know exactly where to look. The inspection hole is hard to see unless you get down underneath the wing.

It can be done!

Cheers,

Rick
 
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