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How to Remove Wingtip?

dmat

dmat

Well Known Member
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Sounds like a dumb question but I know vans used a ton of piano wire to hold things together (cowl) and I did not build my ship.

Are the wingtips of the 6 attached with the plethora of screws or is it attached with piano wire?

I am installing a Skybeacon and will be doing a write-up (how-to) for RVers with wingtip lens covers and would prefer to work in a warm dining room instead of a frigid tarmac.

Thanks all,
D
 
Mine attached with blind rivets

Unfortunately! Would like to be able to take them off for inspections

Ron
 
Plans showed blind rivets I believe. Builders often upgraded; I used #6 screws with tinnermans and nutplates. Piano hinge was/is another common method. Best way would be to look at the particular aircraft and see what it used.
 
Mine has screws but I didn't know what the original blueprints called for.

Thanks both. Looks like I will be removing screws and upgrading to stainless.

Any suggestion on which stainless screws to use?

Dan
 
SS screws

Stainless screws are no upgrade. The heads cam out more easily and then you are faced with a lot of fun to get them out. Use cad plated AN509 screws and throw them out at the first sign of screwdriver damage.

Ed Holyoke
 
Bicyclops said:
Stainless screws are no upgrade. The heads cam out more easily and then you are faced with a lot of fun to get them out. Use cad plated AN509 screws and throw them out at the first sign of screwdriver damage.

Ed Holyoke
Click to expand...

^^^ Ed speaks the truth ^^^
 
Oh, and one more thing - use a fresh, good quality screwdriver bit in the ratcheting handle of your choice and throw the bit away when it shows any wear at all. Stay straight on the screw head with moderate pressure. If the screwdriver cams out even once, stop and figure out how to get the screw out before you make it worse. If you insist on using a power driver, set the torque low, low speed, and be prepared to replace a lot of screws.

Ed Holyoke
 
#6 Torx flat head stainless going into a nut plate is problematic. The square bottom of the Torx, which gives you the nice square flat side facets to push on, also extend very close to the descending 50 degree seat face. Plus, stainless is not as strong as carbon steel.

Either go to steel screws that are very hard to find in #6 flat head Torx or tap out the nut plate to get rid of the pre-load and use Loctite 242 so they will not back out.
 
Probably already noted/known, but remember that aviation countersinks are 100 degrees, so if you "upgrade", make sure the angle on the head is correct.

And a little valve grinding compound on the bit will work wonders if you have a screw cam out....
 
Ditto

When it comes to screws in nutplates, Iv'e learned the hard way over 20 years of RV maintenance:

Never install #6 hardware if #8 will serve instead. #6 is notoriously tight/binds easily.

Stainless looks better, but is too soft to trust.

Valve lap compound on screwdriver tip gives a good grip.

A toilet wax bowl ring will thread-lube about a million screws going into nut plates, and prevents heartache.

Toss any screw that looks sketchy. Keep a backup inventory so you won't be tempted to re-use one that isn't pristine.

Screwdrivers eventually wear out, just slower than screws do.

Electric screwdrivers are great for removing screws and for installing them 3/4 of the way in. For final tightening, mankind was given manual screwdrivers to do the job right - preferably ones that bear the Wiha brand name.

Most of us tend to over-torque screws (and AN-3 hardware) by feel alone.
 
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