Landing gear - tightening the o/b nuts

Anyone have a neat trick or a source for something like a very short 9/16 socket to drive those outboard bracket nuts when installing the gear?

Kinda trying to avoid removing a bunch of nuts inside the tower when I go to put the gear on and they do interfere with my normal socket.

Snap-on has an interesting universal access socket with a ujoint built in for $45 but I can't even tell if it would work here.

Thanks RE That looks handy.

I found some long wobble extensions for my sockets at Harbor Freight today. I think I can get the job done now - also ground about 3/8" off of my 9/16" socket. Still going to need to remove several screws and bolts in the towers to get the nuts torqued.

I'll post some pictures on my FB pages when I put the gear legs on.

This is what I used. Still tricky, but doable.

That's it - the tool I had in mind. I think I'll order one in case my cut down Craftsman doesn't work.

Thanks!

Got some AN3's in the way, right? Just go ahead and move them now. None of it will be easier at the first annual and after.

DanH said:

Got some AN3's in the way, right? Just go ahead and move them now. None of it will be easier at the first annual and after.

Click to expand...

Will definitely plan any wiring pass throughs to not get in the way. Need to find a friend with tiny hands.

Landing Gear Bolt Orientation Option

Food for thought: I put my outboard bolts in from the top, and then inserted a steel bar in the bottom cavity of the gear tower, between the inboard flange and the bolt heads. This bar prevents the bolt heads from turning when the nuts are torqued. The bar is held in place by a little RTV and the interference fit.

Now the washers and nuts are under the fuselage, so the fairing in that area will have to be made a little deeper, or with a little hump in them to clear the nuts. I plan to cut holes in the fairings to access the nuts with the socket. Initial torquing was a one-person, easy job with a 'standard' socket wrench.