SquawkVFR
Member
***Editing for context*****
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Not trying to show off here, but just for context: I have over a decade of experience as a mechanical and electrical design engineer. I've designed, built, assembed, and throubleshot dozens of machines and their associated wire harnessess and material specifications, from concept all the way through long-term field support. I'm an engineer, but I'm also a seasoned technician with many years of turning a wrench. I also have a minor in Aerospace Engineering. In other words, I could probably handle most of these fixes myself. Just looking for more seasoned owners' insights about any signs of deeper issues that may not be apparent upon visual inspection.
The price reflects the condition.
I asked Vic to do the inspection, but he said the location is outside the distance he is willing to travel.
The aircraft recently passed its annual Condition Inspection. No offense to the A&Ps out there, but I don't have much confidence in your run of the mill A&P based on the results of this inspection.
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I'm shopping for my first airplane purchase, so I bought Vic Syracuse's Pre-Buy book. Fortunately, the seller was tolerant of me taking 10 hours over two days to inspect his aircraft. During the course of my inspection, there were some findings for which I'd like to get your advice. I'll enumerate my concerns and then attach pictures at the end for clarity. Please provide any advice you have with respect to my findings and whether I should proceed with the purchase or wait for another to come on the market.
Keep in mind that I'm only sharing my findings. There were over a hundred items I inspected, and these were the only issues I found. The form, fit, and function of the overall construction of the aircraft was excellent in my unprofessional experience.
Begin edit:
Not trying to show off here, but just for context: I have over a decade of experience as a mechanical and electrical design engineer. I've designed, built, assembed, and throubleshot dozens of machines and their associated wire harnessess and material specifications, from concept all the way through long-term field support. I'm an engineer, but I'm also a seasoned technician with many years of turning a wrench. I also have a minor in Aerospace Engineering. In other words, I could probably handle most of these fixes myself. Just looking for more seasoned owners' insights about any signs of deeper issues that may not be apparent upon visual inspection.
The price reflects the condition.
I asked Vic to do the inspection, but he said the location is outside the distance he is willing to travel.
The aircraft recently passed its annual Condition Inspection. No offense to the A&Ps out there, but I don't have much confidence in your run of the mill A&P based on the results of this inspection.
End edit.
I'm shopping for my first airplane purchase, so I bought Vic Syracuse's Pre-Buy book. Fortunately, the seller was tolerant of me taking 10 hours over two days to inspect his aircraft. During the course of my inspection, there were some findings for which I'd like to get your advice. I'll enumerate my concerns and then attach pictures at the end for clarity. Please provide any advice you have with respect to my findings and whether I should proceed with the purchase or wait for another to come on the market.
Keep in mind that I'm only sharing my findings. There were over a hundred items I inspected, and these were the only issues I found. The form, fit, and function of the overall construction of the aircraft was excellent in my unprofessional experience.
- One side of the oil cooler mounting bracket has sheared completely off. Vic was keen to point out that many Vans aircraft builders improperly mount the cooler to the engine baffling. The stress induced on the brackets due to the engine vibration upon the free-sprung weight of the cooler typically causes this failure. What is the solution here?
- The canopy slide cutout is off-center, and the rail appears to have had an extra hole drilled in it right next to another for some reason, and there is not a screw in either hole.
- There are two cracks in the canopy - one on either side. They are both just over a foot in length, and the "stop drill" attempted was outside the centerline of the crack path. Because the stop drills were outside the centerline of the cracks, they failed to prevent the growth of the cracks, and the cracks grew beyond the drill holes. Vans has replacement canopies in stock, but my concern is: to get this thing back to Tucson, I'll need to fly through Banning Pass, which means I'll need to take it up to ~9k feet MSL. Should I replace the canopy before flying it home?
- The left tire appears to be worn at a fairly steep angle. The right tire does not appear to be unevenly worn. What could cause this?
- Both of the wing spar bolts appear to have been coated with some material that has completely dissolved the fuselage panel paint below the screw heads. What could have caused this, and is this a concern?
- Vic's Pre-Buy book indicates that there should be two bolts between the upper and lower sets of wing spar bolts. This aircraft did not have these bolts installed, although both spars have four upper and four lower sets of bolts installed. Does the RV-8A not have a pair of bolts between the upper set of four and lower set of four?
- An 1/8" thick layer of black grime was observed underneath the upper main landing gear fairings. What could have caused this, and is it a concern?
- There was a 5-gallon jug of water sitting in the rear storage compartment. The reason given was for solo weight and balance. Is this expected, and if not, what concern(s), if any, should I have about this finding? I know it says "gasoline," but I confirmed it's just water.
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