Nigel
Moderator
It seems I like to buy planes that are in need of refurbishment, or my standards are too high. Either way, I got a Jart!
There are a few major things I will be doing my best to fix to get this thing flightworthy before Sunset. Biggest concern right now is the bend (not an asymmetrical warp, thankfully) in both the wings (medium bend) and the ailerons, specifically one of them which has probably a half inch of variation along the trailing edge.
Not too bad on the wings, but the ailerons (or at least one of them) is pretty far gone. Other bits of damage are a slight chunk of of the trailing edge.
Not totally sure how I'll go about fixing the bend. The ailerons are fairly weak both torsionally and longitudinally, so I could conceivably just glue some carbon in there. Still thinking over the wing. I saw someone repair a twisted fiberglass fuse by slowly heating it and putting it under constant pressure. I'm not sure that will work on the wings as a torsional force is more evenly spread over a tail boom, while I will only be really working on one side of this wing. Also, the construction is glassed-sheeted-foamcore, so while I may be able to shift the disposition of the composites, I don't think I can shift the wood at all. At least the wood will provide some minimal insulation against the foam. Perhaps the composite will be able to overcome the wood and add a little tension into the wing. Not the worst thing, as they aren't super stiff.
Either way, I will end up probably using both some nylon hinges and hinge/gap tape to give myself the best chance at keeping the surfaces centered and drag down at speed.
Other areas of focus - some trailing edge delamination between the skin and wood. Also present on the surfaces. Some canopy fitment issues (I hate trimming canopies), and filling in the charge jack/switch hole. I understand the connivence of the jack, but for the love of god the canopy is right there. Anyways...
Some minor chipping along the elevator. Considering covering the exposed wood with some tow for a little rigidity and a nice seal against any moisture. Also a picture of the elevator servo and the forward incidence pin. I will probably add a hardwood rod between the two to make sure I don't sandwich my fuse on a rough landing. Maybe the trailing pin too, now that I think about it.
There are a few major things I will be doing my best to fix to get this thing flightworthy before Sunset. Biggest concern right now is the bend (not an asymmetrical warp, thankfully) in both the wings (medium bend) and the ailerons, specifically one of them which has probably a half inch of variation along the trailing edge.
Not too bad on the wings, but the ailerons (or at least one of them) is pretty far gone. Other bits of damage are a slight chunk of of the trailing edge.
Not totally sure how I'll go about fixing the bend. The ailerons are fairly weak both torsionally and longitudinally, so I could conceivably just glue some carbon in there. Still thinking over the wing. I saw someone repair a twisted fiberglass fuse by slowly heating it and putting it under constant pressure. I'm not sure that will work on the wings as a torsional force is more evenly spread over a tail boom, while I will only be really working on one side of this wing. Also, the construction is glassed-sheeted-foamcore, so while I may be able to shift the disposition of the composites, I don't think I can shift the wood at all. At least the wood will provide some minimal insulation against the foam. Perhaps the composite will be able to overcome the wood and add a little tension into the wing. Not the worst thing, as they aren't super stiff.
Either way, I will end up probably using both some nylon hinges and hinge/gap tape to give myself the best chance at keeping the surfaces centered and drag down at speed.
Other areas of focus - some trailing edge delamination between the skin and wood. Also present on the surfaces. Some canopy fitment issues (I hate trimming canopies), and filling in the charge jack/switch hole. I understand the connivence of the jack, but for the love of god the canopy is right there. Anyways...
Some minor chipping along the elevator. Considering covering the exposed wood with some tow for a little rigidity and a nice seal against any moisture. Also a picture of the elevator servo and the forward incidence pin. I will probably add a hardwood rod between the two to make sure I don't sandwich my fuse on a rough landing. Maybe the trailing pin too, now that I think about it.
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