Aircraft sheet metal repair

Just was out replacing a spar carry through on a Cessna 182, the problem was found during an annual inspection the culprit was an interior headliner that was glued to the spar carry through and moisture was caught between the fabric and the spar. This was the first annual for my customer on this plane,…

 Currently working on a ground loop repair to a Cessna 170B wing. If you watch you will see the three measurements for twist, the tool is made such that it should always be zero, the inboard, the middle, and the tip. You can see the twist is out by .7 which means it has only…

Replaced both left and right horizontal tips with Mc Farlane tips using 8 32 screws in place of rivets. The idea is that you can easily change out the tip if damaged, one thing is that if you operate a seaplane you need to put some corrosion protection on the nut plates and screws on…

Floor viewing window for swing loadsThis was a fun job, but like most metal working jobs it always takes longer than they say. It also takes a bit of thinking as you do the installation about how it fits, it maybe different than the drawing, or holes may not be able to go where they…

B19 same as B23Sheet metal work is as much an art as a skill. Most of the time there is very little to guide you other than a picture, some references in the maintenance manual or parts manual. And of corse the AC 43.13 to reference to. What also counts I’d how the repair or…

  It all starts with rivets and time.

These door I modified using a Beech Sundowner door latch, works really well and it is new. After 60 years of opening and closing those old latches just wear out and there seems to be no good option. New parts are hard to find and old used parts are just that. This is a good…

Removing a camera hatch in my 1953 Cessna 180 and installing a baggage door.Specializing in minor and major sheet metal repairs to Cessna 180 and Cessna 185 aircraft. Repairing control surfaces to major gearbox repairs as well as STC modifications or service bulletins.  This shows a little of the removal of a camera hatch in my Cessna…

One of the hardest parts about this job was removing the wings. I do not think they had ever been off and it took some heat, a 5x rivet gun, big hammer and a long brass rod but we finally did it. The owner found a used spar that passed an eddy current test, took…

There was a time I believe that the more engine rubber isolators the better but today everyone should have their engine balanced to their propeller. This is usually done by a propeller shop or a local with the proper equipment. When this is done the difference can be life changing, I also feel it makes…

There is an STC for these but it has long since become a floating STC. I installed these as a minor alteration but used the STC as my data for installation. It is a pretty simple sheet metal project but you have to be careful. I do have these louvers coming available soon as a…

This is a 12000 hour Cessna 182, the cracks are found in the corner of the web, hard to see. Once the crack was found the aircraft was grounded, no ferry permit allowed. We spent three long days and travel to get the job done

We used a English Wheel to make this cowl for this Taylorcraft that was once owned by Ramblin’ Rod. Ramblin’ Rod had a children’s show in the 1960’s which kids would go to, sit on the bleachers and watch which I was one of. Using an English wheel is a lot of fun but takes…

 When repairing a cowl I try to balance the repairs out and it is important to make the repairs look as if it is part of the original cowl or nice enough to make the cowl look better if not stronger and most important last. One thing is these cowl repairs are time consuming and…

 When repairing a cowl I try to balance the repairs out and it is important to make the repairs look as if it is part of the original cowl or nice enough to make the cowl look better if not stronger and most important last. One thing is these cowl repairs are time consuming and…

 Everything can be repaired but some things take longer than others. We took on this job with an idea of how much time but that usually changes as you disassemble. We were lucky that the nose gear survived and the firewall was still in good shape, it does have a few creases but still serviceable….

Ground loop, not a bad one but still took some time

Ground loop, not a bad one but still took some time

Like many things when it gets old the dents start to show and the only option is a face lift. When this is done it is almost like new, your wife may not notice but you will. 

Rebuilding a 170 horizontal..

 After removing the tail we found that an earlier replacement of the tail bulkheads with a later model 180 bulkhead, probably because of the plane going over on its back, was not done very well…….