An interesting maintenance procedure
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- Rich
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An interesting maintenance procedure
Today I was at our local EAA meeting, planning for a Young Eagles flight next weekend. One of the guys flew in with his 1970 C150 Aerobat. Oil is dripping from the wings and coating most of the airplane including over a very nice paint job. A severe engine oil leak you think? You'd be wrong.
Ready for this?
Apparently there are some signs of corrosion inside the wings. So every few years his mechanic sprays an oil mist all over the inside surfaces of the wings. The excess (and there's a lot) oozes out of the various seams of the wings. Really noticeable streams of oil drips out of the wing roots, running down the fuselage in that area behind the doors.
Ready for this?
Apparently there are some signs of corrosion inside the wings. So every few years his mechanic sprays an oil mist all over the inside surfaces of the wings. The excess (and there's a lot) oozes out of the various seams of the wings. Really noticeable streams of oil drips out of the wing roots, running down the fuselage in that area behind the doors.
2002 DA40-180: MT, PowerFlow, 530W/430W, KAP140, ext. baggage, 1090 ES out, 2646 MTOW, 40gal., Surefly, Flightstream 210, Orion 600 LED, XeVision, Aspen E5
- Steve
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Re: An interesting maintenance procedure
I’ve heard of this being done, especially for aircraft which don’t have the interior wing structure treated with zinc chromate. Definitely sounds messy. That’s one issue that we don’t have to worry about…
- Boatguy
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Re: An interesting maintenance procedure
And that spray is supposed to slow or stop the corrosion? That sounds like an accident waiting to happen.Rich wrote: ↑Sat Jun 19, 2021 8:27 pm Apparently there are some signs of corrosion inside the wings. So every few years his mechanic sprays an oil mist all over the inside surfaces of the wings. The excess (and there's a lot) oozes out of the various seams of the wings. Really noticeable streams of oil drips out of the wing roots, running down the fuselage in that area behind the doors.
- Rich
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Re: An interesting maintenance procedure
This certainly doesn't appear to be an acceptable method as depicted in AC43 except for the interior of steel tubing, where it is long standing preventative practice.
And ugly it is.
And ugly it is.
2002 DA40-180: MT, PowerFlow, 530W/430W, KAP140, ext. baggage, 1090 ES out, 2646 MTOW, 40gal., Surefly, Flightstream 210, Orion 600 LED, XeVision, Aspen E5
- Rich
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Re: An interesting maintenance procedure
This looks like plain old motor oil and it's literally dripping down the sides of the plane and being sprayed in flight back across the whole aircraft surface from the wings aft. This is weeks after application. Indications are that it's pooling in various locations in the wings and works its way out as the plane is flown and the weather warms so the oil gets less viscous.krellis wrote: ↑Sun Jun 20, 2021 1:05 am Perfectly acceptable and it works.
https://www.corrosionx.com/pages/corros ... pplication
We live in a very dusty desert area and this likely guarantees any such dust getting into the wings will cling/build up there pretty much forever.
2002 DA40-180: MT, PowerFlow, 530W/430W, KAP140, ext. baggage, 1090 ES out, 2646 MTOW, 40gal., Surefly, Flightstream 210, Orion 600 LED, XeVision, Aspen E5
- krellis
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Re: An interesting maintenance procedure
Corrosion X and ACF-50 are both used to mist the inside of wings, empennages, etc. on metal airframes. The products work. Yes, they are messy, but corrosion is worse. Corrosion X Aviation has a slight green tint and a distinctive smell.
You could use Corrosion X on the three screws on the DA40 wings that are prone to corrosion. Maybe not needed in the desert, but might be in many other locales.
I use it on battery posts and a host of other places. It's a great product. I will use it on our RV-7 and RV-10 in a few years.
You could use Corrosion X on the three screws on the DA40 wings that are prone to corrosion. Maybe not needed in the desert, but might be in many other locales.
I use it on battery posts and a host of other places. It's a great product. I will use it on our RV-7 and RV-10 in a few years.
- Davestation
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Re: An interesting maintenance procedure
I’ve seen this firsthand, pulling a panel off and a small reservoir of oil is unleashed all over me. The insides generally look like they dunked the whole plane in a pool of the stuff. Sure I suppose it “works” but that can’t be the proper application.
- Spinner
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Re: An interesting maintenance procedure
There are proper spray units for the corrosion proofing but, like myself, we tend to spray lots more than is required. If we are going to do it right get the right equipment to spray it.
I used ACF50 on an aircraft a few times. I spoke with the rep who was selling the stuff about how much my little bottle wand sprayer was using. He shook his head and walked away.
I used ACF50 on an aircraft a few times. I spoke with the rep who was selling the stuff about how much my little bottle wand sprayer was using. He shook his head and walked away.