Touching up wing walk

[AlexLev]

Any suggestions on touching up wing walk? Have some wax remnants, dirt...and:

Also, noticed this yesterday and it scared me a little: is that rust underneath or dirt? I'll try washing it off next time I'm in my hangar to see, but if it's rust-is that potentially a serious issue?

[RLCarter]

Looks like a fuel stain (weap)

[AlexLev]

20 minutes ago, RLCarter said:

Looks like a fuel stain (weap)

Uh oh. I considered that too. Is it possible that it might be from the fuel sender or would it not stain like that? I’ve noticed a light smell of fuel in cockpit when I first get in but haven’t found any evidence until now, I figured the smell may have come from fuel sender underneath passenger door but haven’t yet had a chance to look and potentially seal (does the seat need to generally come out to access?)

[DXB]

Touching up wing walk is pretty easy with about $30 in supplies, and you can do it yourself easily in an afternoon. It should sit a week or so after you do it to cure properly. Wait 'till its a bit warmer so it will harden in a reasonable  time.  Give me a call when you're ready - I'll walk you through it, including what to order and avoiding my mistakes.  This project is on hold until you figure out your possible fuel leak issue, which requires more expertise than I have.  

 

[ArtVandelay]

Uh oh. I considered that too. Is it possible that it might be from the fuel sender or would it not stain like that? I’ve noticed a light smell of fuel in cockpit when I first get in but haven’t found any evidence until now, I figured the smell may have come from fuel sender underneath passenger door but haven’t yet had a chance to look and potentially seal (does the seat need to generally come out to access?)

On my J, no seat removal required, senders at foot of back seat, you might be able to see it if you pull the side panel/carpet back a little.


Tom

[jdrake]

+1 for the fuel weep.  That specific stain appears identical to one that appeared on my J a few years ago.  The fix was rather simple.  Removed the wing walk material from around that specific screw.  Backed out the screw and placed a small amount of sealant on the threads then retightened.  Repaint the wing walk material and voila.  Do make sure fuel level in the right tank is reduced as fuel will escape when that screw is loosened.

 

[AlexLev]

8 minutes ago, jdrake said:

+1 for the fuel weep.  That specific stain appears identical to one that appeared on my J a few years ago.  The fix was rather simple.  Removed the wing walk material from around that specific screw.  Backed out the screw and placed a small amount of sealant on the threads then retightened.  Repaint the wing walk material and voila.  Do make sure fuel level in the right tank is reduced as fuel will escape when that screw is loosened.

 

Thanks -- does that look similar? I only ask because it seems like the stain is not around a screw but a bit to the left of it. Definitely hoping it's a simple screw leak vs something more major.

[jdrake]

Appears absolutely identical.  IIRC there is a line of screws inboard of the inspection panel that run front to back.  I might be seeing things in your pic but it looks like there is a Phillips head screw at the center of your stain.  You might take a fine point sharp object (think ice pick-ish) and gently pick away the wingwalk material over the screw to expose it.  At the early stages of my leak, I did that then very gently retightened the screw.  It definitely slowed the leak but my shop ultimately backed the screw out, applied sealant to the underside of the head then replaced.  Zero leak since that repair.

[DXB]

17 minutes ago, jdrake said:

Appears absolutely identical.  IIRC there is a line of screws inboard of the inspection panel that run front to back.  I might be seeing things in your pic but it looks like there is a Phillips head screw at the center of your stain.  You might take a fine point sharp object (think ice pick-ish) and gently pick away the wingwalk material over the screw to expose it.  At the early stages of my leak, I did that then very gently retightened the screw.  It definitely slowed the leak but my shop ultimately backed the screw out, applied sealant to the underside of the head then replaced.  Zero leak since that repair.

the power of Mooneyspace!

[Robert C.]

Yep, just had the same thing fixed. Definitely is a leak. Don Maxwell has clear instructions on his website. Think he suggested permeated as sealant. Other threads describe how to remove and put on wing walks. I’m lazy and not a particularly good diy person so had my shop do it all.

edit: look about 15 posts down. Original by skyking1 labeled Fuel Leak November 18.

[Shadrach]

At first I thought it was a rusty water spot from a drip coming off a steel hangar structure.  Looking closely, it appears to be centered around a countersunk screw that fastens to the panel reinforcement .  You may be able to address it externally by attempting to reseal that screw.  The downside is that you may make it worse. The upside is that permatex #3 is inexpensive and you'll not have to deal with fuel dripping while you work on it.

[jaylw314]

On ‎4‎/‎1‎/‎2019 at 5:43 AM, AlexLev said:

Thanks -- does that look similar? I only ask because it seems like the stain is not around a screw but a bit to the left of it. Definitely hoping it's a simple screw leak vs something more major.

I have some weeping at the exact same point where there is a countersunk screw.  I haven't bothered fixing it because it's still minor (less than half the diameter of seepage in your picture, and only when the fuel tank is completely full) and hasn't changed in two years, but I was expecting to do it at some point.

[Shadrach]

On 4/1/2019 at 8:43 AM, AlexLev said:

Thanks -- does that look similar? I only ask because it seems like the stain is not around a screw but a bit to the left of it. Definitely hoping it's a simple screw leak vs something more major.

Looks like it's around the screw to me.

[AlexLev]

5 minutes ago, Shadrach said:

Looks like it's around the screw to me.

Yup, on second glance in person yesterday - looks like everyone is right. Hopefully very simple to fix. It's definitely fuel too (I smelled it). Thanks for the assistance! Very much love this community.

[DXB]

8 minutes ago, Shadrach said:

 

Maybe your plane is simply hoping for a shot at joining the RAF 

[Oldguy]

Detailed instructions and supply list on completely redoing your wing walk. 

 

[DXB]

In most cases touching up (recoating directly over) works well without the stripping step unless its been done multiple times already.

[81X]

On 4/1/2019 at 8:33 AM, jdrake said:

+1 for the fuel weep.  That specific stain appears identical to one that appeared on my J a few years ago.  The fix was rather simple.  Removed the wing walk material from around that specific screw.  Backed out the screw and placed a small amount of sealant on the threads then retightened.  Repaint the wing walk material and voila.  Do make sure fuel level in the right tank is reduced as fuel will escape when that screw is loosened.

 

What was your technique for removing the wing walk around that screw?   I have the same issue where just one top screw is weeping a little. 

[jdrake]

On ‎4‎/‎2‎/‎2019 at 8:20 AM, jdrake said:

Appears absolutely identical.  IIRC there is a line of screws inboard of the inspection panel that run front to back.  I might be seeing things in your pic but it looks like there is a Phillips head screw at the center of your stain.  You might take a fine point sharp object (think ice pick-ish) and gently pick away the wingwalk material over the screw to expose it.  At the early stages of my leak, I did that then very gently retightened the screw.  It definitely slowed the leak but my shop ultimately backed the screw out, applied sealant to the underside of the head then replaced.  Zero leak since that repair.

 

[MooneyPoor]

On 4/2/2019 at 8:10 PM, Oldguy said:

Detailed instructions and supply list on completely redoing your wing walk. 

 

Follow these directions..take time in masking and your results will be nice. I removed about 4 old layers from mine and it made a world of difference in appearance using this method.

[air cooled dad]

Reviving an old thread...
 

I was bored so I grabbed some supplies and drove to the hangar   Couple hours later I have a nice wing walk.  

 

[jaylw314]

57 minutes ago, air cooled dad said:

Reviving an old thread...
 

I was bored so I grabbed some supplies and drove to the hangar   Couple hours later I have a nice wing walk.  

 

Wow, how did you prevent overspray with just a couple lines of masking tape?

Edit: Oh, I just noticed all the plastic drop cloth in the last photo

 

[shawnd]

Wing walk looks nice and shiny new! How gritty is this compared to the wing walk compound?

[bradp]

Byron I've had luck only intermittently with using the permatex sealant on screws like what DMax has written about in his blog (screw off, dab, replace) - at least for the lower panels when there is fuel in the tank.  I ended up taking off the panel and cleaning it for hours on end followed by sealing it the right way (according to the manual).  Seems like the permatex  wants to be dry to cure properly. 

" From Don's blog ->

Panel Screws

A leak found at a screw in an access panel is usually caused by a cracked nut plate. Fig. 2. The nut plate in the fuel tank has a plastic cap to keep the fuel from leaking around the screw threads. These caps, over time, become cracked due to age or possibly someone has replaced the screw with one that is too long. To repair the leak, remove the screw. You do not have to drain the tank. Apply a fuel resistant sealant, such as Permatex #3, to the screw threads and replace the screw in the panel.

[EricJ]

On 4/14/2019 at 3:22 AM, 81X said:

What was your technique for removing the wing walk around that screw?   I have the same issue where just one top screw is weeping a little. 

When I've done it I use a little metal pick and just remove it from the screw only.   There's no need to take anything off other than what's on the screw, just so you can get a screwdriver in it and get it out without disturbing the rest of the finish.   With a pick it doesn't take much effort to get the stuff off of a screw, at least that's how it's been on my airplane.

Edited June 19, 2020 by EricJ