Lasar Wing Tip Lense

[Hopsl]

I recently ordered wing tip lenses from Lasar as mine have been deformed by the heat from recog lights. I was unaware that these needed trimming when ordering and not sure I want to practice on them. Does anyone have experience with cutting/trimming these to size? Do the lenses from Mooney also have to be trimmed? 

 

Thanks for any info. 

[RLCarter]

Practice on the old ones, when you've gotten the technique start on the new ones. Go slow and remove in small steps, you can always remove more if needed but it's impossible to put material back

[Hopsl]

Just now, RLCarter said:

Practice on the old ones, when you've gotten the technique start on the new ones. Go slow and remove in small steps, you can always remove more if needed but it's impossible to put material back

what do you recommend using to cut the plexiglass?

 

[RLCarter]

90 degree angle die grinder and Rolocs, the Roloc adapter i use is 2" with 2" Scotch-Brite or sanding discs. the trick to plastics is not let it got too hot, also on a clear lens making sure you don't scratch it by keeping it clean of debris. Its all about technique and not getting in a hurry

    

Edited July 12, 2019 by RLCarter

[DonMuncy]

Depending on how much you have to remove, a fine tooth blade band saw and/or a Dremel tool will come in handy. In doing any trimming, covering the area with masking tape and marking with a pencil or sharpie will give you some peace of mind.

[Hopsl]

thanks for the good gouge guys!!

 

[kortopates]

It’s Very easy to trim down to size using a belt sander. But it’s very difficult to drill the holes without cracking the plexiglass. The lens needs to be supported. So I made a mold or plug to fit the inside. Over the years it has saved me a lot of time and saved me from cracking a lenses. Be sure to only use a drill bit safe for plexiglass.

A flasher for the recognition lights will prevent overheating and melting the lenses. Precise flight sells one.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Hank]

When marking and drilling the screw holes, be careful! Put a piece of wood under the lens, and hold the plastic tight against it while drilling, or it WILL crack. The only ones that are difficult are in the upper surface; don't try to press it flat, it's too much and you risk breaking when you begin to drill.

Don't drill too fast (both slow RPM, and move forward slowly), then clean the plastic bits out of the drill before starting the next hole. The ones in the bottom are less fun, too much bending over / squatting down to test fit and mark. Screw it down on top with 2 or 3 screws, mark the bottom ones, remove and drill carefully. The countersink is your chance to move the hole around for better screw fit and lens cover alignment . . . .

[PT20J]

Here's how I did it. First, as Don suggested, I placed masking tape over the edges that need trimming. I took a cloth tailor's tape and made measurements edge to edge in multiple places around the original and transferred these measurements to the tape with a fine tip sharpie. Then, I connected the dots with the sharpie using a straight edge. Make it just a tad larger than the original as the lines shouldn't really be exactly straight due to the compound curves. I cut the plexiglass with a Dremel and cutoff wheel. Then I test fit and fine tuned the shape with a file. Lastly I used some fine sandpaper to smooth the cuts removing all sharp edges and file marks as plexiglass is notorious for cracks forming at sharp edges.

After you get it to fit, you can mark the holes with a sharpie looking through the lens into the screw holes in the wingtip. It's safest to do one at a time. If you drill plexiglass with a standard twist drill you risk having the drill catch and crack it. There are special plexiglass drill bits ground at steeper angle, but by far the best bit is a step drill bit that will get you a perfectly round hole without cracking the plastic.

[thinwing]

It’s simple job...take new plastic and shove in place...using masking tape 1/8 in from wing indents.Dremel cut off wheel is fastest...belt sander risky due to compound curve.Once happy with trim...use step drill...warm temps...hole positions easily marked over positions

[CaptRJM]

I have found setting up a Dremel as a router and taking very small bites is the way to go.  You get a lot of control by holding just the work not the tool and possibly the work (lens).  I fitted all the glass in my plane this way and it worked perfectly.  My AI liked the result so much he uses the same technique on difficult pieces.

I'd also recommend masking the entire lens, inside and out with tape to prevent any scratches.

Using a step drill is the way to go for any holes.

[carusoam]

I had one changed early on... at MSC prices....

Thinking that would be a memory that wouldn’t get away...

It took about a year before I melted one myself... just barely.

 

So... put that on the Checklist in two places...  After clearing the runway is probably a good spot.

The airflow no longer cooling the lens starts the melting process...

Acrylic softens just above the boiling point of water...

Best regards,

-a-

[gsxrpilot]

One of the first things I did with my 252 was to placard the Recog lights, In Op. Problem solved, no more melted lenses.

Then I went and put Aveo wingtips on, which don't have recog lights anyway.

[pwnel]

There's also an entire thread here on LED recog light replacements.  Have your hangar elves read this.  The original recog lights are $10 Sylvania projector lamps which Whelan hacked with custom shaped reflectors and now sells for $150 a pop - if you can get them.  And then they still melt your lenses at $250 a pop, not counting the work you now have to do to trim them to fit....

[PT20J]

OK, this might be a dumb question, but with 2 taxi lights an 2 landing lights mounted in the wing leading edges, what  value do the wimpy recognition lights add?

 

[Steve W]

1 hour ago, PT20J said:

OK, this might be a dumb question, but with 2 taxi lights an 2 landing lights mounted in the wing leading edges, what  value do the wimpy recognition lights add?

 

I suspect in the before times(before LEDs) people might have preferred not to use 500-1000w of power to run the main lights with their limited lifetime. Now with LEDs there's not much reason not to. Although I'd still like to put something LED in for the recognition lights... maybe someday.

Edited July 16, 2019 by Steve W

[ArtVandelay]

OK, this might be a dumb question, but with 2 taxi lights an 2 landing lights mounted in the wing leading edges, what  value do the wimpy recognition lights add?
 

If you flash or wigwag them, it supposedly will scare the birds.


Tom

[Hank]

11 hours ago, PT20J said:

OK, this might be a dumb question, but with 2 taxi lights an 2 landing lights mounted in the wing leading edges, what  value do the wimpy recognition lights add?

 

Those little, wimpy red & green lights tell the rest of us which way you're going. The leading-edge-mounted white kights aren't always on, and by 45° off to the side can be difficult to see. 

In daylight with good visibility, we can see the plane and know. In poor visibility and at night, it's only those little wimpy lights . . . . . See and avoid and all that.