Gear up project J

[Elijah]

First window is trimmed and ready to glue in. I have painters tape right at the edge of where the window joins the fuse - I'm thinking this will keep any sealant that squeezes out from getting on the visible part of the window. I'll wipe off the extra and let it cure, then pull off the tape. Anyone else done this and have a better idea? I'm using cs3330, it's extremely sticky and the only thing I've found that really cuts it is MEK - which would definitely be a no on windows! 

[ArtVandelay]

My AP did mine and use the sealant to frame the window and seal it from the outside.

[Nico1]

This is awesome! Why not get rid of the ADF now that everything is easy to access? 

Also, noted that some switch covers are missing. You can easily 3D print those and replace to look new (not sure this is the correct version, there are a few on shapeways): https://www.shapeways.com/product/BVM7ZU8CK/switch-cover-klixon-20tc-v0-6-smooth-front?productConfiguration=56024578&etId=198005674&utm_source=automated-contact&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=order-shipped&utm_content=5

[Pinecone]

Better way for switch covers is to contact @AH-1 Cobra Pilot

He sells them ready to install (3D printed, sanded, painted black, then white, then laser etched) for both Klixon and ETA switches.

[Nico1]

42 minutes ago, Pinecone said:

Better way for switch covers is to contact @AH-1 Cobra Pilot

He sells them ready to install (3D printed, sanded, painted black, then white, then laser etched) for both Klixon and ETA switches.

Good to know!!

[Elijah]

Yep if you look close, the boost pump switch cover has already been replaced, by @AH-1 Cobra Pilot  Another one just broke, I'm going to order more from him. They are excellent and the writing being laser etched should hold up well. He also printed me new louvers for the overhead air vents - need to try those out soon.  

5 hours ago, Nico1 said:

Why not get rid of the ADF now that everything is easy to access? 

I'm a radio geek and will have fun playing with it vs just a blank spot in the panel :-) It's pretty easy to rip stuff out later, putting it in is the hard part! 

[LANCECASPER]

On 6/5/2024 at 12:31 PM, Elijah said:

Yep if you look close, the boost pump switch cover has already been replaced, by @AH-1 Cobra Pilot  Another one just broke, I'm going to order more from him. They are excellent and the writing being laser etched should hold up well. He also printed me new louvers for the overhead air vents - need to try those out soon.  

I'm a radio geek and will have fun playing with it vs just a blank spot in the panel :-) It's pretty easy to rip stuff out later, putting it in is the hard part! 

Plus I used to enjoy listening to AM radio stations while flying - a different side of America. Sporty’s used to sell a book with all of the call letters and frequencies of all the AM stations in the U. S. including the NDBs. A different way of navigating 30+ years ago but it was a nice way to pass the time on a long cross country. Now I have XM and I kinda miss AM . . Lol

I guess anyone who plans their trip can download the AM stations if they have an ADF:  https://radio-locator.com/

[Elijah]

I have the two rear windows installed and the rest trimmed and ready to go. Windshield unsurprisingly took the longest to get right. It actually was fairly close as it came from great lakes, I don't think anywhere required more than 1/2" removed. I got it to fit and then took a little more off all around so there is some "wiggle room", hopefully avoiding any pressure points. I have been attempting to glue the windows roughly in the "middle" such that the edges are not against the metal frame anywhere. I did all the trimming with a pneumatic cutoff wheel and die grinder, and a small handheld belt sander to finish. And finally some hand work with finer grit to leave a nice smooth edge. (Last pic is as the belt sander leaves it prior to hand finish) 

The masking tape worked well to keep sealant where I wanted during the gluing process. Once the window was held in place from inside, I would wipe the excess sealant that squeezed out and then carefully remove the tape leaving a nice little bead along the edge.

Next up I think I'll glue in the windshield, followed by the two front side windows. 

Edited June 10, 2024 by Elijah

[Elijah]

Got all the windows in and I must say they look fantastic. Makes it a whole new airplane. I have the interior back in now as well and we're getting close to doing weight and balance. I put fiberglass patches on the back of the interior pieces where they were cracked and gave them a light coat of white paint. All antennas are mounted and all the belly skins are on. Starting to look like a flyable airplane again. 

I'm missing a couple of the quarter-turn, cam lock style fasteners for the cowl, I think a large one and a small one. Any suggestions on where to get new ones? I turned up sky bolt with a quick search, is that what people are using? 

[Elijah]

I realized I am missing the rear seat belts (rear seat was out of the plane when I got it). I'll have to buy some either new or from a salvage place unless anyone here has some they want to get rid of?

I see where they attach in the center but not sure how they attach on the sides? Probably bolt to the plates at the edge where the lower seat back attaches? (see pic). Any pics of a similar airplane would be appreciated. This is the non folding, bench seat. 

[00-Negative]

Yes, the seat belt bracket is bolted in the forward most hole of the bracket circled. There is a shim that slides over the bolt that accounts for the difference in bolt diameter vs seat belt bracket diameter allowing the seat belt to swivel around the bolt. Order from outside (wing skin) to inside:  bolt-shim-seatbelt-rear seat bracket (circled above), washer, locking nut. 

 

-David

[T. Peterson]

Fascinating thread. Thank you for posting all this, and congratulations on reviving this airplane!

[PT20J]

On 6/25/2024 at 4:30 PM, Elijah said:

I'm missing a couple of the quarter-turn, cam lock style fasteners for the cowl, I think a large one and a small one. Any suggestions on where to get new ones? I turned up sky bolt with a quick search, is that what people are using? 

 

Small ones are 2700 Camlocs; Large ones are 4002 Camlocs. You can get them at Aircraft Spruce and other suppliers. The studs come in different lengths. There is a number on the head that denotes the length. Look at one adjacent to the missing one for the correct number. The 2700 studs are held by a split washer inside the cowling. The 4002 studs need a special pliers to install and remove easily. All these parts are available from Spruce. Skybolt is an alternate supplier and their studs are compatible with Camlock sockets. If you have an enlarged hole in the upper cowling, Skybolt has a 2700-compatible stud with a larger flange that won't fall through the hole.

[Elijah]

Time for an update. Got it all back together and weighed it - got 1778 lbs empty weight. It's pretty much ready to fly minus some paperwork. My I/A friend is working on paperwork and in the meanwhile I'm continuing to fix little cosmetic things. Most recent was the cowl. Lower cowl is in pretty good shape, but the top half had a crack up front near the spinner and lots of little cracks on the top surface. Seems this is a pretty common problem:

Here's what the top looked like. Everywhere there were cracks, I sanded down the paint to glass. I scarfed out that darkened area and put a single layer of glass on top. Later on I sanded everywhere down to the gray primer - sorry forgot to take pics of that. 

Someone had glued a curved piece of aluminum tubing around the lip of the spinner. Obviously wasn't doing the job:

So I ground all of that out and got down to clean glass, then put a couple layers of glass behind it. Once that was set, I scarfed out the front of the crack and layed multiple layers of glass in there as well. Each time I do glass, I paint on epoxy, then the glass and get it wetted out, then peel ply, then paper towel and finally some method of holding things tightly together. Usually clear packing tape but sometimes have to get a little creative. 

So that took care of the lip around the spinner. There were also spots around the air inlets that were delaminated and worn through: 

So using similar techniques, I cleaned it up down to clean glass and then built up layers of new glass. Didn't get a very good pic but this will give you an idea. Later on I scarfed in glass on the outside as well to make that lip square. 

Then I took care of the cracks along the top of the cowl. The glass wasn't really broken through but kind of flexible, with the epoxy kind of broken loose from the glass fibers. There were some old patches done over top of the stiffener channels but they had way too much resin in the glass and it was real stiff and breaking loose. I ground all that off carefully and got down to clean factory glass, then started laying new glass on top. I did one layer just over each stiffener, then two layers over the whole area:

That pic only shows the start but anyway, after getting all the glass wetted out I used a simple vacuum bag setup to squeeze it all together. I wrote about the process in more detail here: 

 

But it worked very well, highly recommend this if you do a fiberglass repair to the cowl. I can't think of any other way to hold this much area tightly against the surface while squeezing out excess epoxy. I ended up with a very thin, light and stiff patch that is similar to the factory glass. Here is the finished result (disregard the painting overspray): 

I know two layers (3 over the stiffeners) doesn't sound like a ton but as far as I could tell, the original cowl is only 3 or 4 layers total so I figured a 50% increase in thickness is significant. I'll let you know how it holds up  

After that I sprayed the whole thing with primer to fill in the weave on the new glass. Sanded and got that all smooth, then paint: 

Now it's the nicest looking part of the plane  

I used Lumabase primer (sandable) and Limco single stage urethane paint. "single stage" meaning you don't need to put a clear coat on it - just mix with a hardener, thin and spray. I have used this on other aircraft projects (including the wheel wells on this mooney) and been impressed with how well it's held up over time. It's also easy to spray and get nice results (no orange peel). I get it from a local automotive paint store. 

Edited September 10, 2024 by Elijah

[Echo]

I have black push button front seat belts if you want them. Not sure of compatibility with rear seats. PM me if interested. Work is progressing very nicely!   Scott 

[Elijah]

Well I am happy to say that after all that work, she's finally flying! 

Parked on the ramp in Kingman

 

Flying over northern AZ looking north

 

Departing KPHX 

 

Pretty much everything is working and there were no issues on the first flights. 

Of course "pretty much" means not everything  The EGT gauge is intermittent, there was a loose connection between the selector switch and the meter, fixed that and it was good for a few flights but now it seems like maybe there is another loose connection in the selector switch. The right tank also has a weep along the bottom of the spar. I will need to open that tank and patch that, maybe a winter project. And, the century IIB autopilot only tracks the heading bug. No matter what you select on the heading box, only tracks the heading bug. 

But that's all relatively minor - it really does fly and it flies nice! The new windows are amazing to look out of, that's the most visible of all the work I did. I'm seeing 150 - 155 knots true around 8500 ft. That's also what flight aware showed on its fateful flight out to arizona from socal. 

 

[EricJ]

Nice!    I have a bunch of pics I took of it when it was sitting at Winslow, and I'm glad you got it back flying!   It looked like it had good potential.   Looks much better now!

 

[hammdo]

Congratulations! Well done!

-Don

[Elijah]

1 hour ago, EricJ said:

Nice!    I have a bunch of pics I took of it when it was sitting at Winslow, and I'm glad you got it back flying!   It looked like it had good potential.   Looks much better now!

 

It's almost exactly 5 years since that happened. I'm really sorry it sat there for so long, the sun really took its toll on everything. Whoever salvaged it for the insurance company took the radios and data plate, and that missing data plate caused no end of problems. That's why it was stuck there so long. Well that, plus the logistics of working on it when it was stuck in Winslow. It'd be interesting to see a few of the pics you took back then! Feel free to post here or PM me. 

Edited November 2, 2024 by Elijah

[PT20J]

10 hours ago, Elijah said:

It's almost exactly 5 years since that happened. I'm really sorry it sat there for so long, the sun really took its toll on everything. Whoever salvaged it for the insurance company took the radios and data plate, and that missing data plate caused no end of problems. That's why it was stuck there so long. Well that, plus the logistics of working on it when it was stuck in Winslow. It'd be interesting to see a few of the pics you took back then! Feel free to post here or PM me. 

Very nice!

I’m curious about the process to get the data plate replaced. We had to do that on the museum DC-3 because we discovered that Douglas got the serial number wrong when they converted it from a C-47 to a DC-3 after the war. We had all the documentation, but Boeing didn’t want to deal with it. We finally got it done, but it took two years and some personal contacts within Boeing. 

[Elijah]

On 11/2/2024 at 8:26 AM, PT20J said:

Very nice!

I’m curious about the process to get the data plate replaced. We had to do that on the museum DC-3 because we discovered that Douglas got the serial number wrong when they converted it from a C-47 to a DC-3 after the war. We had all the documentation, but Boeing didn’t want to deal with it. We finally got it done, but it took two years and some personal contacts within Boeing. 

My friend did that part but I think it was basically getting a DAR to look at the airplane and write a report to the FAA saying yes, this airplane is actually repairable. The FAA then returned the salvaged data tag which was much worse for the wear. That worn out data tag went to mooney and they issued a new one with the same data on it. And after all the repairs were made, that same DAR inspected the airplane and issued a new standard airworthiness certificate.