Landing gear Ind on floor 77J

[Grant_Waite]

Just took ownership of my 1977J. It’s my very first aircraft, but not new to aviation. I took out all the carpets and cleaned them… currently drying atm. I took off the acrylic for the flap and trim indicator and the floor gear indicator. I’ve ordered the equal thickness acrylic from amazon and just need it to arrive and cut it. I think I’m going to use green nail polish for the floor indicator line. The fake nails girls use, are acrylic and it sticks well. I’m open to what others have used though. I wanted to see what bulb my gear ind took, so I took it apart from above. I was able to retrieve all the pieces and put it back in from above. I believe I put it all back together correctly but want input from others. I was able to do it all from above but others have stated you need to remove a belly pan. If so which one at that. I looked tonight and there’s way too many screws in them to do the incorrect one. Also how does the little floor indicator work, out of curiosity if anyone knows. Here’s some pictures of the bottom. It had a piece of acrylic to make a space on the one side, I then slide the aluminum indicator into that space but the other side didn’t have the acrylic. 

Edited December 26, 2023 by Grant_Waite

[Ragsf15e]

17 minutes ago, Grant_Waite said:

Just took ownership of my 1977J. It’s my very first aircraft, but not new to aviation. I took out all the carpets and cleaned them… currently drying atm. I took off the acrylic for the flap and trim indicator and the floor gear indicator. I’ve ordered the equal thickness acrylic from amazon and just need it to arrive and cut it. I think I’m going to use green nail polish for the floor indicator line. The fake nails girls use, are acrylic and it sticks well. I’m open to what others have used though. I wanted to see what bulb my gear ind took, so I took it apart from above. I was able to retrieve all the pieces and put it back in from above. I believe I put it all back together correctly but want input from others. I was able to do it all from above but others have stated you need to remove a belly pan. If so which one at that. I looked tonight and there’s way too many screws in them to do the incorrect one. Also how does the little floor indicator work, out of curiosity if anyone knows. Here’s some pictures of the bottom. It had a piece of acrylic to make a space on the one side, I then slide the aluminum indicator into that space but the other side didn’t have the acrylic. 

Welcome!

there’s several threads on this, but some years appear different… mine doesn’t have nutplates to take that apart from above so i went in from below, but mine is a 68F.  Its the belly panel directly below, but yeah it’s a lot of screws.  Be sure to get the light you like.  Some use a 24v light in a 14v plane to make it dim.  There are also some led options.  The indicator attaches on the gear rod which is easy to see from below, so make sure you get it back on and connected just right.  Good luck!

i went with a 14v led in a 14v plane and its bright.  Maybe too bright if you fly a lot at night but it’s great in the day!

 

[Grant_Waite]

Yeah, I was able to see where it rides along the tube looking thing which probably the gear rod. It only fits over that one rod and the screws only line up on the plate in one position. So I presume it has to be correct. I’m getting my official checkout this Thursday. He’s also a IA and owns a J so I’ll ask him as well. What does the indicator look like when the gear is up? It didn’t look like the housing that rides on the rod rotated at all. 

[Ragsf15e]

4 minutes ago, Grant_Waite said:

Yeah, I was able to see where it rides along the tube looking thing which probably the gear rod. It only fits over that one rod and the screws only line up on the plate in one position. So I presume it has to be correct. I’m getting my official checkout this Thursday. He’s also a IA and owns a J so I’ll ask him as well. What does the indicator look like when the gear is up? It didn’t look like the housing that rides on the rod rotated at all. 

The indicator slides back maybe an inch. Just barely out of view when the gear is up, and the light goes off.  If you hand crank the gear down or watch the indicator as you select gear down, you’ll see it moving slowly up to the line and the light turns on.  You should have an additional green light on your panel.  It’s common for that floor light not to work as the bottom of the socket is in a rough place in the belly area and the wires can get corroded or broken.  Easy fix though if it’s not. You can still see the indicator line up with the line on the top piece of plexi to indicate gear down even if the light doesn’t work.

[toto]

2 minutes ago, Ragsf15e said:

You can still see the indicator line up with the line on the top piece of plexi to indicate gear down even if the light doesn’t work.

Yep. I didn’t even know there *was* a bulb until a shop replaced it at annual several years into my ownership. It’s easy to see during the day, and I always have a flashlight at night, so nbd. 

[Grant_Waite]

4 minutes ago, Ragsf15e said:

The indicator slides back maybe an inch. Just barely out of view when the gear is up, and the light goes off.  If you hand crank the gear down or watch the indicator as you select gear down, you’ll see it moving slowly up to the line and the light turns on.  You should have an additional green light on your panel.  It’s common for that floor light not to work as the bottom of the socket is in a rough place in the belly area and the wires can get corroded or broken.  Easy fix though if it’s not. You can still see the indicator line up with the line on the top piece of plexi to indicate gear down even if the light doesn’t work.

Yes, the panel has the gear down light. I’m thankful that the owner gave it a really nice panel makeover in 2015. I’m not however thankful for all the duct tape I had to remove on the floor. I’m gonna replace it where there are holes with hvac tape. That duct tape got stickiness all over the place. 

[RoundTwo]

6 hours ago, Grant_Waite said:

Yes, the panel has the gear down light. I’m thankful that the owner gave it a really nice panel makeover in 2015. I’m not however thankful for all the duct tape I had to remove on the floor. I’m gonna replace it where there are holes with hvac tape. That duct tape got stickiness all over the place. 

The problem using foil tape is how easily it tears as there is ZERO strength. Also when you get a piece of foil stuck in the wrong position, which WILL happen, it’s impossible to fix and you’ll just have to add another layer. Duct tape is the best solution for sealing up the gaps and holes.

[Tx_Aggie]

I second that. Crazy as it sounds, leave or replace the duct tape. It keeps the carbon monoxide out. You’ll be glad you did. 

[Pinecone]

If you want a good seal, use the aluminum duct tape that is actually used these days to seal ducts.  If you want to use traditional duct tape, get quality tape.  I only use Nashua brand duct tape.

[N201MKTurbo]

Don’t screw around with duct tape, use the good stuff!

https://www.rshughes.com/p/Polyken-White-Aerospace-Tape-50-Mm-Width-X-55-M-Length-12-Mil-Thick-225FR-50MM-X-55M-WHITE/225fr_50mm_x_55m_white/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhODzoOyvgwMVgimtBh3sbwfOEAQYCCABEgI9GvD_BwE

[Grant_Waite]

This is what I used, I couldn’t stand the duct tape.https://www.homedepot.com/p/Nashua-Tape-2-83-in-x-50-yd-330X-Extreme-Weather-HVAC-Foil-Duct-Tape-1906077/100507541   It has been years since it was put on so the glue was all melted and made a mess. I found the other acrylic shim for the floor landing gear indicator. Had to remove the one belly panel. That was a fun learning experience. A total of 4 screws wouldn’t go back in due to the tinnermams being too large. Not sure if I want to bother replacing them until annual in September. I figure 38 screws will hold it in along with it being staggered under the other panels. The one screw near the nose gear door was a pia to remove. If anyone knows the sizes of the main screws in the first pan and those small ones near the nose door. Some of the screws had small plastic washers and other didn’t not sure if they are meant to be there or not. 

[Ragsf15e]

8 hours ago, Grant_Waite said:

This is what I used, I couldn’t stand the duct tape.https://www.homedepot.com/p/Nashua-Tape-2-83-in-x-50-yd-330X-Extreme-Weather-HVAC-Foil-Duct-Tape-1906077/100507541   It has been years since it was put on so the glue was all melted and made a mess. I found the other acrylic shim for the floor landing gear indicator. Had to remove the one belly panel. That was a fun learning experience. A total of 4 screws wouldn’t go back in due to the tinnermams being too large. Not sure if I want to bother replacing them until annual in September. I figure 38 screws will hold it in along with it being staggered under the other panels. The one screw near the nose gear door was a pia to remove. If anyone knows the sizes of the main screws in the first pan and those small ones near the nose door. Some of the screws had small plastic washers and other didn’t not sure if they are meant to be there or not. 

Ha! Yeah, first annual you need to replace all the tinnermans and all the screws.  It’s cheap and it makes removing and replacing the panels much easier.  All the sizes are shown in the parts manual.  B type screws.  The washers are nylon to protect your paint, mine doesn’t have them.  Aircraft spruce has the screws, tinnermans and washers.  Get some of the machine screws for the aft panels too and the ones for wing inspection panels.  Seriously, it makes annual much better.

[A64Pilot]

While I don’t think it would hurt I don’t think your supposed to use nylon washers.

Am I the only one that noticed rudder trim? on a J?

[Grant_Waite]

4 hours ago, A64Pilot said:

While I don’t think it would hurt I don’t think your supposed to use nylon washers.

Am I the only one that noticed rudder trim? on a J?

Yeah some of them had washers, metal ones and others didn’t. That’s how they were so I put em back on that way. The owner before me loved the rudder trim. I’ve yet to find a good reason to use it. Even on takeoff the amount of right rudder needed, is less than the 172xp I came from. I’m very pleased with the plane. It flys well and is a lot easier to land than what I thought. 

[LANCECASPER]

12 hours ago, A64Pilot said:

Am I the only one that noticed rudder trim? on a J?

That was an invention of Norm Smith who used to have an exhibitors booth every year at the MAPA convention.

http://www.aerotriminc.com/index.html