Rotted Nose Gear Link 540015-001

[RoundTwo]

It’s annual time and it was time to do something about the sad looking nose gear. Long story short, we pulled out the nose gear and began disassembly so everything can be blasted, primed and painted. The big shocker was the deteriorated condition of the inside of the “core” of the “donut stack”. The actual part number is 540015-001 (32-20-00). When the donuts were removed, it was noticed that the bore of the tube was almost completely packed with heavy rust that had sloughed off of the interior of the tube over the years. The level of the rust was up to within 3/4” of the top of the tube, just below the cross bolt. It’s my guess that this plane was frequently washed and then rolled back into the hangar where any water that made it down into the tube remained until it finally dried out. As time went on, and the rust accumulation grew, it was a nice moist environment for the rust to continue.

From here on out, I’ll make sure that tube will always get hit with the air gun if the plane isn’t flown after getting a wash.

[takair]

Good excuse to fly after washing…although I’m not sure that is bulletproof….but still a good excuse….then spray some oil in it after landing…

[1980Mooney]

1 hour ago, takair said:

Good excuse to fly after washing…although I’m not sure that is bulletproof….but still a good excuse….then spray some oil in it after landing…

Better excuse to not wash it....

After all, what is the point after every flight?  It is rare to fly Mooney's out of muddy fields.  Mine is never going to roll or taxi off of tarmac.  If you spray water up in the landing gear you are just going to push some into the wheel wells and some will get into the drain points under the wing.  All bad news for a Mooney.  You really only need to clean the leading edges to get the bug splatter off.

And many airports no longer have wash racks for GA.

Edited Saturday at 03:08 AM by 1980Mooney

[Hank]

9 hours ago, 1980Mooney said:

Better excuse to not wash it....

After all, what is the point after every flight?  It is rare to fly Mooney's out of muddy fields.  Mine is never going to roll or taxi off of tarmac.  If you spray water up in the landing gear you are just going to push some into the wheel wells and some will get into the drain points under the wing.  All bad news for a Mooney.  You really only need to clean the leading edges to get the bug splatter off.

And many airports no longer have wash racks for GA.

I use AeroCosmetics Wash n Wax in their convenient spray bottle, with two rags (one to scrub, one to buff). Leading edges frequently, sometimes the rest of the plane needs a cleaning, but it takes me more than one time as I tend to stop when my buffing rag is too damp to buff, generally about when my arms are getting tired.

But I can still get wing and tail leading edges, the cowling, around the windshield and the top of one wing done.

[GeeBee]

If you have a TKS bird, you will be hosing down your bird….a lot.

I had Cole replace my nose gear tube when I replaced the doughnuts. Joe Cole says the corrosion is very common but rarely dealt with on most Mooneys.

[RoundTwo]

11 minutes ago, GeeBee said:

If you have a TKS bird, you will be hosing down your bird….a lot.

I had Cole replace my nose gear tube when I replaced the doughnuts. Joe Cole says the corrosion is very common but rarely dealt with on most Mooneys.

A well placed drain hole would be nice, or maybe a simple cap.