always fun

[Yetti]

To follow certified mechanics.

 

[N201MKTurbo]

I wish I was perfect....

[47U]

1 hour ago, Yetti said:

To follow certified mechanics.

Just out of annual inspection?  The inner gear door was removed for some reason?  Brake relining, maybe?  Good catch.

When you’re in the game, sooner or later it’s your turn.  That’s just the way it is.  Just don’t be chronic.

They left a big glob of grease on the lower shock tower linkage.  Some cleaning should be done, before AND after lubrication.

I, too, wish I was perfect.

[Andy95W]

Good catch!

[Yetti]

8 minutes ago, 47U said:

Just out of annual inspection?  The inner gear door was removed for some reason?  Brake relining, maybe?  Good catch.

When you’re in the game, sooner or later it’s your turn.  That’s just the way it is.  Just don’t be chronic.

They left a big glob of grease on the lower shock tower linkage.  Some cleaning should be done, before AND after lubrication.

I, too, wish I was perfect.

Now you are making it worse because annual inspection was in January.   Which means the guy lubing it had to have seen it and ignore it.    I have already cleaned up a fair amount of grease after the last lube job in January.   I get it Adel clamps are a pain, I smashed it down with a nut driver and let the tension hold it till I got a nut on it. There are degrees of perfection.....

[47U]

1 hour ago, Yetti said:

There are degrees of perfection.....

True.  Perhaps the A&P’s assistant didn’t install the adel clamp?  If you are on good terms with the shop maybe give them a heads up… help them identify if this particular individual is ‘chronic.’

My first 100 hr (for annual), I found a brake master cylinder in which the aft clevis pin had no cotter pin installed.  Obviously, asymmetric braking at the wrong time could be very bad.  Previous owner attributed the mistake to the shop’s part-time helper.

[EricJ]

1 hour ago, Yetti said:

Now you are making it worse because annual inspection was in January.   Which means the guy lubing it had to have seen it and ignore it.    I have already cleaned up a fair amount of grease after the last lube job in January.   I get it Adel clamps are a pain, I smashed it down with a nut driver and let the tension hold it till I got a nut on it. There are degrees of perfection.....

This thing can be handy for holding adel clamps shut for installation.    I've used mine a number of times and saved a fair amount of aggravation.

https://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/topages/handeeclamp.php

[Skates97]

Best tip I ever received for adel clamps is to clamp it down, put a piece of safety wire around it to hold it closed, after getting the bolt/nut on clip and remove the safety wire before tightening all the way.

[SKI]

14 minutes ago, Skates97 said:

Best tip I ever received for adel clamps is to clamp it down, put a piece of safety wire around it to hold it closed, after getting the bolt/nut on clip and remove the safety wire before tightening all the way.

That might be the best tip I've read on Mooneyspace. I'll definitely be trying that one next time!!!

[PT20J]

How many preflight inspections since this happened?

[GeeBee]

I like these.

https://www.yardstore.com/cushioned-clamp-installation-pliers

[N201MKTurbo]

I just poke an awl through the hole then clamp the outer edge together with a standard vice grip, then twist some 0.020 lock wire around the base. Then it is good to go anywhere. That special vise grip would be hard to get to some places.

[N201MKTurbo]

3 hours ago, SKI said:

That might be the best tip I've read on Mooneyspace. I'll definitely be trying that one next time!!!

I just leave the lock wire on. It doesn’t hurt anything.

[Yetti]

8 minutes ago, N201MKTurbo said:

I just poke an awl through the hole then clamp the outer edge together with a standard vice grip, then twist some 0.020 lock wire around the base. Then it is good to go anywhere. That special vise grip would be hard to get to some places.

yep.  this one was easy so the nut driver worked and it was already in hand.  The #1 phillips and then some forceps works too.  they seemed to be curved just right.  I have about 4 pairs of forceps.   Yetti sized hands are not good to work on a Mooney with. 

[Schllc]

3 hours ago, PT20J said:

How many preflight inspections since this happened?

Man, I’ll be honest,  my preflight likely would not have caught that. 
do you crawl under the wing for every preflight?

[TaildraggerPilot]

4 hours ago, PT20J said:

How many preflight inspections since this happened?

Now we are asking the important questions!

[1980Mooney]

5 hours ago, PT20J said:

How many preflight inspections since this happened?

 

1 hour ago, Schllc said:

Man, I’ll be honest,  my preflight likely would not have caught that. 
do you crawl under the wing for every preflight?

The Acclaim POH states that Preflight Inspection includes :

Nose and Main Landing Gear - Gear, Shock Discs, Tires and Gear Doors ……INSPECT 

So the answer is “yes” you are supposed to if you adhere to the POH.  And if you are checking tire pressure you have to crawl under regardless. 

[Schllc]

27 minutes ago, 1980Mooney said:

 

The Acclaim POH states that Preflight Inspection includes :

Nose and Main Landing Gear - Gear, Shock Discs, Tires and Gear Doors ……INSPECT 

So the answer is “yes” you are supposed to if you adhere to the POH.  And if you are checking tire pressure you have to crawl under regardless. 

”inspect” is a very subjective word. 
that being said I’m sure every single airplane owner over all of time has checked each tire pressure every single time prior to flying. 
 

I do “inspect”, that is what preflight is….  
just saying that something like this would be very easy to miss and I suspect it was not in the position it was when he took the photo, for all the other “inspections”. 
A preflight can take hours if one chooses….

[Hank]

39 minutes ago, 1980Mooney said:

The Acclaim POH states that Preflight Inspection includes :

Nose and Main Landing Gear - Gear, Shock Discs, Tires and Gear Doors ……INSPECT 

I can do that upright, just bend down a little. A thorough check would do this from in front of and behind the wing. 

• No obvious bend or dent in the gear leg
• Shock discs look good
• Tires have no visible flat spots or bulges; pressure is not obviously low
• Gear Doors present, not dented or bent, not touching tire or ground

Seeing this adel clamp would require getting my face down level with the top of the tire at about a foot's distance, from behind, and don't hit your head on the flap.

Guess it's a good thing I fly a C and not an Acclaim. And I use Air Stop tubes so that I only need to check tire pressure a handful of times each year, and even then I do it (and add air when needed) from in front of the wing. This adel clamp is only visible from behind the wing . . .

Oops, I forgot, this is Mooneyspace, where everyone else spends at least a half hour preflighting, crawling around on the ground under their Mooney and removing the cowl to check all bolt and sparkplug torques before every flight.

[Yetti]

7 hours ago, PT20J said:

How many preflight inspections since this happened?

The bad thing was I did not go check the other side after I changed the tire and fixed this side.

[Yetti]

1 hour ago, 1980Mooney said:

 

The Acclaim POH states that Preflight Inspection includes :

Nose and Main Landing Gear - Gear, Shock Discs, Tires and Gear Doors ……INSPECT 

So the answer is “yes” you are supposed to if you adhere to the POH.  And if you are checking tire pressure you have to crawl under regardless. 

Which can be done from the front of the plane.   This would only be seen if you INSPECT from the back of the plane.  The worst part of this was I was changing a tire, which of course is allowed PM, but you have to remove the brake pads assembly which is certified mechanic work.   One of the break pads needs replacing, so I changed the tire, and reassembled the should be replaced brake pad cause replacing a rivet in a pad liners is so dang hard only a certified mechanic could do it well that and I did not have brake pad linings. 

[Hank]

37 minutes ago, Yetti said:

The worst part of this was I was changing a tire, which of course is allowed PM, but you have to remove the brake pads assembly which is certified mechanic work.

I've never understood the thinking behind this. I can jack up my plane; remove the wheel and brakes; remove the brake assembly from the wheel; remove the wheel bearings; separate the wheel halves without injuring myself; replace the tire and/or tube; reassemble the wheel halves; inflated the tire and check for leaks; add the brakes back on; clean and repack the wheel bearings; put the wheel bearings back in; mount the assembly onto the gear leg; lower the plane from the jacks.

BUT it's too dangerous to allow me to remove.and replace the brake pads while I have the dismounted brake assembly in my hand . . . .

The really dangerous part of all this is separating the wheel halves! And all pilots are trusted to do that safely.

[Yetti]

55 minutes ago, Hank said:

I've never understood the thinking behind this. I can jack up my plane; remove the wheel and brakes; remove the brake assembly from the wheel; remove the wheel bearings; separate the wheel halves without injuring myself; replace the tire and/or tube; reassemble the wheel halves; inflated the tire and check for leaks; add the brakes back on; clean and repack the wheel bearings; put the wheel bearings back in; mount the assembly onto the gear leg; lower the plane from the jacks.

BUT it's too dangerous to allow me to remove.and replace the brake pads while I have the dismounted brake assembly in my hand . . . .

The really dangerous part of all this is separating the wheel halves! And all pilots are trusted to do that safely.

It kind of makes me want to call the FAA and ask how we get an item added to the list of PM list that Owners (who are responsible for maintenance of the planes) and pilots who can sign off on the work.

[MikeOH]

Coleal Letter of Interpretation:

https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/agc/practice_areas/regulations/interpretations/Data/interps/2009/Coleal-Bombardier Learjet_2009_Legal_Interpretation.pdf

YMMV

[Hank]

47 minutes ago, MikeOH said:

Coleal Letter of Interpretation:

https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/agc/practice_areas/regulations/interpretations/Data/interps/2009/Coleal-Bombardier Learjet_2009_Legal_Interpretation.pdf

YMMV

So, the end of the second paragraph on p.2 states (written in early 2009), "It is our understanding that Flight Standards' Aircraft Maintenance Division is planning to clarify this issue in a future revision to the AC," referring to Advisory Circular 43-12A, Preventive Maintenance. 

I remember some discussion about changes to the interpretation of the list of preventive maintenence tasks enumerated in 14 CFR Part 43, Appendix A, paragraph (c), along the lines that the list was not all-inclusive and that similar tasks within the general categories of "not requiring complex assembly operations" could be performed by us PPL types. A close reading of this paragraph of the Coleal letter seems to indicate agreement with this thinking, subject to forthcoming changes to the AC.

Have these changes actually been published?  Hoping for a change to 14 CFR Part 43 defining this is a long shot, but updating an AC should be a comparatively simple matter that should have been resolved in a fraction of the 16-1/2 years since this letter was published. Or am I confusing this with the looser permissions for Vintage Aircraft More Than 30 Years Old? Because my 1970 Mooney fits into that category, too . . .