Blueprints BC-12D

[paddydix]

Hi Gang!,
Interested in finding some drawings of our beloved birds. I had a fuse repair in the landing gear area (right side). It would be nice to have some drawing of the area. It will not be to far off and fabric will need redoing, seems it would be a good time to maybe get rid of the repair and just replace the tubes. Also would like to see the aileron hinge pin area. Trying to figure out if the right size pins are installed, etc. Marty has told me where he got schematics from, and Chuck has a few drawings he is going to send. Looks like between all the Taylorcraft tribe we could share all of them we have and maybe come up with a good collection to help other new owners ,like myself, to make sure we are flying safe machines. Could be a great collection posted on the site,..and a big help to everyone. Appreciate in advance the help ! I'm just the FNG around here, but what do ya'll think of an online library of drawings?

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Blueprints BC-12D

There ARE drawings in the group, some factory and some we have done of good parts for just what you are talking about. First step is to post some pictures of the damage area. Some of us can measure the dimensions you need and where to measure to make sure your fuselage is straight. It really isn't very hard, just don't start cutting till you have a plan and can weld it back together straight.
I actually have fuselage drawings but there are really short on dimensions. The fuselages were built in fixtures so the factory workers really didn't need dimension drawings. Now we just need to measure a good one and make yours the same.
Post some pictures of the areas you are worried about on the fuselage and the aileron hinges and we can get you going.
Hank

[paddydix]

Re: Blueprints BC-12D

I'll try to get to the airport and get some pics Hank. As for just the general idea, my aileron pins just seem to have play in them,...I have not found an A&P around that can tell me for certain if it is allowable or not. Nor if the correct pin is installed. Since I don't have a drawing of the area, I can't say one way or the other either. The fuse repair is plenty hefty enough, but it misaligned the right gear a touch,..and the repair probably added a good deal of weight, and I am trying to get the old girl away from all the doughnuts ya know! LOL I will try to get some pics soon, hard to say when, winds are terrible right now with even worse coming. I am on the honey do list of bathroom rebuilds right now! All together now, "OH THE JOY!" HA
Hank I heard you worked on the shuttle? Would you happen to know an electrical engineer that worked for TRW on the shuttle name of Tom Foytack?

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Blueprints BC-12D

I have had a few repairs like that on my 45 fuselage. Nothing like what I got to work on the Pepsi-Cola Travel Aire D4D when it was rebuilt by Custom Antique Aeroplanes here in Tidewater. Beautiful plane that I was told that Peggy Davies and Suzanne Oliver (the pilots) felt was a bit sensitive on the controls. When the covering was removed there was a HUGE ballast plate in the tail and the fuselage was full of water pipe repairs! Al Jenkins and Joe Mathias built a whole new fuselage for it and it flew for years with Pepsi-Cola until Oshkosh and the EAA signed with Coca-Cola and wouldn't let Pepsi be sponsored there any more.

The plane is in the Boeing Museum now, still in the covering I helped put on. The old pipe fuselage was shaped like a banana and the weight was added as a fix for running out of up trim! The CG was so far back is was a miracle the plane could be recovered from aerobatics. They say with a straight fuselage and normal CG the D4D is a sweet acro plane and the Wright J-6 is a neat sounding engine, if a little hard to find parts for.

Al and Joe were the BEST in the business (both have passed now), but they had some really scary airplanes roll in the door. How about a J-3 with knotty pine spars! I think you are smart to remove any bad repairs. It will not only lighten up your plane, it will let you really check it over to make sure it is done right and everything is straight.

On a little more recent jobs, I did work Shuttle and ISS as a Systems Engineer and Safety Engineer, as well as Soyuz, Progress, the Constellation Program (Orion) and several planetary probes. It was really fun while it lasted, but NASA seems to be lacking in direction now. Been working some FAA projects recently, mostly on airline stuff. Fun, but GA is MORE fun. ;-)

[paddydix]

Re: Blueprints BC-12D

Did not take the floor panels out to get any pics of the repair, but did look over the aileron hinges very carefully. Appears that the hinges and pins are ok. Play can be adjusted out I do believe, as it appears there is no problem with the hinge or pin itself.

[3Dreaming]

Re: Blueprints BC-12D

Did not take the floor panels out to get any pics of the repair, but did look over the aileron hinges very carefully. Appears that the hinges and pins are ok. Play can be adjusted out I do believe, as it appears there is no problem with the hinge or pin itself.

There isn't any adjustment. It is a worn pin, bushing, or the steel bracket on the aileron. Most of the time new pins and bushings will do the job, but I have seen the bracket on the aileron worn too.

[Pearson]

Re: Blueprints BC-12D

Hi Gang!,
Interested in finding some drawings of our beloved birds. I had a fuse repair in the landing gear area (right side). It would be nice to have some drawing of the area. It will not be to far off and fabric will need redoing, seems it would be a good time to maybe get rid of the repair and just replace the tubes. Also would like to see the aileron hinge pin area. Trying to figure out if the right size pins are installed, etc. Marty has told me where he got schematics from, and Chuck has a few drawings he is going to send. Looks like between all the Taylorcraft tribe we could share all of them we have and maybe come up with a good collection to help other new owners ,like myself, to make sure we are flying safe machines. Could be a great collection posted on the site,..and a big help to everyone. Appreciate in advance the help ! I'm just the FNG around here, but what do ya'll think of an online library of drawings?

Patrick,

I have a project plane at my house that I can take measurements or photos of. Just let me know what you need. Best to reply to my regular email; neat1s AT yahoo DOT com. Regarding your "hinge pin" problem, if you don't see slop in the hinge pin or braket the next easiest fix is to check the ball socket on the end of the push rod that comes out of the back of the wing. You have to remove the nut where the threads go through the braket, then remove a cotter pin and you can screw the plug in the end of the tube inward. But it would also be a good time to take the plug out and put some grease in there. Don't over tighten the plug when you put it back in. If that is not where your slop is, there is a good chance it may be in the mounting of the bellcrank like braket that is mounted on the forward side of the rear spar. A common problem is that people overtighten the mounting bolts and compress the wood of the spar. Don't do that!! Bad, Bad, Bad! You have to go through an inspection hole in the bottom of the wing. Have someone move the aileron while you are looking through the hole with a good light. Just a tiny bit of movement of the braket equates to a lot of slop. IF the bolts are actually loose, you can snug them up and then maybe another 1/8 to 1/4 of a turn. If you overtighten them, you RUIN the spar. Keep us posted. Hope this helps.

[paddydix]

Re: Blueprints BC-12D

Thanks Guys,
I do believe the slop is in the push rod, it is not a lot per say, but enough to make me ask the question. My first concern was ,..since you can't find any drawings a mech just rigged a wrong size bushing or pin. That does not appear to be the case, as the slop does not show up in the hinge bracket area. I have been under the impression that the push rod itself can be adjusted?