Strut Question, 24323 Valentine

[Clark]

While rigging wings before covering, should you use the permanent struts? Will it effect the rigging to use the old struts? I will be replacing the old struts with new at the time of final re-assembly. I am both attempting to postpone that purchase while continuing the restoration and hope use of the old struts will not be significantly effecting the rigging of both wing and attachment of struts. All is a ways off yet just gathering information. Thanks, Clark

[3Dreaming]

Properly rigged old struts verses new struts should be the same.

[Scott]

I think I'd want to be sure the new struts line up well before covering
just in case there has been some form of "accommodation" of twist or alinement issue with the old struts.

At the very least, you'll want to check the bolt holes in your old struts point in the right direction independent of the wing and fuselage fittings.

[Robert Lees]

When the FAA strut AD came out, I partnered up with ten UK Taylorcraft owners, and bought ten sets of new sealed struts from Airframes Alaska.

Story: https://www.taylorcraft.org.uk/new%20struts.htm

My credit card company was straight on the phone; my thanks to them for checking up on the transaction!.

To my knowledge, all ten sets fitted perfectly, so I see no reason why the OP should worry.

Rob

[astjp2]

My airframes struts were slightly different bolt hole angle than my original prewar ones were.

[Hank Jarrett]

There were at least two different angles on fuselages for the struts. I don't know for sure but to me it looks like there could have been some damage to the fuselage fixtures and some planes were built with struts custom angled to compensate for it. It would have been MUCH cheaper to put a slight bend in a few struts than to fix the fixture and re-weld all the fuselages that were off. Again, I don't know, but the ones that were off sure look like they just heated the end of the strut and angled in a few degrees. Doing that WOULD NOT damage the strength of the strut, but it would not be interchangeable any more.

[Edwin Otha]

You should have enough adjustment in any strut any strut you use at assembly to get the proper angles.
EO