1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

[adrozell]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

These guys are not kidding when they say look for and old A&P to work on her. Some very fine younger A&P's have never even SEEN an NAS3 carb, and would only mess it up if they tried to rebuild it. Nice looking plane, it's paint looks nicer than mine.

Not all of us young A&Ps are bad, got my Tcraft at 19, and my A&P at 20. First c-85 overhaul at 19 and a-65 at 21. There are some of us young guys that like the old stuff. Now I admit not as many.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

Young A&Ps and IAs who know our planes as rare as hens teeth. The good thing is when you find one, they are always really dedicated to old planes because of a real love for them. They know they sure won't be getting rich working on them. We need to treat them right!

Hank

I really want to know how you got the three of you in that 46. Your other post said your photo was taken when the three of you went flying. HOW YOU DO DAT?!?!? ;-)

[Adamo13]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

Thanks everybody for the kind words and wisdom! I hauled the ol' girl home from her failed annual the other day and created quite the spectacle on the highway. Apparently a plane with no wings traveling on a flat-bed down the road really draws the looks! I've got a couple pictures attached below that show the aileron and rib in question. There is a piece broken out that can potentially hang up the travel of the aileron if it is deflected too far up or down. The wings seem in good shape and there is no other sign of anything amiss but I was strongly encouraged by the mechanic (who owns a cub) to recover the wings and not just fix and patch because of the potential problems that could be looming underneath. Does this sound like good advice? I got a quote for recovering the wings from a different shop and they said it would come in around $9,000 for the wings finished out the door.

[Adamo13]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

Chet Peeks book list three 49 models. Model 85. Model 65 and the Travrller BC12-D

Would that mean the models were manufactured in '49 and distributed in '50? I guess with such low numbers after those high volume years it's definitely plausible for mine to be the only one made with a 65hp that year.

[senior]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

Adam, Stripping & repair & recover sounds like durn good advise, be comforting to check out the spars closely when your in there. But that sounds a bit expensive to me ($9,000). Find someone with some fabric experience close by to give you some pointers & do them your-self.
It took myself & a friend 10 days to recover & paint two Taylor wings (granted at a feverish pace in between paying jobs).

[3Dreaming]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

Looks like someone bumped the wing tip to cause your problems. Before I would take all the fabric off the wings I would want to ask a few more questions. How old is the fabric? What do things really look like in the area that has an issue? Before I went to far I would just remove the fabric around the area of the damage to get a better handle of what things inside the wings look like.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

That sounds WAY high to me to recover a wing. I would start by stripping the fabric from one bay inside the aileron tip rib to the wing tip and pull the fabric from the top of the root end to one rib out (if you have wing tanks, if not you may be able to inspect through the access holes). Take a CLOSE look at the spar root ends. That is a LONG moment arm and you want to look for ANY damage to the spar attach area. When the wing is pushed aft or forward at the tip you can split the spar around the bolt holes in the fitting.

Hank

Your mechanic is right to be cautious!

[3Dreaming]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

That sounds WAY high to me to recover a wing. I would start by stripping the fabric from one bay inside the aileron tip rib to the wing tip and pull the fabric from the top of the root end to one rib out (if you have wing tanks, if not you may be able to inspect through the access holes). Take a CLOSE look at the spar root ends. That is a LONG moment arm and you want to look for ANY damage to the spar attach area. When the wing is pushed aft or forward at the tip you can split the spar around the bolt holes in the fitting.

Hank


Your mechanic is right to be cautious!

Hank, he said wings not wing for $9,000. I agree with removing fabric around the damage and inspecting first, before stripping everything. Which route to go would also depend on the age of the fabric.

[crispy critter]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

$9000.00 to recover both wings is not that bad deal at all if it includes replacing both spars, stripping, etching, alodining, and priming everything. But is certainly a bit high if all your doing is cleaning, minor repairs, and recover.

[Joe cooper]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

$9000.00 to recover both wings is not that bad deal at all if it includes replacing both spars, stripping, etching, alodining, and priming everything. But is certainly a bit high if all your doing is cleaning, minor repairs, and recover.

This sounds right. If it were mine, under the circumstances, I would go ahead, strip both wings completely, inspect them carefully and recover. It's hard to really see the spars like you can when it's stripped. Could save your life. Great piece of mind when you know they are in good shape. Find someone who knows fabric well, and do them yourself with help. Nice looking!

[Adamo13]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

I'll look back in the logs to be certain but I recall there was a recover done in the 70's using "Grade A Cotton". The previous owner commented though about a covering in ceconite. I don't remember seeing anything in the logs to support that. I did have the fabric checked before purchase by a local guy I know that has multiple rag and tube planes and has done many fabric covers. In his opinion it had a fair amount of life left. He did point out the problem area but at that time it was not completely broken out like it is now. It was hard to see much in the inspection holes especially for him and his failing older eyes. I think at this point I may opt for the full recover. That way I know I've got a sound set of wings. Nervous about what I might find underneath though . I am definitely interested in the DIY approach. I will have to do much research before beginning. I would hate to spend the money on materials just to botch it.

[crispy critter]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

Adam,
If its got cotton from the 70's, hangered or not, its way past time to recover. Ceconite that's been on that long, well cared for and hangered is probably in no danger of problems as far as the fabric is concerned. However with any covering process when it gets that old, the fabric is the least of what you should be concerned about....it's what lies underneath. The problem with your tip bow and aileron are good examples of that.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

You may have a real problem paper wise if the last recover isn't even in the logs. The FAA will NOT accept a recover from years ago that is not logged. You may HAVE to recover if you get a "stickler" from the FAA. Right now your first priority should be to define what you have ON PAPER. Get the CD and the logs out and start a spreadsheet starting with all the information from the Type Certificate. Make changes to the spreadsheet for EVERY CHANGE in the logs and CD with the date the change was made until you use all of the information up. THAT is the configuration your plane should be in. It WON'T be. As you rework her, change her physical configuration to match the configuration from the paperwork, or make log entries for how she is or you want her, but make sure the logs match the plane. IF the logs show a Cotton recover in the 70s and nothing since, the plane is out of conformance and can be grounded. If the fabric is good, and your IA will sign it off, hopefully you can find info on when the recover was done and correct the logs.
Overall, a recover is NOT the end of the world, and you CAN do it yourself. It is actually fun (OK, I am kind of sick that way) and while she is open you can make sure EVERYTHING is done RIGHT. Most of the cost is labor, so you can really reduce the cost if you supply that. Get some videos for the different methods and see which one you like. I was a SOLID Dope on Cotton person, but Stewarts is looking better and better.

Hank

[Ryan]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

I would vote for DIY. I did and had NO covering experience. Buy the poly fiber, ceconite, Stewarts book or whatever system you want and read it. It lays it out step by step. Just FOLLOW the directions. Most guys I have seen who had trouble had some sort of "shortcut" that didn't work. The wings are a great place to start for covering. I know poly fiber has a great support system to answer your questions. I'm sure the others do too. I really enjoyed covering my plane and is a great feeling of accomplishment.

[dalijohn]

Re: 1950 BC-12D 65hp N6627N (The only one made in 1950?)

Curious as to the serial number; 3-13018. Have not seen a s/n with a dash before. Wonder what the story behind that is...