Maintenance photos

[Mark Julicher]

I am doing an annual on a Piper Cherokee that has been poorly maintained. Although the owner PAID for maintenance over the years, he is not mechanically savvy and has been "taken to the cleaners". So far there are 12 unairworthy items on this plane, most of which could have been found during pre-flight inspection, but most certainly during annual inspections.

Here are two gems I though I would share with the tribe. Obviously the wheel bearing in not seen on preflight, but the exhaust leak has been going on for a long time!

There is no telling how long this nose wheel bearing has been without new grease. My guess is at least 5 years. It is a PITA to get to the bearing when there are wheel pants on the plane, so guess what? Owners beware.

The characteristic grey/brown exhaust stain on the forward exhaust tube spells trouble. This leak has been going on a long time judging by its size. The cylinder's exhaust port is eroded very badly. The alternator is covered in corrosive deposits. Part of the cowling brace structure has been burned through, and this plane was a candidate for a severe inflight fire.

[Robert Lees]

Re: Maintenance photos

Interesting (but unfortunately not untypical).

There is a device that can grind the exhaust port in situ (if not excessively eroded)...it's name escapes me just for the moment. It helps if the studs are out, but not absolutely required.

When was the last time the oil-drain tube was AD signed off in the logs?

The whole scenario begs the question: what else is wrong?

The previous maintainers ought to be taken to the cleaners too.

[Mark Julicher]

Re: Maintenance photos

Rob,
I appreciate your comments! Fortunately the FBO owner has the in-situ thingamabob and I plan to use it. ( I need to find one for myself though)

If you mean Oil Cooler Hose AD 95-26-13, it is current and I will sign off on the recurring inspection. If you mean some other Oil AD I would be most interested. I find it incredibly easy to miss an AD no matter how hard I try, I guess I should spend the shekels to buy one of those fancy services.

Lots of other stuff is wrong... Lord Mounts are cracked, propeller is corroded, ELT control panel was not hooked up, nose strut was held on with radiator clamps, intake hoses are dry-rotted, nose seal is leaking profusely, the Bendix has chewed up several flywheel teeth... it just goes on and on.

[Robert Lees]

Re: Maintenance photos

I was thinking of the cylinder oil drain-back tube (from the head to the crankcase)...if this had been signed off, surely the previous maintenance company would have seen the exhaust leak?

[AndyDuke]

Re: Maintenance photos

Are you sure that's grease on the nose wheel bearing - looks more like my home made toffee!

[Mark Julicher]

Re: Maintenance photos

Good one Andy!
Rob, I still can't find an AD on the oil return tubes, but I do see service letters where they must be inspected and the fittings checked... which shall be done.

It is amazing what some mechanics get away with. No A&P would miss all this stuff - it is criminal neglect IMHO. I don't mean to be holier than thou! Far From! I have missed serious stuff on annuals and have been embarrassed by it. I just wanted to show some stuff that hopefully pilots will recognize as poor practice if they ever see it again.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Maintenance photos

We talked about this before and we should probably do so again. It's OUR soft pink behinds in our planes and I like it that my IA lets me get as involved as I want in my annuals (which is VERY involved). For a while around here any local Taylorcraft could draw a crowd of other owners when it was going through annual. Each of us would look for anything we could think of or had ever heard was a problem. A good IA (and mine is one) never had a problem with that. He pretty much knows we know a LOT about my plane and know places to look he might not. By the same token, if he says it needs to be fixed, there is NEVER an argument. I usually want to do more than he thinks is really necessary. He DOES get a little quizzical when he sees it and it doesn't look the same as last year (I have a tendency to take things out that were never recorded as being added). The next annual he is in for a SHOCK! New paint, new instruments, new cowl, new struts, new tires, new windshield (actually new "glass" and frames all around!), new seats and cushions, new headliner. In fact an A&P friend of mine and I were looking at it and noted that there isn't a single visible surface of the plane that isn't changed!
This promises to be the most detailed annual she has ever had.
It's OUR responsibility to make sure our annuals are done right. WE know the plane better than most of the people signing them off. WE know where the hidden problems are. Get involved and live longer. You don't get to log time with the wings you get in heaven. There is NO excuse for a bad annual. Inspectors who miss the obvious stuff we should be putting out of business, but it is still our behinds that will get ground up if something gets missed. He will just have to find a new job.
If you find a good one, take good care of him. Good tube and rag IA's are getting hard to find.
Hank

[LostnSpace]

Re: Maintenance photos

[QUOTE=Mark Julicher;53119]Good one Andy!
Rob, I still can't find an AD on the oil return tubes, but I do see service letters where they must be inspected and the fittings checked... which shall be done.

Hi Mark, I got to looking back thru the paperwork on the PA-28-140 I finished up, just to make sure I didn't miss something, and the only oil drain line AD I found was if the prop controll is mounted on the accessory case and has an external oil line, which the -140 never heard of, just my 2 bits worth, gary

[Mark Julicher]

Re: Maintenance photos

Thanks Gary.

There is an inspection called out for the rubber connectors on the oil return lines from the cylinder heads to the sump so I did inspect there.

This particular Cherokee has now broken my personal best record with 14 grounding items to correct. Take a close look at this air filter. There is nothing in the logs as to when it was last changed. I told the owner I found 20 lost horses.

Right now I'm trying to get out a really stubborn, broken exhaust stud. So far I have heated it to red hot and put penetrating oil on it 5 times to no avail. There is 1/4 inch protruding and the vice grips won't turn it. It is the stud nearest the cylinder barrel so a stud extractor can't get a grip on it. It is enough to make me apply for a job as a WalMart greeter.

I believe I'll re-work the logo on the cowl from Cherokee 140 to Cherokee POS.

[Marv]

Re: Maintenance photos

Mark weld a flatwasher on the stud. Use a washer with as large an ouside diameter as there is room for and still have a tight fit on the stud. Then weld a nut onto that and u can use a socket and ratchet to remove the sud. You may have to heat the area hot again, to remove stud. Marv

[Mark Julicher]

Re: Maintenance photos

Brilliant.
I had indeed thought of welding *something* to the stud, but I did not know exactly what.
I assume the washer serves as a heat shield, protecting the cylinder head while I weld the nut?

Thanks!

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Maintenance photos

The other thing is to try Oil of Wintergreen as a penetrant. Sometimes it can get in where other penetrating oils can't, plus if it doesn't work at least the engine smells really nice!
When you try and turn the stud with the welded "head" on it DON'T turn it with a lot of force. Tap it lightly as you turn it and apply the torque in both directions (yea, I know, sounds stupid to TIGHTEN the thing when you are trying to get it out but that can break it free). I have used a rivet gun (fast and LIGHTLY!) on the end of a stuck bolt with Oil of Wintergreen and it came out like there was nothing holding it in. LOVE the shocked look on the mechanics face!
Hank

[Mark Julicher]

Re: Maintenance photos

I'll run off to General Nutrition Center and get some Oil of Wintergreen

[Larry Lyons]

Re: Maintenance photos

The other thing is to try Oil of Wintergreen as a penetrant. Sometimes it can get in where other penetrating oils can't, plus if it doesn't work at least the engine smells really nice!
When you try and turn the stud with the welded "head" on it DON'T turn it with a lot of force. Tap it lightly as you turn it and apply the torque in both directions (yea, I know, sounds stupid to TIGHTEN the thing when you are trying to get it out but that can break it free). I have used a rivet gun (fast and LIGHTLY!) on the end of a stuck bolt with Oil of Wintergreen and it came out like there was nothing holding it in. LOVE the shocked look on the mechanics face!
Hank

Hank is right: set the impact set light enough so you do not worry about twist off and cycle back and forth several times not spending too long in one direction. I have been amazed at what this will move! I have also put ice on the casting, let it soak for several minutes, then hit the casting with heat. Give it a bit, only a few seconds before trying to turn the stud. This is a subjective sort of thing but the idea is to cool everything down then just as the casting expands but before the heat goes to the stud you try move it. What we do here is put it outside, like today (10 degrees) over lunch, then we put heat on the casting as we put torque on the stud. Larry

[Edwin Otha]

Re: Maintenance photos

Mark,
If it's that tight just drill it out and install a thread insert. Or you can remove the cylinder and have a shop pull it for you. It would be a shame to see photos on a Piper site of a botched job.
EO