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Lifting the tail - technique

WingnutWick

Well Known Member
Wanting to verify that setting a couple padded sawhorses under the horizontal stab is an acceptable way to lift the tail to work on the tailwheel? I imagine you want it as close inboard as possible? Any issues with this? If so - what are the other options?
 
Wanting to verify that setting a couple padded sawhorses under the horizontal stab is an acceptable way to lift the tail to work on the tailwheel? I imagine you want it as close inboard as possible? Any issues with this? If so - what are the other options?
I'm not sure how similar the -8 is to the -6 but on mine I just put a wooden sawhorse under the T/W weldment socket where it protrudes slightly from the fuselage skin, using a shop rag to keep it from marring the paint. Just forward of that would probably work too as long as it's under a bulkhead - not a lot of weight back there, on the -6 it's around 55lbs. I'd be less comfortable using the HS but suppose it might be okay as long close in to the root and under the spar on each side.
 
I wouldn’t use the HS to support the weight.. like others said, a padded saw horse under a bulkh is ok, I happen to have a stool that I just put the Tailwheel on. The weldment at the Tailwheel spring works too. I’m afraid that just using the spring itself may slide the saw horse out..
 
I thought I remember telling me that this was acceptable but can't find anything to verify. Normally I do rest it on the arm spring I want to check to make sure the actual spring arm itself isn't loose as I get a lot of rattle from the tailwheel section.
 
Here's how I support mine, including my weight when crawling to work inside the tail cone, without any issues.
 

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You should be fine, Wingnut. Just make sure you are under the main spar of the horizontal. Heck, I used to carefully lift the tail of my -3 by the inboard leading edge of the horizontal. Even Van himself helped me do that onetime. However, he did say "holy ****, what do you have in the baggage hold??". Hahaha
 
Floor Jack

On our RV-6, I use my automotive floor jack with a short square of 2 x 4 in the roundy cup and a rag, placed under the fuselage right where the tailspring and attach bracket protrude from the fuselage. Easy and quick. Can’t get the airplane level of course, but plenty good enough for tailwheel maintenance and cleaning the belly. Actually, I use the floor jack on lots of taildraggers, come to think about it.
 
Thanks all, I can hand lift the tail via the tail spring. In this instance I am looking to check up on the tail spring itself and need it not bearing any weight, hence the stab idea. I'll take a closer look at on the fuselage side right where the spring comes out and see if that looks like it will support the weight too like some have suggested.

Thank you!

You should be fine, Wingnut. Just make sure you are under the main spar of the horizontal. Heck, I used to carefully lift the tail of my -3 by the inboard leading edge of the horizontal. Even Van himself helped me do that onetime. However, he did say "holy ****, what do you have in the baggage hold??". Hahaha
 
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