Cowl repair

[matt]

DRs post got me thinking since I am in trhe same situation:
"I was talking with Brandon (of GLO Custom) at lunch the other day and mentioned to him that I needed to build up some worn holes in my gear leg/bottom cowl fairings. The washers have worn through over the last seven years of flying in a couple of spots. He said that he had all the stuff out on his bench and that it wouldn't take a minute for him to patch 'em up if I would do all the new drilling afterward, so I took them down to him yesterday after cowling up the plane. "

But what is the best way to patch worn cowl holes?
And cowls that starts to crack/open upp along the laminate, is there a good way to repair this?

[Mike S]

There are a couplethree big concerns when doing a cowl repair.

Number one, is oil soaked into the fiberglass.

Number two is heat-----your cowl was more than likely made in an autoclave/oven, to cure the prepreg, and stabilize the tendency of the FG to move around when exposed to heat.

Depending on where the damage is, you may get by with just sanding the damage area, and laying up material over the damage. Then refinish the exterior. This is a best case fix.

It would help to see photos of the damage and/or a description of the damage, and the makeup of the damaged area----i.e. solid glass or honeycomb.

Oh, yeah, the third enemy of the fix----oil