engine mount inspection after nose wheel collapse

[avantveld]

Hi all,
We just started with the rebuild of a RV7A that recently suffered a nosewheel collapse and rollover. The (wooden) MT prop luckily absorbed most of the forces....A thorough visual inspection shows no damage/distortion of the engine mount. What are next steps to take to be 200% sure that the mount can be re-used?
Your feedback is appreciated!

Aart
PH-VII, RV7, flying

[AZtailwind]

Originally Posted by avantveld

Hi all,
We just started with the rebuild of a RV7A that recently suffered a nosewheel collapse and rollover. The (wooden) MT prop luckily absorbed most of the forces....PH-VII, RV7, flying

The nose gear bottom two brackets/mounts take most of the forces in a nose over- Don’t ask me how I know!
Though our 6A did not go all the way over. We did see some de-formation in that area.

The bend of the nose gear will give you a clue as to how much force the firewall may have had to sustain. In our case the bottom of the rudder was smacked up. In your case it may have been the top rudder/vertical.

Also we removed, stripped, and sandblasted the engine mount for magnaflux inspection.
Stripping the powder coat was the most fun!

Our A&P also inspected the fuse and rear tail bulkheads by flouresent lights and measuring the cross sections of the bulkheads.
FWIW

[lufthans.nl]

I agree: sandblast the mount so you can see whatever cracks etc may lie underneath. Dye-checking may also be a good idea.

Please don't attempt to sandblast or sand the powdercoating yourself. You'll hate yourself for it, and it only costs maybe 20 euros to have it done professionally.

Good luck!!

Hans