tail wheel weldement RV-7

KayS · #1 04-11-2010, 10:51 PM

Hi, i'm on doing the RV-7 aft fuselage and i have a problem with the wd-409 weldement. there is the weldement part that is bolted/riveted between the two most aft bulkheads with a long steel tube that holds the tail wheel. the problem is that i can't get out the tube. that could be necessay later on to ship the airframe in a container.

did anyone had similar experiences? what to do here?

thank you guys...

Kay

N941WR · #2 04-12-2010, 03:46 AM

Kay,

Drill a hole in the bottom of the fuselage large enough so you can get a socket on the nut that holds the tail spring in place.

dlloyd3 · #3 04-12-2010, 05:14 AM

My tailwheel spring and the wd-409 mount were very tight. Van's suggested tapping on the spring with a brass hammer. They did not understand how tight it was. I ended up clamping the mount to a bench and twisting the spring. A little at a time it was twisted apart. There was no corrosion. I worked on both parts with some emery cloth before reassembling.
One of the main gear legs was very tight in its' mount as was one of the bolts. Someone is not paying attention to tolerances before shipping.

KayS · #4 04-12-2010, 08:51 AM

Hey Dave, thank you... how did you twist the spring? i don't want to use some brute force here to avoid bending or twisting the weldment. i tried the hammer method already but it is really to tight...

Sid Lambert · #5 04-12-2010, 08:56 AM

I used a deadblow hammer to knock it out. Took 50 or so hits.

dlloyd3 · #6 04-12-2010, 09:55 AM

I twisted the tailwheel fork by hand. Maybe had a towel around it so the edges would not cut me. It moved a little just before I was about to give in. It was difficult to clamp that odd shaped mount to the workbench tight enought to stay put.
Previously I did pound on it with a 3 lb. hammer and bronze bar about 50 times without result.