ColoRv
Well Known Member
I have a story that might be worth sharing. Last week some friends helped me move my project to the airport. Knowing that the first task once there would be putting the gear and wheels on, I took it off the typical wood in the wing slot stand and put it up on new, tall adjustable steel sawhorses. This got it up high enough to mount the wheels etc.
So, I spent a couple of nights crouching inside the fuse...up on the sawhorses, putting in bolts etc. Then Bob torqued the bolts from below while I held the wrenches in the gear towers. Today....we installed the axles, brakes and put the wheels and tires on. Sounds pretty simple eh?
Well....I am tightening the right side wheel nut by hand while Bill Truax has just fit the left wheel and started threading the nut on....and the fuselage starts slowing lowering to the ground like someone was lowering a car jack. I was thinking "what the ****" and looked over at Bill just as both mains kiss the floor. It took me a second to look at the saw horse....to find it had bent two legs and squatted. Had Bill T put that wheel on 15 seconds later the fuselage would have sat down on the brake caliper instead of the wheel. Pretty good timing! Woohoo! She is on the gear....and apparently wasn't willing to wait another minute! On those saw horses for 5 days....collapsed 15 seconds after the wheel is placed on the axle.....someone up there loves Marines!
Don't buy these Home Depot saw horses and expect to put any weight on them.
So, I spent a couple of nights crouching inside the fuse...up on the sawhorses, putting in bolts etc. Then Bob torqued the bolts from below while I held the wrenches in the gear towers. Today....we installed the axles, brakes and put the wheels and tires on. Sounds pretty simple eh?
Well....I am tightening the right side wheel nut by hand while Bill Truax has just fit the left wheel and started threading the nut on....and the fuselage starts slowing lowering to the ground like someone was lowering a car jack. I was thinking "what the ****" and looked over at Bill just as both mains kiss the floor. It took me a second to look at the saw horse....to find it had bent two legs and squatted. Had Bill T put that wheel on 15 seconds later the fuselage would have sat down on the brake caliper instead of the wheel. Pretty good timing! Woohoo! She is on the gear....and apparently wasn't willing to wait another minute! On those saw horses for 5 days....collapsed 15 seconds after the wheel is placed on the axle.....someone up there loves Marines!
Don't buy these Home Depot saw horses and expect to put any weight on them.
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