[kcpgm]

Noticed a while back a crack in the rudder skin half way a crack radiating from one rivet the owner stoped drilled it then it happened on the other side and again stopped drilled it

Now I'm helping out the friend of mine who bought this RV-4 we noticed that an other location is starting to crack again from a rivet

Question is there any type of patch system that can work to repair this or should we just build an other rudder?

RVing in maine

 

[zilik]

click-bond patches. They sell them at spruce. Pricey but they work well. Basicall a small round .016" thick patch that is applied with super-glue. Stick them on, paint to match and crack no more.

Gary

 

[randylervold]

Honestly, the best thing to do would be to build another rudder at some point. This might be daunting if your friend did not build the plane, but any RV builder could help him and have it done in no time.

Early RV rudder and elevators were made with .016 skins. They can be prone to cracking unless built correctly using a few tricks. Here is a summary...
http://www.romeolima.com/RV3works/Airframe/airframe.htm#Empennage