T

ten4teg

Well Known Member
I am getting ready to install my wings for the first time. Does anybody have any advise? Also, should they be installed with the fuel tanks on or off? I wasn't sure how hard it was to align everything at once: rear spar, and fuel tank support in the front. It looks like a tight fit for the main spar to slide into the wing center section. Any secrets here? Thanks, Tom
 
I can't speak to the process on the Ten, but on my QB Nine it was delightfully easy. The wings fit like a glove ...everything lined up and the greased temporary bolts went in no problem. Just make sure to allow for the fuse imbalance problem when the 1st wing is hung, and before the second one goes in.
We did my Nine wings with just 2 of us ..may take three or so for the larger Ten wings. Have plenty of temporary support devices, with lots of "adjusters" to get everything supported and level. You'll marvel at the quality of the Vans design and QC.

Terry
 
does the eight wing have that stop or plate that needs trimming and there's a template you cut to trim it just right?

I found that if you forget to trim this on a seven, that no amount wiggling will get the wing all the way in.
 
This is only my opinion and your own mileage may vary, but I found it easier to do with the tank off. It allows you to hold on to the spar and walk the thing right on in. You'll also probably find that the wing tip needs to be a bit higher than what you might expect. On my plane, it was a little hard to get the wing the last few inches in due to the belly skin not wanting to overlap (underlap?) the wing skin. I found that a thin plastic body filler spreader could be slid along the joint to coax the skin over the wing skin. Overall, it was really no big deal and was a big rush to actually see it all together. Good luck and congrats on getting this far.
 
We did my wings a few weeks ago, with the tanks installed, but the tank attach angles not bolted to the fuselage. I figured it would be a lot easier to torque the tank bolts with them sitting nicely in the storage cradles than it would be if I was lying on a creeper below the wings.

I had three helpers - one on the wing tip, and two at the root (one each at leading edge and trailing edge). I supervised as they slipped the wing in place, then I climbed in the fuselage to insert the bolts. The ailerons and pushrods were installed, but the flaps were off.

The whole process went very smoothly - about 45 minutes from start until both wings were on with the large bolts inserted. The only part that took longer than expected was torquing the nuts. It took quite a bit of screwing around to find the right combination of wrenches, extensions, etc to get a torque wrench on the nuts on the lower bolts.
 
help

I had 2 helpers- - both airedales. not much utility. at least one human helper would make things much easier. also, if you rock the wing up and down to ease it in, don't lift it too high. it will rip the side skin. don't ask.
 
QB Wing install

Am I correct in my understanding that with my 9A-QB, I won't need to set the wing incidence? The wings just slide in and bolt in place and that's it? Sounds too easy..... :confused:
 
craigvince said:
Am I correct in my understanding that with my 9A-QB, I won't need to set the wing incidence? The wings just slide in and bolt in place and that's it? Sounds too easy..... :confused:
Click to expand...
Incidence is set by the rear spar. Rear spars are not predrilled on the QB's. It would be pretty much impossible for Van's to do so. Sorry. It's not that big of a deal though if you take a lot of time to think about what you are doing.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.