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RV6A Rudder cracks

D

Dauntless

Member
I have joined the crack club and am looking for how others have repaired.
I have a 6A that has the .016 skin and the trailing edge last rivet row I have 2 cracks.
If anyone has a rudder for sale or pictures of how they repaired I would really appreciate the guidance.
Once again, this site is a wealth of info and THANK YOU for the support.
 

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I had 3 cracks like this at a few hundred hours, although mine were at the forward end of the stiffener. I stop drilled them and no further problems. Approaching 1900 hours now.

Extremely unlikely you will find a bolt on rudder - none of the relevant holes were factory drilled.
 
I have two.... didn't stop drill and they didn't increase. Mark them and see if they increase before drilling.
These cracks are very normal for the .16 skin and really not a problem.... just watch them.
 
This was a known problem way back, and local knowledge was to put a dab of proseal at the end of the stiffner. No cracks for me so far.
 
I had one rivet with cracks not long after I first flew the plane. Stop-drilled with a very small drill bit (like, 1/32"), hardly noticeable. Unchanged more than 1500 hrs later.

IMG_20250326_164430165.jpg.
 
As others have stated the cracks are common with the RV-4 and -6 airframes that use the same rudder with 0.016" skin and unsupported stiffeners. I flew my RV-6 for over twenty years with some cracks at the leading edge stiffener rivets and they never propagated and I don't consider them a structural problem.

However......I knew if my RV-6 was ever subjected to a pre-buy this would be a red flag for a prospective buyer or a mechanic without a deep background in early RV airframes. So I built a new rudder last year with 0.020" skins and supported the stiffeners at the spar. The old -6 just rolled its eyes, said "Whatever..." and continues to fly as it always has. :)
 
Lots of good advice and some contradiction.
In order to know where the cracks end, you may need to strip the paint. These cracks are so small, and the paint covering them up, it would be tough to determine where to drill.
Before I got that aggressive, I would watch them and see. If they get a bit longer, it will be more obvious.

I have two cracks. One started exactly as yours but on the front of the stiffener. I drilled it, then it went a little further and I had to drill again. The other was a little longer and more obvious to where it ended. I drilled it and it hasn’t moved in hundreds of hours.
I would wait a bit and keep an eye on them. If they don’t propagate, great. If they do, stop drill when it is more clear were they end. You also want to drill just slightly, very slightly, past.
I was lucky. Mine are both on the front and under the elevator so they are not noticeable at all.
Part of the character of a legacy RV.
 
I should have said in my previous post: I did use proseal under the stiffeners or at least the tips.
 
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