Only fix gear related items if they need fixing. Ie- don’t let them overhaul gear components that are functioning fine/not leaking.
That is asking for trouble. Depending on the year it was built, Cessna had a requirement that all rubber components of the hydraulic system be replaced periodically. That went to on-condition later on, when the rubber stuff was changed to a different, longer-lasting compound.
See, in the Cessna single retracts,
one failure of
one O-ring means you cannot get the gear extended, not even with the hand pump. You are guaranteed a gear-up landing and maybe a writeoff of the whole airplane. Every seal in that system is critical.
We did the full gear swings on the 200-hour inspections on our R182 in the flight school. One day, while doing this, the gear just stopped working. It fell down but would not go to full extension and locking. No matter what we did with the lever or the hand pump, it would not work in either direction. It turned out that one tiny O-ring in the control valve had split and was leaking fluid back to the reservoir; pressure could not be had for a million bucks. If that had happened in flight, a gear-up would have happened, all for the failure of a ten-cent O-ring.
From the 1980-1985 172RG Service Manual, Section 2:
See that Special Inspection 16?
Cessna isn't fooling there. But too many mechanics either don't have the manuals or seldom look at them. Even though the law requires it.
On these old aircraft, don’t fix what ain’t broke.
That old philosophy again. Wait until it's broke to fix it??! That has caused many inflight failures. Failed mags due to no 500-hour internal inspections. Failed vacuum pumps because the owner/mechanic disregard the time limits set by the manufacturer, or will not buy Rapco or Tempest pumps that have vane-wear provisions to avoid over-worn vanes causing rotor breakage and failure. 40- and 50-year-old seals in the hydraulic system. Worn-out alternator brushes that cause alternator failure because the 500-hour inspections were ignored. All of this stuff gets run to failure, and so we get stories on POA about being stranded far from home with a dead whatever, or worse, the lights and radios or instruments fail at night or in IMC or both.
Aviation is very unforgiving, and running stuff to failure is Just. Plain. Stupid.
