First gotcha in annual- Piper experts come here

Well my preference in single pistons lead more toward Bonanzas which have their own set of expensive MX issues.
 
The condition of the spars in my 1971 Cherokee was nothing like that. It had no noticeable corrosion. It spent its first year in Orlando and the rest of its life in Tennessee and Arkansas. The video is impressive but would probably be representative of about any plane with whatever history that one had.
 
I rather have this problem than have to babysit wrinkle-prone bladders...
 
Don't get me wrong I love Pipers and finished my PPL in an Archer. But for same cost, between a Piper Arrow and sexy Vtail Bonanza that is harder call to make.
 
Yeah if we are comparing similar year and performance Comanche to Bonanza both are solid fast planes. Later model planes are outside my budget.
 
Blueangel said:
Best of luck. I have found a lot of neglected planes in my search. Hence why I decided to complete my A&P to be able to safely maintain my future airplane purchase without going bankrupt![/QUOTE

I did the same thing. Over the years I don't think I could have afforded my plane if I did not do the maintenance... I due respect the A&P's and IA's that I ask for assistance over the years and I know they have overhead for the business but $90/hr for labor, the bill adds up quickly.
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Intergranular corrosion in the wing spar is irreparable, BTW. Your only affordable option is to replace the wings.

A friend of mine went through a year-long nightmare with this, after SB 1006. He subsequently found usable wings at a scrap yard that were promptly destroyed by the shipping company, which ended in litigation. He never recovered the loss, and ended up buying a second set of wings.

Wing spar corrosion is also a huge problem in the Ercoupe fleet. One year I owned both types, and the annual inspection required Tums and Prilosec, as the tension was extremely high. Luckily, both planes passed.
 
Older Bonanzas get corrosion issues as well. The process to fix is painful and requires a lot stripping and corrosion proofing then repainting and checking W&B as part of the process. Beechcraft in their infinite lack of wisdom back in the old times used magnesium in ruddervators to save on weight. Unfortunately magnesium is more prone to corrosion issues than say aluminum.
 
Went and tool a look while we are waiting on hoses and gaskets. inboard starboard tank. fuel sending unit leaking like a sive.
 

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Spars look great.
 

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my units had the gaskets....but were encased with proSeal. I'd highly recommend adding the sealant with the gaskets and over each screw head....or you may find leaks at a later date.
 
Checkout_my_Six said:
my units had the gaskets....but were encased with proSeal. I'd highly recommend adding the sealant with the gaskets and over each screw head....or you may find leaks at a later date.
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That and if there is any question about how good the fuel sender is, now is the time to replace it.
 
Sounds like leaky rivets, a common problem with pipers. I had it one on the top of right inboard tank and one on the bottom of left one. Mechanic put JB weld and some touch up paints. The top one is holding up pretty good ( it always does ) but the bottom one is a mess. No fuel leak though just some blue color mess.
 
BGF_Yankee said:
When was the last time the SB1006 was complete? Should be easy to locate in the log books. If it's been a number of years, it'd be worth it just to pull the tanks and complete this service bulletin. Outside of that, on many Piper aircraft, I think it's fairly common for the gasket at the sender unit (on the backside) of the tanks to degrade and leak. When we pulled my tanks on the '77 Lance to do SB1006 we saw this when we put them back together. Not sure about the visual gauge on top...haven't had that yet. I also think that on PA32 aircraft (mine included) the rivet heads can break and fuel will weep out of them. I've noticed this mostly on the inboard tanks, and I suspect that is from repetitive landings with the inboards full(er) as the inboards are typically close to full for short range ops. Either way they are probably gonna have to pull the tanks to solve the problem. Good luck, this isn't a quick process :/
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I fly a Lance II. If you do SB 1006 please let me know how was it , as I am thinking for a while to get it done and re do the tanks. Do you have to pull all 4 tanks or just inboard tanks? Can you reuse sender units and sight gauge or need to buy new ? BTW I heard good things about Woodstock.
 
blueskyMD said:
Sounds like leaky rivets, a common problem with pipers. I had it one on the top of right inboard tank and one on the bottom of left one. Mechanic put JB weld and some touch up paints. The top one is holding up pretty good ( it always does ) but the bottom one is a mess. No fuel leak though just some blue color mess.
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My temporary fix was to clean off the paint in the area of the leak with a scotchbrite wheel on a die-grinder and cut a round patch from aluminum flashing, paint it, then bond it with JB. The net result was a round dime sized patch that matched the paint color. It didn't look all that bad from 50' and works. Mine lasted a few years until it got worse and needed more patches.....then I knew it was time and had both tanks re-sealed (that involved removing all the rivets and dissolving the ProSeal...then applying new ProSeal and re-Riveting the works. No small job...bout 500 rivets per tank).
 
Checkout_my_Six said:
My temporary fix was to clean off the paint in the area of the leak with a scotchbrite wheel on a die-grinder and cut a round patch from aluminum flashing, paint it, then bond it with JB. The net result was a round dime sized patch that matched the paint color. It didn't look all that bad from 50' and works. Mine lasted a few years until it got worse and needed more patches.....then I knew it was time and had both tanks re-sealed (that involved removing all the rivets and dissolving the ProSeal...then applying new ProSeal and re-Riveting the works. No small job...bout 500 rivets per tank).
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Thanks 6 .
Did it work well for bottom rivets ? As I mentioned top one looks good after 6 + years but the bottom one looks mess
 
blueskyMD said:
Thanks 6 .
Did it work well for bottom rivets ? As I mentioned top one looks good after 6 + years but the bottom one looks mess
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yes, they worked very well....I did probably 3-4 dime sized patches, covering the leaky rivets, on each tank (bottom side) and they lasted a couple years before I had the tanks redone.
 
OK . may be it depends upon the guy doing the job. I am about to pull tanks and send them to Woodstock anyway. DO you know if I need to pull all 4 tanks to do SB1006 or just 2 inboard tanks?
 
blueskyMD said:
OK . may be it depends upon the guy doing the job. I am about to pull tanks and send them to Woodstock anyway. DO you know if I need to pull all 4 tanks to do SB1006 or just 2 inboard tanks?
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IIRC it's just the inboard tanks to check the spar.
 
Haha don'tcha know that Mooney=Mooney pit $$$ just kidding! If I fit better in one, a Mooney would be my plane. However us fat guys need a plane so Bonanzas fit me well.
 
Pulled the outboard tank and that sender gasket was leaking too. Yea......more fun at every turn.
 
mscard88 said:
Used to do in Korea. Buddies would wake my ass up at 7-8am on a Sat and say either drink with us or wear it. I drank with them, and hitting the Vil by noon. Fun times! :D
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Soju gives you the hangover you'll never forget...
 
mtuomi said:
Soju gives you the hangover you'll never forget...
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and especially when drinking lemon soju! It whacked me hard the first time I had it years ago in Seoul. Like drinking lemon drop candy with high octane content.
 
Cherokees tanks leak eventually - you pull them and send them out and its $200 or so - not that expensive in the grand scheme of things owning an airplane
 
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