It Came From Together!

Jeff Oslick said:
The upper piece is a pretty complicated piece of aluminum. Given the number of STC and aftermarket PMA parts for 182s, this is one that I think someone would have started to produce already if it was economical to do so. The good news is if you loose the left one, it costs less than the right one (supply/demand pricing in action).
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Good news for somebody I guess. I lost the right one.
 
Make a trip to Denver. I hear one of our POA members has a 182 that you might be able to lift, errr, borrow the part from, err, look at the part for a template.

Or, maybe you could get a piece of cardboard and cover it with aluminum foil. :)
 
OkieFlyer said:
I may give it a shot. It's going to be hard to make that inner/upper piece of the door, but it'll be worth it to give it a try. Even if I fail, I won't be out much change.

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Check out your local EAA chapter. There's probably a couple of folks there that are serious metal benders (the type that are proficient on an English wheel) and you might be able to get one made better than the original.
 
Jeff Oslick said:
The one behind the exhaust stack does take a particularly harsh beating. There is a slightly longer exhaust stack available from Knisley (which we have) that reduces the stress a bit.
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Thanks for sharing that. I always wondered why our right one seems to be the more difficult of the two when it comes to the bills when they need a tweak or two every few years. Makes sense now.

We keep a close eye on them. Yep they're expensive. I always give ours a little wiggle during the pre-flight looking for too much play, listening for odd things... they're just kinda oddly "fragile" for as simple and robust as most stuff is on a 182.

We've fiddled with the control cable more than the cowl flaps or components themselves over time, but we had to replace a hinge on the right I think it was. Even that wasn't particularly "cheap" but better than it falling off.
 
denverpilot said:
they're just kinda oddly "fragile" for as simple and robust as most stuff is on a 182.
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Many things become fragile when being beaten by hot exhaust pulses and vibrated beneath a 230+ hp engine operating at 75% power for hours on end, all while being thrashed by prop wash. Frankly, it's pretty good they stay attached at all. It is probably the worst place to put a moving part on that airframe.
 
Well, I guess you live and learn. I honestly was never in the habit of looking at them regularly. Now that I know it's a weak point, I will keep a good eye on them. Unfortunately, I had to learn that one the hard way.
 
That hinge looks very familiar, fortunately the actuator held and we brought the cowl flap home with us, The symptom was that we could not pull the cowl flap knob, because it bent the actuator cable.

As already mentioned checking the cowl flap hinge for wear should at least be an annual inspection item. Obviously at least two hadn't been inspected in some time.

Brian
 
If any of you know of a salvage outfits in your area, please let me know. I'm not having much luck finding a new cowl flap so far.
 
flhrci said:
If you can't find one, is it an excuse to buy a new 182?
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Heck, I don't mind flying without the flap. If I'm unwilling to pay the $1500 for the Texas Air Salvage offering, then what makes you think I'd buy another plane? lol
 
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OkieFlyer said:
Heck, I don't mind flying without the flap. If I'm unwilling to pay the $1500 for the Texas Air Salvage offering, then what makes you think I'd by another plane? lol
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Well, some people need to justify purchases. lol Just no Cirrus until they have a high-wing version please.
 
flhrci said:
Well, some people need to justify purchases. lol Just no Cirrus until they have a high-wing version please.
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Haha! I hear ya. In case you haven't figured it out, I'm a major cheapskate, but that' about the only way I can play in this arena. I might have to pony up for a $1500 piece of aluminuminuminum, but I'm dang sure gonna try to do it cheaper first.
 
OkieFlyer said:
Haha! I hear ya. In case you haven't figured it out, I'm a major cheapskate, but that' about the only way I can play in this arena. I might have to pony up for a $1500 piece of aluminuminuminum, but I'm dang sure gonna try to do it cheaper first.
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I understand. Then the cheapest solution is to go to Denver and ........I did not mention @denverpilot at all in this post.
 
flhrci said:
I understand. Then the cheapest solution is to go to Denver and ........I did not mention @denverpilot at all in this post.
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I don't know if had been following my "Help Me Choose a Destination" thread, but I was planning a trip to denverpilot's neighborhood in a few weeks. Ironically, on the heels of this cowl flap departure, I think it probably won't happen. At least not in early June.
 
:idea: Hows about one of you fellow Skylane drivers make a mold of your cowl flap and send it to me. Probably could make a mold out of good hard epoxy and I could just stamp or hammer the piece out. Man, the brilliance that comes from my brain surprises even me sometimes.
 
Come now, Andrew. Paying $1,500 for that thing is ridiculous. I like the idea of talking to a local EAA chapter or finding some homebuilder.
 
OkieFlyer said:
Haha!!!

C'mon man. At least send me your cowl flap so I can use it as a template. I'll bring it back to you when I come. Thought we was bros now. :sad:
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Hahaha. Honestly if I had any idea how to get it off, I'd ask the co-owner how we could help. But I have no earthly clue how to remove that thing.*

* Other than to have it fall off. And I haven't exactly tried very hard. Or watched someone do it. Or even looked at it. But it's usually still attached to the lower cowl when they set it aside during annual. :-)
 
Ted DuPuis said:
Come now, Andrew. Paying $1,500 for that thing is ridiculous. I like the idea of talking to a local EAA chapter or finding some homebuilder.
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I agree. I'll definitely be pursuing other avenues before I let go of that kind of coin.
 
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