yet?? May seem like a dumb question BUT I just had a customer that I <COULD>
have taken for hundreds of dollars to fix his leaking fuel tank when all it
was, was a flare fitting that had cracked open on his outlet fitting and it
was leaching all around the fairing and rear spar area!! Have also seen the
same thing with sight gauge hoses that have dried out, cracked or got loose
and after flying for years on half tanks most of the time the leak amazingly
starts on first fill up in the spring! It's amazing where fuel will leach
too and it even seems to go uphill at times!!!
If you have to attack a leak, I would think that it has to be something
small if it wasn't leaking before (and of course you have filled the tanks
full before!). IF just leaching out slowly, the light bulb in the tank won't
find it for you. IF it is a pouring leak a chandelier bulb inside the tank,
in a dark hanger with the wing tip off, may give you a "projector beam" out
of the leak (DON"T Break the bulb!!).
I always fix the leaks from the outside, as it makes no sense at all to me
to cut a big hole in the tank and add a hundred more rivets that could leak.
The access hole should have a doubler on it after you done, BUT I have seen
many that do not without incident (but I don't condone the laziness from
proper construction methods!). The other option is to make a plate a
thickness or two heavier (ie .025 or .032) that picks up the entire area
between ribs, rear spar and stringer and then rivet it into the original
rivet holes. If your thoughts are going this way tape a piece of poster
board over the area BEFORE you cut anything and using a sharp point poke a
hole through the poster board into the mandrel hole on every rivet. This
will give you an exact pattern to make your new panel with, that will rivet
right into place. Then cut out your access hole and drill out the rivets to
put down the panel when your done. You will won't to be 100% sure that you
have the leak licked though before riveting the plates on if going with this
method though, or you will be drilling them back off!!
Cheers,
Wayne G. O'Shea
www.irishfield.on.ca
----- Original Message -----
From: "brian amendala" <n667ba@hotmail.com>
To: <oifa@irishfield.on.ca>
Sent: Monday, April 29, 2002 11:31 PM
Subject: fuel leak
access
Hi Wayne, the right tank in my rebel just started leaking. we have no
youholes in the tank and are wondering what exactly we should do. I've heard
guys cut access holes behind the tank and seal it from the outside, but I
don't know if this is a good idea. do you have any suggestions on the
placement of the holes and sizes? Also, when you reattach the covers do
need to use a doubler, or can you just screw a plate over the top of the
hole? Our fuel tanks have 52 thousands of aluminum around them. We left
the wing skin in place and riveted the tank skin over it. If you have any
suggestions I would appreciate them. Thanks, Brian
_________________________________________________________________
Join the world's largest e-mail service with MSN Hotmail.
http://www.hotmail.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------
List archives located at: https://mail.dcsol.com/login
username "rebel" password "builder"
Unsubscribe: rebel-builders-unsubscribe@dcsol.com
List administrator: mike.davis@dcsol.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------
