F
fly_cubs
Guest
Actually my second child, the first one being my old hound, Tate.
Yesterday my all-cub knowing mechanic friend and I started my annual. I was feeling pretty good about it since he really knows his stuff and since the last annual my Cub had (first one since I've owned it) was done by a guy who recently admitted not knowing sh*t about Cubs. The annuals done before I bought it were done by a guy with what I was told had a pretty good reputation. Hell, the airplane was previously owned by an A&P (and as I've learned through this site and many others, that sometimes doesn't mean jack).
This time, my cub was going to be looked over with someone with good hands and an eye for what is done right. I can't tell you how much it bothered me to find out that the last mechanic pencil whipped my airplane (hell, the other mechanics in the past may have done it as well, but thats not really the issue right now).
It would be a good shake down for my old reliable bird who has served me well over the last 2 years and 350 hours. She's been alot of places with me. I soloed in her, flew her in an airshow or two, was honored by flying in a missing man formation at a funeral for a Tuskegee airman, and chased more sunsets than I can remember.
When I flew her over for the annual the air was smooth, she ran like a top, and handled like a dream (as always). I knew there was some work to be done, but nothing major. We started with the fuse last night and made a list. I didn't want to skimp. If he saw an issue and said it needed to be addressed, we would fix it. The trim yoke and jackscrew were worn and were going to need to be replaced. My tailspring was improperly mounted. The flying wires needed to be tightened. New bungees. Fix some ailing spots where the boot cowl and firewall meet. One loose rudder pedal.
That was the fuse. That's where we left it last night as we made our list. All things that could be repaired. With his supervision, I could knock out the repairs in a few weeks working in the evenings after work.
I showed up at the airport this morning so we could take a good look at the wings and see what we found. My friend had beat me to it this morning and had bad news. The rear spars on both wings have cracks from the attachment fittings being over tightened. These cracks had been covered up by some heavy paint from when the wings were painted. If you looked at the spars though an inspection opening, they still looked brand new.
Before I knew it, we even had a second opinion. A local A&P/IA who was stopping by the hangar to pick up a supercub to go flying looked it over as well. He agreed. He knows his stuff as well and I value his word as well. My airplane was now grounded.
In the words of David Johnson, "I didn't want a project, but now I have one." I have plenty of knowledgeable people willing to help me rebuild the wings. I wish I could say that I would love to dive into a project like this right now. Apart from the wing issues, I do have a really nice cub. But I bought it to fly. I have access to other cubs to fly while I fix mine if I want, but they never seem to fly like your own. So what will I do? Who knows. I'll decide in the next day or two. I have my eye on a cub to replace her and I know I could probably sell it as a really nice project for someone with the time. It just needs a rebuild for the wings. It has a beautiful, solid fuse and a very strong a-65. The engine is in great shape (gotta have something positive?).
Why am I writing all of this? I dunno. You guys are my friends. You all understand the connection that we all have with our cubs. You guys will understand how much this sucks. I'll keep everyone updated on what I decide to do.
If I sell, I ask you all however, when you see it on TAP, Barnstormers, or Ebay as a project don't ask questions. Please don't gasp when you see my asking price. Please no posts stating that I'm crazy for what I have done (if you have already met me, you know that's true
) I'll ask what I think is a fair price. Someone will just have to rebuild two wings and have a really nice cub. I will not part out the individual parts. She will stay whole.
At the end of the day, it's nothing that time or money can't fix, right? Sh*t happens. Know your mechanics. Do a better pre-buy with a cub expert. Time for some 12 oz. curls.
Tim
1940 J-3. Now a project!
Yesterday my all-cub knowing mechanic friend and I started my annual. I was feeling pretty good about it since he really knows his stuff and since the last annual my Cub had (first one since I've owned it) was done by a guy who recently admitted not knowing sh*t about Cubs. The annuals done before I bought it were done by a guy with what I was told had a pretty good reputation. Hell, the airplane was previously owned by an A&P (and as I've learned through this site and many others, that sometimes doesn't mean jack).
This time, my cub was going to be looked over with someone with good hands and an eye for what is done right. I can't tell you how much it bothered me to find out that the last mechanic pencil whipped my airplane (hell, the other mechanics in the past may have done it as well, but thats not really the issue right now).
It would be a good shake down for my old reliable bird who has served me well over the last 2 years and 350 hours. She's been alot of places with me. I soloed in her, flew her in an airshow or two, was honored by flying in a missing man formation at a funeral for a Tuskegee airman, and chased more sunsets than I can remember.
When I flew her over for the annual the air was smooth, she ran like a top, and handled like a dream (as always). I knew there was some work to be done, but nothing major. We started with the fuse last night and made a list. I didn't want to skimp. If he saw an issue and said it needed to be addressed, we would fix it. The trim yoke and jackscrew were worn and were going to need to be replaced. My tailspring was improperly mounted. The flying wires needed to be tightened. New bungees. Fix some ailing spots where the boot cowl and firewall meet. One loose rudder pedal.
That was the fuse. That's where we left it last night as we made our list. All things that could be repaired. With his supervision, I could knock out the repairs in a few weeks working in the evenings after work.
I showed up at the airport this morning so we could take a good look at the wings and see what we found. My friend had beat me to it this morning and had bad news. The rear spars on both wings have cracks from the attachment fittings being over tightened. These cracks had been covered up by some heavy paint from when the wings were painted. If you looked at the spars though an inspection opening, they still looked brand new.
Before I knew it, we even had a second opinion. A local A&P/IA who was stopping by the hangar to pick up a supercub to go flying looked it over as well. He agreed. He knows his stuff as well and I value his word as well. My airplane was now grounded.
In the words of David Johnson, "I didn't want a project, but now I have one." I have plenty of knowledgeable people willing to help me rebuild the wings. I wish I could say that I would love to dive into a project like this right now. Apart from the wing issues, I do have a really nice cub. But I bought it to fly. I have access to other cubs to fly while I fix mine if I want, but they never seem to fly like your own. So what will I do? Who knows. I'll decide in the next day or two. I have my eye on a cub to replace her and I know I could probably sell it as a really nice project for someone with the time. It just needs a rebuild for the wings. It has a beautiful, solid fuse and a very strong a-65. The engine is in great shape (gotta have something positive?).
Why am I writing all of this? I dunno. You guys are my friends. You all understand the connection that we all have with our cubs. You guys will understand how much this sucks. I'll keep everyone updated on what I decide to do.
If I sell, I ask you all however, when you see it on TAP, Barnstormers, or Ebay as a project don't ask questions. Please don't gasp when you see my asking price. Please no posts stating that I'm crazy for what I have done (if you have already met me, you know that's true
) I'll ask what I think is a fair price. Someone will just have to rebuild two wings and have a really nice cub. I will not part out the individual parts. She will stay whole. At the end of the day, it's nothing that time or money can't fix, right? Sh*t happens. Know your mechanics. Do a better pre-buy with a cub expert. Time for some 12 oz. curls.
Tim
1940 J-3. Now a project!
