Aircraft jacks don't fail me now!

Tim Hancock · 11-01-2006, 08:07 AM

Every time I jack an airplane to do a landing gear function test, I just can't get over how wrong it looks.

Here are a few pics with the owner standing in the cockpit after he raised the gear while I watched from the ground. Maybe you have to be there, but it just wierds me out knowing that 250K of airplane is precariously resting on my jacks. Airplane shown is a Beech T-34 Mentor trainer from the 50's.

Seahawk · 11-01-2006, 08:12 AM

Beautiful airplane, beautiful work, Tim.

I have about 250 hours in the T-34C, the little turbo model with the jet engine driving the propr.

Man, would I love to own one of those....

Jeff Higgins · 11-01-2006, 08:18 AM

I love watching the functional tests out in final assembly here in the Boeing Everett plant. Fascinating to watch a 747, 767, or 777 with the gear going up and down, flaps and spoilers deploying, control surface wagging up and down or back and fort, and all of that. Yes, it is a little unsettling seeing one up on jack stands.

IROC · IROC's Garage

Need some like this:

Mike

charleskieffner · 11-01-2006, 08:30 AM

our dornier do-27 is on jacks. dont even want to breathe in hanger for fear of bird falling off. your correct.............IT JUST DOESNT LOOK SAFE!

WTB......(1) 1960 DORNIER (dorn-yay) DO-27 port landing gear. complete from fuselage to ground.

Tim Hancock · 11-01-2006, 08:43 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Seahawk
Beautiful airplane, beautiful work, Tim.

I have about 250 hours in the T-34C, the little turbo model with the jet engine driving the propr.

Man, would I love to own one of those....

This one has an STC'ed Continental IO-520 in it. Due to low compression during this years annual inspection, I had to pull the fricken engine and send all 6 cylinders out for O'haul. Last night's gear test should mean it goes home tonight if the test flight goes OK after I get home from work today. A typical week long annual (evenings and weekend) turned into more than I bargained for this time. Good thing the owners have deep pockets.

I am falling behind on my home/auto/property winter preparations this fall!

pmajka · 11-01-2006, 08:49 AM

New Torsion bars, Koni Shocks and some Sway bars should help with the Landings.

Nice Plane man.

charleskieffner · 11-01-2006, 08:54 AM

its amazing how those HUGE HANGERS all of a sudden get filled up. the last vehicle purchased, finally filled all three hangers here. cannot get one more ANYTHING crammed in here! i have nightmares every night of fuel leaking out of wings onto a painted surface of vehicle parked underneath wing!

good luck w/the test flight.

svandamme · svandamme's Garage

is that a 1:3 scale extra 300 model hanging vertical in one of those pics??
is it a flyable RC one or static??

also , the plane still has the military markings."US airforce"
how does that work out if it's privately owned?

livi · 11-01-2006, 11:37 AM

And I am nervous just to jack the 400 kg of the front of my Porsche 20 cm above the floor! Impressive!

BlueSideUp · 11-01-2006, 11:39 AM

That 520 must sound pretty beefy with the augmenter tube exhaust. I have some time in a B model with the original 470 and it sounded awesome.

I think I remember the 470 had a pressure carburetor. Does the 520 STC involve a lot of modification due to the fuel injection?

I have helped do a gear swing on a Brasilia and that was definately freaky having such a large airplane jacked up. The mechanic forgot to pull the WOW circuit breakers so as soon as it powered up pretty much every aural warning went off.

Tim Hancock · 11-01-2006, 04:54 PM

All went well, no leaks and it fired after just a couple revolutions! It is gone! Unfortunately, it was replaced by a club 172 partially owned by one of the T34's owners. I need to just start saying no.

The RC hanging from the ceiling is a 33% scale Giles. While I have quite a collection of flying RC planes, that particular one is stripped of it's 4 cylinder DA 15 hp engine and the 9 high torque servoes and twin receivers. A friend of mine traded it to me for some work I did on his Navion. I doubt that I will ever take the time (or blow the cash for the $2500 worth of engine and servoes) to get it flying again, but it sure looks pretty cool as a hangar decoration now.

The 520 does sound loud as it just has straight 6 into 2 exhaust stacks dumping into those big tubes. I don't believe the conversion to the 520 is too difficult allthough the sheet metal up front appears to have required some mods. I know it is impossible to remove the cylinders without removing the engine though, which is not the case with most small airplanes. It has always had this engine since I started working on this plane three years ago.

I am not sure about how the old military markings are treated, but many old warbirds which are now certified as civilian owned, have military markings, so it is pretty common.

slodave · slodave's Garage

Quote:

Originally posted by Tim Hancock
Every time I jack an airplane to do a landing gear function test, I just can't get over how wrong it looks.

This would worry me:

Looks like a nice plane!

Joeaksa · 11-01-2006, 10:27 PM

Tim,

I am like you, always worry when I put a bird up on jacks. We were doing "free fall" tests on an old Beech 18 years ago and the guy in charge got too wild with his dropping the gear and it punched a hole in the wing, so its worth being careful.

Have flown one of the 520 conversions and its nice. Not any faster but the climb rate is better, especially in high density altitude situations.

Joe

rouxroux · 11-02-2006, 03:14 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Joeaksa
[B] We were doing "free fall" tests on an old Beech 18 years ago and the guy in charge got too wild with his dropping the gear and it punched a hole in the wing, so its worth being careful.

"Uhhh, while you're at it and in there, want to take care of that pesky spar A/D"?

...Saw a doofus try to use King Air jacks to support a Debonaire that had geared-up...same result when they tried to pop 'em...Was sad, it was 2 CFI's at a local college, flying at night with their dates. Guess not seeing "3 green" was not not too important that night. "Oh, I thought you....." They needed 3 down and welded that evening.

fastpat · 11-02-2006, 04:12 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tim Hancock
This one has an STC'ed Continental IO-520 in it. Due to low compression during this years annual inspection, I had to pull the fricken engine and send all 6 cylinders out for O'haul. Last night's gear test should mean it goes home tonight if the test flight goes OK after I get home from work today. A typical week long annual (evenings and weekend) turned into more than I bargained for this time. Good thing the owners have deep pockets.

I am falling behind on my home/auto/property winter preparations this fall!

There used to be a really nice Pratt & Whitney turbine conversion for that aircraft, more or less turns it into a T-34C.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:T-34C.jpg

Tim Hancock · 11-02-2006, 04:26 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by rouxroux
"Uhhh, while you're at it and in there, want to take care of that pesky spar A/D"?

That spar AD is a b!tch. These guys have been having Nogle & Black do the 80 hr compliance for them.

The speed and G load restriction is a bummer for these guys, but they mainly just use it to participate in warbird shows (they enjoy the formation work).

The value of these birds have taken a huge hit due to the wing failures of a couple of high time birds being overworked and overstressed in those psuedo dogfighting schools.