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-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Re: Main gear
Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2001 22:42:06 -0700
From: Jon Page <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Organization: @Home Network
To: CE Lautenheiser <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
References: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Clarence.
I'm no expert on main gears, but I have had several apart and back
together with good results. First, when you say you have a collapsed
main gear , I hope you mean sagging down, rather than twisted off! I
found that a thin fluid in the strut did almost nothing for the damping
action. And remember the hydraulic part of the strut does nothing to
raise the plane up. That is done by the rubber donuts or in some cases,
belville springs,[cupped spring washers]. First lets talk about raising
the gear off the ground. Remove the strut fairing. Put bar or rod of
about 5/8" through the knee joint. Use a floor jack to lift the wheel
well off the ground, far enough that the wheel will be able to hang down
several inches further than it does at first. Next you remove the rubber
bumper that stops the downward travel of the leg. Take the weight off
the wheel and put some boards under the tire so it doesn't drop until
you're ready. Unbolt the bottom strut bolt and let the gear and tire
down to the floor. Now you can pull the lower part of the strut off. Be
sure to cover the tire and BRAKES with a plastic bag or what ever it
takes to keep oil from running all over the discs and linings. This I
know from personal experience. I feel that any time you take the strut
apart, you should replace the O-ring on the end of the piston. Pick one
up from you're local auto store for around a buck. You will see the oil
filler hole at the back of the strut housing. Sometimes, as you take the
strut apart or put it together, the O-ring can get cut going past the
filler hole. Some grease at this point during assembly will help. The
oil sits in the bottom of the cyclinder and is squished up into the
piston through a small hole. This squishing action is what gives the
damping action when the gear is shoved up quickly on touch down. Clean
the cylinder out and put on the new O-ring. After experimenting with
several different weight of oil I settled on 90w gear oil. It gave the
best resistance,by hand,to lifting the gear up quickly. This is not a
hydraulic oil, but after all, it only moves once on take off and once on
landing. Fill the bottom cylinder up to the filler hole. Carefully slide
it onto the piston and O-ring, going slowly past the filler hole with
the O-ring, to avoide cutting. Work the cylinder up and down a few times
to feel the damping action. Watch you don't pull it back to the O-ring.
Hook up the bottom strut bolt and put the boards back under the tire to
lift it up while you put the rubber stopper back in place.install the
fairing and let the plane down and you're done. I think this should
explain checking and filling the strut. You can just remove the rubber
bumper, extend the leg and fill through the filler hole. Watch that oil
on the brakes! sorry this was so long winded, but I tried to give you
some detail. The whole job is really quite easy if not quite messy, as
you'll see.
P.S. If you're gear is sagging you'll need new rubber donuts.
That's a bedtime story for another night. Let me know.
Jon Page
415-C FLAK MAGNET.
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