Repairing Plastic Instrument Panel Overlay

Nope, I have a gats jar and send one of the kids under there to catch it or let it
pee onto the ground and look for water bubbles in the plane pee. I usually sump all
the tanks at the tank, then drain just from the tank I'm taking off with from the
center, figuring If water did get in there I'd have time once at altitude (I also
don't make a habit of changing tanks at less than 3000 AGL, usually much higher).
That 11 seconds makes quite a puddle on the ground.

Don Tuite wrote:

Do you guys carry a bucket to catch the gas you drain if you remain
overnight somewhere? Eleven seconds minimum for each tip and six
seconds for each main spills a lot of gas.

Don

On Mon, 26 Jan 2004 16:51:48 -0500, Ray Andraka
wrote:

Would have been nice if Piper had put the sump drain actuator *outside* on the
belly near where you need to hold the collection bottle, wouldn't it? Even if
it were behind some sort of door (like it is on the inside), it would have
avoided all the passenger induced damage, as well as many of the gas spots on
asphalt ramps. (I assume the 235 has a similar set up as a Six with the push
down lever thingy behind the cheesy plastic door with the spring hinges). Maybe
someone can come up with an STC to put the drain actuator on the belly where it
belongs.

Jay Honeck wrote:

Thanks for the help.

There is a very fine product called "JB Weld" that my A&P recommended to me.
It works extremely well on the plastic instrument panel parts.

JB Weld is amazing stuff. It comes in two separate tubes, and you mix it
together like epoxy. It stays workable for over an hour, and "gravity
smoothes" itself into a very nice surface.

When it is fully cured (overnight) you can drill it, sand it, saw it -- just
like the original plastic. I have used it to repair several parts, and --
after painting -- you can't see the repair at all.

On the last thing I repaired (the stupidly designed fuel sump access door
that every back-seat passenger seems to step on and break) I actually used
it to not only fix the break, but I was able to get it to "surround" and
encapsulate a small piece of aluminum sheet metal, to act as a
reinforcement. To further strengthen the piece, I drilled and pop-riveted
the aluminum piece to the plastic before gluing. The JB Weld fills voids
extremely well.

(Every time I fix this stupid part, I make it stronger. This is my third
attempt -- if my kids break it again, I'm installing a piano hinge on the
danged door!)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

--
--Ray Andraka, P.E.
President, the Andraka Consulting Group, Inc.
401/884-7930 Fax 401/884-7950
email
http://www.andraka.com

"They that give up essential liberty to obtain a little
temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
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