Urgent Forward Cabane Fix
Great Planes 33% Pitts
courtesy Great Planes, May 14th, 2002.
On the weekend of May 4th, on RC Universe, there were a few messages about potential, or actual, failure of the forward wing cabane mounting system of the top wing. By May 13th, a fix had been designed, tested, and a new public webpage created detailing the fix, complete with photos.
Great Planes analyzed a crashed wing that had been returned, did critical inspections of existing stock, and determined that the drill hole locations on the forward mounting brackets may be drilled too far forward, thus not being centered, fore/aft on the hardwood stringer in the wing center section.
Inspection of mine revealed that my wing had this problem, and even though not split, the wood was distorted, cracking slightly.
I chose to follow the web instructions located here; http://www.greatplanes.com/techsupport/gpma1218tech.html
The instructions were perfect, easily followed, and took me about an hour to effect repair. When the brackets were reattached, I was able to confirm that the existing screws were now actually anchoring in the hardwood, and into the ply plate that is installed as part of the fix.
Looking at the way the hardwood splice I made is captured by the 1/8" ply span-wise plate that ties the existing hardwood and my added piece together, I don't believe anything can come out. If the screws pullout, I will be FAR exceeding design limits of the structure, I am certain.
Although this is a serious issue, and some have crashed from top wing cabane separation, I commend Great Planes on their proactive position, and public acknowledgement of the issue and the repair. I do NOT doubt their commitment to quality AND customer satisfaction.
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