Guys this is a really old thread but all good
I replaced my flap cables back in 2010 and found several with broken strands that could not be seen until you removed them and bent the cable back.
The reason for broken strands is not load related, but has everything to do with the bell cranks. There is a sharp 90 degree bend in the cable when the flaps are actuated and this continued bending to this extreme force will eventually break the strands. I don't know if these cables would ever fail because there are so many strands that are still attached. However I had my cables out for inspection and had new ones in stock so why not put the new cables in the wings. Personally I think it would take a long time for the good stainless cables to fail. The failures in the field have been on older 336 and early 337 that had the non stainless steel cables and were in high humid environments. It's just peace of mind to check these but be sure to have new ones on the shelf so once you take the originals out you can replace with new, don't put the old ones back in service.
__________________
Herb R Harney
1968 337C
Flying the same Skymaster for 47 years
|