Skymaster Forum  

Go Back   Skymaster Forum > Messages
Register FAQ Members List Calendar Today's Posts

Reply
Thread Tools Rate Thread Display Modes
  #1  
Unread 09-04-09, 05:43 PM
edasmus edasmus is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: ARR - Aurora, IL - USA
Posts: 427
edasmus is on a distinguished road
Send a message via AIM to edasmus
Looking for Flap Cables

Anyone know of another source for flap cables besides Don Nieser or Cessna? Don is out and Cessna has them but, well you know.

Thanks Ed
Reply With Quote
  #2  
Unread 09-05-09, 08:40 AM
stackj stackj is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 311
stackj is an unknown quantity at this point
Send a message via AIM to stackj
You might check with your local FBO and see if they will do a search on ILS for you. That is usually pretty successful.
__________________
Jim Stack
Richmond, VA
Reply With Quote
  #3  
Unread 09-08-09, 09:56 PM
Paul462 Paul462 is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 137
Paul462 is an unknown quantity at this point
Or have your local FBO make up a new set for you - the hardware can be ordered (from Spruce, I think).
__________________
Paul
T337C
Reply With Quote
  #4  
Unread 09-09-09, 12:01 PM
edasmus edasmus is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: ARR - Aurora, IL - USA
Posts: 427
edasmus is on a distinguished road
Send a message via AIM to edasmus
Thanks for the help. I ordered the cables through cessnaparts.com. They should be here in a day or two.

Ed
Reply With Quote
  #5  
Unread 09-10-09, 05:23 PM
edasmus edasmus is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: ARR - Aurora, IL - USA
Posts: 427
edasmus is on a distinguished road
Send a message via AIM to edasmus
My shop removed the flap cables from one wing today. Here is what was found. The cables looked fine before they were removed. They looked fine when they were in our hands but you could clearly see a bend in the cable where they were running across the sharp turn on the pulley. Untwisting the cables in our hands revealed one broken strand and when my mechanic cut the cable and completely unraveled it, two or three more broken strands were apparent.

My mechanic was concerned enough about what he found that he mentioned he was going to file a "Service Difficulty Report." I'm not really sure what that all means but he did mention it. I did not get the impression that he felt the cables were anywhere near failure but he and I are happy they are out.

I am certainly no cable expert but two things were apparent to me today. The wear process in the cables was clearly underway and the process begins on the inside of cables.

Based on what I saw today, an external examination of the cables on the airplane could have never revealed what was found after the cables were removed, and twisting an intact cable after it is removed from the airplane makes it difficult at best to see the inside of the cable. Unraveling the cable after it was cut (and obviously destroyed) is when the best look could be had.

My airplane is a 1973 337G with 2480 hours total time.

When the other side comes off I will report the findings.


Ed Asmus
Reply With Quote
  #6  
Unread 09-10-09, 10:42 PM
hharney's Avatar
hharney hharney is offline
Forum Administrator
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Michigan (8D4)
Posts: 2,261
hharney is on a distinguished road
Ed
Photos would be a great help and maybe what is involved in accessing these cables would help the readers too.
__________________
Herb R Harney
1968 337C

Flying the same Skymaster for 47 years
Reply With Quote
  #7  
Unread 09-10-09, 10:57 PM
tropical tropical is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Florida
Posts: 146
tropical is an unknown quantity at this point
Quote:
Originally Posted by hharney View Post
If helicopters are so safe, how come there are no vintage/classic helicopter fly-ins?
Hey Herb,

I've been reading your signature line and as a helicopter pilot myself find it rather ridiculous.

BTW, there are several classic/vintage helicopter fly-ins held around the country, Rotorfest will be coming up soon in PA to name one.

Sorry for getting off topic.
Reply With Quote
  #8  
Unread 09-11-09, 11:20 AM
edasmus edasmus is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: ARR - Aurora, IL - USA
Posts: 427
edasmus is on a distinguished road
Send a message via AIM to edasmus
I'll work on photos.....It will be a few days before I can get them.
Reply With Quote
  #9  
Unread 09-11-09, 03:40 PM
hharney's Avatar
hharney hharney is offline
Forum Administrator
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Michigan (8D4)
Posts: 2,261
hharney is on a distinguished road
Signiture changed, just having a little fun. I really do like helicopters :-)
__________________
Herb R Harney
1968 337C

Flying the same Skymaster for 47 years
Reply With Quote
  #10  
Unread 09-11-09, 07:56 PM
Paul462 Paul462 is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 137
Paul462 is an unknown quantity at this point
Thumbs up

I really like Herb's siglines - some of them are deceptively shallow, yet obviously deep - for the most part (some of them).
__________________
Paul
T337C
Reply With Quote
  #11  
Unread 09-23-09, 10:07 AM
edasmus edasmus is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: ARR - Aurora, IL - USA
Posts: 427
edasmus is on a distinguished road
Send a message via AIM to edasmus
I have nothing major to report on the flap cables from the other wing. They looked just like the first set. There was nothing obvious from the outside and we did not bother to take the time to cut them open figuring the worst case would be a few broken strands like the first set.

I do have a photo of the first set that I will post here shortly but I left the camera somewhere else and will not have it back until this weekend. I have never posted a photo so if anyone has any advice I am all ears. I can say that I have seen pictures on this forum of other people's flap cables and some of them were very alarming looking to me. The cables that were removed from my airplane did not display wear patterns that looked anything nearly as bad as some of the scary pictures that were posted on this forum. My wear patterns were not nearly as advanced as some of the other photos but mine were in the same location as those photos revealed.

Thanks Ed
Reply With Quote
  #12  
Unread 09-26-09, 09:45 PM
edasmus edasmus is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Location: ARR - Aurora, IL - USA
Posts: 427
edasmus is on a distinguished road
Send a message via AIM to edasmus
Here is the photo my flap cables.....
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version

Name:	Broken Strands.JPG
Views:	1771
Size:	759.2 KB
ID:	989  
Reply With Quote
  #13  
Unread 11-06-11, 01:02 PM
African 337 African 337 is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Africa
Posts: 5
African 337 is on a distinguished road
This thread interested me.

GUYS PLEASE DO CHECK THESE CABLES!

One of these snappped in exactly that spot at the tight corner it makes next to the pulley, invisible to usual inspections. I wasn't flying myself. The cable snapped while the pilot was turning onto finals from a left hand circuit. the RH flaps immediately popped up and Left side remained set on full. You can imagine a fairly good roll rate commenced to the Right. Luckily the plane started banked to the left, pilot guessed the problem, reached straight for the flap control and selcted up. Luckily the Left flaps retracted. result was a safe landing (with 5 scheduled traffic passengers on board).

I checked the one the other side which also had many broken strands and we replaced both.

Unfortunately we don't operate in the sort of environment where we file official service difficulty reports!
Reply With Quote
  #14  
Unread 11-06-11, 07:20 PM
jchronic jchronic is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Mass
Posts: 100
jchronic is on a distinguished road
I will heartily second that recommedation: Check your flap cables at the next annual, if not before!! We just finished an extensive 100-hour inspection on2697S under the expert supervison of Aeromx (who comes on here occasionally). As a result of info he and I picked up at the final CPA 337 seminar in Santa Maria earlier this year, we wanted to specifically inspect this seldom looked at area. What we found was bad; one cable frayed and the other with completely broken strands.

Needless to say, they were replaced at the cost of a week or so of additional down time and a lot of hard work by Aeromx, but it was a find I was glad we made. And an SDR report is being made to the FAA. Maybe Tim (Aeromx will get on here with more info; he has some pics of the frayed/broken cables.

Joe
Reply With Quote
  #15  
Unread 11-07-11, 07:45 AM
Paul462 Paul462 is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Florida
Posts: 137
Paul462 is an unknown quantity at this point
African 337,

Do you happen to know how many hours were on the plane, and if the flap cables have ever been removed for inspection (if so, how many hours ago?). What year and model 337 was it?
__________________
Paul
T337C
Reply With Quote
Reply



Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 06:53 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.