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A place where restoration project-type threads can go to avoid falling off the main page in the WIX hangar. Feel free to start threads on Restoration projects and/or warbird maintenance here. Named in memoriam for Gary Austin, a good friend of the site and known as RetroAviation here. He will be sorely missed.
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Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Mon Aug 15, 2011 3:27 am

let them come! let them come!

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Mon Aug 15, 2011 4:25 am

Please post away :D

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Mon Aug 15, 2011 8:15 am

Dave,

Since I don't do Facebook, and I'm involved with an F-86, I'd love to see whatever you'd care to post with regard to F-86 maintenance, inspection, and restoration!

Re:

Tue Aug 16, 2011 7:54 pm

I couldn't put it any better than Gary's response the last time you asked such a question!! :wink:

retroaviation wrote:
Sabremech wrote:Anyone interested in this years upcoming condition inspection and highlighting new areas we are adding to our inspection program?

Thanks,
David
WHF Maint



Does a bear poop in the woods???

Of course we're intersted!!! :D

Gary

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Thu Aug 18, 2011 8:54 pm

Since there's interest, I'm back !! I'll try to post our activities with the Sabre and any others that you might have a request for. Today we had the team from Down To The Last Detail give the fuselage a much needed polishing. We usually have it polished every other year and it was really starting to show that it was time. Our F86 heads out early tomorrow morning for an Airshow at Selfridge Air Base in Michigan. If the sun is out, have your sunglasses ready. Here'a a few photos from the crew polishind today.

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David
WHF Maint

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Thu Aug 18, 2011 9:28 pm

What's causing the heavy duty puckering/wrinkling in the left side of the fuselage above the wing?

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Thu Aug 18, 2011 10:00 pm

Hi Inspector,
We presume hard landings while in active service. It's been that way since we've had it and we're actually talking about reskinning both sides in the near future. The right side has some deformation to. We've been in the structural repair manual and are getting ourselves set to tackle it when the time comes. We did a full digital x-ray of the wing spar structure and landing gear box area last year and all looks well there.
We know we have to address it sooner than later and it will be a long term project, probably the upcoming inspection.
Thanks,
David
WHF Maint

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Fri Aug 19, 2011 8:51 am

Thanks for posting this stuff again, Dave! As a maintenance type person, these kinds of threads are my favorites! :)

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Fri Aug 19, 2011 10:07 am

Thanks! Have you found the entry in the log book by some Lieutenant that notes "TAKE THAT EARTH"? :lol: :lol: :lol:

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Fri Aug 19, 2011 2:23 pm

Hi Inspector,
It's probably there, just need to translate the Spanish!! Thanks for coming back to this thread Rod and everyone that has expressed interest. I'll be doing posts here again as well as our Facebook site.
David
WHF Maint

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Sat Aug 20, 2011 8:22 pm

Always good to see what you and your team are doing with the Sabre.
Thanks for the keeping the thread alive.

cadet77

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Sun Aug 21, 2011 5:09 pm

Just before Oshkosh we had an oil leak in the inlet. After removing the accessory case cover we saw oil hanging and dripping off of a plug. We removed the fitting off of another one of our engines, resealed it and then installed it.

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The blue plug angled downward in the picture is where the oil was leaking. After replacing the fitting we ran the engine and the leak was fixed.

David
WHF Maint

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Sun Aug 21, 2011 10:03 pm

Sabremech wrote: It's probably there, just need to translate the Spanish!!


Spanish, eh? In all of your spare time (he says with tongue firmly planted in cheek), can you give us a synopsis of your Sabre's history?

Re: F86 Annual Inspection Photos

Tue Aug 23, 2011 7:56 am

Hi Dean,
Here's a brief history on our Sabre:
Accepted by USAF 1955, Assigned Nellis AFB
North American Aviation 1960, refurb
Argentina 1960-1988
Coleman Warbirds Texas, 1990
Through the hands of several owners before we acquired it in August 2005.

David
WHF Maint

Re:

Sun Aug 28, 2011 10:56 am

Sabremech wrote:
We've been working on fitting the new wing tip and learned that they are not made of aluminum. They are stainless steel. I dug out the bondo on the old tip to see how bad it was and looks like we can repair it by welding in some new steel and then smoothing it out with some filler.
Image

A lot more work has been going on and we're still shooting for the end of the month to be ready for ops checks. I've been going back and forth on changing the nose gear out after measuring the play and I have to follow my gut and change the gear. It's a bit more work and may put us behind a bit but I think it really needs to be done. I'll post some photos when we get started. I'm in the process of cleaning the spare gear and resealing it. I"m waiting on a few bushings to come in then I can assemble it, paint it, install it and rig it. Should be a challenge.
David



Do you have a drawing/blueprint for the wing tips? I do a lot of metal fabrication (mostly automotive) and would love to give it a shot of making replacement ones of those. Aircraft are my first love, but cars are cheaper.
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