The Rebirth of Cessna 140 NC3771V

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Jul-Aug 2021 (Con't) - Once the holes were found, then I laid each cotton rib tape on a layer of Eko-Bond to secure it. Once somewhat secure, then I poked holes through with the compass again to set the holes.

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Next I set the fabric clips once the bond underneath the cotton tape dried. Some pushed in. Many did not. For the tough ones, I used a piece of waxed flat string to pull the bottom leg and pushed it in. Then the waxed string just yanked out. Sometimes a gentle tap with a small plastic mallet helped but you have to be careful not to use force and have good aim. The string worked best for the really tough ones to open the tension but wear a piece of tape around the joint on your little finger to prevent the waxed string from cutting through your skin.

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After all the fabric clips were installed, next is adding the spar and rib tapes.

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Oshkosh Break - Oshkosh cut some of my late July work but was well worth the vacation time. I had the good pleasure too talk to Ken and Lorraine Morris about their Cessna 140A 'Uno' which won 'Vintage Grand Champion'--a true honor for anyone. They gave me some very helpful tips and answered a ton of my questions. Interestingly, the very first Cessna 140A (N3779V) was only 8 serial numbers off of my Cessna 140 (N3771V), making mine one of the very last production days of Cessna 140s. My plane was built in late 1948.

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Once I got back to it, next came the spar tapes. I used 2" pre-shrunk, pinked, Superflite tape (SF 104-2P) on both the spars and the ribs as per the instructions from Stewarts. The first one I laid down a pre-glue and then the tape on top but found that if I secured the tape with painters tape, I could just brush right through the 2" tape and secure it that way. It made for a much cleaner application. I began to brush though all other applications in this manner and would only use a pre-glue if working with edges or something that needed a good set.

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One thing I have already learned in teaching myself about how to restore this plane, is that there is a lot of little jobs that look like not much but become very time-consuming. Especially when working alone. Still, each day I can get, about three or 4 a month, I just keep working it. It all adds up.

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Sep 2021 - After finishing the top fabric rib and spar tapes, I then repeated the cotton tapes, installed the fabric clips, and then laid the spar tapes and rib tapes on the bottom fabric.

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17Sep21_Bottom_Fabric_Clips.jpg (485.18 KiB) Viewed 69923 times

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Sep 2021 (Con't) - Next I applied the lower fabric Rib Tapes.

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Nov 2021 - After about an eight week hiatus, I was able to get back to some work on the wing. After the Rib Tapes, I then made inspection cover reinforcements.

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I also decided to make drain grommets since the last wing had them.

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More to follow....

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Update Part 3

To prep for the wing work, I needed to build a wing 'rotisserie.' So, a trip to the aircraft departments of Lowe's and Home Depot yielded the necessary material for the work save a scrap piece of lumber or two. I had found a simple enough wing holder design online somewhere, maybe here, and used it as the basis for the work. Mine was a little simpler with no conduit to fool with. It works fine.

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Could you answer some short questions about your wooden wing rotisserie?

1. What is the center point distance off the floor of the rotation point for your rotisserie at the fuel tank end?
2. In round numbers how long should I plan for the 2 x 4 span between spar attach points (to be cut down to length when wing is off aircraft)?
3. For the wing tip rotation point how high is the center pooint off the ground and what did you use to insert into the nav light hole?

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I made mine without the metal tubing legs (way too complicated and too much time for what I needed). Here are the base dimensions I used from this plan / template I found on the web. I modified it with simple doubling of 2 x 4s and wrapped the legs underneath rather that outboard so I would not trip over them. I also used pipe to hold the wing in the nav light hole to have strength. I used the wings' attach bolts at the other end rather than a wooden dowel which pinched and was way too hard to move in and out. Tried to keep it simple. Hardest thing was measuring and drawing all the holes for the slots to drill out on a drill press. Hope this helps, Steve

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I would like to see your latest progress on NC3771V. I have enjoyed watching your rebuild, but you have left us hanging.