Spar A.D. Help

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Lucyluscombe5$

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I’m looking at a Champ doing the A.D. And I find plywood spacers between the ribs in some areas which does not allow access to the top spar cap to perform the inspection. I’m new to Champs. Am I missing something?
 
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Lucy, I think you just do the best you can to comply with the AD. They knew about those supports/spacers for the leading edge skins when they wrote the AD so just work around them and you should be fine. The worst spot on the spars is the upper edge just outboard of the lift strut attach points where the plywood doubler ends. That's where you're most likely to find compression cracks but there are other issues that will show up in other places along the spars so they need to be looked at really well the first time you put it in for annual after the purchase. The AD has to be complied with each year after that but at least you'll have a better idea of what you've got the years after that first one.
 
The AD, by its terms, requires that you inspect every square inch of all four surfaces of each spar along its entire length. It is literally impossible to do without removing the spar!
Just imagine how you will get your Bend-A-Light and mirror in between the gas tank and the spar!

Rainbow Ron makes a window for the top. It is an acknowledgement, first, that you really cannot inspect that critical area with wedges, and second, that that is the area of interest, not the entire spar.

Further, the compression cracks are due to hitting things, not normal flight loads. If you lend your aircraft to your buddies, you have no way of knowing for sure, but if you are the only pilot, you should know when you hit a wingtip hard enough to cause a crack. At that point, uncover and have a good look.

Lousy AD. Much better ways to look in there than with that stupid light. Back it up with a modern TV borescope, the first time.
 
Bartman said:
Lucy, I think you just do the best you can to comply with the AD. They knew about those supports/spacers for the leading edge skins when they wrote the AD so just work around them and you should be fine. The worst spot on the spars is the upper edge just outboard of the lift strut attach points where the plywood doubler ends. That's where you're most likely to find compression cracks but there are other issues that will show up in other places along the spars so they need to be looked at really well the first time you put it in for annual after the purchase. The AD has to be complied with each year after that but at least you'll have a better idea of what you've got the years after that first one.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your response. So it would be considered “normal” for these spacers to be installed on pre AD wings? I’ve been searching the web and asking some Champ folks and they don’t remember using them.
 
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I didn't realize Champ wings didn't have those spacers. Sorry about that @Lucyluscombe5$

All of the Citabria wings have the spacers and people just work around them to comply with the AD. Do the wings have the Rainbow inspection plates STC?
 
I'm sorry, I've been spending a lot of time on a new project that is totally unrelated to airplanes so I'm distracted. I should have asked, does the Champ have more than 90hp? I may be wrong but there's a hp limit before the AD applies so lower hp airplanes don't have to do the AD inspections.
 
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