Thorp Air Command - T18.net

I used the Aircraft Spruce Heavy Duty homebuilders mounts, and I also used an Armstrong torque wrench with the clicking elbow.

The pads on my mount are a little off, which made the process even worse. In addition to patience, muscle, and cussing, I used a "bullet" from Avery Tools and a drift I made out of 1/4 x 1" aluminum. I used the drift to "pop" the pucks into place in the mount with a light hammer tap from the side. Worked well.

You can make a bullet out of a 7/16 bolt from the Thorp T18 department at the Home Depot. (Don't use the ones from the S18 department; they're too wide.)

D

That's what I used on my aircraft, just looked at the invoice and at the time they were $285 for a set, 8/09. As for installing them I had my A&P do it at annual time. He has a niffty device that holds the prop in a cradle with a hydraulic jack under it, snug it up loosen up the top bolts let the front of the engine down a bit and presto chango the top is done reverse for the bottom.

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Bruce Finney
N18JF T-18C #262
Yelm, WA USA

Well, they are on and it improved the cowl alignment a bit, but not near what I'd hoped, so am gonna shim them in a few days.

Lee....here is what I put on - they are "very similar" to the Lord J7402-5s that were on there. Note the price.

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/e ... afocal.php

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Fraser MacPhee
N926WM
Serial #279-1
Angel Fire, NM (KAXX)

Some mounts have one half harder than the other. The hard one goes on the back side of the mount on top and the other hard half goes between to case and mount on the bottom. Sometimes you have to shim with washers.

My set up has two aluminum washers under each of the bottom mounts. This cured the apparent sag. New mounts will sag about 1/4" in the first hundred hours. Ask how I know at our next face-to-face.

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Bob Highley
N711SH
SN 835
KLAL

Well, the immediate impetus to change them was the alternator boring a hole through the bottom cowl - I'm sagging down and to the right.......I'm reluctant to pull those bolts again as that was a headache (good idea about the bullet Dick - I used a long AN-5 as an aul(S) and align it for the AN-7) and just might notch the washers and just loosen and slide them in. I took an hour a corner with an engine hoist to get them in and torqued to 38 foot pounds. Will wait a few days (as all elastomers if I remember correctly have a relatively high creep coefficient) and re-torque the bottom to 38 foot pounds and the top to 40 foot pounds, unless advised otherwise.

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Fraser MacPhee
N926WM
Serial #279-1
Angel Fire, NM (KAXX)

My solution to the alternator wear-thru was to "borrow" a large metal spoon from my wife's kitchen inventory and mold a teardrop shape out of fiberglass. This was epoxied over the offending hole and smoothed in. A little paint and "voila!" The hard part was getting the spoon cleaned and replaced in the kitchen inventory without notice.

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Bob Highley
N711SH
SN 835
KLAL

NAUGHTY!!!

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Fraser MacPhee
N926WM
Serial #279-1
Angel Fire, NM (KAXX)

Bob's idea was what I was going to suggest , except go to the 99 cent store and buy the spoon and when you are done take it back for a refund ! BOOM !

RB

I used a golf ball. Worked fine but needed smoothing on the outside.
Cubes

You should have left the (golf ball) dimples on that dimple......coulda gained a knot or two.....though your plane would probably have a slice in it.

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Fraser MacPhee
N926WM
Serial #279-1
Angel Fire, NM (KAXX)

Oh it slices!