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Anyone else have issues with tailspring rust?

N546RV

Well Known Member
This is really starting to annoy me. I left the tailspring for my -8 bare for a long time because it was serving as a rear pivot point for my rotisseries setup. I figured a good coat of epoxy primer was what I needed, but didn't want it to get rubbed off from me rolling the fuse around, so I just dealt with periodically cleaning off rust spots.

When I finally decided I was done with the rotisserie late last year, I immediately gave the spring a good cleaning and shot 2K epoxy primer on it. I figured I was finally done with the rust issue, but today I noticed rust spots blooming through the primer.

Surely some other folks have dealt with this issue. Are folks powder coating the spring? Painting it? Maybe I should have given it a topcoat after the primer? I figured that was kinda a waste since the plane will get painted down the road, but I'm about at my wit's end with this.
 
Well your first problem is that you’re in Houston….….. ;)

The second thing to know is that once you’re flying, unless you have the magical perfect engine, the tailwheel spring will always have a slight coating of oil to keep the rust from progressing…..

Paul
 
...
The second thing to know is that once you’re flying, unless you have the magical perfect engine, the tailwheel spring will always have a slight coating of oil to keep the rust from progressing...
:D I was wondering why mine's not rusted!
 
The tailspring on my RV8 still has the original preservation oil coating from the factory and it hasn't shown any sign of rust yet. The tail-wheel control arm is showing a lot of surface rust. Base on the OP, I am thinking of just applying it with cosmoline grease. This is the stuff that preserves the WW2 surplus gun to prevent rusting for decades.
 
Sorry for the drift. There's probably an obvious answer but I haven't had time to research it.

For ferrous metals only, what is the technical reason a zinc layer like cold galvanizing isn't utilized? It is so effective in industrial applications.

Something simple like limited topcoat compatibility?
 
All the AN screws and bolts are cadium plated for corrosion protection. I wonder what is the cost associated with this process. Same with zinc. The issue with zinc is the very rough looking surface finish. Does the heavy zinc coating hide potential surface cracks?
 
Tail Spring.

This is really starting to annoy me. I left the tailspring for my -8 bare for a long time because it was serving as a rear pivot point for my rotisseries setup. I figured a good coat of epoxy primer was what I needed, but didn't want it to get rubbed off from me rolling the fuse around, so I just dealt with periodically cleaning off rust spots.

When I finally decided I was done with the rotisserie late last year, I immediately gave the spring a good cleaning and shot 2K epoxy primer on it. I figured I was finally done with the rust issue, but today I noticed rust spots blooming through the primer.

Surely some other folks have dealt with this issue. Are folks powder coating the spring? Painting it? Maybe I should have given it a topcoat after the primer? I figured that was kinda a waste since the plane will get painted down the road, but I'm about at my wit's end with this.

Have it powder coated.
It’s been powder coated 10 years & no signs of rust.
 
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powder coating

The powder coating did not stop rust on my kit parts. Powder coating is not necessarily a good barrier against corrosion.
 
All good answers, but I've been assuming the bare, machined part at the head of the spring must fit very tightly, or it wouldn't have been left naked. Is there room to add a coat of primer to the spring itself as well as a coat inside the housing?
 
On the machined interface surface apply a coating of copper or nickel anti-seize. It’ll keep it from rusting before you get around to installing it as well as during it’s working life. When the day arrives that for some reason you need to remove it you’ll be glad you did.
 
Ok, I'm going to test that, "there is no such thing as a stupid question" mantra. You're suggesting priming the non-machined surface, and putting this anti-seize in the machined part?
 
Cerakote works the best

More info?

I've heard good results with the "C" line, particularly the air-dry vs the oven dry.

I see they have a $299 starter kit with a white-labeled gun. The pro version is an Iwata, which I know is a top-quality gun. I'm wondering if the white-label gun is good enough for what we need it for, and if it's a relatively easy process.
 
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