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Jacking up plane at wing tie down

Cut a piece of all-thread or an old bolt and run it into the tiedown hole. Round off the end sticking out so it fits in the top of a HF hydraulic jack (several threads on here about jacking the airplane). Unlikely to cause issues as long as the jack is stable.

Greg
 
Antisplat jack points

I bought a pare of these and then counter sunk my jacks so they will not slide off and it works great.
 
I've been using hardware grade 3/8 bolts with a nut tightened up to the head for about 20 years without issue. I tighten the bolt / nut combination into the tie down leaving no thread exposed. This transfers the weight through the bolt head / nut directly to the wing. The jack rams are countersunk.

This method was used for about 18 years on our Mooney for tire changes, gear swings etc., and now on the -8.

The jacks are bolted to used Toyota rims which make it easy to roll them around. The -8 is a bit higher so I'm planning to add some braces to make them less flexible.
 
Tie down rings

DO NOT USE TIE DOWN RINGS. I used the tie down ring for 5 hrs without incident, that is until last week as my post indicated. I wasn't even touching the plane when my ring broke. Luckily only a minor ding in the lower wing skin occurred. The nice design with the product that Walt is using is that it tightens to the bottom of the wing without marring. Without that contact the tie down ring, bolt etc. is able to break off. You can probably build something suitable with a bolt and nut but I doubt it would be as strong.
 
Jack Point

Get a 1-1/4" pipe cap drill a 3/8" hole in the end and put 2.5" X 3/8" long bolt though the hole put nut on and tighten nut. Now you have a stable place for your hydraulic jack. End of the jack rests on the bolt head nut on top. The jack can't slip out of the pipe cap. Only raise one wheel at a time or it will get real nose heavy. At least my 8 does.
 
Yes if you lift both wheels on the -8 you definitely need to tie down the tail...! I have a 500+ Lb tractor weight on a moving dolly that I use.
 
Yes if you lift both wheels on the -8...

Just out of curiosity...after the plane is completed, do you ever *need* to jack up both sides to get both wheels off the ground?

I ask because, although I have a -7A, I've only ever jacked up one side at a time (with the other main and the nosegear chocked), and then only long enough to get the tire off before setting it back down with the gear leg on a block of wood. Even then, whenever possible, I prefer to use the jacks which insert *into* the gear legs (can't find the link right now), although they do require a small modification to the axle nut (or you can buy them already modified).

Putting my plane on wing jacks makes me very nervous...
 
You will need to at some point to align the gear fairings, yes. The fairing must be aligned with weight off the gear.
 
I jack both sides to rotate tires, service brakes etc because I am comfortable doing that from my experience with the Mooney.

I suppose you could lower one side on a block while you jack the other side, but that has risks as well. It is surprising how much sideways movement there is in the gear when you take the weight off and re-load it so be careful.
 
I jack both sides to rotate tires, service brakes etc because I am comfortable doing that from my experience with the Mooney.

I'm sorry..."ROTATE" tires? Uh, I usually just flip them around on the same side. What is the advantage to rotating them side-to-side?

Again...one side up, tire off, that side back down...flip/change tire, service brakes, jack up and put tire back on. Repeat other side.

This seems safest to me...the plane can't slip off a jack if it's not ON a jack.
 
I'm sorry..."ROTATE" tires? Uh, I usually just flip them around on the same side. What is the advantage to rotating them side-to-side?

Again...one side up, tire off, that side back down...flip/change tire, service brakes, jack up and put tire back on. Repeat other side.

This seems safest to me...the plane can't slip off a jack if it's not ON a jack.

Usually the tires wear out first on the outboard edges. So if you unmount them and swap sides (rotate) then you can accomplish even wear.
 
On mine, one tire wears faster than the other, so by changing sides (and flipping the tires) I can even it out...
 
Get some exercise while you are at it...

I just get under the spar and "squat" up the airplane while a helper puts a block of wood under the gear leg. Takes 10 seconds and the airplane never slips off my back. When I was initially weighing the airplane a guy in his 70's was helping me and used this technique. I figured a guy in his 30's should be able to do the same.
 
Usually the tires wear out first on the outboard edges. So if you unmount them and swap sides (rotate) then you can accomplish even wear.

I know they wear on the outboard edges first...all you have to do is flip the tire *on that wheel*. Swapping sides accomplishes nothing (unless one *side* wears more than the other, as noted below on one person's aircraft).

(ETA: by "flip", I mean take the tire off of the wheel, flip it over, and reinstall it on the same wheel).
 
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