Idea to fix…

[Xkuzme1]

So I was fitting my wing tips on this week. The profile of the leading edge does not exactly match the profile of the wingtip. I’m thinking that sanding down the LE wing tip and using a fiberglass slurry might be the best option to re-profile the leading edge of the wingtip.

Thoughts?

 

[Taltruda]

I think you could sand back to bare fiberglass, lay on some micro, perhaps throw a ply of fiberglass cloth over it and sand it into shape. Just laying layer after layer of fiberglass will get heavy..

 

[mburch]

Hard to tell the amount of mismatch from a photo, but if it's more than about 3/16" or so you might consider a thin layer of foam covered with glass cloth, then filler to match the exact contour. (sanding the wingtip down to bare fiberglass first of course)

 

[rv8ch]

Might be a bit late, since the holes are already in there, but in my case I was able to push the wingtip harder to get it to better line up with the leading edge. Just a bit more of a push before I started drilling holes.

If you don't want to try that, then the other ideas should work fine - but might be a lot more work than re-drilling the holes, assuming that can work for you.

 

[PaulvS]

I had the same issue on my 6A and used auto body filler after roughing up the gel coat. Once the filler was hardened I filed and sanded it to final shape.
It helped a bit to push the wing tip forward to minimise the gap that needed to be filled.

 

[Xkuzme1]

I had pushed pretty hard to get the the wingtip where it is. Hard enough that i felt that it could be hard to actually install it.

I had considered the fiberglass slurry (I’ve heard it called peanut butter). Wrap the negative side with wax paper and push the wing tip into place.

I know there are a million ways to skin this cat… I just don’t want to have to fix cracks a couple years from now.

Thanks your your ideas guys.

T

 

[wirejock]

Scarf joint

Look up Dans "Sticky" on fiberglass.
1. Sand the area down to bare fiberglass. I don't trust gel coat. Cut layers of fiberglass starting slightly smaller than the gap and increasing in size. Wet and apply. Basically a backwards pyramid shape. The biggest piece encapsulates the entire patch.
2. The foam plug is a great idea as well. Easy to shape a plug and cover with a couple layers of glass.
3. Last idea is a little heavier. Apply a glob of flox. Cover with two layers of saturated fiberglass then peel ply. Squeegee the flox by using a straight edge till it matches the contour.

 

[vlittle]

Both my RV-9A and my Harmon Rocket need the leading edge build-up. The most important thing is to ensure that the trailing edge of the wingtip aligns with the ailerons when locked to neutral position.

This alignment may change the leading edge gap, so do it first.

 

[Xkuzme1]

Thanks for spitting me in the right direction.

T