Part Repairs to the Fabric Caaering (continued)

URING the active life of an aircraft, fair wear and tear is bound to occur. The ultraJight aeroplane is particularly sensitive to rough usage, etc., although do not imagine that the ultra-light is something extremely delicate-far from it.

The fabric covering is the part that may suffer minor damage, chiefly through flying stones whipped up by the wheels or slip-stream. As we have already dealt with fitting the fabric covering, this is a good time to mention the matter of repairs during service. A small hole in the fabric covering, must be dealt with immediately because the fabric usually used is DTD575, a lightweight fabric strong enough for our needs but having a tendency for damage to spread. It can be therefore appreciated that the drag involved by an opening in the wing or fuselage plus loss of lift could be detrimental when the low engine power of ultra-lights is considered.

In our little repair kit should be a reel of linen thread of gauge either 40 or 18 which are used on aircraft; the former is used doubled and the latter used single. Also handy should be a lump of bees wax to protect the thread and a curved needle. All these items can be obtained at almost any aerodrome one is likely to call at.

Let us suppose a sma1l hole in the under surface of the wing, caused by a stone, has appeared. This hole would be about +' in diameter. First check that no surrounding structure has sustained any damage; this is rather unlikely, but, nevertheless, it is best to be sure. The first method of dealing with the damage is by darning. Darning can be very difficult, especially where DTD575 is concerned as great care is needed to prevent the stitches pulling through the fabric. Further, it is not advisable to attempt to darn damage greater than l$" across the greater side after trimming up the sides of the hole. The rep.air is then g., sealed by fabric of the same type as the covering F itself. This fabric patch has its edges serrated and must overlap the edges of the damage by no less than l$". (Fig. l.)

by A, Deuerell

One word of warning. Do not press hard on the fabric when doping on the patch, or the fabric will stretch and be very difficult to taughten up. Even if done properly, unsupported fabric will appear a little soggy after fresh doping. Do not let this cause alarm as it is a perfectly natural phenomenon. Allow the dope to do its work over-night and in the morning you willbe surprised at the results. You cannot hurry the action of dope; allow it to do its job naturally and over a period of time.

The other method of dealing with damage of this description, and probably the easiest, It U, ,S use of the Wood's ring. This ring is made of thin acetate sheet with an inside diameter of three inches and an outside diameter of 4 inches. Damage up to 2*' across the greatest width can be dealt with satisfactorily. Dope the ring on the fabric, encircling the hole and allow the dope to thoroughly dry. Once again bear in mind that fabric and timber n repairs cannot be hurried. When ready, cut out the fabric from inside the ring and pre- ' pare a serrated edged patch of DTD575 of re/rr.tg FAeR,c(o,e io->,'* -r ft, c,tl'il at least 2' overlap, i.e. in this case, 8 " by 8 " and dope over the hole and ring, as in the diagrcm, taking care to place the patch edges in the directions of the warp and weft. (Fig. 2.)

The next type of damage we have to deal with is a slit or a letter o'L" teat. Once again, this type of damage can only be repaired if away from supporting structure, and its extent is limited to 5u. The sides oflthe tear are drawn together by " herring bone " stitching and flnally sealed by 2u or 3' tape with serrated edging. The stitching is to be no less than f ,, from the edge, and the stitching on each side of the slit is to be also f " apart. (FiS. 3)

To be continued.

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