Fuel tank removal

[N73087]

Thanks, everyone. Between this thread and some others, I am ready to pull my tanks.

[N73087]

I got it done today. Thanks to all the good advice, I didn't run into anything unexpected. The tanks were in great condition and there was nothing in the bays. no snake skins, no mouse nests, no corrosion.
The gaskets around the filler neck, however, were in bad condition. The cork gasket in the tank was dry and brittle, and there was a dried up cracked rubber gasket on the outside of the tank. There was streaking from leaking gas on the tank and on the wing. That's what I was going after.
The 50 or so screws came out with very little trouble. The liquid wrench helped. There are supposed to be two different lengths of screws, I had only one length, so the ones along the main spar only had a turn or two on them. I reassembled with all new screws of the proper length.
I had blocked out three days for the job, and did it in half the time. Thanks again.

[Bill Hart]

Remember that those are structural screws. I would be careful of what type lubricants used when you replace them.

Bill

[N170CT]

N73087,
You know there are three (3) gaskets per tank filler. Two small and one large gaskets per tank. It would be more than a little tragic to put everything back together and then realize a gasket was omitted .

Regards,
chuck

[N73087]

N73087,
You know there are three (3) gaskets per tank filler. Two small and one large gaskets per tank. It would be more than a little tragic to put everything back together and then realize a gasket was omitted 8O .

Regards,
chuck

Yep, replaced all three.

[philnino]

I agree with some of the others concerning stainless screws. I have had enough of those freeze, break, or strip that I will avoid installing them. It is a pain to remove old rusty screws, but it is a nightmare to remove stainless when it sticks. Stainless is very hard so you will ruin multiple drillbits. It is also very difficult to determine torque when an item has been lubed incorrectly. The speed handle method is the best if you can get some weight on it. It is not as prone to skipping and scratching paint as a screwdriver. My .02
Phillip

[n2582d]

A lot of good advice stuck in this thread - pun intended! Here's a Cessna video showing what HA mentioned - using lapping compound. They made another video on using a paint cutter around screw heads. Do the next guy a favor and paint the fuel tank cover, cowling, etc. with the screws out or obviously loose.

[170C]

Having had the experience of removing screws from both fuel tank covers (one twice) I can vouch for using grinding compound to assist in removing the stubborn screws. If all else fails and the screw head becomes stripped, using a Dremel cutting disk and cutting a slot for a flat blade screw driver will, in most cases, allow you to remove the screw without having to drill it out.