Wing rebuilding

[Jr.CubBuilder]

I'm starting to look around for a place to rebuild a 170 wing. If you have suggestions on shops I would appreciate it.

[squaretail]

Ken at Leading edge. He has the jigs and does nice work.
208 786-5381 He goes to Kenmore WA alot and can pick up along the way.

[blueldr]

Where are you located? West Coast Wings in Ukiah,CA, does nice work. Also have heard good things about the young fellow in Enterprise, AL. I believe they both advertise in TAP in the Cessna Repairs Section following the Cessna For Sale section.

[GAHorn]

Del Lehman, Mountain Airframe, Mena, AR has jigs and does nice work. I've recently seen his operation and can vouch for him.

mountainairframe@earthlink.net
479-437-3333

[n2582d]

Although I don't have any personal experience with them, I've heard good things about Williams Airmotive on this site and elsewhere. https://www.williamsairmotive.com/
Before I bought my plane the wings were repaired by Del-Air, a well known shop in Porterville, CA. The owner touted the exactness of his jigs. Seeing the obviously great workmanship of the rebuild of Steve Jacobsen's C-170 I had little reason to believe my wings were improperly rebuilt. Pictured below is one of several stringer splices I will need to redo because the repair was not done in accordance with Cessna's repair manual. For those that have done this before, do I need to have the wing in a jig if I just replace the bottom skins and stringers? Will the wing, with the top skin still in place, be rigid enough to maintain the proper twist without being in a jig? Here are a couple of pictures:

P9170620.JPG

P9170621.JPG

P9170619.JPG

Fig. 19-5 Wing Stringer Repair.jpg

[Jr.CubBuilder]

BL I'm on the west coast, thanks for the suggestions guys. I'll root around in trade a plane to, that hadn't occurred to me.

[GAHorn]

Gary, you might first visit with Harry to see if he's willing to correct his work to your satisfaction. Are you certain the areas pictured are work performed by Harry? Perhaps other wing repairs were effected by him (presumeably recorded in the logs) that are unrelated to the pics?
I compliment you on your attention to detail. Did your pre-buy inspection reveal this repair, or did you discover it only after you purchased the airplane?
You might also gain a second opinion from Del Lehman at the email address listed above.
George

[n2582d]

George, I obviously did not look close enough at his work when I bought the plane. I should have caught the gouge in the skin. While I am an A&P/I.A. I had not memorized Cessna's requirements for stringer splices. I focused on a spar repair which seems to have been done by the book. There has to be a certain amount of trust that repair work was done correctly when done by what I assumed to be a reputable shop. I think a big part of the problem was that the previous owner, who had died before I acquired the project, was trying to get these repairs done on a shoestring budget. He, or rather I, got what he paid for. Or maybe I was just distracted; I couldn't get my eyes off of Steve's beautiful 170!

[wingnut]

N2582D,
It's really difficult to tell (by pictures) if your wings need attention. This previous sentence impies from an airworthiness standpoint.
I cannot say anything negative about any other shop that rebuilds wings because I've seen great work come out of no-name shops, and I've also seen less than perfect come out of reputable shops. The work you see is only as good as the man that did the work, reputable company name aside. The difference is whether or not the reputable owner/operator of the shop actually rides herd over his employees and personally directs and inspects the work. That is how they got their reputation; usually one man doing exceptional work, building a reputation and following. Then he gets so busy because of that, he must hire people. These people may not have the same skill level, desire for perfection or personal satisfaction for job that will be seen from now until....?
I can recommend Williams, and also Beegles in Greeley, CO if you need their services. At Williams, speak to Roy. At Beegles, speak to Ed if he's around and if not speak to Scott.

George,
I truly appreciate your recommending this member to call and talk to me. This is really how I live. Word of mouth. I don't do much advertising because I don't want big business. That would take the enjoyment out of what I do. This is a hobby that I can also exist on, and get satisfaction from a customer who is satisfied. I'm a fortunate man that way. I'm working on something right now that I would like you to see when we are done, then you can recommend me.

[Steve Pierce]

My dealings with Harry have been poor and he is aware of it.

[Abe]

JR, somehow I've always associated you with Washington State, but when I first got my 170B, I dinged the wing tip up on my first flight with my wife and we sent my left wing to a gentleman in Omak, WA (Bill ??). He did a great job and found a bunch of bad work inside of the wing when he was fixing my damage. He called us up to let us know about it as he was concerned with the other wing...Long story short we took the right wing off and I took it to him and he found a bunch of poor workmanship in that wing also...of course nothing was in the log books...So, the insurance paid for one wing and I paid for the other, but I have a new wing above me now After seeing the inside of the wing and the shoddy workmanship, I look at it my mishap as blessing....If you'd like his name I could get it to you...he did great work.