Piper Pancake - Tail of a tall stack

[4S8KEN]

I got a bad case of dumb thumbs on Sunday and put my piper cub straight in! I was low and slow turning out of the down wind side on approach. It all happened so fast the poor plane didn't have a chance.

I think I can rebuild it and I want to try. It'll be my first rebuild and I'm looking forward to it. The wing and fuse from the back of the wing to the tail feathers is in one piece. I also think I got every piece of shrapnel at the scene of the crash.

I have a good feel for how to do this but any tips or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

[4S8KEN]

Here are some pic's of the carnage.

[HuckinChikn]

Yikes! Sorry to hear that bro! where you down at buder?
it looks pretty rough, but it CAN be done...I think you should just buy
my Fliton edge and call it a day

[jack01]

Ouch! I would start by stripping all of the covering, since that's going to have to come off anyway. Then, start by rough assembling everything, and lightly tacking in place with CA. That will let you know what may be missing, or too damaged to reuse. As you get major sections put back together, you can permanently glue them with thin CA. That alone probably won't hold very well, so I would use some 64th inch plywood to help tie those broken pieces together. Plywood to plywood will probably need epoxy. Lightly sanding all plywood pieces will help the glue stick to those. In some cases, you may need to piece the broken parts back together and use that as a template to create a new piece.

[rcdart]

I would dial, 1800 LHSSENDMEANEWKIT.

Good luck with the rebuild, it can be done.

[RCER123]

If you deciede not to re-build let me know......

[4S8KEN]

	Quote: Originally Posted by HuckinChikn
	Yikes! Sorry to hear that bro! where you down at buder? it looks pretty rough, but it CAN be done...I think you should just buy my Fliton edge and call it a day

Yes I was at Buder when it happened. I'm still trying to figure out what happened. Oddly enough nobody saw it go in but me. Or at least nobody cheered.

I may buy your edge (have you checked your e-mail?) but I won't call it a day on the Cub just yet. I liked it and I like the idea of repairing something this messed up.

[4S8KEN]

	Quote: Originally Posted by jack01
	Ouch! I would start by stripping all of the covering, since that's going to have to come off anyway. Then, start by rough assembling everything, and lightly tacking in place with CA. That will let you know what may be missing, or too damaged to reuse. As you get major sections put back together, you can permanently glue them with thin CA. That alone probably won't hold very well, so I would use some 64th inch plywood to help tie those broken pieces together. Plywood to plywood will probably need epoxy. Lightly sanding all plywood pieces will help the glue stick to those. In some cases, you may need to piece the broken parts back together and use that as a template to create a new piece.

I guess I need to cut the tail feathers out too right?

[SmoothFlying]

You can probably put it back together. But it might be a lot more trouble than buying a new cub.

[jack01]

	Quote: Originally Posted by 4S8KEN
	I guess I need to cut the tail feathers out too right?

Probably not. It just depends on if anything got broken back there or not. If not, you can cover around them. It will just take a little more work, but it should still be easier than having to cut them out.

[4S8KEN]

Here are some pictures of the re-kit.

[4S8KEN]

The re-build started Sunday afternoon. After I laid the pieces out and dry fit them, it appears like everything is there. So far anyway. I also noticed a lot of joints that weren't all that tight to start with. So this may even be stronger then it was to start with. This plane has flipped at least 5 times on dead sticks in the grass. One time was a full upside down to back on it's wheels with only a broken prop!

Here are the progress pics so far...

[HuckinChikn]

Lookin good dude! its comin together very nicely!

[4S8KEN]

Progress is coming a long at a careful pace. I put all of the chunks back together on the sides, bottom and bulkheads. Then, following Jack01's tips, I glued some plywood strips on all of the break points. I also had to recreate one part that had a piece missing. That appears to be the only piece that I missed at the scene of the crash.

All I have to do now is lay the fuse on it's side and glue the finished parts back together. That will go fast. Then stringers sand and cover. It's too bad that I have to travel this week and all the parts for the filton 540 will be in when I get home. I feel a serious case of model A.D.D. coming. May be I can multi-build and get them both in the air next weekend.

[RCER123]

	Quote: Originally Posted by 4S8KEN
	Progress is coming a long at a careful pace. I put all of the chunks back together on the sides, bottom and bulkheads. Then, following Jack01's tips, I glued some plywood strips on all of the break points. I also had to recreate one part that had a piece missing. That appears to be the only piece that I missed at the scene of the crash. All I have to do now is lay the fuse on it's side and glue the finished parts back together. That will go fast. Then stringers sand and cover. It's too bad that I have to travel this week and all the parts for the filton 540 will be in when I get home. I feel a serious case of model A.D.D. coming. May be I can multi-build and get them both in the air next weekend.

Its looking excellent! What glue are you using?