Outboard end strake reinforcement | 9.19.2020

Also while reviewing prior work, we noticed that the outboard end strake reinforcement had not been done. This actually seems like it should have been done by the factory, given that they built the majority of the rest of the strakes, so I was intrigued that it hadn't been done.

The manual isn't super clear on the placement of this layup, so I called the factory and talked to Chad about it. He told me where to place the glass and some helpful tips to get it right. He also stated that this is a really commonly missed layup and that a ton of the planes coming in to the service center don't have it. Apparently it's not really required, but he said that it helps stiffen up the strake a bit. He told me that he's done so many of these layups on planes that come to the service center without it, that he can do this layup on both sides in 20 minutes. I... did not take that long.

This was a pretty awkward layup, but I managed to have a good product (if a bit messy) and probably (definitely) heavier than it needs to be. I cut the triax to size and laid it on a piece of plastic and fully saturated it. After and hour and a half or so, it was nice and tacky, so I kind of massaged it into place. Best tip from me is to kind of lay (not crease!) the triax back on itself to get it inside the strake end, then slowly "unfold" it into place. I don't know how you do this without a mess, sorry, no tips there. On the strake leading edge, you can overlap the two pieces with a bit of massaging. Emily assisted with holding the layup in place while getting it perfectly straight and where it needed to be. Tight spot for multiple hands, but it made it easier.

 

The edges are pretty rough, but they'll clean up fairly easy.

- Jeff