ddlindy Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 I am new to this forum. I recently lost my fuel tank dip measuring tool for my CTSW. Fortunately I had made a template of the measuring scale which I have copied to a wood strip so I can compare it with Dynon fuel computer. However, I have to use a large washer to remove the fuel cap since I don't have the metal flange tool that is on the original. I have found a supplier for purchasing a new one, but they are asking an outrage price of $135. Anyone know where I get one (new or used) at a reason price? Thanks for any help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CT4ME Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Flight Design has them for, I think, $80. Otherwise borrow one and have it made... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Lee Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Just make one. Aluminum from Ace Hardware, cut it out and notch in the fuel marks. Paint it flat black with an epoxy paint to make the fuel level easy to see. total cost about $15 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anticept Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Actually, if you want to get fancy, make your own calibrated one. Level the plane, empty the tank (leave the undrainable fuel in), then put in 5 gallons, and notch it. Put in another 5 gallons, notch it. Fill the tank, notch it. Interpolate the rest, voila! That way you have a calibrated dip tank for your airplane. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anticept Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Out of curiosity and slight derailment, why is everyone calling each forum a "topic"? The topic is the title of the thread (Fuel tank dip measuring tool), each section is a forum (like Fuels and Fluids for example), while the entire site is called "Forums" or "Bulletin Board" (the latter is the most correct). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Lee Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Hi CTLSi, Your dip stick is more shinny black. Many of ours is flat black. Easy to read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Lee Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Just wipe it off, won't hurt it at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug G. Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Out of curiosity and slight derailment, why is everyone calling each forum a "topic"? The topic is the title of the thread (Fuel tank dip measuring tool), each section is a forum (like Fuels and Fluids for example), while the entire site is called "Forums" or "Bulletin Board" (the latter is the most correct). Or is it a listserve? And, where does "thread" fit in there? As long as everyone know what you are talking about... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anticept Posted January 31, 2014 Report Share Posted January 31, 2014 Ah....well for now i use a LED flashlight to read it. I came up with a solution for carrying Decalin. The plastic bottle it comes in can't handle the changing air pressure when flying and it squeezes out liquid past the plastic caps. I got a small glass bottle that had club soda in it which has a metal cap and a gasket. do you know if getting fuel splases on the wing hurts the finish? once in a while some splashes a little and i take out the cleaner and wipe it off. Fuel has additives that will stain yellow if you don't wipe it off. As long as you wash the plane once in a while, it won't hurt anything. If you leave it on there a long time, you might end up having to resort to a cloth with mineral spirits (follow up with isopropyl alcohol to clean the film that results) to clean it then. I don't believe that rohacell is affected by mineral spirits, but don't go dumping it all over your plane just in case . Extreme stains can be cleaned up with Methyl Ethyl Ketone, but keep exposure to yourself and the surface minimal, it is powerful enough to temporarily soften the body filler material underneath the paint on our planes from direct exposure, and can peel paint and deteriorate epoxy in a soak bath. I doubt MEK is good for rohacell if you were to dump a puddle on it either. It evaporates immediately with no residue which is why it's OK to use the stuff, but again, damp cloth will do the job. No more. During repairs that I had to do a few months ago, I would use MEK to clean the surface of a bonding site of a repair patch after using sandpaper to rough it up. It does a great job of cleaning any dirt and residue off, making the site bond strong. I would use it to further clean for the body filler bonding site. Holds up pretty well. Or is it a listserve? And, where does "thread" fit in there? As long as everyone know what you are talking about... Thread is the string of posts related to a topic, including the original post. Listserve is for mailing lists Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CT4ME Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 FWIW, the Search function works very well and is quite useful in finding old stuff. All you need is one or two words and it'll find about anything. For instance, searching for "stains" finds 22 threads... many of which are about fuel stains! Finding stuff with "search" works better than having a "section", because you can never rely on folks to categorize their posts properly, or the same way you think. tim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anticept Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 I have to replace the vinyl tape around one of the mains as it was cracked soon after delivery. I bought the tape and now need to remove the old and put on the new. What is your recommend for how to best do that? Would you use MEK or Acetone to remove the adhesive residue? Then the isopropyl alcohol to clean that off before putting on the new tape? It would be fun to have a 'best practices' for the CT somewhere on this site...agreed upon procedures for doing various things. Much gets lost in these threads. impossible to find things once they are read and passed over. Rohacell is resistant to acetone, so it's safe. However, acetone is also kind of an oddball. It will either do the job well, or not do it at all. Keep it away from windows though, it will turn a cellulose acetate window milky (we don't use them on CTs) and will soften acrylic. The front and top are lexan (polycarbonate), I think the side windows are acrylic. Isopropyl is only needed if you use mineral spirits. Mineral spirits leave behind a film that is cut by isopropyl. However, I would say give isopropyl a shot first since it's cheap and safe. It might be enough to remove the old adhesive. MEK is the "nuclear option" of aviation, and is hard on more than just stains, so it should be avoided unless all else fails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Lee Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 Personally I wouldn't use MEK on our planes. In enough concentration it can penetrate our skin and it has the chemicals to do damage and desolve resin not to mention it will ruin our windshield plastic. I don't and wouldn't use any hard solvents on the plane and there isn't a need for normal cleaning. I would stick with a water based degreaser. It is less destructive and easier to wipe off and won't damage the windshield plastic. Products like OIL Eater and Simple Green that are water based usually do a good job. I have been using Oil Eater for the last 8 years on our planes and have never seen any issues and it will cut the hardest grease, oil and fuel stains without hard solvents. For a degreaser to work it needs to be a base and is not PH neutral. Old dried in fuel stains soak into the skin and some can not be removed which demonstrates that our skins are porous. I use Goof Off to remove old tape residue then wipe it off with a damp rag. It won't damage the plane when used on a rag to wipe the old tape residue off. Alcohol will work, but isn't as effective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anticept Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 Roger, The damage you describe only happens if they are held in contact over time, such as in a bath. MEK completely evaporates with no residues, but as said, it is the nuclear option due to it's toxicity and potential for damage if improperly used. The only time I have used it was for repair site cleaning with a damp cloth; it is extremely effective in purifying a bonding site before a layup for a strong bond, and you can watch it evaporate as you wipe the surface. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Lee Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 That's the only reason to use it and that's not normal everyday cleaning. If you can use a water based cleaner over the hard core solvents you are ahead of the game. Our skin is porous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anticept Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 Which is why you have to use gloves and an ORGANIC vapor respirator. Still as we are both really trying to convey here, MEK is the nuclear option, and shouldn't be used except as a last resort . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Lee Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 There hasn't been anything on a CT I haven't been able to just wipe off with Oil Eater other than a fuel stain that has soaked and permeated the skin. Then even buffing or polishing won't remove it. It may light it, but it soaks into the skin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anticept Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 You can force fuel and oil stains out of the acrylic urethane paint by using monthly liquid wax jobs over the course of a year or two. The wax will draw out and displace the stain, and protect against further staining. If you keep the waxing up, it can get to the point where you can just take a spray bottle and wipe the surface clean in one stroke. One of my instructors worked in huntington bank's aviation department as the chief of maintenance (when the bank terminated the aviation department, he got laid off). He was an absolute stickler about keeping the plane waxed. When he first started the job, the exhaust had badly stained the tail from the carbon buildup. Even after cleaning, it had a yellow streak to it. He just kept the waxing up and it worked out after a year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Baker Posted February 1, 2014 Report Share Posted February 1, 2014 I have to replace the vinyl tape around one of the mains as it was cracked soon after delivery. I bought the tape and now need to remove the old and put on the new. What is your recommend for how to best do that? Would you use MEK or Acetone to remove the adhesive residue? Then the isopropyl alcohol to clean that off before putting on the new tape? It would be fun to have a 'best practices' for the CT somewhere on this site...agreed upon procedures for doing various things. Much gets lost in these threads. impossible to find things once they are read and passed over. Maybe you should put this in the Airframe Interior/Exteriors section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ddlindy Posted February 2, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 2, 2014 Just make one. Aluminum from Ace Hardware, cut it out and notch in the fuel marks. Paint it flat black with an epoxy paint to make the fuel level easy to see. total cost about $15 Your suggestion got me thinking. I went to Lowes and bought a 12" x 8" aluminum construction square. I cut a little over 10" off the 12" side and ground it down to fit the fuel cap removal slot. The 8" side is the perfect length for the dip stick measurement side. I then scanned the left and right templates and added numbers with Photoshop. After gluing the measuring strips to the dip stick I covered it with clear packaging tape to seal the paper strips so the fuel would not stain them. It works great and I can see the fuel level and it wipes off easily to take another reading. Thank for the idea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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