Stuck Hinge Pins

[kmacht]

I have a problem. I can't get the hing pin out of one of my flaps to remove it from the wing. The thing is stuck. I tried tapping it through both ways with another short piece of hing pin and a hammer but all that did was end up opening up one of the hinge ears and having the short piece of hinge slide out underneath. Has anyone else had similar problems? Short of drilling off the hinge and starting over are there any other good solutions out there?

Keith
#554

[vigilant104]

Can you push the pin far enough out to allow you to chuck it in a drill? (Then slowly spin/pull it out)

[kmacht]

I already did that on one wing to get the pin out but for the other wing flap it is stuck. I am considering cutting out a smaller section of hinge at one end so I can at least get a grip on it to try and pull it out.

[vigilant104]

I already did that on one wing to get the pin out but for the other wing flap it is stuck. I am considering cutting out a smaller section of hinge at one end so I can at least get a grip on it to try and pull it out.

That might be necessary, but I'd try a lot of other things first. Have you tried taking the weight entirely off the flap? lubrication? Also, perhaps disconnecting the flap linkage and trying to work the hinge pin out when the flap is held in other positions or while it is being wiggled up and down?

[MichaelFarley56]

I agree with Mark on this one. I wouldn't cut the hinge off if at all possible, just because of the problems you'll have later trying to reinstall them.

Personally, I would take a drill but that's the same size as the pin and ream out the last hinge lug on the outboard side of the hinge. Then take an extra little piece of hinge pin and bend it into an L shape in order to push the pin out a little.

Before you start though, I'd spray a ton of LPS or silicone spray all over the hinge to help yourself out.

Good luck!

Mike

[kmacht]

I like the drill bit idea. I may also see if I can find one that is the same size as the hinge pin but 8" long to use as a drift to try and hit it through. I have already tried using another piece of hinge pin to tap it out with but the pin was too flexible and didn't work very well as a drift. I plan on painting in the very near future so silicon spray is a huge no-no. That stuff no matter how well you clean the metal afterwards has horrible affects on getting paint to stick.

Thanks for the advice. I'm going to give it another try tonight now that I have calmed down and no longer want to take a large hammer to the wing in fustration.

Keith
#554

[falvarez]

Here's one other thing you may want to consider. When the hinge pin got stuck in my friends flap, what we realized it that there were just a couple of areas where the alignment of the hinge was off a bit and if we pressed / flexed the flap enough in the right direction, we could eliminate enough of the binding to get the pin out. Not sure if you can identify the primary source of the binding, but if you can, this may help.

[MichaelFarley56]

Hey Keith, good call on not using silicone on soon to be painted surfaces! I wonder if graphite powder is also as bad, or if it's easier to clean? I used that a lot on my cowling hinge pins and it worked well. I'm sure you did it, but when you get the pin out make sure you take the pin to a grinder or scotch brite wheel and taper the tip to a point. That will make it much easier to insert and/or remove next time.

I can't count the number of times I was so frustrated during my build I wanted to take the nearest tool and throw it as hard as I could. At that point it was time to call it quits, enjoy a nice adult cold BEvERage, and regroup. Things are always much easier afterwards.

Frank also has a great idea! I did that same thing in a few places.