Bent Onex main gear

[vhhomer]

Onex Gear Bend.docx

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I have had a couple people ask about rebending a Onex gear after a hard landing. I decided to put together my experience with doing this and send it along to the forum. This is my experience and not to be considered expert advice or recommendations as to what you should do with your pretzeled gear. The safetest path is to call up Sonex and order a new one. However, given that these are experimental aircraft some of us will "have a go at it" and this is my gear resurrection attempt chronicle. I have about five landings on the straightened gear, one of which was a little thump, and all seems to be well.

Vince Homer
N362DV

[XenosN42]

What is the name and model number of the press you used?

[onex28]

Thanks Vince, I get it now.

David

[vhhomer]

Harbor Freight 20 ton press.

Vince Homer

[Rotodyne]

I just realized there were several new replies to my post, but for some reason I didn't get a notification. Thanks for all the suggestions! I finally got the gear off last weekend and I'll be taking it to the workshop this week. I'll send an update on how it turns out.

Thanks again!

[railer833]

Where are you guys having problems with the gear Bending. Location of the bend on the leg?

[XenosN42]

The extra bend is at the existing bend areas. E.G. the straight parts are still straight.

[flyingbear]

My ONEX gear is set up with high toe OUT causing a tremendous gradual bending of the gear. Sonex said to send pics to see if it was too toe out. I did. It was. Now they say they have already replaced all the defective gear and want $450 for a new gear for me. Sonex speaks with forked tongue. My gear met their specs for being defective from the start so they switch the story and say all defective gear has been replaced. Then why did they need pictures. It is obviously too TOE OUT from manufacture. The gear spreads 3 inches if rolled 10 feet. I will send them that info and see what they say. I am not optimistic. I had to pay to replace mags that they agreed were defective from the start. They gave me half price but that was still more than double what the mags cost on line.

[Onex107]

My Onex gear was formed wrong on one side. The right leg was bent with the gear laying on the angled side instead of the straight side and it resulted in a toe out of the right wheel of approx. seven degrees. I sent it back and they replaced it. I didn't realize it until it was mounted and I rolled the plane out one day. I could lay the gear on a flat surface, on the straight side, and check the bend with a square. It was an obvious forming error by the vendor. Is yours off on both sides or just one?

[Onex107]

I must ass. That was eight years ago.