Corrosion Test

Discussion for builders, pilots, owners, and those interested in building or owning a Xenos.

Re: Corrosion Test

Postby ArtificialInt » Mon Apr 25, 2022 5:13 pm

racaldwell wrote:The next test I want to do in the corrosion chambers would be the SS pulled rivets and 2117 AD rivets and some cad plated bolts. Stay tuned.

Rick


We have been waiting for a while, how did that go? :)

I am looking at blurry photos of an 18 year old Sonex with visible yellowing around many rivet seams. I cannot get a lot of info and am going to inspect in person but I am anticipating that I'm seeing either sealant or galvanic corrosion from stainless rivets.
ArtificialInt
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2022 8:19 pm

Re: Corrosion Test

Postby GraemeSmith » Mon Apr 25, 2022 8:10 pm

Or Corrosion-X oozing out the seams.
Graeme JW Smith
User avatar
GraemeSmith
 
Posts: 939
Joined: Sat May 18, 2019 8:58 am
Location: RI

Re: Corrosion Test

Postby mike.smith » Mon Apr 25, 2022 10:00 pm

Like everything dealing with corrosion, it depends on lots of factors. Near the ocean, that's a huge factor in lobbying for excellent protection. Inland outside of Boston, in typical snow, rain and sun, my polished Sonex with stainless steel rivets has zero corrosion anywhere. Not even a hint. I had the plane outdoors with a canopy cover for 5 years, and no corrosion on the skins.

And I take a solid 2 weeks to do my annual condition inspection, including borescope inspections in hard to access places, so I'm pretty confident in that statement. In the Arizona desert, also probably not a big issue either. In a wet, tropical environment, probably a good idea to protect everything the best you can.

Since I didn't deem in necessary in my environment, I chose to save the weight. Because yes, corrosion protection does add weight, and my VW is weight-challenged as it is.

I'm about to start building an RV-7. Vans notes they don't believe corrosion protection is necessary unless you're in one of those particularly corrosive environments, so I'm choosing to simplify and save weight by not adding protective finishes inside. This plane, unlike the Sonex, will definitely be painted on the outside, however.
Mike Smith
Sonex N439M
Scratch built, AeroVee, Dual stick, Tail dragger
http://www.mykitlog.com/mikesmith
mike.smith
 
Posts: 1433
Joined: Tue Jan 29, 2013 8:45 pm

Re: Corrosion Test

Postby ArtificialInt » Mon Apr 25, 2022 11:32 pm

GraemeSmith wrote:Or Corrosion-X oozing out the seams.


Ah, I think you nailed it. This plane has had a desert life, I was confused when I saw it but Duralac looks just like it.
ArtificialInt
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2022 8:19 pm

Re: Corrosion Test

Postby racaldwell » Tue Apr 26, 2022 9:00 am

Sorry, I procrastinated too long on the 2nd SWAAT test. Now I retired last month so it will never happen, by me anyway.

Rick Caldwell
Xenos 0057 phase 1: 34 hrs
racaldwell
 
Posts: 400
Joined: Thu May 22, 2014 4:52 pm

Re: Corrosion Test

Postby mike.smith » Tue Apr 26, 2022 6:21 pm

racaldwell wrote:Sorry, I procrastinated too long on the 2nd SWAAT test. Now I retired last month so it will never happen, by me anyway.


Congratulations on the retirement!!
Mike Smith
Sonex N439M
Scratch built, AeroVee, Dual stick, Tail dragger
http://www.mykitlog.com/mikesmith
mike.smith
 
Posts: 1433
Joined: Tue Jan 29, 2013 8:45 pm

Previous

Return to Xenos

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests