|
|
|
|
| Parts | Services | Tools | About | Contact |
|
What these are... | |||
| These are the DW-1 and DW-2 Rudder Hinge Brackets developed back in the early 90's by Debonair Owner and Engineer Dick Wilson in response to AD 1993-24-03. Straight tail Bonanzas and Debonairs were experiencing cracking of the rudder spar so an AD was established giving owners only two methods of compliance. 1) Remove and inspect the rudder every 500 hours or 2) An expensive kit from Beechcraft that replaces the spar and provides inspection holes. |
| What they do... |
|
||||
| These replace the original simple rudder hinge brackets (left) with Dick Wilson's redesiged brackets (right) which shifts the load away from the spar and prevents cracking. |
| Why you need them... | |||
| Installing these brackets doesn't remove the AD (only the FAA can do that) but what it does is eliminate the need for the recurring 500 inspection by (AMOC) alternate method of compliance. Now you won't have to remove the rudder every 500 hours, remove the hinges, perform a dye inspection test, re-attach the hinges and re-safety wire the 2 filister head bolts (which are nestled down in-between the hinge tabs and very difficult to access) then reinstall the rudder. Best of all your spar will never crack. |
| Do I have them already? |
|
||||
| Look at the area of your rudder where the upper and middle hinges attach. If you have a row of nothing but rivets you do not have these brackets. If you see two machine screws for the top one and a single machine screw for the middle (on each side), then you already have the brackets. |
| I have the upper only. Do I need to add the lower? | |||
| There is ambiguity in the wording of the AD and the referenced service bulletins. The AD tells us to inspect the rudder forward spar for cracks in accordance with the instructions in Beech Service Bulletin (SB) No. 2333 Revision 1 which tells us to remove both hinge brackets and inspect for cracks at each location. If no cracks are found we’re instructed to reinstall the hinge brackets and rudder and inspect again in 500 hours. Then we circle back to the AD which gives us 4 options for continued compliance. Option 3 calls for installation of the rudder spar upper-hinge reinforcement bracket and makes no mention of the lower despite reinforcement brackets being needed at both hinges as both areas have been found to develop cracks. |
| Evidence suggests that many A&P mechanics had been following the AD and SB to the letter and signing off aircraft as both airworthy and no longer needing to have the 500hr recurring inspection performed after installing just the upper bracket, when logically if both hinge areas can develop cracks, then both hinge areas require reinforcement. In researching this I learned the AD was written before Dick Wilson, the designer of the brackets and original STC holder, had engineered the middle bracket. Manufacturing and sale of these brackets was very shortly switched from Space Machine Products (SMP) to General Forming Corp and sold as a pair but the AD was never revised. There is however an AMOC letter from the FAA in 1995 approving the use of the DW-1 and DW-2 brackets in place of the SMP brackets. |
|
I verified this with the technical advisors at the American Bonanza Society and was told that yes,
very often they inspect aircraft that had the upper bracket only installed and have to
inform the owner that their airplane is not airworthy unless their mechanic had continued to perform
the inspection on the lower hinge area every 500 hours which is just not being done. So according to
the ABS, you either need to have the middle bracket replaced or continue the 500 hour recurring inspection on that area. If you have just the upper, you can buy the lower bracket only. |
|
|
|
$650 Upper and Lower Bracket kits $300 Lower Bracket Kit only Includes Brackets, all new hardware, STC, and Installation Instructions. Add $12.50 for USPS Priority Mail Shipping |
 |