Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

[Clark Savage Jr]

After peeling back the foam sound insulation in this engine, I found out why the upper and lower cowl sections were separating. Seven of the lugs which hold the joint screws are broken off.

I was able to get the upper cowling to mesh with the lower cowling by tightening cargo hold-down straps around the cowl. It looks like I could simply drill the flange on the lower cowl and insert pop rivets to hold the two sections together.

Can anyone suggest an alternative to this method?

I'd like to add my thanks for all the help so far on this forum. You guys are great and it's a privilege to make your acquaintance. I own a Yahoo group which discusses a particular design of homebuilt airplanes and know what it means to constantly reply to newbie's questions. I appreciate your patience and knowledge, truly I do.

 

[Clark Savage Jr]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

ttt

I'm gonna do the pop rivet thing today. They will show on the exterior of the cowling, but likely only a purist would notice them - or give a rat. I would put in flat head rivets, but I've loaned a friend my rivet squeezer and it's a hundred & ten mile round trip to his place.

 

[jonesg]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

Thats the ticket, its not as if you need to sell it for big bucks, it'll probably outlive you but theres not much mkt for them.
a peice of masking tape will stop the cowl from chipping when you drill the holes.
You could also use glass/resin patch on the inside if theres a clean flat joint area.

Homebuilt planes look like a lot of fun, is the upkeep expensive?

 

[yorab]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

What are you referring to when you say the lugs? Can you post a pic of them? Are you referring to the u-clips or the molded-in anchor points?

 

[Clark Savage Jr]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

Thats the ticket, its not as if you need to sell it for big bucks, it'll probably outlive you but theres not much mkt for them.
a peice of masking tape will stop the cowl from chipping when you drill the holes.
You could also use glass/resin patch on the inside if theres a clean flat joint area.

Homebuilt planes look like a lot of fun, is the upkeep expensive?

I'll do it tomorrow. I would have already, but my daughter and her family came for a two-day visit and I got stuck helping her make frames for a silk-painting hobby she's recently taken up.

Home-built planes have become wildly popular. There's a kit manufacturer in Oregon who sells more engines than Cessna, Piper and Beechcraft added together. Kit planes have come a long ways in the last dozen years. You can have a kit in your garage one day and be flying it a few months later.

Mine happens to be built the old-fashioned way, from blueprints and raw lumbers. The prints were in French, too! It took me almost four years of part-time work (about 20 hours per week). My wife and I have flown it coast-to-coast three times and border-to-border twice. Flying seven hours a day, we can travel from the Puget Sound area to South Florida in three days. We average 20 mpg @ 140 mph.

Other expenses are $200-$300/month hangar rent (more if you are in a big metro area like Seattle) and an annual inspection where you fix everything that may be worn or defective before certifying the plane is fit for flight. If you've built the airplane, you can do this yourself. If you are not the builder, you can still do the work, but you must get either the builder or a certificated mechanic to sigh off the inspection.

Recurring training with an instructor is at your option, but your skills must be signed off by an instructor once every two years as being current on regulations as well as the "monkey skills" to safely operate the aircraft.

There is a new "Sport Pilot" certificate which will allow you to take just one passenger up, daytime and visual flight rules only, in a moderate speed capable aircraft (140 mph) which is under 1,320 pounds gross weight at takeoff. You can qualify for that certificate in 20 hours of flying and a minor amount of book learning. It's a great way to get started as a pilot, plus you do not need to pass a flight medical exam. If you qualify for a driver's license, healthwise, that's all that is required. This is great for those who may have been grounded due to some sort of medical condition but who are still healthy enough to "pilot" a 4,000 lb. automobile in rush-hour traffic.

Here's mine - it qualifies for Sport Pilot"

It is built mainly from wood, covered with fabric and has a certificated 150 hp (320 in?) Lycoming engine.

 

[jonesg]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

Can you give me the link to your yahoo page.

Duh, never mind , got it.
Those are neat.

 

[Clark Savage Jr]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

What are you referring to when you say the lugs? Can you post a pic of them? Are you referring to the u-clips or the molded-in anchor points?

I tossed them in the trash, but yes, I am talking about the molded-in anchor points. It looked like someone tried to pry off just the upper half of the cowl without realizing that it comes off in one piece.

 

[jonesg]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

That plane looks like an RV3. !
Looks like it has a couple of degrees of wingtip washout.

 

[Clark Savage Jr]

Re: Repairing upper/lower cowl joint on 1964 Evinrude 75 hp V-4

The RV-3 is all-Aluminum, of course and a single place. My Emeraude is more similar to an RV-6, being 2-place and side-by-side seating. Only this one is built from plans and from Sitka Spruce and Finnish Birch plywood. The RV series are almost exclusively built from kits.

However, the wing area and airfoils are almost exactly the same. The biggest difference in the wing is the RV has a "Hershey Bar" wing plan (a simple rectangle) where the Emeraude has an elliptical plan, much like the spitfire or a P-47 Thunderbolt.

You are spot on about the washout! Good eye!!!

Another giveaway is the landing gear is mounted on the wing rather than hanging from the engine mount.