To: RobboRider
QUOTE: Mr. Zuckerman needs to be taken with a large grain of salt. This debate about WD-40 reared its head in discussion about those above-mentioned R44 blades when they debonded.
RESPONSE: If you read the thread completely I was responding to headsethair when he quoted Pat Cox as saying it was OK to use WD-40 on the underside of the blades. My comment had nothing to do with the other thread on debonding of R-44 blades. My comments and ultimate contacting the WD-40 Company was to get clarification of the use of WD-40 in this application. Please re read the comment by the WD-40 Company about the FAA not approving the use of WD-40 on ANY aircraft and that includes the Robinson helicopters. If Pat Cox made these statements internal tests and verification that the WD-40 does not cause problems on the blades must back him up. Pat Cox said do not get it on the rotorhead so he knows that if it does it could cause problems and the tests must be submitted to the FAA for their approval. The question begs asking, did they perform the tests and did they submit the tests and did they contact the WD-40 Company to get their approval. The answer to at least one of these question is no and I believe the other answer is no.
In either case Pat Cox is placing Robinson in a bad light if something goes wrong as a result of using a non approved product.
QUOTE: In another mind-boggling episode of conclusion jumping Mr. Z. stated he once (in Iran) measured the surface temp of a plane wing in the sun and it was 160 degrees therefore as it gets hot in northern Australia this was obviously the cause of the blades de-bonding. No doubt about it!
RESPONSE: I don’t remember exactly what I said in the post and I’m too lazy to check it out. However I will try to reconstruct what I said relative to temperatures. In Iran we measured the air temperature at 113-degrees F. The ground temperature was 168-degrees F and the internal temperature of our helicopters topped out on the thermometer at 180-degrees F and it was killing our avionics.
Here is another tidbit from the Lord Company that makes Elastomeric Bearings ©. They indicated that the total exposure to temperatures of 160-degrees F was 1 hour in the life of the bearing. Exposure to in excess of one hour total at 160-degrees F would cut the life of the bearing by 50%.
You don’t have to have an air temperature at 160-degrees F to reach that temperature on a blade or any other part of the aircraft. What does the dirty work is solar radiation. The air temp can be 70-degrees F and the skin temperature can be far in excess of that. If I mentioned solar radiation temperatures and applied it to the R-44 blades then I was talking about the temperature cycling from static at very high blade skin temperatures to flight when the blades cooled down and then back to static and so on. This temperature cycling can have an effect on the bond line and possibly cause a bond separation.
Do the FAA approve or not approve things for use on aircraft or is it up to the manufacturers of the "thing" and the aircraft to approve it's use?
The manufacturer in order to expand their sales base will perform all types of tests that show that their product will not harm any metals or chemicals or paints and many other things. This testing is done by an independent laboratory in accordance within specific guidelines. If the product passes all of the tests then and only then can the FAA approve it for general use on aircraft. The manufacturing company can then show in their advertising that it is FAA approved. Boeing did this for a preservative as did Corrosion X. Based on what WD-40 stated this testing and subsequent approval was never done.
Did I really state that Robinson had a list of secret chemicals and WD-40 was or was not on that list?
I personally believe that your product loyalty is clouding your vision when you read my posts.
