upper door bail

[motohead]

trying to locate to purchase the wire bail that holds the upper door open

anyone know where to buy?

[stevensonjr]

CubCrafters sells a latch that works well. Screws into the rear lower leading edge sheet metal. Origional equipment on the last SuperCubs and all Huskys. I've used them on 5 different planes, simple and easy to install. Don't know about a new wire bail.

[Dave Calkins]

You can fabricate a wire bail easily.

Stoddards has the "chicken latch" that is common on Husky's and SuperCubs. I like it.

Call them. (907) 272-2327 Stoddards Rocks! D

[Amy]

The wire contraption-thing that you rest the door in (latch goes inside the handle)? Hooks up to a little piece of hinge under the wing? STAY AWAY! We had one of those on one of the J3s in Hartford and the door falls down on takeoff, landing, stalls . . . sometimes even in cruise flight! The door always floats up out of that latch. We (Dakota Cub) have the cabinet catch type (spring inside) which is DC12847. That number should be the same for other suppliers that use the Piper number system (with the exception of the "DC," of course). Works much better

[behindpropellers]

The wire contraption-thing that you rest the door in (latch goes inside the handle)? Hooks up to a little piece of hinge under the wing? STAY AWAY! We had one of those on one of the J3s in Hartford and the door falls down on takeoff, landing, stalls . . . sometimes even in cruise flight! The door always floats up out of that latch. We (Dakota Cub) have the cabinet catch type (spring inside) which is DC12847. That number should be the same for other suppliers that use the Piper number system (with the exception of the "DC," of course). Works much better

I need one of those....can you post a picture??

[Amy]

Here you go! Latch design and installation on a (dirty) 160AK. 160AK has not gotten an official bath yet but has been debugged and degreased--waiting for nice weather and a weekend to coincide!

[cubamigo]

Hamilton Marine in Portland Maine

LATCH ELBOW BRASS 1 1/8" X 1 5/16" PAIR 143454
Item #: SD-222335-1
List Price: $7.90 / PAIR
Your Price: $7.39 / PAIR

[skywagon8a]

That is exactly what I have been looking for. I'll pick it up at Hamilton. My concern is the method of attachment to the wing. Sure, I could just use PK screws into the leading edge skin. Mine is a Back Country wing. They used 5052 aluminum and it is softer than 2024. I'm worried that the PKs will loosen, in this high vibration area, and I'll end up with a couple of ugly holes in the wing that are unusable. My thought is to attach a couple of plate nuts to a piece of 2024 and slide it down below the front of the fuel tank with glue on the plate to stick it on the inside of the fabric. Then using machine screws to hold the latch. Or, I could use riveted on tinnermans and PKs on the plate. What do you folks think of this idea? It will not be easy to work the installation of the part, as the tank is installed and there isn't much room between the spar and tank.

[Steve Pierce]

You can put rivnuts in or use attach it to a plate and screw the plate into the rib.

[tempdoug]

http://www.google.com/products/catal...=0CAcQ8wIwAA#p

[skywagon8a]

You can put rivnuts in or use attach it to a plate and screw the plate into the rib.

I suppose that I could put in rivnuts ahead of the spar. That location seems to be too far forward for good support, maybe not. There is no rib anywhere near where the door latch needs to go. Perhaps there is on a "real" Cub. I haven't looked at a real Cub in a long time, but I do seem to remember that there is a rib in that location.

[Steve Pierce]

Pete, I try and put the latch close to where the leading edge bends 90 degrees to screw to the spar. Nice and stiff.

[Bill Rusk]

Don't forget to put it so you can reach it from the front seat while in flight. This will put it fairly far forward.

Bill

[skywagon8a]

Pete, I try and put the latch close to where the leading edge bends 90 degrees to screw to the spar. Nice and stiff.

Steve, There doesn't seem to be very much room under the spar cap. I would be concerned about hitting the spar with a drill or screw. Or, are you suggesting placing it just forward of the spar enough to clear? That I could do with rivnuts.

Bill, Anywhere within a foot of the spar will meet this requirement. Did you have a rib in this location on yours?

[mike mcs repair]

...There doesn't seem to be very much room under the spar cap. ...

thats where I put them, gotta be 1/2" there.... only .020" of your screw is holding anything, so it don't need to be long....

[Darrel Starr]

The Cubcrafters latch I bought about 10 yrs ago had a weak spring & wouldn't stay up. But Vera came came up with a stiffer spring which I have installed but have not tried.

[skywagon8a]

OK, this is what I did. I found the brass elbow latch at West Marine in Plymouth. I cut the hook about 1/8" deeper for total of about 1/4" to get a good grip on the window with the prop blasting on it. Then I used the wood screws that came with the latch to screw directly to the leading edge under the spar as Steve described above. It seems very solid. If it loosens up with use, then I'll replace the wood screws with rivnuts and machine screws.

[N636P]

This is what my latch looks like:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...A1FWOG4NHCL26V

[M1]

Those latches are called "Elbow Catches" and you can find many different designs. Marine stores should have them, even Home Depot has them.

Mike

[NimpoCub]

Funny, mine NEVER catches my elbow.

[SchulerJL]

Use a punch to start the hole - don't drill a pilot hole. I purchased my latch from CubCrafters, it may have been more expensive, but the directions and screws that came with it saved me a lot.