Looks like your rear spring mount was replaced and re-welded with a Maule spring pack instead of a Piper one. The stock piper rear tailspring mount face is about 3/4" below the lower edge of the longeron or about 1" from the longeron centerline.
That’s odd. The spring I removed is a 1 1/4 spring of the same length as the stock spring from univair. Do I need a maule spring, and if so is it approved or more of a backcountry norm that gets by?
YYeah, it does look like you would need a Maule tailspring. They are 1-3/4" in width but are designed to mount on a completely flat mounting point instead of the curved arrangement that Piper/Husky/literally everyone else uses. The Maules have a straight side on both ends with a 45 degree bend in the middle like the one you show. Legality is murky but point blank there isn't an STC or anything clear cut to put a Maule spring on a Piper. You will probably have to field approve it or use CAR3 regulation ambiguity to legally install it.
Others that are A&P/IA's on here maybe can chime in on how to do the paperwork to get it legal.
They are from top to bottom short, middle, longest, with the middle spring having the elongated hole. It doesn't matter what order they go on since they all follow roughly the same shape.
If I search the part numbers, I find a kit that implies by the name it's for a J3, but then also says it applies to multiple other piper models. The part numbers listed individually match those in the parts book, and appear to be the shape that the airplane wants. found here.... https://www.univair.com/piper/piper-j-3/view-all/j3twshr-piper-tailwheel-spring-set/
So, before going to the Maule spring I'll be returning the kit (thanks Univair for taking it back even though I already separated the springs), and getting the hopefully stock spring parts.
I would go to the Maule except for two things:
1. It's much more spendy.
2. With this old an airframe and the mission of the airplane, I'd rather have the weak point be the spring rather than transferring more into the bones of the old girl.
Digging deeper I’ve found that the springs that appear will work are for a hard rubber tailwheel and the springs I ordered that don’t fit are for a pneumatic tailwheel. Does anyone see a problem with mounting a 3200 to a set designed for a hard rubber tailwheel?
Hard to say for sure but it should be fine as long as you use the correct adapter for your Scott tailwheel. I’m thinking the difference may be the angle of the bend. I think older Scott 2000s and Maule tailwhweels may have a different attach angle but that’s just a guess. Suppose you get to try it and share that info with the rest of us
Your headed down the wrong road, the reason that folks have been running the
Pawnee tail springs for 40 years is it works! Send that one back.......
And if you want the best there is for the back end of your plane then there is NO spring that is within a 'bulls roar' of the T3 tailspring.
Good Luck
E
First 12 I owned had the hard rubber Maule style tail wheel. Most trouble free and shimmy free of any I’ve had. May want to consider keeping that setup if your mission allows it
First 12 I owned had the hard rubber Maule style tail wheel. Most trouble free and shimmy free of any I’ve had. May want to consider keeping that setup if your mission allows it
First thing I did with every banner Cub/Cruiser we had. Never, ever had any trouble with them. Used to be cheap - not anymore. Unless you need a pneumatic wheel for soft or rough ground,, the hard one is impossible to beat. IMHO, of course.
So my Harrison oil cooler is going to need to be replaced soon. Anybody have a recommendation for replacement that will work with the kenmore 150 STC. Would like to stay front mount with same mounting.