[amsat-bb] Drilling of a G-550 results!!!

[Luc Leblanc]

On 27 Nov 2007 at 1:24, Gennadi Klevtsov wrote:

> Hello Luc,
> in my G-500A the drain hole is exactly in the middle,
> between 2 half of rotor's housing. And it is bottom side,
> where boom goes through rotator.
> 73! Gennadi
> ES1RF/ES3RF
> Monday, November 26, 2007, 6:36:18 PM, you wrote:
> 


On 26 Nov 2007 at 13:38, Dave Guimont wrote:

> Luc, mine are up on the mast of course, 5500, and I've had the 5400's...
> 
> So now I am going to make a guess...
> 
> Can you crack the case open, a tad, and just let it drain out?
> 
> As I remember one would have to have the rotor removed to do 
> that...But I'm originally from Northern Minn, 50 miles further north, 
> and I would have been a Canadian, and actually French-Canadian descent...
> 
> So on the mast, drilling a hole would do no good until maybe a warm March day!!
> 
> Again, I doing a lot of conjecture!!
> 
> I've had my 5400's apart several times to relube, just watch the ball 
> bearings!!
> 
End of soap show

Thank's again Gennadi and Dave for your inputs Eagle as landed!!! I finally get 
through the rotor casing with a 3/16 drill bit and just before i found "the 
drain hole" exactly where you tell Gennadi "NEVER INSTALLED THESES ROTOR WITH 
THE DRAIN HOLE UPWARDS..."

As soon as the drill bit pass through the casing there was a fluid leakage who 
stay flowing in a steady jet for 10 seconds!! and dripping for another 10 
seconds with the aid of a metal wire inserted in the hole.

Collateral damages

1-Probably a mess inside? rust? corrosion? mildew? and so on...
2-Upper hole plugged with a metal screw plus silicone
3-Struck something when drilling pass through the casing!!! (Not too lucky with 
lotto ticket...)
4-Meter does not move anymore probably a wire cut or the pot has been stabbed

Lets the weather return to the minus 0C again and just watch the rotor

Conclusion

Rotor will don't freeze in ice anymore (i hope) and i will have to rely on a 
visual metering system in daylight and on something else overnight.

Thank's to my neighbour dog a Labrador moaning and barking after me at the end 
of his chain during the whole operation... Just forget my pliers and screw-
driver down the tower!!! as i am not too lucky with my drilling probably the 
same with my pitching...JOKE ;)

As we can pass in an episode of minus  zero C temperature at any moment i don't 
take any chance and i jump on this +C swing i just remember a past winter with 
another rotor stuck as water fill in due to a crack in the casing not too happy 
to have a beam always pointing towards nowhere.

To be continued...


Luc Leblanc VE2DWE
Skype VE2DWE
www.qsl.net/ve2dwe
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