Rant: I thought those new composite patch kits were just overpriced junk

We had a small crack on a Cessna 172's wing skin at our shop in Phoenix, and the boss made me try one of those bonded carbon fiber patches instead of a standard riveted repair. After a year of flying in the desert heat, that patch is holding up better than the original aluminum around it. Has anyone else been pushed to use these new materials and been surprised by the results?

3 comments

3 Comments

terryscott13h ago

Honestly, I was right there with you on them being junk. We had to patch a belly panel and I grumbled the whole time. That thing has taken way more abuse than I expected and hasn't budged. Makes you rethink some of the old playbooks.

the_viola9h ago

Maybe it's just luck with that one patch. Seen a few of those repairs on older planes where the bond failed after a few thermal cycles... left a real mess to clean up and redo properly. Sometimes the new stuff works, but a row of rivets in good aluminum is a known thing. Hard to beat what's been proven for decades.

richarddixon16h ago

Funny you mention that, we had a similar thing with a door panel on a King Air. The shop foreman insisted on trying one of those fancy fabric patches, said it was just for a quick fix. Two years later, that patch looks brand new but the paint around it is all faded. Makes you wonder what else we're still doing the old way just because it's how we've always done it.