I had flutter on a wing which is now fixed. The most inboard CA hinge on the aileron is loose. Question. Is there any way to replace this one hinge without messing with doing the whole wing? If so any techniques would be appreciated.

Cut both sides for the new CA hinge but cut an extra deep slot in one side. Mark the center of the hinge with a pencil mark. Feed the hinge into the deeply cut side. Carefully walk the hinge over into the other side using any pointed sharp instruments that appeal to you. When the center pencil mark appears in the center it's is time to apply new CA.

I've had Great Planes hinges fail twice as you describe and this last time I used some Radio South hinge material. No report on them as yet.

I do not think there is any method for replacing a single hinge like that. Your best bet is to cut the hinges and then install new ones about an inch away from the old locations. This would also insure that no other hinges are loose or damaged (if you found one, who's to say that its the only one like that?). Given how cheap and quick the repair is, it seems like common sense to me to simply replace all the hinges. Just my $.02

P.S.: I guess there is a method to doing it after all. If you go with Stripe's method, be careful not to bend the aileron too much while cutting the slots (since normally the aileron covers the area being worked on, so gotta bend out of the way).

I have the same problem. Inboard hinge on aileron broken, first ever for me. I like Stripes idea, I was wondering what would be the easiest.
Thanks, MikeB

Is it loose or broke in half ? If it is only loose try re-CAing it. That should fix it.

If the hinge is loose and not broken you might consider a small screw through the hinge along with CA.

Bill

No matter what method you use, only use one application of CA on each side. DO NOT re-apply CA to the hinge after you put the initial several drops on the hinge. Dual application of CA will cause it to unbond and eventually fail. I learned the hard way.

DS.

It has come loose a little and has a little too much slack. I think I can stuff it in there again maybe. The other hinges look fine.

You CAN stuff it in there if you like, but don't use CA to hold it in there if you had originally used CA to secure the hinge. It will debond the CA that is in there and cause you more problems. It is best to remove the hinge and replace it in a diffierent location. This may require you to remove ALL the hinges and start again. ( It may not actually debond it, but it does do someting to the CA or the hinges that causes them to detach from the material that they were originally bonded to. )

I know this to be a fact because I ran into this with my Tiger 60 ARF when I first put that together. After I put the ailerons on and hinged them, my instructor told me to never re-ca a hinge after it has the original three to five drop application. He said that they will come undone and may cause a crash. Well, I caught it after a flight when I just wiggled the aileron and saw slop in one, grabbed it and it pretty much popped off in my hand, just the way he said it would. So, I removed all control surfaces and relocated the hinges with only ONE application of CA and it bonded perfectly. I still have the Tiger 60 and it still flys great, and the hinges are solid.

Hey, that may take you all of a half hour to do, but you will be much better off and have a safer plane than you did before.

DS.

If you want to repair it without having to remove the aileron, you have two options:

You could drill a hole (or two) through the TE and the hinge and glue a toothpick into each hole - Do the same on the Aileron side of the hinge.

Or

Cut through the hinge and weave 3/8" strips of covering through the gap like this

Thanks for everyone for their help. With the location of the CA hinge, there was just enough room to slightly push the aileron down and cut slots for another hinge. I double checked the aileron afterwards to make sure I did not hurt anything.