Oil Canned Wings

455 Bravo Uniform

455 Bravo Uniform

Final Approach
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455 Bravo Uniform
1970s 182. Possibly used as a tow-plane in its past Tail is apparently reinforced. No damage history. But wing skins are "oil-canned" according to one mechanic (not mine nor the Seller's) who did only an external inspection; he did not seem worried about it.

Is it a waste of time, or worth going into a pre-buy to check internal structure? We are splitting the cost of a pre-buy and transport.

(FYI, before you say 182s are a dime a dozen, I agree; this is specifically equipped as I want it, fair price, and will be gone through with a fine tooth comb).
 
Seems like that comb isn't that fine - you are on here asking us to tell you to ignore the opinion of a licensed mechanic so you can buy the airplane you have decided, already, to buy.
How much will it cost you to replace both wings AFTER you buy it?
Pay for the wing inspection out of your own pocket.
 
Very few Cessnas that have any time on them don't have some degree of "oil canning" on the wing tops. Using the words doesn't provide enough information to comment on. Ask a mechanic you trust to take a look on your behalf.
 
What is oil canning and what does it indicate?
 
I'd be more concerned if there were signs of smoking rivits in the oil canning area. Now, the seller can clean that up pretty good where you couldn't visually see that, for the reason of internal wing inspection.
 
Matt C said:
What is oil canning and what does it indicate?
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It just means there's some buckling/deformation of the sheet metal. Usually happens on larger sections and is caused by uneven stress across the various parts of the panel. If it's bad enough, the rivets will start to wear into the metal and elongate the fastener pilot holes.
 
Thanks guys.

Dr. O said:
Seems like that comb isn't that fine - you are on here asking us to tell you to ignore the opinion of a licensed mechanic so you can buy the airplane you have decided, already, to buy.
How much will it cost you to replace both wings AFTER you buy it?
Pay for the wing inspection out of your own pocket.
Click to expand...

Mechanic was not mine, and he said it was fine. I don't know enough about oil canning, that's why I came on here and asked. I just don't want to even start a pre-buy if that condition tells me to walk away right now. I'd walk away now if needed, I'm not in love with it.
 
Australian plane?

3.1221602100.huge-fosters_display_image.jpg
 
Matt C said:
What is oil canning and what does it indicate?
Click to expand...
upload_2017-4-27_11-11-56.png

*I would have it inspected by someone I trust. A wing is not an area of the plane you want to take any risk with.
 
That's what I assumed it meant, thanks to both for the explanation. It seems to me that most every high wing, large surface area design I've seen has some amount of rippling or imperfection.... maybe I'm crazy? BTW - I don't spend time around to many sub-30 year old airplanes and mine is 50+
 
They are a dime a dozen. It is, and will be for years, a buyer's market for those airplanes. Fewer pilots equals fewer buyers. There are degrees of oil-canning, which we cannot judge for you. If the plane is intriguingto you pay for a very thorough pre-buy with transition to annual. Why take on someone else's $20,000
Roblem?
 
Even if "sound" maybe ask yourself if you buy it will it bug you after that it has that issue?
Will it mean worry and paying extra attention the whole time you own it to check that it isn't getting worse?

you mention it being equipped how you want, does that mean special options that aren't common?
 
LongRoadBob said:
Even if "sound" maybe ask yourself if you buy it will it bug you after that it has that issue?
Will it mean worry and paying extra attention the whole time you own it to check that it isn't getting worse?

you mention it being equipped how you want, does that mean special options that aren't common?
Click to expand...

Good questions.

Yes, I'll be comfortable once it's opened up and inspected closely from a structural standpoint. Not worried about cosmetics. The question was asked so I wouldn't waste time on it if it was a simple automatic no-go...I didn't know what oil-canning was and if it was normal.

Correct on the options not being common. I'll fill you guys in if I get it on contract (or of someone else does, lol).
 
Don't forget that someday you might be selling this airplane and the buyer will be asking the same questions. Any discount you get now will be applied when you sell too.

Sellers in real estate always seem to forget this. They negotiated down the property next to a landfill when they bought it, but when they're selling it's worth more since it backs to "open space".
 
I've never seen a aluminum wing that was like glass sighting down from root to tip, but if a mechanic actually came out and mentioned it, unless he had anterior motives or something, I'd suspect this isn't just normal imperfection.
 
James331 said:
I've never seen a aluminum wing that was like glass sighting down from root to tip, but if a mechanic actually came out and mentioned it, unless he had anterior motives or something, I'd suspect this isn't just normal imperfection.
Click to expand...
You don't know what oil canning means. Oil canning is a sign of some high stress, often associated with aging aircraft. Oil canning means when you push on it, it springs in and pops (popping sound) back out (usually) when you release. It can happen for many reasons such as due to metal stretching, hidden fracture, or the structure being subjected to temperatures sufficient to modify the heat treat. Have seen that in an APU compartment that had a fire. And, maybe you meant ulterior motive?
 
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GlennAB1 said:
You don't know what oil canning means. Oil canning is a sign of some high stress, often associated with aging aircraft. Oil canning means when you push on it, it springs in and pops (popping sound) back out (usually) when you release. It can happen for many reasons such as due to metal stretching, hidden fracture, or the structure being subjected to temperatures sufficient to modify the heat treat. Have seen that in an APU compartment that had a fire. And, maybe you meant ulterior motive?
Click to expand...

Ahh, I was thinking he was just talking having that not completely glass smooth look when sighting down a wing. Gotcha.
 
Thanks again guys. We'll see what it is. I've learned enough here in this thread to neither ignore it nor totally walk away based on one A&P's comment who never opened the inspection panels (or we all, me included, who have never seen the outer surface of the wing). Gonna take it to prebuy and have mechanic thoroughly evaluate, and if there is any chance there's a problem, gonna terminate the deal.
 
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