It’s all About the Gut…
December 10, 2012
After we got the baseline weight, it was all about the gut. (mine will be next)
I really can’t leave anything alone, and the interior of the C180 is no different. Starting with the rear side panels, the interior was removed piece by piece until all the side insulation was exposed.
Next, the headliner was cut out, and each piece of old fiberglass insulation expediently made its way into the garbage bag.
It’s amazing just how much this stuff weighs when you look at it item by item. Every single thing that came out was hung on the scale so we could keep track. By the end of the night, 84 lbs of interior had been removed (includes previously removed ski tube but does not include any old wiring, instruments or avionics.)
Next step will be to strip the interior to prep for paint. Then we deal with the panel…
Here is where the Skywagon stands from its purchase state RE: weight:
Day I purchased it: 1796 lbs (12 qts, 5 gal usable fuel, back seats, 600×6 tires, 10″ XP Mods TW)
As the Skywagon stands : 1749 lbs. This is w/ the interior removed and rear seats removed, 5 gal usable fuel, 12 qts oil, 8.5x10s, BAS harness installed, ABW 10″ wheels, ABW TW fork and 400×4 tire.)
The goal now will be to aim for a 1700 lb target and remove the last 50 lbs with a lightweight panel, lightweight seats, lightweight starter, lightweight ELT, MT prop, and moving the battery forward. I will be adding back in a 5 lb Hitchcock extended baggage, 3lb floor mat, and about 10 lbs of 1/4″ closed cell foam.
The count:
remove rear kick panels -9 lbs
remove door panels -4.3 lbs
remove baggage door panel -1 lb
remove mid trim -5 lbs
remove hat shelf -2 lbs
remove carpet -10 lbs
remove headliner, ceiling insulation, and metal bows – 9lbs
remove door arm rest -1 lbs
remove Audiovox casset player -3 lbs
remove ski tube -18 lbs
remove 600×6 w/ 6″ wheels -27 lbs
remove stock visors -1 lbs
remove lap belt/harness -3.5 lbs
remove XP Mods TW fork and 10″ TW -10.7 lbs
add ABW TW Fork/400×4 +11.5 lbs
add 8.5×10 w/ ABW 10″ wheels +85 lbs
add Rosen Visors + 0.7 lbs
add BAS Harness + 5 lbs
