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I have several problems with the subject SB.

First and foremost, when did a Service Bulletin become "mandatory" a la, an
AD?

Naturally, I appreciate any critical information that the company wishes to
issue, in whatever form they wish to issue it (sorry about the preposition,
you English majors!). However, two things bother me about the jist of this
one: If it's "Mandatory" how can we continue to fly the airplane for even
one more minute, rather than the "20 hours with inspection" if it's so
critical? Secondly, since the original design was courtesy of the company,
how can we be sure that the "fix" is sound?

I installed the original part blindly following the builder's manual (it
shows no tendency to come loose) but now I'm being told to again follow the
SB instructions blindly and install the brace. Where is the substantiation -
you know, like test data, etc. - that this fix isn't going to just transfer
the loads to the upper spar cap and damage that? This might very well happen
if the original part was installed using the wrong adhesive before doing the
lay-ups.

My concern may be moot in terms of your insurance carrier. They may consider
an SB mandatory, regardless of the legality of it all - or the structural
soundness of the fix. I hope we're not being forced into blindly following
the SB unless there is some very good numbers to back it up.

Something to consider, folks.

Dan Schaefer

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