These hooks are made of 3/32 piano wire and it was something different to bend them into a hook. Next I cut some leftover firewall ply for the plugs. I got a little creative and very carefully ground a lip so the 1" spring tube would be a tight interference fit even before it was glued. You can see that in pic 2.
I also bent the hook wire into a curve so it would sit into the outside of the plug. I put another piece of piano wire through that loop on the outside to spread the load. I got even more creative and potted the hooks in flox in two cured session on both sides to ensure they were centered. I also checked that I could get a spring on the hooks when they were in the tubes.
Having gotten this far I glued the plugs to the tubes which I had previously alodined. Once that was all done I sharpened another piece of 1" OD tubing and used that to cut a hole in both winglets. Finally the tube assembly was microed in place.
Why so much trouble on these? A friend of mine flew a Long-EZ from England and this hook failed and needed to be repaired on a day of thunderstorms and rain at my home field here in Melbourne. The rest of the plane made it here with no problems!
