On Monday, 12 February 2018 04:20:59 UTC+11, wrote:
Hi all.

I own a PW-5. I have a MM Fabrication Wing Rigger I use when put the glider together and take it apart.

Yesterday, a gust of wind caught the wing when it was vertical on the wing rigger, and even though I was holding the wing steady near the spar, the wind force was strong enough to topple the wing rigger and slam the leading edge on the ground (grass). Personally I think these wing riggers need longer wheel bases to provide more moment against moderately strong wind, but that is another story.

An initial inspection for damage showed a 3 inch crack in the fiberglass in the leading edge where it struck the ground. The crack is deep enough to show the square pattern of the underlying fiberglass cloth layer, so it's not just a surface crack. (A PW-5 doesn't have a gel coat anyway. It has a coat of paint over the fiberglass laminate.)

I'm now worried about structural integrity of the wing, of course. Should I be? What should be your next steps? or what would you do next if you were I?

Respectfully,
Charles "Ben" Ethridge

PW-5s are so lightly built that the crack is probably much larger than that under the bond. Get someone to check it out properly if it's anywhere inboard of the airbrakes.