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Happy New Year everyone. I finished my condition inspection on my Sport trainer during the last few weeks of December and got back to welding. I aligned the gear vee on the fuselage and welded it together and then added the steel plates for the gear struts. I got the gear strut collar tubes cut out and welded together, along with finishing welding in the bushings and the finger straps. I then jumped onto the bottom decking, I got the front 3 curved pieces formed and welded in along with the 2 center U channels for the stringers. I welded in the stringer brackets going back on the fuselage bottom. I welded in tabs for attaching the boot cowl on the bottom and rivnuts for a inspection panel below the elevator bell crank. From the curved steel tube at the front landing gear back will be fabric, since I am using the gear vee and landing gear legs, I will not need the aluminum pans on the bottom as with the colt/tri pacer gear, this all should help to keep weight down.
Todd I'll bet EAA would like to give you a hat for writing up how you used your laser levels to align the fuselage work ! Maybe drop a note to the Hints for Homebuilders page at editorial@eaa.org...
That's a good idea, I will look into it. I got the left and right steps cut out and welded in. I also made the bracket for the fuel drains and welded it in on the right side. Then I had to trim the tailwheel bracket a little, used laser level to get the leaf spring center, and welded it onto the fuselage. Finished it all with epoxy primer. Cut out the shock collars and welded them onto the bushings and drilled the pilot holes on the strut legs. I bolted on the gear legs and leveled the axles, then measured from the hole in the center cabane vee to the hole on the back side of the axle to get the struts total length. I will take a 1/2 off of this measurement to account for the weight on the struts when engine and everything is on.
I finished up the gear struts by drilling out holes and slides for bolts on springs, I leveled the axles and then measured from hole to hole center on the strut length and minused 1/2 inch for the weight of completed airplane. Cleaned everything up and epoxy primed them and then bolted on the tail leaf springs and wheel. I think I got all the welding done on the fuselage. I loaded it up and trailered it to the hangar. Time to clean shop and then I will start on the wings.
I had a busy February with a bath remodel and a lot of snow blowing, got back to work on the project last week. Started off by cleaning spars, ribs, nose ribs, drag wires, strut fittings, and wing attach fitting. I used MEK and scotch brite pads. I cut out spacers and shims for the strut and wing attach fittings. I drilled the holes in spars for compression struts, wing attach and strut fittings. Everything was then epoxy primed. Then I marked all the compression struts, rib, and nose rib locations on the front and rear spar for the left wing. I attached the lift strut brackets with spacers and shims to the front and rear spars, notched out one of the ribs at this location and slid on the ribs.
I have 2 questions: Do you prefer using the #4 x 1/4 PK screws or rivets to attach ribs to spars, if you use the screws do you use star lock washer, split lock washer or no washer at all, also what drill bit size to drill hole in spar. I used pull rivets on my sport trainer last time.
After squaring the wing and before attaching leading and trailing edge the 1-3/8 inch block goes under the last full rib, question is does this block go under the rib it self or the spar?
Piper used #4 PK screws but the have a taller head so the screw driver has more to grab. I use a #40 drill with a plate on the back side of the spar web to keep from nicking the spar web when I drill through. I get the screws from Dakota Cub.
I set my butt rib on a level saw horse and my outboard aileron bay rib on a level saw horse with the front edge of the saw horse at the front spar and my block at the rear spar. The wing twists and the twist is measured with a 30" level between the two spars. I feel like with the saw horse at this point I am replicating the same as the rigging instructions.
Don't do what I did once. Late one evening Cathy and I tried to trammel my Clipper wings. I got very frustrated and gave up. Went out the next morning and realized I was trying to trammel with my washout block in. Took the block out with wings flat and it was a piece of cake. I don't work well late at night, my brain turns off.
Perfect, just the advice I was looking for and I appreciate it. Sometimes life chooses your answers, I was getting out the rest of my wing hardware out of the basement today and I found two 100 bags of cherry max rivets, must have been left over from last build, so instead of ordering screws I am going to use up what I have. If I only can find my square aluminum for trammeling the wings, I'll be in business.