Work has continued on plane parts, though the frequency of my posts has diminished since the beginning of the year. Here is a quick catch-up of recent activities.
The fuselage sill is filled with two-part resin/colloidal silica mixture just prior to dropping the canopy into place.
The lower retaining screws are locked into position while the resin cures. Next the canopy and mid-skins are pop riveted together along both sides. These two actions permanently attach the canopy to the fuselage.
Here are exterior and interior views of where the canopy and mid-skin meet. Overall a nice result.
DOOR HINGE PIN BLOCKS
The PlaneAround center cam gear block is located under the gear mechanism and then drilled/screwed in tightly.
Next the door pins are replaced with custom turned 5/16″ bolts to indicate the exact locations of the bulkhead through-holes. The right photo shows the resulting latch pin location.
Finally the outer pin blocks are positioned to force the door down and in when the door lever is activated. Right now the fit is very snug, but I expect this will loosen a bit over time. One this is for sure with this configuration, those doors will not be coming off the airplane in flight!
Baggage Door Hinges
I was not happy with fit or configuration of the original baggage door, so off came the larger hinges. These were replaced with smaller hinges, and pins moved to a middle insertion point. This allowed the relationship between the door, hinge and outer skin surface to be flush, as compared to having the hinges sticking out to allow pin insertion.
Custom Parts
Moving heavy objects around in the basement shop will be helped with a few custom-made skates. These are made from 2×4 steel beams, 5/8″ drill rod at 10-2RS sealed ball bearings. The plans are from the internet with no welding required, just proper alignment in the drill press. Eric will make 3D printed end caps to hold the skate axles in place.