February 1999
Feb 2-3, 1999
Complete sealing of tank seam. Results look good.
Install filler neck by floxing onto tank.
Install vent tube in forward portion of tank.
Check engine mount for fit around starter. It may be necessary to install engine without starter as the fit appears quite close.
Feb 4 - 7, 1999
Locate and drill engine mount attach bolt holes.
Install .018 GA 304 SS firewall and match drill engine mount attach holes.
Install engine mount attach bolts. Upper mounting bolts use self locking nutplates affixed directly to aluminum angle reinforcing. Lower bolts use standard elastic self locking nuts over an aluminum backing plate. Due to the height of the flooring in the forward area of the cockpit it was necessary to cut down approximately 1/4"- 3/8" to fit the backing plates.
My hovercraft is full of eels.
Fiberfrax was installed over firewall plywood using a special high temp adhesive (also used between fiberfrax and SS). Fiberfrax was cut away under engine mount pads to provide a solid footing (per Bingelis). Firewall steel was cut to fit and installed over the fiberfrax and secured using 4 small sheet metal screws.
Engine mount was painted, 2 coats with a high durability white enamel.
Feb 8, 1999
Install engine mount.
Re-install brake master cylinders and lines.
Size bolts for engine attach. AN7-35 for Revmaster on Rand Mount.
Feb 9, 1999
Remove seat and seat back for upholstery. Cloth will be charcoal, vinyl trim will be sky blue.
Feb 11, 1999
Remove elevator, cut out existing elevator trim cable and flox new elevator trim cable sheath into position. New cable (unbroken .056 music wire end to end) and steel sheath should be more robust than the "nyrod" style as recommended in the plans. Nyrod has poor resistance to cold temps (fatal flaw around here) and inadequate stiffness for unsupported runs in excess of 3-4".
Feb 13, 1999
Re-install elevator and new trim cable. Fabricate new trim tab control horn from .050 aluminum to make allowance for different cable attach (swivel).
Feb14, 1999
Fabricate trim control and install. Flox in extra supports for clamping trim cable at approximately 6" spacing. This should provide sufficient stiffness to prevent the cable buckling under compression loads applied during nose down trimming.
I have this nagging feeling I've forgotten something.
Feb 15, 1999
Order flowers, Order flowers, Order flowers....
Install cable clamps and trim control. A shim between the bracket and mounting pad was required to provide clearance between the cable swivel and the side wall. Control operates smoothly and provides improved stiffness to the trim tab.
Vaccuum interior of "boat" in preparation for varnish.
Feb 16, 1999
Begin wiring of tail navigation light.
Re-organize hardware cabinet. Expensive AN hardware was being duplicated because I could not find it in the cabinet. I guess I could use AN3-15A bolts repairing the vacuum?
Feb 17, 1999
Run ground strap down left side of cockpit terminate just past 1st bay behind seat.
Connect tail nav light to ground.
Connect fuel pump to ground.
Connect grounding wire to fuel line near pump. As far as practicable all metal components are being electrically bonded (using light 22/24 gauge hook up wire) to allow for flight through active thunderstorms (OK, radio reception).
Feb 18, 1999
Connect fuel level senders and wing stub bonding to ground (l&r).
Re-fabricate fuel shut off lever to achieve a light interference fit. This will hopefully prevent stripping of the soft brass spindle after prolonged use.
Begin fabrication of aux tank selector switch.
Feb 21, 1999
Complete fabrication of aux tank selector switch. Due to the extention a guide was installed just under the handle to prevent excessive side loads on the selector spindle. Switch indicator positions are as follows: Off - Aft position, Left Tank On - Left position, Right Tank On - Forward position.
Install forward cross member just behind fuel tank per plans. This had to wait until the fuel tank was complete for fitting. A final cross member remains to be installed just behind instrument panel and will be fit after panel fabrication.
Apply first coat of varnish to inside of boat from 2nd bay behind seat to horiz stab spar. The internal area behind the stab spar was varnished prior to final install of vertical fin.
Feb 23, 1999
Aux tank selector switch guide required elongation of the hole. This is likely due to some slight mis-alignment of the fuel selector placing the handle out of plane with the fuselage side. The fuel selector used (Weatherhead) was modified by extending the spindle to place the handle in a more accessible position (at pilot's left knee). The extension consists of a 5/16 bolt (head removed and a flat filed to fit handle) two jam nuts and a coupling nut. The handle was removed from the spindle which was then threaded to match the coupling nut.
Prepare a "backing plate" with nutplates for lower eleveator horn inspection cover. This consists of a 2.5mm plywood ring to which the 8-32 nutplates are riveted. This assembly will then be epoxied behind the 2 1/4" hole cut in the fuselage. The access hole (centre of the ring) is 1 1/2" in diamenter and should be sufficient to secure and inspect the lower elevator control horn. It may be necessary to drill a small (say 5/16") hole on the opposite side of the fuselage for a screwdriver to secure the clevis bolt during install.
Feb 24, 1999
Complete and install lower elev horn inspection cover. Installing the cover over waxed paper during the curing of the epoxy gives a good way to secure the ring in perfect alignment. Has anyone else noticed waxed paper getting harder to find these days? Seems like only yesterday one could obtain this useful item at any General Store/5 & 10.
Feb 25, 1999
Begin fitting of pre-moulded upper deck components. The position of the forward deck determines the position of the canopy frame, which in turn determines the position of the turtledeck. The fit of the forward deck and canopy frame is quite good but the turtledeck is slightly too wide at the front. This is in part because my fuselage is approx 3/4" narrower than spec at the seat back. In order to hold the turtledeck in position for fitting and gluing I used 2" pieces of an old hacksaw blade screwed into the fuselage side to create a tab.
Stared at project for a long time. This is the first time I've seen it with all the covers on. I did manage however to resist the temptation to sit in the thing and make engine noises.
Feb 28, 1999
Trim turtledeck to fit top longeron. Install sling seat and seat back temporarily to check for headroom. Clearance will be no more than 2" from the top of my head to the canopy. I am 5' 8" and set the seat back 7" from the plans measurement (a range of 6" - 8" was recommended). Builders taller than 5' - 8" (as if that's possible) should set the seat back the full 8" and avoid modifying the seat bottom (adding excessive foam, changing to a built up unit) without careful consideration. This is a small airplane and it would be easy to make it impossible for anyone but a left-handed midget to fly comfortably.
Install the motor on the mount. Motor is a Revmaster 2100D, the mount is from Rand Robinson. It took very little persuasion to get everything lined up. One word of caution however, the A/C is very nose heavy in this configuration (had better be or we're in for a lot of ballast later). It is necessary to find some way to secure the tail from coming up inadvertently.
