October, 2003 fuselage work

Oct 3 - Night-time temps have been getting down into the mid-20s, so I was suddenly struck with the need to do about a million things to prep for winter.  All my race bikes, other motorcycles, tractors, mowers, generators, compressors, splitter, etc; everything with an engine, and the house all need things done to get ready for the horrible 6 months of winter to about to descend upon us.  Also, my wind generator was having problems, so I had to get that taken down, and I spent an entire weekend working on the wind gen blades.  I also had to replace the fuel pump on my plow truck.   With all the pumps and accessories mounted on that engine, I knew it would be a difficult job, even though it's only 2 bolts and 2 rubber fuel lines to attach.  Working on that nasty, filthy, greasy thing, laying in its puddle of grease, oil, and antifreeze, with crud falling and dripping down onto my face, sure made me appreciate working on my nice, clean plane.

  Wind generator set up in my shop to fix the blades.  They were out of balance in every way; balance point off by a little, weight off by 2.2 oz, tracking off by 3/4", incidence off by a couple degrees.  After lots of trial and error, and shimming, got them trued up pretty good.  The wind gen has been plagued with balance/vibration problems for several years.  I got it "professionally" balanced a couple times, but obviously they didn't put any care into it.  With what I've learned about props from building the plane, I was able to do a MUCH better job by myself.  No more vibration problems!

 

Oct 10 - Finally got a chance to get back to the plane.  I received my dual brake kit last week, so I started working on that.  I had originally ordered the QB kit with the dual brakes, then I decided to cancel them to save weight.  Then I decided that I should get them for the unlikely chance they might be used, especially in a plane that uses brake steering.  Filed, deburred, clecoed, drilled, cleaned & primed all the brake pedal parts.  Removed brake/rudder pedal weldment from fuselage.  It comes out rather easily if you do it just right, but it took me a while to figure out what was the "just right" sequence of moves.  4.0 hr

  RT side brake pedals deburred and clecoed.

 

Oct 11 - Countersunk one set of holes I'd missed on the RT brake pedal parts.  Finished priming parts.  Took a couple hours off to do some shooting while the primer dried.  Fired up a couple hundred rounds of .223.  Rebuilt air compressor line oiler.  Started clecoing brake parts to rivet.  1.5 hr

  Priming the back side of all the brake pedal pieces.

 

Oct 12 - Rivet and mount RT brake pedal parts.  Reinstall brake/rudder pedal assembly.  Plumb in brake line tubing and hoses.  Decided that the plastic tubing I had set up for the single brake system (different routing) is just a bit too short for the dual brake routing.  Removed tubing.  3.0 hr +  3.0 doc

  Here are the brake pedals riveted together.  I used 470 rivets on the pedal faces, instead of the 426 called out in the plans.  This was to match the LT side, where I had initially used 470s inadvertently, then decided I like this look better, anyway.

 

  Here are the RT side brake pedals mounted to the rudder pedal weldment.

 

  And here they're all reinstalled in the fuselage.  I decided to redo the plastic tubing from the LT side.  With the new configuration, I thought the plastic tubing was a few inches too short to run to the RT side.  I need to lay the lines out carefully, so neither they nor the black brake hoses chafe on anything.

Oct 15 - Received Eggenfellner fuel valve and heater kit

Oct 22 - Been working 7 days a week, so no work on plane.  Good to have income, though.  Gotta take it when & where I can get it.

GO TO NOVEMBER

BACK TO MY RV BUILDER'S HOME

BACK TO BRIAN'S HOME