Sunday 27 November 2016

Rigging boards part #2

This week-end I mainly worked on the rigging board assemblies.

Took a few runs of measure+position+glue+clamp+nail+watch glue dry+repeat until all boards were assembled. I did this at home since it's getting chilly in the hangar and the "watch glue dry" step would have taken longer:


I waited until I had the leading edge stops glued in place before drilling the 1/4" hole for the pivots. This way I could directly measure the 25 15/16" distance for this pivot (see drawing in previous post). Here's the almost final product:



Here's what it looks like on the wing:


I plan to paint 2 of them red and one white as suggested in the instructions. This way it creates a better contrast when looking boards against each other.

Thanks to Bill on BiplaneForum.com for the great plans and instructions. Thanks also to my friend Richard for letting me use his table saw : )

Sunday 20 November 2016

Rigging boards part #1

In preparation for the wings rigging, I started building rigging boards using the plans made by Bill on Biplane Forum. Wasn't sure which kind of wood to use; I finally chose plywood since it's a good compromise between price and and stiffness.

I don't have much woodworking tools so I had the long cuts and 3/8 radii made by a wood shop close to work. All holes and angle cuts were still to be made when I picked up the parts. I used a 1/2" Forstner bit to cut the opening in the 20" bar that swivels:


Then I converted my drill press into a mini milling machine by using a router bit and set the belts to fastest speed:


The rest of the parts were pretty easy to make. I could use my friend Richard's table saw to make the angle cuts:


I made enough parts for 3 boards as recommended on the plans. Next step: the assembly!

Monday 7 November 2016

Fuselage panels

Another quick post to mention that I reinstalled most of the fuselage panels. Had to trim a little bit the side panels around the gear area since it shifted forward about 1/16".


Still need to install the cabane panel and bottom panel... The wall of parts on the left is getting empty. I like where this is going!

Sunday 6 November 2016

Fuel System Installation #4 (of 4)

Quick post to say that today I finished the fuel system installation. I was waiting on the wings to connect the vent, drain and feed lines of the aux tank.

Here's what I see now when I get in the hangar!


Had to make new lines since I changed the routing of both the vent and drain lines. This one is the bottom half of the drain line... Pretty long to bend to what I needed.


The clear tube sections on the above picture are leftovers from my fuel sight tube (1/4 ID Tygon) I used as anti-chafing for areas close to other parts. Always better to think about this before doing the flares : )

I should be ready soon to reinstall the fuse panels...