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Stiffeners Cut and Smoothed

August 11th, 2011 No comments

Proof of Builder Working!

My lovely wife paid the shop a visit and caught me working. I have been told it is a good idea to get some pictures that prove I actually did the work on the plane. So while she was there, I had her snap a few shots of me cutting the stiffeners to shape on the band saw.  I purchased this saw several years ago and boy am I glad I did. It made very quick work of getting the stiffeners cut to close to final shape. I got through them in about 40 minutes, taking my time.

Once I had them rough cut, I then moved over to the 12″ disk sander and finished the shaping. Knowing how to mass finish these will come in handy when I get to the flaps and ailerons…or so I have been told. 😉

Tacked and Ready for Drilling

Once the sanding to shape was complete, I headed over to the Scotchbright wheel and hit the edges to lose the burrs. Where it could not get with the wheel, I touched up with my files. I learned with the practice kit and some of the HS parts, that the Scotchbright wheel can take more material than you think in very little time, so I was very careful and methodical when hitting these little buggers with it. Once I get to the priming stage, I will clean up all the deburring with some maroon Scotchbright pads. For now however, they are ready to be match drilled. For another night however as it is late.

It’s neat to step back and look at how nice the fabricated stuff you do turns out. With all the prep work Van’s does on the kit, when the parts you make look like they belong, it is a good feeling. I will take a moment and admire every so often and then clean the shop a little before lights out.

Toothpick Anyone?

Before I called it a night and after patting myself on the back, I cleaned up a bit. Somewhere in the work period, one of my kids came in and must have done some art. I found this pile next to the band saw. I have a Picasso running loose in my shop. Who will start the bidding?

Cleaned up and put the tools away. Next up, drilling, dimpling, and the first try at back riveting for this build.

Categories: Rudder