Initial Prep (Debur, Trim, Drill, and Cut) 3/8/22 – 1.6h 3/12/22 – 0.9h 3/27/22 – 2.0h 3/28/22 – 1.9h 3/29/22 – 1.6h 3/30/22 – 1.4h 3/31/22 – 1.9h 4/1/22 – 2.1h 4/2/22 – 0.8h 4/15/22 – 0.9h 4/16/22 – 0.7h 4/17/22 – 1.2h 4/18/22 – 1.0h 4/21/22 – 0.5h 5/1/22 – 1.0h Preparation of the top wing skins started by clecoing the inboard skin and wing walk doublers to the main and rear spars and the wing ribs. I have not installed the rear spar yet, and I don't plan to do any of the match / final drilling until the rear spar assembly is complete. Clecoing the skins in place at this stage is valuable, though, to ensure all the skins are oriented and marked correctly. For example, it is possible to install the aft wing walk doubler upside down. The aft wing walk doubler has two holes near the aft edge that are ignored on the RV-14. Those holes provide a valuable clue to the doubler's orientation, which I learned as I removed the top skin and noticed the doubler was face down with the holes near the forward edge! I flipped the doubler over to the correct orientation, and then used my Sharpie to make sure it was labeled for correct installation later. The parts for this step are probably the easiest to edge-debur that I've come across so far. No flanges, no facets, no curves – just long, straight edges. I deburred the wing walk doublers, inboard skins, and outboard skins, and then cleco'd the inboard skin and wing walk doublers to the spars and ribs to set up for drilling. I also finished deburring the left and right upper J-Channels. There is some match-drilling for the nutplate rivet holes along the inboard edge of the inboard wing skin and wing walk doublers, as well as final drilling for the nutplate screw holes. All of the #40 holes common to the inboard wing skin and wing walk doublers are also final drilled. [Hole and Edge Deburring Tools, #40 Drill, #19 Drill] Final Prep (Dimple, Countersink, and Shape) 4/2/22 – 0.9h 4/15/22 – 1.8h 4/16/22 – 2.2h 4/25/22 – 0.9h 4/26/22 – 0.6h 4/27/22 – 1.5h 4/28/22 – 1.3h 4/29/22 – 0.9h 4/30/22 – 0.9h 5/2/22 – 0.7h 5/3/22 – 1.6h 5/5/22 – 0.9h The holes in the top inboard wing skin that correspond to the wing walk doublers are countersunk rather than dimpled. The plans state that countersinks up to .005” too shallow are preferred to countersinks that are too deep, so I backed off my countersink cage setting to leave the countersink about .002” too shallow. Countersinks that are too deep could enlarge the holes in the top skin. The rivet heads will sit just slightly high, but that won't be noticeable after the wing walk anti-slip material is in place and may end up nearly flush after the rivets are set. There is a step on this page of the plans that I'm not a huge fan of. The plans specify thinning the inboard and outboard wing skins where the overlap near the forward edge to be flush with the .032” fuel tank skin they butt up against. The inboard skin is .032” and the outboard skin is .025” for a total thickness of .057” where they overlap. My plan was to thin each skin to approximately .016” with a gradual thickness taper toward the corner of each skin. The problem with this step is it requires a lot of trial-and-error test fitting, which isn't easy with the relatively large skins; and if you go too far, the skins are ruined. I started with the flat file to get the skins closer to the desired thickness, then switched to the Dremel, Scotch Brite Wheel, and 220 grit aluminum oxide sandpaper to work the taper and get the final thickness. It is a very time-consuming process. I got the skins close to the required thickness, but left them just a little thick to avoid accidentally tearing through the skin. The skins get pretty thin and fragile around .018” thickness. The final preparatory steps are to put a slight edge break in the leading edge of the inboard and outboard wing skins to help them rivet tight to the forward wing spar, and along the inboard edge of the outboard wing skin to help it rivet tight in the lap joint with the inboard skin. The top flanges of the wing ribs, other than those that sit under the wing walk doublers, also get dimpled at this stage. You could actually dimple the rib top flanges (like the bottom flanges) before the ribs are attached to the forward spar if you are confident of not accidentally dimpling one of the ribs under the wing walk doublers. If not, dimpling is easy enough with a squeezer at this stage of the build. [Microstop Countersink Cage, #40 Countersink Cutter; Dremel with sanding barrel bit, 2” ScotchBrite Wheel, Flat File, Edge Forming Tool (Vise Grip Style), Hole and Edge Deburring Tools, 22” C-Frame with #40 Standard Diameter Dimple Dies, Pneumatic Squeezer with #40 Reduced Diameter Dimple Die] Prime 4/11/22 – 0.5h 4/14/22 – 0.8h 4/24/22 – 1.0h 4/27/22 – 0.5h 4/29/22 – 2.5h 5/2/22 – 0.7h 5/8/22 – 0.5h I decided to try a different brand of primer. The Dupli-Color primer prices are going up, and I ran across a can of Rust-Oleum Self Etching primer that was about 30% - 40% less. The spray tip on the Rust-Oleum is not quite as precise as the Dupli-Color, so the paint goes on thicker and dries with a rougher (powdery) texture. I used a ScotchBrite pad to smooth the painted surface after the primer dried, and I was very happy with the smooth, thin, and apparently durable finish. I have not subjected the primer to the duct tape test, yet, but I plan to make the switch to the new primer. [Grey ScotchBrite Pads, Bon-Ami Cleanser, Dupli-Color Degreaser, Dupli-Color Self-Etching Automotive Primer (Green – Rattle Can), Rust-Oleum Automotive Self Etching Primer (Green – Rattle Can)]