Oct 04, 2007     Center Spar - Installing in Fuselage - (18 hours)       Category: C14 Cen Spar

Note - this step, the last task of chapter 14, happens _after_ completing the wings and chapter 19. PK

The spar installation took a long time mainly due to setup. The actual taping was relatively straightforward. John and I set up the fuselage on some sawhorses, then carefully shimmed it using foam scraps to get it precisely level in all directions. I then spent some time sanding the spar cutout to make a hole exactly the right shape and size. We then installed the spar and shimmed that until it was well leveled. All of this took nearly two days, actually, because sorting out all the slight variations was a bit of touchy work.

  Apr 01, 2005     Center Section Spar Category: C14 Cen Spar

When I entered this chapter, I was fortunate enough to have some extra cash, and Dennis Oelmann happened to have a completed spar for sale. The center section spar is a critical structural member, and the idea of having this chapter just be "done" was appealing, especially after dealing with the spar cap tape in Chapter 19. (I had started that chapter before this one.) I'm glad I did. Dennis match-drilled the spar to my wings, which is a tricky bit of work out of the way. And the spar is absolutely beautiful work - Dennis always does a fantastic job.

Step 1 - Centersection Jig
Step 2 - Assembly of Foam Parts
Step 3 - Interior Layups
Step 4 - Install the Forward Face
Step 5 - Outside Hard Points
Step 6 - Spar cap layup
Step 7 - Shoulder harness blocks and outside layups
Step 8 - Hardpoint reinforcement
Step 9 - Access for Wing Attach and End Layup