Mar 07, 2024     Cowl attach hinges - (0.9 hour)       Category: Cowl

I wanted to get the plane to the paint shop with the cowls on, but I had some difficulty sliding the bottom cowl's right attachment pin through the piano hinge. In the interest of time, I decided to forego taking the cowls over to the paint shop until I could figure out why the lower cowl suddenly didn't fit.

I initially sanded a bunch of the built-up area at the lower corner of the cowl, but that didn't help much.

I later figured out that when I'd painted the inside of the cowls with RhinoLiner, I'd put a coat of it between the piano hinge eyes on the right side. This likely wasn't letting the hinge eyes mesh correctly. I filed away the liner between the hinge eyes, and I'm fairly certain this will solve the problem.

  Mar 05, 2024     Final cowl sanding and profile improvements - (3 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Filled and sanded several areas of the cowl that needed it, concentrating on the front inlet holes.
2. I had previously bonded a thin strip of aluminum to the edge of the oil door opening to serve as a shim to allow the oil door to sit at the correct height. After looking at it, I determined this needed to be beefed up, so I drilled three holes through the strip and the cowl, countersunk the holes, and squeezed three rivets there. That strip isn't going anywhere now.
3. Improved the consistency of the seam around the oil door. Also filled several divots there.

  Mar 04, 2024     Cowl detail sanding and filling; Heat shield improvement - (2.7 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded yesterday's filler.
2. Inspected the entire cowl (upper and lower) for divots and larger pinholes. Filled them all.
3. I noticed a while ago that I'd installed the heat shield material inside the lower cowling right up to the edge of the cowl. This left no room to apply the same bead of high-temp RTV the rest of the heat shield has. So today, I used a sharp knife to trim off the heatshield about 1/8" away from the edge. This gave me enough room to apply a bead of RTV and smooth it out, without getting any on the edge. This will be important for painting.

  Mar 01, 2024     Cowl filling and sanding - (2.3 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Detail-sanded and feathered yesterday's filler.
2. Spent some additional time going over the cowlings -- filling divots, correcting profiles, and sharpening some seams.
3. Masked the Hartwell latches and hinge on the oil access door in preparation for painting.

  Feb 29, 2024     Lower cowl sanding and spot-filling - (2.2 hours)       Category: Cowl

Even though my painter is going to address the pinholes in the cowls, I spent a bit of time with a flashlight, a sanding block, and tube of filler to track down and correct any spots I felt were problems. The lower cowl seems like it had fewer issues than the upper cowl did yesterday. After some detail sanding tomorrow, it should be pretty much ready to go.

  Feb 28, 2024     Upper cowl sanding; Lower cowl heat-shield sealing - (3.3 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the outside surfaces of the upper cowl. Got rid of a lot of the inconsistencies (except for the pinholes, which will be taken care of by my painter.)
2. Completed sealing of the heat-shield material inside the lower cowl.

  Feb 27, 2024     Lower cowl heat-shield edge seal - (0.9 hour)       Category: Cowl

In an effort to keep oil from getting underneath the seams of the heat shield fabric on the inside of the lower cowl, I ran a bead of high-temp RTV along the seams, then smoothed them with my finger.

I ran out of RTV, so this project will be completed tomorrow.

  Oct 06, 2023     Upper cowl interior edge painting - (0.1 hour)       Category: Cowl

Removed the masking paper and tape, and inspected the recently-painted inside edge of the upper cowl.

  Oct 05, 2023     Upper cowl interior edge painting - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

Cleaned, masked, and painted the pink edges of the interior of the upper cowl.

  Oct 04, 2023     Upper cowl sealer, 2nd coat - (1.6 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the first layer of Rhino liner on the inside of the top cowl.
2. Vacuumed and cleaned the surface.
3. Mixed and applied the second and final layer of liner to the cowl.
4. Removed most of the Skybolt fasteners in preparation for painting the remaining interior pink areas of the cowl.

  Oct 03, 2023     Upper cowl sealer, 1st coat - (1.35 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Cleaned and masked the inside of the upper cowl.
2. Mixed and applied the first coat of Rhino 9700 liner.

  Oct 01, 2023     Lower cowl sealer - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Mixed up a small batch of Rhino 9700 cowl sealer.
2. Used a small paintbrush to apply sealer to the final small areas of the lower cowl, including along all the edge seams of the heat barriers, and around the inlet nutplates.
3. Applied a layer of sealer over the rivets and flox that attach the Skybolt fasteners.

  Sep 30, 2023     Bottom cowl heat reflector - (1.75 hours)       Category: Cowl

Prepped and applied the final pieces of heat reflector on the inside of the bottom cowl.

  Sep 24, 2023     Bottom cowl heat reflector - (2 hours)       Category: Cowl

Cut and applied the first four sections of Thermo-Tec aluminized heat barrier to the inside of the lower cowl. This stuff withstands radiant heat up to 2000 degrees, and it should protect my cowl from the nearby exhaust pipes.

I still have to cut and install about five pieces.

  Sep 11, 2023     Bottom cowl liner treatment - (1.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded and prepped the first coat of Rhino 9700 liner that I applied yesterday, removing all the burrs, bubbles, runs, and slight orange peels I could.

2. Mixed and applied a second coat. Lots of lessons learned today. This time, I used less of the product on the roller, which made a big difference in the outcome. It came out much smoother, with a lot fewer bubbles and imperfections. I also used a different type of brush -- one that doesn't lose bristles. Finally, I resisted the urge to re-brush areas that looked imperfect. (If you do this even 2 minutes after applying it, it will not dry looking the same as the previously-applied areas.) Overall, I'm pretty happy with the Rhino 9700 product, and it seems like it will make cleanups of the cowl a breeze, as well as protecting it from stains.

  Sep 10, 2023     Cowl inlet seals; Bottom cowl liner treatment - (4.7 hours)       Category: Cowl

Cowl Inlet Seals:
1. Drilled three attachment screw holes in the edges of the lower cowl inlets.
2. Cut and bent the baffle seal retainer strips out of 0.060x1/2x12 aluminum.
3. Trimmed the strips to fit, and trimmed the rubber seals.
4. Sandwiched the seals between the retaining strips on the cowl, clamped everything in place, and drilled through the seals and strips.
5. Countersunk the holes in the cowl.
6. Cleaned up all the parts, then test-fit them using 6-32 CS screws and locknuts. Removed the seals.

Cowl liner:
7. Sanded and cleaned up the inside of the lower cowl.
8. Prepped the Rhino 9700 novolac epoxy coating/lining. Prepped the application tools.
9. Mixed the coating (2:1 epoxy to hardener).
10. Applied the liner to the inside of the lower cowl using a short roller, a 1" chip brush, and a 1/4" detail brush. It has a 20-minute working time, and I got 99% of it applied before it began to set up, so I'll have to hit a few more spots when I apply the second coat.

  Sep 08, 2023     Bottom cowl edge sanding - (0.5 hour)       Category: Cowl

Sanded the aft edges of the bottom cowl to the previously-established trim marks.

  Aug 26, 2023     Upper cowl - inside spot-filler - (0.2 hour)       Category: Cowl

Added spot-filler to several locations on the inside of the top cowl.

  Aug 20, 2023     Trimmed baggage door - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Removed baggage door.
2. Trimmed both sides to the previously-marked margin lines.

  Aug 19, 2023     Oil door trimming - (1.05 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the rivet filler.
2. Trimmed the edge of the oil door to get the proper margins.
3. Primed the door.

  Aug 13, 2023     Upper cowl gap sanding; Final oil door prep - (2.2 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Made a long sanding block out of a nice straight piece of scrap wood and some self-adhesive 120-grit paper.
2. Sanded the edges of the upper cowl in various locations to meet the masking tape marks I'd made a while ago. This should give the margins requested by my painter, and also improves the overall look of the seams.
3. Sanded some of the small spacer areas on the inside of the cowl that lift the cowl up to meet the top skin of the fuselage. (Several of these areas had been standing slightly proud of the skin.)
4. Filled a couple of slightly-over-countersunk flush rivets on the oil door, to make them completely disappear.

  Aug 12, 2023     Ramp fillers - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Final-sanded the inboard ends of the filler plugs, then shot a final layer of primer on them.

  Aug 08, 2023     Ramp fillers - (1.75 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the ramp plugs until they were mostly smooth.
2. Cleaned and primed the plugs.
3. Applied some spot-filler to take care of the pinholes and some minor divots.

  Aug 07, 2023     Ramp fillers - (0.7 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the plugs and their cowl interfaces.
2. Mixed up some resin, micro, and cabosil.
3. Spread a layer of it on the inboard sides of the foam plugs. This will level the area, and make it easier to sand tomorrow.

  Aug 06, 2023     Ramp fillers - (1.25 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Mixed up a cup of resin, flox, micro, and cabosil.
2. Spread the mixture on all surfaces of both foam plugs, then installed the plugs under inboard ends of the inlet ramps.
3. Used a brush to fill the seams and smooth out the resin mixture.

  Aug 05, 2023     Ramp fillers - (1.6 hours)       Category: Cowl

In order to prevent airflow from the inside of the baffling from escaping to the outside by passing through the cavity under the inlet ramps, I have decided to seal the inboard ends of the ramps.

1. Measured the cavities and cut some rough plug shapes out of 1" foam.
2. Used a coarse, flat file to shape the plugs so they would fill the holes, with about a 1/16" gap all around.

  Jun 06, 2023     Oil door sanding and priming - (1.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. My custom aluminum oil door had some remaining ripples in it, as a result of the way I bent it to match the cowl. I decided to fix this by using a file and a 220-grit sandpaper on a hard block. I was able to completely remove the ripples and also smooth out one of the rivets in one of the Hartwell latches.
2. Sanded the outside surface of the door with 400-grit paper.
3. Cleaned and masked the door.
4. Primed the door with high-fill, self-etching primer.

  Apr 27, 2023     Oil door inside prep/paint - (1.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

Final-sanded and painted the inside of the oil door.

  Jan 23, 2023     Oil filler door - (0.7 hour)       Category: Cowl

Sanded and primed the stiffener on the inside of the oil filler door.

  Jan 22, 2023     Oil door stiffener - (0.5 hour)       Category: Cowl

I've been pretty happy with the oil door stiffener I created a while ago, but I was aware that the stiffener had some divots in it that detracted from its look. So while today's fiberglass work cured, I mixed up some SuperFil and applied it to the stiffener. After it began to set, I manually pressed it into the voids. Tomorrow I'll sand it and paint it.

  Jan 15, 2023     Cowl sanding - (1.6 hours)       Category: Cowl

Block-sanded the cowl.

  Dec 24, 2022     Sanded pinhole filler - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

Sanded last night's pinhole filler. A couple of areas didn't seem fully cured, probably because of the temperature in the shop, so I'll come back to finish this job in a few days.

  Dec 23, 2022     Pinhole filling - (1.6 hours)       Category: Cowl

I decided to do a test-filling of the pinholes in the top cowl:

1. Put the cowls on the airplane.
2. Sanded the top cowl with 80-grit sandpaper.
3. Blew off the cowl with high-pressure air.
4. Mixed up a batch of resin and hardener, then cut it 50% with acetone.
5. Brushed the mixture all over the top cowl with a chip brush. Smoothed out any ripples, runs, and bubbles as it set up.

  Dec 19, 2022     Filler sanding; Oil door stiffener work - (1.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

All I had time to do today was:

1. Sand the various spots where I applied filler yesterday.

2. Sand and prime the inside of the door and the stiffener I made yesterday.

  Dec 18, 2022     Misc, cowl filling; Oil access door stiffener - (1.8 hours)       Category: Cowl

It wasn't a very productive day overall, but I did a little work on some miscellaneous projects.

1. Filled lots of divots on the cowls. (These were areas that were bigger than pinholes, and therefore probably couldn't be fixed with pinhole filler.)

2. Mixed up a batch of thick flox and made a goalpost-shaped stiffener on the inside of the oil access door. Once it cures, I'll sand it smooth, then prime and paint the inside of the door. This should definitely keep the door from flexing inflight.

3. Retrieved the wheel pants from storage. Cleaned them and inspected them. They are, as with most of Vans fiberglass pieces, in terrible shape. Lots of work ahead. [NO PHOTO]

  Nov 29, 2022     Final cowl inlet trim and attachment - (0.7 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Fitted the cowl with the baffles in place. Marked the top cowl where it needed to be trimmed inside the inlets, in order to match the bottom inlets.
2. Removed the top cowl and cut the inlets sides at the marks.
3. Replaced the top cowl. Marked and drilled the final two attachment holes on the inboard sides of the inlets. These two, along with the two others previously drilled, will receive nutplates shortly.

  Nov 11, 2022     Cowl air outlet stiffener - (1.1 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the areas of filler at the bottom lower curves of the cowl.
2. Sanded and primed the stiffener layup at the bottom of the lower cowl.

  Oct 31, 2022     Cowl exit sanding - (0.4 hour)       Category: Cowl

Sanded the layup at the bottom of the cowl exit. Primed it .

  Oct 25, 2022     Oil filler door; Cowl fit improvements - (5.3 hours)       Category: Cowl

Oil filler door:
1. Carefully finished sanding the edge filler around the door. I am pretty pleased with how this came out!
2. To improve the fit even more, I ended up making two small improvements that sanding alone could not solve. I bonded a 0.018" thick steel shim to the face of the aft latch arm, and I fabricated and bonded a similar strip to the bottom lip of the door cutout in the upper cowl. These two projects really made the door fit as well as I can make it fit.
3. I test-fit the filler door spring, and the door works great! (Note to self: Be careful when removing the door hinge pin while the spring is installed. That little sucker can shoot at least 20 feet across the shop if you're not careful.)

Lower and upper cowl improvements:
3. To get the lower cowl to look good, I continued filing the outside of the lower-aft corners, where they curl underneath the fuselage. Then, to beef up this area once again, I added an epoxy-flox mixture on the inside of the cowl.
4. Sanded the previously-added built-up flox areas along the inside of the top cowl, where it meets the firewall.
5. Block-sanded the rivet lines on the lower cowl so they are super-smooth.
6. After looking at the lower cowl with a critical eye, I came to the conclusion that the cowl exit lip seemed somewhat flexible and floppy, especially for such a high-stress area. It looked like the relatively thin fiberglass there might buffet a lot from the exhaust pulses, the exiting cooling air, and even just the ambient airflow under the airplane. I decided to strengthen it a bit. I laid up a two-ply of BID cloth and high-temperature Aeropoxy, and laid it along the inside of the cowl exit ramp. We'll see if this makes it significantly stiffer. If not, no harm / no foul.
7. Removed both cowls. Beveled the edges of both the upper and lower cowl. Trimmed some previously-marked area on the lower cowl.

Other than installing a few nutplates and filling all the pinholes, I think the cowl is nearly done.

  Oct 24, 2022     Cowl seams; Oil filler door - (2 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the filler I applied a couple of days ago on the lower cowl.
2. Block-sanded the filler on the oil filler door opening. Primed the area to see what needs more work.
3. Applied more filler along parts of the edge of the opening.

  Oct 22, 2022     Oil filler door - (1.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Now that the latch striker plates are bonded successfully, I tested out the new door. It works great!

2. I decided to make the oil door look nice on the cowl by straightening and filling the seams. I scuffed the cowl, applied two layers of electrical tape and packing tape to the oil door, then attached and closed it. Then I made up a very thick mixture of resin and micro (to the consistency of spackle, so it wouldn't sag or run), then applied this mixture around the edges of the door. I pressed it into the seams as much as I could, then waited about 10 minutes and removed the door. When this stuff cures, I'll sand it and see how things look.

  Oct 21, 2022     Oil filler door - (4.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Very carefully filed and sanded the holes for the Hartwell latches to get them sized properly so the latches would work smoothly and have enough clearance. Sanded the edges of the holes.
2. Clamped, drilled and clecoed the latches to the door.
3. Removed the latches and countersunk the rivet holes.
4. Riveted the hinge to the door.
5. Riveted the latches to the door.
6. Cut out two 1-1/2" x 3/4" striker plates from 0.018" thick stainless steel sheet. Deburred and curved it. Cut out an identical spacer plate for one side.
7. Mixed up some resin and flox. Made leveling bases for the striker plates, then placed them in position. Attached the door and closed/ latched it with the latch plates pressing on the strikers to hold them in position. Brushed on some fillets around the striker plates to firmly hold them in position.

  Oct 20, 2022     Oil filler door - (4.1 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Put the top cowl in place. Checked the fit of the filler door. Decided to adjust the fit, so I filed off about 1/16" from the right edge of the door. Deburred the edges. Did some more hand-bending to improve the curve. Taped the oil filler door in place onto the cowl with duct tape. Removed the cowl.
2. With the cowl upside down on a table, I laid the hinge spacer onto the hinge, taped it in place, and used it as a drill guide to drill and cleco the door to the hinge.
3. Tested several locations for the two Hartwell latches. I finally decided to mount them with the tabs oriented horizontally.
4. Marked the oil door for the locations of the latches.
5. Countersunk the five rivet holes in the filler door.
6. Began drilling out and filing the unusual-shaped holes for the latches. I got them 80% done.

  Oct 17, 2022     Cowl seams and inlet ramps - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded and perfected the inlet seams and ramp transitions.

  Oct 16, 2022     Cowl inlet ramps and seams; Oil filler door - (4.8 hours)       Category: Cowl

Cowl inlet ramps:
1. Sanded the inlet ramp transitions.

Cowl seams:
2. Put the cowl on and off several times as I sanded and tweaked the seams between the upper and lower cowl.

Oil filler door:
3. Taped the door hinge to the cowl and tested its throw. Taped the door to the hinge, moving it around until I was happy with its placement. Decided to use a spacer under the hinge. Tried several sizes and placements before fabricating a 5" x 1.5" X 0.020" aluminum strip that worked well.
4. Located and drilled 5 rivet holes through the hinge. Clamped the hinge and spacer to the cowl, and used the hinge holes as a drill guide to drill the attachment holes in the spacer and cowl.
5. Removed the cleoces and deburred everything. Roughed the spacer and cowl with 80-grit sandpaper. Countersunk the rivet holes in the cowl.
6. Mixed up some resin and flox, Applied it with a small brush to the backside of the spacer, the clecoed the spacer and hinge to the cowl. Riveted the hinge and spacer.
7. Spread the flox mixture across the hinge and the cowl pocket in which it sits, essentially embedding it in a thick coat of resin.
8. Did some fit tweaks on the door itself, first bending the edges and then the whole door to get it to lay very flat against the cowl.

  Oct 15, 2022     Cowl seams; Inlet ramps - (2 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Installed upper cowl. Marked the seams and junctions for filling and sanding. Removed upper cowl. Removed the lock pins on the three floating Skybolt receptacles I installed yesterday, then locked the receptacles. Adjusted the depth of four other receptacles.
2..Filed the edges of the inlet seams.
3. Applied filler to the edges of the cowl prop seam areas.
4. Applied filler to the edges of the inlet ramps.

  Oct 14, 2022     Inlet ramps; General filling /sanding; Skybolt receptacles - (2 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Continued sanding the inlet ramp transitions.
2. Filled the cleco holes on top of the cowl.
3. Added filler to numerous small areas on the cowl inlets.
4. Began sanding the previously added filler on the cowl, near the inlets.
5. Converted three Skybolt fasteners to "floating" type receptacles.

  Oct 12, 2022     Inlet ramps and seam - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Sanded the filled transitions of the newly-bonded inlet ramps. (There's still at least another hour of sanding ahead on these things!)

2. Block-sanded the filled seam on the right inlet.

  Oct 11, 2022     Cowl fit tweaks; Seam straightening; Inlet ramps - (4 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. I mounted the top cowl and noticed it seemed to have shifted very slightly because of the inlet ramps. I had to tweak a few Skybolt fasteners to get things line up as well as before. The cowl is also even more challenging to remove now! Hopefully that will improve the more I do it.

2. Spent two hours filing and sanding various spots on the cowl edges and inlets, including where I'd added filler last night. The gap there is coming along nicely, and I think one more session of filling and another one of sanding will make things look pretty good.

3. Removed the clecoes from the inlet ramps. Sanded the transitions between the raps and the cowl, and also the faces of the ramps.

4. Applied filler to the ramp transitions. I tried to build a bit of a "fairing" to the inboard and outboard edges to smooth the airflow.

5. Applied some more thick flox/cabosil mixture to the right inlet seam area to improve the gap a little more.

6. Slightly beveled the entire edge of the upper cowl to soften the edge. I'll do the same on the lower cowl once I remove it.

  Oct 10, 2022     Cowl seams; Inlet ramp - (4.3 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued working on cowl:

1. Sanded down the hardened epoxy strips on the inside of the top cowl, and also the filler on the inlet edges. Mounted the top cowl. The fit looks pretty good along most of the seams! More interestingly, the epoxy strips did a great job in bringing the cowl level up to the skin level. I might even have to sand them down a bit more.

2. Marked the cowl edges for some areas that I will bevel with a file to improve the transitions/seams.

3. Removed the top cowl and beveled the marked areas.


Inlet ramps:
4. Taped the left and right inlet ramps in position in the top cowl. Marked them for trimming.

5. Trimmed the ramps, rounded the edges, and roughened the contact points with 80-grit sandpaper.

6. Drilled and clecoed the ramps into position.

7. Sanded the inside of the cowl underneath where the ramps will go. Roughened the contact points. Cleaned up everything and removed all Sharpie marks.

8. Mixed up some resin/flox and bonded the ramps to the cowl. Re-inserted the clecoes to hold them in place while the epoxy cures.


Inlet seams:
9. Added some cabosil to the mix to prevent sagging, then used this mixture to add a small bead along the right inlet ramp junction.

10. Taped along the desired seam lines of the propeller hole in the lower cowl. Added more beads of the thick epoxy mixture along this tape edge. Let it set for 15 minutes or so, then, pulled off the tape. Scraped off as much extra epoxy as I could, Tomorrow I'll carefully sand the seam line, and see how much of an improvement it makes.

  Oct 09, 2022     Skybolt fasteners; Cowl sanding and filing - (5.7 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued installing the cowlings:

1. Final-drilled the Skybolt holes in the top cowl to their final size of 15/32", then deburred and filed them. Installed the Skybolt washers.

2. Installed the Skybolt receptacles on the right side.

3. Put on the top cowl. I found four Skybolt receptacles that would work better if they were the floating type rather than fixed. I had only two of the floating barrels, so I changed out the two that would help the installation and removal of the cowl most. I'll order two or three more of them tonight.

4. Went around the cowl and marked all the areas that needed improvement in one way or another.

5. Repetitively removed and replaced the top cowl, sanding and filing each time to get the gaps and exterior profiles where they need to be. There is one area, the front/outboard lip of the inlets, where I'll need to do a slight amount of filling and sanding to get the gap even.

6. Mixed up some epoxy/flox/cabosil and filled the exposed honeycomb bonding area on the inside of the top cowl that I ground away yesterday.

7. I also decided to address some slight surface-level mismatching between the top-aft edge of the cowl and the top skin. I did this by applying a thin 1/2" wide layer of the flox mixture along certain parts of the inside of the top cowl. Tomorrow I'll sand this down a bit and see how the cowl lays on the tabs.

  Oct 08, 2022     Cowl trimming; Horizontal Skybolt fasteners - (5.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

Cowl trimming:
1. Trimmed off the excess area under the exhaust stacks that I originally considered retaining. (After looking at it, it seems like all it did was to provide two additional corners that might generate cracks someday. Also, removing it doesn't seem like it will change the cooling airflow through the cowling.)

2. Trimmed two small areas off the inlets of the upper cowl, to make the halves match up better. [NO PHOTO]


Skybolt fasteners:
3. Mounted the lower cowl. Filed the Skybolt tab rivets so that every one is totally flush with the cowl. [NO PHOTO]

4. After setting the top cowl in place to begin marking for the horizontal row of Skybolt holes, I discovered that the Skybolt tabs, especially on the left side, were slightly contacting the built-up honeycomb bonding area of the top cowl, and this was interfering with the fit. I measured the tabs and the available space on the cowl, then marked the honeycomb bonding area for trimming with a Dremel sanding drum. I ended up taking off a 2-foot long tapered area that was 1/4” long at the forward end, tapering down to zero at the back end. I then marked and filed all 10 left side Skybolt tabs by about 1/16“, and the forward 4 tabs on the right side about the same amount. I replaced the top cowl, and it looks like my tactic will work out fine. However, because I exposed a bit of the honeycomb bonding edge, I will apply a bead of epoxy resin along this edge to seal it.

5. Re-mounted the top cowl and used a flashlight and a mirror to drill out the front three holes on each side. Step-drilled them up to one step smaller than final to check their alignment.

6. Riveted the front two Skybolt receptacles on each side to their tabs.

7. The remaining holes would have to be drilled using a different method, because there's no access for a mirror. I took the top cowl off, taped in the Skybolt cleco adapters, and drew transfer lines on the lower cowl.

8. Replaced the top cowl, and extended the transfer lines onto it.

9. Drilled pilot holes at each marked point, then used a step-drill to enlarge them to 1/4"

  Oct 07, 2022     Horizontal Skybolt fasteners - (6.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued work on the cowlings:

1. Fabricated aluminum space-filler tabs for both sides of the cowl. These will fill the gaps aft of the aft-most Skybolt tabs.
2. Placed and marked the Skybolt tabs on the right side.
3. Removed the tabs, then spaced, marked and drilled the pilot holes in the cowl for the tabs.
4. Re-clamped the tabs, then used the cowl holes as drill guides to drill and cleco the tabs in place.
5. Up-sized the holes to #30 size.
6. Marked the backsides of the tabs for where the 1/4" lightening holes will go.
7. Removed the tabs, then deburred them, trimmed them, and drilled the lightening holes.
8. Countersunk the cowl holes.
9. Clecoed the tabs in place, then riveted them to the cowl on both sides.

10. Removed the lower cowl.
11. Trimmed the lower edges of the inlets to the lines I marked yesterday.

12. Mixed up a batch of resin, flox and cabosil. Spread a bead of it on the lower junctions of the Skybolt tabs and put some more on the lightening holes. Smoothed the resin with my finger to get good coverage.
13. Filled the cleco holes on the front faces of the upper and lower cowls. (These were the holes I'd drilled to support the cowl on the fitment jig.
14. Used the remaining mixture to a). run a small bead along the lower edge of the firewall to help strengthen the lower cowl Skybolt tabs, and b). fill a couple of small voids on the inlet areas of the cowl.

  Oct 06, 2022     Cowl trimming; Horizontal Skybolt fasteners - (4.6 hours)       Category: Cowl

Cowl trimming:
1. Spent several hours doing some final trimming and sanding of the upper/lower cowl interface and the upper cowl/fuselage interface, to get the gaps as even as I could.
2. Marked the inside of the lower inlet halves for trimming.

Skybolt fasteners:
3. Now that I was sure the gaps would be decent, I began installing the left side's horizontal row of Skybolt fasteners by laying out and drilling #40 pilot holes along the edge of the lower cowling.
4. Side-grip clecoed the Skybolt tabs into position again, then match-drilled them through the pilot holes to #40 size.
5. Drilled each hole up to #30 size.
6. Removed everything, deburred the tabs and cowl, then drilled the 1/4" lightening holes in the tabs. Like on the cowl hinges, these holes will get a good blob of epoxy and flox later. Deburred and polished the edges of the tabs.
7. Prepped the right side Skybolt tabs by countersinking the holes for the receptacle mounting rivets and trimming 1/4" from their right sides to allow for the proper spacing. Deburred and polished them.
8. Countersunk the left side of the cowl for the mounting rivets.

  Oct 05, 2022     Horizontal Skybolts; Seam line - (4.3 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued with the cowl installation:

1. Mounted the lower cowl several times as I trimmed the intake snorkel, in an effort to get the cowl to fit past the snorkel. I finally trimmed off enough from the inboard edge of the snorkel to get the cowl into position. It was also made easier by removing the cowl alignment jig — which was a big moment, because it was the equivalent of taking the training wheels off a bicycle for the first time.

2. I noticed that when I tried to insert the cowl pins, they only went about halfway down before the alignment of the hinges was pulled off. I puzzled over this for a while, and pulled off the cowl to have a closer look. I realized that some of the hardened flox under the hinges had squeezed out, and was interfering with the matching eyelets on the cowl. I used a very small grinding ball on a Dremel tool to remove the excess flox, and the cowl fit great once again.

3. Inspected the clearance between both the intake snorkel and the alternator pulley from the cowl. It's close, but then again, I guess it's supposed to be. I will think about various ways I might be able to pad that area, or create a slight standoff to prevent possible cowl wear.

4. Began working on the horizontal Skybolts. Measured from the existing Skybolt fastener on the firewall to the desired position of the forward Skybolt, next to the inlet. I divided this into equal parts that would be in the range of 3” to 3-1/2”. It worked out to exactly 3-5/16” spacing. I marked these intervals on the edge of the lower cowling for reference later.

5. Trimmed the left-side Skybolt tabs to fit the required spacing. Side clecoed them in position. (The aft-most one also had to be trimmed at the bottom because of the honeycomb core of the cowl.)

6. Paused the Skybolt installation process to do a very careful trim of the horizontal seam between the upper and lower cowlings. I want to make sure this is perfect before I install the Skybolts. I did a bunch of marking, sanding, and re-marking, removing the lower cowl each time. The gap is getting better, but probably needs at least another hour of work.

  Oct 02, 2022     Cowl hinge strips gap fillers; Intake snorkel interface - (1.4 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Cut out two small rectangles of scrap aluminum to fit on the firewall flange between the lower cowl hinges and the Skybolt fasteners above them. Drilled, dimpled and riveted them to the flange. (Without these pieces, there would be a 1.5" gap that would be visible.)

2. Attached the intake snorkel, then attempted to attach the lower cowl. There's a bit of binding that may prevent me from doing this until I remove the cowl fitting jig from the prop hub. I'll have to think about this before I remove the jig. I don't want to remove it, and then find out I need it, in order to accurately install the horizontal row of Skybolt fasteners.

  Oct 01, 2022     Lower cowl hinges - (3.2 hours)       Category: Cowl

Attached lower cowl hinges:

1. Removed upper and lower cowl.
2. Removed the clecoed hinges on the lower cowl. Deburred the attach holes.
3. Marked and drilled 1/4" lightening holes between the rivet holes, then deburred them.
4. Countersunk the attach holes on the cowl.
5. Roughened the inside of the cowl and the back side of the hinges with 80-grit sandpaper.
6. Mixed up a batch of epoxy, flox, and cabosil. Spread a thin coat of it in the inside of the cowl along the footprint of the hinges.
7. Clecoed the hinges in place, letting the epoxy squeeze out on the sides and through the lightening holes.
8. Riveted the hinges in place.
9. Removed and cleaned the clecoes.
10. Added dabs of epoxy/flox to the lightening holes, then smoothed the side beads of epoxy on the hinges.

  Sep 30, 2022     Cowl fitting - (5.2 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued working on the cowlings:

1. Marked, filed, and sanded around the front edge of the cowling inlets, to make the top and bottom halves match better.
2. Used a Dremel to cut off the marked edge of the lower cowl where the upper cowl overlapped. Block-sanded the edge to the pencil line.
3. Mounted the upper cowl to check the fit. (It fit well enough to remove the support strap and let it be attached only by the lower Skybolt fasteners and the forward clecoes. This is a big psychological step -- it's the first time I've been able to actually see what the final installation will look like...)
4. Positioned the lower cowl as tight as possible, then duct-taped the cowl to the fuselage.
5. Marked the aft edges of the lower cowl where the attach-hinge rivets will go.
6. Drilled and clecoed the lower cowl to the hinges.
7. To get an idea of how the horizontal row of Skybolt spacing will work out, I began clamping the fastener plates to the lower cowl. I laid them out with 3.5" spacing, the same as the spacing along the firewall. It looks pretty good that way, but I need to explore whether adding one more fastener to each side will make things look funny,
8. Marked some areas to sand on the side and front of the lower cowl. Removed the Skybolts and the upper cowl, filed and sanded the problem areas, and replaced the upper cowl, The lines are beginning to look pretty good.
9. Filed the inboard intersections of the inlets to make the cowl edges match.

  Sep 27, 2022     Cowl fitting - (0.8 hour)       Category: Cowl

Continued fitting lower cowl:

1. Removed lower cowl. Locked the depth of the 4 bottom Skybolt recepticles.
2. Removed the lower firewall Skybolt stud rings from the upper cowl to let it lay flat, and unlocked the next two to give the upper cowl some flexibility.
3. Remounted the lower cowl, except this time I slipped the back edges underneath the edge of the upper cowl. Clecoed the front end and fastened the bottom Skybolts.
4. Traced the edge of the upper cowl onto the lower cowl with a sharp pencil. This will be my cut line for the lower cowl.

  Sep 26, 2022     Cowl fitting - (4 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued fitting the lower cowl:

1. Marked the 1-15/16" firewall setback line on the lower cowl.
2. Removed the cowl and trimmed the lower cowl to the line. (I only trimmed it up and around the corner of the fuselage about an inch.) Sanded the edge with a sanding block. Test-fit the lower cowl.
3. Repeated Step 2 four times until the fit was close.
4. Also trimmed the edge of the exhaust opening on the cowl so it would lay flat against the bottom of the belly.
5. With the lower cowl celcoed and taped in position, I inserted a small flashlight in the bottom of the cowl, laid on a creeper, and marked the approximate center of the four Skybolt flanges. Repetitively step-drilled, filed, and checked the holes as they were gradually enlarged to their final sizes.
6. Installed the Skybolt studs and temporary rubber grommets.
7. Attached the lower cowl with the Skybolt fasteners. Screwed the studs down to set their depth. Everything looks good on the bottom of the cowl!
8. Marked the remainder of the vertical edges of the lower cowl for trimming.
9. Removed the cowl, trimmed it with a Dremel, block-sanded it three times, and got it JUST fitting the airplane. It will be final-trimmed later.
10. Took measurements for where the vertical hinge will be drilled.

  Sep 25, 2022     Cowl fitting - (2.1 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued working on the cowlings:

1. Completed riveting the firewall Skybolt base fixtures to their plates.
2. Put on the top cowl. Pushed and turned each cowl fastener to engage their pins, then tightened them down like a screw until they were flush with the cowl, thereby properly adjusting the depth of the fixtures. Unfastened each one with a quick "push and turn."
3. Removed the top cowl. Removed the depth-setting lock pin on each fastener fixture. Turned each one with a flat-blade screw driver to the 1 & 7 o'clock position until they clicked, setting the depth of each fastener. Replaced the top cowl and quarter-turned each fastener to check the fit. The top cowl looks great, and I'm very happy with it! (It looks like it will just need some trimming to give the proper gaps for paint.)

4. Removed the top cowl, then removed the Skybolt "screw" from the bottom-aft hole on each side.
5. Lifted the lower cowl into position with the help of a strap. Clecoed the lower cowl to the prop spacer jig. Clecoed the top and bottom cowls together inside the inlet holes. I made sure the lower cowl was over top of the upper cowl.
6. Tightened the strap until the lower cowl was snugly against the fuselage.
7. Measured forward 1-15/16" from the blue line on the side of the fuselage and began marking a vertical cut line on the lower cowl.

  Sep 24, 2022     Cowl fitting - (5.8 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued working on fitting the cowling:

1. Drilled out the keeper rivets at the bottom right side of the firewall.
2. Clamped the right-side rounded seam-filler piece into position.
3. Clamped the two bottom right Skybolt plates into position.
4. Drilled, deburred, clecoed and riveted the seam-filler pieces and Skybolt plates on the right side.

Hinges:
5. Repositioned both side hinges to have a slight reveal forward of the fuselage skin.
6. Match-drilled the hinges to the fuselage & firewall skins.
7. Removed the hinges, countersunk the back sides to match the pre-dimpled firewall flanges.
8. Clecoed and riveted the hinges to the airplane.
9. Installed the other half of each hinge and checked their fit.

Top firewall Skybolt fasteners:
10. Sanded and Dremeled all the high spots off the inside 4" of the upper cowl, to allow for the best fit against the Skybolt flanges.
11. Placed the upper cowl into position and clecoed & taped it. Drilled and filed out each attach hole to their full size (15/32"). This was extremely tedious, because the alignment of each hole had to be checked numerous times from inside using a flashlight and a mirror, or from the outside white holding a flashlight in position behind it. Sometimes the initial alignment holes were "off" enough that I had to manually file the hole with a needle file until I could get a larger round file in the holes, then open them up to roughly the center of the mounting flange, then finally use a Unibit to make each hole precise.
12. Snapped Skybolt rings into each hole. Added the fastener assemblies and the temporary rubber grommets to hold them in.
13. Clecoed all 15 fastener bases to the flanges on the firewall.
14. Began riveting them. (Got about 1/3 of them done tonight.)

  Sep 23, 2022     Cowl fitting - (5 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued fitting the cowlings:

1. Removed the bottom three left Skybolt fasteners and deburred them. Countersunk the holes on the backside that corresponded with the pre-dimpled holes along the firewall edge. Clecoed and riveted the plates to the firewall. There were a couple of rivets that really made me get creative with bucking bars!

2. Moved to the right side of the firewall. Positioned and clecoed the bottom three Skybolt fastener plates. This took several fittings of the upper cowl to get the last plate positioned correctly. I also decided to replace the #14 plate (second-to-last one on the left) due to hole edge-distance issues.

3. Removed and deburred the three plates. Countersunk the holes on the backside that corresponded to the pre-dimpled holes, then clecoed and riveted the plates in place. As with the left side, there were some very tricky rivets to set.

4. Taped on some cleco adapters to the Skybolt plates that had not yet been drilled. Put the upper cowl on, clecoed it in place, then drilled out and clecoed the remaining holes to 1/8". (I had to tape a small flashlight onto the top of the GPS antenna shelf to get the last hole drilled.)

5. Measured for and cut two Skybolt plates to fit along the left bottom edge of the firewall. Drilled out the keeper rivets along the bottom and sides of the firewall. Match-drilled the plates into position. Countersunk the Skybolt fastener attach holes, and countersunk their backsides to allow them to fit over the pre-existing dimples along the firewall. Clecoed and riveted the plates in place.

6. Measured for the side hinges, and worked out how I'll insert the hinge pins. Decided to make the hinges slightly shorter, and mounted slightly lower than I'd originally planned. Cut off two eyelets from each hinge half.

7. Researched the Van's hinge designations to make sure I'm using the right hinge. (The plans call for simply "HINGE 1/8," which turns out to be the one I'm using, with a 0.125" steel hinge pin instead of an aluminum one.) The only concern I had was that the plans show the hinge positioned on the firewall flange so that the hinge eyelets are directly in line with the firewall edge. I can't see how that will be possible, since the edge distance of the hinge's attach rivets would interfere with the eyelets themselves.

8. Cleco-clamped the hinges into position and tried inserting the hinge pins. It was a tough at first. Tapered and bent both hinge pins and I think I have a solution for how they will be inserted behind the bottom two Skybolt plates.

9. Cut up and bent a Skybolt plate that will fit along the bottom corner of the firewall where there aren't any fasteners. (I got the right one made. The left one will go much quicker.)

10. Measured for and cut two Skybolt plates to fit along the right bottom edge of the firewall.

  Sep 22, 2022     Cowl fitting - (6.1 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued working on fitting the cowling:

1. Filed and sanded some more on the flange part of the cowl halves. When they seemed like they were fitting reasonably well, I clecoed the upper cowl into position, then hoisted the lower one using a pair of adjustable straps.

2. This led to a long series of filing and sanding, then putting the lower cowl back on, then taking it off and filing and sanding some more, etc. for hours and hours.

3. Gradually, things started fitting better and better, until I was confident enough in the fit that I drilled and clecoed the top and bottom cowls together at the inboard side of the inlet holes, and also drilled and temporarily clecoed the lower cowl to the fitment jig. The fit I achieved was not exactly what I initially wanted, because it leaves a bit of a flat area showing on the lower cowl, below the spinner. But this really couldn't be helped, because I'd long ago fitted the upper cowl based on where I thought the spinner would fall. This assumption was driven by the fact that I couldn't actually fit the lower cowl at the time, nor even simulate it. If I had been able to fit it back then, I would have found that even with the cowl halves assembled as tight together as possible, the "spinner circle" of the cowl is about 13.5" vs. the 13" diameter of the spinner. The only way I could have made the front propeller hole any smaller would be to cut away in inordinate amount of the cowls, which would have a). made the two inlet holes too small for good cooling, and b). would have interfered with the installation of the horizontal row of Skybolt fasteners. So I will just live with the small flat area.

4. Removed both cowls and prepared to install the hinges and Skybolt fastener plates for the lower cowl.

5. Cleaned the firewall edges and firewall flanges with mineral spirits, then dried them and applied globs of Fire Barrier 2000 into about 2/3 of the holes along the flanges of the firewall. Smoothed them with my finger. I also added the sealant to the holes where the magneto leads pass through, and also to a "Y" in a wiring bundle that seemed to need it.

6. Trimmed two Skybolt tabs to fit on the lower left edge of the firewall. These will be installed tomorrow, after the sealant dries.

7. Took careful measurements of the cowl split-lines, extended these measurements onto the sides of the fuselage, then spaced the last remaining three Skybolt fasteners on the left side. I then positioned, clamped, drilled, and clecoed them in place. The lowest Skybolt fastener on the firewall edge should now be exactly in line with the horizontal row of fasteners on the cowl. Fingers crossed.

  Sep 21, 2022     Cowl fitting - (4.5 hours)       Category: Cowl

Continued working on fitting the cowl:

1. Final-leveled the airplane.
2. Set up a laser level and aligned it to the previously-made marks on the right-front of the cowl. Ran 1" blue tape along the laser line.
3. Did the same thing on the left side of the cowl.
4. Removed the top cowl. Taped Skybolt cleco adapters into the nine installed Skybolt tabs.
5. Shone a light under each adapter, then marked, drilled and clecoed each one up to #30.
6. Began trimming the front 8" of the side flange on the lower cowl, to facilitate putting the cowl halves together.
7. Based on this trim, I attempted to fit the halves together, then began a repetitive process of trimming the upper and lower cowl in order to get a better fit at the front. My goal is to get the prop spinner flat to approximately a 13" diameter. I am leaving the sides of the lower cowl long intentionally, so it can be trimmed to match the top one later. After a couple of hours with a Dremel drum sander and a long sanding block, the fit is getting better, but there's still a bit of work left.

  Sep 18, 2022     Top cowl fitting - (1.7 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Repetitively sanded and filed the top cowling to fit the firewall. After a few iterations, I decided things were looking good, and cut off the cheater tab on each side. I also slightly bent the top four Skybolt fastener tabs to allow the cowling to lay flatter on top.

  Sep 17, 2022     Initial top cowl trim - (1.7 hours)       Category: Cowl

I took a few tentative steps toward fitting the top cowl this evening:

1. Trimmed the cowl just outside the aft trim line I drew yesterday, using a Dremel cutter.

2. Used a sanding board to creep up on the line, checking the fit 10 or 12 times as I did so.

  Sep 16, 2022     Top cowl fit & mark - (1.8 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Elevated the tail to level the airplane, using a level on the top longeron. (Note for those of you doing this: With the engine and avionics installed, but no wings, the RV-8 is extremely nose heavy. You can lift the tail with two fingers. So tie something heavy to the tailwheel stinger, or otherwise secure the plane so it won't tip over. I tied a rope to about 60 lbs of weight, in order to feel good about it.)

2. Now that the baggage door is fully installed, I was able to continue my partially-drawn 2" setback line on the fuselage, aft of the firewall. This will be the reference mark for marking the cowl cut line.

3. Clecoed the top cowl to the previously-drilled holes in the fitting jig and the fuselage.

4. Marked 1-15/16" forward from my 2" setback line, and placed pencil marks on the cowl. Connected the marks with a straightedge, establishing an initial trim line.

5. Aligned my self-leveling laser and centered it on the end of the jig attach bolt. I wanted to get an idea how much of the cowl will have to be trimmed off, but I won't do that quite yet.

  Sep 02, 2022     Skybolt plates - (0.5 hour) Category: Cowl

1. Re-spaced the Skybolt plates to make the top plate exactly centered. [No photo yet.]

  Sep 01, 2022     Skybolt initial fit (firewall) and firewall prep - (2 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. In preparation for the top skin to be riveted on, I needed to prep the spacer strips on the top of both the avionics bulkhead and the firewall. I clecoed the strips, then drilled out the sacrificial retaining rivets that have held these strips in place for oh-so-many years.

2. Marked the top-center of the firewall. Next, I bent and clamped on the row of firewall Skybolt faster plates to see how the spacing will work out. My guess as to where the bottom pair of plates will be located ended up pretty close. Working up from the sides, the top-center plate was only off by 1/4" or so, Tomorrow, I will shift them around slightly and get them arranged so the bottom one on each side will be in line with where I think the horizontal row will be, and the top plate with be right in the center. of the firewall The bottom three plates will not be drilled yet, to allow me to shift them later, if need be.

  Aug 22, 2022     Oil door; Cowl front fitment - (2.1 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Bent and worked the aluminum oil door over a 2-foot length of 4" PVC pipe, in two axes, until it nicely fit the cowl opening. Filed a bit more along the cowl opening. Trimmed the edges of the door again.
2. I began the task of getting the cowl halves to fit together, and I must say this is a job I've been dreading for a long time. As expected, the cowl halves simply don't fit together at the front -- it's not even close. I marked some high spots on each side and began filing and Dremel-sanding them away, in hopes I would see some improvement. After an hour, there may be a 10% improvement in the fit, but there's a monumental amount of work to be done here. I foresee lots of re-glassing of the cowl, in numerous locations.

  Aug 10, 2022     Oil door - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

After playing with the previous 0.032" aluminum door I made yesterday, I decided to re-make the oil filler access door out of more substantial 0.040". So today I traced and cut out a new door, cleaned up the edges, and began the process of bending it to match the other door. It's not nearly as easy with the thicker aluminum. I used a 10-pack roll of painter's tape to get the bend started, but I may have to locate some 4" PVC pipe to finish it.

  Aug 08, 2022     Oil door - (2.9 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Assembled and test-fit the aftermarket "blind hinge" to verify where it will be located.
2. I decided to create the oil door out of aluminum instead of fiberglass. I cut a piece of aluminum from the unused baggage door skin cutout (since it already has roughly the proper curve to it), then traced the shape of the fiberglass oil door onto it. I trimmed and sanded it to a nice even shape, then test-fit it on the cowl. It's not bad.
3. Used a Dremel tool with a cutoff wheel to cut out the oil filler access opening in the cowl.
4. Sanded and filed the edges and corners of the opening.

  Aug 07, 2022     Oil door trimming and hole marking - (1 hour)       Category: Cowl

1. Trimmed the raw oil door piece to the scribe line, then tweaked the edge after laying the door on the upper cowl.
2. Marked a 3/8" flange in the cowl cutout area. This will be trimmed out tomorrow, after I verify my measurements.

  Jul 06, 2022     Cowl hole sanding - (0.3 hour)       Category: Cowl

When my cowl was delivered years ago, the forklift driver put a small nick in the lower cowl. I filled the nick a year ago, and today I sanded the filler.

  Jul 02, 2022     Upper cowl fitting - (3.2 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Removed the prop with the help of my friend Tom.
2. Reinstalled the cowl fitting jig.
3. Installed four temporary pop rivets to hold the top skin to the firewall (and thereby holding the firewall in its proper position.
4. Adjusted, leveled, and triple-checked the position of the top cowl.
5. Drilled and clecoed the front of the top cowl to the jig.
6. Adjusted the aft edge of the cowl and taped it into position to the fuselage. Drilled and clecoed it to the fuselage.
7. Lifted the lower cowl into position to check its initial fit. The intake snorkel was slightly in the way, so I removed it.

  Jul 01, 2022     Upper cowl fitting - (2.4 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. I wanted to confirm my previous measurements for the placement of the cowl, so with the help of my friend Jim, I hung the prop and spinner again.
2. Clamped the cowl into the proper position with a 1/4" gap from the spinner, then marked the position of the aft edge of the cowl on the fuselage skin.

  Jun 26, 2022     Lower cowl hinges - (2 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Cut the various hinge sections that will be required to mount the lower cowl.
2. Fabricated shims for each hinge section (both sides). (Only 4 of 8 shown here.)
3. Deburred and polished the edges of each piece.
4. Swapped out the aluminum hinge pins with steel ones.

  Jun 26, 2022     Top cowl - (1.8 hours)       Category: Cowl

1. Removed the baffles
2. Drew a line on the side & top skins, 2" back from the firewall. (This will be a reference I use to mark the cowl for trimming.)
3. Removed the clecoes along the firewall edge.
4. Clamped the top cowl in position on the fitting jig, and positioned the cowl so it's level and flush to the fuselage.