Apr 13, 2024     Javelins - (9.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Taking a mental break from adjusting aileron travails, decided to move in another direction for awhile. these needed to done anyway.

I had a ready supply of 1-1/2" X 1-1/2" clear straight-grained oak left over from a home remodeling project. I trimmed them down to about 7/8" square on the table saw and went about borrowing my neighbor's wood lathe, and tools.

Having never operated a wood lathe, I spent an evening at YouTube University and watched a lot of video...

Started out slow to kinda get the feel of it, then just kept chipping away at it. Made three oak broomsticks. Tapered the ends of each, probably okay.

Next questions involve: Do I just simply lace them in place? Do I relieve a groove in them at each wire contact point? Install a removable insert for each? TBD

I like the idea of a groove cut in the javelins to positively nest the wires in position and then lace them fixed. I think I have an idea for a jig/sled to hold the round javelins so I can then push them thru the table saw using a dado blade. The crossing wires are not perpendicular to one another nor are the landing wires perpendicular to the javelins, so some angle setups will be necessary to cut these properly.

  Nov 29, 2023     Groundhog day for the interplane struts - (30.7 hours)       Category: Wings

So, it's been a bit like Groundhog Day fitting and welding up the interplane strut end fittings. The left side is done and one more end to go on the right side to finish up this step.

Edit 12/2/23: The interplane struts are done but for the powdercoating and painting. The total construction time came in at 99.7 hours.

Next up, it'll be time to lay out the flying/landing wires and compare their lengths to the pin-to-pin distances on the as-built airframe. If all's well, then cutting, forming and welding the attach tabs for said wires will commence. I think hanging the landing wires will be first so the structure can support itself.

The wings are trussed up on sawhorses and bespoke trusses, but enough people traipse through the hangar and I'm moving enough stuff around on a daily basis that a serious bump into the structure is more than likely if given enough time. So I'm anxious to get through enough process that it's self-supporting before I have to re-level and square everything up again because I've knocked something into it.

Update: Finished up the right interplane struts 12/1/23. Next up are the flying and landing wire attach tabs. I'll categorize those entries under "Rigging".

  Nov 22, 2023     Finishing up the forward interplane strut - (6.0 hours)       Category: Wings

So, counting today, I have about 20 hours fabbing up this forward interplane strut. It's all but ready to install, I just need to screw in the adjustable terminal end and bolt or pin it in place on the wing.

To begin this end, I located the cut by pinning the upper end in place then measuring from the center strut attach tab bolt hole up this strut 1-7/16".
Once cut, it was a matter of slotting and tapering the tube end to accept the winged, threaded insert. After it was inserted, I tacked it and began heat-forming the cut tube end around the end of the threaded insert. Final steps were to trim the excess wing material, then finish weld the end of the strut.

The remainder of the fore and aft interplane struts will be fabricated in the same manner. If experience is any guide, it's probably going to take as much time to do each of them as this one did. I'll update that when I get them done.

  Nov 21, 2023     Forward interplane strut end - (6.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Finished up the upper strut fitting for the forward interplane strut today. The pictures from the 11/20 entry and below tell the story in sequence.

Began by pinning the welded bushing and insert plate to the wing spar fitting. The slotted and cut end of the tube was then shoved onto the pinned assembly while the lower end of the tube was located on the center strut bottom tab. Once positioned and clamped, I tacked the tube to the insert plate assy, then removed the strut and plate to the bench.
From there, it was a matter of tacking some more, trimming, heat forming and welding through the remainder of the process.

  Nov 20, 2023     Forward Interplane struts - (8.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Finished the last of the center strut fabrication. Started the forward struts.

I began with the upper ends which requires fitting a bushing into the end of the streamline tube followed by a wrapper strap heated and formed around the bushing end and welded down to the tube.

Small design change here. Instead of just welding the bushing into the end of the streamline tube, I first welded it to an .063" thick plate. This plate is slotted into the end of the tube and will weld in place along the leading and trailing edges of the tube in addition to the end edges of the tube onto the bushing.

This construction feature isn't shown on the plans, but it's not an original idea of mine either (like I've ever had one). This is how the Acrosport cabane ends are assembled; Shown in the book "The Techniques of Aircraft Building" which I think was originally titled "How to build the Acrosport" or something like that.

Anyway, It appears to me to produce a tougher joint with the addition of this shear plate into the center of the tube end, welding the bushing along three edges instead of two, in addition to the wrapper strap over the top.

First steps include making a paper template for the insert which will fit the wing fitting, transferring cut lines to the tube end and cutting plate to match.
Once the bushing is cut and welded to the insert plate, it can be fitted to the tube end. Once fitted, it is tacked in place prior to final forming and welding.

Finally, the leading and trailing edges of the tube will be formed and welded and the wrapper strap will formed around then welded down to the tube.

Periodically, during the welding process the strut will be test-fitted to the wing to make any adjustments necessary if things have moved while getting welded up.

  Nov 12, 2023     Interplane center struts - (18.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Finished up the last of the forming and welding on the interplane center struts today. The welding is complete, but still work to be done to finish the right strut. Drilling the attach tabs for the fore and aft struts as well as drilling/reaming the 1/4" bushings on the strut ends to again fit the wing attach plates. Welding around these bushings produces just enough distortion that the attach bolts wont fit unless re-reamed.
Small holes located near the bottom of each strut visible in most of the photos below are pressure relief holes to allow expanding air inside to vent wile welding. Since these are closed-end tubes, it's necessary to prevent blowing out the last weld as I close up the tube.
Once complete and cooled a bit, I'll tack those closed last.

  Oct 23, 2023     Interplane center strut wrappers - (7.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Got all the wrapper straps cut out for the interplane strut ends. 0.050" stock. There are also insert tabs that are sandwiched between the ends of the wrapper straps. These .063" thick insert tabs are welded to the tube first, the wrapper straps are then tacked, formed around the ends of the tube and then welded in place. Once complete, these welded sandwich tabs are drilled to accept a forked terminal end on each of the fore and aft struts which bolt to it when finished. When the sandwich is complete, the forked terminal end just fits over the stacked pieces and is bolted in place. After powdercoating, they won't. Will have to either mask or remove prior to install.

First step is to tack, then weld the .063" insert to the tube in the proper final location of the attach tab for the respective strut. Once in place, the wrapper can then be attached and welded in place.

Began install of the wrapper straps with the bottom left. First bending the strap 180 around a 3/8" bolt then tacking to the very end of the strut. Next, heat-forming and hammering/shaping the strap to tack an inch at a time going up the strut.

Couldn't figure out how to work the ends up the strut to meet at the end of the already welded in place insert tab, when, Lo !
It finally dawned on me (I take my epiphanies when and where I can get them) that the way to get the wrapper ends to meet one another at the end of the already installed tab insert, is to heat/bend them there to begin with and tack them together. Once tacked, the rest of the wrapper can be heated and formed to the tube and tacked down. Finish welding to follow.

  Oct 15, 2023     Right interplane strut - (5.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Got the right interplane strut tacked up in position on the wing, then finish-welded on the bench and reinstalled on the wing. Still needs the wrapper straps installed, but is complete and still fits to that point.

  Oct 13, 2023     Interplane strut ends - (8.0 hours) Category: Wings

Continued the blacksmithing work required to fab the interplane strut ends. The left center strut fits well but still needs the "wrapper" straps welded on either end. The right center strut is fitted in place but needs tack welding in place prior to finish welding.

I figured this step would go better if I did another "parallel" fabrication process back and forth between both sides.

Finish welding the ends to the right strut is the next step followed by the wrapper straps to both ends of both struts, which should complete the center strut welding process.

Once both center struts are complete, work will begin on each of the forward and aft struts required for each interplane strut.

  Oct 09, 2023     First Interplane strut end - (4.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Working through fabbing the first center strut end today. Mostly trying to figure out how to trim the streamline tube without wrecking it, as I only have just enough to build one set of these Interplane struts.

Mostly blacksmithing work to heat, hammer and tack weld these parts into place a bit at a time. The first end bushing is welded to a shear plate at an 88 degree angle per the plans (which checks out) and is then inserted into the slit tube. After tacking into position, checked the fit on the wing before welding into place.

Initial welding stuck the ends of the tube to the bushing, followed by stitching the shear plate to the slit in the tube.

After completing both ends of the center strut, I'll add the "wrapper" strap which wraps over each end of this tube, up both sides then meets to form an attach "ear" to which the other struts will attach.

  Oct 07, 2023     Beginning the left interplane strut - (6.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Spent some time laying out the 88 degree angle for the bottom attach lug on the center strut. Heated and straightened the center tube which had approx 1/8" fore-aft wow in it centered about mid-span.
Trimmed the lower center streamline tube to about 1" wide at the end. Prepped and welded the lower bushing to an .063" insert plate.
Welded shear tabs to each side of four threaded inserts, one of which will weld into the end of each fore and aft struts.

  Oct 06, 2023     Finishing up squaring up - (3.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Spent some time ensuring the incidence of each panel is set. Followed up with the water level on the lower wings first, followed by the upper wings

  Oct 05, 2023     Squaring things up - (2.5 hours) Category: Wings

Spent a couple hours measuring and monkeying around with plumb bobs. First determination: The wings are all parallel as they sit now.

Also measured from the tailpost to the outermost trammel point on each wing panel. After comparing all the dimensions, the wings are square to the fuselage centerline within less than 1/4".

I've measured the dihedral of each wing panel with a digital level and they're pretty close to where they need to be.
The upper wing panels are specified as a 1.5 degree dihedral angle. The lower wings are not specified in the plans, but by measuring from the three-view cover drawing they appear to have a greater dihedral than the top and measure at approximately 2.5 degrees. I've set them at 2.5 degrees.

Got drawn away/distracted. Hangar neighbor needed a welding job done on his replacement landing gear and axles. Way more interesting than plumb bobs, tape measures and levels. Plus, I need the practice once in awhile anyway.

Next up, I'll recheck the side to side level of the fuselage and center section, then put a water level to the wings, ensuring I've got equal dihedral on each side both upper and lower.
Also the angle of incidence needs to be rechecked now that the wings are attached. If there's much variation in incidence along any wing panel, I may need to re-trammel any offending panels.

  Oct 04, 2023     Interplane struts - (3.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Finished up today checking that everything was leveled up prior to hanging the wings on the fuselage, when my hangar neighbor Dan showed up. He wanted to know if I was ready to hang them today. Why not? An hour or so later we had them stood up. I think he was pretty excited to see it take shape.

Next up, I'll make sure they're right where they need to be in terms of incidence and dihedral. Also, this is the first time both sets of wings have been assembled together with the fuselage. Initial look-see, they look pretty close, but I'll get the plumb bobs on them next to make sure there's no sweep and they're properly parallel.

Once satisfied, fabrication will begin on the interplane struts. An additional punch list to address while the wings are in place will include the flying/landing wires attach tabs, jury struts and aileron push tubes and probably something else I haven't thought of.

Of note: some of the temporary bolts pinning the wings to the fuselage were pretty stiff to push into place. Once the wings are covered, I'll be working through itty bitty access holes to put them in place and this won't get any easier. I may need to file or ream some of these before going beyond this step.

  Sep 27, 2023     Interplane struts construction begin - (9.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Now that the ailerons are done, it's time to hang the wings and fab the interplane struts between them.
First step is to build the jigs to hold the wings in position so that these struts can be fitted between them, tacked in place and then finally welded up.
A pair of sawhorse-type braces will hold the lower wings in position while the upper wings will use an A-frame. It's flat and level on top and wide enough at the lower half to fit over the lower wings.
Had initially planned to only build one A-frame to hold one upper wing at a time for this step. Thought better of it when I realized I haven't had the entire works assembled together before this and there may be some interference issues or other alignment problems to overcome. Having it all assembled at once should reveal any of Mr. Murphy's handiwork.
A smart guy would have probably taken the gear off the plane and jigged things a little closer to the floor. We'll see how this goes, I may have to backtrack some if I can't reach to tack weld the components in place on the wing.
The A-frames are visible on the floor in the first picture. Once I got the "feet" fitted they will stand on their own.

  Jun 15, 2022     Trimming the wingwalks - (18.0 hours)       Category: Wings

A task that has been waiting patiently for me to finish is trimming the top wingwalks on both lower wings to match the fuselage contours with the side stringers in place. The wings have been mated to the fuselage structure before to ensure the steel fits and check for any sweep or offset issues.. it's all square. Now that the stringers are in place, the sides of the fuselage "bellys out" resulting in interference between the wingwalks and the stringers and ultimately the fuselage fabric.
This required trimming the top wingwalks back to match the contour of the simulated fabric covered stringers.
The Makelan photo CD that came with the plans shows pictures of an adjustable angle iron stand to lay the wings on with PVC pipe sections acting as rollers under the wings with which to roll the wings to and from the fuse for the multiple fittings required to make this trimming. Didn't have the PVC or similar, so used instead my trusty 1-1/2 X 1-1/2" oak railing spindles. Uniformly straight and dimensionally equal, but unfortunately square... not good candidates for the required rolling action. I still have the fuse mounted on the rotisserie, so I mounted dollies under the rotisserie stands and could then roll the fuselage away from the wing.
The fabric sides were simulated by stretching and taping paint masking paper in place along the lower longeron and up a couple of side stringers. Wingwalk was then trimmed away in steps until I could get the steel fittings to reach one another and slip in temporary wing attach bolts.
An interesting aspect of this interference issue was between the lowest stringer and the wing end rib. Although built to plans dimensions, I must have a bit more bow in my bottom stringer as it required some planing since it was contacting the rib and the steel was not yet in position. Planed it down to achieve a slight gap with the end rib. It now has less "bow" along it's outer edge.
Although not specified in the plans, this wing gap is affected by the lower wing dihedral angle. The top wings note 1-1/2 degrees. The lower wings shown on the cover drawing 00 and later Drawing 22 depict more dihedral. How much? I extended the lines on the respective drawings in order to measure and came up with something like 2 to 2-1/2 degrees. Armed with this information, I set the wing stands to 2-1/2 degrees. Thinking if I need a lower angle later it would be a simpler matter to fill any excess gap than to again re-trim the wingwalk and stringers. Fourth picture notes wing nose area against the fuse has a gap between the upper and lower leading edge skins. Filled this by cutting and sanding a small mahogany block and epoxying it in place.

  Feb 13, 2022     Center Section fuel drain fairings - (11.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Since I was busy monkeying around with fiberglass doing the Headcomb, and it's the coldest part of the winter, why not run up the heat bill trying to cure some more chemistry?
Used a 3-1/2" squishy plastic ball (actually a dog chew ball) set into a piece of masonite with hot-melt glue. Masonite was covered in the packing tape again and the ball treated with four or five coats of mold release wax, then sprayed with silicone mold release spray prior to each layup. The layup consisted of three plys which seems about right for a small fairing. To ensure the inside radius of the layup where the ball meets the board didn't develop any voids (again I didn't have a vacuum pump) I clamped another piece of masonite with a chamfered hole also covered in packing tape to the top of the whole sticky mess.
I need five of these fairings, one for each fuel outlet on the bottom of the center section and a fifth for the fuel gauge sticking down from same. I could mold one per day, surreptitiously bringing it home to cure in the back of the laundry room since it's below zero outside and falls to just above freezing in the hangar overnight. Fortunately it doesn't stink as I was very shortly discovered planting these in the non-permissive environment. Only had to beg forgiveness once as I recall.
After curing, I drilled a small hole through the top center of the layup then hit it with 120psi air pressure from a rubber-tipped air nozzle. Sounded about like a 22 caliber pistol shot and it was free.
Once all five were molded and roughly trimmed to size, I gave them two coats of the PPG K36 high-build sandable primer. Wet-sanded them smooth and they're ready to install.

  Jul 27, 2020     Aft wing spar fittings - (15.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Was going to use the lower wings fitted to the fuselage to locate the aft spar fittings along the lower longerons. After trimming and fitting the wingwalk ply both top and bottom, I managed to fit the forward spar bolts in place. The rear spar was in such close proximity and limited access, I was unable to tack weld the bushing in place. Another plan was needed. Used the 5/16" steel rod previously used in the lower wing construction to locate the aft spar bushing parallel to the longeron and vertically the same as the forward fitting. I could then tack the bushing in place with a tab and check the fit. After fitting the lower wings to the fuse and confirming the correct position (no sweep, same angle of incidence side-to-side), the wings were removed and finish-welded the aft spar fittings to the fuselage.

  Jul 22, 2018     Lower Wings - (333.5 hours)       Category: Wings

The lower wings were begun after completing the upper wing panels. Much of the construction followed the same processes as the uppers with the exception of the inboard wing walk areas and control runs for the ailerons. Inboard spar ends were trimmed at 27 degrees to allow clearance on the fuselage sides which "belly out" from the lower longerons to the side stringers, and the lower wing dihedral contributes to this need. Also built a jig to simulate the lower fuselage longeron and it's spar attach fittings as the fuselage is not begun yet. It's an oak 2X2 with angled fittings to hold a 5/16" steel rod parallel to the oak 2X2 and at the correct height off the table. The rod (simulating the spar attach bolts) then holds the spar attach fittings in the correct location, and when the 2X2 is squared to the table the wing should also square up allowing for accurate trammeling of the wing panel. The inboard end rib is 1/4" plywood and is bonded to these angled ends of the spars, requiring the rib edges to be similarly angled. Built a sliding jig to accomplish this bevel on the bandsaw and finish up by clamping the jig to the bench and sliding a belt sander around the rib fixed to the jig. The wingwalk ply bonds to these ribs along with additional structures bonded to the #2 rib and a laminated trailing edge forming an S-bend. The wingwalk ply ends (both top and bottom) were left a bit long to allow trimming once they are mated to the fuselage with the side stringers in place.

  Feb 14, 2018     Upper wings - (253.0 hours)       Category: Wings

This stage of the build has been underway since the beginning, but without spars assembling the wings couldn't begin. Took just about a year to receive them after my initial order (insert long, boring story here). Fortunately, there is plenty of stuff to do on the wing construction before any assembly takes place. First up was a bench big enough, flat enough and dimensionally stable enough. Dimensional lumber as one finds in the big-box lumber yards sucks in this respect. Built a 4X8 table with dimensional lumber... warped all over the place with changes in humidity. It's now a tool bench. A Legal Eagle builder web page described building a bench from engineered lumber beams with MDF top and bottoms forming a box beam. It's perfect for the job, dead flat and hell-for-stout. Got the 16 ft beams for $21 apiece and glued and screwed everything together. Two sawhorses would have sufficed, but I felt better with three.. It's all about feeling good these days. Wing assembly began with the upper wings. Ribs have been complete for quite some time. Spars have to be ripped to width and beveled top and bottom. Top wing spar inboard ends also trimmed at 1.5 degrees from square to accomodate upper wing dihedral. Doublers need to be bonded at the inboard ends and mid-span, but some ribs between the doublers need to be located onto the spars before bonding the last set since they won't slide past the doublers. Drilled the spars for fittings before bonding doublers, added the first side doubler, backdrilled through the spar after curing and then repeated the process for the doubler on the opposite side. Used the "portable drill press" for this backdrilling process after adding ribs to spars. Compression tubes drilled and installed. Drag/anti-drag wires installed and rib truss interference issues addressed. Leading and trailing edges bonded to the ribs prior to bonding previously laminated wingtip bows in place. Laser line used to comfirm the trammeling on the bench resulted in the spars aligned with center section spar. This was done prior to bonding leading edge skins in place as they become much more rigid once those skins are in place. Skins were bonded to the leading edge moulding and allowed to cure prior to flexing the skin down to bond to the spar. Clamps, sandbags and nailing strips used to hold the flexed skin in place while the epoxy cured. Inside of the leading edge coated with epoxy varnish prior to closing up with second skin. Areas to be bonded were masked on both the second skin and rib/spar areas. Three coats of epoxy varnish were applied to both completed wing panels. Almost 6 months start to finish.

  Sep 18, 2017     Laminated wingtip bows - (41.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Laminated the wingtip bows out of 1/8" strips of white ash. Each bow consists of a core of 1/8" plywood sandwiched between these approx 3/4" X 3/4" ash laminations. The wingtips form an elliptic arc around the tips from front to back, but also curve up following the half-camber of the airfoil and back down meeting the aileron tips aft of the aft spar. Thus making the tips a compound curve. Fabricated a jig out of dimensional lumber cut on the curve of the half-camber the wingtips follow. Then covered these jig "ribs" with a sheet of aluminum onto which I traced the elliptic wingtip curve and mounted cleats and clamping locations. Steamed six ash laminations at a time then bonded them into position on the jig. Each wingtip would require an upper and a lower lamination to sandwich the 1/8" plywood core, so four left laminations were required and four right. The opposite side laminations required tracing the elliptic curve on the other side of the jig and relocating the clamping locations and cleats. Once all eight laminations were complete, the jig was once again used to laminate the complete wingtip blank using a plywood core sandwiched by a respective pair of ash laminations.

  May 26, 2017     Fuel Tank - (122.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Plans fuel tank is a welded assembly of 0.090" 5052 aluminum. Decided I could build an RV-style riveted fuel tank again, since I had made two of them before more reliably than a welded tank. Began by cutting and forming ribs over maple blocks from 0.032" 6061 aluminum. Put in four ribs vs the two in the plans, also installed stiffeners across the bottom of each rib bay a la RV design. Formed the curved top to match the airfoil shape of the top of C/S out of heavier 0.080" 6061 aluminum as the top carries the fuel tank load to the fore and aft spars and prevents/reduces any wracking of the C/S under loads. Drilled a piece of clear acrylic to the ribs and tank sides, then match-drilled the acrylic to the tank top. Pro-sealing the components together went in steps of as much as I could do in the available open time of the stuff... which by the way is reduced by increased ambient temps AND higher humidity. Sheesh!

  Apr 11, 2017     C/S Leading Edge - (18.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Put initial coats of epoxy varnish on the C/S. Masked off areas yet to receive T-88 epoxy to bond 1/16" plywood skins. The C/S is about five feet wide, but I bought the 1/16" aircraft plywood in quarter-sheets keeping the shipping costs down. So, to make the skins to cover both the leading and trailing edges I needed to scarf two pieces together. Scarf slope is 12:1 so the 1/16" ply edge is tapered back 3/4" or more to make the slope. Once bonded, the structural joint is as strong as the plywood itself. Bonded the leading edge skins to the nose molding first and allowed it to harden overnight. Following that, the remainder is coated and the skin is flexed down over the ribs and clamped in place to bond. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but getting the ply to flex to the right shape all the way around the ribs required every clamp and sandbag/weight I could get on it in the open time available. This technique would not hack it for an eleven-foot wing section panel. Will use nailing strips for the wings.

  Apr 10, 2017     C/S trailing edge - (64.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Built a steam bending box from a sheet of rigid foam insulation glued together with Gorilla glue. Used to form C/S curved trailing edge. Steam generator is sold by Rockler Woodworking but looks just like the wallpaper steamers available. Bolted blocks to the bench top to clamp the laminations to in the proper shape. Glued up the laminations later after they cooled and dried a week or so.

  Mar 28, 2017     C/S Assembly - (28.0 hours)       Category: Wings

Began assembly of the center section by locating the spars on the bottom plywood by using a wing rib at each end, then clamping and bonding the spars to the ply floor. Dimensional two-by lumber was cut to size and clamped between the spars to keep everything squared up while the rest of the components were then bonded in bit by bit.

  Mar 23, 2017     Center section - (12.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Began the top wing center section in mid-March. Started by cutting 1/4" ply to size for the bottom. Next was the spars, fore and aft, cut to size, laminated at the ends and bored on the drill press to accept the spar attach plates.

  Mar 09, 2017     Powdercoating steel bits - (9.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Here's the powdercoating setup. Cardboard box is the booth. Cheapo Eastwood powdercoater runs on 115VAC and 15psi air pressure. Stuff fluffs out the end of the gun statically coating the grounded object and the box contains any "overspray". Cleans up by brushing out the box. Sweet $5.99 thrift-store toaster oven heats the coated objects to 400F for 20 minutes and once cooled, they're done. I also recommend the IR thermometer to monitor the process. It's about a $20 tool you'll find all kinds of interesting uses for.

  Feb 04, 2017     Steel bits for wings & C/S - (75.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Decided to cut out the steel bits using a metal-cutting bandsaw ordered from Northern Tool. Simpler, easier, and likely more cost-effective for someone of my advanced age and limited cyber skills than utilizing the CAD files available on HBA site and an accommodating machine shop water-jet setup... Tho many will find that situation to be just the opposite. Welding was accomplished from the beginning with a Lincoln TIG welder (Square Wave 175). As TIG (GTAW in the current vernacular) welders go, it's on the simple yet capable side of things.... Have dabbled with oxy-acetylene, and this is a big advantage; no tips to clean or change sizes, no fiddly regulator settings, no soot everywhere and best of all with the foot pedal control (or optional hand control) if you need more heat while you're underway, just step harder on the pedal. Being a rookie welder I started small and practiced a lot prior to this.. mostly non-essential ground support equipment. Some of which became garbage can inserts. I have a tuna can I throw my TIG filler rod stubs in when they get down to about 2" (Being a cheap pilot I figured at one point I could practice some more fine welding by sticking them together end-to-end.... never did get around to it.) They start out three feet long and go in the can at two inches... as I write this in Sept 2020, it's full. So that's the secret to getting better at TIG welding, there's no secret, just practice. I do recommend the EAA website hints for homebuilders, they have a number of TIG welding videos that are very helpful.

  Sep 09, 2016     Rib jigs - (116.5 hours)       Category: Wings

Rib production took place on two jigs. The first jig has the full-size rib drawing stuck to it and covered with clear contact paper that the T-88 structural epoxy won't stick to. Acrylic blocks are attached to capture the 1/4 X 1/4 capstrip bits in their respective places. I precut all the component capstrip and 1/16" ply gussets in quantity, storing them in plastic tackle box trays until ready for use in the jig. Once assembled into the jig, the epoxied components are clamped in place using a sort of rocker arm clamp. It's just a bit of plywood with a small "foot" glued to each end and a hole through the middle. A carraige bolt is drilled throuigh from behind the jig and the clamp slips over it, through the hole in the middle. A wing nut and washer are screwed down on the carriage bolt clamping the rocker in place and whatever is under it's foot. This way, no nails or staples are required to assemble the ribs.
The second jig is a mirror image of the first jig. It accepts the partially completed ribs from the first jig and so doesn't require any acrylic blocks to hold components in place. It utilizes the rocker arm clamps to clamp the opposite side gussets in place for epoxiing. Each side of each rib is clamped in place for 12-24 hours while the epoxy cures.
The fourth picture below shows the c/s components, ribs, spars and bottom ply. The 1/4" ply ribs were laid out using 1/4" masonite templates (white ones). First sawn using a bandsaw, jigsaw and finally a router table. The nose piece for each wing rib was produced similarly. In the fifth photo the stacks of spar doubler pieces are also stacked. These were produced using a belt sander and sanding block to taper their ends.

  Sep 09, 2016     The project begins - (10.0 hours) Category: Wings

Began this project in September After receiving the plans and studying same. Wing ribs seemed like a suitable starting point. Have been documenting the build since on my tablet utilizing Word programs for each successive segment. Will upload/update this log as time permits.
This photo shows the rib jigs. One for the left side and one for the right, each clamping the 1/16" plywood to the truss structure with T-88 structural epoxy. "Rocker arm" clamps were used to clamp the bits in place on the jig, tackle boxes used to store pre-cut ply bits. Could produce one-half a rib per jig per day, or about one rib per day. So, something like a little over a month of days off to get them all done. Surprisingly, all the little postage-stamp ply bits added up to the equivalent of nearly an entire 4X8 sheet of 1/16" plywood to complete the full set of ribs.