Nov 18, 2023     Day 82 - (10 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Details…details. Two members of the team worked this week to finish fabricating and installing components for the cabin heat system. They also began some preliminary work and planning on the fuel system, specifically the fuel shutoff valve and its mount. Some time was also spent discussing elevator stops.

  Nov 13, 2023     Day 81 - (15 hours)       Category: Fuselage

A small group continued detail work on the Zenith this week. The forward fin on the vertical stabilizer was test fitted and slightly trimmed. There was discussion regarding the placement of components in the forward fuselage. And a hole was drilled in the glareshield to accommodate the defroster vent. The session was cut short to accommodate a Boy Scout Young Eagles rally.

  Nov 04, 2023     Day 80 - (15 hours)       Category: Fuselage

More details were accomplished on the 750 this week. A large hole was drilled in the firewall for the cabin heat inlet. The fittings on both sides of the firewall were then installed. Work was also done on the glareshield to make it fit better with the fuselage frames. Some detail work on the tail assembly was also done.

  Sep 10, 2023     Day 76 - (15 hours)       Category: Fuselage

The rear fuselage attachments for the tail assembly continued to be the focus of work this week. A measuring/drilling error resulted in replacing and fabricating a couple of parts in order to ensure a precise fit. Again, a lot of time was spent measuring, fabricating, and fitting parts. In addition, the internal elevator pulley in the rear fuselage was installed. Near the end, the vertical stabilizer was added to the measuring and fitting process. Things are now looking very good.

  Apr 22, 2023     Day 69 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

A lot was accomplished on the Zenith today. More work was done on the nose gear assembly and engine mount. The main gear attach brackets are also where the strut attaches, so the strut attach hardware was test fitted and adjustments were made to the plastic parts that cushion the assembly. The main gear is still at the paint shop. Meanwhile, the cabin interior got a lot of attention. The center console was once again readjusted and screws were added to secure it to the floor. The adjustable seats were also final assembled and test fitted. Our A&P/IA advisor spent some time looking at and advising us regarding better alternatives to Zenith's method of keeping elevator cables separated with a little bungee cord.

  Feb 12, 2023     Day 62 - (10 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Today a lot of folks who usually work on the Zenith were otherwise occupied with major work that needed to be done on the chapter's Cessna 150 project. Nonetheless, two important tasks moved forward. Terry continued the labor intensive project of putting together wheels and brakes. Meanwhile, Scott continued his project of fabricating the mount for the gascolator.

  Feb 05, 2023     Day 61 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

A lot of today's efforts were in preparation for installing the landing gear. Brake lines and fittings at the master cylinders were installed. The edges of the engine mount were trimmed slightly to fit the firewall. The last of the rivets went into the firewall making it ready for installation of the nose gear assembly. Meanwhile, wheels and tires were put together. The seat pans that will have the adjustable option were also prepared for installation. We paused work to greet Steve Gross who stopped by with his newly completed and painted RV-10. Congratulations Steve!

  Jan 29, 2023     Day 60 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

The main focus today was again on the forward fuselage. The firewall and cabin frame were temporarily reinstalled. Four brackets on the back of the firewall for the bolts that attach the engine mount were positioned and installed. Meanwhile, work was begun on putting together the components of the nose gear on the firewall. Some time was also devoted to the wrecked Cessna that donated its engine. To the degree possible, steel was removed from aluminum and the remains loaded onto a trailer for a final trip to the scrap yard.

  Jan 14, 2023     Day 58 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Work continued today on the forward fuselage. Some brake lines were installed, although it was discovered that Zenith didn't provide fittings for the optional passenger side brakes so they need to be obtained. The center console, which had been fabricated earlier, was completed by adding nut plates and attaching hardware. It was then installed in the cabin and fit perfectly. Meanwhile, work was begun on putting together the wheels and tires. The idea is to soon put the plane on its gear. Time was also devoted to tearing down and removing the crate and box for the finishing and firewall forward kits to make more room in the chapter hangar.

  Jan 07, 2023     Day 57 - (24 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Work resumed on the rudder pedal assembly and forward fuselage. Brake pedals were riveted to the rudder pedals and brackets were match drilled through the floor. The entire assembly, including brake cylinders, was then riveted and bolted to the cabin floor. Reassembly of the forward fuselage sides was also begun. This included fitting and riveting the side stiffeners which had been fabricated earlier.

  Dec 17, 2022     Day 56 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

When it rains, it pours. Right on the heals of the finish kit, the firewall forward kit arrived this week, so a large portion of Saturday was once again devoted to unpacking and inventorying everything. Meanwhile, work continued on the rudder pedal assembly. The main task, which took some time, was mating the brake pedals to the rudder pedals. All four were clecoed in place by the end of the session. Work will resume after the holidays.

  Dec 10, 2022     Day 55 - (12 hours)       Category: Fuselage

The finish kit arrived Thursday evening, so Saturday was mostly devoted to unpacking and inventorying the parts. It took some time, but in the end we were able to verify that all parts were present and accounted for. Some time was also devoted to looking at the rudder pedal assembly which is one of the next things to be done. We had been waiting on some parts from the finish kit to begin real work on that assembly. One reason for the delay was that we had ordered the optional brakes for the passenger side, a good thing to have if the plane is going to be used for instruction. The next session will be Saturday December 17th.

  Dec 03, 2022     Day 54 - (12 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Most of today's session involved preparing forward fuselage parts for final installation. All of the parts were scuffed, cleaned, and primed. Some planning discussion took place regarding the installation of the rudder pedal assembly, much of which may be installed while the bulk of the forward fuselage is out of the way. The finish kit and firewall forward kit are both on the way. The coming weeks will see a lot of activity related to the new parts. The session was cut somewhat short because members took time to move our recently acquired “barn find” Cessna 150 project fuselage into the Cub hangar. There's a lot going on at chapter 524!

  Nov 19, 2022     Day 53 - (25 hours)       Category: Fuselage

The forward fuselage continued to be the focus of work today. The stiffeners that reinforce the glare shield, which were fabricated last time, were match drilled to the glare shield. The glare shield was then carefully removed which required the disassembly of much of the forward fuselage. All of the parts were then de-burred. Meanwhile, the fuselage was turned on its side so that L stiffeners could be added under the outboard sides of the floor. All of the forward fuselage parts will need to be scuffed, cleaned and primed before reassembly next time.The next session will probably be Saturday, November 26th.

  Nov 05, 2022     Day 52 - (15 hours)       Category: Fuselage

The forward fuselage was the focus for a small group today. In preparation for the panel installation, which will be done by a technician in Virginia, some preliminary decisions were made regarding layout. These ideas were sketched out on the panel and console. The next task was to install the glare shield forward of the panel. The firewall had to be temporarily removed to fit it over the cage structure. The glare shield was then match drilled to the firewall and instrument panel. Meanwhile, Tim reworked parts of his scratch built console, widening it to better fit with parts of the cabin structure. Finally, stiffeners for the underside of the glare shield were fabricated. The next session will be Saturday, November 12th.

  Oct 18, 2022     Day 51 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Over the course of several days, a few members of the build came in to make some progress on the 750. The main focus was to pause the build and look carefully at how everything is integrated together in order to determine the best sequence for building going forward. One thing that was learned was that components of the control system need to be fitted and installed before some parts of the cabin area are completed. After spending hours reviewing instructions and plans, parts for the control system were located, and a list was made of what needed to be removed in the cabin area. The baggage compartment was then removed and the cabin area cleaned. Work then began on installing control components. Bearing points were drilled, deburred, and assembled. Bolts were installed with lock nuts and torqued. The horizontal control rod for the flaperons and bearings were removed. Paint was cleaned from contact surfaces and sharp edges were filed. The assembly was then greased and the mounting brackets reinstalled. The mounts were riveted and the hardware torqued. The cabin box frame was also removed, deburred and reinstalled with clecos. The main wing attach points were also riveted. Finally, the inside of the cabin was cleaned once again in preparation for future sessions. The next session will be Saturday, November 5th.

  Oct 08, 2022     Day 50 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Landing gear reinforcements and the integration of optional components were the focus of today's session. The flat plates inside the cabin that help tie in the cabin structure with the landing gear attachments saw more progress. This included the final installation of bolts. Meanwhile, work continued on the optional console as well as cabin structure to support the optional four point harness system. Work also resumed on the sliding seat option. The next session will be Saturday, October 15th.

  Oct 01, 2022     Day 49 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Several projects saw progress today. The day started with careful study of the plans and discussion of next steps. Flat plates in the cabin that reinforce the landing gear were final fabricated and the holes for them drilled through the cabin floor to match. Using templates created earlier, sheet metal was marked out for the optional console. It was earlier decided to install the optional four point shoulder harness system in the 750. Parts for that were prepped and rivets removed along the top skin above the cabin for installation. The next session will be Saturday, October 8th.

  Sep 24, 2022     Day 48 - (15 hours)       Category: Fuselage

In looking far ahead in the plans, it was discovered that several flat plates needed to be installed in the cabin area that reinforce part of the landing gear assembly. Unfortunately, a couple of the parts for the sliding seat option which had already been installed were in the way. So rivets had to be drilled out and the parts removed. The plates were fabricated and the landing gear attachments temporarily installed. Meanwhile, two L shaped brackets were measured, drilled, and temporarily installed on the cabin frame just forward of where the instrument panel will be. The session was cut short so that we could attend one of our builder's retirement party. Then next session will be Saturday, October 1st.

  Sep 17, 2022     Day 47 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Another day of good progress on the 750. A lot of the structure joining the cabin area to the rear fuselage was final riveted. The seat area in the cabin is getting special attention because optional adjustable seats are being added. A lot of measuring and the creation of a template were necessary to accurately locate where the seat rails will go. A template was also created for the optional console which will have to be fabricated. Work remains to be done on the cabin area, especially around the seats, but a lot of the main structure it is now riveted together. Our latest Ray Aviation scholar, Mia, put in a lot of those rivets. The next session will be Saturday, September 24th.

  Sep 03, 2022     Day 46 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Today was a big day for the project. The six side stiffeners fabricated during the last two sessions were cleaned and primed and are ready for installation. Meanwhile, after much discussion and preparation, the forward fuselage was carefully mated to the the rear fuselage. After making sure everything was properly aligned, the two sections were permanently riveted together and the tail lifted to bring the cabin level. Final riveting of the top skins was then completed while the tubular steel cabin frame was measured, adjusted and installed. The result is something that looks a whole lot more like an airplane. The next session will be Saturday, September 10th.

  Aug 20, 2022     Day 45 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Today was devoted almost entirely to the fabrication and installation of the six stiffeners that line the forward fuselage sides behind the firewall. These were begun last time and take a lot of work to produce. Some time was also spent reviewing plans and discussing what to do about adjustable seats. We purchased the hardware for adjustable seats from Zenith, but have discovered that they are pretty heavy. So there was some discussion of alternatives. The next session will be Saturday, September 3rd.

  Aug 20, 2022     Day 44 - (25 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Today much of the early part of the session was devoted to reviewing the plans and directions to determine next steps. The firewall was then clecoed to the forward fuselage. Just behind the firewall along the curved forward fuselage sides are several stiffeners that must be fabricated from stock. Although they will be installed later in the assembly process, it was decided that it would be wise to create and fit them now while it is still easy to access that part of the fuselage. Making the parts, shaping them to match the curvature of the forward fuselage, match drilling and clecoing them in place took the rest of the session. The next session will be Saturday, August 27th.

  Aug 13, 2022     Day 43 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Two steps forward, one step back. It was one of those days where things don't exactly go as planned. All of the parts for the firewall were prepped last session. So the first task today was to simply put it all back together and do the final riveting. The first step was to figure out once again how to assemble the puzzle. Then riveting began. It soon became apparent that many of the rivets were in such tight locations that they would have to be pulled by hand since the pneumatic riveter would not fit. So that slow process was begun. Many of the rivets had been pulled when someone realized that the wrong hand riveter had been used to pull them. Zenith rivet gun heads have a concave face that sets the rivet properly. We had picked up a hand riveter that had a flat face. So all of those rivets, in very tight spaces, had to be drilled out. The correct hand riveter was then used to replace the rivets and continue riveting the rest. That is when we discovered another issue. There were places where already installed rivets interfered with being able to install others. The lesson here is to slow down and figure out an order to riveting parts so that you don't paint yourself into a corner. It would be helpful if the directions would include a recommended order for riveting, but Zenith directions do not contain such detail. The highlight of the frustrating day was when a young eagle and her dad showed up looking for a flight. After lunch, Bob took her up for nice long ride in the Zodiac where she ended up doing most of the flying. The next session will be Saturday, August 20th.

  Aug 06, 2022     Day 42 - (25 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Work resumed on Saturday with a small group. The focus was entirely on the firewall. The assembly was checked again against the plans (there are differences between the plans and the instructions due to the nose gear having the newer donut shock system) and some more holes were drilled to their final size. Everything was then disassembled, de-burred, cleaned, and primed. It is now ready for final reassembly next time. The next session will be Saturday, August 13th.

  Jul 16, 2022     Day 41 - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage

A small group today focused mainly on fitting the firewall to the forward fuselage. Early on, some time was taken to consult the plans and make sure we understood how the overall structure for the forward fuselage was going to go together. The parts for the firewall were clecoed together, then the firewall was carefully matched up to the forward fuselage at the correct angle. Holes were then match drilled and expanded to the final A5 rivet size. The next steps will involve disassembling everything, de-burring, priming, and reassembly. There will be no sessions for the next couple of weeks due to folks going away for Oshkosh. The next session will be Saturday, August 6th.

  Jul 09, 2022     Day 40 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Work continued on the forward fuselage today. The lower cabin area was assembled, dissassembled, de-burred, primed, and reassembled. Nothing is riveted yet. The parts for the firewall were also located and pre-assembled. A number of L brackets need to be fabricated for both the cabin and firewall. Work will continue Saturday, July 16th.

  Jul 02, 2022     Days 38 & 39 - (60 hours)       Category: Fuselage

A lot was accomplished on the forward fuselage during the last two sessions. Stiffeners were added to the baggage compartment panel which was then installed. Parts for the forward cabin area were prepped and assembled. A sliding seat option that had been ordered came in and required some added structural work. More of the forward fuselage was test fitted and clecoed in place than is shown in the photos. The entire assembly is nearly ready to be disassembled, de-burred, and prepped for final assembly. The next component will be the firewall. The next session will be Saturday, July 9th.

  Jun 18, 2022     Day 37 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Today the focus was on the rear cabin area and baggage compartment. In looking at the plans we discovered that this part of the fuselage has a lot of parts, many of which need L angle stiffeners. The stiffeners must be fabricated from stock angle pieces and match drilled to the cabin parts. Then everything must be test fitted together on the fuselage. Before this, all of the parts also needed to be de-burred. Even with a good turnout today, this took the entire session, so nothing was permanently riveted today. The next session will be Saturday, June 25th.

  Jun 11, 2022     Day 36 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

A lot of visible progress was made on the fuselage today. Having already completed all four sides of the rear fuselage “box” last session, it was time to bring them together. With the help of wooden supports, the two sides were added first, along with rear bulkheads. Then the top was added. Meanwhile, parts that frame the cabin area were located, cleaned, and primed. They were then assembled and added to the front of the fuselage box. The cabin sides were then test fitted along with the rear baggage compartment panel. At this point everything is just clecoed together. Riveting all of this will begin next session which will be Saturday, June 18th.

  Jun 04, 2022     Day 35 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Today's session began with final riveting of the fuselage side skins. Realizing that we would soon need the top skin to assemble the fuselage “box” we gathered all of the related parts, de-burred, cleaned, and primed them all. The long box-like structural members that consist of several fairly heavy parts were then assembled and riveted together. Meanwhile, attachment of the “L” angles to the top skin was begun. That is when we ran into another case of, “If the holes don't match, you're doing something wrong.” We found the holes did not line up for one of the forward L angles (attaches to the rear baggage panel). All of the L angles have pre-drilled holes along one length and no holes on the other. The holes in the L angles line up with holes in the skin. Not true with this one. This took some time and measuring to figure out. It turns out this one L angle is different from all the rest. The pre-punched holes match the upper edge of the baggage compartment panel rather than the skin. To attach the angle to the skin requires match-drilling holes in the blank length of the angle though the skin. There is no mention of this in the instructions. Assembly of the fuselage “box” will begin next session which will be Saturday, June 11th.

  May 21, 2022     Day 34 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

Today major work was completed on both fuselage sides. A lot of time was spent cleaning, de-burring, and priming framework parts. (The skins had been prepped earlier.) Framework pieces were then assembled to the skins and holes drilled to size. Everything was then disassembled and de-burred. Both sides were then reassembled once again and final riveting begun. Fuselage work will continue next time. There will be no session on May 28 due to the holiday weekend. The next session will be Saturday, June 4th.

  May 14, 2022     Day 33 - (30 hours)       Category: Fuselage

With the wings now mostly complete, work began in earnest on the fuselage today. A lot of prep work had been done last session, and a couple of members came in over Mother's Day weekend to do even more. So today assembly of the bottom fuselage panel went quickly. Parts were laid out and clecoed together. Nut plates for the bottom access panel were installed. Holes were match drilled. Everything was then disassembled and de-burred. Reassembly followed, and the entire bottom panel was permanently riveted together. The panel was then set aside and parts for the left side fuselage laid out for next time. The next session will be Saturday, May 21st.