Apr 09, 2024     Wheel Spats and Fairings       Category: Fuselage

These past couple weeks I worked on getting the wheel spats installed. Nothing to exciting to report on that besides the main spats are kind of hard to determine if they are streamlined as they are not symmetrical. If I put them where I think they are straight the bolt holes will be off from intended mount locations and it looks bad. I opted to put use the stock locations even if I think it is off a little bit.

I also marked and straightened the from upper avionics fairing with the firewall.

I installed the vertical and horizontal stabilizer so I can install the empenage fairing. With that fairing installed I marked/ drilled where the rivnuts need to go. I installed the rivnuts but I ran out of time and haven't reinstalled the fairing to ensure its all good. The only snag I ran into was that the bracket that I had made for me ELT antenna was a bit to big to fit under the fairing to I removed the bracket and trimmed it down a good bit. It not fits with room to spare.

  Feb 27, 2024     Ground Bus, Door latches, Control stick connectors       Category: Fuselage

I finished running all of the grounds that I currently have installed to the ground bus. I have a few more but id say about 90-95% of the grounds are run. Out of an abundance of caution I ran everything back to a single ground.

I decided to use 15 pin Dsub connectors at the control stick base. I have two 5 wire each bundles running to each stick. I havent decided what I want one the stick yet so I really hope I dont run out of wires on the stick. What I figured I need at the stick so far is: ground, trim up/down, flaps maybe as there is already a switch on the dash, PTT, CWS disconnect, comm flip flop.

I have also started working on the canopy doors again. I filled in the elongated holes for the canopy doors with JB weld steel epoxy. I also finished up the canopy latches. The front ones were already done but now I finished up the aft latches. The delay was I had to wait a few months for longer latches from the factory. I needed 2mm longer on the left aft latch and 6mm longer on the right rear hatch. Everything now works as it should but the right lock is a little harder than I wish it was. One change I did make two the latches was there is a connecting rod between the front and aft latch. The factory has a plastic P clip to help hold the connecting rod. The P clip isnt long enough and you have to force the rod down to make it so you can use the flimsy P clip. Also there is a tendency for the rod to flex or bow down during unlocking. If not supported I could see this leading to the aft latch not unlocking due to the flex. So instead of the P clip that didnt really fit in the first place I used an aluminum standoff and an adel clamp around the standoff. I also greased up the rod where it contacts the connecting rod. The adel clamp and stand off are much more sturdy and it gives me a lot more confidence that the doors will unlock when I need them to.

Also, I figured out the door locks take key Y11. Thats important because I went to Lowes and bought a cabinet lock that also takes key Y11. The lock also came with longer locking latches and is just a hair longer than stock. So now that all the locks take key Y11 I had a locksmith rekey the lock so one key works on all the doors. Also with the lock itself being just a tad longer the locking latch fits perfectly behind the longeron, and as an added bonus the longer locking latch fully engages the longeron so it is a lot more secure that the factory solution where just the tip of the latch was engaged.

Lastly, I have been talking with sling to price there new throttle quadrant with a manual constant speed prop lever. I havent got the price yet but this will go into my decision of what prop I want.

  Feb 02, 2024     Center console, rear seat fix       Category: Fuselage

Last week I noted the rear seats didnt fit correctly. It turns out there are two different ways they could have been installed (also not specified in the plans) and I choose poorly. I drilled the hinge out and reinstalled. The rear seats now fit as they should. I also finished up the rear cargo floor by installing the inspection covers and also fabricating a cover plate for what would have been a rocket exhaust port if I had installed the ballistic chute.

I also temp installed the center console so that I could figure out how i wanted to secure wires inside of the center console but to also make and install the audio and mic jacks for both front seats and I also installed a USB charge port for the back seat. Its a tight fit between the flap motor and the USB charge port but I am comfortable with how I secured it.

After that I started to finish up the covers for the front of the wing spar. I found that some of the factory locations for riv nuts dont line up so I had to rework a few things.

Lastly I ordered CEET tubing so I can run hot air lines for the back seats.

  Jan 27, 2024     Floor rib fixed, floors installed, rear seat doesnt fit       Category: Fuselage

Last post I showed the cracked floor rib. I sent my proposed fix the Sling technical and they approved the fix. The patch is now on and to prevent further stress or damage on the floor I final installed the rear floors and then also put plywood on top of the floors. Before I final installed the floors I had to finish securing some loose wires and I installed some edge protectors.

I also finished my rear seat by riveting the backrests to the seats and tried to install the seat. But, the spacing of the backrests are off and they contact the air frame structure before hitting the backrest stop. The spacing was factory drilled so I am not sure how the spacing is off but I am a little annoyed. I'll contact technical just to make sure I didnt do anything stupid.

With the rear floors on and the wire underneath it done I am starting to finalize wiring and am working back to front. Next on the list is to install the front seat audio jacks, the rear seat power plug and an audio in jack on the center console.

  Jan 19, 2024     wing root CPC repinned       Category: Fuselage

So its been pretty cold outside and my shop is neither insulated nor heated so I have not been out there to much. But with the minimal time I have spent I managed to repin the fuselage side wing root CPC. I also finished the wing side CPC connectors.

After that I started to finish up the wire routing and the clamping of wire bundles with the goal of finishing up everything aft of the main wing spar so that I can put the rear floors in. While doing that I noticed a crack in the rear floor rib. I stop drilled the crack and am going to put a patch over the rib. I have taken some pictures and will send them to technical to see if they concur with my fix. If I need to replace the rib it wont be that bad. But the worst part will be reruning the wires, cables, and tubes that go thru it.

  Jan 11, 2024     Finishing up loose odds and ends       Category: Fuselage

With my boys back in school I started working on the plane again. It feels like a very long time since I have touched the project. In preparation for a deep dive into avionics I have been finishing up loose odds and ends such as: 1)sanding more filler in the rivet heads flat, just the bottom of the plane left, and 2) riveting the inboard fuel pump rib in place.

I also ordered my engine and firewall forward kit yesterday. I ended up staying with the 915 rather than upgrading to the 916. I just couldn't cost justify the bang for the buck.

Lastly I realized the I miss pinned my wing root CPC connectors so I am in the process of putting pins where sockets were and sockets where I had pins. Not the end of the world but it is time consuming.

  Dec 27, 2023     A little bit of a lot       Category: Fuselage

I have been working a lot of little tasks or at least tasks that dont have much to show for themselves. With my stepdads help I installed the Comm2 antenna. We also temp installed the left wing so that I could finalize the fuel tubing and the wire lengths and connections for the wing root to fuselage connection. I took a few tries to get the fuel tubing right just because the bends were short and tight for the tooling that I had. I ended up having to buy some AN6 swivel ends. After I finished the left wing and with the help of some neighbors we took the left wing off and temp installed the right wing. Now that side is also done. Also while the wings were installed I fitted the wing root fairings and installed most of the rivnuts for those. I do really hate installing rivnuts.
I also worked my upper avionics fiberglass panel. It wanst fitting right from the factory so I had to put some relief cuts and reinforced it with more fibrblass from the back and then used some fill on the front and sanded it smooth.
Also exciting was that I received my avionics panel from Midwest Panel Builders. There were a few problems: The color I ordered is not what they received from their supplier so I chose to just accept what they had, also my dimmer panel had the wrong word on it but they ordered a new piece and made it right. Lastly, I didnt know I needed to order all the switches and stuff separately but I didnt get any of that stuff. I subsequently ordered them and then I received some of the wrong color light bulbs but once again Midwest made things right. Overall I am very happy with the panel.
Finally this month I went to install my rear seats using the supplied Dzus fasteners. First I didnt know how to install them so I had to do some research, second I dont have the flaring tool for the grommets and third I dont know what size the grommets are. Once I figure that out I'll have to order some more tools.
Oh and I almost forgot, the biggest thing I have spent time on lately is sanding the epoxy filler that I put in the rivet heads smooth. What a time killer and not very much fun.

  Nov 19, 2023     Windows in, 1 wing on       Category: Fuselage

All of my side windows are in! I still need to do some clean up work but the windows are all in. Overall I'm happy with the results but in a few spots the windows aren't fully flush with the skin on the canopy. Also my step dad is visiting for the holidays so I put him to work and we (Kody, mike and me) temp installed the left wing. The reason I wanted to temp install the wing was to get the exact spacing for the metal fuel lines and the wires that I need to finish. I am hoping to get that kind of work done so when I finally move to the airport things will progress quickly. I also received my Steinair air vents but I wanted to be able to screw them into the sidewall. The included nut didn't allow me to do that so I stole the idea of a 3D printed plastic adapter (thanks Aaron) and made a piece of sheet aluminum with tabs that engaged the nut that came with the vent and I also used JB Weld to secure it in the sheet aluminum. I will rivet that plate to the sidewall at a later date when the upholstery is done. Lastly, Kody and I worked on filling the rivets with epoxy filler on the top of the left wing which was previously not accessible as it was sitting on the storage rack.

  Nov 12, 2023     Windows       Category: Fuselage

Ive been a little busier with work than normal so things have slowed a bit. But I have still made some progress, these past couple of weeks I have managed to cut, trim, and fit all of the side windows. I used a oscillating cutter to cut off the big pieces and then a handheld belt sander to get right up to the size i needed. I also have one of the rear windows glued in with Sikaflex. I am giving it a full 24hrs before I remove the traps holding it in. I plan to do only one window a day. IM hoping in that way I am not rushed and will get better results.

  Oct 19, 2023     Fwd Door latches, Priming, and some odds and ends       Category: Fuselage

Most of the work this week was on the door latches. Good news is that I finally made some progress and both forward latches are fully installed and work fine. The two aft latches are on hold because I need longer aft latches. I ordered longer latches about two weeks ago trying to get ahead of this but the factory sent me the exact same size latches that I already have. But I did learn and they have both 2mm and 6mm longer latches and I have them ordered.

I also finished priming what I believe are the the last of parts, period. Some of the parts were some longerons that I made for the top of the baggage area and the rest was some cover plates, trim tabs but it feels good to have that behind me.

Lastly I started talks with a local upholstry company for my interior. They are going to give me more options than factory and they are cheaper as well.

  Oct 11, 2023     Vent Ducts, Door Locks, Interior Lights, Inside side skins       Category: Fuselage

I did a lot of smaller tasks with the exception of the door locks which I have made some progress but they are still in works.

With the front top skin drilled and clecoed into place I was able to put the dashboard in. With that in I was able to know where my fresh air tubes had to go and was able to use a silicone Y that went from a 3" opening to two 2" openings. Whats left here is I need to get the actual metal vents that close 100% as what is supplied in the kit are plastic and do no fully stop the flow of air. This is a departure from the plans in an effort to make things more simple. I am splitting the hot air which will go at the pilots feet and thru the center channel and the fresh air which will run along the sides.

Also a small departure from the plans is that instead of having the nuts fro the canopy door struts stick out into the C channel that runs around the perimeter of the door, I am countersinking the screws into the C channel. My hope is that there is less to interfere with the door being pulled closed which is already a little hard due to the door not fitting quite right. I have adjusted as much as I can by slotting the mount bolt holes and when I am done I will fill the slot with JB Weld epoxy.

I also decided on the aft cabin lights. There are lights I like more (Aveo eyebeam dome) but I cant cost justify it. The Aveos are 260 each. The lights I installed were 24 for a four pack. I also wired in some capacitive touch dimmers right next to the lights. The light on the left is full bright and the right one is full dim.

I also installed my aft side skins, a few of the holes didn't line up but it was pretty straightforward. I had intended to wait for these but I found out that I needed. them on to drill thru and install some rivnuts for the door latches.

Door locks, I am on take four with the door locks. I thought I had everything worked out but then I realized that the locks didnt actually lock and I had to change my setup. I have now hollowed out and then filled back in the door for the lock mount twice. What I had to do was sink the lock handle into the door from the outside in rather than trying to sink the mount bracket in from the inside out if that makes sense. Now that I have made some headway hopefully the going will get easier. I have also ordered some longer door lock latches. The latch needs to hang down far enough that the screw with the bushing that the latch grabs needs to be installed so the screw will penetrate the canopy in the middle of the C channel. The problem there is no adjustment for this. My current latches dont currently hang down far enough. Hopefully the longer latches are the answer. Otherwise I will just drill the hole where it needs to be based on the door latch and just hope for the best.

Oh and because Sling is really good and making things almost good but not quite is the holes the drilled in the dashboard for the vents are just a hair too big. You can just see the edge of the hole with the provided plastic vents and they are also too big for the after market vents I am using. I guess I will fill the hole edges with epoxy, I am not sure. Hopefully I can hide the slightly enlarged hole from the front so I dont have to look at it. I also started talking with an upholstry shop to see if they are interested in helping provide a full interior. Maybe I will fiberglass the holes in the dash in, cut them the the correct size and have the upholstery guys redo the dash.

  Sep 30, 2023     Brake Lines, lower fiberglass skin, door latch work       Category: Fuselage

I received the rest of the brake line parts that I was waiting on and was able to complete the connection from the flexible braided brake line to the plastic brake line. Besides figuring out what connectors I needed it was pretty straight forward and all the lines are connected and torqued. All that is left regarding the brakes is the AN4 bulkhead fitting to connect the brake reservoir to the master cylinder.

Next in order to continue with my door installation I bought some square stock because I need to make a longer bar from the door handle to the latch itself. I also had to buy a tap and die kit. I started by flattening and squaring the ends of the bar stock and marking center. I drilled the hole down the center by hand. I started tapping the hole and got about 3/4ths of it done but I ended up breaking the tap. I am now waiting on a new tap to be shipped. I also filled in the hole on the inside of the door for the latch mechanism anchor. By having the anchor further in I figure it will be stronger and should flex less but I may not need the new bushings I purchased. time will tell.

Next I started working on the lower inside fiberglass skin. This was a little bit of a pain for several reasons. First it looks like a I have a small crack in the panel on the right side by the groove the window will sit it. The crack is not all of the way thru though and I stop drilled it. I also sent pictures of it to technical to see if they recommend a new panel. Second the panel is straight but when I cargo strap it in position before match drilling the panel is pulled out of shape a little to conform to the fuselage. This resulted in the right side of the fiberglass to bulge outward significantly. To relieve the stress I cut/notched the panel and stop drilled the cut. My plan is the fiberglass the back side while its in place on the airframe and then sand the outer skin a little bit. Also the hole duplicator and 1' drill bit made match drilling the holes a pretty easy job.

Lastly, I started working the little odds and ends that are easier to finish now while the lower skin is off. I finished the static port tubing and also connected the AOA and pitot to the GSU25. I also cut the connector off the heater fan as I didnt have the other half of the mating connector but I did have a Delphi connector that works just fine and I have both sides, the pins and it has provision to mount the connector so I went that route.

  Sep 24, 2023     More door problems Category: Fuselage

I have not been able to figure out how to fix my right door. In the factory installed location the bottom aft edge juts out from the aircraft. If I unbolt the front hinge the door rocks back and forth in place. I have able to mostly fix it initially by elongating the forward hinge holes outward. But when I installed the weather seal to continue with the installation, the bottom aft part of the door is again jutting out. If I unbolt the forward hinge I can get the door to sit flush along the bottom but I would need to further elongate the holes in the canopy and I am running out of room and I also don't think the door seals are sealing as the door itself is slid over so far. Needles to say, I am frustrated with the door and I dont know what I am going to do to fix the door. I have taken the door on and off so many times trying to maje adjustments that I literally wore out the nyloc nuts. Additionally, the door handle is on the top forward part of the door and the bottom aft part of the door is what needs to get pulled in. It is very difficult to pull in the bottom aft of the door by pulling on the top forward part of the door. At this point I would have to have someone outside the aircraft to push the door in to be able to latch it.

  Aug 26, 2023     Right door       Category: Fuselage

The right door fitment is pretty bad but ironically it does allow the latch to swing down. If I unbolt the entire door it literally rocks against the canopy frame. Just like the left door the right door sits below flush at the front and proud at the aft. When I install the weather stripping the front of the door is flush but the aft of the door sticks very far out from the frame, so much so I can almost get a finger thru the crack. Also just like the the left door I am unable to get an even edge around the door to the door frame.
I tried shifting where the door bolts to the canopy frame and I can get it better that what it currently is but I would need the match drill the front bolt holes which the factory asked me not to do. Also with the door shifted to my new location I can not get the latch to swing down anymore as it contacts the canopy frame. I am just standing by for help from the factory, I sent pictures to Jean who sent my pictures to the main part engineers and to Mike Blyth (owner of Sling aircraft) to see if I can get some new doors. I am not sure how this is going to turn out or what the fix is just yet but I am confident that Sling will help me out.

  Aug 26, 2023     Left door       Category: Fuselage

Both of my doors have some problems for the installation. The left door fits better than the right with just some minor tweaking of the bolt holes in the canopy. I believe the door is twisted just a little bit as I cant get it to sit perfectly flush against the canopy frame with everything unbolted. Its close but not 100%. Its close enough to live with though. The front of the door sits below flush of the canopy frame while the aft end sits just a little proud. I think the latches, when engaged will be able to easily compensate and pull the door nice and tight

The door latch on the left door did not open up enough to allow the door to close. I notched out where the latch was contacting the door and the latch does open up enough to allow the door to close but the latch will not swing down to lock because its hitting the canopy frame.

I had one Jean (main manager in Torrence) reach to me regarding the latch. In my pictures he noted that I had recessed the inside door latch mount. I am not sure if this is normal or not as its not mentioned in the plans. But when I told him that I had to recess it just to get the door handle to engage the latch itself he didnt have much of an answer. The left door however is a little thicker in that area than the right door. Also I am not able to get a uniform edge distance around the perimeter of the door.

  Aug 16, 2023     Door Latches       Category: Fuselage

I have been working on the door latches. The instructions from Sling have been lacking so I have been taking the "what makes sense" approach. In short I had to enlarge the whole for the door lock bracket to be able to slide in. Then I had to carve out the door for the base of the door lock bracket to sit down inside the door structure in order to make it so the door handle could screw to the latching mechanism itself. The right side door is fine but the left door the latch itself contacts the door frame not allowing it to open enough so I cant close the door. I have an email into technical but I think ill just have to carve out more of the door structure where it is contacting.

I also worked on forming the latching plates around the canopy frame. It wanst hard but it took some time to get the flat sheets curved so they hugged the door sill like they should. I fount the most useful thing was to take a round punch and literally hammer the sheet around the punch to get the shape i needed. Then i put the piece in position and took two pieces of wood and squeezed them on each side of the metal plate while it was on the door to get the final tight shape. The only other thing I need to think about is that the instructions have you installing a plastic clip on the bar that connects the front and aft locking mechanism. The problem being that I would have to pull the bar down into a position to where I could install the clip. The bar wants to sit a little farther away from the door frame than what the clip wants to allow. But even without the clip everything does fit under the covers that are made to hide all that stuff.

Lastly I have the front passenger seatbelts in again. I was waiting on a bushing from the factory that I have since received and now it all goes together like it should.

  Jul 13, 2023     Canopy Install       Category: Fuselage

Canopy installed! I feel kinda lucky because I had very little to trim for the canopy install, just a little at the aft section where it was contacting the fuselage. Along the bottom of the canopy i used wedges to prop the canopy into its proper position. I used Sika activator, primer and then the glue. It was not nearly as bad as I thought it was going to be. I still have a little bit of clean up around the rivet heads to do. After the install I was able to remove the fuselage bracing which has made it a lot easier to work inside the plane. I also installed the door struts, trimmed the bolts that secure the doors, cut a hole so I can install the GPS antenna on top of the canopy. Also, I did get a new parachute cable tray to install in the upper baggage area, even though I don't have a parachute or cables, but the tray just does not fit correctly and I would have to drill all the holes to make it work. I asked technical if I had to install it and they said it was structural. I am not sure if I am going to stay with this but I used some extra longerons I had and installed those where the cable tray attaches to the skin. I need to send a picture to technical just to see what they think.
Last is that all the locks provided by sling are keyed differently. I asked technical if this was normal and was told yes. I personally think its garbage and took the locks to a locksmith to rekey. The first locksmith was not able to rekey them so I have them back to finsh the install but I'll have to take them to someone else.

  Jul 08, 2023     Cleaning up loose ends       Category: Fuselage

In preparation for canopy install I had to finishing up a few things in the aft fuselage area first. Now that I have my empennage fairing and could tell exactly where it was going to go I finished my ELT antenna install which I elected to have underneath the tail fairing. With the mount made I also finished up securing the coax wire for the antenna.
With the ELT antenna complete I closed up the rear fuselage skins and then it was on to installing the baggage door. I had my son Kody get inside the plane in the baggage compartment which he thought was kind of cool and hold a block of wood so I could drill from the outside in thru the hinge for the door.
Lastly, I swapped out the bolts for the engine mount with drilled bolts and castellated nuts. It just makes me feel better knowing there is something mechanical preventing those nuts from coming off.

  Jun 30, 2023     Firewall Pass Thru/ Filling rivets       Category: Fuselage

Things have slowed down with summer break. My kids are home and we have been doing a lot of activities together. During the past month I finished the nose wheel push rod pass thrus. I also started filling rivets, its not bad but it does take some time.

  Jun 01, 2023     Rear Upper skins       Category: Fuselage

I installed the seat belts both forward and aft, ill probably take them back out so I dont get sika on them during the canopy install but i wanted to work out the issues now while im waiting on my landing gear and finishing kit to arrive. I also worked on getting the aft upper fuselage skins on. The left skin went on smoothly, I only clecoed it so I still have access back there if needed for things like redoing the ELT buzzer and the static port install. The right side skin was a different story and I had to take it off and reinstall it about four times. In the end I could get the top and bottom row of rivets to align and most of the ribs to align. One rib just didnt want to match up so well. I had to have a helper while i reached in and pushed/pulled the rib while my helper clecoed. I elected to rivet the right skin in because I was having problems with it and didnt want to take it back off and fight with it again to get it as good as i had. Also I had to be careful where the front of the two skins matched up because it was trying to bulge up in the center where the two skins meet. I had to be cognizant of that and work the skins down on each side to get rid of that bulge. In the end I am happy with how it came out.

  May 12, 2023     Various fusalage tasks       Category: Fuselage

I got some more back ordered parts. The shipping company actually dropped off a pallet of return items, needles to say I was surprised. I quick call and they realized their mistake and brought me what they were suppose to. I have 99.9% of the fuselage kit at this point. I also received a new rudder cable so I got that installed pretty quickly. To get the rudder pedals working smoothly in the front I had to cut/grind away some interfering material on the rudder limiting brackets. This wasnt a surprise and is covered in the manual. I also installed the insulating foam and forward inboard skins. I fabricated an ELT mount for the aft fuselage out of the wing jigs. Lastly, the non-parachute cable tray that I received does not fit. I compared it to the parachute cable tray and they are very different sizes. I reached out to technical support and they let me know the tray was mis-manufactured and they are sending a replacement. Lastly I started cutting some foam blocks (the pink blocks) to seal off an air channel to distribute fresh air to the back seats.

  Apr 19, 2023     Seats, Rivnuts, Sound insulation       Category: Fuselage

As I quickly run out of parts again, a good problem to have, I am just trying to keep myself busy with some of the smaller projects that arent so much fun.

My son and I built the front seats together, that part was a lot of fun. I opted to not prime the seats due to the high number of small parts that would be a pain to prime and that I can remove the seats if ever needed. I also built the rear seat but I still have some pieces that are backordered and also while I had all of the perts per the inventory. The inventory sheet I have, 6.3, is actually wrong and shows the incorrect number of two different pieces so I am now also waiting on those as well.

I installed the GMU 11 and built the wire harness for that. It was a good start to see what is to come regarding wiring up the plane. I made the decision to wire up the plane/ avionics myself. Yes its going to take awhile but I am enjoying the build.

I also installed the NACA ducts and my son found a great use for them before I actually mounted them.

I also put together the throttle and parking brake assembly. Not much to note here but what I would like to do is have a machine shop thread the throttle handle so I can mount a go around switch on the side of the throttle assembly. I'll have to figure out how I am going to run the wires but it should be a fun modification.

I put the brackets, control valve, and tubing on the heater core in preparation for that to go in. Some other small projects I got done were, countersinking the seat rails and the plastic that mounts on them and installing sound insulation in the entire forward fuselage. I found more pieces that were under dimpled from the factory, not a complaint but something to lookout for. The pneumatic squeezer is great and getting in these small pieces and finishing the dimples. Regarding countersinking the seat rails, some of the holes are 4.8 and I dont have a countersink bit with a 4.8 pilot bit. so I clamped a piece of metal with a 4.0 whole centered on the backside of the seat rail and used that to guide the countersink bit. It worked like a charm.

Lastly I installed some of the seat belt anchor points. While it wasnt hard its a great illustration of how bad the construction manual can be at times. It says to enlarge the holes to 4.8mm. Ok that worked for the 3 rivets. Then it says to install an AN4 bolt with is to big for the 4.8 hole, an AN3 bolt does fit nicely in the 4.8 however. It also calls out a M4 stainless steel washer which is way to small to fit the AN4 bolt. The diameter of that washer is about the same diameter of the bolt.

  Apr 06, 2023     Side skins and firewall attached       Category: Fuselage

I prepped more parts for the side skin, side skin reinforcements, and the firewall install. The side skins went on pretty easy with minimal "encouragement" to get into position. The side skin reinforcement plates were a little more tricky and I found the order of the rivet install did matter. Luckily my step dad was in town and was a huge help in getting everything pushed into place and also riveted.

I pulled the old rudder cable and am still awaiting its replacement but I would rather find problems now and fix them. Some of the rudder cable guides are hard to get to as I installed them while a lot of the fuselage was not put together. Foot long drill bits came in very handy.

The firewall in also now on, it took some time because it ends up being a sandwich of 3 sheets of aluminum and 1 of steel. I had to work slow and install a cleco in every hole to help pull everything together. The parts were all dimpled individually, but I found it helpful to use my pneumatic squeezer with dimple dies and dimple the parts while they were all together.

After the firewall went on I checked my rudder pedals and unfortunately they were pretty hard to move. I assumed the floor had tweeked a little from the firewall going on. I started removing some rivets to adjust the pedals but I realized the stiffness wasn't coming from the pedal mounts but rather the matco brake cylinders. I had tightened the attachment bolts a little too much. After backing off the nuts just a little bit the rudder pedals started moving as they should. One good thing that came from this is that I noticed one of the top mount brackets that holds the pedals down was drilled incorrectly from the factory and wasnt supporting the way it was designed. I have a new part on order.

Lastly, the center fuselage center skin is on. I was waiting to do this because I didn't have access with the fuselage siting on the workbench. I had to slide the fuselage onto some work horses to get access.

  Mar 15, 2023     Center Fuselage       Category: Fuselage

More work on the center fuselage. I have been finding more and more things in the plan that are misleading and/or incorrect. For example some of the rivnuts that the plans show installed interfere with the seat rail and I reached out to technical which confirmed they had to be removed. Also I was inspecting my rudder cable to ensure it was correct in accordance with a sling safety bulletin and I found my cable had some problems with it. I sent pictures to technical and Sling is sending a new cable. Additionally, I have rivets that simply will not fit where the holes are factory drilled. Its annoying but I have been shortening some of the rivets. Lastly some of the longerons dont have all of the holes predrilled but I have been clecoing what I can and drilling the rest of the holes. Its not the end of the world but I havent had to do that yet, maybe I am spoiled?
I also added the brake lines tot he toe brakes which was straight forward.
Lastly, the parts that I have been waiting on since November, that were damaged in Torrence California, will be repackaged and sent directly to my house from Africa in the next few days. That should help a bunch as I have been waiting on the rear fuselage skins. I guess I will have to make sure I finish up the rear fuselage wiring so I can put those skins on. Actually I need those skins off to swap out the rudder cable so it works out.

  Feb 16, 2023     Center Fuselage       Category: Fuselage

Lots of work done these past four days. I primed all of the parts that I spent the prior week prepping. Once the priming was done things went together fast. I put the center fuselage floor together and attached the skeleton of the center console and the rudder pedals to the floor. I wasnt able to finish installing the brake cylinders on the rudder pedals because I have 8 bushings that are back ordered. I had to sand down the bushings for the rudder pedals to smooth out the movement.

After the rudder pedals went in I tried to install a control stick, the other one is back ordered. But I ran in to a problem which was that it initially looked like the stick was too short as I couldnt get the stick mounts bolted to the spar. I figured out that the problem was that I had to angle the front fuselage floor instead of having it in plane with the center fuselage floor. Once the front floor had the correct angle the stick fit as it should. Currently there is a lot more resistance on the side to side motion of the stick but I am waiting to fix it until the side skins are on as that should ensure I have the exact correct angle of the front floor skin. Next I installed the flap and elevator torque tubes but I didnt rivet the them in yet. The rear elevator torque tube I did rivet in place, and I did take it out several times to sand the bushings to reduce the friction on the tube. I had it where I wanted it but after shooting the rivets the tube it tight again. I'll have to drill the rivets and take it back out to sand some more but for the time being I moved on.

I also installed various parts on the center fuselage but I am running into small clearance issues and have had to grind away a little bit here and there to ensure a proper fit. I also installed the aileron garmin autopilot servo because it just seemed easier to do now while there was more clearance.

Lastly I tried to install the flap actuator but the problem I ran into there was that the instructions call for 8 AN5 thin washers but the kit inventory and what I had on hand only have 3 thin washers. I tried to install it with regular washers but the nut does not have enough grip on the bolt so I will have to get the thin washers or get a longer AN5 drilled bolt.

  Feb 07, 2023     More part prep and connected aft to center fuselage       Category: Fuselage

I was only home for two days so not much time and it was too humid and windy to prime parts so I spent more time deburring and prepping parts. I have most of the fusalage parts prepped and a lot or priming that I need to do now. I also connected the aft to center fuselage. My only concern now it that there isnt that much holding the two big parts together so I am going to have to be careful and get a helper to move it. The plans didnt call to put the jigs in just yet but I figured it couldnt hurt and should help distribute some of the forces when I have to move the assembly around. Its almost too big to move by myself. Lastly there is a picture of a firewall part that I was concerned was was over countersunk. I was going to email technical but after looking at it some I realized it just wasnt drilled all the way. I finished drilling that hole and moved on.

  Feb 01, 2023     Part prep       Category: Fuselage

We had a cold snap with a lot of sleet and ice in Texas. It was colder than I wanted to deal with, the shop isnt heated or insulated. I did the next best thing and brought piles of parts into the house and spent about two days peeling plastic off of parts and installing rivnuts. I am still using steel epoxy to help the rivnuts so they are a pain but hopefully I am avoiding problems in the future.

  Jan 27, 2023     Center fuselage skeleton and floor       Category: Fuselage

I continued work on the center fuselage skeleton but didnt connect it to the rear fuselage just yet because when I do that it will be too big and awkward for me to move by myself. Instead I started working on the center fuselage floor, prepping parts, deburring, priming and installing a lot of rivnuts. I need to add some foam to the inside of the bottom floor and I still need to prime the inside skin of the fuselage skin so that I can install it.

  Jan 19, 2023     Center fuselage skeleton start       Category: Fuselage

So I dont have a lot to show for it but the center fuse skeleton is underway. Typical debur and prime parts. I have 30 plus rivnuts to install which took a full day because I am adding steel epoxy to each rivnut before I squeeze it to hopefully avoid the dreaded spinning rivnut after the fact. I have some more pieces to add to assembly you see pictured and then it will be attached to the rear fuselage.

  Jan 16, 2023     Rear Fuselage Baggage floor       Category: Fuselage

I have been working on the baggage floor which wasn't terribly difficult but i did have to drill some rivets holding the bottom floor C channels to the aft compartment skin. As it was half one way or half the other rivet holes were not lining up. By drilling the bottom C channel all of the holes lined up with the exception of 4 holes where the C channels riveted to the aft compartment skin. It was to tight in there for me to use the tools I had so I am now the new owner of a 90 degree drill which has already come in very hand in multiple other areas as well.

Before I permanently installed the baggage floor I installed some sound deadening foam per the plans.

I also riveted the rudder cable guides in place and installed the rudder centering springs into place. I didnt realize I needed to install some larger rivnuts for those springs and I didnt have access to install the rivnuts with my normal tool but I had some screws, washers, and nuts and was able to get the rivnuts installed it was just a pain in the but.

  Dec 06, 2022     Rear Fuselage Priming       Category: Fuselage

Good news, I finally received the long awaited fuel lines that were back ordered and I am now finishing up the last auxiliary tank. I need to pressure/ leak check then I can install it and finish the left wing. Things are getting tight in the garage so being able to put the left wing away in its cradle will free up some work space.
I started prepping and spraying a 2 part epoxy primer on the fuselage parts. Just like the wings, the prep work is taking longer than the actual building. Luckily I am enjoying the process and am not in a rush. I am about to rivet the lower rear fuselage skins but I had to send a few questions to tech support before I continue. Once the skins are on there is going to be a lot less access so I want to make sure I am not missing anything. The rear tie down has 8 rivet holes and the instructions only had me rivet 5 of the holes. I dont want to rivet the other three just to have to drill them out later on down the road. Thats all for now.

  Nov 21, 2022     Fusalage kit arrived       Category: Fuselage

I received the fuselage kit on Nov 4th. It took me almost two weeks to do inventory as I started my next job after the military and I have only been home on the weekends. This kit arrived in much better condition than the wings did. I did have two pieces of damaged skin however. The two other problems is I was missing the entire center console section and the factory sent me the parachute version of the kit when I ordered the non-parachute. They are going to make it right so I am not to worried about it. The most frustrating part is that I am still waiting on the fuel tank lines for my left aux tank and I have done everything I can around those pieces. There is literally nothing else I can do with the wings until I receive those fuel lines.

Lastly, in my move from Florida to Texas, the movers were horrible and broke/ lost a lot of my things. My spray painting table was one of them. I had to rebuild a new table so I can do the epoxy primer on all of the fuselage parts. I wont be building this weekend as I have a funeral to attend but hopefully I can start in the beginning of December.

Even though I wasn't working on the plane I still was working, I build some extra storage for the fuselage skins. Also a wind storm cracked some of the plastic sheeting on the roof of my metal garage. It was the second time the cracked so I replaced those pieces with metal sheets which then made the garage very dark so I ordered an LED shop lighting kit and installed that. Hopefully the side projects are done.