Monthly Archives: June 2014


Wings 26 (4.0 hrs)

I started off today by finishing the installation of the stall warning assembly.  The instructions call for pop rivets, although others go with solid rivets.  Its not structural so I see no reason to not use pop rivets.20140615-192314-69794957.jpg

Here is an enlarged view of the hole for the stall warning vane.  I still need to do a little cleaning up with the file.  You can’t really tell unless you get really close, but it bothers me nonetheless.   20140615-192312-69792970.jpg

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Here is the cable that will connect the stall warning back to the cockpit.  The instructions call for 8.5 feet.  I always leave extra in the event of changes or mistakes so I left 10 feet. 20140615-192600-69960361.jpg

Next up its time to rivet the leading edge of the left wing. 20140615-192602-69962543.jpg

Van’s instructions call for you to rivet the rear row of rivets with a squeezer and then work forward toward the leading edge which is contrary to how I normally rivet a skin. 20140617-131424-47664210.jpg

Here are the rivets I squeezed first. 20140617-131422-47662014.jpg20140617-131635-47795736.jpg

The leading edge still needs to be riveted to the spar. 20140617-131637-47797327.jpg

Next I worked on the scarf joint.  I decided I can’t quite finish it until the fuel tanks are attached, as I want to be able to do a final check against the flush skins. 20140617-131734-47854369.jpg


Wings 25 (0.5 hrs)

I regret not taking pictures during the assembly of the stall warning, however I have several pictures of the completed product.  In the last shop session, I countersunk and primed the required parts, so today was quick. I riveted the two nutplates and put the assembly together. A few notes for anyone assembling this part below. 20140608-092539-33939116.jpgVan’s instructs you not to over torque this bolt.  The stall warning vane must move freely so you can’t over tighten.  Avoid over tightening the other two bolts as well. 20140608-092537-33937379.jpg

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20140608-092603-33963867.jpgAlso, don’t forget to ensure your grounding wire has a good contact point.  I used a little scotchbrite to remove the primer. 20140608-092608-33968052.jpg

20140608-092606-33966084.jpgI wanted to install the assembly in the leading edge today, but found that there is currently interference between the skin and the vane.  I will need to play around with the bracket alignment and possibly do a little more filing for clearance during the next session.


Fuel Tanks 25 (3.5 hrs)

Today’s primary task was to remove the sealant around the previous fuel tank baffle. Removing proseal isn’t fun, and requires a fair amount of sweat to accomplish.  I did a fair amount of research on the forums in advance and here are my tips for removing proseal.

  • Purchase some tough plastic scrapers like the ones pictured below from harbor freight.  They’ll allow you to scrape the proseal without scratching the aluminum. Additionally, you can easily resharpen the plastic with the scotchbrite wheel.  Sharp edges help substantially.
  • Next you can use a combination of scotchbrite pads, heat, MEK, and the scrapers to continuously work down the remaining sealant.  I personally didn’t use heat as I found it too time consuming for such a large sealant removal job.  I did use scotchbrite and MEK.
  • A couple iterations of scraper – MEK – scotchbrite seems to do the trick!

Here are the tools I bought at Harbor Freight. The scrapers are for the proseal removal. The pneumatic angle grinder and sanding discs are for the wing skin scarf joints. 20140608-092051-33651371.jpgHere is a “before picture” of the baffle proseal.20140608-092054-33654536.jpg20140608-092053-33653091.jpgAnd a picture after the first round of scraping.20140608-092138-33698134.jpgAfter the first scotchbrite / MEK run….20140608-092136-33696572.jpgAnd the final product!20140608-092154-33714130.jpg

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20140608-092155-33715728.jpgInstalling the baffle isn’t terribly difficult, nor is it a lengthy project.  Which means this tank is almost complete… for the second time!