Peter


About Peter

plbarrett.com | Certified Flight Instructor (Single & Multi-Engine, Instrument, and Advanced Ground) | Commercial Helicopter

Ailerons 8 (2.0 hrs)

I primed a good portion of the aileron components this evening at my Uncle’s garage.  Really not much else to say.  Priming is priming and I’ve covered how I go about it numerous times.  I’m hoping to have the ailerons complete by the end of this weekend. IMG_5838.JPG

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Ailerons 7 (2.0 hrs)

This evening I set about final preparation of the right aileron.  Primarily deburring and dimpling the remaining structure.

I had an extra 3/32 dimple die set.  The male die was a little off, having at some point it its life being used for something it should have been. So its been sitting unused. The tight space at the trailing edge of the outer ribs presented a problem, and this little spare die was the solution. I ground down the male portion of the die so that it would not protrude from the back of the female close quarters die. This way I could use the no-hole yoke, close quarters dimple die, and modified male die, to get into very tight places. I have to be careful to make sure everything is aligned properly, but if you go slow, the male die will ensure the female die is properly aligned. IMG_0162.JPG

Here is a picture of the process.IMG_0163.JPG

The end result came out perfect.  The far dimple looks like its off, but that is artifact of the picture.  I’m very happy with the result, as it was difficult to even get the close quarters dimple die set in this location. IMG_0164.JPG

Not much to say for a post concerning deburring and dimpling. IMG_0165.JPG


Ailerons 6 (2.5 hrs)

Today I finished final drilling and dimpling the leading edge skin for the right aileron.  The counterweight attaches to the leading edge skin at the point where the curve in the skin is greatest.  As a result, you cannot use a standard dimple die to dimple the skin for the CS4-4 pop rivets.  The method recommend (not in the instructions) is to use to counter sink the counterweight pipe and then use that as your dimple die.

Here I have the counterweight pipe, after countersinking, attached to a 2×4.  IMG_0005.JPG

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With the counterweight securely in place, I clecoed the leading edge skin.IMG_0008.JPG

I used the steel rod from my c-frame and a male dimple die to achieve the dimple below. IMG_0010.JPG

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I was at the airport for a long time today, but I didn’t get much work done. We also had an EAA Chapter meeting and that made for a lot of visitors and hangar talk. Zack Chattler was nice enough to give me two very heavy duty rubber mats for the floor. The heavy weight is perfect for holding down the wood and providing a stable surface.

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Also, our EAA Technical Counselor, John Raffensparger, took a look at my project.  He was very pleased with the quality of the build and so far, no squawks!IMG_0012.JPG