7/12/2008
Today was pretty much an aviation filled day! Started out by going to the EAA Chapter hangar for breakfast, then I helped Rob get this RV-7 weighed (DAR is next week!!), then came home to work on my airplane for the afternoon!
My goal for the day was to get the forward canopy installed. I didn't quite make it due to lack of hardware (short on washers), but I'll be able to wrap that up on Monday. First, the side skirts were installed, so I cleco'd those in place.
Then I pulled the squeezer out of the drawer, and started setting rivets...something I hadn't done much of lately.
The front joint came out great...
...as did the rear split between the skirt and skin.
Next I put the bubble on the frame, and installed all the screws and nuts along the side rails.
The screws along the top of the canopy were almost impossible to install by myself, so my friend Carl came over to help. I had to be inside the cabin with the canopy down to install the stack of washers I am using as spacers between the ribs and the canopy, while he put the screws in from the outside. I'll take a pic of how I installed the stacks of washers next time...Carl had a great idea for this, and it worked great! I ran out of washers to install the nuts on the screws, so I'll grab a handful of those, and finish this part up on Monday. I'd say it's about 50% installed with the screws along the top needing finishing, and the front fiberglass work down the road.
The only other thing I did was install the platenuts on the heater valve, and installed that. Here's the platenuts-
Before it goes on the firewall, I used the fire sealant around the large hole, and the bolt holes as the instructions recommend.
Then I installed the heater valve with the stainless bolts. One of them had a chip in the threads, and I'll need to run a thread cleaner over that one, so in the meantime I clamped the left side until the sealant sets.
Tomorrow we're off to Brittne's parents house to visit with her grandparents while they're in town, and go to the horseshow at the fair, so no work on Sunday.
3.5 hours