I clecoed together the parts of the HS skeleton I have so far. I was right, I need both workbenches to support it.
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| It's starting to look like something that belongs on an airplane... |
I put the HS-00005 and HS-00006 ribs in place with some support to get an idea of what the skeleton will look like with every part in place. This is starting to look great!
Before I could put the skin on, the HS-705 nose ribs needed to be bent to stay in a straight line with the HS-706 ribs.
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| Much better. |
Every hole attaching the skeleton pieces to one another needed to be either reamed or match-drilled to #30, and then came time to attach the skin. As with the VS skin it takes patience, finesse, and a little muscle to stretch the skin over the ribs correctly, but the end result is worth it.
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| I considered trying to put both the left and right skins on at the same time, but I realized I don't have enough clecos for that... |
With everything in its place I marked the locations of all the holes I would need to match drill into the spars. Now that I had a point of reference, I removed the HS-702s and went to work trimming the last portion of the spars. The easiest way to do this was to use the hand shears, followed by a quick grind session on the Scotchbrite wheel to smooth the edge and round all corners.
With the HS-702 spars finally, completely done I slipped them back into the assembly and began the drilling process. Reaming the #40 prepunched holes was a non-event, but I admit that actually drilling the holes inboard the HS-707/HS-708 spars had me worried at first. I slipped the HS-00005/HS-00006 ribs back in place to help align the spars with the appropriate holes on the skin, then I match-drilled the holes in the spar. The finished holes lined up perfectly on the spars, a good opportunity for a first-time builder like me to sing the praises of having computer-aided design and prepunched parts.
I turned my attention back to the HS-00005 and HS-00006 ribs. Unfortunately they aren't prepunched, so they have to be clamped into place and then match-drilled with the skin. Clearance is tight here, but the clamps held everything solidly in place for drilling.
The aft flanges of the HS-00006 ribs needed to be pilot drilled on their own, then match-drilled to the front spar assembly once clamped in place. There's no way the drill could fit into this small space with the regular drill bits, so the 12-inch drill bits supplied in the Cleaveland tool kit worked beautifully here. Next was drilling the front of the HS-710 and HS-714 through the entire front spar assembly to the HS-00005 rib behind. This looked like a perfect opportunity for the 12-inch bit to wander, so I rigged up a quick drill guide using some scrap aluminum, a piece of wood, and a clamp to keep the bit where I wanted it. The guide worked well, but it still takes an uncomfortably long time to drill through not one, but four layers of aluminum with a 12-inch drill bit that flexes easily.
The ribs were now clecoed to the front spar, so it was time to match drill the flanges to the aft spar and finally to the upper and lower halves of the skin. I had to make sure the skin sat tight against the ribs before any drilling was to occur, so it was time to once again break out all the clamps.
I started at the back and match drilled the aft flanges of the HS-00005s using the rear spar as a guide, then worked my way forward to the HS-00006 flanges. Every other new hole that got drilled also received a cleco to allow me to progressively shift the clamps forward.
With the HS-702 spars finally, completely done I slipped them back into the assembly and began the drilling process. Reaming the #40 prepunched holes was a non-event, but I admit that actually drilling the holes inboard the HS-707/HS-708 spars had me worried at first. I slipped the HS-00005/HS-00006 ribs back in place to help align the spars with the appropriate holes on the skin, then I match-drilled the holes in the spar. The finished holes lined up perfectly on the spars, a good opportunity for a first-time builder like me to sing the praises of having computer-aided design and prepunched parts.
I turned my attention back to the HS-00005 and HS-00006 ribs. Unfortunately they aren't prepunched, so they have to be clamped into place and then match-drilled with the skin. Clearance is tight here, but the clamps held everything solidly in place for drilling.
The aft flanges of the HS-00006 ribs needed to be pilot drilled on their own, then match-drilled to the front spar assembly once clamped in place. There's no way the drill could fit into this small space with the regular drill bits, so the 12-inch drill bits supplied in the Cleaveland tool kit worked beautifully here. Next was drilling the front of the HS-710 and HS-714 through the entire front spar assembly to the HS-00005 rib behind. This looked like a perfect opportunity for the 12-inch bit to wander, so I rigged up a quick drill guide using some scrap aluminum, a piece of wood, and a clamp to keep the bit where I wanted it. The guide worked well, but it still takes an uncomfortably long time to drill through not one, but four layers of aluminum with a 12-inch drill bit that flexes easily.
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| It took a lot of careful measuring and positioning to get the guide clamped where I wanted it, but it worked perfectly once it was in place. |
The ribs were now clecoed to the front spar, so it was time to match drill the flanges to the aft spar and finally to the upper and lower halves of the skin. I had to make sure the skin sat tight against the ribs before any drilling was to occur, so it was time to once again break out all the clamps.
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| This rib is going nowhere |
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| All clecoed up. Now all that's left to do is deburr... |
