Fairings Complete - Beginning the Canopy - build time 1314 hrs

     Finally finished with the wheel fairings. They took so long to complete because I had to jump around and deal with rigging the wings which meant they were coming out of the living room for the last time. I'm pretty happy with the fairings - it just takes time and a lot of sanding, install, check uninstall, sand...
     I also had to deal with the brakes which took a solid session. Both calipers were leaking at the pipe fitting. I used the same pipe sealer I've been using for years and used on the master cylinders (which didn't leak) but I think what happened is I just over thought the whole thing and didn't tighten them enough. I bought some Locktite 561 (I think that's the number) and they're pretty tight now. Also had a leak at the right Main Gear bracket where the brake line goes through it. Other that getting 5606 all over the place it wasn't too hard to fix. Again, I think I just didn't get them tight enough. I haven't pressure tested the brakes yet and I'll do that at some point when I get around to bleeding them again.

    The canopy is coming along. It seemed daunting at first but I watched the video on vans web of the RV14 layup and that instilled confidence. Also, most of the forum says it's no big deal. I've done layups with glass before and other than the mess it should be fine. For those that find these blogs helpful here's a tip. The construction manual says to sand or file the weld in the middle of the forward tube and then install the canopy frame and check for clearance of the tube to the instrument panel. Then says to carefully bend to meet spec. Well, I had about 3/8's to pull forward and I couldn't get it to move while in the down position as it ran into the panel. So I opened it and 'carefully' pulled down and heard a 'pop' - the weld in the middle of the tub where I filed it down cracked. So to future builder - sand / file the weld after you have the frame where you want it. It will be simple to fix but I'll have to truck it over to someone with a tig that can weld 6061.

    It took some time to prep the canopy. The hole for the latch is already there and the edges looked pretty good but after closer inspection I felt they needed to be dressed per section 5 so I tapped it all up, hit it with 80 grit to even it out and then 260 to finish it up. Happy with the edge and may pull the aft window out and touch it up.

Finally have the frame attached. It will go on and off many times before it's completed.

DOH! Don't dwell on it. Fix it and move on.

Getting this on and off by myself is a challenge. I'm keeping the shop nice and warm so it doesn't crack.

The Aft gap should be 1/32. That's going to be a challenge. I will also be installing the seal kit.

A Major Milestone: Off to Paint - build time 1290 hrs

    Today was a major day in the build. The wings, vertical stabilizer and rudder, horizontal stabilator and trim tabs and flapperons all went south with Juan to T&P Aero for paint. I may not see them again until they are painted but after painting the Cessna this year chances are that I'll be down there at some point making a decision or just checking things out.
    Building has been a bit slow as I had to jump around to get the parts ready for paint. The Flaperons needed to be rigged to the control arms and once they left the living room they weren't going back which meant they were in the way and had to be moved in and out of the shop to work on anything. Also, I put in the skin doublers and had to finish out the wing tip lights but I managed to get all that done while working through the wheel fairings. I'm pretty much done with the mains and close on the nose fairing. Fiberglass work is messy and takes time to get it right.
    Once the nose fairing is done I'm going after the canopy. I hope to finish that over the Christmas break and should be able to as long as I put in solid days. Only the cowl and the tank remain after that but there are always little things that need attention now.

These rivet needed to be filed down after being pulled.

Here's a shot before filing. The forums had lot's of folks that ran into this. Looking at the length of the rivet I suspect it's too long for the job thus the mandrel is breaking outside of the rivet.

Wing doubler attached.

Tip lights attached and ready for paint.

Packing up everything for the drive down to KSNS.

Close it up. I hope it doesn't take a spill. That's more than a years work in there.