Today was a very productive day and this update includes some starter button work I did the other day but didnt get a chance to post yet.
I needed a way to mount the starter button in the instrument panel. The hole I cut allows the button to fit inside, but there is nothing to keep the button assembly from rotating or from coming back out of the opening. SoI grabbed a 1 1/4″ PVC connector from Home Depot. The switch slides right in and is relatively snug. I measured the distance from the front face to the “prong” that secures the button in place. I marked that on the tube and drilled it with a 5/16″ bit. I then squared off the hole a little with the dremel. The 5/16″ hole keeps the prong from rotating, so the button wont rotate. It also catches the prong and the button wont come out without a bit of effort.
I noticed the button didn’t sit perfectly in the middle of the tube. So I taped up the back of the button and put it in the tube. I then mixed up some very thick epoxy and forced it into the rear portion of the tube to mold the shape of the button in the proper position. Once it cured, the button was nice and snug and will only come out with some gentle prying. I plan to epoxy the tube to the back of the panel and fillet it in place to keep it secure.
I moved onto the door thresholds and sanded down the right door threshold where I had applied some epoxy in a void I found last night. I sanded it down and then applied some 2K primer to fill any pinholes. Since the area was dry, I put the right side interior panel in to do some work. I verified the upper surface mates nicely with the door pillar – very nice! I also screwed it in place and drilled the remaining holes for nutplates for mounting the forward portion of the panel. Of course, I mis-drilled a hole just like I did on the left side, so I used some 5-minute epoxy and filled the hole. I then install the nutplates in the right side ribs.
While I had the panel in place I noticed it wasn’t fitting as well as it could along the aft edge anymore. This is because I filled in the machining cutouts in the horizontal threshold. This meant the interior panel wouldn’t fit anymore. So I grabbed the dremel and rounded off the edge and sanded it smooth. It then fit nicely in the transiton. I did the same thing on the left panel as well.
It continued to rain so I looked for other things to work on. I had initially skipped over the exterior door handle step awhile ago as I was debating what I was going to do in this area. I’ve decided to go ahead and use the stock setup and perhaps make it work to my needs. So I drilled the exterior handle and matted it with the interior handle assembly. I then rounded the forward corners as well as gently rounded and reliefed the handle portion to make it a little less blocky as the stock part comes. I havent decided if these will get painted or left raw – but they will likely get some coating.
At this point I couldn’t take the rain ruining my productive work day, so I set up the “El Cheapo Paint Table”(tm) near the garage door threshold and pushed it as far out as I dare without letting the rain get on things. It did once, but I was able to wipe off the fresh paint coat and try again.
So I primed the button heads for the interior panel screws and also primed both interior panels now that they were finally drilled for their mounting nutplates. Then I painted the panels and buttons with a three top coats of the Grey Beige which matches the lower portion of the fuselage paint.
After they were dry to the touch (it took a long time, the high humidity from rain and the low temperature meant the primer and paint took A LONG TIME to flash and dry), I prepped the right door assembly. This goat another top coat in the standard beige and will get one more coat tomorrow. I made sure to paint the area around the handle assembly were I had removed the duct tape and sanded smooth.
As that was drying, I went back to the handle assembly and completed the process for the other handle. I had previously painted the lever arms that go on the inside of the interior handle red. The very end of this lever will stick out of the handle and the AeroSport Products handle covers. Because the paint made the lever a little thicker than stock, I used the dremel to open up the slot in the interior handle.
I also installed some end caps in the door handle tube. I’m not sure if this is what they were for as there is no info in the plans, but the stock setup has an ugly open ended tube that extends past the exterior handle. These two “buttons” fit too perfectly in there not to be designed for it. But it they were designed for something else, I will just get some more.
I removed the dusty/dirty drop canvas that was in the fuselage for the sanding work. I installed a paper like painters drop cloth. I have learned to stay away from plastic drop clothes as they dont hold the paint well and when you come back to paint another coat, the HVLP gun rustles the plastic and the paint comes off in chips and gets into the new paint – ich!
Once I covered the interior I shot a coat of beige on the left side threshold area. I then shot two coats of primer on the right side threshold. I examined my transition work and was very happy. There are some VERY minor imperfections, but I dont think anyone will ever be able to notice. Once the paint/primer dried sufficiently, I went back and sanded with 400 and 600 grit paper to prepare for the next coat.
While the threshold were drying – again a long time due to the weather, I pulled out the brake calipers. These wont get mounted until the gear is on soon, but I wanted to ready them for installation. These both get some AN fittings for connecting the incoming brake fluid pressure lines. The plans call for Lubon #44 thread sealant or similar. It turns out this is almost impossible to find. So based on my research of other builders and a quick check with John Cox I ordered up some Loctite 567 sealant. So I applied it to the first few threads on the AN fittings and hand tightened and then used a crescent wrench to tighten until they were oriented in the right direction.
Lastly I pulled ou the left rear window from Cee-Baileys and fit it in place again. There was some trimming needed at the aft edge to fit in the channel. So I laid out some butcher paper to provide extra protection for the plastic (it has a protective film on it as well from the factory) and used my vixen file to trim down the area I marked with a pen. I then did the file and test fit process over and over again until it fit. I then saw two more areas that needed some slight trimming towards the forward corners. Same process here. Once the piece fit, I dressed up the areas I filed by using the file to radius the front and back edge and then sanded with 100 and 220 grit paper to remove any ridges.
I also worked on the front nosewheel landing gear. I set it up on the table and removed the nut and cotter pin to get access to the two belleville washers. These are slightly cupped and while the plans dont call for them to be lubed, research suggests they should. It should prevent rust and also a more consistent torque as it turns. So I removed the washers and slightly dressed them with some 400 grit paper on both sides where they make contact with each other or other components. I then applied some synthetic greased lightly to both sides of the washer and reassembled. I tightened the nut to where it was before and verified the pull force required to break the tension and it was in the range specified. So I reinstalled a new cotter pin to finish it off.
myrv10factory 