Tail Parts Construction (December 2005-November 2006)
My completed tail ribs and spars
- November 21, 2005 -- Tail wood has arrived, unpacked
- December 15, 2005 -- Old camera, meet new camera
- December 17, 2005 -- New worktable for new plane parts
- December 19, 2005 -- Started horizontal stabilizer ribs, finally ordered aircraft-grade plywood
- December 23, 2005 -- Plywood arrived yesterday, first 3 ribs glued
- December 27, 2005 -- Things never go as planned the first time
- January 14, 2006 -- First ribs good, second set, same jig
- January 15, 2006 -- Covering first ribs
- January 19, 2006 -- New toys
- January 21, 2006 -- Follow the nylon road
- January 22, 2006 -- Hand punishment
- January 24, 2006 -- Starting horizontal stablilizer ribs 3, 4, 5 and 6
- February 8, 2006 -- Strokes and trimming
- February 10, 2006 -- Building ribs 3, 4, 5 and 6
- February 11, 2006 -- Ribs and strips glued, frame #10 covered
- February 25, 2006 -- Second set of stab ribs 3, 4, 5, 6, frame #9 gussets glued
- February 26, 2006 -- Rib trimming, over half of stabilizer ribs done
- March 4, 2006 -- Last stabilizer ribs covered and trimmed
- March 12, 2006 -- Stabilizer/Elevator rib quality control
- March 17, 2006 -- Drafting elevator nose ribs
- March 18, 2006 -- Stabilizer/Elevator rib wall art, all nose ribs done
- March 31, 2006 -- Fin ribs, weekend goal setting
- April 1, 2006 -- On track
- April 2, 2006 -- Weekend goal completed
- April 16, 2006 -- Last fin ribs started, daylight
- April 17, 2006 -- Rudder and fin ribs glued
- April 18, 2006 -- Fin rib plywood covers
- April 19, 2006 -- Obsession, by Falco
- April 20, 2006 -- Fin ribs quality control, spar thoughts
- April 24, 2006 -- Rudder nose ribs
- April 28, 2006 -- Rudder spar glued
- April 29, 2006 -- Rudder spar complete, uncovered
- April 30, 2006 -- Falco builder visit
- May 1, 2006 -- Forward fin spar lamination bending
- May 6, 2006 -- Bad news, good news, one year thoughts, and forward fin spar lamination
- May 7, 2006 -- Jigging the forward fin spar
- May 15, 2006 -- Finished forward fin spar structure
- July 15, 2006 -- Back in the game
- July 16, 2006 -- Table saw maintenance
- July 21, 2006 -- New 12' table structure
- August 6, 2006 -- Scratch that, rewind, redo
- August 8, 2006 -- Leg braces and table tops
- August 11, 2006 -- Table leveling
- August 12, 2006 -- Table flattening
- August 13, 2006 -- Table done!
- August 18, 2006 -- Forward stabilizer spar
- August 19, 2006 -- Laying out 10 ft centerline
- August 20, 2006 -- Elevator spar
- August 29, 2006 -- Forward fin spar covering, need supplies
- September 2, 2006 -- Thicker plywood, rudder spar covered
- September 3, 2006 -- Scarfing jig for elevator spar cover
- September 4, 2006 -- Elevator spar cover alignment, forward fin spar varnishing
- September 5, 2006 -- Elevator spar quality control
- September 9, 2006 -- Helping hand, main fin spar started, forward fin spar pass through
- September 10, 2006 -- Main fin spar structure glued
- September 17, 2006 -- Router tapering jig, stab spar layout
- September 19, 2006 -- Stab spar boom lamination, going to Falco Fly-In
- September 25, 2006 -- West Coast Falco Fly-In
- September 27, 2006 -- Second stab spar boom laminated
- September 29, 2006 -- Tapering madness, router mishap
- October 6, 2006 -- Stabilzer spar blocking
- October 7, 2006 -- Stabilizer spar glued
- October 8, 2006 -- Stabilizer spar tapered and complete, unskinned
- October 13, 2006 -- Forward stabilizer spar covered
- October 20, 2006 -- Main fin spar plywood scarfing, odds and ends
- October 21, 2006 -- Fin and stabilizer tip bow molds
- October 22, 2006 -- Pre-bending tip bows strips
- October 28, 2006 -- Laminating tip bows, glue test
- October 29, 2006 -- Elevator spar hinge pad, main fin spar cover joined
- November 1, 2006 -- Main stabilizer spar cover prep
- November 4, 2006 -- Failed glue test!?
- November 5, 2006 -- Backup tests, main fin spar cover glued to spar
- November 29, 2006 -- Down time
- December 3, 2006 -- Successful test block
- January 22, 2007 -- Main stabilizer plywood and straightness check
- February 3, 2007 -- Varnished main fin spar enclosures
- February 4, 2007 -- Main stab plywood center glued, main fin spar closed
- February 5, 2007 -- More stab plywood gluing, main fin spar trimmed
- February 10, 2007 -- Final stab plywood sections glued, main fin spar pad
- February 11, 2007 -- Marking varnish area for rudder spar closing cover
- February 16, 2007 -- Main stabilizer spar trimmed and rudder spar varnished
- February 17, 2007 -- Final tail spar odds and ends glued
- February 18, 2007 -- Shop cleaned up, tail spars done
- October 13, 2007 -- Trailing edge shaping
- Octaber 15, 2007 -- Leading edge jig
- Octaber 18, 2007 -- Tail hardware inventory
- November 5, 2007 -- Leading edge jig, part 2
- November 6, 2007 -- Metal working, hinge practice
- November 7, 2007 -- Fin leading edge shaped
- November 13, 2007 -- Hinge drafting
- November 14, 2007 -- Stab leading edges shaped
- November 15, 2007 -- Shop cleaning
- November 28, 2007 -- Hinge cutting and sanding
- November 30, 2007 -- More hinges
- December 1, 2007 -- Base hinge holes
- December 8, 2007 -- Match drilling bearing holes
- December 16, 2007 -- Metal cutting blade
- January 3, 2008 -- Big hardware order
- January 5, 2008 -- Bushing hole sizing, unibit
- January 6, 2008 -- Rudder hinges once through
- January 9, 2008 -- Metal surface treatment
- January 10, 2008 -- Rudder hinge bushing pressed
- January 12, 2008 -- Hinge mania
- January 17, 2008 -- Alodining
- January 20, 2008 -- Bushings pressed
- February 9, 2008 -- Hinges primed
- February 10, 2008 -- Channel nuts made
- February 26, 2008 -- Tail hinges riveted and finished, ready to assemble the tail
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