| day |
notes |
hours |
| 1 |
Reply to Tim Ward saying that's fine. |
|
| 5 |
W35 parts received from Anna. Amend appropriately the questionnaire answer I'd given about outstanding parts and put it in an envelope. |
|
| 12 |
Tear the mixing cups off the samples from 23-11-01, as it seems impossible to pop them out without destroying the cups. I don't remember having this problem with the Europa-supplied cups before, but maybe all my samples so far have been from the SP cups. All are fine with no softness or stickiness on the bottom. File them in envelopes with the others. |
|
| 13 |
Re-check the washout on the port flap. Seems fine. Remove the masking tape and remains of epoxy from the jig blocks (must remember to use smaller blobs next time). Crack jig blocks off table and scrape off epoxy spills. Trim glass edges with diamond wheel on angle grinder. File and sand down flush to foam all round. The LE wrap-around, although well covered by peel-ply, was almost the same length on both layers, so quite a bit of filing needed to feather it down to the foam. Saw off the TE support block and pull off TE joggle peel-ply. File and sand down TE to correct profile. Preliminary check of washout on lower jig blocks shows I will need packing at mid point as block heights do not match. Re-wax and buff off the layup table. |
105.7 |
| 15 |
Bring port flap and bottom jigs back from storage area. Check shimming required to get washout and line up centre joint. Position jigs to place LE slighly overhanging table (but inside tent) and epoxy with dabs along TE & straight-edge to keep halves aligned. Take photos of jig setting. Add shims at various points on LE to get washout correct at tip and at half-way point, and hot-melt in place. Epoxy flap onto jig with small dabs and weigh down with lead weights until set, as ends of flap were tending to curl up slightly. Cut 2.5m UNI, roll onto card tube & mark fibres 340mm in from edges. Find that with the broader soft felt-tip I can run it along without snagging on the cross fibres; with the previous sharper pen I'd needed to do a series of dots, which was more time-consuming. Draw lines on flap at 30degrees to LE, this time in green to contrast with the blue on the glass. Stick down peel-ply on closeout ribs. At the root end, the glass & resin has gone slightly beyond the previous peel-ply so carefully avoid putting peel-ply on top of that. Lay glass on dry and position for first layer, then add wide masking-tape about 25mm clear of TE. Cut down centre of that, and re-roll glass onto card tubes. It seems to stay reasonably well in shape - better than without tape on the cut edge, anyway. Take some photos of flap ready for layup. |
109.1 |
| 18 |
At about 10:45, turn on fan heaters to raise temperature from about 6C and reduce humidity of about 70%. After a while things stabilise at about 16C and 68% RH, with extract fan running. Release valve in hardener reservoir. Start to mix up 3 strokes for flox but notice too late that first stroke is slightly contaminated with a lump of crusty hardener so discard that mix. Mix 3 strokes & decant off a tiny amount to make some dry micro with. Fill the few dents on port flap upper surface around where resin drips were torn off while feathering off LE wrap-around. Add 3 doses of flox & 1 of cabosil to remaining resin and fill flox corners at centre rib. Some spare for a sample. Mix 6 strokes of resin with 3 doses of q-cell for micro-slurry. Paint on in patches all over. Don't try to spread it much with the brush, but squeegee out to cover beautifully with a small amount left over as a sample. Mix 8 strokes of resin and paint on, starting with TE, LE and peel-plied ends; what's left just about covers the main micro-slurried foam area. Call Wil to help and lay on first layer. The masking tape edge seems to get very near the TE at the point of the triangle, but can't seem to get back to the situation with it parallel as when first cut. Manage to get it fairly straight without too much trauma. Cut off small triangle and it fills the space well. Scissor trim edges. Wet out with 6 strokes of resin and Wil returns to help lay on second layer. Have to re-position it as left too much spare at the tip on first try. The trick (not managed this time) seems to be to get the butt end positioned well, and just roll it out from there with help in keeping the cross-weave reasonably straight and taut, and the TE edge in line. Scissor trim edges. Mix another 7 (I think) strokes to wet out 2nd layer. Need more, so mix another 4 strokes which leaves just enough for a sample. Squeegee to shift some slightly heavier areas, and lay on peel-ply. Goes on to LE underside quite neatly, and needs only a little extra encouragement to stay in place. Trim edges, erect tent and leave to cure about 14:50. Check about 20:30 and turn off heater as most of resin is hard, with only slightest tackiness on surface of resin-rich patches. Final temperature about 35C with 21% RH. |
113.1 |
| 22 |
To Kemble to help Tim rig G-BZTH. Find that the outrigger nylon rods seem to be too short, and shorter than some of the other Europas available for comparison. He was expecting to have to cut some off them but it looks like they need to be lengthened! Leave dolly in hangar as it will be needed for some time yet. |
|
| 24 |
John & Liz Griffiths visit & I take down the curing tent to show John the cured flap. |
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