| day |
notes |
hours |
| 1 |
M2 screws and nuts delivered from ModelFixings. Remove temporary screws holding stall-warning sounder and replace with M2 x 8mm SS button-head and stiffnuts (4mm AF). Re-attach jack box to overhead panel and re-fit lid. Re-fit overhead panel (with 1/2" screws throughout). Bring strobe power unit down from office and see how it might fit under the baggage shelf. Would go nicely on the starboard outboard rib, either horizontal or vertical orientation. Fixings would be M4 x 16mm. Try to figure out an elegant way to get the strobe cables out of the fuselage but there doesn't seem to be any better way than dropping from the side conduit along the corner of the seatback. Might be just enough room in the wing mating space to take the cable through the side of the fuselage above the starboard wing pin retaining block. Otherwise, the hole in the block would have to be enlarged somewhat. |
2483.6 |
| 2 |
Contact Roger Bailey about welding the mild steel parts together and agree to let him have the bits at the next strut meeting, next week. Check length of strobe cables - about 7m each. That should allow for some freedom in placing the power unit. Each wing is 3.58m; worst-case strobe PSU mounting would be at one side of the fuselage, requiring another 1.12m lateral length on one side. That leaves 2.3m of the 7m cable for the fore-and-aft part of the run, which ought to be plenty, even allowing for the loop-back over the spar. Have another look at the possible positions for the routes and fuselage exit points for the strobe and OAT wiring. One important point is to leave the loose ends clear of the spars to avoid damage. The final positions will have to be decided with the wings rigged. The trailing wire ends on the OAT sensor are long enough to reach to the wing LE from the spar area, but not long enough to reach the instrument panel even if the sensor was mounted close to the spar. Will need to have a connector on the outside of the fuselage. Check sizes of conduit with cable bundles. The large size is best for the fuselage side runs but the smaller one will be fine for the top central one from the baggage bay bulkhead to the overhead panel. To tidy up the area where the wires have to cross the top-hat former between the door frames, perhaps a piece of leather with Velcro fastening could be used. Update the conduit schedule. Need to update the strobe wiring diagram with the loom extensions. |
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| 3 |
While shopping in Sainsburys spot a small stainless steel funnel that might perhaps be re-purposed as a firewall pass-through so buy it. Fit male blade connector to strobe power supply lead. Note that the instructions call for 14AWG wire to the supply, and 16AWG for the case earthing strap. Don't have any of either gauge in stock, but for the very short length required to join the case earthing wire to the supply earth wire, I am happy to use 18AWG. Twist those 2 wires together and crimp into a blue female blade connector. Crimp a 4mm ring terminal onto the other end of the earthing strap. Order 10m 14AWG wire from Parts for Aircraft. Edit misc wiring diagram to show 14AWG for strobe supply, update PDFs and website copy of wirebook. |
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| 4 |
Offer up strobe power unit to starboard outer baggage shelf support rib. Hold in place with spring clamp and mark through the mounting holes onto the rib with felt-tip pen. Remove unit and drill holes 3/16" with Tight Fit drill kit. Fit unit to rib with M4 x 16mm SS button head screws, large washers and stiffnuts, securing case earth strap under one of the screws. Fit fuel filler receptacle to F18 filler neck moulding through fuselage hole. With receptacle held firmly in its recess, check clearance between F18 and fuselage side for conduit. Cut 1040mm of the 29mm x 11mm conduit (to reach from baggage bay bulkhead to front of headrest). Drill through the BID tapes at the previously-made notch on the starboard side of the baggage bay bulkhead. File out and shape to just admit conduit. Get out fuel tank adaptor C with modified AN823-6D elbow (drilled for the 3/8" OD vent pipe) already fitted on the end port. Fit a AN913-2D 1/4" NPT blanking plug and AN822-4D elbow. Offer up to tank boss and the elbow looks slightly close to the conduit. Remove the adaptor and elbow, run the 1/8" NPT tap into it again, cutting for about another whole turn. Blow out swarf. Remove rubber connector from adaptor and clean up slight mess left from lubricant used when first inserting the adaptor into the rubber connector. Remove sealing tape from small tank boss and lubricate with petroleum jelly. With some effort, push rubber connector onto boss and insert adaptor. AN822-4D elbow, with nut fitted, now clears conduit well. Thinking about how to bond the clips (not yet made) to hold the conduit, try clamping the conduit to the fuselage side with a speedclamp at the bottom corner of the door and that seems fine for bonding a clip near the tank bosses, but some other way of applying pressure near the middle of the conduit will be needed. Remove sealing tape from large tank boss. Fit short end of XFS07 rubber connector pipe to the boss and check angle and length to match up with F18 filler neck. Boss protrudes about 27mm into the pipe. Lay TWFFC (Tim Ward Fuel Filler Connector) bent aluminium pipe over rubber pipe, project onto the aluminium pipe where the end of the tank boss would be, and mark it. That is about 102mm from the end of the pipe. Extend the mark all the way around the pipe and hacksaw off the end. Clean up with deburrer, file and steel wool. Offer up to tank boss and line up as well as possible by eye. Project outline of pipe above bend onto the fuselage side with a fine felt-tip pen. Remove aluminium pipe and swing F18 filler neck into position. The end seems to line up well with the drawn lines. Project the end of F18 onto the fuselage side with felt-tip. Swing F18 out of the way and offer up aluminium pipe again to tank boss. Mark on it the line for the end of F18; about 85mm from the end. Extend the mark all round the pipe, saw off and clean up. Offer up to tank boss and F18 - looks pretty good. Mark and cut off 54mm of short end of XFS07 rubber pipe. Clean up and push onto tank boss. Push short end of aluminium pipe into it and check alignment with F18 - now seems a bit tight. Unscrew receptacle from top end of F18 and trim about 4mm off the bottom end of F18 with a hacksaw. Re-assemble it all. There is now a slight gap between F18 and the aluminium pipe but the lineup looks much better. Mark all round 80mm from long end of XFS07 rubber pipe and cut off. Clean up and fit both rubber connectors F18, tank boss and aluminium pipe. It all seems to line up satisfactorily, the receptacle is snug in its recess and there is just enough room for the conduit between the upper rubber connector and the fuselage side - no clamp needed there now! Collect the parts for the connexions to the top of the F18 filler neck and assemble the fittings to the vent adaptor to check for the best location for it. Alas, the AN842-4D elbow nipple is too long to screw into the vent adaptor in-situ. The assembly could be fitted to F18 before connecting the receptacle but that would make future maintenance impossible. The other fittings present no problem with the adaptor positioned on top of F18, and the AN822-6D for the main tank vent will fit OK on the side of the top curve. Try a FPA903/A in place of the AN842-4D but although there is room to fit it, the pipe run would be very awkward. A better solution would be a AN914-1D 1/8" NPT elbow and a AN840-4D hose nipple. Have a look at where the eyeball vents might fit on the cockpit sides, but can't reach any conclusion. Need to be sitting on the seat with appropriate stack of cushions to check knee clearance. Not sure what constraints there are on the placing of the NACA vent - I guess it ought to be in a high-pressure area so would be better lower down the fuselage, but don't know how critical this is. Looking at the 2 designs of eyeball vents I have acquired, the pale blue ones, although slightly heavier, feel much nicer and easier to use than the black ones. |
2489.2 |
| 5 |
Order from LAS Aerospace AN840-4D hose nipple, AN914-1D 1/8" NPT elbow and MS21919-WDG10 clips (to replace the one damaged while trying to fit the firewall). Search around archives and collect together as many pictures I can find of other Europa cabin vent arrangements. Seems to be quite a bit of variation in the location of the NACA inlet - low, high, forward, aft. |
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| 7 |
Look at how to support the F18 fuel filler neck and find a piece of blue foam that can be shaped to fill the space between F18 and the fuselage side. Mark the curve of F18 on the side of it and bandsaw it to the marked line. Offer up to fuselage side - needs some adjustment. Mark areas to be cut away and bandsaw off. Repeat with more small cuts and some work with a coarse Perma-Grit block until the fit is satisfactory against the fuselage side. Run a wide felt-tip pen along the aft outer edge of F18 and quickly press the blue foam against it to transfer the mark. Bandsaw to that mark, resulting in a thick curved sheet. Offer up to aft side of F18 and note where relief is needed. Mark, bandsaw again, repeat until the foam just starts to fit between F18 and fuselage. Taper across the width with a coarse Perma-Grit block, testing frequently, until the foam block just fits between F18 and fuselage side without affecting the position of F18. Vacuum up blue dust. Mark outline of blue foam block onto fuselage side with felt-tip pen. Dismantle F18 from aluminium pipe and from receptacle for access. Scuff-sand the bonding area on the fuselage and vacuum up dust again. Mix a peg-1 (30g) batch of standard epoxy and paint the fuselage bonding area with it. To the rest, add a dose of micro and paint it all over the blue foam spacer block. Stick the block to the fuselage side and lay a strip of polyethylene sheet over it. Need to tape it up at the top to stop it peeling off. Re-assemble F18 to receptacle and tank boss via aluminium pipe. Snug it into position against the foam spacer and brace it in place with an adjustable prop (2 stick, 2 clamps) set against the tie-bar fitting on the opposite side of the fuselage. 12C, 51% RH inside fuselage. Take fan heater off garage floor and set it sideways on baggage shelf, at half power and thermostat 3. Drape polyethylene sheet over cockpit apertures. Soon up to 24C, 29% RH on baggage shelf. Leave to cure. |
2491.9 |
| 8 |
14AWG wire delivered from Parts for Aircraft and AN fittings and clamps from LAS Aerospace. Update fuel system database and drawing to show AN914-1D & AN840-4D instead of AN842-4D, and upload amended files to website. Add 14AWG wire to wire stock database. 24C, 24% RH in baggage bay. Micro sample well cured. Remove fan heater from baggage shelf and return to garage floor. Pull rubber connector off tank boss and swing F18 with aluminium pipe clear of foam block. Rub off sharp edges of micro with Perma-Grit sheet. Collect fittings for connexions to top of F18. File and grind a flat on the 16mm bar part of the landing gear frame replica, to show where the support piece is to be welded. Cut a 12" piece of 5/8" x 1.5" mild steel bar in half for the support that will be gripped in the vise. Try AN911-1D in vent adaptor - needs to go in quite a bit more to minimise height above F18. Tap a turn or 2 deeper and now it goes in well. Offer up to top of F18 and mark a spot where the other end of the AN911-1D could go. Try the AN914-1D elbow in the opposite face of the vent adaptor and it needs about half a turn deeper tapping. The 18230-1 brass adaptor fits fine as does the AN823-4D elbow. offer up the assembly, less the AN911-1D to check clearances for inserting the other fittings. Only the AN840-4D hose adaptor in the AN914-1D elbow is a problem - it is much too long for the space between the filler and the door and would require the vent adaptor to be located quite a bit aft on the top of F18. Check what else might be available and find that I have a HFSB 6-2N brass fitting from the firewall-forward kit is apparently surplus to requirements; there are 2 of them shown on the fuel tank outlets in the FWF manual but I don't need any there as different solutions are already in place. It's a bit shorter than the AN840-4D and when fitted allows the vent adaptor to be nearer the top of F18. The best compromise appears to be on the mould parting line, as far inboard as possible to allow room for the AN914-1D to be fitted without fouling the adjacent fuselage. |
2493.9 |
| 9 |
Re-check planned tapping hole positions on top of F18 filler neck moulding. Offer up AN822-6D elbow and mark a suitable location for it - seems it can go slightly further outboard than the other item. The hole for the vent adaptor can go slightly further aft than the moulding line as that provides a tiny improvement in clearance (minimum clearance is on the mould parting line). Remove F18 from receptacle and tank connector. Drill a small starting hole at the location marked for the vent adaptor, then gradually open up to letter R drill for tapping 1/8" NPT. Tap a short way in, check how well the AN911-1D enters, and tap a bit deeper. Assemble everything to check how it fits, but the AN914-1D needs to go in deeper, and the AN823-4D at the aft side could also go in deeper. Dismantle everything, tap each hole a bit deeper and try another assembly. Original insertion of the AN911-1D must have been slightly cross-threaded (tilting the whole assembly towards the fuselage wall) as things look fine now. Dismantle again and drill and tap 1/4" NPT hole for AN822-6D elbow (7/16" tapping drill bit won't fit in the cordless drill but 10mm hole allows tap to start OK). Blow all parts out with airline and assemble it all again - looks fine now. |
2495.8 |
| 10 |
Get most of the spare blue foam out from the trailer (apart from the tailplane and control surface support blocks, which I'm trying to keep for the sanding of those parts) to see what can be used filling the hollows each side of the control system humps in the seat pans. Will need more aluminium pipe. The remaining length of 1/4" is barely long enough to reach from the tank vent boss to the firewall for the fuel return line, but might be OK for the vent to atmosphere from the top of F18 to the fuselage floor. The routing of that is not straight, so even that could be in doubt - need to check it more carefully. The short piece left of the 3/8" pipe is not long enough for the vent path from tank boss to top of F18. Remove sealing tape from small (vent) tank boss and try to fit the rubber connecting piece. Very difficult and not really made any easier by lubricating both parts and climbing into the baggage bay to get a better grip on it. Find a piece of thick plywood that is a suitable shape to brace against the top corner of the baggage well and exert leverage against the end of the C adaptor. That finally gets it home so that the end of the rubber is almost flush to the aft face of the tank. Fit 2 off CLIP1X to assembly then discover that the aft one fouls the AN822-4D for the fuel return line. Difficult to find a good location for the clip screws as I don't want them, or the ends of the tangs, to be a snag hazard when getting things either in or out of the baggage bay. Of course I could fit some sort of flap or cover held in place with Velcro. Remove the assembly and start to make a vent pipe from the last of the 3/8" aluminium pipe, to go in the already-modified AN823-6D elbow. Have made a nice bend, chamfered the end and put a fishmouth on it when I realise it's too sharp a bend to pass through the tank C adaptor. Start again at the other end with a gentle bend by hand all the way along, which easily passes through the tank C adaptor. Chamfer end, fishmouth with files and clean up on ScotchBrite wheel. Offer up into tank vent and mark where end of boss falls on it. Add 35mm to end of AN823-6D and another 15mm for depth of counterbore in it, and mark that point. Cut there and clean up end. Check that the bend is the correct depth so that the outer end of the pipe is parallel to the boss when the inner end is touching the top front corner of the tank and adjust the bend slightly to align. Abrade the bonding area on the pipe and roughen the enlarged bore of the AN823-6D with the point of a file. Blow both clean of swarf and degrease with acetone. Mix 10g + 4g Redux (Araldite 420), finishing off a pack, and apply only to outside of pipe, keeping slightly clear of the end, to avoid any squeezing into the bore of the fitting. Push pipe into fitting, wipe off excess Redux and leave to cure in boiler cupboard overnight. |
2498.5 |
| 12 |
Bring tank vent assembly down from boiler cupboard. Offer up to tank adaptor - can just feel it touching the front face of the tank, so file end down a bit shorter and re-shape fishmouth. Polish off with ScotchBrite wheel and blow out swarf with air line. Now fits OK without fouling. Consider maintenance issues - check that the tank adaptor with the vent tube can be withdrawn while the filler tube is in place - just squeezes past. Also, as the F8 filler neck is to be bonded in rigidly, how could the rubber connectors on each end of the aluminium pipe between the filler and the tank be removed and replaced? Remove the rubber connector from the long end of the aluminium pipe, lubricate the pipe and the connector with petroleum jelly and find that the connector slides onto the pipe far enough to come flush with the end of the pipe. So, the assembly could be arranged thus (with sealer instead of petroleum jelly), fitted at the tank end with the upper end clear of F18, and then swivelled into place for the upper rubber connector to be slid up onto the bottom end of F18. To remove the old connectors for replacement, they would have to be cut off - but that might have been necessary anyway. So, I'm satisfied that replacement of all rubber parts in this area will be feasible in the future. Remove and clean rubber connector and aluminium pipe. For ease of assembly, I will fit the tank adaptor C before fitting the filler neck and glassing it in. Mark 4 off 4" x 12" rectangles on BID for straps to hold F18. Sort through the blue foam pieces to see how they might fit into the seatpan hollows each side of the control system tunnels. There are plenty of small blocks that could be stuck together to make the required shapes, but it might be easier and simpler just to cut them in one piece from the largest piece there is, about 500mm x 195mm x 180mm. That would yield 3 of the pieces with plenty to spare, and another somewhat wedge-shaped piece looks the right size and shape for the starboard outer one. Push a piece of paper into the aft bottom edge of that recess and trace the corner line onto it. Cut out to line and check fit in place. Mark and cut top line projected along the seatback. Lay the paper template on the end of the candidate foam piece and it looks fine, with plenty to spare at the thicker end. Will have to shape all the pieces and then cut out recesses for the stall-warner (in the starboard outer block) and the fuel level sensor (in the port inner block). The block is just too thick for the throat of the bandsaw, so it looks as though it will have to be hot-wire cut. Although the manual does not call for it, I think I will cover the foam blocks in BID to make them a bit more durable. |
2501.2 |
| 14 |
Clear accumulated tools etc from around fuselage and roll it out onto the drive. Roll trailer forward, move stuff out of aft end to get access to engine. Lift off box cover and remove the odds and ends from the pallet. Roll the engine down and out into the carport. Position engine crane - outrigger arms are not quite wide enough to clear the pallet and get the hook directly above the engine but I think it's near enough. Thread a length of a rope around the top of the ring mount, over the crane hook and around the front of the gearbox, repeating to make a double loop. Take up the slack and undo the bolts holding the engine to the transit fixture. Engine swings towards crane once bolts removed. Adjust ropes to level engine. Get engine mount (MT05 is called out in the manual, but my parts list showed MT01/914) out of box 23 and offer it up to Rotax ring mount and landing gear frame to check orientation. Print off the engine mounting pages from the FWF manual for reference to bolt sizes and orientations etc. Print off Rotax installation manual pages covering mag leads. As the Europa manual warns about the possibility of the trigger coils being misaligned, search for the reference to them and eventually find it in the Rotax heavy maintenance manual. Examine the electrical fittings supplied by Rotax and identify the ones for the mag leads. To simulate them, cut out a couple of narrow strips of copper sheet with snips. Solder wires to them and at the other end crimp both cores into a 10mm ring terminal. Secure it under the head of one of the transit bolts, re-inserted into the port forward lower hole. Remove plastic flywheel cover to measure trigger coil gaps. Measure between 12mm holes on prop driver with inside calipers - 115mm. Thus centre-to-centre distance is 103mm. Find an aluminium extrusion of a suitable length, mark and drill it at 103mm centres near one end. Fit M12 bolts and nuts, leaving enough of bolts protruding to engage in holes in prop driver. Using this tool, turn engine over anti-clockwise at prop until the extended piece of the flywheel flange is opposite each of the trigger coils in turn. Both just admit a 12 thou feeler gauge, which is the minimum specified, so that is reassuring. Replace plastic flywheel cover, using a little dab of Loctite 243 on the bolt threads. Taking care to get all the bolts facing the right way, fit Europa engine mount MT05. Starboard lower nut won't snug up flush to face of mount - a small weld fillet is fouling it. Remove the nut & setscrew and file the weld fillet away with a small square file, taking care not to damage adjacent surfaces. Once enough removed, put a dab of zinc primer on the bare metal and assemble the setscrew and nut again. Tighten up all 4 setscrews. Manual calls for the ends to be shortened but at present don't see the need for that. With the poor access in some places, could result in collateral damage, which we don't want. Wheel crane across to front of fuselage and offer up engine, adjusting height as needed. Main dolly wheels are obstructing the crane outrigger arms so remove them temporarily. Push lower bolts through mounting holes (how am I going to do that with the firewall in place?). Fit cup washers, rubber Lord mounts and spacers to bolts and then ease lower mounts onto them, trying to seat the rubbers in the sockets squarely. Adjust crane for best alignment. Fit cup washers, rubber mounts and spacers onto upper bolts, pass them through MT05 mount holes and add aft rubber mounts and cup washers. Raise crane slightly to tilt top bolts into line with holes in landing gear frame. Push bolts in and adjust crane to get best alignment. Can just get starboard upper nut started on the bolt thread so do that one up a little. Port upper needs a tap with the hide mallet to go in, and its aft rubber also needs encouragement to enter the recess in MT05. Eventually get the nut started, then adjust crane slightly and work on lower bolts until the rubbers and cup washers can be fitted and the nuts started. Do up all nuts until the spacers can be felt contacting the cup washers. Release crane tension and remove supporting rope loop. Bring all engine-related parts to fuselage. Take empty engine pallet back into trailer and put its cover on again. Move boxes 19 and 20 into fuselage. Move the rubber fuel hoses from box 23 to box 9, leaving box 23 empty so discard it. Bring NACA scoops from box 9 to fuselage. Close trailer and find I can push it back into place without needing to couple up the car - obviously the reduction in weight from removing the engine has made a significant difference! Roll fuselage back into garage and tidy up everything. |
2509.1 |
| 15 |
Find there is another HFSB 6-2N in box 20 and it's slightly shorter than the one I found before, so will use that one on the 4-way adaptor at the top of the filler neck. Unwrap NACA ducts to have a look at them. Try the on-off control on one and it breaks without much provocation. Post a query on the Matronics e-mail list about location and fitting of the NACA ducts. Do some online searches and find there are plenty of duct mouldings available in the car sector claiming to be NACA, although some of them are obviously only approximations to the proper shape. Just for interest, download the PDF of the original NACA research on submerged inlet ducts. Get PC02 plenum chamber out of box 22 in trailer, leaving radiators and hoses in the box. Also take carb heat kit from trailer to garage. Offer up plenum chamber to carbs and there seems to be plenty of room to add the carb heaters. However, I'm now concerned that I can't recall any mark or opening on Neville's upper cowling for the air inlet - none visible on photos. Check the manual and it appears that there is a splash moulding for making a NACA duct included in the Europa cowl kit, and marks on the top cowling to help locate it; but Neville has not provided anything similar. Post a query on the Matronics list to see if I can borrow a splash moulding from another builder. Several replies including one offer of the splash moulding, but Alan Twigg & others say I don't need it as Neville's cowl uses different baffling. |
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| 16 |
David Joyce posts a copy of the drawing for the factory-recommended location of the NACA cabin air ducts. He thinks his copy came packed with the duct mouldings. |
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| 17 |
Alan Twigg forwards to the Matronics e-mail list a message from Neville about his cowl and saying I should have had the templates for the baffles. After checking my e-mail history, find that I had intended to chase Neville to make me a set of baffles some time after collecting the cowls but neglected to do so. However, I can't find any mention of Neville's cowl making the plenum chamber redundant. Reply direct to Neville asking when he can supply a baffle set and if he's got any documentation available yet. |
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| 18 |
Offer up AN bulkhead fittings to approximate position on firewall to see which would be better. AN837-6D points almost directly at an engine mount cross tube so the hose might tend to be chafing on that even if bent a bit to clear it. The right-angle AN833-6D would probably be better, although it will require more of a bend in the hose. Get out Skydrive carb heater kit and review instructions. Remove carb supporting spring, loosen clamp and remove starboard carb. Dress out flash line top and bottom of spigot with fine Swiss files, taking care not to let any swarf enter carb throat. Clean and degrease spigot. Remove grubscrew from one heater, clean and degrease it. Press and tap it gently onto end of carb spigot with plastic mallet. Check alignment then, with a split mixing stick, apply a film of Loctite 648 all around the visible area of the spigot. Place assembly in vise with pieces of hardboard against jaws and gradually tighten vise, checking continually that correct alignment is maintained, until the face of the heater butts against the flange at the inner end of the carb spigot. No Loctite squeezed out at either end of joint. Drip 10 drops of Loctite into the grubscrew hole on the top of the heater and wait until it runs down then fit & tighten grubscrew. Take assembly in to boiler cupboard and leave to cure. Repeat procedure on port carb. This time the heater won't go on square initially and it's easier to get it started square by pressing in the vise than tapping with the soft mallet. Remove from vise and check alignment; a light tap needed at one side before proceeding with Loctite etc as before. Take it in to the boiler cupboard and check the starboard assembly for Loctite weeps - nothing but a tiny bead visible on the side opposite the throttle lever. Remove and reverse the clamps and spring anchors on the balance pipe. Check carbs again for weeps - small bead on port one, opposite side to throttle lever. Wipe it off with the folded edge of a tissue. Print out cabin air NACA inlet template. Make a list of the operations to be performed when assembling the tank C adaptor and its connexions, to make sure everything will be done in the right order. Look for online info on hot-wire cutters. Consider making one to cut the seat filler pieces (which are quite a bit thicker than the bandsaw will accommodate) and then find a complete kit on eBay for about the price of a couple of spools of nichrome wire from RS, so order it to save time messing about. Rehearse sequence of operations from printed schedule for assembling tank C adaptor, then proceed. Degrease all parts with acetone. Apply Loctite 5922 to small tank boss and half-way along inside of rubber connector. Push the connector onto the tank boss by hand, then insert the C adaptor and press rubber home using wooden lever against baggage well as before. Fit clamp to hold connector on boss. Remove the C adaptor, wipe off some Loctite smears with acetone. Fit AN913-2D 1/4" NPT blanking plug to port side of adaptor with Loctite 577. Fit AN822-4D elbow to starboard side of adaptor with Loctite 577. Fit modified AN823-6D elbow with vent pipe to aft end of adaptor with Loctite 577. Slide 2nd clamp onto rubber connector. Apply Loctite 5922 to mating surface of adaptor C and wipe a small amount around inside of rubber connector. Slide adaptor into rubber connector, press home and tighten clamp. The screw has to be at the top on this one to clear the elbow on the starboard side. Mark NACA inlet reference position on starboard fuselage side and project it to the inside by shining a light through. Looks as though that could interfere with P2 right knee, but will have to set up cushions on seat to check properly. Scan and print out the hole template for the NACA inlet from the Ayton & Company fitting sheet. Neville Eyre replies to my e-mail with info on baffles etc. |
2512.6 |
| 19 |
Reply to Neville asking for templates for both the side baffles and the bottom ducting, and for the LAA mod number. I think I'd prefer to buy the baffles ready-made from him but he's not sure how soon he could supply them. Consider and rehearse the sequence of events for assembling the fuel filler system and write a script as guidance. Check which way the clips should fit on the rubber connectors. Abrade back of receptacle and both faces around hole in fuselage with coarse Perma-Grit sheet. Blow out swarf and dust from all parts with air line. Degrease all mating surfaces with acetone. Mix 15g + 6g batch of Redux (Araldite 420) and add 2 small doses of flox to stiffen it to non-slump state. Apply Loctite 5922 around bottom end of F18 filler neck and slide on long rubber connector. Apply Loctite 5922 to long end of aluminium pipe and slide it into the other end of the long rubber connector. Offer up to fuselage side to check approximately correct orientation. Apply Loctite 5922 to large tank boss and slide short rubber connector onto it. Apply Loctite 5922 to short (bottom) end of aluminium pipe and slide it into the other end of the short rubber connector. Then remember that securing clips are needed! Pull connector off tank boss, slide 4 clips onto assembly and re-assemble to tank boss. The assembly is not self-supporting so drop a small mixing cup through the fuselage hole into the top of F18 to hold it in place temporarily. Apply Redux/flox to threads of receptacle and back side of flange. Screw receptacle into top of F18 through fuselage hole, using the wooden piece to turn it as usual. Press firmly into place and wipe off excess Redux from around outside of receptacle. Use a mixing stick to spread most of remaining Redux/flox around inside of receptacle/fuselage joint & smooth off. Check for correct positioning of everything and tighten the 4 clips to secure the 2 rubber connectors. Rim of receptacle tending to lift away from fuselage very slightly, so wedge a couple of mixing sticks between F18 and the blue foam support to keep it in more intimate contact. Wipe off excess Redux and Loctite 5922 with acetone-soaked tissue. Set up fan heater on baggage shelf at half power on thermostat 3.5. Cover cockpit apertures with polyethylene sheet and leave to cure. 25C, 28% RH on baggage shelf by bedtime. Start to think about ordering more aluminium pipe from Speedflow but it appears they have stopped stocking it. However, LAS Aerospace seem to have plenty in stock at reasonable prices. |
2514.8 |
| 20 |
25C, 24% RH on baggage shelf. Redux well cured, turn off fan heater. |
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| 21 |
File small chamfers on bottom and aft corners of 4-way vent adaptor for orientation. Degrease and blow out all parts of the venting arrangement. Fit AN911-1D to 4-way adaptor with Loctite 577. Fit this assembly to 1/8" NPT tapped hole in F18 filler neck with Loctite 577. Fit AN823-4D elbow to aft face of 4-way adaptor with Loctite 577, holding body of adaptor in Mole grips to avoid stressing threads in F18. Similarly fit AN914-1D elbow to top of adaptor, 18230-1 hose nipple to forward face of adaptor and HFSB 6-2N to female end of AN914-1D elbow. Degrease and blow out AN822-6D elbow and fit to tapped hole in F18. This is much harder to get started and I have to get into baggage bay to get a better view and grip of it. Remove the radio panel from the F14 instrument module and bring it down from the office to the garage. Find an offcut of 1/8" aluminium plate that could be used to blank off the hole where the vacuum pump would go. Mark it out roughly from one good edge and hacksaw out. Clamp vertically in milling machine vise with good edge against bottom of vise and clean up top edge with 8mm end mill. Check size and bring it to 62.2mm to match the spacer found on the vacuum pump pad. Remove from vise and smooth sharp edges on fine wet & dry paper. Set up again in vise with sawn edges top & bottom, truing one good edge at right angles to the milling table with engineers square. Mill off saw marks. Invert and set this new good edge against vise base. Mill last rough edge down until 62.2mm height achieved again. Remove from vise and smooth edges. Lay spacer on top as a drilling jig and clamp in small Picador drilling vise with a parallel spacer underneath and card on jaws to prevent damage to workpieces. Drill 1/4" using the holes in the spacer as guide bushes. Mark corner chamfers from spacer onto blanking plate, hacksaw off and file smooth. Smooth all edges. Fit spacer and cover to vacuum pump pad, applying a little Loctite 5922 to both sides of the spacer. Fit spring washers (taking care to keep the tangs towards the nuts as called out in the Rotax manuals) and nuts and tighten up. Wipe off small amount of Loctite squeezed out. Get carbs down from boiler cupboard. Re-fit to induction manifolds, and reconnect support springs. Check instructions for pipework. Seems straightforward enough, but I'm not clear which of the 3 connexions visible on the water pump is the inlet - need to check Rotax documentation. Look again at NACA inlet location for cabin air. Initially seems as though it should be easy enough to fit an eyeball vent quite close to the outlet end of the NACA duct, but then looking at where the top of the stick can swing to, maybe there could be interference. Mark out 2 off rectangles on polyethylene sheet 12" x 4". Mark lines 2.25" apart to show the position of F18 at the centre. Update fuel system parts list and drawing, replacing AN840-4D with HFSB 6-2N. |
2519.0 |
| 22 |
Cut off rim of larger stainless steel kitchen funnel with angle-grinder. Remove rough edges and sharp points with bench grinder. Try to press the remaining cone shape flat in the arbour press, but it wrinkles badly - obviously left too big a skirt. Trim off excess with tinsnips and try to flatten the remainder but the joint between the cone and the outlet pipe gives way. Try again with the miniature funnel, cutting a much smaller skirt. The cone seems to be much thicker on this one. On the point of the vise anvil, try stretching the cone with a ball-pein hammer. Some success, but can't position it to get very far from the edge of the cone. Try hammering with the club hammer using a hollow drift on the outlet, but again it wrinkles although not so badly as before. Use a piece of steel plate with a hole in it to spread the pressure, but the main effect is that the outlet pipe drops out completely. Clearly working the metal around it so hard is too much for the rolled joint between cone and outlet. Wonder if a stainless steel washer welded to a piece of stainless steel pipe/tube would be a better approach. Abrade bonding area inside fuselage each side of F18 filler neck and degrease with acetone. Cut out the 4 pre-marked BID pieces 4" x 12" and lay then 2-thick on the polyethylene sheets. Mix a peg-3 (60g) batch of standard epoxy and wet out the BID. To the remainder add a dose of flox and butter it into the gaps around the blue foam spacer. Lay each BID piece on, centralising to the marks, and stipple down after peeling off polyethylene sheet. Apply peel-ply and stipple down. 18C, 36% RH on baggage shelf. Put fan heater on baggage shelf at half power. While checking wiring details for gender of plugs etc, notice that the pressure port on the Smart Avionics MPS-1/A manifold pressure sensor is smaller than the port on the carb balance pipe, so an adaptor will be needed. As a filter and restrictor are also recommended, maybe they could form part of the adaptor. Looking at the length of the wires on the MPS-1/A, they should reach all the way to the CSC-1/G prop controller provided the sensor is reasonably near the firewall penetration. Looking at the connectors supplied with the prop controller, I think I need to get a crimping tool for those; they are similar in style to the ones supplied by Rotax for the mag leads. Check the Rotax manual for the water pump connexions - the inlet (which the carb heater tee is placed next to) is the large connexion with nothing yet connected (because it comes from the radiator). Edit several wiring diagrams to show the gender of the D connectors more clearly, update the wirebook and upload it. From among the several in stock, select a hood for the roll servo DE-09S connector that is slim and has a good cable grip. Mark up and bandsaw off a chunk of the white plastic (nylon?) block to make a protective cover for the bare copper wires in the right-angle adaptor for the servo connector. Still need to decide how the plastic will be secured to the adaptor and how the connector locking screws will be arranged. By bedtime, 27C, 21% RH in baggage bay; layup well cured so turn off fan heater. |
2522.3 |
| 23 |
Mount the plastic block in the milling vice with the best true face on the bottom, supported on wavy parallels. Fit 16mm end mill and true up the top face to remove all saw marks. The plastic machines very nicely, with an excellent finish which feels almost silky - maybe it's PTFE, not nylon. Turn the workpiece in the vise to clamp it on these now-parallel faces. True up the first face of a pair to remove saw marks, then invert and mill down to the required dimension to match the size of the aluminium bracket on the right-angle connector. Repeat for remaining 2 faces. Finally bring first pair of faces to required size. The edges of the machined faces are quite sharp. Clamp vee-block in vise and clamp plastic block to it. Mill a small chamfer on one long edge. Turn the block and similarly chamfer 2 adjacent edges. Finally raise vee-block in vise enough to allow the block to be clamped against the larger vee to chamfer the last 2 outside edges. Remove vee-block and clamp block in vise with chamfered edges down and left, leaving the area to be machined away accessible from the top and right side of the vise. Fit 8mm end mill, find the back edge of the block using the traditional cigarette-paper method and zero the Y feedscrew dial. Likewise find the right-hand edge and zero the X dial. Measuring the right-angle connector, the cutout should start 4mm in from the back edge of the block, and should be 32mm wide in the Y direction (since the aluminium bracket is 40mm wide). The cutout should be 16.5mm in the X direction and 10.5mm deep in the Z direction with an additional 1mm wide rebate at the outer edge, 2mm deeper than the main cutout. Wind 6 turns from zero (8mm cutter diameter + 4mm away from edge) on the Y-axis to bring the cutter to the start position. The Y-axis travel will be 24mm or 12 turns. The X-axis travel of 16.5mm is 8 turns + 20 divisions of 0.025mm. The Z-axis feed will be 5 turns of 1.8mm + 30 divisions of 0.05mm. The edge rebate will need a further 40 divisions (1 turn & 4 divisions) of Z travel. Mill around the edge of the cutout, taking the mill in on the X feed then across on the Y feed and out again on the X feed, leaving an island. Feed in X 3 turns (6mm, less than cutter width), then take Y feed back to near start. Feed X in another 3 turns and again take Y feed across, which clears the remainder of the island. Find I can easily take a cut of a full turn of the Z-axis feed (1.8mm) without any signs of distress. Repeat milling pattern until full depth reached, then mill the edge rebate. Check for fit on connector - fine. Fit 2mm slot drill and clamp plastic cover and aluminium bracket together with card on vise jaws to ensure a good grip on both. Find edges of workpiece and then drill 2mm holes in aluminium and just spotting through into plastic, 3mm in from corners on the face where there is most room. Dismantle and transfer plastic cover to drilling vise. Drill 1.5mm on the spots marked by the 2mm slot drill. Tap M2 and fit cover to aluminium bracket with M2 x 10mm button-head screws. With cover thus secured, repeat 2mm slot drilling process on other face, going in only 2mm from edge as there is less thickness of plastic available there. Drill 1.5mm and tap M2. Drill through back of cover 3mm, using connector locking screw holes as drill guide bushes. Not sure how I'll be able to tighten the jackscrews onto the servo connector; a nut spinner would need a rather large hole. Looking through the 4-40 screw drawer, find there are several short screws with combined slot and Torx T8 heads. Fitting them to the back of the normal jackscrews would mean that they would be held captive in the holes by the cover, if the access holes were not enlarged too much. Remove servo compartment cover plate and check that the jackscrews I have are long enough to hold through the aluminium bracket - no problem. Degrease the jackscrews and the Torx screws then assemble them with Loctite 243. Open up the holes in the cover to 3.7mm, to admit the Torx T8 driver or a small slotted turnscrew. Ensure the jackscrews on the other connector are tightened up, then drop the modified jackscrews into place and fit the cover with the M2 x 10mm button-head screws. Plug the assembled right-angle connector onto the servo and do up the jackscrews with the Torx T8 driver. Replace servo compartment cover plate. |
2528.5 |
| 24 |
Think about using large stainless steel washer as the flange with tube welded to it as the firewall pass-through, then remember I have some thin stainless sheet in stock (somewhat thicker than the Europa firewall material) which would be lighter than a washer and probably more compatible for welding to thin-wall tube. Search online for stainless steel tube suppliers and find an eBay vendor with a selection of sizes in 400mm lengths potentially suitable for the firewall pass-through, so order several sizes. Tidy up tools and items left over from yesterday's work. Put the DE-09S insert in the packet with the selected hood so all parts for wiring the servo are together, and store in box 25. Fit F14 instrument module to firewall with temporary button-head screws, noting that the 4 along the bottom edge which engage with the anchor nuts on metal brackets can be shorter than all the others. Fit stainless steel braided hose to AN837-06 elbow and offer up to approximate location of firewall to see how it can be routed. Seems quite fair; passes against cross-tube of engine mount so could tie-wrap it to the tube or, if that is likely to vibrate a lot too close to the union, could encourage it to stay clear in a wider curve by making the hose slightly longer and securing it to the white Rotax ring mount tube further forward. Check the weights of the M14 stainless steel penny washers (29g) and the AN970-9 washers (56g) so I think the M14 ones will be preferred. Assemble 2 of them onto the AN837-06 elbow with AN924-6D nut to give better idea of positioning on firewall and it still looks OK. Check the fit of the other end of the fuel hose on the mechanical fuel pump inlet - slips on quite easily. While I'm at it, check the fit of the smaller hose on the pump outlet; that is quite a bit harder to push on, but doable, and probably will be better with a little lubrication. The fuel inlet on the carb allows the hose on slightly easier. Think about how to seal off the gap around the analogue fuel level sensor in the floor of the port headrest. Maybe something made of layers of plywood might do it - can check possibilities with card templates. Drop throttle lever box and remove lever handle. Remove lever from box, fit throttle cable to the box and the lever and re-assemble it all. Thread cables through gap between top tube of landing gear frame and corner of composite firewall. Re-fit box to tunnel. Remove existing cable adjusters from carbs (9mm AF nuts) and fit the Europa cable ends (cable outer swage 8mm AF, nuts 10mm AF). Slacken nipples on throttle arms (4mm hex key, 8mm AF nut), thread cable through and tighten just enough to hold it. Remove choke cable knob, locknut, knurled nut and lockwasher, making sure not to lose O-ring. Push ends of cable through the gap as for throttle cables, then insert choke control into tunnel hole. Secure with lockwasher and knurled nut, then fit locknut and knob. Try to push the ends of the inners through the right-angle guides on the carbs, but the soldered ends are too stiff to go round the bend. Snip about 8mm off the ends and that is enough to let them go through with an effort. Fit the solderless nipples, trying not to tighten the screws excessively, and try the action. Quite hard to pull knob, and won't stay extended. Thought at first it might be bad routing that's making it stiff to pull, but of course that does not explain why it springs back so readily! |
2532.1 |
| 25 |
Bring prop controller brushes and wiring loom in from trailer. Take the bags of blue foam offcuts back from the garage to the trailer. Offer up PC02 plenum chamber to carbs and the holes don't line up well; although Neville said I could use it with his cowl, it seems best to discard it and use the conical filters supplied with the engine. Move restrictor FS02, hinges MS20001-3X3, springs LC-042G-2, adaptors MMA5-8-105S & firewall fabric x 3 from box 19 to box 20, leaving connectors PC03, filter 33-2564 and filters PRO 805 in box 19. Take box 19 & PC02 out to trailer. Fit prop brush assembly to side of gearbox with supplied setscrews (6mm hex key) - seems odd there are no lockwashers. Seems to be very little room for the prop retaining fasteners. Lay out the cable and there is plenty of length to reach to the prop controller in the panel without splices. |
2532.7 |
| 26 |
Hot-wire cutter delivered. Assemble and test on a scrap of polystyrene foam - works well. |
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| 29 |
Stainless tubes delivered. All quite heavy, but the 10mm OD might be drilled out to thin the wall and reduce the weight while making a little more room for wires. Pick up welded landing gear frame part replica from Roger Bailey and discuss with him the possibility of fabricating a firewall feed-through from stainless tube and sheet. He thinks he might even be able to make it in one piece. I agree to let him have a drawing of what I'd like. |
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| 31 |
Neville Eyre replies to my e-mail request for the LAA mod number and the baffle template saying he's very busy and hopes to be in contact next week. |
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