Starting at the top and working my way down, the side skin was drilled and
clecoed using 3" spacing. At the bottom where the side skin meets the
tunnel, I got my 9 year Grandson "Cole" to help me out. He used a piece
of 2 X 4 wood to hold the side skin firmly against the tunnel while I
back-drilled from inside. That way I could assure that we were hitting
the center of the flange on the tunnel:
As we drilled each hole, Cole put in a cleco before we moved on to the next
hole:
You can tell I got Cole just before his bedtime. Of course he didn't
mind, helping Papa in the garage is much better than going to bed.
:>)
Here is the side skin all drilled and clecoed in place:
Here is the front view:
April 15, 2007
The bottom skin between Stations "B" and "C" was done using the same template
method as the other boot cowl skins. Holes must be made in this skin
to clear the shock struts. One builder came up with an idea of making some
seals for those holes out of rubber sheet. The rubber sheet is cut
about 10" square and has a hole in the center just slightly smaller than
the shock strut. The rubber sheet is then slid onto the shock struts
and then sandwiched between the bottom skin and some cover plates:
I haven't made the cover plates yet but you get the idea. With these
rubber seals, the holes in the bottom skin for the shock struts can be cut
oversized and square with a opening in the aft side. This makes
installation of the bottom skin much easier.
Addendum: April 26, 2008 (a year later)
As I finish up the project, I finally got around to making the cover
plates:
The front of the airplane is to the left.
Boot cowl
Completed: 04/15/07
Total Time: 24 hours
Click here to go the Final Assembly page