First rudder rib done.
I didn't have much time to work today, but I managed to get the top rib on the rudder made and welded. The .025 steel was much easier to use than the .032 I tried earlier. I had the .032 on hand and figured it would be ok, but it was a pain to bend in my cheap little benchtop brake. The .025 (as callled out in the stock plans) worked great. I should be able to install the other two ribs on Sunday.
I tried a trial fit of the new tailwheel on the new spring. It fits fine, but is raked forward about 5 degrees. It's not clear is this will improve when with the engine, wings and other mounted. I will have to think about this a bit before deciding what to do. I'm using the pre-bent and tapered, round spring from Raven and the Aviation Products 10 degree option on the six inch tailwheel. I have some leeway to make adjustments with the mounting of the spring, but not by that much. Hopefully, this is mostly a problem because there isn't any weight to speak of yet.
Leave Comment