Aviation Coming Eventually

I decided to hold off on finish welding the fuselage until my tech councilor could check it over and, if necessary, I could make changes while it was still relatively easy.   So instead I started tackling smaller projects. I started by welding up the control stick. Then moved on to rudder pedals, torque tube, and the forward torque tube bracket. I bought myself and entry-level TIG welder and after a bit of practice I thought I would try it out on some airplane parts. The rudder pedals, torque tube, and mounting bracket were all TIG welded. The pedals turned out okay, but I had mis-measured the scrap I made them from and they were too short. The bracket turned out great, TIG made welding on the little sheet-metal feet pretty simple.    The torque tube was... not great. All it consists of is a 1" diameter tube with a steel bushing welded on in the center for the control stick to pivot on. But, try as I might, I just could not get that stupid little bushing to weld on right....

On January 18th I posted my last blog update; both fuselage sides were tack welded. That was seven months ago now. I should update more regularly. Okay, self-flagellation over, let's get to the content! Once both fuselage sides were tack welded, I pulled all the jig blocks off the table, elected not to repaint again, and just laid out the stations for the top view of the fuselage. We lay out the top view because the top of the fuselage is flat which makes it a lot easier to jig things up if you lay out the fuselage upside-down. With the top view lofted out on the table I could start adding in jig blocks starting in the cockpit area where the sides are parallel. A stick and some clamps help hold the sides parallel for this photo op.  Now may be a good time to mention, if I haven't already, that I am widening this fuselage from stock. The original Jr Ace (Model E) was 33-1/8" between tubing centerlines at the widest point. This makes for a pretty cramped space when two peopl...

 Once the tail surfaces were done and I decided to pursue widening the fuselage to 38" I could clear the jig blocks from the table and paint over the lines for the tail. I then laid out all the dimensions for the fuselage side onto the fresh white paint. It's worth noting here that the plans give views of the top, bottom, and side of the fuselage, as if you are looking straight at the side. However, the sides angle back in space, so if you were to flatten that side out to lay on the table, it will actually be longer than the dimensions given on the drawing. In drafting, flattening out a panel like that is referred to as "developing". Widening the fuselage by almost 5" also changes the length of the side, so the developed side is actually 1.5" longer than shown in the side view. I drew up the developed side in CAD and used the dimensions from CAD to lay out on the table. The dimensions given on the drawing are to tubing centerlines and need to be offset to s...