I'm finally getting around to doing the written portion of the documentation on the build videos. Over the course of the previous month we got the seats built/assembled with only some minor issues needing additional work. I also spent a big chunk of my time working on the fuel lines and getting them set so they would work with the other finishing pieces. I had originally intended on having a single line run from the side firewall to the fuel selector position. That process was proving to be very difficult with the needed bends in the line. So I switched up things a bit and changed the fuel lines into segments. This obviously introduces some potential issues where leaks could occur, so I will have to make some conscious effort to test and ensure these joints are sealed.
I received all the avionics this month as well. The wiring harness, panel, avionics, etc, so it was time to start getting the wiring installed. Yeah more things to learn how to install! There are no real solid instructions on how to do these steps, so I hopefully won't wear out my welcome with questions with Midwest.
I had the EAA Chapter 43 Technical Counselor Jim Sutton over again to review my work. Overall he's been very helpful in making sure my work is on par with where it needs to be. There's some subjective areas since this is only the second SlingTsi being built here in Colorado and Jim hasn't seen one of these before. The control rods are especially tricky to get right because you have to remove/install everything to test it, and if it isn't done well enough (ie: not sticky) then you get to do it all over again.
My father-in-law Harold and I got the front and rear seats put together over the past month. They aren't terribly difficult other than getting the rivnuts lined up correctly so they receive the screws just right. I'll have some cleanup work to do on those when I get closer to installing them.
I also had to fix/repair a wrinkle in the right rear fuselage skin. Until starting this project I didn't know you could manage minor wrinkles in metal by "rubbing them out"... I basically found a dent repair kit at a local auto shop which contains some steel "plates", I put down some tape to protect the skin from any sort of deep scratches and then rub out the wrinkle. If I do it right you can't find/see the wrinkles after that. It saves some time/expense in getting a new piece of skin in.
Beyond that, all of my focus has been to get as much in the center fuselage of the plane done before putting the side skins on because once those go in I will be working from the top-down vs. the side-in. The side-in is obviously an easier process.
Next steps as of right now are to finish up the wiring issues, finish securing anything else inside the front fuselage, get the side skins on, the main landing gear on, wheels on the landing gear, firewall so I can get the main nose wheel on and then the wings finished up. Still lots to do. With Oshkosh coming up at the end of July I'll lose a few weeks there but hopefully have things moving along quickly here come August.
I received all the avionics this month as well. The wiring harness, panel, avionics, etc, so it was time to start getting the wiring installed. Yeah more things to learn how to install! There are no real solid instructions on how to do these steps, so I hopefully won't wear out my welcome with questions with Midwest.
I had the EAA Chapter 43 Technical Counselor Jim Sutton over again to review my work. Overall he's been very helpful in making sure my work is on par with where it needs to be. There's some subjective areas since this is only the second SlingTsi being built here in Colorado and Jim hasn't seen one of these before. The control rods are especially tricky to get right because you have to remove/install everything to test it, and if it isn't done well enough (ie: not sticky) then you get to do it all over again.
My father-in-law Harold and I got the front and rear seats put together over the past month. They aren't terribly difficult other than getting the rivnuts lined up correctly so they receive the screws just right. I'll have some cleanup work to do on those when I get closer to installing them.
I also had to fix/repair a wrinkle in the right rear fuselage skin. Until starting this project I didn't know you could manage minor wrinkles in metal by "rubbing them out"... I basically found a dent repair kit at a local auto shop which contains some steel "plates", I put down some tape to protect the skin from any sort of deep scratches and then rub out the wrinkle. If I do it right you can't find/see the wrinkles after that. It saves some time/expense in getting a new piece of skin in.
Beyond that, all of my focus has been to get as much in the center fuselage of the plane done before putting the side skins on because once those go in I will be working from the top-down vs. the side-in. The side-in is obviously an easier process.
Next steps as of right now are to finish up the wiring issues, finish securing anything else inside the front fuselage, get the side skins on, the main landing gear on, wheels on the landing gear, firewall so I can get the main nose wheel on and then the wings finished up. Still lots to do. With Oshkosh coming up at the end of July I'll lose a few weeks there but hopefully have things moving along quickly here come August.
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