Laissez Les Bon Temps Rouler!!

In order to Let The Good Times Roll in an airplane you have to have ailerons, so while I'm waiting on some #20 reamers to finish the center sectionI decided to move on to the aileron frames.  By the way,I used  up all 250 clecos I ordered the other day and will need some more for the spar of the center section.  All of the copper colored ones in this picture will be black.  The bottom of the spar is the same.  About 100 in all.

The aileron frames consist of a large diameter front spar, a small diameter trailing edge and some tubes for ribs.  No real airfoil section just the taper.  First off you have to install the nutplates for the hinges.  These are close spaced 1/4 inch diameter nutplates and they are a pain to install due to the closeness of the river to the thread.  The sheet metal doubler has to be laid out as well but is easy to rivet.

The leading edge spar has a smaller tube riveted inside to form the outboard end.  Here it is inserted into the larger tube.

The large holes you see below will receive the tubes that are the ribs.  They really just act as compression members.

A detail of the nutplate prior to drilling.

And one of the sheet doubler prior to marking it and drilling.  I put extra washer under the head so I don't have to engage all od the self locking thread of the nutplate to hold it for drilling.  They will not be used in the end.

Another view of the tube extension.

The sheet doubler after it has been drilled but not riveted.

Here the extension has had the four large pull rivets installed.

In order to rivet the nutplate I have to install small diameter collars on the stem so the nose of the rivet gun clears the threaded boss.

Once these are done you have to install plastic nipples that will locate the ends of the tubes.  The ones on the leading edge are inside the spar and are not visible.  Here is one on the trailing edge.  They are held on by a large rivet.

The thin looking tubes on the table are the trailing edges.  Once you have installed all of the keepers you simply put the tubes in place and hold it together with tape until you can attach the root rib and outboard end fastener.  I don't have any pictures of that tonight.  I will get some this week and upload them.

I did mage to finish both ailerons this weekend.  Tmac had come over Saturday to help.  Here he is holding a completes frame.

These control surfaces will be covered using the PolyFiber process which uses a heat shrunk dacron Which will hold everything together.

This week I hope to get the flaps done.  They are the same construction except they have a sheet metal rib on both ends and no taper.