Finish Kit

Cowl Pin Covers and Oil Door ( 4 hrs )

Carefully ! cut apart Top & Bottom Cowls along backside of Covers.  Added nutplates w/ flush rivets.  Created slots to enable sliding in hinge pins.  (pending cut pins to final length with 90 deg bends).  These are a lot more work and $ than Van's simple tab and screw, but ...good "wow" factor. Cut in large .87" hole for push button on Oil Door.  Works nicely - only need to rivet after I prime and paint hinge and Door.

inside:  separated, then re-assembled after template removed

separated, then re-assembled after template removed

nutplates installed

slot for installing Pin

 

tah-dah !   

"cessna style" flush latch button.  ready to prime and rivet

Finish Kit

Oil Door and Cowl Pin Covers ( 5 hrs )

Started installation of Oil Door.  Filled four #40 holes Vans provided for their simple hinge with flush rivets ground/sanded smooth.  Drilled & cleco'd hinge onto Top Cowl.  Positioned Door, then drilled for 4 rivets.  Machine C'sunk fiberglass on Top Cowl, and alum Door.  Positioned latch and drilled 4 mounting holes.  Final 0.87" dia hole for 'push button' clearance pending.  Single latch seems sufficient.  Sure like how well this operates.   Final fitted Cowl Pin Covers.  Protected ends of hinges from invasion of epoxy.  Applied 4 layers of medium fiberglass -- prepping these 4 on a table covered with wax paper was easy, instead of applying a layer at a time.   Received pics of Stein Air panel build progress.  Expecting delivery in late June.

Positioned.  Pending final large hole for push button.

Finally, after months of considering Van's version vs this
alternative hinge and latch...pleased I did.  Costs more of course.

Cover inside prior to applyiing epoxy and fiberglass

Some epoxy seeped around perimeter... will readily sand off

Removed tape sealing off hinge & pin prior to full cure. White 
surrounding Cover is epoxy-micro balloons filling transition

... progress !

Stein to remove 3 "spare" CBs,
replace with plastic plugs...per the plan.

 

Finish Kit

Oil Door and Cowl Pin Covers ( 4 hrs )

Started revisions to Oil Door to accommodate Hidden Hinge (by Avery Tool now sold by Cleaveland Aircraft Tools) and single flush latch.  (ref: Sect 45- 22, 23 & 24 for Vans instructions).   Cut out Door to final outline...and pleased formed shape matches Top Cowl very well.  Notched out Top Cowl opening to accommodate this Hinge, and eliminated where 2 fasteners would have been in corners.   Also cut out for Cowl Pin Covers - using provided aluminum templates.   Looking good !

revised to accommodate alternate hinge
and single flush latch (Cessna style)

trimmed door to fit with clearance for paint.

careful trimming to snugly fit template Cover

checking template cover fit (clear tape)

template slightly oversized so final Cover
 fits with paint clearance

flush fit 

and...RH side template

Finish Kit

 Inlet Ramps, etc  ( 3 hrs )

Applied small RTV patches on firewall to prevent chafing from vertical hinge pin ends per Steps 1 & 2 at Sect 45-21.  Then mounted Top Cowl to insure alignment at lower aft edge of Bottom Cowl.  Used F14133-1 drill template for locating 6 holes to attach Bottom Cowl to Fuselage per Steps 3-7 at 45-21.   Removed Top and Bottom Cowl, then re-assembled to prep for cutting out for Cowl Pin Covers.   Coated Top Cowl with epoxy in new transition areas per Step 12 at 45-20.    I'm revising Oil Door to use single "Cessna style flush latch".  So I filled 2 large holes with AN426A-6-7 (spl ordered these large, soft rivets).   First Mach C'sunk, then riveted, and ground/sanded smooth.   Pleased with result!  (see May 18 post with pic of test pieces and latch)

sanded filler areas for smooth transition with baffle seals

after drilling, inserted screws...it worked !

w/o template

another view underneath......plastic washers not used yet...

rare view underneath.   Exhaust routes through tunnel.

RTV applied to firewall to minimize chaffing

re-assembled to work on Cowl Pin Covers

Since 1st one worked, proceeding
with C'sinking 2nd hole

backside will have "ugly" smashed rivet. 
Probably not going to grind off

top surface after grinding / sanding flush head

Finish Kit

Inlet Ramps on Top Cowl ( 1 hr )

Sanded, mixed epoxy-microballoon mix, applied to areas indicated in Fig 1 to provide smooth transitions for baffle seals.  (note: I temporarily positioned Top Cowl onto Fuse to mark baffle alignment onto Inlet Ramps as double check)   Filled holes from clecos. Steps 5-11 per Sect 45-20.

black marks on Inlet Ramps indicate locations for
baffles at transitions to Cowl 

Finish Kit

Inlet Ramps bonded into Top Cowl ( 4 hrs )

Used dremel to trim RH and LH Inlet Ramps to fit Top Cowl per Step 2, Sect 45-19.  Lots of iterations - and lots of dust - to get good fit all around.  Prepped for bonding, mixed batch of epoxy & cotton flox, then installed per Sect 45-20 Steps 1-4.  Re-installed Top Cowl using all the hinge pins to insure cowl maintained shape and alignment. (worked ahead couple steps, pre-shaping edges for Baffle Seal contact,  so I could use excess flox to start smoothing transitions)

clecos installed once final trimming done

bonded and first layer transition layer applied 

checking out surfaces via RH side air intake

LH Inlet Ramp clears Prop Gov control.  Later, a 1" thick
foam seal is applied to stop airflow where not wanted

another view of LH Inlet Ramp and Prop Gov control.

Finish Kit

Riveting Hinges to Cowls ( 6 hrs )

Completed mach c'sinking and riveting hinges to Top and Bottom Cowls per Steps 1-8 at 45-18.  Re-assembled to Fuse, and ...Ta-Dah !  Good fit...with consistent gaps at seams, too.   Started 45-19 Step 1 trimming LH & RH Inlet Ramps for Top Cowl.

Top Cowl riveting done

Bottom Cowl riveting done, mtd to Fuse

First time mounted via hinge pins all around

side view...pleased with fit

looking good !  Yay!

trimmed Inlet Ramps to scribe lines from molds. 
The diamond encrusted mini-wheels cut fiberglass really well