Fuselage August 2008 Updates
August 02, 2008
The Big Cut.... - 8.0 hrs

Well today is the big day. Time for the Big Cut. Stopped by Lowes picked up a 5/16 x 3 inch bolt to clamp the canopy in place of the canopy latch.

First off I connected the push to talk switch on the pilot side. Then I installed the bolt. Looks like it will work great. Next I fit up the side skins one last time and cut the notch towards the front that allows clearance when the canopy slides back. Might have to redo these.

Then Jon showed up and it was time to start the cutting. We decided to go to Carls BBQ first for lunch. While standing in line I heard a familiar voice and turned around and there was Mike. He bought us lunch. Thanks MIKE!

When we got back to the hangar I cut the straps holding the canopy in the create and we lifted it out. Flipped over the create to make a work surface. Jon suggested putting a box on top in the middle and using the blankets to hole the canopy off the top of the create to keep the pressure off the sides. The plan was to cut a strip off the back as a test to see how the Rotozip tool would work. Worked great.

Next Jon marked the front edge with electrical tape to see if I could follow a line. Worked great so we set the canopy on the plane and marked the place for the hole in the top of the frame for the canopy latch. We removed it and drilled the hole. Put it back on the frame and marked the line to make the cut that seperates the windscreen. Then it was time. I marked it in the gap between the rear of the roll bar and the front of the slider frame. Removed it and made the CUT! It's now done. Next we put the windscreen aside and put the slider portion back on to mark the sides. 2 more cuts and we were done. Thanks again Jon for your help. If would not of been there to help I would still be cuttin.

This website was built to document my work in compliance with the FAA requirements needed to certify my aircraft.
My experiences and comments are by no means to be considered as instructions on how to build any aircraft.