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Europa #435 G-RODO Build Journal - 2019 08

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12 Clear away tools etc from around dolly and roll fuselage out onto drive for access.

Remove starboard upper stainless steel rudder shaft seal (marked port!) and transfer it to the inner surface of the footwell. Secure it to the forward and mid holes with button-head temporary screws and plain nuts to allow drilling the aft hole from the inside. Drill through with a long 4.5mm bit and then open to 4.8mm. Remove SS part from inside. Remove SS lower part and rubber sheet part from outside of footwell.

Put a temporary screw with 2 spacing washers on it through the top aft hole, holding it in place with a hex key jammed against the nearby metalwork and carefully fit an anchor nut to it inside the footwell. Drill through rivet holes from inside 2.5mm. Remove temporary screw and anchor nut. To make countersinks on the holes, grind a bit more relief on the short custom hex drill bit for use in the angle driver. Countersink the holes. Insert M2.5 x 10mm stainless steel CSK socket screws into the holes, position anchor nut over the ends of the screws and carefully start SS stiffnuts on both screws. Find I can just reach a 1.5mm hex key on the screw head with my right hand while with my left hand on the inside holding the IXO electric screwdriver fitted with a 5mm socket to do up each nut.

Repeat the process to fit the mid upper anchor nut.

Drill out the lower blind holes to accept the back end of a MS21047-L3 anchor nut in the forward one and a MS21051-L3 single-lug anchor nut in the aft one. Countersink the holes lightly to get the anchor nuts as flush to the surface as possible. Countersink the rivet holes on both anchor nuts. Position the MS21047-L3 in the forward hole, drill 2.5mm through one rivet hole. Position and pull a TAPK36BS rivet. Drill through the other hole and pull a rivet in it. Repeat for the MS21051-L3 anchor nut in the aft hole.

There is room to get the rivet gun onto the forward upper anchor nut location, so don't need to use M2.5 screws there. Fit anchor nut with temporary screw & spacing washers. Drill through rivet holes 2.5mm. Countersink the inboard faces of the holes with small countersink hex bit. Insert and pull TAPK36BS rivets using the usual spacer to keep the rivet gun clear of the temporary screw head.

Remove the port markings from the stainless steel and rubber parts; scratch S on the hidden face of the SS ones and paint S on the rubber one.

Check that 3/8" screws will be in safety in the lower, reversed, anchor nuts. Fit the rubber sheet in place and position the lower SS sheet on top of it. Fit 10-32 x 3/8" SS button-head screws to retain it. Fit upper SS sheet and check if 1/2" screw will be in safety - not quite, only just protruding through the anchor nut. Will need to order some 5/8" screws (or 9/16" if available).

Roll fuselage back into garage and put away tools etc.
3099.4
14 Order some 10-32 x 5/8" button-head stainless steel screws from Westfield Fasteners .
16 Screws delivered from Westfield Fasteners .
17 Fit one of the new 5/8" button-head screws in the top forward hole of the starboard rudder shaft seal. Alas, it protrudes too far and would foul the rudder pedal. So, take it out and fit 1/2" screws in the 3 top holes. Note that as observed before, the ends of the 10-32 and M2.5 screws could be a snag hazard in the footwell and it would be good to make some sort of smooth covering over them; some micro smoothed over would probably be enough.

Realize that the forward bottom corner of the seal assembly is overlapping the line of the cooling duct. Mark stainless steel and rubber sheet parts. Loosen upper screws, remove lower screws and lower SS part. Trim the rubber sheet in-situ where marked. Trim the SS sheet, file off burrs and smooth on ScotchBrite wheel. Replace SS sheet, re-fit screws and tighten.

On the port seal (still marked starboard) mark the line of the cooling duct. Remove all temporary screws and the sheet parts. Trim the forward bottom corner of the rubber and stainless steel parts where marked for duct clearance.
3100.0
21 Scratch a P on the back face of each of the stainless steel parts of the port rudder shaft seal, and remove the S marks with unleaded petrol. Remove the S marks from the rubber sheet part and apply a P with white paint marker. File off rough edge of trimmed corner of lower SS part, deburr all holes in SS parts and smooth off with ScotchBrite wheel. 3100.2
26 Roll fuselage out onto drive. Consider sequence of assembly - starboard rudder seal and rudder pedals will need to be removed to allow fitting of starboard-side stainless steel firewall panel. Port rudder shaft seal will need to be fitted before the lower firewall panel which will obstruct access to it.

Check rivet gun access for fitting port rudder shaft seal anchor nuts. All OK except for top aft which will need screws instead of rivets. Bottom aft will need a single-lug anchor nut, as on starboard side.

Put temporary 3/8" button-head screw in top forward hole and jam in place with hex key. Carefully fit anchor nut on inside of footwell. From inside, drill rivet holes 2.5mm; have to use long series bit to clear shaft bearing. Countersink holes on tunnel face. Insert and pull TAPK36BS rivets using spacer as usual. Remove temporary screw. Likewise put temporary screw in top aft hole and with Dorothy's help fit anchor nut inside. Drill and countersink rivet holes. Fit M2.5 x 10mm SS CSK socket screws, and holding each screw in place with a hex key, fit SS Nyloc nut on inside. Can just reach to tighten the nut with the power screwdriver.

Open lower forward hole to 5.9mm for back of MS21047-3 anchor nut and lower aft hole to 0.25" for back of MS21051-L3 single-lug anchor nut. Countersink each hole lightly to allow the anchor nuts to sit as flush as possible. Holding anchor nut in place on lower forward hole, drill through one rivet hole 2.5mm. Insert rivet to hold alignment and drill 2nd rivet hole. Repeat for single-lug anchor nut in aft hole. Countersink back of rivet holes in both anchor nuts. Position anchor nuts, insert TAPK36BS rivets and pull.

Trial fit port seal parts. Relief needed on top aft hole - seems hole in footwell was not drilled quite in alignment. Remove upper SS sheet and drift the offending hole slightly with a round file. Try fit again - now fine.

Dis-assemble both rudder shaft seals. Disconnect rudder pedals from each other and dismantle bearings in footwells. Slide starboard stainless steel firewall panel into place. Secure with CSK screws to clamps on LG frame. Remove screw, washers etc from end of starboard rudder cable and thread cable through the rubber seal on the firewall panel. Re-assemble screws etc to cable loop.

Clean card templates off upper SS firewall panels with petrol and wipe off adhesive residue. Fit fuel elbow to port upper panel and tighten. Check the photographic record for the routing of the throttle & choke Bowden cables. Fit edge protector to top edges of panels where cables could rub and stick on with hi-temp RTV. Fit port upper firewall panel and with some difficulty fit washer and stiffnut on CSK screw through clamp on tube. Fit hose finger-tight onto back of elbow then do up tight with spanner.

Realise after a refreshment pause that the CSK screw needs to go through both upper firewall panels, so undo it. Fit starboard upper panel. Fit bolts on outboard edge securing it to starboard outer panel. Try a few times to get the washer and nut onto the back of the CSK screw through both panels into the tube clamp but without success. A longer screw seems to be the answer, so insert a 10-32 x 3/4" SS CSK socket-head screw. That allows the thread to poke through the clamp just enough to get the washer on it. Offer up the nut in a socket driver and do up the screw. Fit remaining 2 bolts joining port and starboard upper panels.

Re-fit rudder shaft bearing blocks on both sides. Re-fit rudder cranks with stiffnuts and apply inspectors lacquer to them. In the process come across a stiffnut with no thread!

Put tools etc away and roll fuselage back into garage.
3106.9
27 Roll fuselage out onto the drive.

Fit rudder shaft seals starboard & port, with 3/8" stainless-steel button-head socket screws on the bottom holes and 1/2" screws on the top holes.

Start to fit lower firewall panel. Remove screw, washers etc from end of port rudder cable for threading through seal on firewall panel. Fit of panel is rather tight against port rudder shaft seal, but better when port edge pushed back slightly. Realize engine mount has to be fitted first because the heads of the lower bolts will be behind the firewall, so take firewall off again. Using mixture of half-round file, Tuff-Kut Scissors & hand nibbler, relieve port edge where it was touching port rudder shaft seal then smooth off with ScotchBrite wheel. Attach a length of string to port rudder cable for threading through seal on firewall.

Check journal of 2018-12-20 for disposition of washers on AN5-41 bolts when engine mount was removed. There were 4 AN960-516L washers directly under the nuts at the aft end of the (head forward) bolts on the top corners, and no washers elsewhere on those bolts. The lower (head aft) bolts each had 5 AN960-516L washers between the LG frame and the shock mount cup washer, with no washers elsewhere on those bolts. Offer up engine mount and start to fit it. Observe that the fuel elbow points towards a protruding tube on the aft face of the mount. Try to adjust elbow using 13/16" spanner from below but not enough room for spanner to swing. Remove engine mount & starboard upper firewall panel. Loosen fuel hose nut. Loosen elbow backnut and adjust elbow angle to point more inboard. Tighten backnut, then tighten hose nut.

Re-fit starboard upper firewall panel. Fit engine mount with washers arranged as before. I can just get the nuts started by hand on the upper bolts, but need to compress lower cup washers with pipe pliers before I can get the nuts started. Tighten up all mount bolts and align bolt holes with castle nuts.

Starting to get dark so put away tools & roll fuselage back into garage.
3110.4

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