Step by Step

For the next few weeks it is going to be difficult to find interesting things to talk about.  I have 22 ribs to build, and it will be pretty repetitive.  But I will try. 

The first photo here shows one of my joints.  I decided I needed to take a photo or two of these joints.  They all end up getting covered by gussets.  I know they are there, but nobody else ever will. I am contemplating building a "show" rib.  The ribs really are pretty, and one particularly built as a wall hanging seems like a good idea. 

Building these ribs is really relaxing.  It requires slow and patient work.  My usual procedure is to mark the piece and make a preliminary cut just to the "waste" side of the pencil mark.  This always ends up with a part a touch too long.  I use the disk/belt sander to sand off about 1/2 of the pencil line and then re-check the fit.  If still too long, I sand until the pencil line just disappears.  If still too long, I make a new pencil line and repeat the procedure.  It is kind of a fussy method, but it helps from taking off too much material. 

The next photo is an overall photo of the wing rib jig with a partially completed rib.  I cut and fit all the capstrip before I start gluing and installing gussets.  Just the way I do it.  Do any of you from Wagbuilders Group glue things up as you go?

The bits of business card provide clearance for the spars.  One needs about .010" to .015" clearance to make sure the rib can be slid onto the spar.  The business cards mic out at .013".

You can also see the syringe I use to apply glue and the small table saw I use to make rough cuts.  I use the bastard cut file instead of sandpaper to clean up fuzzies and make small adjustments. 

First Wing Rib

This is the first wing rib.  Pretty exciting.

Having produced something that looks aviation related, after cutting a million small, nondescript parts, I feel like I am really building an airplane.

This first rib went together pretty much as expected. I had originally thought I would hold the gussets in place while the glue dried with staples.  That did not work out well.  Probably because I used birch plywood for my gussets instead of the more usual mahogany.  The birch is much harder. 

I noticed, wandering the Photos section of the Wagbuilders Yahoo Group, somebody used large bolts placed head down on the gussets as weights.  I happened to have a bag full of big bolts (no recollection of where they came from), so gave that method a try.  It worked fine in the test runs, so that is the method I used in building this rib. I am pretty sure I will continue this method through the rest of the ribs.

Building the ribs is a fussy job.  Some of the EAA information recommends just cutting all the capstrip square and butting it up, counting on the gussets to make the full joint.  The plans I am working from show each piece mitered into the adjoining pieces.  Mine are all mitered in.  It takes some time to get each piece just right, but I am proud of the result, even though you can't see it.

I had originally planned to do most of the fine cutting with an Exacto razor saw.  But I found the grain in the spruce to be too open when trying to crosscut.  So I unearthed a small table saw (Harbor Freight) that I use in my model building for the rough cuts and do the final trimming with the disk sander. One of the EAA tips is to make a single pencil line where something needs trimming and then just sand the pencil line off, no more.  Works great.

There is also some final trimming of some of the gussets, primarily around the spar openings, that needed to be done.  That trimming was done on the band saw.

So far I am very pleased with the Titebond III glue.  My test joints passed the "break test" with flying colors.  The glue joints are way stronger than the wood.  One nice attribute is the quick and firm inital grab.  Titebond does not tout this feature, but the initial grip is pretty firm.  The glue also dries to handling strength in about 30 minutes.  I wouldn't put a lot of strain on a 30-minute joint, but it will allow me to flip the rib over and go to work on the obverse side gussets in a reasonable time.  I apply the glue with a glue syringe, available from MicroMark.  The syringe gives much better control over the amount of glue applied than trying to squirt it from the bottle.

I should be able to complete one rib in an evening and two, maybe even three, when I have full Saturdays available.  Today is a slow day because I am not feeling well.

I am labeling each rib and marking them off on the plans to be sure I get everything done and to help me keep track of what I am doing and what needs my attention next.  Completed ribs will be stored in my hangar.  One of the challenges of a project this large in a single car garage is storage space, or, rather, the lack thereof.  This rib is marked "R2", meaning the #2 rib in the right wing.

Why did I start with the #2 rib?  Because the #2 is really the only "typical" rib (I know, that sounds strange).  The #1 rib is plated on the inboard side with 1/16" ply for its entire length.  The #3 rib is plated on the outboard side from the trailing edge to the rear spar.  Ribs #4-#9 are "aileron ribs, meaning they end at the aileron well.  Rib #10 is plated on the inboard side from the trailing edge to the rear spar.  Rib #11 is the "Tip Rib" and is slightly different than all the others. I will need to modify my jig to do the two (left and right) tip ribs.

I like wing ribs.  They are pretty (particularly in wood, aluminum not so much) and are an interesting study in basic structural engineering.

I think Holly would be proud.

Arlington

I ran into this beautifully restored Vagabond at Arlington.  The attention to detail is amazing.  I fell in love!  Incidentally, that is the kind of mag switch I want for my Wag-a-Bond.  I will let you soak in these images.  I spent a lot of time just looking at this aircraft.

I got around to cutting the rear blocks for the aileron ribs.  That is, the wing ribs in the aileron area. 

But I ran into a problem.  When cutting the curved portion of the block, the router was ripping the blank off the jig.  Pulled the nails right out.  So I rigged this up for cutting the curved part.

Once the curved part was cut, I could move the clamp, so it wasn't in the way of the router, and complete the cut.

And, finally, finished blocks.  I spent the rest of the evening cutting the gussets associated with these blocks.

Ponderings

As I am awaiting materials, I have taken some time to meditate on this project. 

This project is in contrast to my usual approach to projects.  Usually, I like to have all materials, parts, tools and information in my possession before starting the project. As an example, I have almost everything I need to complete the basics of  my model railroad (a decades long project) squirreled away, including locomotives and rolling stock.  The only way I could to that with the airplane project is to sell my Cessna 150, which would leave me with nothing to fly until the Traveler is complete.  That is AT LEAST 5 years away.  No airplane to fly is unacceptable.  So, I am acquiring materials, parts, tools and information as I go.  Quite a change.

Another subject of my meditations has been the quality of the parts going into the finished product.  As stated in the beginning, this project is in honor and memory of Hollister (Holly) Young.  Holly was a man who took great care in all he did and loved excellent workmanship by others.  Even the smallest tasks he did were done thoroughly and to the best of his ability.  He loved to spend time in an addition to his home because of the incredible workmanship of the carpenter who built it. 

If this project is going to truly honor Holly, every piece has to be of the best workmanship I can manage.  No corners can be cut, no part that is less than the highest quality can be installed.  Even each individual gusset that I have been cutting must be as close to perfect as I can make them.  Holly could spot shoddy workmanship from across the room.  So every little part, even the seeming inconsequential gussets, that no will ever see in my lifetime once the airplane is covered, has thoughts of Holly in the fabrication.  Anything less than excellence would not honor Holly's memory.

This project is such a major challenge, and I am having so very much fun.

More Gussets

Gussets are probably THE most important component of the wings.  It is the gussets that hold everything together. 

Today I cut 208 more gussets.  The batches today were the odd shaped gussets.  The photo shows the 24 gussets for the trailing edge.

Bucket o' Gussets

The 1/16th plywood arrived.  So I got busy and cut some gussets.  Most of the gussets are these 1"X2" rectangles.   I calculated (re-calculated) that 704 are required.  (a previous post had a higher, erroneous, number). 

These were all cut on my table saw.  I ripped the first sheet of ply into 1" strips and then contemplated using the radial arm saw to cut the gussets to length.  Bringing to mind the adventure of cutting the cams for jig, with parts flying all over the shop, I decided to use the table saw to cut to length, as well.  The Ryobi, with its sliding miter table, works well for cutting a bunch of small parts.

This bucket, plus half of another, contain 840 to 850 gussets.  So I should have plenty. 

There are some other oddly shaped gussets that I need to tackle next.  I was trying to figure out how many of each I needed when I realized I was tired enough that calculations should be left for another day.