Rib Completion

I thank all you faithful readers for your patience while it looked like nothing much was happening.  Between some health issues and dealing with my aging parents not much got done in February.  But the project is back underway!

The ribs are done, done, done!  The final step was getting them varnished.  My EAA tech adviser showed up and we spent a delightful afternoon dip-varnishing the ribs.

They have now been moved up to the hangar.

Here is our hero (Me!  :)  ) with the ribs hanging to dry.  I have enjoyed fabricating the ribs, but I am glad that phase is over and it is time to move on to the next phase.

Which is...fabricating the metal fittings needed to build the wings.  I have acquired welding equipment and will have the welding corner set up very soon.  Then I will need to spend some time re-learning how to weld. 

Though I have received some pressure to consider TIG welding, I am passing on that for the moment.  Not only are good TIG welders expensive, I would have to completely re-wire my shop (garage) space to accommodate a TIG unit with an acceptable duty cycle. There are nice TIG welders that can operate on 110 volts, but their duty cycle is very short.  That would be frustrating when I get to building the fuselage.  In order to get an acceptable duty cycle I would need to purchase something other than a bottom-of-the-line welder ($$$$) and bring 220 volt power into the shop (more $$$$$).

So, at least for the time being, I am sticking with oxy-acetylene.  I have a Victor medium-duty torch for heavier (by aircraft standards) welding, such as cluster welds.  The Victor has a cutting attachment, which I needed.  I also have a Harris "airline" torch for working on the lighter gauge material. There is no cutting attachment available for the Harris torch.  I acquired the Harris torch on eBay for a very reasonable price and it will be ideal for working with the light gauge steel used in aircraft construction  However, the hose and tips had to be special ordered.  They are on their way.

I started off with the idea that I would order the "downstream" accessories for the Harris (hose, tips, tanks, etc.) ala carte.  In view of the need for a cutting torch, it proved less expensive to purchase a complete Victor "kit" and purchase the tips and hose for the Harris separately.  In pulling together the ala carte idea, the cost rapidly ran up to $500.  I was able to purchase a Victor kit that included the torch, cutting attachment, suitable tips, regulators, hose, goggles, and striker for under $300. 

Of course, by time I added tanks, a cart (you have to have a means of securing the tanks upright), acetylene, oxygen and the governor's share the whole bill took a major bite out $1,000.

The table you see in earlier photos is being converted to a welding bench by adding fire brick to the top.  I am also modifying my trim saw into a cut-off saw by replacing the wood cutting blade with an abrasive cut-off disk.  It should work fine and saves the cost of a cut-off saw.

I have a small supply of mild steel which I will cut into "coupons" on which to practice welding.  I will post the joys and sorrows of that task.