Wings

[Brock]

Looks nice! ....

Wowa!  Hold that complement!
I was just looking over the Irondesign videos and the diagonals jumped out screaming at me.  "Backwards!"
Now I remember double checking everything thrice before I started glueing those in but I'm now realizing they are slanted the wrong direction.  Someone take a look and confirm this.  Could be I'm tired and just don't see it.

The pic below shows my wing with the root to the left.  Hat covers the end to keep me from walking into it.  All along I was thinking the first diagonal bolts up to the front spar but now I see it's the aft spar?!

[Kamcoman77]

Whoops! Better call Leonard and ask if this is critical. You could probably put in a couple of new diagonals running the other direction that would create an X. I was thinking about doing that.

[Brock]

Whoops! Better call Leonard and ask if this is critical....

Kamco, thanks for the suggestion.  I just spoke with Leonard, he sounded good, how old is he?
Anyway, Leonard said to leave my diagonals alone and fly it (I need to build it first).  That it's not a high powered machine (understatement).  It's still a diagonal as far as he is concerned (though in tension rather than compression).  Now, I'll have to decide to make the second wing correctly or make them both the same.  Didn't I already mention how I like semetry?

[Kamcoman77]

Leonard turned 101 a few months ago! He is a truly amazing man. I would build my 2nd wing with the same diagonal orientation as the 1st. I like symmetry, too. I had a feeling that Leonard would say it's OK as you built it.

[Brock]

Today I cut the wing trailing-edges and glued on the first of the gussets to support the tailing edge.  The cutting of the 1" x 3/8" x ~10' peice has been the subject to my latest day-dreams (er night-mares), how was I going to do it.  Although I liked the 2X4 & carpet tape solution, I decided to just cut the wood without the 2X4.  The magic bullet was this hedgehog-featherboard that I picked up to try.  It worked like a charm, I recommend it.  Here are a few pics.

[Brock]

Realized today that I had forgotten to place gussets on the bottom of the diagonals.  Once I got to looking at the spot, it became clear that overlaping the front spar was not going to work as it would interfere with with the nose ply.  Pictured is what I'm thinking of doing, can't overlap the spar-cap.  What have others done?
The otherside of the diagonal is gusseted properly with the gusset overlaping the spar cap.

[Kamcoman77]

I did not put gussets on the bottom side of the front diagonal joint, only on the top side.

[Chuck in Indiana]

I don't remember..  I"m old.. sue me.

[pappyadkins]

I think I added 'filler' so my front skin could glue to something, but I'd have to go back to my videos to know for sure...

[Brock]

It's beeh awhile since I've posted but be assured progress, albeit slow, is progressing.  I was struggling with how the ailerons go together then it finally clicked.  What was hard to understand was to differentiating between what is costmetic (ie. the plywood on the ailreon ribside that is exposed when the alierons are not mounted) vs what is structural (ie, the 1/4" ply that holds the hinge blocks).  Once this was understood things started falling in place.

Yesterday I glued in the brass hinge tubes.  With this done, the aileron spar can next be built in place then it will be time to start the second wing.  Should take only a fraction of the time of the first wing.

[jrbirdman47]

"Should take only a fraction of the time of the first wing." You're right! In addition to the learning curve you have all the tools, knowledge, jigs, etc., ready to go. My first wing took 6 months. My 4th one took 28 days.

[Brock]

... In addition to the learning curve you have all the tools, knowledge, jigs, etc., ready to go....

Well, I also have the spars built and tappered, trailing edge wedged-cut, etc.