Savannah S Build Notes - Wing Nose Skin and Closure

[Guy s]

Hi Bob, just wondering how your getting along with the Sav build as u haven't post for a while I see or have i miss it posted somewhere else ?

 

Cheers Guy.

 

 

[IBob]

Hi Bob, just wondering how your getting along with the Sav build as u haven't post for a while I see or have i miss it posted somewhere else ?Cheers Guy.

Hi Guy.

I shut the shed October to focus on an industrial refrigeration job with a November startup date. This ran late for various reasons (none to do with me, thankfully), and we didn't actually begin commissioning until the week before Christmas. It's up and running now, but we need to finish it off.

 

However I have also had a daughter home from the UK for my son's wedding here, nicely rounded off now by what I hope will be a small medical procedure this coming Monday.

 

So, all good stuff in various ways, but I haven't had the uninterrupted time that I prefer for building. I'm very much hoping to be back into it by Feb.

 

As of October, I had all the flying surfaces done (though I will open the outer stabilisers and stiffen the skin joins I missed there).

 

I also have the rear fuselage completed: apart from some misunderstanding about the extended baggage area, this went like clockwork.

 

At the time I closed the shed, I had just begun prep on the mixer and some forward fuselage parts. And I was looking at the order of build on Mark's excellent thread here, and trying to figure out whether to follow that or stick to the manual.

 

I hope you've been getting some airtime there. Weather hasn't been too good here (much wind and overcast).

 

Though my own flying is minimal, Fallowdeer gets me out to blow away the cobwebs from time to time.

 

For which I am most thankful!

 

Cheers

 

Bob

 

 

[eightyknots]

Setting up the wing & inserting the tip:1. The wingtip is flat along it's bottom edge. I set up the wing on blocks so that the lower skin/s are held flat.

2. I shaped by hand the leading edge skin, checking it repeatedly against a plywood pattern (taken from a nose rib). I found this easiest to do by running my hand from the last outboard wing rib to the tip of the skins. This takes some care and a few minutes, and I kept at it until I had a near perfect fit.

 

3. I next trial-fitted the wingtip. You need three hands for this, plus a steel rule to get all the stiffening strips past the edge of the f/glass. I found it easiest to get the bottom part in, then work with the top. The whole wingtip needs to go well in to pick up all the rivets.

 

4. I then used a strip of wood inserted at the wing trailing edge, to push the wingtip forward.

 

5. With the wingtip now in place, I checked the fit. With both my wings, I then removed the tip and made further adjustments to the leading edge shape.

 

6. Once happy with the fit, I drilled at the leading edge and got the first cleko in, then worked back along the top then the bottom of the wing, trying always to keep the skins flush to the wingtip.

 

7. Rivet tip, rivet bottom tip skin, solid rivet last of trailing edge.

 

Sorry the pics are fragmented and the last 3 are upside down.

 

I think this method relies on getting a very good fit between skins and wingtip before drilling, as the best way of getting a neat installation.

 

It would also be possible to leave the wooden former in (as per Kyle Communications thread), drill and cleko, then open again to remove the former.

 

And no doubt the professionals do it just as well in a faction of the time...)

All very useful Bob. When I get my build under way, this will be helpful.

 

 

[Marty_d]

Great work Bob!

 

Nose skins are nerve-wracking to put on. Looks good though.

 

 

[Guy s]

Sounds like your been busy Bob and life does get in the way at times and will look forward to seeing your Savannah take shape when u get back into it :-)

 

And 88 I will also look foward to seeing your progress when you kick off. I went for a fly late yesterday arvo and the Sav is a lot of fun, easy to fly and forgiving. Happy days.

 

I see you mention you came up to Grafton 88. If your ever in Grafton again please let me know and I'll fly down. Be good to meet you or if you venture up at little further north.

 

Cheers G.

 

 

[IBob]

Great work Bob!Nose skins are nerve-wracking to put on. Looks good though.

Hi Marty. I certainly came at the nose skins with trepidation, but in the event, and using the system outlined by Mark Kyle here, found them surprisingly easy.

In my case, I chose to run the strops fully round the wing, which pulls it back into the temporary wooden fence at the trailing edge.

 

Apart from flipping the wing, I did them on my own...one of them twice, having stupidly left a strobe wire out (target fixation?).

 

 

[IBob]

Sounds like your been busy Bob and life does get in the way at times and will look forward to seeing your Savannah take shape when u get back into it :-)

Thanks, Guy. I appreciate your thoughts.

And I'd say you can now change your own profile, which still reads '..........and one day a home built Savannah'???

 

 

[Guy s]

Haha thanks Bob and really didn't occur to me but yep have updated my profile

 

 

[IBob]

Solid riveting:The solid riveting relies, amongst other things, on holding the tool straight for every rivet. Unfortunately, I have never been overly good at eyeballing 'straight' with tools. To even the odds:

I borrowed a good squeeze from a local LAME, and bought the correct AN470 AD3-3 die to go in it.

 

I bought 1/4lb (gotta love those imperial measures!) of AN470 AD3-3 rivets. That's them on the right, with head shape to fit squeeze.

 

First I set up the tool to give correct amount of squeeze: this one just screws in and out.

 

I then set up the wing raised and over the edge of the bench, so that the bench edge acted as a guide for the squeeze.

 

This way, with the squeeze rested on the bench edge, the 'fore and aft' angle of the tool was the same for every rivet. All I had to do then was ensure the tool was straight up and down when viewed from behind.

 

Cleko every 3rd hole. I did not clamp or support the trailing edge, but checked very carefully as I went. The TE is dead straight.

 

It went easily, with no misfires, and I am very happy with the result.

 

Thank you, Guy and Peter, for your help and encouragement.

 

Coming soon: tanks and wingtip.

Wing position for solid riveting: