Flap Handle and Floor Skin (Feb. 18th, 2007)

Made the flap handle recently (no pix). Initially I decided for an electric flap actuator - but time is running fast, budget is low and I grow older even faster ;-) so at least for the start I will not run into a new adventure, therefore I bulild the mecanical flap handle according to the plans. Anyway this can be modified at a later time.

Today I closed the last big gap (except the canopy - that one comes last).

I made the rear fuselage floor in two pieces. The front piece covers the space between bulkheads #1 and #3.

This spot in front in not not a hole but a polished spot. The remaining metal is badly corroded (fuselage was stored outside for about two years on a dry but open space.

Why's the floor only temporarily attached you may ask....

...because of this maintenance nightmare. Have a look on this two cable-guides. They may (and will) wear out by time. And there is no way to replace them (easily). This space is closed on all four sides!

Maybe the complete empennage could be removed just to reach this sh... cable guides through the upper round opening. Including re-mounting and re-adjusting the rudder and elevator a complete weekend could be spend. This is totally inacceptable (in my opinion).

Similar problem arises if the rudder cable may break some time. There is almost no chance to feed the new cable through the thru-holes of the next three bulkheads.

So I think another hand-hole should be cut...

Routing of the Trim-Servo Cable (Feb. 3rd, 2007)

Sonex proposes a mechanical trim actuation via a long push-pull cable. I prefer an electric trim (hope this was a wise decision). I routed this cable today. The servo requires five wires (power and position sensor signal). I used all 24 Gauge wires. I always route the plain wires inside of a urethane air-pressure tube. These are very durable.

on the lest side cable tube exits the left elevator,

runs alond the horizontal stabilizer's rear spar and enters the horizontal stab. It is critical to not torque the cable when the elevator moves.This is (almost) not the case here.

cable exits right side of the horizontal stab and goes to a 9-pim D-Sub connector. All carry-throughs fo the cable thro6ugh metal is protected by a urethane bushing (Bushing is 6 mm inside diameter, hole in metal is 10 mm).

9-pin D-Sub is protected by shink-fit tube. I put the tiewrap on when the shrink-fit was still hot so this is an (almost) watertight and extremely light connector solution (there's noting better than a D-Sub connector ;-))

through bulkhead #5. The white thing is a self-adhesive pad holding the cable with a tiewrap

and forward ontop of the upper left longeron, through the tooling hole of bulkhead #2

huided downwards by three self-adhesive pads and through bulkhead #1 into the cockpit.