Flaps and Ailerons Skinning - 5 Hours (29.5 Total)

Today I skinned the flaps and ailerons. The skins went on very easily but I did have problems with the tension ribs. The screw holes for the ribs did not line up with the holes in the flaps and aileron frames. I ended up reaming out the holes in the flaps and aileron frames to allow the screw holes to align.

Flaps and Ailerons - 1 Hours (24.5 Total)

Today I prepped the flaps and ailerons for skinning. This included drilling the hinge holes to proper size and riveting in the nut plates.

Retightening the Stabilizers - 2 Hours (23.5 Total)

Today I retightened the laces on the vertical and horizontal stabilizers. I didn't cut the strings in case I want to tighten them further.

Horizontal Stabilizer Skinning - 3 Hours (21.5 Total)

Today I skinned both horizontal stabilizers. While finishing up the second one, I realized that my tightening technique had improved and I should retighten the vertical stabilizer skin. My tightening technique included tying off one end of the rope as if it were finished then clamping or tying the other end to a weight to hold the slack. I then used two pairs of pliers to pull the rope taunt at each lace point. Letting the skin sit for a while in between repeated tightenings also improved the tightness.

Rudder and Elevator Skinning - 3.5 Hours (18.5 Total)

I skinned the second elevator which wasn't any easier than the first. The skins seem to need to be stretched. This was done by fighting with it!

I also skinned the rudder today. The lacing method made the job much easier. Because I didn't want the lacing rope over the sharp edges of the aft gusset, I stopped lacing just before getting there. This made the skin near the gusset less taunt. The square knots recommended didn't hold so I used several knots back to back.

Skinning Rudder and Elevators - 5 hours (15 Total)

@#$%! Putting the skins on the rudder and elevators is a pain in the ass! I ended up breaking two of the rudder braces. I didn't relies they had already snapped into place so when I continued hammering on them, the notched ends tore off. I used tarp repair tape to hold the braces in place but at an angle from the buttons (washers) as I inserted the frame into the fabric. A slight angle works best. I scratched up the leading spar and trailing edge of the rudder by forcing the ends to pop into place.

The elevators were worse! I broke one of the center braces but because it was too long in the first place, I was able to salvage it. I ended up mauling the end caps by trying to force the frame over the compression fitting. I removed the end caps from the second elevator so I wouldn't damage them.

Stabilizers, Rudder, and Elevators - 1.5 Hours (10 Total)

Today I finished fabricating the internal braces for the stabilizers, rudder, and elevator. I also trimmed the cleaned up the edges of the plastic ribs used in the stabilizers. My bench grinder worked well for this but it did make quite a mess.

Rudder and Elevators - 3.5 hours (8.5 Total)

Today I framed the rudder and elevators. I also fabricated most of the internal braces for the stabilizers, rudder, and elevators out of the 0.5 inch raw stock.

Vertical Stabilizer and Horizontal Stabilizers - 5 hours (5 Total)

First day of assembly! I assembled the vertical stabilizer and horizontal stabilizers. I ended up using one extra rivet (AAPQ-62) because I incorrectly riveted the vertical stabilizer spar pointing out instead of in. I used my compound miter saw with a carbide wood blade to cut the aluminum tubes.

My S-14 kit arived today!