Test fitting of original, remanufactured and rev5 cowling strip

I remanufactured the wider cowling strips based on the shape of the originally supplied 35mm wide strips (rev 2 I think). What I did not know was that Sling modified the shape of the strip when they issued the wider rev 3 and later. This change of shape modifies how the strip tapers - to accommodate the taper of the cowling - when it is mounted with one edge constrained to a single plane, namely the plane of the firewall. Sling 2 builder Praveen kindly lent me his recent revison (rev 5) strips so I could examine the changes closely. If this revision is the very latest version, I might consider using these as a template to fabricate yet a further set of strips. The alternative of course would be to get them directly from Sling, particularly if they have updated the strips past rev 5, however this involves delays and probable expense.

From the photos, clearly, the rev 5 strip achieves a better taper match with the side skin particularly at the bottom corners. Along the top, the difference is not that apparent. It unclear whether the cowling taper will even match the side skin taper - the ideal taper for the cowling strip may even differ from that achieved from the rev 5 strips. It might be necessary to alter the shape further, or perhaps apply fluting (this is required for the top corners, on at least two builds I have seen). If fluting is required anyway, such fluting may be sufficient to correct any issues for the bottom corners. My regular fluting tool is not sufficient to achieve the needed flutes, in any case. I will delay mounting the cowling strips until I have trial mounted the cowling. The latter can only be done realistically after I have mounted the engine and propellor extension.