Engine cowls

More work on the cowls. I drilled, countersunk, deburred, and riveted the longitudinal stringers in place where the Camlocs will eventually be attached.

All the perimeter holes are drilled and clecoed. Finally I attached the prop and spinner to check for clearance. One issue with doing the cowls this way is that you can’t double check your work until right at the end when you hang the prop again and check the clearance.

Tomorrow I’ll attach the stringers onto the top cowl.

There is an issue with the exhaust pipes. Pipes #1 and #6 don’t have clearance from the cowls. These exhausts are made by Vetterman in the USA, so sending them back to be modified is not realistic. I discovered today on the forums that a number of other guys have had the exact same issue. There appears to be two types of exhaust that they make for an IO540, the one everyone (finally) ends up with is one for a smaller and more confined cowl (the Bearhawk). I’ve written to Clint to ask for advice, but this would probably have been best solved at the source by making the same exhaust as the others. Anyway, I’ve removed the left side exhaust so I can continue making the cowls.