Air Intake, Cowlings, Camlocs

Got a pretty decent days work done in the shed today.

Air Intake

This morning I carved out the foam block that I had glued into the intake last night. I then glassed the inside of it to create the sleeve for the silicon to attach to. Tomorrow I’ll removed the remainder of the foam block, and I might also add another layer of fibreglass around the outside.

Cowlings

I attached the cowlings and spent quite some time checking the correct fit. Both of the hinged access cowls needed further trimming, so everything must have moved during assembly.

Then I riveted both the top and bottom halves of the fibreglass nose bowl to their respective cowlings. I chose not to use a backing plate on the fibreglass, but I did add a number of additional rivets which I countersunk into the aluminium skins for good measure.

Camlocs

Finally I spent a couple of hours fitting the Camlocs. I used ratchet tie-down straps to pull all of the cowls tightly together for a good fit.

They were a bit difficult to align because I couldn’t see behind the cowling so it meant working blind. But they went on pretty well and I used a Dremel to adjust the fit at the end. Once painting is complete, I’ll then add the retaining cir-clips that keep the Camlocs in place.

After the cowls are painted, I’ll add a strip of silicon anti-chafe tape. This should also tighten up the cowl doors.

Tomorrow I’ll put a small angle on the bottom and front lips of both cowl doors. This will enable them to sit flush against the lower cowling.