Forward Fuselage ( Continued, 6th Edition.)

Part of the forward fuselage construction is the T-18 Roll Bar.  It consists of the roll bar, mounts for the roll bar and diagonal braces just below the roll bar.

The aluminum for the diagonal braces comes stamped out.  You, the builder, get to enjoy bending a couple of 90 degree angles on two sides and a "joggle" on the third side.

The "joggle" is made in the piece to fit behind the upper fuselage 1" X 1" X 1/8" aluminum angle.

There is a left & right brace to build.

I marked lay-out lines on the supplied parts then tried to figure out the best way to bend an 1/8th inch "joggle".

I wrote the Yahoo Mustang II builders group and asked, how to?  I received a lot of good answers.  The one I went with seemed to work pretty well.  (See picture at right.)

For small bends in the aluminum, the vise and a plastic mallet work great.

To keep from marring the aluminum, I use a pair of wood blocks.  The wood blocks take a beating from the teeth on the vise and not the aluminum.

Here I have made my 90 degree bend and I am about to make the "joggle".  I bent the other 90 degree angles in the same manner.


I test fitted the assembly to the fuselage.  Looked pretty good.

I made numerous adjustments with a hammer to get a nice tight fit.

Now, I am running low on copper Clecos.  (1/8th inch.)  May need to borrow some.

Well, the sun goes down on another day of experimental aircraft construction.  I have so much more to complete.  I am striving to get this thing on the gear by this summer.

I'll give it my best shot!

Later,

Brian