Second Conical Bend, Left side - 7 hours

Setting up for the left side conical bend was quite quick now that I have the back rivet plate edge radius'd. As mentioned earlier, I very carefully prep'd the edges and polished the relief hole prior to bending.

Much less stress bending the second time.


I then cleco'd the skin onto the fuse on the left side of the fuse. Looking good!




But then I noticed a bit of a fit issue where the left F-770 side skin meets the left F-623 rib. There is a bit of a ripple there.


Pressing on the side skin where it lays against the Left F-715 seat rib tends to accentuate the ripple. The right side isn't like this...maybe a slight ripple, but very slight. The fit is tighter on the right than the left, which doesn't sit well with me. I pondered leaving it and moving on...but it really bothered me. So I spent the next number of hours messing with the fuse trying to get the ripple out. I clecoed/installed the baggage floors to see if that would pull it tight. But it had little effect. I tried to move the tail cone up, down, left, right. I tried shimming the front, shimming the back. I then decided to try to remove the side skins and take a second crack at it. This time I started with the left skin, and then moving to the right. I clecoed the side skin on the F-704 and F-705 bulkheads first and then tried to cleco the conical bends and ends of the skin to the F-706 bulkhead. Well holy heck....If that wasn't the most impossible fit ever. I dunno why I am having such and issue with the fit now. The holes are a solid 3/4" mis-aligned. What the heck!?!. I removed all the clecos and started with installing the side skins at the aft end and conical bend first and then worked forward. Now getting it clecoed to the F-704 bulkhead was impossible. I just don't get it....It went together relatively easily the first try, but now I just can't get it.  By the end of the night I threw in the towel....I had enough.