Riveted the F-728B angle and fitted the bellcrank - 1 hour

 Using my pneumatic alligator squeezer, setting all of the rivets in the F-728B angle was a breeze. Accessibility of the lower most 3-4 rivets was a bit tough as expected but I managed to set all of the rivets with no issues.

I then fit the bellcrank assembly. Perfect! I did notice thought that the bolt slips in place much better going from the right side to the left, rather than the left going right. I still have to set that top missing rivet...I'll wait until I get the baggage floors and top skin fitted to make sure alignment is good.

 

Riveting the F-728A Channel to F-706 bulkhead - 1 hour

 The instructions have you finish off the bellcrank support. When riveting the fuselage skins, I preemptively riveted the bottom of the F-728A bellcrank channel to the bottom skin. Not entirely ideal, but I don't think this is too big an issue as it just makes riveting of the F-728B angle a bit more tricky. 

So not that I am commented to my setup. I drilled the F-728A channel to the F-706 Bulkhead. Dimpled the holes for AN426AD4 rivets and then bucked the rivets.

 

Finished drilling the F-757-S gussets/F-721 Canopy Decks - 5 hours

 Happy with the initial fitting yesterday, I started drilling the aft holes for the F-757=S gusset in the longeron. 

Next I was ready to fit and drill the F-721A forward canopy decks. 

 

I decided a bit of a detour on the build and cleco'd all of the upper forward fuse parts. I want to be certain the fitment of the F-721A canopy decks were correct with all of the other pieces.

After confirming things were fitting correctly I could finish fitment of the right side and also drill the joint between the F-721A and F-721B

Just looks cool now!

 

Worked on the F-757-S gussets - 2.5 hours

Wanting to take a break from the Aft are of the fuse. I decided to work on the F-757-S gussets. The instructions have you work on this area before you start work on the top skins so its as good as time as any.

I started rounding the outer edge of the gusset to help fit the inside radius of the longeron. This then allows the 4-#30 holes to align and cleco. 

 

I then drilled the #40 holes already in the longerons into the gusset. Next I drew center lines from those holes and extended them back to the aft part of the gusset. I also drew a red minimum edge distance line to help me ensure that I drill things correctly.

I marked out the required dimensions for the F-757-T detail on the longerons and then compared those lines with those made on the gusset and confirmed that I wouldn't have edge distance issues.

Riveting on the F-706 Bulkhead - 2.5 hours

 One of the items on the to-do list was to finish riveting the F-727/F-726 baggage ribs to the F-706 bulkhead. I really was dreading these rivets thinking it was going to be a super huge pain. (After all riveting the seat ribs to F-705 certainly was).

 

Fortunately the riveting went extremely well. I used my super long rivet set on the gun, and used the angled portion of the bucking bar (on a built up rest) which ended up being the perfect setup for setting the rivets closest to the skin.

Just super pleased with how all of them turned out.

 

Riveting the Aft Deck/F-709 Bulkhead and drilling Shoulder Harness Anchors - 4.5 hours

 Spent the morning riveting the aft deck to the fuselage. Used a combination of bucking and squeezing. Took some time but I eventually got there.

 Now I am ready to fit and rivet the F-709 bulkhead to the aft deck. Bit of head scratching to figure out how to place the factory rivet head to the aft so it looks good. I ended up using my super long rivet set which does and excellent job of riveting.

Now I am ready to start the initial fitment of the F-775 rear top skin. This allows me to mark the appropriate holes on the F-709 bulkhead enough to give me an idea of where I need to flute.

 

Still on a bit of a roll. I moved on to the F-636 Shoulder Harness Anchors. After careful marking and placement I drilled the holes slightly undersized and then finished with the reamer. 

 

Fitting/Drilling the aft deck spacers and started the side canopy deck - 4 hours

 I am ready to fit and drill the aft deck spacers. I bought some 3M poster hanger tabs to help secure the spacers. I then slipped and celco'd the aft deck onto the fuse. This would allow me to draw circles in the holes of the aft deck and ensure everything looks good before I drill.

Once happy with the fit, and yes it took a little time to make sure the pieces were sitting proper, I finally committed to drilling. At this point I wanted to get working on the F-824B coverplate area before I got the aft deck on. much easier to at least dimple for the #6 screws now rather than later. 

I am now ready to debur and prime all of the aft deck parts.

 

While waiting for the primer to dry, I decided to move over the the F-721B side rails. I need to make a slot in the rail to accommodate the F-757-S gusset plate. First I marked out the lines for the slot, clamped an oak guide block and used the cutting wheel on the dremel to allow a rough cut.

After rough cuts where made, a little time was spent cleaning up the cuts with a file and then a buff with 3M on the dremel. 

After some primer dry time on the nut plates, I riveted the nutplates to the side skins.

And some closeups of the Aft deck spacers. As you can see the two holes on the longeron adjacent the F-711 spacer are awfully close to minimum edge distance which raised my eyebrows, but there is excellent edge distances on the F-711D angle mounted under it.

 

 

 

 

More Aft Deck work - 2.5 hours

 After the initial fitting of the aft deck, I still need to cut/fit the F-710C spacer and the F-711E down elevator stop/spacer. I took my time with the fitting and I am very pleased with how it all turned out. 

Next item was to cleco and match drill the F-709 bulkhead to the F-714 aft deck. Easier to do it now rather than later I suppose.