Started fitting the F-695 Gussets - 6.5 hours

 Feeling confident dealing with all the anxiety of the Aft Deck fitting and drilling. I decided to tackle the F-695 gussets while the fuselage was all perfectly level. I had been tipped off that other builders had not paid much attention to edge distances on the steel weldment and it bit them. So I decided to get all the edge distances drawn out on the gussets.  This took a lot of time for such a small item, but its a critical item. 

My right side weldment is basically perfect fitment. 

However the left side is not perfect. This happens due to various reasons, welding is one of them as the heat generated by the weld can move pieces out of proper position. So how to make the left weldment work? Basically if I left things as-is I only have 0.16" edge distance if I follow Vans 7/16" dimension. I can get 0.240" clear if I move the holes out further to minimum edge distance on the longeron.

Now the tricky part. I can clamp the weldment...but by clamping it I notice I introduce a considerable amount of tension on the firewall and firewall angles. Im not sure that I sould be putting these parts under such pre-load. The gap does tighen...but I have to really squeeze that clamp tight. I will call Vans tech support in the morning and double check with them what to do.

Another item that many builders talk about is the fit of the gusset against the firewall. I will double check my rivet spacing and try to lessen this gap as best I can by removing a little bit of material from the gusset.

 Another item to factor in is the rivet spacing if using the dimensions on the plans vs. how that will actually hit the weldment. Using AutoCAD, I drew out the dimensions of the gusset and the rivet holes and printed it out. This paper template would easily let me do my checks. I can see that Van's stock rivet placement dimensions will cause a little grief if I am not careful. Looks like I will need to make some adjustments on the spacing.