Fointwinder Tail Photos

FUSELAGE

Click on any photo to enlarge.

Fuselage Pick-Up-Moline, IL
Electrical Systems
Wiring Diagrams Instrument Panel Instrument Panel Custom Mounting Bracket Strobe Light Driver Hot Box Wiring Harness & Connections Communications/Intercom GPS
Fuel System
Fuel Tank & Tray Facet Pump & Custom Bracket Fuel Lines & Filters
Metalworking
Former Plate - Tail Former Plate - Root Tube
Misc. & Accessories
Controls & Linkages
Flaperon Assembly Rudder Pedals Control Sticks Throttle Quadrant Aileron Pushtubes Rudder & Elevators
Landing Gear
Nose Wheel Maine Gear Tail Wheel
Seats, Doors, Windshield, Upholstery
Fabric Covering
Painting
Down Tubes & Tail Booms
Parachute Recovery System
Fuselage Pick-Up-Moline, IL						Top
In August, I drove out to Moline, IL to pick up my fuselage directly from the Challenger factory there. With me was Scott, a friend and neighbor who is also building a Challenger. Our two fuselages rode on a huge trailer we towed behind Scott’s truck. It was a fun trip, and it saved us a lot of money by picking them up ourselves – and other large parts as well – as opposed to simply having them shipped. Click on any photo to enlarge.



Scott Settlemire and I about to drive from Warren, ME out to the Challenger factory in Moline, IL to pick up our fuselages.	A mishap occurred on the way to Moline when we were rear ended by a mac truck in MA.		The mac truck sustained the bulk of the damage. Our stainless steel trailer only suffered a broken tail light. Fortunately this occurred before our fuselages were on our trailer.		At the Challenger factory – being introduced to the fuselages built just for Scott and me.


Wrapping the fuselages for the journey home to Maine			All loaded and tied down for the trip back home. At this point we incorrectly assumed we had thought of everything.


We did not foresee the full effect the wind would have on our ‘supposedly’ heavy duty marine tarps and extreme wrapping efforts. Within a few miles the wind shear had shredded the sides of the tarp. After a roadside gravel party (i.e. tarp triage involving several large rolls of duct tape and a visit by a policeman to see what we were up to) we were mobile once again but with a real conversation piece following us all the way home.


We were about the most interesting thing on the road judging by the open mouths and bulging eyes of the folks who passed us. Luckily no one else rear ended us on the trip back. . .			Photo op as we crossed the border back into Maine


Home at last. My fuselage sits patiently on the front porch until the wing is finished and we can make room for it in the Skunkworks
Electrical Systems							Top
Wiring Diagrams

Instrument Panel

Started the panel with Okoume wood paneling	Cutting out Cad drawing of panel layout		Cutting out & trimming panel from plywood sheet		Instrument panel cut out

Final revisions made to panel layout	Drilling holes in panel for switches		Drilling holes in panel for the gauges		Panel drilled for all switches and gauges

Panel configuration	Staining panel. 2nd coat of mahogany after pre-stain applied and sanded between coats		3 coats of stain and varnish		Panel staged for installation of switches and gauges

Installing gauges	Drilling bolt holes for mounting gauges		All switches & circuit breakers installed, and all gauges except for the “Turn & Bank Coordinator”		Main circuit switches

Ignition switch and left & right magneto switches
Instrument Panel Custom Mounting Bracket							Top

Custom instrument panel mounting brackets created around shock absorbing pads		Custom instrument panel mounting brackets created around shock absorbing pads		Instrument panel left mounting bracket & location where it is to be installed
Strobe Light Driver

Installed strobe driver module on the triangular deck in the ‘tower’ behind the fuel tank using rivets.
Hot Box							Top

Drilling hot box lower mounting bar through fuselage down tubes in nose to cleco in place.		Replacing clecos with rivets on hot box lower mounting bar.		Both upper and lower mounting bars riveted in place on nose down tubes, with hot box installed on mounting bars.
Fuel System							Top
Fuel Tank & Tray

Fuel tank tray placed in fuselage. Drilling through tray into supporting tubing beneath in order to cleco and then rivet in place.	Fuel tank tray drilled, and cleco’d in place.		Replacing clecos in the fuel tank tray with rivets.		Fuel tank tray riveted in place.

Installing fuel tank in fuel tank tray.			Fuel tank positioned in fuel tank tray.
Facet Pump & Custom Bracket							Top

Facet pump had to be mounted at a 45 degree angle. No such surface existed near the fuel tank. A custom bracket was fabricated from sheet aluminum to create a 45 degree angle on a flat surface. Here, it is being drilled in order to be cleco’d and then riveted in place on the fuselage tubing in the ‘tower’ adjacent to the left rear of the fuel tank.

After drilling, bracket was cleco’d into place.	The cleco’s were replaced with rivets.		Facet pump installed on custom bracket.		Facet pump installed on custom bracket allowing for a 45 degree mounting.

Metalworking							Top
Former Plate - Tail

Drilling and cleco’ing the 3 former plates to the tail boom assembly	Two upper former plates drilled and cleco’d in place, and ready to be riveted		Installing a rivet on the former plate-tail onto tail boom assembly		Close-up of that rivet installed on the former plate-tail on tail boom assembly

Riveting former plate-tail (right upper side) on tail boom assembly.		Former plate-tail all riveted onto tail boom assembly – top view.		Former plate-tail all riveted onto tail boom assembly – bottom view.
Former Plate - Root Tube

Measuring root tube for placement of former plate assembly – preparing to drill.	Drilling on upper surface of former plate through root tube in preparation to cleco in place.		Former Plate-Root Tube all drilled and cleco’d into place. Ready to be riveted.		Former Plate-Root Tube riveted in place. Installation complete.

Controls & Linkages							Top
Flaperon Assembly
Our plane doesn't have separate flaps for lowering the landing speed, so it uses a mechanism to lower both ailerons to act as limited use flaps.

Drilling root tube for installation of the bell crank assembly.	Bell crank assembly installed.		Control rod tubing (linkage) staged for drilling and riveting across top of root tube from the bell crank assembly to the flaperon mixer assembly.		Drilling control rod tubing (linkage) in order to rivet together. Here, one side is cleco’d.

Drilling another section of overlapping tubing (linkage) to rivet them together.	Riveting overlapping control rod tubing (linkage).		Control rod tubing (linkage) of the flaperson assembly is now riveted – completed.		The whole flaperon control assembly is finished – overlapping sections of the tubing are riveted together from the bellcrank to the flaperon mixer assembly.

Landing Gear							Top
Nose Wheel

Cutting axle spacers for the nose wheel assembly.	Measuring nose wheel stem to install aftermarket shock absorber type nose gear. The installation of the aftermarket gear requires shortening of the factory nose wheel stem.		Shortening the nose wheel stem with a hacksaw to allow for clearance of the aftermarket shock absorber model.		Mounting aftermarket nose wheel assembly.


Nose wheel assembly installed.
Maine Gear

Landing gear parts laid out before beginning.	Measuring left leg for exactly 12 inches of spacing from upper weldment before drilling.		Measuring right leg for exactly 12 inches of spacing from upper weldment before drilling.		Drilling through leg and upper weldment for hole for mounting bolt.

Measuring 0.5 degree of toe in on main gear leg with a laser before drilling through lower section of leg and lower weldment.			After drilling through lower gear leg and lower weldment, the wheel and disc brake assembly are mounted on left main gear leg.
Painting							Top
Down Tubes & Tail Booms
This set is about the painting of the down tubes, tail boom, and control sticks. The reason for this is to reduce glare (at least up front) and it adds a nice touch to the exposed tubes when the rest of the fuselage is covered and painted in white with accent colors later.

Fuselage prepped for painting the down tubes and tail boom. Exposed tubing was cleaned with MEK and the rest covered with painters’ plastic and sealed with masking tape.	First coat applied. Three coats applied in all. Used Rustoleum Black ”satin” flat canned spray paint.		Tail boom (“stinger”) painted.		Down tubes painted. Also both control sticks.


Port view of down tubes and control sticks painted.			Tail booms (stinger) painted.

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