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Turn the belly-pan over and secure the tips of the covering to the
underside of the belly-pan. Spray the entire belly-pan underside with a
clear, fuel proof spray paint. Do not over-soak the wood as warpage
may occur. Colored paint may be used, but take care not to get any on
the outside of the belly-pan.
Trim Covering from Edges:
If there is covering material on the belly-pan edge where it will be
secured to the wing bottom, carefully remove the covering with a razor
blade.
Attach the Belly-Pan (BP):
Attach the wing to the fuselage using the two nylon wing-bolts. The
wing-bolt holes should already be drilled in the wing and in perfect align-
ment with the mating blind-nuts. If not, secure the wing in its correct
position. (See joining the wing panels and/or optional figure # 2) Drill the
holes and attach the wing using the 1/4” nylon bolts.
With the fuselage up side down, place the BP in place and check
for fit and alignment. It should align evenly with the fuselage edges and
the bottom wing surface. Depending upon the humidity in your location
and how heavily you sprayed the belly-pan interior, you may see some
BP warpage or miss-alignment. The BP is light and flexible and will
conform to the wing surface with slight pressure. Gently reshape or sand
where necessary to obtain the proper fit.
Mark the BP position at the leading and trailing edge on the wing
surface so that you may relocate the pan after removal, and also for
removal of the wing covering material under the BP.
If you performed the OPTIONAL under-wing fiberglass step, then
you have already removed the wing covering under the belly pan. If not,
using a straight edge, cut the covering just 1/32” inside the marks you
made above. This is the same as you did on the horizontal stabilizer.
Take care not to cut the balsa wing bottom ........ go lightly! Remove the
covering material from leading to trailing edge. (It is a good ideal to give
this bare wood area a light dusting of clear fuel proof spray.)
Apply 30-minute epoxy to the BP edges and place the BP back on
the wing. Tape and/or clamp as necessary to secure the BP until the
epoxy cures. (You may want to remove the wing from the fuselage to get
a better clamping capability. With 30-minute epoxy, you should have
time to do this.)
When finished, remove the wing from the fuselage.
Step 11: Fuel Tank Installation:
You will need: 1) Fuel Tank (previously assembled), 2) Scrap 1/8” lite-ply, 3) foam
rubber, 4) Silicon (RTV) caulking.
NOTE:
As a precaution against the damage that fuel can cause to wood, you may
find it advisable to spray the interior of the fuel tank compartment with clear, fuel proof
paint. Fuel soaked wood will quickly cause glue-joint and wood failures.
