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Prior to repairing the spar, a joiner piece was glued under
the existing sheeting and lattice work. Its purpose is to add
support to the sheeting in addition to the butt joint. The joiner was
added before the spar was repaired because the spar would interfere with
clamping. |
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A second supporting piece is added under the existing
sheeting. The grain direction matches that of the sheet so that it
will not change the airfoil shape. The root rib was too ragged
to glue new sheeting to. A thin strip of balsa has been cut and
glued to the rib to support the new sheeting and lattice. |
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Leftover pieces of lattice from the original construction
are joined over size and then trimmed to fit. |
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The new lattice glued and pinned in place. |
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The new sheeting is trimmed to fit and then glued and
pinned in place. Note the gap between the sheeting and the
leading edge inboard of the leading edge splice. |
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This is a neat trick for making gaps disappear.
First open the gap so that it is even along its length. |
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Cut a piece of wood that is about 3 times wider than the
gap from wood that is the same thickness as the sheet adjacent to the
gap. |
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Flatten the strip using something hard and smooth such as
a knife handle. It should fit into the gap easily. Trim
the strip to length. |
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Fill the gap with water-base glue and then place the
strip in the gap. The water base glue will cause the strip to
expand and fill the gap. |
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After the glue is dry, sand the joint smooth and flush.
Also note the triangle piece in the center section sheeting and the
filler pieces between the lattice at the wing root.
At this point the wing is completely repaired. All that is left
to do is add new covering and repair the cowl. |