Section 18 - Fuel Tank (finished and leak-tested right fuel tank); Section 20 - Bottom Wing Skins (ADAHRS bracket/harness; lower skins finished; Gretz Pitot mount)

Had to attend a 5 day work conference this past week, so I did not get to do as much on the build as I would have liked - nevertheless, the major milestone of finishing and leak-testing the right fuel tank was completed this week ... and good news, I now have two leak-free tanks! Well, leak-free with air - not oozing 100LL is a different matter, and that won't be tested until I move everything to a hangar.

The following was also completed this week (from this point forward, I will cut/paste detailed tasks from my MS Excel log sheet, to make posting on this blog a little easier):  riveted right tank baffle, installed fuel finger strainer and plug, and, installed fuel drain CAV-110 (all with Permatex #2); installed fuel cap; deburred long and short j-channels - lower; deburred holes in ADAHRS mounting bracket; dimpled j-stiffeners/channels; drilled and deburred nutplate attach holes; deburred edges of both lower skins; deburred holes in inboard and outboard lower skin; finished fabricating GMU-22 9pin ADAHRS connector; tapered and primed overlapping corners on forward part of lower skins; dimpled inboard and outboard lower skins; worked on Gretz pitot mount (made hole in skin, drilled skin, final holes drilled, dimpled, primed); riveted ADAHRS mount assembly together and to the j-stiffener.

Right fuel tank, nearly completed:

Section 18 - Fuel Tank (left tank attach; right tank near-completion); Section 19 - Wing Systems Routing (Gretz mount for pitot/AOA); Section 20 - Bottom Wing Skins (finished gap fairings; started ADAHRS bracket)

I worked on 3 different sections in the wing kit this week, and got a lot accomplished:  Fuel tank, wing systems routing, and bottom wing skins.  Specifically, I did the following:  riveted j-stiffener and attach bracket; Prosealed (4th cartridge) inboard aft rib and bulkhead union and nut, encapsulated shop heads of rivets in j-channel and attach bracket; finished attaching left fuel tank (screws and final-torqued bolts and applied torque seal); worked on Gretz mount for Garmin AOA/Pitot - planned, cut, drilled, deburred.  Fabricated L-bracket (Gretz mount), drilled, deburred, and it is ready for priming and installation on rib; riveted inboard aft rib to skin, attach bracket, and inboard forward rib; installed and tightened fuel vent line; installed fuel float; Prosealed (5th cartridge) fuel level sender, checked continuity; prosealed & clecoed baffle and z-brackets to tank; wet-installed pop-rivets; finished and installed flap gap and aileron gap fairings to top skin and rear spar; and, match-drilled ADAHRS mounting plate to lower j-stiffener - short.

Riveted attach bracket to right skin:

Section 18 - Fuel Tank (Riveted ribs; prosealed attach bracket, j-stiffener, shop heads; leak tested left tank; left tank mounting); Section 19 - Wing Systems Routing (ran WH-00011 and WH-00012 harnesses)

This week, I took a little time away from my project to help a friend, Ken B., attach the main gear and nose gear to his RV-14A; it was an all-day experience, but well worth the effort (see pics below). It was motivating to see what is nearly the end of his project, and thus when I returned home last week, I continued working on my wing kit with renewed gusto:

Riveted 7 ribs to skin, prosealed (3rd cartridge) j-stiffener, attach bracket, 11 stiffener shop heads, 5 internal rib shop heads - just enough to cover everything; prepared, scuffed and dimpled baffle; scuffed z-brackets; marked places where proseal is needed on shop heads (mostly stiffeners); cut and flared vent tubing; and, final leak-tested LEFT tank (no leaks!), and partially installed the left tank onto left wing.  I also had some time to run the WH-00011 harness (lights) and the WH-00012 harness (ADAHRS), and crimped and installed the wire to stall horn switch prior to installing the fuel tank (easier access to stall horn switch).

Pics from Ken's gear-attach party:

Section 18 - Fuel Tank (left leak test; right ribs etc. prep)

Completed the first-pass leak test for the left tank, as well as a number of odds-and-ends on the right tank.  A couple hours each day can get a lot accomplished ... even when my 80 year old mother visited (her nap time was a great chance to go back into the shop).

Prepped parts for first Proseal event for right tank:

Section 18 - Fuel Tank (finished left tank; started right tank)

Finished the left tank yesterday, after riveting the baffle and installing the fuel finger strainer and plug (with permatex #2 thread sealant) - it needs to cure for several more days prior to leak testing under <1psi pressure. Also, I made substantial progress over the weekend on the right tank. Since the steps are the same as the left tank, most of the posts on the right tank will be shorter.

Here we go again!  7 RIGHT tank ribs, straightened and ready for fluting:

Section 18 - Fuel Tank (j-stiffener; inboard aft rib; vent line; fuel level sender; proseal baffle & z-brackets)

Finished sealing the fuel tank this week!  First, I riveted the j-channel and attach bracket to skin, and then Prosealed (5th cartridge) the inboard aft rib, bulkhead union fitting and nut, and encapsulated shop heads of rivets in j-channel and attach bracket.  Then I fabricated left fuel level sender (most of time was to bend wire - first one broke, used wire from right sender; had to order another sender [$29] since Van's nor vendor sells just the wire). Finally, I torqued the bulkhead union nut (55-60in-lb) with a crowfoot wrench attachment for a torque wrench, and then Prosealed (6th cartridge) the fuel level sender (checked continuity after sealing), and prosealed & clecoed the baffle and z-brackets to tank, as well as wet-installed pop-rivets in the baffle/z-brackets. Images are a bit out of order:

 Encapsulated shop heads on j-stiffener:

Section 18 - Fuel Tank (riveted ribs, prosealed j-stiffener and attach bracket, encapsulated shop heads, prepped baffle)

I'm slowly progressing through the left fuel tank, trying to take my time and be methodical so that I don't screw up something vital. This week, the primary tasks were to rivet the 7 ribs, proseal the j-stiffener and attach bracket, encapsulate shop heads of the internal ribs, put a belt-and-suspenders fillet seal on the inside of the outer ribs, prep the inboard aft rib, and prep the baffle.

I moved the left wing assembly to the wing cradle, to be able to utilize the 4'x8' table for construction.  It helped to lay the fuel tank on the table (bottom down) to insert the j-channel; when gobbed with proseal, it's a PITA to feed through the holes in the ribs.