This model was built just a little over a year ago.
First the landing gear. There is florist wire through the cross brace/shock absorber as well as the main frame. The wire that goes through the main frame also sticks out to provide 'axles'. It has a loop on top that was glued to the top of the frame to give some strength and resist twisting.
I laminated a couple of layers of card stock on top of the main landing gear frame to make the top flat, allowing the loop in the wire to become flush. Also, I blackened the edges of the top frame so it will 'disappear' when glued to the bottom of the fuselage.
Now the scary part. I
DO NOT want to do this windshield again.
First, you can see the windshield with the T post center section and the skylight glued and clamped to it. This sat overnight to ensure the glue was 'dry'. I use Loctite gel type CA glue. I'm down to the last drop or two in my backup tube. I normally use a larger bottle, but I ran out and had to resort to the tiny backup tube hanging on the spares rack. grrr... hope I have enough. Must go to town. We live in the middle of nowhere and normally only go to town once a month or so.
The T post is thin aluminum. I have a bunch of the sheets that they print newspapers on. I've used it for many years for LOTS of things, but now I use TINY pieces for things like this.
The big plank in this pic is the plan for holding down the skylight while the glue sets. The reinforcements inside the wing will allow me to actually clamp this.
Here it is, clamped. Nothing broke or cracked. Hopefully it will stay in place when I remove the clamps. I'll outline the frame with PVA, a couple of coats, before I remove the plank and clamps.
IF the windshield holds, it is on to the landing gear and tail assembly. I'm making a custom tail wheel too.
Oh, the owner of the plane has 'landed'
a contract with a couple of small, remote gold and silver mines. He will fly the gold and silver concentrate and Doré bars out to 'civilization'. Much safer, quicker and nearly as cheap as driving a truck to the remote sites.
(A doré bar is a semi-pure alloy of gold and silver, usually created at the site of a mine. It is then transported to a refinery for furthe purification. The proportions of silver and gold can vary widely. Doré bars weigh as much as 25 kg.)
definition above stolen from wikipedia
The windshield installation worked as well as the main landing gear assembly.
There is still a lot of detailing to do, including toning down that glossy black windshield bar. Tie downs, more struts, the tail braces, etc...
We decided to do a repower and the engine is being built. The custom tail wheel assembly is done and has been installed since I took the pictures.
LOTS of work to do on the new engine. Cowling, plug wires, exhaust pipes, etc. The cylinders are sections of flexible drinking straws and the cylinder block is foam core board.
We do plan to get a custom wooden prop, but the standard one that came with the plane is installed for now (using a modified push pin to become the spinner) and the guys are going to test the engine. The young man at the controls is ready to solo, so he is in there right now (rather pale isn't he?) to see how she runs. (there's some of the florist wire inside the prop too)
