Sunday, January 14, 2007

Sill Section Fit-up

Since December I have managed a few hours on the B, mostly for cleanup and prep work required for fitting up the sill pieces.

The ability to salvage the inner sill side member provided an ideal reference point for building out the additional pieces. I fit up the castle rail using measurements taken from the original before removal, then ensured it was even with the inside of the side member using a straight edge and a level for the outside lip top lip of the side member to outside edge of castle rail. Clecos from Airparts Inc in Kansas City to held the castle rail loosely in place. You can also purchase clecos from Eastwood but they cost significantly less at Airparts. Clecos are normally used for holding sheet metal panels so I was pushing their limits. Their advantage over clamping at this stage is that they allowed easier fitting of the inner membrane and rocker without clamps getting in the way. Again, I was just going for a rough fit to make sure nothing was too out of line. They do not provide enough holding power for welding.

The inner membrane was then fit to the outside of the castle rail. Some adjustment was needed at the front for proper fit where a tab on the membrane wraps inward around the end of the castle rail.Fitment of the rocker followed. Front wing and door were refit to get an idea of alignment. It is looking good at this stage but aligning the door will take much finessing. Next steps are to remove the wing, door, rocker and membrane to begin final alignment and tacking of the castle rail in place. The connection point to the cross member will also be refurbished.

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