instructor_bill
Well Known Member
I don't know what the big deal is...
I just drilled the wing side of the flap hinge.
Almost as simple as the statement.
1. Worried about minimum edge distance, I took two short pieces of sacraficial hinge stock left over from building the flaps and installed them at either end of the flap with the hinge pin installed.
2. With the aileron installed and neutral, I clamped the root end of the hinge scrap to the flap brace, and propped the tipside end of the flap to the proper height (I'm installing while this is on the wing stand)
3. Once I gapped the flap to aileron with a 1/4 inch drill bit and the trailing edges of the two control surfaces matching, I used a spring clamp to hold the flap in place next to the aileron and then had my wife drill a single hole through the skin/flap brace and hinge scrap while I held the other side of the hinge firmly to the flap brace with some stiff wire.
4. Once I had one hole drilled in the hinge scrap at each end and clecoed to the wing, I ran the entire length of the scrap-- drilling and clecoing all available holes.
5. I marked the location of the hinge scraps in relation to the flap side of the hinge.
6. then I removed the clecoes holding the flap and hinges to the wing, removed the hinge pin and checked the edge clearances... on the fat side!
7. I cut the loops off of the scraps so that the hinge flange and nubs were left-- the resulting piece is flat.
8. I clamped the modified flap hinge scraps to the full-length hinge in their proper locations and transfer drilled the holes into the flap hinge at each end. To reduce confusion and the possibility of error, I pinned the full length hinge back onto the flap before drilling. I used a piece of hardwood to back up the hole I was drilling for stability.
9. I cut the hinge loops off for the two-center installed hinge pins and then clecoed the flap back on and then drilled the entire flap hinge.... drill/cleco, drill/cleco untill all holes clecoed.
The result... painless flap hinge drilling.
I should add.... The plans seem to depict the flap hinge with the recessed portion between loops flush to the edge at the flap skin/flap spar union and that's how I set the hinge. The edge distance is acceptable there too. I believe that if the hinge is set any further back onto the flap, edge distance on the wing is compromised. As it turns out, the flat recessed portion of the hinge is just about flush with the edge of the flap brace/bottom skin union as well.
I just drilled the wing side of the flap hinge.
Almost as simple as the statement.
1. Worried about minimum edge distance, I took two short pieces of sacraficial hinge stock left over from building the flaps and installed them at either end of the flap with the hinge pin installed.
2. With the aileron installed and neutral, I clamped the root end of the hinge scrap to the flap brace, and propped the tipside end of the flap to the proper height (I'm installing while this is on the wing stand)
3. Once I gapped the flap to aileron with a 1/4 inch drill bit and the trailing edges of the two control surfaces matching, I used a spring clamp to hold the flap in place next to the aileron and then had my wife drill a single hole through the skin/flap brace and hinge scrap while I held the other side of the hinge firmly to the flap brace with some stiff wire.
4. Once I had one hole drilled in the hinge scrap at each end and clecoed to the wing, I ran the entire length of the scrap-- drilling and clecoing all available holes.
5. I marked the location of the hinge scraps in relation to the flap side of the hinge.
6. then I removed the clecoes holding the flap and hinges to the wing, removed the hinge pin and checked the edge clearances... on the fat side!
7. I cut the loops off of the scraps so that the hinge flange and nubs were left-- the resulting piece is flat.
8. I clamped the modified flap hinge scraps to the full-length hinge in their proper locations and transfer drilled the holes into the flap hinge at each end. To reduce confusion and the possibility of error, I pinned the full length hinge back onto the flap before drilling. I used a piece of hardwood to back up the hole I was drilling for stability.
9. I cut the hinge loops off for the two-center installed hinge pins and then clecoed the flap back on and then drilled the entire flap hinge.... drill/cleco, drill/cleco untill all holes clecoed.
The result... painless flap hinge drilling.
I should add.... The plans seem to depict the flap hinge with the recessed portion between loops flush to the edge at the flap skin/flap spar union and that's how I set the hinge. The edge distance is acceptable there too. I believe that if the hinge is set any further back onto the flap, edge distance on the wing is compromised. As it turns out, the flat recessed portion of the hinge is just about flush with the edge of the flap brace/bottom skin union as well.
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