Riveting bottom outboard wing skins

[Red]

I am riveting the outboard bottom skin onto my first wing and it appears that either the skin has shrunk or the skeleton has grown spanwise by about 3/32 of an inch.
When I matchdrilled this skin on the jig, there was no gap at all between the leading edge skin and the main wing skin. Now, there is a definite gap...at this time, maybe a little over half a hole off at the main spar. It requires a little effort to get the clecos into the main spar.

I have only riveted about two bays along the rear spar and halfway up the inboard rib and a couple of rivets on the next outboard rib. If I continue riveting, should the skin start fitting better as the rivets hold the skin more firmly to the substructure? I have already riveting the aileron gap seal to the top skin. Is it possible that it is in effect pulling the bottom of the rear spar rearward?

Thanks for any advice or suggestions,

Wade

 

[lrfrey]

When did you match drill and what was the temperature? I had that problem and the reason was I drilled in August (temp 98) and tried to rivet in December (temp 35). No way. I waited until May (temp back up) and all fit well again. Maybe this is not your problem, but it was mine.
Larry

 

[DGlaeser]

Wing Skins

I noticed the same thing as I was riveting my wing skins, but as the riveting progressed the fit got better, and in the end the gap was about the same as when it was drilled. Keep putting clecos as far away from where you are riveting as possible, just on general principle.

Hang in there - I predict everything will turn out great.

Dennis Glaeser
7A Fuselage

 

[Jamie]

I'm not so sure I buy this whole temperature thing (some folks heat them to presumably get a tighter fit). Unless of course you maybe had the skins sitting in the sun and the skeleton sitting in the shade. If the parts are all subject to the same temperature, won't the skeleton expand/contract at the same rate as the skin? They're all made of the same material. I would understand if riveting two parts that are of different materials.

But what do I know? I'm not a mechanical engineer.

Oh yeah...back to the original poster...have you tried clecoing the skin to the spar first?