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Step 3
INTERIOR LAYUPS |
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Cutting all the aluminum LWA pieces out one evening was a
blast. No gloves or mask, all I needed was a ruler, square, pencil and
my bandsaw, and of course the belt sander to sand the radii needed. A
nice break from layups, I must admit. |
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Once I had all the LWA pieces made, I studied the plans
carefully and measured/marked where they go. I knew this next layup
was going to be long (they should call this chapter the long layup spar, not
the centersection spar wink) so I wanted to do all the prep work I possibly
could before I started it. |
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Here's the inboard LWA-1 marked for proper installation. |
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I love paper patterns! I make them for all these
sorts of layups. They save me time, in the long run, they help me make
sure I get the correct number of plies and kind of glass, they save me from
wasting extra glass, they help me get the right ply orientation, the list
goes on. I even use them to cut the glass to size and shape, on top of
the waxed paper, before I transfer the layup from the workbench to where it
goes. |
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Here's a shot of all my paper patterns, with their glass
pre-cut nearby, ready for the hard work to start, the layup itself. |
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It takes about an hour to micro the entire inside of the
spar. I think I used about 3 tubs of micro, too. You don't
realize how much area there is to micro, I guess. |
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I used waxed paper to help me get these layups, especially
the end ones; those that go over CS-5 and CS-8. The paper patterns,
combined with the waxed paper, helped me get a nice neat layup inside the
ends. Other folks have talked about cutting darts and folding and
etc.; none of that was needed here. I cut the pattern to give the
right coverage and overlaps, cut the glass to match, used the waxed paper to
get it in there and pressed into the right place, then simply final
squeegeed and stippled it after that. Worked great. |
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My daughter Emily decided we needed a couple more shots of
me working on this layup. I had to use my Tyvek sleeves for this one,
or, I risked epoxy on my upper arms and the ensuing itch that it might
bring. I tie string on my sleeves, in a loop, that loop goes between
my middle and index finger and keeps the sleeves inside the gloves so my
wrists don't get exposed. This layup took me about 8 hours total, by the
way. I got the micro and overall 1 ply BID done, then, took a break
for lunch. After lunch I added the remaining layups. Yes, it was
all still tacky and cured as one layup; my lunch break was hardly 15
minutes. |
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The inside layups have a couple of joints 'cause the BID
orientation won't give you pieces big enough to do this in one piece.
In hindsight, I should have peel plied these. No one will see them,
but, it bugs me I forgot to peel ply.... |
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Per plans, I added weights to compress the layup over and
under the LWA-1 pieces. I had cut some wood pieces to length/the right
angle during my preparatory steps, then, added the weight (there's another
wood piece under that, resting on the wood pieces that were added to the
side of the jig in step 2) after covering the end of the wood piece with
some box sealing tape. Don't forget the box sealing tape! Or
that wood piece will become part of the spar! |
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For the ends, I used a small piece of wood, again cut to
size during prep (and covered with box sealing tape) with a small hand
weight on top. Note the T pins added to prevent the LWA-1 pieces from
moving during cure. |
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The following morning, I knife trimmed the layup flush with
the top of the foam. This is a big, hard, long layup. It's not
my longest, that distinction belongs to the Fuselage Bottom. This was
close, though, 8 hours total. But it's done! Who cares how long it
took - 'cause I don't have to do it again! |
| Chapter 14 Step 2
Chapter 14 Step 4 |
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