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Well, you're in luck, as I should be putting some up tomorrow!
Since putting on the leading edges to the wings and covering I haven't had the airplane together. Before I take the plunge and make the move out to the airport it's gotta be done - and I finally have weather amiable to it.
Naturally it's been a comedy of errors (as usual), but things have sorted themselves out.
Well, she's put together, and as I thought there is some work to be done.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep001.jpg
Right lower wing, taken from the front - it's a bit tight, and the leading edge got a wrinkle. Sigh oh sigh.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep002.jpg
Left wing had the opposite problem - I reckon I bowed in the top of the rib during covering. This is not a huge problem, though. I can always tape it over!
;)
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep003.jpg
Making the cut for the elevator push rod was one of those "wait a minute" things, but it had to be done.
Note that I forgot to put the bolt into the vertical stab rod at the bottom of the fuselage!
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep004.jpg
Still, all in all she's pretty.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep005.jpg
And the hero shot, naturally!
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep006.jpg
Wife came out into the back yard to see what I had been doing for the last two days on the plane and took my picture.
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep007.jpg
Naturally I ran into the house and put on some more appropriate headgear!
http://www.darts-page.com/images/Nieuport/prep008.jpg
:cool:
Nice job Frank.
GREAT JOB so far...
and you can't even see any SPIT on the plane from making airplane NOISES !!!!!
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Gotta Fly...
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Very impressive and you look quite satisfied sitting in it. Are the neighbours curious and inquisitive about this airplane in their backyards?
Thanks, y'all.
The neighbor behind me, who can look right over my back fence from his porch said it looked great.
My next door neighbor has four kids - two boys aged seven and eight, and two girls ages three and one, and they came over last night to climb over it and take turns in moving the controls and asking questions. He and his wife are better Catholics than I am, that's for sure!
The neatest thing was his three year old daughter who was wondering why she was being dragged into my back yard. She just stopped in her tracks when she saw the plane and stared at it. With that look. The one all of us flyers have had. The boys were jerking on the controls and running their mouths. She stood on the seat and ran her hands over the combing of the cockpit, looking about at the plane and leaning left and right to look around the nose.
I'm no expert on early childhood development, but I think I may have caused a spark.
You may very well have done just that. Too bad you don't have a 2nd hole in that Nieuport.Quote:
Originally Posted by Frank Giger
I was pretending she had an authentic engine and it was blipped off, silly man!Quote:
Originally Posted by planecrazzzy
A few notes are in order on some details I either hadn't mentioned or didn't flesh out:
I don't think I'm going to do anything about that lower wing's leading edge buckle right now. Cutting the fabric back, moving the rib's angle slightly and trimming back the end of the edge isn't something I'm amiable to at this point. Maybe at the first conditional inspection.
I haven't mentioned that I put some tension on the control column's forward and back motion. Not much, but it's not loosey goosey as it is on the aileron control. This plane has a lot of elevator for its size and with a lot of travel - and I can see where it could be a recipe for trouble.
She's not exactly trailer friendly. Because I was miserly in the amount of hole I cut for access, in many places it's like that Operation game we played as kids, with starting bolts held with needle nose pliers. But I'm not planning on dragging her to airshows and junk. I just want to fly up and down the Coosa river and visit exotic places like Albertville and Fort Payne here in Alabama, so that's okay to me.
Airplane noises. That's exactly what I thought when I saw the pic. Only thing missing now is the silk scarf, an engine, tires,... small stuff. :)