I wasn’t too pleased with the results of the rudder leading edge so I decided to remove the AD-41-ABS rivets from the middle section of the rudder and improve the fit. There is always a concern when reworking that it will end up worse than if I had left it the way it was, but I was willing to try it. As it turned out removing the rivets was easier than I thought it would be since Vans suggested this would be difficult to do. The procedure I used is a follows: 1) Push the internal steel mandrel out ( I used a awl) 2) Drill out the head using #30 drill making sure not to drill too deeply. 3) Push out the remaining rivet After all rivets were removed I worked the bend until I was satisfied with the fit. I then riveted the worse case area which turned out to be in the center. The result is not perfect but acceptable.
