Back to work after a short vacation. First order of business was to re-think the canopy latch pins. Our original decision was to just use bolts and not have a removable canopy. However, discussions with other builders has led us to re-think this decision. So we now plan to use the pin extraction mechanism, but not the long pull tube that projects from the panel. We plan to drop the center rod straight down with a handle at the bottom to allow us to rotate the rod and extract the pins. We'll use a threaded pin through this rod to hold it in place. Haven't yet worked out all the details, but have fabricated the support column and drilled the mounting rivet holes. Started work on the canopy side handle; cleaned up the handle parts, fabricated the support angles, and mounted the yellow ball. Then drilled out the two pivot holes and bolted the parts together and drilled out the mounting holes using the pattern as a guide. Then used the template to cut out the holes in the side of the airframe and fitted the handle to the holes. Made sure the handle would work properly and drilled in the rivet holes into the sides. Clecoed everything together to make sure fit was OK. Received the autopilot servo and mounted it to the right wing control bellcrank. Completed wire run from wing to autopilot head. All setup to connect wiring.
