Brief Description: Tom Clark fastback - canopy frame
Today I made the cross-bar that holds the aft slider hingeblock and also cleaned up the frame where I removed the bulkheads yesterday. At first I tried to use the stock Vans 'cross-bar', but I cut it wrong and so I had to make a new one. However, I was able to cut off the hinge block from the Vans frame and re-use it. As luck would have it, the Vans tube is larger and it fits nicely onto the ½" tube I am using. I held everything together and tried to slide the canopy; worked just fine, though there isn't much clearance, perhaps 1/8" to 1/4" around the side of the F-807 bulkhead. Anyway, once it is all cleaned up, welded and re-painted, no-one will be any the wiser!
Tomorrow I'll look at re-making the ribs (as Vans calls them) and also the gussets and bits for the re-inforcing of the aft frame and also the second canopy latch on the right side. Then a cleanup and welding preparation job and see about getting it tacked up in place. I thought of making a jig but decided that would actually be significantly more difficult to ensure it is accurate enough. Tacking in place will allow me to get it just right,
