I decided to install the optional Stiffener Retrofit while the engine and avionics are not yet installed. This was not officially anounced by Van's but some builders in the VAF Forum have talked about and installed it. It is supposed to lessen vibration noise. The plans call for removing the gascolator bowl by removing the 4 screws that are safety-wired. I thought this would make it very difficult to put it back together expecially safety-wiring the 4 screws from the bottom and with very limited space. I removed the entire gascolator from the fuselage and its connection to the fuel line. Clecoed the FF-1204E Firewall Stiffener Spacer to the FF-1204D Firewall Stiffener and match-drilled #40 holes into the Stiffener. Countersunk the #40 holes in the Spacers. Separated the Spacers and deburred the parts. Primed the Stiffener and Spacers. Drilled out rivets from the Firewall Shelf and the F-1270 Fuselage Side Skins per the plans. Trimmed the forward ends of the F-1202N Fwd Skin Stiffener and chamfered the cut edges. Clecoed the F-1295-MOD Skin Stiffener to the bottom of the Firewall Shelf and drilled holes from the Shelf into the MOD Skin Stiffener. Match-drilled #30 holes from the F-1295-MOD into the Fuselage Side Skins. Layed out rivet locations at the forward end of the right F-1295-MOD Stiffener by marking the locations on the right Fuselage Side Skin and final-drilled #30 these locations. Will do the left side tomorrow.
42D-27: Crimped ES-00005 Molex pins to the 4 wires coming from the WH-RV12-APDC
