Brief Description: Mid-Aft Body Join - Bend Tabs 1
I'm headed to Arlington EAA fly in later today, but first I deced to bend one of the fwd skin tabs. I had read a lot about this process on other websites, and looked at this part of the skin on other RVs. A couple things I decided were important are:
1) Debur and smooth the edges espcially the hole to avoid any cracking 2) Clamp it down with the back rivet plate, securly 3) Make the angle and use adjustable wrenches to do the bend 4) Do the bend in ONE smooth motion, not a lot of trial and errors
The plans say to take your time on this, but that does not mean repitions of bend and relax because that could crack the skin. I also used a metal bar under the skin as well as on top for clamping.
I used two wrenches. I had to put a little down pressure with one hand to make the bend smooth through the width of the skin. I bent it until it remained 90 degrees. It was about a 20 degree spring back.
