After talking with a number of builders at Oshkosh and seeing the suggested modification for access panels on the gear box, I stepped into my first off plan modification, if you want to call it that. It's fairly simple. Using a drummel I cut the web face between the bottom two access holes in the gear boxes, for both left and right box. I fabricated the two panels and pilot drilled the nutplate screw locations. Matching drilling the #40 holes from the panels to the gear boxes and enlarged the holes to #27 to accomodate the 6R6 screw holes. Using the K1000-6 nut plates I began to set and drill #40 rivet attachment holes.
Right gear box with nutplates and attachment holes drilled