Jamie
Well Known Member
The plans for the side-by-side tip-up canopies have you clamp the latch lugs into place. If you have the roll-bar installed it is virtually impossible. Here is what I did to install the latch lugs.
Step 1) Make you you have the front skin clecod on...especially if you have the lift struts installed. The lift struts push the canopy forward and if the skin isn't installed the canopy will be sitting forward of the desired location. (in my case it was a little shy of 1/4 inch). Be very careful about opening the canopy with the struts on as the clearance between the canopy skin and forward fuselage skin will be reduced a little now.
Step 2) Get a scrap piece of aluminum and cut it to the same width as but longer than the latch lug. Designate one end of the strip as the top and drill a #40 hole on the centerline.
Step 3) Get inside the fuselage. Reach up through the lug penetration holes in the gussets and mark the center of the hole on the rear canopy channel (this isn't easy but definitely doable).
Step 4) Raise the canopy and extend the mark you just made vertically on the channel.
Step 5) Find the vertical position for the top bolt on the channel (this should be even with the top row of rivets and on the centerline just drawn). Drill a #40 hole there.
Step 6) Cleco the scrap aluminum to the rear channel in order to simulate the lug.
Step 7) Enter the fuselage and carefully close the canopy. Now rotate the canopy latch handle until the 'fingers' are touching the scrap. Mark the point of contact.
Step 8) Remove the scrap aluminum and 'eyeball' where the latch lug should sit (I used 1/4 above the mark I made and it worked fine). Mark the hole in the scrap onto the latch lug and drill the hole in the lug.
Step 9) Cleco the lug onto the canopy and carefully close the canopy. Allow the lug to slightly rotate until all is aligned. Check the latching to make sure the lug is grabbing and is being pulled down slightly.
Step 10) If the lug needs to be moved up or down you can elongate the #40 hole. Later you will drill to full-size so the elongated hole won't matter.
Step 11) Carefully open the canopy, making sure that the lug doesn't swing left or right. Mark along both sides to make sure you know the proper location for the lug.
Step 12) Clamp and drill the lug to the canopy frame.
Step 13) Enlarge holes, deburr, install hardware, etc. and you're done.
This method was a little tedious but worked very well for me. The lugs fit into the holes perfectly and I didn't have to enlarge the holes from the plans' dimensions.
