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Tailcone Skin: Countersink or dimple

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DragonflyAero

Well Known Member
The tailcone skin on my -7 seems plenty thick to countersink instead of dimple. Maybe even too thick to dimple. But I can't find any mention of this in the plans or manual. As I finally won the wrestling match to get this part fitted and drilled, I will need to do one or the other for riveting.

What have others done?
 
I was able to dimple the tailcone skins fairly easily, using the DRDT-2. That very aft, bottom skin may be thick enough to countersink, don't remember it's thickness offhand.
Chris
 
It is the very back, bottom piece I am referring to. Where the tailwheel spring exits. Much thicker than side or bottom skins.
 
DragonflyAero said:
The tailcone skin on my -7 seems plenty thick to countersink instead of dimple. Maybe even too thick to dimple. But I can't find any mention of this in the plans or manual. As I finally won the wrestling match to get this part fitted and drilled, I will need to do one or the other for riveting.
Click to expand...
What have others done indeed? Dimple or countersink is one question, but the other is how did you win the wrestling match? I spent an hour or so trying to massage, coax, cajole, encourage or bully it into a shape in which the rivet holes would line up with F711 & F712. Everything is fine in the middle, but the joy comes to an end on either side.

Maybe I need to dimple everything first and try it again. I'm usually happy to whack my C-frame with a 2# dead blow mallet, but for this I think maybe the finer control of a DRDT-2 would be a better choice.
 
It just ain't up to snuff.

That particular piece just isn't up to Van's usual standard of excellence. One side is bent about right, the other side just isn't bent enough. It just isn't. I sent in an inquiry about it, and they sent me another free of charge but it was only a little better. I had to take a piece of 2" steel pipe, clamp it to the table on top of the piece, take a crowbar and some plywood and wrestle it into shape.

Are you listening, Ken & crew? I want to stress the high level of excellence in your parts almost always, but you need to adjust your jig on this one.
 
I don't remember whether I read it in Chapter 5 of the manual or somewhere in these forums, but the advice was to dimple 0.040 (might have been 0.050, but I don't recall encountering any of that so far) and thinner, and countersink if thicker.

As regards the fit of the bottom tailcone skin, that's just a battle that you have to fight...
 
OLDSAM said:
That particular piece just isn't up to Van's usual standard of excellence. One side is bent about right, the other side just isn't bent enough. It just isn't. I sent in an inquiry about it, and they sent me another free of charge but it was only a little better. I had to take a piece of 2" steel pipe, clamp it to the table on top of the piece, take a crowbar and some plywood and wrestle it into shape.

Are you listening, Ken & crew? I want to stress the high level of excellence in your parts almost always, but you need to adjust your jig on this one.
Click to expand...

Ahh, memories of fitting the tank skins! I'm going to have to bear this cross now that my fuse kit is here. Always love a challenge!
 
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