I am starting to think of putting a hatch in the front of the fuselage to allow battery access between flights. I have never built a hatch and am putting a bit of thought into how to do it. I have seen several pictures of completed hatches, some even in Citabrias, however, I have not seen a step-by-step illustration of how to build one. I have a couple of concerns. One, how big should the hatch be? Two, will the installation of a hatch weaken the fuselage?
As a test, I made some indentations in two pieces of balsa to fit the shape of the hinges. I think I could follow a similar process in the side of the fuselage. With the hinges inset, I could epoxy them in place. This would allow the hinge to be flush with the surface of the fuselage. Thus, the Monokote would hide the surface of the hinge.
I plan to use earth magnets to close the hatch.
Side of the fuselage for door placement.
Hinge and practice cut-out.
Hinge lying in cut-out.