Ok, so now that we know what we're looking for it's time to check the stabilizer and see how it sits on the stab mount. If you'll look at picture #1 you can see that the left side of the stabilizer sits lower than the right (see, using a digital camera is easier!!!!
) After we determine what needs to be done we need to sand the stab mount in order to bring the stabilizer inline with the wing. Since the left side sits too low (or the right side too high) we need to sand down the right side of the stab mount (picture #2). A little tip about sanding is that you should do just a little bit at a time, and check your work often. So sand a little bit, and then check to see if you have it level. If you look at pictures #3 - #6 you can see that the stabilizer is now sitting level. I took these pictures from different angles so that we can see that it's sitting level now.
With the stab mount/stabilizer sitting level we can epoxy the horizontal stabilizer in place. This may sound a little bit silly, but before I epoxy a large assembly like this in place I will do a few “practice runs” before I actually apply the glue. What I mean by that is exactly what it said, practice. I put all the assembly parts laid out, any clamps I need, and anything else that is going to be used to put this on and then I will practice doing it. This will let you work out exactly how you should attach the piece as well as where to clamp it. By practicing this several time you won't have any surprises when you are actually working against the clock as the glue is drying.
As I've said many times before in this thread I don't really like using 5-minute epoxy, so we're going to use 30-minute (or higher) epoxy to set the stabilizer in place. Mix up your epoxy and spread a thin layer on the stab mount (pictures #7 and #8). With the epoxy in place you can mount the stabilizer in place, using your reference marks to properly align it. Clamp it in place (pictures #9 and #10) and let it sit while the epoxy cures. You can see the final attached stabilizer in picture #11.
Pictures
1. The left side of the horizontal stabilizer sits too low
2. Sand the stab mount to level the stabilizer
3. Checking the stabilizer to make sure it's level with the wing
4. Checking the stabilizer to make sure it's level with the wing
5. Checking the stabilizer to make sure it's level with the wing
6. Checking the stabilizer to make sure it's level with the wing
7. Apply 30 minute epoxy to glue the stabilizer in place
8. Apply 30 minute epoxy to glue the stabilizer in place
9. Place the stabilizer in place and clamp to hold while epoxy dries
10. Place the stabilizer in place and clamp to hold while epoxy dries
11. Completed attaching stabilizer
Until next time
Ken