for whatever reason my enthusiasm waned over the last few weeks on my build. however, i am determined to pick back up the pace. my Spring Air retracts arrived just before i left for summer vacation so i had that area to start working on now that i'm back to building. of course i ran into a problem immediately. the nose gear tiller arm sticks out below the fuse. that won't work. since i used a 1/4" tank floor between the tank and the retract i am limited in my options in raising (retracting?) my nose gear into the fuse. one idea i have is cutting a center section out of the tank floor and laminating an 1/8" floor on the tank side. that would raise the gear up a 1/4", enough to clear the tiller arm. however i don't like the idea of an 1/8" being all that supports my nose gear during one of my harder landings[sm=72_72.gif]. i have cut a test piece out of whatever you call the glossy white covered mdf to help my decision making. should this idea work are there any suggestions on a stronger 1/8" thick material? carbon fiber sheet? g-10?

david