462 hours - took the plunge and drilled the mounting holes in the control horns

Went to A&A Tradin post and got a whole bunch more drill bits so I could step drill the hole to the proper size. Only problem was that I do not have 1/4 inch reamer so I had to order one from Cleaveland tools today. This whole process was one of proper clamping, using the proper drills and drill bits, and having a very straight and snug drill guide/bushing and the proper size drill bit to use for the pilot hole. Then you end up playinv a bit of "musical elevators" by adding/removing them from the HS as needed. I did not like having to remove th left elevator after having determined that is seemed to be very well aligned with the right one with the laser level test the other night.

SO here is the beginning - drill bushing has been turned and ground down just enough with emery cloth to fit snugly inside the center bearing. I used a #27 drill bit as previously described, and my air drill for the pilot hole. Main reason for thusing the air drill is that I wanted to be able to easily verify that the drill was level. This is easier to do with the smaller, lighter air drill. ONly problem is that it lacks torque for drilling into steel, so drilling the pilot holes took forever, but it eventually worked.

The left elevator is removed from the HS so that you can get the drill in position to drill the pilot hole for the right side. the HS/elevator is turned upside down, and the counterbalance arm is clamped flush with the HS skin. ONce the pilot hole is drilled you remove the elevator from the HS, and reclamp the HS to the table to finish drilling the hole to the proper size.

Here is the pilot hole for the right elevator. Also note the clamps on both ends of the table.

My drill sequence turned out as follows:

#27 (pilot hole)
#12
Letter A
Letter C
1/4 inch reamer for the final hole.

Here is the hole after using my electric drill to upsize the hole with the bits specified above:

The air drill just does not have enough torque to upsize a hole in the steel control horns, so I switched to my electric drill, which worked out much better, I also oiled the drill bits periodically. This is necessary, and all I used is 3 in 1 oil to lubricate the bit a couple of times until the hole was drilled. In the above pic you can also see one of the many concerns about about getting this hole drilled correctly.

You need to have enough clearance from the welded joint for the shaft and the plate for the bolt head on one side and the lock nut on the other. Both of these have dimensions as follows: 7/16 inches from side to side, and 1/2 inch from point to point. Some people seem to have issues with this clearance, but it does not seem to pose a problem for me on either elevator. Plently of room for the bolt head, assuming my holes are drilled correctly, of course.

Oh yeah, if you look closely you can see that part of the weld appears to be missing. I ahve verified twice now with Vans that this is by design. Some folks on VAF from a few years ago were adamant that this was a defect in the part, and that it needed to be replaced. this small opening is provided as a relief area for the weld, as well as ensuring that there is enough room for the bolt head and the nut to sit flat against the plate of the control horn.

And here is the electric drill I used to upsize the hole.

And here is a better shot of the right elevator clamped into position for final drilling:

And here is the upsized hole for the left elevator after having removed the right elevator from the HS, reinstalling the left elevator on the HS, clamping it in its neutral position, drilling the pilot hole, removing the left elevator from the HS, and reclamping the elevator to the table for final drilling. Like I said, musical elevators.......

This one is a bit blurry but I should still have enough clearance for the bolt head or nut on this side as well.

And finally here are the drill bits I used with the aluminum drill guide/bushing:

So no clearance problems to speak of, just need to verify that the elevators will still be as closely aligned as they were before I drilled thise holes. If they are off even just a little bit I will not be happy. I'll have to wait until I get the reamer in the mail to finish the hole so I can reinstall both elevators and the bolt assembly to see how it turns out. Sure wish I would have purchased that darn 1/4 inch reamer when I bought a whole bunch of other ones a while back. I would either be crying in my beer by now for screwing up, or jumping up and down with joy shouting I AM DONE WITH THE EMPENNAGE at the top of my lungs.

Sounds like a good time to clean up the shop and finalize my plans for the wing jigs and stands.