Lots of progress in the last week and a half…

After riveting a HS-707 nose rib in the left HS left skin, it was time to insert the entire front spar assembly. The plans call for riveting the nose rib in by itself, but it was much easier to keep the skin in place on that nose rib by clecoing in the center and end ribs. Thanks, Mike, for the tip.

I also ended up using one of the MK319-BS monel blind rivets that Van’s calls out as optional for attaching the nose rib. Even with the rib flanges spread a bit before riveting, the forward-most portion of the flange still didn’t lie flush against the skin. So rather than try to buck a rivet while holding the flange in place, I used the MK319-BS. Those of you who either (a) have done this before, or (b) are going for an award at Oshkosh may consider this a cop-out….well, have a nut. The blind rivet worked great, and looks ok too.

And here’s the left skin riveted on, with the exception of the end ribs and rear spar. I’m leaving the structure open until the first visit from my EAA Techincal Counselor. Ken Balch kindly volunteered to be my TC, and I’m really looking forward his first trip to the shop.

One other thing to note…Ellen did a great job with the rivet gun! After only a little practice on some scrap, she was wielding the 3X like she’d done it for a long time.

After repeating the process on the right side, here’s the almost-finished product. It’ll be completed after Ken’s visit…or else I’ll be drilling out a bunch of rivets!

The rear spar clecoed in place. This HS structure is pretty flimsy without the rear spar.