Rolling on the gear

I reamed the bolt holes in the engine mount's gearleg sockets to 0.311", which is a few thousandths undersize for a 5/16" bolt. The goal is to have a zero-slop press fit for the bolts that go here, to keep them from elongating their holes as the gear absorbs loads during use.

I set up Scott's hoist and attached it to the fuselage, using sections of clear vinyl hose material slipped over the engine mount tubes to keep them from getting crunched up by the chains.

"Not to be used for aircraft purposes" – hmm.

Having one end of the the fuselage suspended several feet in the air and the other end supported by a single little wheel induced a certain degree of nervousness.

I had to grind off some of the excess powder coating on the gearlegs to get them to go all the way into their sockets. I also ground a very slight chamfer at the top to keep the rod from getting hung up inside the socket.

Since Mary had other things to do, I had to call and beg Scott to come help me steady the fuselage while I persuaded the gearlegs into the engine mount. The first one went in relatively easily, but the second one was a real pain, especially the last half-inch or so.

I used a low pressure in the rivet gun and a brass-tipped rivet set to drive the bolts home. This worked very well and seems to have resulted in some nice tight-fitting bolts. I need to pick up some AN363-524 metal locknuts, but in the meantime these bolts aren't in danger of going anywhere.

With both gearlegs installed, I put the wheels on the axles so the plane would have something to sit on when lowered to the ground:

The fuselage is on the gear! Suddenly, the airplane is much taller.

Big milestone today. Also, big thanks to Scott for his assistance and the use of his hoist. Don't tell China that I used it to lift an airplane, or they might come take it away.