Starting Side Skins and Insulation
Per a suggestion from Craig M’s fuselage build order (link), I’m starting the side skin installation by installing the forward interior wall skins first. I’m glad I did, because I had to drill out some rivets in the floor skin that are shared with the wall skin, and it...
Searching for Hangar Space
I’ve started searching for a place to do final assembly. My two leading choices right now are at Nashua Airport and Fitchburg Airport. Both have larger “community” hangars. In my mind I pictured getting a private T-hangar, but I guess those are pretty rare, and even then, they are...
Rear Seat Belts Part 4
This weekend, I took a break from working on my heating system to complete the seat belt mods for the rear seat. Both seating positions now have a retractable 3-point belt. The second one went a little easier than the first, thanks to a few new tricks along the...
Custom Heating System
I’ve been busy designing a custom heating system for my plane, which is why I haven’t posted in a little while. My Sling 4 kit would normally include a cuff-style heater, which heats air by passing it over the exhaust pipe. It’s a basic system, but many small airplanes...
Rear Seat Belts Mod Part 3
When I first wrote about my rear seat belt modifications, I initially planned to mount the inertia reel below the floor, and then cut a slot in the floor to route the belt up to the shoulder anchor point. However, the more I thought about it, the more I...
Front Seat Base Mechanism
Sling 4 Fuselage Manual Page I3 In between working tasks for the rear seat belt mods, I’m also building up the front seats. I assembled the locking mechanisms that attach to the base of the seat pan. It’s a nifty mechanism that uses guide pins tethered by a steel...
Rear Seat Shoulder Anchors
I’ve been continuing with my rear seat belt modifications. The shoulder anchors attach to hat sections, which are attached to the rear fuselage beltframe and skin. I fabricated the hat sections from 0.080″ aluminum. The sheet stock is too thick to cut with shears, so I used a nibbler...
Front Seat Assembly
During the week I assembled the front seats. These go together pretty easily. There were some improvements made to the design, so the parts I had were a little bit different than what is shown in the KAI – for example, the channels on the left, right and bottom...
Rear Seat Belts Modification
I spent most of my Saturday pondering what to do about seat belts in the rear seat. My problem is that the Sling 4 kit was designed to use lap belts (only) for the rear seat. However, the likelihood of surviving a crash is greatly improved by having 3-point...
Comm Antenna Mount
Some number of months ago, I created a miscellaneous parts board, made from a recycled shipping container cover. It is home to a number of loose parts that are still in sub-kit bags, but either I haven’t needed the parts yet, or I haven’t figured out what they’re for....