The Fullfillment of Perfection

I realized the marginal headroom after the interior was finished, and I had to cut down the seat cushions to half the thickness. I had also not enough space between the seats and the sidewalls. In order to avoid damage to the sidewall leather lining from the harness gear, I modified the seats as well. Sometime a tight fit causes problems.

I don’t know how other builders solved the nose gear door problem. My door is firmly attached to the strut. But with the gear extended, nosewheel steering is prohibited because the rocker arm touches the strut door. I solved the problem by cutting off one inch of the forward end of the strut door. The small strip is cut in half crosswise and attached to the door again with two simple hinges on the centerline. A spring on each side holds the tiny flap in place, and the rocker arm can deflect either flap with the gear extended. Now with the gear retracted, the lower cowling is completely closed. Maybe there is a simpler solution.

I have full clamshell doors for the nose gear, which also covers the wheel. I use a small silicone p-strip to close the gaps. The Nustrini spring solution is elegant, but I made several of them and there was quite a lot of adjustment required till it worked without problems.

I used Aerodux glue. It is an excellent resorcinol glue resistant to almost everything. It has no gap-filling characteristics consequently good workmanship is important. After the structure was finished, I closed all nail holes with Aerodux glue mixed with sawdust. There are no nails in the structure at all. Before I covered the airplane with e-glass, the airplane was sitting in the garage for almost five years wrapped in newspaper. I had no time for my Falco, but there might be one benefit: the wood was well conditioned before e-glass covering.