Cozy
Chapter 12 - Canard Installation
Alignment
Cut the heads off the bolts. Hmmm. OK. I wonder why we don't bolt the pins to the canard?
I cut the heads off and installed the pins. My fuse is still on the wheels so I had to jiggle with blocks
a little to get it level fore aft. Once this was done my little electronic level went beep in all directions.
I guess this means the tires have the same pressure. With the fuse level the canard was level all the
way along. This is good. Plans say fit the top fire wall. How? to what?
I clamped a 2 * 4 across the back and marked a centerline on it. Measurement one side was 119 1/4. Other side was
119. One 1/16 shim got the canard exactly perpendicular. Now for incidence. I contoured F22 and the fuselage to
accept the bottom of the canard. A little too much on one side. Oops. With the attach tabs clamped tight
incidence is nose down 1.5 degrees. Won't fly [well] like that. F22 is verticle, so my tabs must be a tiny
bit off. If I push down gently on the trailing edge the canard comes level. (I'm still a bit distrustful of
the contour jig which is really easy to move and get a different reading.) The pins will hold eveything
in place so I'll place them without the clamps holding the attach tabs. That should work.
I'm still a bit uncomfortable about the contour template. The canard shape isnt quite perfect, and any movement
of the template generates a big change in incidence. I worked on finishing the canard with superfil before
setting the final position of the attach holes. Also, I saw in the archives about using template G, rather
than the contour setting ones. I made the incidence tabs, then found I had to remove some superfil to get a
good glass to glass bond on the layups which hold the tabs to the canard.
Knife trim
Everything went fine until I came to knife trim the tabs with my Stanley knife. Like an idiot I was trimming
toward myself, slipped and knife trimmed my thumb. 17 stiches and two days later I finished off the trimming
with a hacksaw blade. Picture shows a truly dedicated Cozy builder. Twenty minutes after returning from the hopital,
here I am back at work, in full Cozy uniform... running my bandaged hand
toward the bandsaw blade!
Final Installation
Much later I reinstalled the canard to double check the alignment and level. Everything was lined up nicely so
I added the elevators and carved the fuselage cutout to take the elevator tubes. I also trimmed the edges of the
elevators to match the fuslage. I had a bit of trouble with the alignment pins. Just as I've read in the
archives, its very hard to get the canard in and out when its a tight fit. Mine is a real tight fit.
I considered the alternate alignment pin method mentioned in the archives, but then decided to extend the
cutout for the torque tube forward about 1/4 inch to allow enough room for the canard to come forward off
the alignment pins. The canard is still a tight fit, but it CAN be removed with a little jiggling.
I can now sit in the fuselage and wiggle the elevators. The canard / elevator assembly can now be removed
and stored until I'm ready to do the finishing work. I left the 5/8th bushings out for now. I see in the
drawings that plans call for a k1000 nut plate on the back of the lift tabs. I don't think I have one of these.
Later I found the appropriate part. It was included in the Wicks list with a different part number.
Finishing
Did I say "final" installation. I must have installed and removed the canard 50 times during the following months while doing the canopy, control system, trim system, rudder pedals etc. I kept the canard on the plane most of the time. In fact I found it easiest to keep the plane pretty much complete with both wings and canard in place most of the time I was doing the final touches on the airframe. I made the canard cover while doing the canopy deck in Chapter 18 and added a little glass here, a little micro there to get the fit to the removable fuselage top just right and as tight as possible. I still have significant gaps around the torque tubes, but everything else fits like a glove. The BEST part of the canopy installation was the two pins I'd positioned earlier in this chapter. Somehow I'd got them perfect. The way the canard slides onto these pins and drops into place is a joy to behold - at least it was. The joy is starting to wear a bit thin now. With all this practice, I can remove the canard on my own quite easily in a couple of minutes. I'm looking forward to the day I put locktite on those bolts and tighten the nuts for the last time.
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