Rib Construction:

Route the rib cap strips to make a chanel to accept the corrugated fiberglass rib edges. See the plans 2207 for details .2" wide and .1" deep. (3/16 wide and 3 /32 deep). Theset up for this operation should be done carefully, those wood fingers holding the cap strip are necessary to get a good even cut.

Patrick routing the cap strips. Note the two wood fingers clamped on either side of the router bit and one pressing down from the top.Patrick posed for the photo to show how the cap strip was fed.... he would normally be wearing ear phonesfor the noise. Be safety conscious and wear eye protectors, gloves and ear phones.

Wash the corrugated fiberglass sheet to remove any PVA. Lay the corrugated fiberglass sheet, smooth side up over the plans for the ribs. Trace out the rib outline and the dashed line indicating the rear spar location with a fine tip felt pen. Mark on the rib number.

Tracing the ribs with the plans below the corrugated fiberglass.

Cut the corrugated fiberglass with tin snips. Sand the edges down to remove the line you used to make the outline.

Paul Galati cutting the corrugated feberglass ribs. Note the shears.

Make two each of the rear dtube ribs and four of certain elevator and aileron ribs.( There are two ailerons and in each aileron there are two of one rib.)

Douglas Carpenter sanding the edges of the ribs to ready them for gluing. A much faster way to sand the edges is to use the Dremel tool with the sanding drum but be careful not to make the edge too thin.

Cut the rib cap stips to length. Place the wood cap strips and the rib together then put rubber bands on everything. Then carefully place the cap strips on the ribs, both sides together ( this is sometimes best done by two people).

Mixing the Microballoon mixture should be done so that the mixture is fairly stiff and will nto run when it is in the channel. Practicing a bit beforehand will save a lot of mess later.

When the cap strips are correctly seated on the ribs, clamp with a block of wood half of the rib on a table the other half extending over the edge. Remove the rubber bands from the part of the rib that overhangs the table, then fill the cap strips groove with a microballoon mixture. Amy Clark spreading Micro mixture in the cap strip groves. Note the micromixture does not run, but also spreads smoothly.

Put the rubber bands back on then place the cap strips back on the edge of the ribs.

Place in Rib jigs. Mark the locations of the various holes in the ribs with a magic marker. Amy Clark securing ribs in rib jig. note the clamps to hold the cap strips against the sides of the jig.

Cut the holes once cured with a hand held dremel, using a small router bit, finish with the ½ inch sanding drum in the dremel.

Ribs curing in their jigs. Note the clamps to hold the caps flush with the jig sides.

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