Fuel Tanks Post #6

More Fuel Tank fun. What more can a guy ask for? I think I'm now over the hardest part of the fuel tanks (at least I think so) with another weekend of installing the ribs. It is truly amazing how much the proseal slows things down. I'm typing this post a day after working on the tanks and I will be honest, I hurt a little, muscles aching and tight from the prior days labor. See comments under the pics for more detail of this weekends work.

23rd     3.75 hrs     Clecoed prosealed ribs into place, alodined parts, nutplates, filler tab
24th     6.25hrs      Riveting ribs with proseal

10 hrs on Fuel Tanks = 43hrs Total

The only fillet seal I felt worthy of taking a picture. I've learned that Proseal is not my craft.

I'm making a fuel tab to hang down inside the tank. This will aid in depth perception when filling the tanks and provide another reference point other than empty, full, and somewhere in between. How much fuel will be in the tanks when filled to the bottom of the tab? Good question. I won't know until I try it out, but it doesn't matter. It's somewhere in between full and empty, but this will provide a defenitive point of reference while filling the tanks.

View looking down into tank. The tab is 3.5" long.

The ribs clecoed in place. A cleco in every hole.

Installed nutplates on all the fuel tank attach brackets.

 

Another weekend on the fuel tanks with all the center ribs riveted in place with proseal.

I received my Gretz pitot mast in the mail. I needed this before working on my lower skins. There isn't much to it. Can't say it's worth the $100 it cost, maybe the special shaped tubing that makes the mast is expensive. Regardless, I need the thing to mount the Dynon AOA/Heated Pitot I will be installing.