Chapter 4 - Horizontal empennage
4.4 - Cutting the elevator and stabilizer sections
Page 37
After curing, remove the clecos or screws, sand the holes and fill with a MICRO
paste. Do not overfill, your intention is to fill only the hole.
4.4
Cutting the Elevator and Stabilizer Sections
Find the marked lines that will break the stabilizer and elevator on the outside of
each casing. These lines run linearly and then go around the elevator swing. Run a soft
pencil along the scribe lines and across the front of the seam for visibility. Cut along each
line to separate the elevator and horizontal stabilizer. An hand saw can be used
successfully in this cut. When the cuts are complete, file the corners of each coating.
4.5
Trim Tab
Before the trim tab is cut, demarcate on the outer surface of the top and bottom
coating, top and bottom respectively, facilitating the future orientation of the piece. Cut
along the center line (distancing 3’’ from the trailing edge) through both coatings with a
fine tooth saw , removing the elevator trim tab. Do this carefully so as not to loosen the
liner where it is glued to the inner ribs. remove one additional 1/4 inch of bottom liner
from the trim tab to allow it to move down.
4.6
Trim tab hinge
Clean the center channel area on the trim tab, and the open side of the elevator,
place two layers of BID in the “U” channel of the open sections. Laminate these layers
with a MICRO paste making a small radius at the corners.