Cotton Waiex 191 - N191YX

[Bryan Cotton]

First hole drilled in the plexiglass:


To transfer holes from the hinge to the canopy, we made this tool. It is a hunk of scrap with a #30 hole in it.


A #30 bit aligns the tool with the hole. The bit is removed and the tool held steady. The other builder uses it to align the bit.


Here is the right side clecoed.


For the left side, we freehanded 4 holes by looking through the plexiglass and lining up the bit with the frame. Then we clecoed on the trim piece and used the tool for the rest of the holes.

[WaiexN143NM]

Hi bryan, adam,
Looks great ! Good progress! Now on to the fwf, and cowling.
Happy holidays!

WaiexN143NM
Michael

[peter anson]

I think you guys have spent waaay too much time polishing.

Peter

[Bryan Cotton]

Peter,
We still have to polish the canopy frame!

Here Adam is cutting one of the bows.


A couple holes drilled for the canopy slot. Dremel and cutoff wheel was the next weapon of choice. Worked good.


After it was cut out, I used a file wrapped in sandpaper. Finished with 220 grit.


Initial fit of canopy frame.


Here it is latched down. The canopy bows out on the latch side. Makes it difficult to latch. Maybe we can twist the latch mechanism before we drill and rivet the square tube to the canopy join angles. Anybody have hints to share?

[Gordon]

Canopy Advice............?

Your doing a SUPER nice job on your Waiex.........The canopy is coming along very nicely.

My only advice (and my opinion) is to NOT polish the canopy frame bows because of reflection in the sun.

Paint them flat black.

Gordon........Onex......Hummel 2400

[Bryan Cotton]

Gordon,
That was a joke, in response to Peter's comment about polishing too much! They will be flat black. Thanks for the encouragement though!

Still looking for hints on getting the latch mechanism true to the siderail. Also, how do you guys drill the holes to the bows? Eyeball it and just drill through?

[Darick]

Bryan, concerning the canopy bowing out at the latch...I can't remember the exact details but I placed a rigid support (probably a 1x2) against the canopy while it was latched in place, pushed against it to "flatten" that area, then using a heat gun, applied it to the area very carefully to bend the Plexisglass.

I first experimented with pieces I trimmed off to get a sense of how much heat to apply to form a bend.
You can be sure I was very anxious about how this was going to turn out. It was successful! The latch is now almost perpendicular to the longeron and slips into the locking slot very nicely. There is a picture on page 15 of my photo album showing the canopy left side.

I don't have any better pictures but next time I get to the airport (after Christmas) I'll take some so you can get an idea of how much I bent it.

[Corby202]

Anybody have hints to share?
Bryan, this is what I did re the bow/canopy. I put heat shrink tubing around the bow (the type that has glue inside it) mainly for looks. I used Sikaflex around the bow and square section tube plus some screws, no rivets. Because of this the square section was not tight up against the canopy which I think is the main reason it can be a problem to latch, as the outward bow of the canopy is not letting the square section sit flat. I also used the Sikaflex primer to paint the inside of the canopy and windscreen around the areas of the bows to make it look neater.
http://www.mykitlog.com/users/category. ... gory=10900

[daleandee]

My only advice (and my opinion) is to NOT polish the canopy frame bows because of reflection in the sun.
Gordon........Onex......Hummel 2400

BTW ... Don't polish the glare shield either. You can but you'll have to order a set of these to fly with:



OK just kidding! 8~) Looks really great!

Perhaps you'd interested in a great idea for a canopy lock using a drawer lock from a file cabinet? At one time I had some photos but they're hiding now. It's pretty easy to mount it in the side where the tang rotates up to block the canopy slide from being moved backward to open it. I got the Idea from Robert Eley. You can see it in this photo:

https://get.google.com/albumarchive/104 ... fahhtjlzwE

Best,

Dale Williams
N319WF @ 6J2
Myunn - "daughter of Cleanex"
120 HP - 3.0 Corvair
Tail Wheel - Center Stick
Signature Finish 2200 Paint Job
166.7 hours / Status - Flying
Member # 109 - Florida Sonex Association

[Gordon]

The Cotton Waiex Canopy Questions.......?

Bryan.......on my Onex canopy I drilled the holes for the bows FIRST without the plexiglass on.......drilled them #40 then upsized to #30 to match my #30 Plastic drill (from Avery tools). Then I dropped the canopy on top of the bows, getting it in perfect alignment and strapped and taped it down......of course this was after I had spent hours of cutting, trimming and fitting it. Looking through the plexi I then carefully lined up and drilled thru with my Plastic drill into the existing #30 hole in the bows and clecoed as I went..............I started at the top center (front and back) and worked down each side. This worked well for me.....when it was over I ended up with a bit more along the bottom sides that needed to be trimmed off.

I then tapped the holes in the bows for #8 machine screws and drilled the plexi oversize and countersunk the holes. Where ever the plexi didn't quite touch the bow I cut short pieces of clear soft tubing (Home Depot) to act as a spacer between the plexi and the bow. Some guys use nylon washers......I think the tubing is easier to work with.

At a later date if I have a machine screw "strip" out of the bow I plan to drill straight through the bow, install a longer machine screw with a fiber nut..........I don't have much faith in these tapped holes in the bows but for now as they say......"if it ain't broke, don't fix it".

Gordon........Onex........Hummel 2400