Aircraft Building

IN THE WORLD OF CUSTOM-

What's a Cleco?

b u i l t airplanes, sheetmetal airplanes are very popular. Among the EAA SportAir workshops held An introduction to sheet-metal tools around the nation, the one teaching sheet-metal RON ALEXANDER construction techniques is always the first to fill up because people want to learn how to build an airplane using a tried-and-true method. Besides being popular, sheetmetal c o n s t r u c t i o n is comparatively easy—assuming you acquire the basic knowledge and skills and have the proper tools. Tools, you might ask. Aren't they expensive? Tools can be expensive, but generally you can buy what you need to build a sheet-metal airplane for less than $1,000. You can spend a lot more, if you w a n t , because In a d d i t i o n , tool suppliers like there are tools you must have— Aircraft Spruce & Specialty and and tools t h a t would be nice to Avery Tools have created tool have. We'll discuss both kinds and lists and even s p e c i a l l y priced let you decide between the two. tool packages. Having the correct tools before Often these lists and packages starting any project is important, are divided into "beginning" and and most kit manufacturers and "add-on" categories, and the tools designers provide a list of tools they contain are aircraft specific. needed to build their airplanes. For e x a m p l e , some a i r c r a f t use

A good way to understand the tools you'll need is to look at the steps used in sheetmetal construction.

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solid rivets b u i l d e r s must drive with a pneum a t i c rivet gun and a bucking bar or squeeze w i t h a n o t h e r tool. Other aircraft are built u s i n g b l i n d rivets, which are installed— "pulled" in sheet-metal lingo—using a small, inexpensive rivet tool. (Note: Don't call the blind rivets used to build an airplane "Pop rivets." A trademarked brand name available at local hardware stores, Pop rivets are not designed for—and should not be used in— a v i a t i o n a p p l i c a t i o n s . Avdel C h e r r y Textron is the l e a d i n g m a n u f a c t u r e r of aviation-grade blind rivets.) Because sheet-metal construction uses a lot of pneumatic tools, you'll need an air compressor capable of delivering 80 to 100 psi. You don't need a n y t h i n g elaborate, but pay attention to the size of its storage t a n k as well as the horsepower of the compressor's motor. The larger the t a n k , the l o n g e r you can run your p n e u matic drill or die grinder before the

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motor starts up and chugs life back i n t o your tools. In a d d i t i o n to powering tools, compressed air is an excellent way to clean parts and make sure critical items, such as the fuel line you just built, are free of debris. A good way to understand the tools you'll need is to look at the steps used in sheet-metal construction. After measuring and marking the required outlines, you cut the sheet-metal parts and, if necessary, bend them as required by the plans. Then you drill holes for the rivets and assemble the pieces using a Cleco, what you might call a temporary rivet. Once you're sure everything fits as it's supposed to, you disassemble the parts, remove the b u r r s from the holes, and countersink or dimple the holes if you're using flush rivets. If required, you prime the parts before you reassemble them with Clecos. Finally, you replace the Clecos with rivets. It's tool time. Please remember that this is a generic list, and the must-have and nice-to-have tools on it may not a p p l y to all k i t s .

When building a tool chest, the m a n u f a c t u r e r ' s list of required tools is the place to start.

Measuring, Cutting & Bending

Kit manufacturers usually provide sheet metal a l r e a d y cut to size, but you occasionally may have to do some cutting and trimming. Bending is another matter, and u s u a l l y you can do w h a t ' s needed with a small metal brake, rounded wood, etc. Often, the kit's plans will show you how to build the required bending tool. Before we cut we must measure, and there are two must-have tools in this category: steel rulers and Sharpie ultra fine point markers. A third might be a scribe, which usually has straight and bent steel points set in an aluminum handle. Nice-to-have tools include an edge marker block, an adjustable holder for a marking pen that enables you to mark a line parallel to the sheet's edge, a protractor to measure angles, and a grip scale to measure hole depths and determine what length fastener to use. Because most sheet-metal kits come pre-cut, your must-have cutting tools are snips, often referred to as "offset metal snips." There are three types—left hand, right hand, and straight—and the direction indicates the direction the snips cut while keeping the mateSport Aviation

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Aircraft Building

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rial away from your hands. The handles are color-coded: red-handled snips cut straight and to the left, and green snips cut to the right. Combination snips cut in any direction, and they are made of aluminum. Hole and circle cutters are selfexplanatory, and you'll need them to create your instrument panel, among other things. The same goes for h a n d - n i b b l i n g tools, which notch and trim metal and cut holes. If you want to spend more, there are pneumatic nibblers. A pneumatic die grinder is on the line between must-have and nice-to-have because it's a multipurpose tool. It cuts, grinds, and polishes metal. And if you're not careful, you can hurt yourself with its spinning attachments. On the nice-to-have side is a pneumatic shear, which will cut up to 18-gauge metal with very little distortion. Costing less than $100, most of these tools remove about 1/4 inch of material, and they make long, straight cuts in aluminum simple. If you're scratch-building an airplane, where you have to cut all its parts from sheets of metal, you may consider a portable or large foot-operated metal shear more than "nice to have." Large foot shears cost between $1,000 and $2,000 and come in different cutting widths, with 37 and 52 inches being the most common. For a r o u n d $300 you can get a tool that is a combination shear, bending brake, and slip roll machine. (A slip roller, also available as a separate tool, bends metal into a curve—a useful tool, but not necessary for the average homebuilder.) The only tradeoff is that the maximum cutting width will be between 12 and 30 inches. M u s t - h a v e b e n d i n g tools include the h a n d seamer, w h i c h bends small flanges and tabs, and fluting pliers, which cost less than 88

MAY 2001

A pneumatic drill is used after you've measured and cut your metal.

$30 and straighten rib flanges and form curved stringers by pushing down a small area of metal and p u l l i n g an adjacent bit of metal into the bend. You should buy these tools from aviation suppliers, especially the hand seamer, because the aviation version has a radius edge that pre-

Clecos and cleco pliers hold your just-drilled parts together temporarily.

vents you from bending too sharp a radius in the metal. Hand seamers used for welding or duct work don't have t h i s radius. Another handy tool is the metal shrinker/stretcher, which has interchangeable jaws for either stretching or shrinking. Nice-to-have tools include sheetmetal brakes, which bend metal of

v a r y i n g w i d t h s up to 48 inches wide. They cost around $500 and come in two versions. The straight brake bends the metal as a single piece, as you'd fold a piece of paper. A pan or box brake gives you more bending flexibility by moving or removing metal fingers so you only bend one part of a piece

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Aircraft Building of metal. You can get a smaller hand brake for $50 to $200, with the widths ranging from 12 to 24 inches.

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Drilling & Assembling

Once you've measured and cut your metal, it's time to put holes in it, lots of them, because lots of rivets is what holds a sheet-metal airplane together. To make these holes you can use an electric or cordless drill, but most sheet-metal builders use a pneumatic drill because they are lighter and smaller than their electrical siblings. When shopping for a pneumatic drill, make sure you get a variable speed model because using the speed best suited for the material you're drilling results in the best holes. (For easy-to-drill material like a l u m i n u m , use a high speed, and for a tough material, like stainless steel, use a slower speed.) A drill capable of holding a 1/4- or 3/8-inch bit will meet your needs. You might also think about getting a right-angle pneumatic drill and a flexible drill attachment to drill holes in those hard-to-reach places. To make the holes, you'll need drill bits, and for the best results in sheet metal you want split points because they are less prone to "walking" across the sheet and scarring it. Bit sizes are numbers that correspond to the decimal equivalent of their diameter in inches. Because a properly driven rivet expands a bit, drill the rivet's hole just a bit bigger than the rivet's diameter. The most commonly used rivet sizes and their accompanying drill bits are 3/32-inch and #40, and 1/8 inch and #30. Drill stops are another must-have tool because they keep you from breaking bits and letting the d r i l l chuck hit—and scar—the metal's surface. A Unibit is another must-have tool. It's a bit specially designed to drill larger holes, usually between 1/8- and 3/4-inch. And to hold your just-drilled parts together temporarily, while you make sure everything fits, you'll need Clecos. Lots of them, perhaps 500 or more. And you'll need a couple of Cleco pliers, a tool that costs around $10 and inserts and removes the temporary fasteners. Like rivets and drill bits, Clecos come in different sizes, and they are color-coded so you can tell them apart: zinc (3/32—#40); copper (1/8—#30); black (5/32—#20); and brass (3/16—#11). In addition to the spring-loaded, pliers-applied rivet-hole Clecos, side-grip Clecos hold pieces of material together at their edges without holes, and wingnut Clecos pull pieces of metal together with their gripping action. Next month we'll look at deburring tools, rivet guns, and other sheet-metal tools. And remember, the one nice thing about tools is that you don't have to buy them all at once. After you have the basics you can add a tool to your workshop as the need for it arises. 90

MAY 2001