Ailerons Complete

Ailerons for the sonex are pretty straight forward.  The most difficult part was getting the two ribs that support the lead counterbalance lined up.  It's hard to explain, but there are 4 pieces without prepunched holes that have to be lined up drilled and have to mirror each other perfectly in order to sandwich the lead counterbalance. You can see the assembly to the left of this picture on top of the aileron skin and in the background you can see it riveted in place.

The end ribs didn't fit perfectly.  It took a lot of tweaking, filing the skin, bending the rib flanges etc.  The final fit is okay but still not perfect.  Perfection is the enemy of completion.  It's airworthy and no one but me will probably ever notice.  Call it done.

Next...Flaps.

Tail Complete

Okay I finally got through the holidays and actually worked on the plane some.  The tail is finished, complete with fiberglass tips and trim tab.  The tips turned out easier than I anticipated.  I'm sure there will be some touchup prior to painting them, but that's a long way off.  I even put the wheels together and got the drum brakes assembled. I'm not sure what brought that on, they were just sitting there so I figured why not.  We'll be moving back to Charlotte, NC in June and I need to start preparing.  I hope to complete the ailerons and flaps before we go.  I might be able to start on the front and rear wing spars but I doubt much more will get done before the move.  Here are some completion pics...