I'm skipping the gear leg construction because I need a break. Sometimes when you focus on one thing too long it is best to work on another so that you can collect your sanity. Making the plywood ribs is an example of this phenomena. If you've already done yours you know what I mean.
The landing gear is connected to the main spar via L brackets which need attention to accuracy. If the holes in these brackets are not aligned properly the tire will not fit in the well and you will end up re-making some parts. Don't bother trying to make the bend yourself as it can't possibly be as accurate as a bend made in a sheet metal shop. What you want is an exact ninety degree bend that has a matching radius for right and left halves. The 3/4" hole needs to be reamed just like the trunnion horn holes. Each pair of brackets needs to be drilled and reamed while sandwiched together so as to keep the gear retract axis perpindicular to the spar, (This will also make sure that it fits in the well)
Trunnion brackets and the rods that mount through them. The extra brackets you see are for a friend. You only need four brackets.
Two brackets emerge from the sheet. I had a sheet metal shop make the bends for $25.00. WELL WORTH IT! The plasma cut was done a little slow which resulted in excess slag.
Anywhere you see a 3/4" hole specified on the landing gear needs to be reamed. Here is a trunnion horn being reamed to exactly .75". The landing gear brackets need this same treatment.
In the picture to the right we see a "wiggler" in my hand. This tool is a must have especially if you have a drill press. The wiggler helps you to accurately center your drill spindle on punch marks. Simply eyeballing your layout punch marks won't do. Underneath the brackets lie the wing spar attach fittings which share the same bolt holes. Naturally these holes must not only match those in the brackets but must also allow the bracket faces to be the proper width apart. Do the most accurate layout possible for these holes. This should not be one of those "let's C-clamp it together and drill it " things. These are parts that need to be accurately made for a perfect fit.
The brackets are in this picture for show . They are to be drilled separately.
The washers and brackets are made of .125 4130. If you have a set of older plans (pre 1982 revisions) washers are not specified. (The "old" brackets were.100 material with no washers) These washers along with extra braces that fit on the bracket's radius help to increase the stiffness of this part. Remember the gears on the trunnion need to stay in alignment and these are here to help.
This is the ideal way to put the 3/4" hole in your L- bracket pairs. The hole is perpendicular to the face of the metal with this method. Putting the 3/4" hole in before the four 1/4 " holes assures a good alignment of the brackets as well. (Have a 3/4" rod in while drilling the 1/4" holes) The plans give the option of 3/16" or 1/4" but after seeing bracket bolts fail I'm choosing the 1/4"! Note that the L brackets are sandwiched together on the angle plate.
The brackets were a bit over 1-1/2" tall so I decided to mill them to that height. If you are using a drill press this dimension is critical as you only have few ways of obtaining an accurate layout. Having this edge and the bottom edge flat will greatly decrease your woes.
Wing spar attach fittings are drilled together before reinforcing washers are welded on. A mill with a digital readout would make this work very easy and accurate. Unfortunately I'm not blessed with a digital readout in the x/y plane so handcrank dials got me where I needed to go.
