Doors and Windows
Doors and windows...seems straight forward right?
We started this step before we took off in the camper for Oshkosh 08
and based on our work thus far, decided to take a good look at the 10s
on-site for door fit and talked to quite a few folks regarding this
step. There seems to be universal agreement that this step is
not as easy as it looks.
First progress was made in the installation of the door hinges.
Even this has some leeway in installation techniques. Some we
talked to used shims, we chose not to and didn't regret the decision.
One step down many to go!
Scribing and cutting the door edges and window inserts were next on
the list. then it was time to glue the outside and inside shells
together. We measured just the recommended amount and found it
came out a little thin on the edges...so we had to inject some into
those areas with a syringe (all after the first set dried). The
second door we mixed a bit more than recommended and it worked out
well.
Once the shells were glued together they were clecoed in place on the canapy to assure they formed properly to the cabin. This should prevent too much shaping later on in the process, so we found it best to have all parts (to include weights, and blue tape on fuselage to catch the glue that will undoubtedly ooze out) in place and ready to go. We let these set for a couple days before removing the weights and clecos. Then came more trimming, sanding, fitting, trimming, sanding, and fitting!
But eventually the doors do come in and you can move on to something different and exciting!
Door
handles were a bit difficult as well. We opted for a modified
door handle as a bit cleaner and more rugged.
Once we had these set, we focused on the finish of the door jamb. We filled with bondo and sanded to a smooth finish and applied primer.
Windows were next and once they were cut to fit, the application went pretty quick. And, you need to work quick as the Weld-on set up FAST! The blue taping helped to keep excess amounts of Weld-on off the door and cabin. Key was to remove the tape as soon as the Weld-on started to set up...while it is still pliable. If you wait past pliable, the tape won't come off!
Windscreen install was the last big work in this section. Cut, prep and application of Weld-on was similar to previous steps. I believe the order that we took this, door windows, rear cabin windows, then windscreen was appropriate. It allowed us to learn a bit along the way and we felt pretty 'bullet-proof' by the time we got the windscreen. An interesting variation was taken with regard to building up where the windscreen meets the hood. We opted for a fairing rather than the Van's method. Fairing was ordered through MLSkunkworks and worked like a champ (details are in the modifications area of the website).
