Started fabricating the parts and sub-assemblies for the Tailcone. I elected to just purchased the pre-tapped tie-down stock from Cleaveland tool as it was cheaper than buying the actual tap (also didn’t know anyone that had a tap I could borrow). Then I begin to cut the parts necessary for the bulkheads. I will admit that in my excitement, I grabbed the incorrect 3/4 x 3/4 stock bar and cut the wrong piece. Didn’t realize that till a bit later but already ordered and received a replacement piece. This is a lot of measuring, marking, drilling, and making sure you don’t screw it up like I tend to do.
Also ended up being too excited and slightly distracted when attaching the J-channel and 3/4 stock to the bulkhead. The parts were not centered when I match drilled them and honestly that is where I realized I was using the wrong 3/4 stock. Not a huge deal and easy to fix at this point. Just reminds me to take my time and make sure I know what I should be focusing on.
Also not sure if it was ever noticed, but I end up keeping my Boelube in my fridge as the high heat in my garage has melted the stuff I can’t tell you how many times. I got tired of cleaning the outside of the container every day, so it just lives in my little fridge from now on. Silly, but it works.
Once I have the bulkheads and the frames build / assembled, I start working on the J-Channel. Spoiler for the next video: I thought I was quite careful in my measurements and markings on the J-Channel, however once installed I ended up being slightly short! I would honestly recommend cutting your J-channel a little long (by maybe 1/2″) with the rear bulkhead removed. Once drilled, you can then “trim to proper length”. I’ll go into more details in the next update on what I ended up doing (with approval from Vans)
I also only deburred the ends of my J-Channel. Honestly I probably should have run the edge against the 3M wheel while I had them out as I did end up cutting myself on the sharp edge when installing them. Something to consider for others. I also found that my band-saw blade isn’t as accurate as I like, so I end up cutting things long and use my belt-sander to bring the part down to the proper dimensions. For the 45 degree cut on the j-channel, I ended up just sanding the part down vs cutting it. Probably not the best method, but it mostly worked. (followed by deburring on the 3M wheel)
Lastly I marked up the drill line on the J-Channel and the end lines as well as marked and drilled the Longerons. Next up is the wonderful process of putting the larger pieces together.