Cleaning The Canopy

Here's a shot of the canopy with the protective plastic removed. I'm countersinking the attachment holes in the Plexiglas and finishing the side skirts before disassembly and painting. I polished it with some Plexus and it looks clear and shiny. There are a few small scratches I may repair but nothing of any real consequence. I still haven't decided if I want to go with a metal rear skirt or fiberglass. I ordered some more Alclad .032 2024-T3 aluminum sheet and I'll work with it this weekend. If I decide I don't like it, I can always go with fiberglass. Paula had a good suggestion to use both. Good idea! I might trim the edges with metal like the front of the canopy which will provide even support for the rivets and a good attachment point for the fiberglass.

Canopy Work Continues

I have been making very good progress on the canopy. Here's the nice aftermarket outside handle for locking the canopy.

The inside handle is finished, too. Works and locks nicely.

This is one of the rear blocks on the canopy that locks it into place when it's fully forward. The pin on the left goes into a hole in the white block. The lines are there to help align the hole properly. The white stuff is UHMW plastic that's really slippery but super solid. It's used in several places on the airplane that need to reduce friction between two parts.

Here, I'm working on the canopy side skirts. I'll need some help to drill them to the inside braces but that should be all I need before disassembly in preparation for painting and final assembly. After that, I'll fiberglass the front and rear skirts.

Custom Canopy Trim and Windscreen

Work continues on the canopy but the end is in sight. This weekend, I made a custom trim strip for the forward edge of the slider canopy. I shamelessly copied Matt Burch. I like how it turned out and think the extra support will reduce the stress on the rivets that hold the plexi to the frame. Plus, I think it will look better.

I fretted for a week about how to cut both sides of the windscreen the same so this is what I came up with. It's thick wrapping paper that I attached at three points with clecos to use as a pattern. The marked lines show through the paper so I just flipped it over to check each side. Worked great and fast and easy and now both sides are the same.

Fitting the Canopy

I've had the canopy on and off at least 20 times trying to get the fit just right. Getting close.

Lifting from the workbench.

Here's a close up of an edge of the plexiglass. Final polish was at 600 grit. Looks almost clear and you can see the drilled holes through the edge.