Brief Description: Riveting The Front Top Skin On - Part 1
After riveting the rear turtle deck skin on, ambition was high and riveting the front top skin over the instrument panel seemed like it was going to be a breeze. Well, in a word - NOT.
Craig came over again on Sunday and we tackled this task. Some of it was pretty easy and went well. Specifically the rivets into the middle and rear bulkheads went great. The rivets along the sides, however, seemed almost impossible due to access issues with the bucking bar. What made them particularly hard to get at specifically on the left side, was the giant cable bundle that passed through right where the rivets were. We fought every rivet going in and, unfortunately, in about 6 of 7 places ended up with pretty major skin dents due entirely to my improper placement of the rivet gun head. Annoyed? An understatement.
I finished up the front bulkhead and the baggage door hinge with the rivet squeezer which when very well.
I must say that for as finished-off as the rear skin made the fuselage, adding the front skin really put the cherry on top! Wow! Sweet!
