Top Flite TOPA0150 - Manual (Page 28)

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6. Trim the bottom edges of the canopy so that it
overlaps the fuse by approximately 3/16" to provide
a gluing surface.
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7. Once you have achieved a good fit between the
canopy and the fuse and between the canopy and
the machine gun cover, finish shaping the forward
turtle deck block to fit the canopy. Use balsa filler to
blend the turtle deck block to the fuse at the seam
where they join.
Mount the engine
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1. Use thick CA or epoxy to glue together the die-
cut 1/8" plywood pieces FW-1, FW-2 and FW-3 that
make up the firewall. If the individual pieces are
twisted, clamp them to a flat table or piece of wood
covered with wax paper. Be certain they stay in
alignment. If the pieces are twisted, simply clamping
them together may not cancel the twist.
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2. Drill four 7/32" holes through the punchmarks in
the firewall. Use a hammer to lightly tap four 8-32
blind nuts into the holes in the back of the firewall.
Permanently glue the blind nuts into the firewall with
a few drops of thin CA.
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3. Cut a 2-3/4" long forward tank mount tab from
the 1/4" x 3/8" x 36" basswood stick. Save the
remainder of this basswood stick for the servo hatch
rails in the wing. Glue the tab to the back of the
firewall 1/8" above the bottom edge.
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4. Mount the Great Planes .60-1.20 Adjustable
Engine Mount to the firewall with four 8-32 x 1-1/4"
socket head cap screws and #8 lock washers and
flat washers (note that the engine is mounted
inverted). Leave the screws loose enough to slide
the halves of the mount in and out. Adjust the mount
so it fits your engine, then tighten the screws and
temporarily clamp the engine to the mount with the
back plate of a 3" spinner 6-1/4" from the firewall.
Note: Some spinners have a flat back plate and
some spinners have an in-set back plate. Take this
into account when mounting your engine. It may be a
good idea to actually have your spinner back plate
mounted on your engine for this step.
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5. Use a Great Planes Dead Center Hole Locator
(GPMR8130) to mark the locations of the holes in the
mount for mounting your engine. Remove the engine,
then drill four #29 (or 9/64") holes at the marks. Tap 8-
32 threads into the holes. Mount the engine to the
mount with four 8-32 x 1" screws and washers.
Remove the engine mount from the firewall.
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6. If you have your fuel tank on hand, drill 1/4" (or
15/64" for a perfect fit) holes through the firewall to
pass the fuel tubing. If you don’t have your tank yet
or plan a mounting method other than that shown in
the manual, you may wait until later to drill the holes.
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7. Test fit, then glue the firewall to the fuse with 30-
minute epoxy. Add Great Planes Milled Glass Fibers
for additional strength. Make certain the firewall is
oriented correctly, so the engine will be mounted as
you intended (inverted if you’ve followed the
instructions and plan).
That’s about all that can be done on the fuse until we
have a wing, so...let’s build the wing.
BUILD THE WING
Preparation
Reminder: If you’re installing retracts, take the air
lines out of the package and hang them somewhere
in your workshop. This will straighten the lines and
make them easier to install when it’s time.
Each wing panel is built right-side up over the wing
panel plan. The manual shows photos of the
right
wing panel, so start building the right wing panel first.
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1. Cut the right (or left, if this is your second
wing panel) wing plan from the wing plan sheet and
place it over your building board. Cover the plan with
Great Planes Plan Protector or wax paper.
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