Wing Fabric Covering Question

[Jch]

I just covered the bottom of both wings and I'm planning the next move. Cutting the holes for the lift strut attach brackets and placing the metal fabric reinforcing plates. Question- What is the small tab with a hole in it for that protrudes aft of the aft strut bracket? I am thinking of cutting it off so I don't need to make as big of a hole in the fabric. There would still be a good place for tie down ropes or hooks. I have not shrunk the fabric at 250 degrees yet and there is a fair amount of tension over the brackets. I am planning to Poly Brush the area where I will make the holes in the fabric to control tearing/fraying. Any other thoughts on getting the best finished result. I don't like the looks of the gaps around the reinforcing plates, even on the LSA's from the factory. I might also make a change in the dimension of the reinforcing plates. I wish I could attach the plates before making the cuts, but I think I have to make the cuts first. Thanks for your ideas. Jch

[t j]

What is the small tab with a hole in it for that protrudes aft of the aft strut bracket?

When the wings are folded a wing lock back brace is attached to it.

[Geowitz]

Don't cut that tab off if you care about resale or want to fold the wings with the ability to easily secure them.

Other than the looks, the holes around the fittings are not a problem. When you cut the fabric to "free" the fittings you really don't need to make that big of a cut. Just a slit with a small "Y" on each end is plenty to stretch it around the fitting and you will have fabric to work with to minimize the hole size. Even if the hole seems big you can fit the aluminum plates as close as you can to the fittings and patch the fabric on the outside and inside. This location requires a rectangular patch over the location of the plate anyways. Just use enough overlap that if the fabric only extends half way onto the aluminum plate that the patches sandwich the plate and wing fabric.

On mine the aluminum plate is sandwiched between two rectangular patches. One on inside, one on outside.

[jtpitkin06]

Covering the areas around tabs and other protrusions is pretty simple.

After tacking down the edges of the fabric, do your initial ironing to shrink the fabric up against the tabs or brackets. This will give you the exact location of the required slit. Make the slit and iron the fabric around any openings just enough to take out any wrinkles. Do not over-shrink around protrusions as the fabric will tend to open up and make a bigger hole. Attach your metal reinforcements and cover with fabric patches or doilies before you do your final shrink.

I recommend preshrinking the fabric used for any patch or doily. Iron a scrap piece of cloth prior to cutting out your patch. This method will give you a patch or doily that will lay flat and not wrinkle. Most importantly it will not pull away from the slits when you do your final shrinking. The preshrunk patches and doilies may be used to seal up any openings or slits.

John