Aft Fuselage #4 (Tail cone box)

Total build time: 150 hours.

Slowly but surely the entirety of the tail cone box is up-drilled and progressively stripped back apart. As I back out the parts I have to think carefully about how it will ultimately be riveted together… going in the wrong order will seal me off from areas that I may need to access for subsequent parts. This is particularly true around the tip of the tail where the stabilator attach points are. The area around the access hatch is also particularly complicated, with 4 different types/patterns of holes to be drilled to properly mount the hatch cover.

Finally with everything drilled and deburred, it’s time to clean the slate and build it up again for riveting.

I ended up spending a LOT of time in the tail cone area, making sure everything was just as I wanted it.

Again, the riveted product of all of this is visually more plain than many of the flashy construction photos, but in this next photo lies 150 hours of working with my hands to create quality components. I’m VERY pleased with how the build is going!