Chapter 5

Fuselage Sides

In this chapter you build the sides of the fuselage. First you build a set of matching jigs to hold the foam in the proper shape until the inside is glassed. Prior to doing any glassing, you carve some foam which is laid on the top, bottom, and aft ends of the side pieces. These will give the sides a contoured look on the inside and will also be used to give a rounded shape to the outside of the fuselage in later chapters. Along the top and bottom of these foam pieces is laid a wood longeron made of spruce.

When everything is laid up perfectly, you glass what is the inside of the sides of the fuselage. Both sides are done together to aid in construction. Here are some pictures of the sides after they have been glassed.

Fuselage sides after being glassed

Rear area of sides where landing gear bulkheads get attached

With the completion of the sides it's on to chapter 6 where the sides and bulkheads are joined together.