Saturday, July 24, 2010 Jetwing Rebuild Chapter Two

I’m calling this post “Chapter Two” because it refers to rebuilding the carriage part of the trike. I have already completed the rebuild of the wing, or at least 90% or so of that part of the project. Now it’s time to get started on the carriage rebuild.
Last night as I was loading the car, I found that Victoria Repair’s fabrication of the upright support tubes, the main tubes supporting the wing connection, were cut five inches short of what was on the instruction sheet I had given them, 54 9/16” instead of 59 9/16”. The 54 9/16” was the length of the side seat rails, so it’s obvious where they had gotten the wrong dimension. In spite of this mistake, and even though I won’t have the uprights to take to the airport, I will take everything else up and get as much done as I can.
Saturday morning I went to the airport. The first thing to do is to unload the car and lay out the parts. I’ve decided to use the side of the hanger that is cleared out and has nothing to obstruct the project. There doesn’t seem to be very much here, but on the other hand, there isn’t too much to the carriage, just some tubes and cables. I’m not very impressed with the machining work done by Victoria Repair; things fit together, but not perfectly. I had to redrill one of the holes on the front wheel bracket to get the bolt to go through, and the bolt holes on the front bent downtube don’t line up and I’ll have to redrill those, but otherwise there are no show-stoppers so far.
Part of the challenge is to cope physically with the work. I’m working on the floor and the bending down and up is hard. I think next time I’ll sit in the wheelchair; I can maneuver it around and it should be easier to work from that level. Also, the hanger is very dusty and dirty, so I need to spend some time cleaning it and sweeping the dust from the work area.
At least the job is started. I connected the side rails to the seat plate and swing axle cables. Also I attached the gas tank sling and seat and the front wheel bracket. Overall I’m pleased with the work, even though it doesn’t look like much was accomplished.