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Hi Skip,

    Well, I'm going forward and backward, both at the same time some days.
The painting is giving me fits, but the rest is going OK.  I am retired(?),
so that gives me a big advantage -- when I'm not travelling or otherwise
goofing off, I'm over here working on the plane.

    On the big layups, like the 8- and 10-ply reinforcements on the seat
bulkheads, I've developed a few tricks for those.  On my first plane I was
always gnashing my teeth because the thicker, heavier layups would go on,
look lovely, then droop and fall off as soon as I turned my back.  What I do
now is keep a junk box with various sizes and shapes of plywood scraps and
lots of clamps.  When I do something like the 7- or 8-BID layup on  the
underside of the seat flange, I put the glass in place (yes, all 8 at a
time), then dry-brush peel-ply over it, then press a piece of thin plastic
sheeting over it (the same stuff I use for wetting out the glass), then fit
a plywood scrap underneath and clamp it lightly in place to hold everything
and squeeze it just a bit.  Sometimes I round the edge of the plywood scrap
with a coarse sander to make it conform to the micro radius in the corner.
When it's cured, the plywood pops off and the plastic and peel-ply ditto.
Takes a few minutes more to get everything cut and ready, but it works.  On
some other types of layups, I use a lot of sand bags, and sometimes duct
tape strips over plastic sheeting to keep everything in place and pressed
around corners, etc.

    Do you have a digital camera?  If so, I'd be interested to see your
Honda CRX seat frames.  The factory seat frames are kinda cruddy (pretty
heavy, no recline adjust, not conforming, etc.), but the only other
alternative I know about is to buy the carbon seat pans from Jim Griffin,
and I don't have the courage to even ask how much they cost.  One other
builder mentioned getting some back seats from a Piper Archer and using them
in front.

    As for splitting the rear seat back, it sounds good in theory, but how
will you provide support for the center, where the two seat backs are
actually split?  That'll need some thought.

    Re the Kit Components credit policy and my LML posting yesterday, I have
had an immediate and positive response.  I've had a couple of e-mails back
and forth with Lance (Himself!), and then got a personal call from Vern
yesterday, assuring me that the $500 limit would not apply to me, would not
apply to their good and valued customers, etc., etc.  I get the feeling
there is some internal politicking involved, about which I would rather know
nothing.  So, the initial raspberry stands for sending out that notice, but
kudos for the quick response and concerned effort at damage control.  All is
forgiven.

Regards,  Jim Cameron, ES builder



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Please send your photos and drawings to marvkaye@olsusa.com.
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