First Airplane Parts

I started making the wing attachment points out of 4130.  All I can say is, I can't wait to work with aluminum!  This stuff is tough to cut.  After some trial and error and a lot of reading online, I settled on my reciprocating saw with a metal blade.  Not quite like butter, but it worked.  Here are some shots of the process.




I cut a little larger than the specified dimensions, then used the sanding disc to square everything up.  I also used this and my bench grinder to round the edges.



Here I'm making sure things are square.



Here are the first four airplane parts hand filed and sanded for smooth corners.  I'll have to round the edges more where the 1/2" bolts attach the wing and fuselage, but I want to match the radius on those corners to the 1/4" 4130 parts I'm making next so everything looks nice if I decide to add the folding wing bracket.



Four more pieces cut from the bar stock.  These will have to be shaped with a 1/4" cutout.



Here is one of the pieces cut and roughly ground on the bench grinder.  I cut the 1/4" cut out by drilling a hole, then cutting the tangent with the jigsaw.  Did I mention I'm excited to get to the aluminum?

Time to go out to dinner, but here is where I left off.



Happy Easter tomorrow!