Ivan's RV-7

Fabricating spacers for the step tubesTimer icon1.5h

June 23, 2023

A bit of machining work today -- made spacers for the step tubes.

I got my external steps back from the powder coater, they are ready for installation. However, after a bit of thinking I decided to make spacers for the tubes so that when the bolt is tightened, there is something inside the tube to prevent it from collapsing.

The machined spacer:

The machined spacer.

The spacer installed:

The spacer in the tube.

Also, I ordered some ProSeal from SkyGeeks. I will put it between the fuselage skin and the steps, to fill the gap on the aft side of the steps where step plates don't sit flush with the skin. The instructions say to round the corner of the step plates, but I thought that I will get a better fit to the skin without rounding the corners.