Baggage Door Fitting Question

Hi All,

I have one of the first pre-punch fuselages. I followed the instructions for the baggage door: back rivet the upper and lower angles, rivet on the fore and aft ribs. The instructions then say to bend/twist until it fits right. Then tape the door in place and blind rivet the back skin from the inside.

My door fits very well without bending or twisting except for standing just a little proud (1/16-3/32) at the tightest part of the bend. About two thirds of the way down from the hinge towards the lock. I was trying to figure out if that can be corrected or if that is about as good a fit as anyone ever gets.

I tried to bend it out a little but got nervous about how much pressure I could put on the door without really tweaking it. I would hate to put a crease in the door and have to start over.

What's the experience here? Bend harder or accept a very slight mis-fit? Would strapping it down really tightly and then blind riveting the back do the trick?

Regards,

Michael Wynn
RV 8 Finishing
San Ramon, CA

It sounds like you are saying the curve on the door rib does not match the boot cowl. If that's the case, then I think it's going to be some work the reshape the rib. With that said, do whatever you can do before you attach the inner skin, because it really gets stiff at that point.

Keep in mind that my only experience is reshaping/rebuilding the door to clear a flat wrap windshield, so others are likely to have better advice.

Straps

Michael,

I have not yet finished my door (all done but the inner skin), but I offer this advice. Use some ratcheting cargo straps and pull the door down nice and tight. See if that gets you the 1-2/32s you are looking for. Mine sits flush just about everywhere .

Don

For what it's worth, I have had the best luck, preparing the door per plans except, prior to riveting the inner skin, put a layer of pro-seal between the inner skin and the entire frame work. Then cleco the whole thing back together, keeping in mind you cannot cleco the hinge area or the latch area due to interference. Leave those holes open, you can clean the proseal out later.
Then put the hinge pin in and close the door and strap/ gorrila tape it down.
Let it cure a few days then pop rivet it together. I have built a bunch of these doors, sometimes TWICE on the same plane. I have found this method to be the least aggravating! I have also used a shrinker along a cantankerous edge also.

Do what you gotta do Michael, but you can build it nearly air tight. Any gap looks like ### and you'll be looking at it for a long time.

More to do

Well Dan, that about sums it up. Guess I will keep working at it until it really sits completely flush.

Thanks, everyone for your input. I will let you all know how it comes out.

Another door question



I am also fitting the door to the fuse. The top skin has not been riveted yet-will do that much later after wiring, etc. My kit is a QB and there are a few pop rivets holding the side skin in place, but I might be able to get a better fit of the door if the side skin is pulled up tightly to the fuse. Does anyone see a problem with riveting the side skins to the longerons (about 16 rivets) where the opening for the baggage door is?

Thanks,
Steve
RV-8

Wait

Van's instructions recommend waiting on the baggage door fit until the top skin is riveted on completely. They say that even the difference between clecos and rivets might shift it enough to make a diffeence.

I waited.

Others may not have and may chime in.

Don

skyking902001 said:

....My kit is a QB and there are a few pop rivets holding the side skin in place....

Click to expand...

Exactly when to install the series of rivets along the longeron is optional. That said, to get the best baggage door fit possible, don't succumb to the temptation to get it finished right now. I would not attempt the final baggage door fit until after those rivets and most of the upper skin rivets are permanently installed but even more important than all that...I would not attempt the final baggage door fit at all until after the engine is hung and the cowling pinned into place. You need all that stuff in place because left unsupported, that whole area remains flexible and is sure to result in a poor fit when the weight of the engine starts pulling down on the firewall structure. Following my own advice while building the standard, slow built kit, the work flow and theory behind that decision to wait until the last possible moment seemed to work well enough for me.

Follow Up

I'm seriously jealous over Rick's door. The gap around the edge looks smaller than mine. I read a bunch of previous baggage door posts and now have the following question:

Some have mentioned a pre-punched baggage door in their kit. I don't have one, I just used the piece cut out of the 821PP top skin. So did I miss something or did the kit contents change? My kit is circa 2005...

Don

cfiidon said:

Some have mentioned a pre-punched baggage door in their kit. I don't have one, I just used the piece cut out of the 821PP top skin. So did I miss something or did the kit contents change? My kit is circa 2005...Don

Click to expand...

Made me laugh. I assumed the door was built using the cutout and never even looked in the boxes for a pre-punched door skin. Which brings us to the old joke about finishing and finding you have parts left over.......

You can build the door, rivet the skins later, and nothing changes if fit-up was good. Same for hanging the engine. The RV-8 does have a floppy firewall quadrant at the door. This is the second -8 for which I fabricated simple ribs to brace that section. They rivet through the firewall into the firewall support angles. Not required, but......

Mileage may vary.

Mine's floppy too!

No... I won't go there.

Dan, If you have a closer pic of your braces that would be great. I can see the need to make that area more rigid...

Don

So I didn't listen too well

Yes I know exactly what the plans say. My fit with the foredeck clecoed in every hole and the engine mounted WAS perfect. Now with the foredeck riveted, the aft edge of the door is unacceptably too high or miss fitting.

If I drill out all the pop rivets on the inside skin, will it free it up enough to get it back conforming?
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Solution?

Hi Bud,

What did you end up doing with your baggage door? I'm actually quite surprised that there was that much of a difference between having the top skin clecoed and riveted, but I will of course learn and not finish the baggage door until riveted.

Regards,
Mickey