Building the (Old) FLYLINE Great Lakes 2T-1A Kit (15)

This is the aft center portion of the lower wing, where the trailing edge forms the front of the aileron cutout. To get a more substantial mounting base for the strut than was indicated on the plan, I cut a 1" long piece of 1/4" x 1/2" spruce, tapered the upper edge to match the curve of the airfoil, and glued it tightly up against both the rib and the trailing edge.

Here both the front and rear strut mounting blocks are in place on the left lower wing. For structure like this it's critical to have something more substantial than just the wing rib itself to accept and transfer the loads coming from the strut.

I built the interplane strut assemblies in exactly the same way as the cabanes (using the layout pattern on the plan), except that I'm using sheet brass fittings at both ends of each strut. I made the fittings the same way as I did for the cabanes. To attach the strut assemblies I began with the bottom ends, slotted each strut on the bandsaw, inserted the fitting, and reinforced the joint with a thread wrap. At this point all that has been done and we are looking at the lower end of the right front interplane strut. With everything lined up and taped, clamped, or otherwise coerced to stay in place, I used an ordinary pencil to mark the location of the hole in the fitting onto the base block.

I did all the lower strut ends the same way. Here is the left wing with both strut ends fixed in place with sheet metal screws in holes I drilled in the base blocks.

This is the left upper wing panel. I have installed the brass end fitting in each strut WITHOUT bending them over. With the alignment and incidence double-checked, I used heavy duty clothespin clamps to hold the fitting ends in place against the upper base blocks.

This is the same assembly seen from the other side. I have used strips of masking tape to mark exactly where each brass fitting must be bent to maintain the alignment I want. Once that's done I'll drill holes for the mounting screws, transfer the screw hole locations to the upper base block with a pencil, and drill just as I did at the bottom end.

This is the upper end of the right interplane assembly with all the measuring, cutting and drilling finished. The advantage to designing the interplane struts this way is that once the airplane has been covered and finished, ready for testing, I can fine-tune the incidence at each strut assembly for roll trim and/or washout simply by adding one or more thin washers between the fitting end and the outer surface of the wing.