Over the past few days I’ve been focused on the top cowling, the aft strake interface with the top cowling, including the shoulders.  This was all in prep for micro finishing the turtledeck.

After a couple of cycles of removing and re-mounting the top cowling, along with a good bit of work refining and shaping the micro on the shoulders, I taped up the side edges of the top cowling to allow me to add flocro along the interfacing edges of the wings and top cowling.

In the end, I only added flocro to the forward 2/3rds on the right wing side, as can be seen above with the tape.

Months ago I filled a depression on the left side of the turtledeck with strands of UNI tape and an overlying ply of BID.  There was a depression on the right side of the turtledeck as well, although it wasn’t as prominent as the left side.  I had debated just filling that depression with micro, but finally decided to just mirror the left side with some strands of UNI in the trough, then an overlying ply of BID.  I then peel plied the layup.

After another removing of the top cowling, and the side tape, I then cleaned up the right side flocro before taping up the front edge of the cowling and aft bottom edges as well before remounting the top cowling.

With the top cowl mounted and the front edge taped up, I then prepped the turtledeck for micro.  I had originally planned do this with the canopy aft edge taped up and the canopy closed and locked, but since I don’t have the canopy latch system completely sorted out yet I simply pressed forward with the canopy open.

With everything prepped, I then whipped up some micro and applied it to the turtledeck.

I have one more decently warm day tomorrow before the weather turns chilly again for the next week.  I do plan on machining some stuff and creating some 3D parts during the upcoming chilly weather.

Pressing forward….