I started off my Long-EZ build today by reviewing the early Canard Pusher Builder’s Hints and the Landing Brake plans for about 2 hours.

Then, because apparently it was Sanding Day (I hear Canardians are pushing for that to become a national holiday!), I sanded the bottom corners of the fuselage to shape.  The final result may have just a little bit less foam taken off at the corners than the plans show, but the lower corners follow very closely to the template and have a good flow.

Shaping the top of the fuselage at the longerons, in time & effort, was comparatively EZ.

To be honest, I don’t really care for the shape of the top template… it seems a little too flat and could be just a bit more rounded.  But maybe that’s what some folks say in general about the shape of the Long-EZ fuselage!

I also weighed the fuselage today.  Mine weighs 46.6 lbs vs. Mike Melvill’s 41 lbs at this stage.  Considering the extra glass, micro and flox I added both on the sides & bottom during the repairs, and the fact my rear longerons are a just a tad bit thicker, I’ll take the 5.6 lbs heavier fuselage and press on!  Also, I haven’t given the fuselage tapes and repairs a thorough sanding yet, so that will take at least a little weight off.

And unrelated to the fuselage, once I finished shaping the fuselage I drug out all my raw 2024 aluminum pieces and marked up all the various pieces and parts that would come out of them.  It was kind of like putting a puzzle together, but I had fun trying to plan the use the entire length of aluminum while minimizing any significant leftover pieces.