(continued)
After the wing is mated to the fuse you can see right away there really needs to be some sort of belly fairing. Both on the forward and aft ends.
I first made up some paper templates for the forward fairing and after a bit of trial and error I then transferred these to 1/64" ply and blasa wood. I beleive the full size plane has a belly pan that goes the whole width of the wing cord but I was just satisfied with the front and back portions. The aft fairing was two pieces of 1/4" thick sheet balsa glued together at the centerline then cut and sanded to shape. The aft fairing was covered with aluminum monokote before CA'ing it in place. The forward fairing was glued in place, filled and sanded before covering.
The final result looks pretty good
Prior to fuel tank installtion you need to install the motor mount blind nuts. The lower portion of the engine box is open so you have visual access to do this. I copied the mounting template from the last page of the instruction book and lined it up with the pre-marked cross lines on the firewall.
I assembled the fuel tank plumbing. The OS 1.20 I'm using is pumped and does not need muffle pressure. The short tube is for the ambient air pressure/vent and will have a length of tubing attached that routes overboard to indicate when the tank is full after fueling. The tank needs a little push to get it in place and GP has included provisions on the fuel tank shelf for using a rubberband to hold the tank in place.
Nothing remarkable about installing the tail feathers. After the stab epoxy was cured The fin is installed. I made up a right angle template from cardboard to make sure everything was aligned properly.
These two photos show the typical construction of the Ryan and what the interior looks like. Basic balsa and lite ply interlocking type structure. The elevator pushrod sheaths are pre-installed. The servos and battery trays will be installed later.
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