Tonight I spent time riveting the left bottom skin. I spent 2 hours on it, and set about 50 rivets. I was worried that I’d struggle to get this done working by myself, but so far it hasn’t been too bad. Riveting across the rear spar flange, and down the ribs, I have something to brace the bucking bar against. This makes a big difference because it keeps the bar square in one dimension, and helps to steady the bar. I can’t actually see the bar, and am doing it by feel, but all of my rivets came out nice. It was actually enjoyable just listening to music and banging away. It’s slow going because I have to feel my way on the inside of the skin.
It feels really good to be finally riveting these skins on! I’ve been making slow progress for months, and this feels like the home stretch.
Riveting the bottom outboard skin