Installing the windshield

TLDR

• Installed the windshield

Details

With the experience from installing all the other windows, installing the windshield wasn’t that difficult.

Even though not difficult, it was a lot of work spread out over the entire weekend. It followed roughly the same sequence as before:

• Measure & rough cut
• Test fit & fine tune
• Cleaning & Prepping
• Priming, Gluing, curing

Measuring & Rough Cut

Before drawing lines around the windshield, I marked centerline of the center fuselage, and the center of the acrylic glass. Then for the rest of the work, I made sure the centerline of the fuselage and glass always aligned.

Then I drew a line around the canopy juggle on the glass for the rough shape. Before cutting, the window could not sit flush within the juggle. It’s at least 1 inch above. So the line drawn was very rough.

For the first cut, I focused on the lower section. My plan is to first make the lower section sit into the juggle, then I can re-measure the sides and top more accurately.

And after the lower section and the sides were cut, I put the windshield back onto the airplane and re-drew the top line.

You can see there are a lot of extra material I needed to cut away

Using my fingers as reference

Fine tuning

There was lot of putting the window on, making marks, removing it, do some little cut/sanding.

Taping and Prepping

Once the window fit perfectly, I used a few clamps to secure it in place, and taped around it with vinyl tapes and blue painter tapes.

Then I gave the entire surface a thorough clean before wrapping the window in a big film for protection.

I also tested to use a ratcheting strap to put some pressure on the windshield. This was required to entire the curvature aligns ok and the window fully presses on the glue later.

Priming and Gluing

Then everything was taken off to apply the Sika products.

I recruited my wife to pump the Sika 295 UV

And windshield is fully strapped/clamped for curing

Finishing

Today I removed the tapes around the windshield to see the final effect. I also used a razor knife to shave off the extras overflown around the juggle.