Today I finished the landing brake:

This is pretty much strictly by the plans, with a few minor modifications. I’ve never really liked the sorta squared-off look of the back side of the landing brake, so I created a more rounded look by sanding the edges of the foam down at the edges. I continued this contour all the way across the back of the landing brake.

I also used Jack Wilhelmson’s brake actuator. Installation of this unit it very simple, and requires almost no deviation from the plans. It also comes with some of the hardware described in the plans, such as the metal bracket that bolts to the brake. The only deviation is to move the mounting point on the front seat-back away from the brace a little bit. I bought the unit over the summer, so I just lowered the brake with the actuator attached, and marked where it hit the seat-back.

When installing the brake, I think I made my first real mistake. I mounted the hinge a bit too low, and now the brake doesn’t settle onto the bottom of the plane quite right. After closer examination, I think I also found a little low-spot on the fuselage bottom that needs to be brought up to flush. I think a bit of micro would do it, and I’ll add a bit of flox around the landing brake to get a smooth transition when the brake is raised.

At this point, I have to keep reminding myself that these small errors are not the end of the world. I recently left town for a few days and when I returned, the gap between the brake and the fuselage, which I thought was huge, really isn’t a big deal. At first, these things always look worse than they really are. I’ve found the best plan for errors is to leave them alone for a few days after you discover them, then take a fresh look. Otherwise I’m prone to over-reaction.