Empennage fixtures and fittings

Fabric work on the rudder and elevators concludes with the installation of the several metal fixtures and fittings: principally the trim tab horns and rudder horns, with their respective push rods and push rod shrouds, and the taillight and its fairings.  Most of these small litho-plate parts are secured in position by tiny copper rivets impressed into slightly undersized holes in the underlying wood. This avoids reliance on glue, which would be ruinous in the event of spillage or seepage.  The channel-section enclosures ahead of the trim tab leading edges are also fitted at this stage.

It is with noting that the trim three tabs themselves are designed to be removable. Each is held in place by the friction of two brass pins where they telescope into embedded tubes in the rudder and elevators – a precaution against the eventuality of damage and the need for repair.