Yesterday I spent some time on the HS-702 front spar channels. First I marked the bend line and used a warding file to make the stress relief hole that is illustrated in the drawings. Funny enough, I found several builder logs on the web where the HS-702 was bent without stress relief. Probably because it's not mentioned in the text, even though I wonder how it is even possible to make a nice bend without the stress relief, since that's where the flange rounds out if you don't cut it away. Well, anyhow, here is the before and after picture:
Making the actual bend was a simple matter of placing the spar channel at the edge of the workbench and applying some pressure with a piece of wood:
I couldn't resist putting the parts together to check if I really got the angle right. And I did! It's a good fit without tension, and already looks like an airplane, doesn't it?
