April 23, 2007 ...  Here they are in all their splendor!  I finally finished all of the clean-up, deburring and finish work on the Spar Caps. What a job that was; 14.25 hours of filing, and buffing out with Scotch-Brite and Wet &  Dry sandpaper!   Now you are going to think I am nuts, but I am going to clean these with Alumiprep and try alodining these. I will let you know how it goes

April 14 & 16, 2007 ...  'More work on the spar caps: removing kerf marks from the CNC machining,  oxidation,  scratches and nicks. Honestly, the way  I received these spar caps has been the most disappointing part of this journey. 

April 24, 2007 ...  I finished reaming the bolt holes for the wing attach blocks, and assembled the blocks to the brackets. The drawings did not call for washers but I used them anyway; the nut was just starting to bottom out on the bolt shank. Notice how much darker the brackets are on the right. That is what you get when you are using fresh Alodine and you leave the parts soak 1 minute too long.

Also, I tried alodining one of the spar caps. I was very happy with the results and plan to do the other three over the next few days. The spar cap in this photo is the lower left.

 

April 28, 2007 ...  Continuing to clean the spar caps to treat them with Alodine 1201.  I use a 3-step process to clean them: 1.) Wipe them completely with M.E.K. (Methylethylketone); 2.) Clean the spar caps with a liquid dish soap solution and a soft brush then rinse; and 3.) clean them with Alumiprep and rinse. I dry them completely with a clean rag and brush on the Alodine.