Southco C2-33-21
This latch works by pushing in where the key lock is, and then the rest of the lever "pops" out. There's actually a video I found of its operation here on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2d2S5Rcqgg. One downside is that the key for this will be different than the one for the door locks and ignition, but I think that should be ok. To close, the arm has an adjustable bolt that will catch on the back side of the F-1031 Upper Baggage Door Seal and hold the door shut tight. I'll probably have to install some kind of striker plate for that (maybe even with a microswitch) so that it's not just holding on to the aluminum. Shouldn't be too hard.
Well, I got the latch in the mail yesterday and so it's time to get to work on it. Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of the process yet (I will soon, I promise) but it's going really well so far! I was able to hang the door and get everything aligned and the hinges drilled. I'm really happy with the alignment of the door. It was a process that took a little longer than I imagined it would, and it was really quite tedious to get it to sit just perfectly centered and square in the opening, but Sarah and I prevailed. I feel like part of our success was due only to luck, but I'm not going to complain about that. Once the door was hung, I then made the rectangular cutout for the latch in the door skin and also cut a steel reinforcement plate to go behind the outer skin and provide extra support. The latch fits in place and catches on the F-1031 perfectly! I really like the geometry of it, and once I get everything finalized I'll take a bunch of pics and provide measurements, etc.
In the procurement department, big things are happening too! We ordered our stick grips from Tosten; our fuel filters, check valves and Walbro pump are on the way; ordered some 2 AWG welding cable, ring terminals, and hydraulic crimping tool from Temco; got some Amphenol 31-326-RFX BNC connectors and Harbour RG400 cable; and finally bought the necessary 5052-O tubing and a number of AN fittings from Aircraft Spruce to be able to start fabricating the fuel and brake lines. I've been talking with the folks at DJM about a console throttle quadrant for the RV-10, and I've also been talking with Paul Grimstad about the Control Approach rudder pedal system. He's working on a new design and it's taking a bit longer than I think he originally anticipated, but the good news is he is "back in business" making pedals so however long it takes it will be worth the wait! He's been great about getting back to my many pestering emails and providing updates, photos, etc. I'm confident this will NOT be a P-200 mag situation ;-)
I've also been pondering what to delete/add to my finish kit order. I've looked through a number of build blogs about this and have settled on doing pretty much the same thing Ed Kranz/Justin Twilbeck did for their finish kits as far as deleting wheels/tires/axles to upgrade to the Matco/Desser products, and a few other tidbits. Justin's delete list can be found here. I'm also going to be deleting the windows because I'll be using the Cee Bailey ones. I really hope that upgrade is worth it, I haven't bought them yet but since I've already deleted the fuse windows I'm kinda stuck with that decision now. I'm sure it will be fine.
Well, that's pretty much it for now. Hopefully for my next installment I'll get some photos up of the baggage door!