1.5 hrs. on the tanks...

Do I look like Walter White from Breaking Bad?  Mixing up some Class A sealant.  Definitely more liquidy and easier to apply.  But, it will drip, so use it sparingly.

Covering up the other side of the fuel sender port (or whatever it's called...).  I also went around the rest of the tank and coated any areas that seemed like they could use a little more sealant.  Before I did that I went all over the tank and cleaned with MEK - you don't want to put sealant over any dirt/grease/oil...

Completely coated the inside of the fuel cap.

Got my SafeAir pitot/AoA tubing/connectors kit!  Just need to finish the right wing and start on the left before I'll get to play with this.

2.5 hrs. on the tanks.  Riveting forming holes and installing the fuel cap.  Tried installing the fuel drain...

Bob Zaleski suggested scuffing/sanding the fuel tank rings (especially the inner surface) and cap, so that it will be secure (thanks Bob!), because the only thing holding in the fuel cap itself is sealant.  I used sandpaper and that was way more effective than just ScotchBrite.  Then all the parts were thoroughly cleaned with MEK.

Mixing up yet another batch of sealant...

And we've begun!  Messy!

All riveted.  Big mess..

Even messier inside...  I'll be covering much of this (and the rest of the tank's seams) with the Class A brush-able sealant.  So, it will look much neater by the time I'm done.

The miracle of MEK for cleaning up sealant!  Perfecto!! :-)

Hmmm.... The instructions say to use 6 x 4mm sealed rivets for the fuel drain, but that's wrong on 2 counts.  4mm doesn't fit in the holes (and they're 10mm long, not 6) and the 3.2 x 8 isn't long enough.  I tried riveting in the 3.2 x 8's and it didn't grab the skin - just fell out into my hand...  Grr...

Perhaps they need to be reamed out to fit the 4's?

3 hrs. working on the fuel tanks.

OK, so we have to get from the fitting on the right to the large hole just under the painter's tape.  BTW, I had drill that hole out to 11mm to accommodate the grommet that fits in there.

I would suggest ignoring the bend diagram in the instructions.  It's easier to figure it out live.  Just do follow the general instructions...

Here I am doing the first bend...

It was at this point that I realized why the instructions have you put the z-section bracket on here.  You have to get around that bracket.  I didn't put the bracket on and as a result I made my first bend too high.  Ugh...

Bracket on...

Put the bracket on and had to strategize how I was going to get around the bracket now that my first bend was too high.  I decide to try and flatten out that first bend as much as possible and take it from there. 

For each bend I was going to make I put a small Sharpie mark where the bend was going to be and I put the mark on the side that was going to be the outside of the bend.

Keep in mind that with the tube bending tool shown above, the bend was really going to start after the tick mark.  Getting there!

Next mark to make the final bend, which proved to be difficult to do with the tool I was using.  Too tight quarters.

So, I used this tool, which is normally for flanges.

And we're getting through the hole now!   Also put on Rib 106 to check the clearance (there's not much room) - and we're fine.

But, it's supposed to get through the hole perpendicularly, so I hand bent it some more.... and ended up crimping the tube a bit...  I think it's fine as it's very slight - but it annoyed the hell out of me...

Put the grommet in and inserted the tube.  It's supposed to stick out from the skin anywhere from 20mm to 25mm and it was about 27mm.  I cut it down with my Dremel tool to 21mm.  I'll do a better job at the bending procedure for the left tank.  Funny thing - by the time you're an expert at a skill, you no longer need that skill...  Tomorrow, lots of sealing!  Fuel cap, fuel drain, forming holes and the sender.

2 hrs doing misc things related to the tanks and the wings.

Got my Class A (brush-able) sealant yesterday.  This will be for general coverage inside the tank (anywhere it's not between metal surfaces).

Any time I have lots of things to do and can do them in various orders, it's time to make a list to serialize my tasks, so it doesn't seem overwhelming.  After I took this pic I made several additions as I realized missed tasks.

Had to countersink the backside of the fuel cap flange so that the rivet will have something to grab, otherwise it would have been too deep of a hole for the rivet to grab.

I wasn't happy with the way the fuel cap was sitting, so I flipped over the inner ring and re-seated it more precisely.  I slowly trimmed off the corner of the inner ring until the fuel cap sat flat when inserted.

Got my new rib 106's and deburred, cleaned and primed them.  I really like my clean and prime method and the sprayer I use, because I can turn things around quickly.  Quick setup and cleanup.

2 hrs. working on the fuel cap and drain fittings.  Also a second fit of the right tank back plate to the main spar.

Traveling for work for the next 3 days, so I'll be back at it on Friday.

The locking fuel cap doesn't fit in the parts as they come...

Time to grind them down.  Here I have both the left and right upper parts to grind them together.

Used my Dremel with a mini ScotchBrite wheel.

The lower (inner) ring part needed a lot of grinding...

Voila!  Perfect!

And on the tank.

Test fit of the back plate with the bolts into the nutplates.  All lined up!

2 hrs. working on the tanks...

Marking the brackets and back plate so I'll know exactly where to put them when I put them back on.

And this is where the nutplates get installed.

 The holes need to be countersunk so the rivets lay flat.  Here's before.

One of the holes countersunk.

Magic!

And done!  Perfect!

The backside.

3 hrs working on the fuel tanks.  Sealant sucks! :-)

Got my metric drill bit set!

Drilling out the hole to 10mm.

Wrapped the senders to prevent getting sealant on them - and you know it would!!

Wrapped these too for the same good reason.

And they're in!

Fuel senders attached to the plates.

3.5 hrs. working on the fuel tanks.

Also, over the past few days I've been doing further research on sealants...  Since I can be kind of obsessively neat and organized, the way the sealant looks inside the tank has been bothering me (though the looks really don't matter...).  My research indicates that between metal surfaces you should use the super viscous (and frustrating) Class B sealant - which I've been doing.  But, for inside the tank where you're covering the rivet heads and general coverage, Class A, is perfectly fine.  The nice thing about Class A - it's brush-able!  So, it should go on much easier and look way better (and cover better too).  I ordered some Class A a few days ago, so you all will know in a week of so if what I've read is correct.

I also decided that while I really appreciate that all the small parts (e.g. rivets, bolts, screws, etc.) coming nicely organized and labeled in plastic packaging, I don't like having to search through those to look for the parts I need.   So, I'll go to Harbor Freight and get a bunch of plastic bins that are perfect for lots of small parts.  I already had one for miscellaneous parts, but I want to make that the general approach for all the small parts.

Test fitting the fuel sender to the PCD Flange Plate.  The open hole has to be drilled out to 10mm (I ordered a set of metric drill bits, which I don't have.  Coming tomorrow).  Also it will require countersinking on the other side to allow a rubber gasket to sit in the hole.

Believe or not all these go on the post on the other side from the fuel sender.  I placed them down in order so I don't screw up putting them back on...

Test fit of the fuel inlet tube and fuel return fittings.

At the other end of the fuel tank there's the breather and overflow tubing.  The overflow tube will have to be bent to create a jog around the rib flange where it exits the bottom of the tank.

I think this is where the instructions say the breather tube is supposed to be positioned... "Top outer corner".

Test fitting the back plate and Z-brackets which will connect the tank to the wing.

Hmm, this angle on the back plate flange seems too sharp.  I'll have to bend that out a bit (pending my analysis of how it lines up with the wing spar).

And here's the test fitting of the back plate with the Z-brackets to the wing spar.  Nice!