Pre-assembling rib gussets on the rib jig (no glue yet)

Alright, there's a lot going on in these photos. As you can see in the photos all the gussets are positioned into place. This allows me to double check everything before the epoxy is mixed, in fact, often times I get it to this point and put it up on a shelf until I have time to mix epoxy and assemble the rib.

But the pieces are not just sitting on top. It's hard to tell in these photos but once the gusset is eyeballed in to position I gently tap the nails so they make a divot in the capstrip.....then I just let it be. I work on all the gussets until they are all semi-tacked in to place.

That divot is important. When the epoxy is brushed on the gussets now have a home to fall into position without even thinking. The last thing you want to do is hold a small part with glue on it and try and figure out where it should go.This worked out really well and made assembly a breeze.

So when the epoxy is mixed all the gussets on one side are already on and it becomes a matter of gluing one at a time and nailing it home. And because the gussets are gently poked in to the cap strip when you nail they don't vibrate off.

Lastly, and this is the last step before mixing epoxy, take a pencil and make marks around the gussets on the cap strip so when it is taken off you know where to put the epoxy.

Photos - 

In the following photos you can see a lot of what I discussed in previous posts up to this point. Here is a list of things to look for........

• Wedges
• Shims
• Nail pins holding the cap strip pieces
• Tooth pick used to spread the trailing edge tight to the jig
• Pencil marks on the jig edges used to locate the gussets
• The bevel I put on the jig where the gusset goes to keep epoxy from touching the jig

Click on the photos for close up views