It was good to get back to work today after 6 weeks off. First job was to collect the engine from the shop where the shock load inspection had been completed. No damage found and all new bearings in the bottom end so the engine should be good to go once the aircraft is completed. I asked the shop not to paint the short engine following the inspection as I'll do this once the cylinders are all installed.The plans for the engine mount warn of two issues, first to ensure that the bottom supports do not foul on the sump and second to ensure that the top diagonal tie bars do not foul on the vacuum pump (if fitted). This is all very well but as the mount can't be test fit until complete I just followed the dimensions in the plans exactly.
The good news was that the sump is well clear. The bad news was that the top diagonal tie bars did get in the way of both the pump itself and the pump drive. To solve this the short section of the tie bar starting at the right top engine mount and linking towards the top left fuselage mount was cut out completely and the
full length tie bar linking to the top right fuselage mount was cut from the left top engine mount. With the engine in place it was then possible to re-make the short section and put a small angle in the long brace to clear the pump. The new short section was then tack welded into place with the engine installed and the left engine mount joint remade. Next the engine was removed and as much as possible of the new joints final welded leaving short sections on the underside to be completed when the engine mount is next removed from the fuselage. Finally the engine was re-installed and the vacuum pump now fits as shown in the last picture. If I was doing this again I think the best approach would be to leave off these top diagonal tie bars completely, fit the engine and then tack them into place ensuring clearance.
