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I'm just starting to work on the header tank in my 360 fast build kit, and
I've hit a snag.

The header tank, which has been sitting in storage for 5 years, still in the
factory wrapping (until tonight) is 13 inches wide, front to back.  There is
a flange around it (the one which glues onto the forward deck) varying in
width from 3/4 inch to 1 inch.

The problem is that the portion of the forward deck which has honeycomb core
is only 13 inches wide (front to back) at the narrowest point (BL 0, the
aircraft centerline).  If I attach the tank this way there will be a lot of
flange area overlapping the non-honeycomb area, which would result in a gap
of about 1/4 inch, between the forward deck lower surface and the top of the
header tank, which would have to be plugged with epoxy/flox.  This problem is
limited to that area between the canopy hinge cutouts, i.e., the central
portion of the tank.

I've noticed that I can sort of squish the header tank inwards so that the
flange fits more or less completely on the honeycomb portion.  It could be
that the relatively flimsy header tank has taken a set during storage.  My
proposal is to squish the tank (fore-and-aft) to the proper dimension while
bonding in the slosh baffles.  The baffles would then hold the tank into the
proper geometry when bonding to the forward deck, and the bond to the deck
would rigidize this.

Any thoughts?

- Rob Wolf
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