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Fitting an un-drilled panel onto blind tabs

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Mike Welch

Joined: 13 Feb 2011
Posts: 272

Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 6:15 am Post subject: Fitting an un-drilled panel onto blind tabs

Kolber guys (and girls),



  In the spirit of offering helpful tips, as Doug (Dnul) just did, I offer this hopefully helpful tip to fit a panel onto hidden tabs.



  Here's the scenario;  Suppose you have to make a custom panel that fits very tightly in a difficult-to-get-to

place, like say, a floor panel.  Once you have cut and trimmed, and filed, and sanded….and you've finally got your panel 

that precise shape that fit's like a glove, your mounting points (tabs) are now hidden, and you no longer have a decent 

vantage point to view where the mounting holes should be drilled.  What to do, what to do???



  Here's what I came up with;  



    An un-drilled floor panel that I recently made for my GlaStar was placed in position.  I could see the mounting tabs 

beneath the panel from the front of the plane, but no where near accurate enough to be to place a locating pen mark 

on the topside to drill the holes.



  So!!   I took an old 3/16"  bolt, chucked it into my drill, and turned on my bench grinder.   I spun the bolt head against

the grinder creating a pin-pointed top.  It sort of looks like a rivet, but instead of the head being rounded, it came to sharp point.



  Then, I lifted up the floor panel, dropped the pointy-headed bolt in place, re-positioned the floor panel exactly where I wanted 

it to be located.  Then, I took a small block of wood, roughly centered it above the first tab, on top of the panel and TAP!    Next,

removed the panel,  looked for the tiny dent, and then centered punched it a little better, and drilled it out to 3/16".



  After placing the floor panel back into position in the floor, I dropped in a bolt….exactly locating the panel where I wanted 

it!   But, before I had set it in place, I dropped that pointy-headed bolt into a tab on the opposite side of the panel.  Then TAP!

Voila'!!  Second bolt hole dent.  Removed panel, center punched second hole, drilled 3/16", and re-installed.



  Once you have two bolt holes drilled, and the 2 locating bolts inserted through the panel and their corresponding tabs (on opposite 

sides of your panel), that sucker is EXACTLY positioned where it needs to be,  and then you just keep on working your way

around the remaining tabs, dropping in that pointy-headed bolt per each next tab to tap a small locating dent on the panel's underside.



  I think my custom-made floor panel had about 8-9 bolts to hold it secure.  Each one of those holes was as exact as they could be.

It was as if I had access to underneath the tabs to drill them.



  I think this method offers several variations of uses to allow the builder to make very precisely located blind panels.  Below is a duplicate

of the bolt I ground down.  It needn't be any fancier than a beat up old bolt, ground down to a sharp point!!   BTW, the 1/8" height that it holds

the panel up is a non-factor.



Mike Welch

MkIII CX

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Dnul

Joined: 09 Feb 2013
Posts: 18
Location: O'Fallon, IL

Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 10:10 am Post subject: Re: Fitting an un-drilled panel onto blind tabs

Wicks has sheet back markers and strap duplicators.

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Dnul

Dnul

Joined: 09 Feb 2013
Posts: 18
Location: O'Fallon, IL

Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 10:33 am Post subject: Re: Fitting an un-drilled panel onto blind tabs

Wicks has sheet back markers and strap duplicators.

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Dnul

Rick Lewis

Joined: 03 Jul 2007
Posts: 122
Location: Kingston, Tn.

Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2013 5:39 pm Post subject: Re: Fitting an un-drilled panel onto blind tabs

Thank you for that tip.  This is the reason I stay active on this site.  These simple tips mean a lot to me and I'm sure other also.  Wicks and Spruce have gotten enough of my money on gadgets they have.  I have an use for your suggestion right now, so thank you.

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Rick Lewis

(VW Watercooled Engine)

Mike Welch

Joined: 13 Feb 2011
Posts: 272

Posted: Wed Jul 24, 2013 7:12 pm Post subject: Fitting an un-drilled panel onto blind tabs

You are very welcome, Rick.  I am glad I could help.



By the way…..I got to thinking a little later about that how that method could be used on lots of things,

like if you needed to mount wheel pants, or an instrument panel, or anything is that is pre-made, and yet you have 

established holes you need to locate it on that get hidden.        All you'd need to do is do the first one, and the rest of them fall in line

fairly quickly.



I didn't know they already made commercial versions.



Best regards,

Mike Welch

Do Not Archive



 	  Quote: 	
		   

 

 Thank you for that tip.  This is the reason I stay active on this site.  These simple tips mean a lot to me and I'm sure other also.  Wicks and Spruce have gotten enough of my money on gadgets they have.  I have an use for your suggestion right now, so thank you.

 

 --------

 Rick Lewis

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