BSG Shuttle GAL356

[dbhs]

Here's my little Christmas present to the group. I got the 5-point armature
working after a little trial and error and I wanted to share what I did in case
it is helpful for anyone doing this type of mounting armature in their shuttle.
First the plans then some issues I encountered with the assembly.

The part list I used is (all 3/8" fittings):

(6) couplings
(3) 1-1/2" nipples
(2) 3" nipples
(1) bronze cross
(1) tee
(1) close nipple (1" nipple)
(1) 6" nipple
You'll also need (not shown) a pipe section for the stand and a floor flange.

Here's the diagram. Note that the rear is to the left and front to the right.
This is looking down (plan view) and the bottom mounting point (off of the
tee) is actually pointing down but shown pointing in the port direction in order
to dimension it.
The long pipe in the back is not labled but is made up of (2) 3" nipples and a
coupling (substitute with a 7" pipe instead).
The cross is bronze because it's the only one I could find. You could probably
use a steel cross but this will probably be a little bigger in size (like the tee)
and you might need to reduce the size of the adjacent nipples to the next
size down. I thought the smallest size was the 'close nipple' but I found out
a 'butt nipple' is smaller and would probably be necessary if you use a steel
cross next to a steel tee.
I used a pipe wrench to tighten all the joints down to get these dimensions
except for the 1-1/2" nipples on the port and starboard couplings. These are
a little loose and are threaded on so the couplings fit just right in the
recesses in the armature plate. Because they are loose, these joints will
definitely need gluing down to the armature plate and the other pipes.
The 2 areas with the red hatching labeled as 'very tight' are just that. I had
to put the pipes in my bench vice and really lean on a big pipe wrench to get
these tightened down to the right dimension.



The pipes aren't perfect and the assembly needed just a little bending to
straighten it out. The front and back pipes were just a bit out of alignment
with the holes. To fix this I added some layers of masking tape in the armature where the port side nipple sat against it until the pipes aligned to the front and back holes.
The fittings are not consistent in size and threads. I recommend a lot of test fitting to make sure yours is working the same as what I'm showing before you glue anything together.

Overall armature.


Front mount point.


Looking in from the cockpit opening.


Rear mount point.


That's it. I hope it is helpful.
Best wishes to everyone here for a happy and safe holiday.

-Doug