The SBD’s tail fin being trial-fitted to the upper rear fuselage to verify critical dimensions before installation.
The SBD’s tail fin is seen here being trial-fitted to the upper rear fuselage in order to verify critical dimensions before the final rivets are installed. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

The Tail Fin:

As hinted at previously, the SBD’s tail fin structure is all-but-complete. Pioneer’s William Lowen has riveted most of the remaining structure together in the interim. The remaining work will involve fitting the rear closing channel and riveting the join between the fin’s main section and its forward fairing. The latter tasks required Lowen to trial-fit the fin onto the upper rear fuselage jig for some final dimensional checks.

The SBD’s tail fin being trial-fitted to the upper rear fuselage to verify critical dimensions before installation.
Another view of the SBD’s tail fin during trial-fitting to the rear fuselage. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

Gun Tunnel:

Lowen has also been working on the upper rear fuselage tunnel structure for stowing the rear turret’s machine guns. Much of this structure from B-22 was damaged beyond repair, sadly, so Lowen had to remanufacture a number of parts to rebuild it. Thankfully, he was able to salvage some pieces for reuse, including a four-piece pulley mount, from one of the donor airframes.

A view of the SBD's gun tunnel during restoration.
This image shows restoration progress on the tunnel structure used to stow the rear guns. The box-like section below the tunnel is being test fitted to the aft face of Frame #9. As the image reveals, the tunnel’s skin has been rolled to fit precisely in the aft end of the box and the cutout in Frame #10 (not visible here). (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)
An overhead view of the SBD's gun tunnel during restoration.

An overhead view of the gun tunnel during its restoration, with Frame #9 towards the top of the image and Frame #10 just below it. The tunnel’s skin has been rolled to fit in the aft end of the box shown in the previous image and the cutout in Frame #10. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

The aft rib for the SBD's gun tunnel and its remanufactured replacement.

This is aft rib for the gun tunnel. The example on the left was removed from B-22. Sadly, during bead-blasting, it became clear that the original unit was too corroded for reuse. The wooden forming block pictured at the top of the image was made using the original rib as reference. The newly fabricated replacement rib and stiffener are pictured on the right. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

Restored SBD gun tunnel components.

The unpainted items in this image were part of a pulley mount located in the B-22’s gun tunnel. The corrosion damage on these two components was too severe for their reuse. Thankfully, a donor fuselage provided useable, original replacements, which are pictured at the bottom of the image following bead blasting, inspection, and primer painting. They are now ready for installation in the gun tunnel structure. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

Flare Loading Door:

Lowen also began refurbishing the flare tube loading door which sits atop the upper rear fuselage just ahead of the tail fin. While the exterior skin survived in rebuildable condition, the interior structure was buckled beyond repair, sadly. Lowen separated the door into its component parts, salvaging the skin. Disassembly required significant skill to achieve since the parts were spot welded together, which is always a more difficult process to unravel than drilling out rivets. Lowen then planished out minor dents in the skin and remanufactured a new inner frame. The door’s final reassembly will have to wait until after the rear fuselage skins are riveted in place to ensure that the contours match up precisely.

The exterior surface of the SBD’s flare loading door prior to restoration.
This is the exterior of the SBD’s flare loading door which sits at the tail fin’s leading edge. Note that the ridge in this structure shows where the door blends into the fin’s leading edge. The door’s skin is sufficiently intact for reuse following refurbishing. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)
A view of the SBD's flare loading door components following disassembly.

The flare loading door following disassembly, with the reusable exterior skin (interior view) sitting at the middle of the image. Sadly the door’s inner structure, pictured at top, was too badly buckled for restoration, so a replacement part is under construction. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

The original and replacement internal structure for the SBD's flare loading door.

The original, though damaged, inner structure for the flare loading door (at right) sitting beside its replacement (at left) part way through its fabrication. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

The salvaged skin of the SBD’s flare loading door following media blasting.

This exterior skin for the flare loading door following refurbishing. The skin has been bead blasted, with minor dents being planished out, and is now ready for fitting to the newly-made inner structure. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)

The components (original and remanufactured) for the SBD's flare loading door awaiting final assembly.
The original skin for the flare loading door paired with its newly-manufactured interior structure, which awaits drilling to match the holes in the original skin. This will happen once the fuselage skins are mounted to the ribs to ensure that the door’s contour matches it precisely. (Image via Pioneer Aero Ltd.)