While I'm waiting on a new die grinder to arrive, I decided to start work on a strip to retain the rear window by capturing the aft edge rather than using screws as described in the plans. So, for temporarily fixturing the strip, I need to make some spacers that are quite close to the same thickness as the acrylic canopy. Judging from scraps cut from the canopy, the plexi thickness is about .173 thick, so I'd like to make these spacers about .175 thick. Here, I'm cutting a strip of wood on the table saw. This little dial indicator makes fine adjustments easy. Simply make an initial cut, check the width of the strip with calipers and then use this dial indicator to bump the fence over just the right amount.

Close enough to the .175 target.

Here's a scrap cut from the canopy. It actually varies a little, down to .169 or so.

Starting to cut the retaining strip. First cut was done by just wrapping a piece of .025 2024-T3 around the outside, then tracing along the curve of the turtledeck skin. Of course, the curve will be somewhat different once offset towards the inside of the turtledeck skin by .175, but I'll need to trim down the width of this strip before it'll fit.

Trimmed the width of the strip down enough to clamp it in place. It needs trimmed down further along both edges, and also, it looks like the inboard end isn't going to be quite long enough, but I'll keep working with this one until I get a good fit, then transfer it to a slightly longer piece later.