EAA Builders Log Site

Project: Voltar-S21 -
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Categories

Show All Entries - (818)
Research - (9)
Workshop - (16)
Empennage
Fuselage - (172)
Firewall - (19)
Tail Feathers - (70)
Wings - (190)
Controls - (9)
Avionics - (105)
Lighting - (3)
Instrument Panel - (72)
Landing Gear - (11)
Engine - (93)
Propeller - (5)
Fuel System - (6)
Interior Finish - (35)
Paint / Decals
Inspection - (2)
Tools
Suggestions - (1)


Builder Name:	Vern Little -

Project:	Rans - S-21 Outbound - VIEW REPORTS
Total Hours:	2294.8
Start/Last Date:	Mar 06, 2018 - No Finish Date

Friendly URL:	https://eaabuilderslog.org?s=Voltar-S21

Home or Last Project Picture

Mar 06, 2025 About

Category: Research

Here I am with my Harmon Rocket II, Voltar. Don't let this confuse you, because I am building an S-21!

Below is my RV-9A flirting with the Rocket.

Voltar.jpeg

VRL.jpeg

Apr 27, 2024 Boot Cowl Grommets & ELT - (2.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Attached ELT antenna.
Modified openings on boot cowl to clear downtubes, and modified grommets to allow edge distance for rivets. Used heat gun to shape grommets and have them lay flat to the boot cowl.

R Boot Cowl

L Boot Cowl

ELT Antenna

Apr 26, 2024 ELT Doubler, Cable Exit Fairings - (3.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Wet riveted ELT skin doubler in place. Primed area where ELT antenna mounts to exterior skin. Also, primed glareshield where it fits under boot cowl. Groomed ELT wires.

Trimmed rudder cable exit fairings and fit to fuselage. The fairing flanges were sanded to about 3/64”. When attached using the #8 Screws, nutplates and 3/32 pull rivets, the domed heads of the rivets protrude enough so that they support the fairing at about the same height as the flange.

Rudder Cable Fairings

Glareshield

ELT Antenna Doubler

ELT Wiring

Apr 25, 2024 ELT Antenna - (3.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Groomed ELT wiring and fabricated a 0.032” 2024-T3 doubler for ELT antenna that stiffens the skin. The doubler has joggled edges to fit over the bulkhead and former/longeron and be riveted in place to the existing structure. I will also use a 2” diameter 0.040 round disc under the antenna. Primed doubler with Super-K. The purpose of the doubler is to minimize skin buckling and relieve stresses on the bulkhead/longeron rivets. I may also add rivets for additional strength.

Also, rough trimmed rudder cable fairings. Starting to complete small jobs in preparation for canopy work.

Rudder Cable Fairings

ELT Antenna Doubler

Rivet Placement

Joggled Doubler

Fitup

Apr 24, 2024 ELT Install - (2.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Mounted ELT antenna and bonded zip tie mounts inside fuselage. Bought a new trouble light and E6000 adhesive.

ELT and Antenna

ELT Antenna

Apr 23, 2024 ELT Install - (3.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Connected and tested ELT. Had to redo one connection. Used my oscilloscope to confirm operation. Still need to source the remote battery which is not available off the shelf locally. The rails for the ELT mount were left over from my RV-9A, 2024-T3 channel.

Still need to install antenna.

ELT Remote

ELT Mounting

Apr 22, 2024 ELT Install - (3.0 hours) Category: Avionics

Mounted ELT remote, audible alarm and main unit. Wired the DIN connector and tested the connection. Still need to mount antenna and buy a battery for the remote unit.

I had prepped the mounting hardpoints some time ago, and everything fit perfectly.

Apr 21, 2024 Taxi Camera - (3.0 hours)

Category: Instrument Panel

Installed taxi camera onto left nostril. Connected to Dynon video adapter and tested. Works well, but I will wait to final drill for the mounting to ensure the correct alignment. Amazon: ParkVision camera.

The camera has a 3/8” diameter connector and RCA/Power adapter cable, simplifying wiring. I used a shorter video cable than the one provided, sourced from my endless cable collection.

Success!

Dynon Video Adapter

Camera Wiring

Camera with Spacer

Apr 20, 2024 Spinner - (3.1 hours)

Category: Propeller

Drilled and attached #3 nutplates for spinner attachment. Also attached #6 nutplates for filler plate. Need to use 4-40 or 6-32 screws for aft filler plate attachment.

I need to improve the filler plate fit with some fiberglass work.

Left Filler

Right Filler

Apr 19, 2024 Spinner Filler Plates - (3.5 hours)

Category: Propeller

Used JB Weld and NAS1097 rivets to attach flanges to spinner filler plates.
Inventoried windscreen and skylight parts.

Bonded and Riveted

Right Plate

Left Plate

Apr 17, 2024 Spinner - (2.5 hours)

Category: Propeller

Checked spinner alignment and pilot drilled the 10 mounting holes #40. Fabricated filler plates, which will be mounted to backplate with screws (allows removing for paint) and to the spinner with #8 screws.

Filler plates will have flanges bonded on the inside so they can be attached to the spinner. Using the material cut out to fabricate the flanges.

Filler Plate

Marking Filler Plate

Template Fit

Trimming Template

Locating Five Holes

Checking Alignment

Apr 15, 2024 Spinner, Prop and Oil - (3.0 hours)

Category: Engine

Added 6 Q of oil, disconnected plug leads, removed top plugs and hand cranked prop 120 revolutions to prime oil system. Indicated 26 PSI oil pressure on SkyView.

Adjusted prop blade alignments, set to 18 degrees. Torqued prop in place and checked tracking -1/16” OK. Cut spinner blade openings with dremel cutoff wheel, and sanded smooth. Taped into position on backplate.

Screwed top plugs back in place to prevent foreign debris from falling in. They will come out again when I align the Spinner and when I check the PMags.

Found a local supplier for the Axalta (formerly DuPont) grey epoxy primer that I am using for fiberglass/plastic and interior parts. My old supplier is tango-uniform. Bought a 1Q kit… $150 (CDN).

Spinner and Cutouts

Spinner Taped in Place

Apr 13, 2024 Skylight Ribs, Spinner - (1.5 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Trimmed and deburred skylight ribs. Need to buy more primer so I can spray them grey.

The aluminum standoff started life as a 4-40 threaded unit from Digi-Key, wandering around my inventory of electronics supplies. I drilled out the threads with a #30 drill. A (very) long rivet will be used to attach the rib to the welded tab through the spacer.

Aluminum Standoff

Apr 12, 2024 Skylight Ribs - (3.0 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Completed tweaking skylight ribs. By using the wingtip ribs as templates, I accurately bent all three ribs. The forward ends I bent in a vise, which slightly creased them. However, the fit looks perfect.

The center rib needs a 1/4” stand off for the aft connection.

Rack O Ribs

Apr 11, 2024 Skylight Ribs - (2.5 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Bent Skylight ribs by matching up to wingtip ribs for rough bending, then following Rans instructions using wing to wing straight edges in the center section.

Straight Edges

Ribs Match

They all Match

Apr 10, 2024 Skylight install - (3.0 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Organized parts and fabricated straight edges for Skylight installation. Fabricated bending blocks and attached to workbence. Started bending skylight ribs to shape.

Skylight Parts

Bending Blocks

Apr 09, 2024 Taxi Camera - (2.0 hours) Category: Avionics

Installed wiring for taxi camera. Clecoed glareshield back in place. Awaiting delivery of ELT.

Apr 08, 2024 Blade Install - (3.0 hours)

Category: Propeller

Installed propeller blades and clocked to 18 degrees pitch.

WhirlWind Prop

Apr 06, 2024 2.0 - (2.0 hours)

Category: Propeller

Mounted propeller hub. Torqued and safety wired prop extension.

IMG_3859.jpeg

IMG_3858.jpeg

Apr 05, 2024 GPS Puck - (2.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Completed GPS puck installation, including wiring and testing. Used a Microfit connector to connect to EFIS wiring.

GPS Puck Wiring

GPS Puck

Apr 04, 2024 Bonded Fuel Sensor - (1.7 hours)

Category: Avionics

Bonded fuel level sensor in place. Scuffed sensor and fuel tank with 180 grit sandpaper and bonded with shoe goo. Also drilled for GPS antenna on fuselage and primered with Super-K. Also bonded zip tie mounts to help secure wing wiring harnesses.

GPS Antenna Location

Fuel Sensor

Wing Wiring Connect

Apr 03, 2024 Installed Fuel Sensor - (2 hours)

Category: Avionics

Installed wiring for fuel level sensor switch.

Fuel Level Sensor

Apr 02, 2024 Fuel Level Sensor - (2 hours) Category: Avionics

Ran wires for fuel level sensor on header tank. Tapped off of accessory power. Not using the Rans supplied switch, instead using an ultrasonic fluid level sensor.

Apr 01, 2024 Wiring Mods - (2.5 hours) Category: Avionics

Finished installation of wing wiring terminal block by riveting it in place. Modified wiring of my pitot heat/horn circuit. Rather than sharing a circuit breaker, I replaced my pitot heat switch with an On-On SPDT unit with the second pole enabling the horn circuit. Now, the horn will only be enable with pitot heat off.

Spent some time sanding my repair work to the wing tips. The tips were damaged during removal, so now I have a lanyard system that prevents them from falling during removal (or attachment).

Mar 30, 2024 Rewired Wing Wiring - (2.5 hours)

Category: Lighting

Back to work after 4 months. Converted the main junction of the left and right wing wiring to a terminal block. This should provide a more elegant and maintainable wiring nexus.

I calculated that a 12–position terminal block was required, and so it was. Available from Amazon: search for Terminal Block and Strip 12 Position 600V 15A Dual Row Screw Terminals Strip. Comes with shorting bars which can be cut down to size.

IMG_3846.jpeg

Feb 01, 2024 Additional Parts - (.1 hour) Category: Research

Ordering extra rivets

Nov 23, 2023 Wingtip Repair - (3.2 hours)

Category: Wings

Cleaned up shop and worked on wingtip repairs. Used scrap PVC cuttings and bonded a doubler in place, followed by the finished layer. Will fill gaps with epoxy plastic glue.

Pause in construction now. The homestretch is pending.

Wingtip Repair

Doubler Primed

Home Stretch

Nov 22, 2023 Lights - (4.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Finished installation of landing, taxi, strobe and position lights. Tested from panel, everything works as designed. Managed to smash both wingtip trailing edges due to shop mishaps. Will rebuild them with PVC scrap.

Slid landing light lenses into place. Used a block of wood and gently tapped them into place. Nice tight fit. A bit of transparent caulking will weatherproof things later on. I will use Lexel, rather than unpaintable silicone.

Main connection

Groomed wires

Side panel fit

Nov 21, 2023 Wing Connections - (3.0 hours) Category: Avionics

Routed and connected wing wiring to avionics wiring. More to do!

Nov 20, 2023 Finalized Fuel Lines and Pitot/AOA - (35 hours)

Category: Fuel System

Finalized routing of fuel lines, torqued and marked all fittings. Also connected pitot and AOA lines from left wing.

Pitot/AOA

Header Tank

Left Lines

Right Lines

Nov 19, 2023 L Fuel Line - (1.0 hour) Category: Fuel System

Roughed in left fuel line. From tank to fuel shutoff valve, then from valve to header tank. Secured with a cushion clamp. Used a -8 clamp, modified to a -6.

Now have shutoff valves for left and right tanks, and one on the header tank outlet. Simplifies maintenance.

Nov 18, 2023 R Fuel Lines - (2.5 hours)

Category: Fuel System

Completed rough-in of right tank fuel line connection to header tank and partial connection to left side. Need an AN Fitting to complete.

IMG_3656.jpeg

IMG_3655.jpeg

Nov 17, 2023 Routing Fuel Lines - (2.0 hours)

Category: Fuel System

Fabricating aluminum fuel lines from main tanks to header tank. Using soft aluminum tube and AN fittings rater than the rubber hose, hose clamps and JIC fittings supplied. Also including fuel shut-off valves to simplify maintenance.

R Fuel Feed

Nov 16, 2023 Wire Grooming - (2.5 hours) Category: Tail Feathers

Bundled trim wires and secured in aft fuselage. Connected wingtip strobe light. Routed right wing fuel line stub.

Nov 15, 2023 Tinnermans - (3.5 hours) Category: Wings

Put all the wing tinnermans in place and tidied up pitch trim wiring. Organized tools and cleaned up.

Nov 14, 2023 Rigging - (3.5 hours)

Category: Wings

Completed rigging of ailerons and flaps, except for safety wiring the turnbuckles. Turns out the flaps were the most difficult, with four ball end bearings to adjust. It has to be done just so, or the Teleflex cable can interfere with the bellcrank. For example the right and left Teleflex cable needs to rigged slightly differently at the flap handle to avoid this interference in my kit.

Dialed in the correct deflection for the surfaces, torqued everything and marked with laquer.

Made a special wrench to fit through the cutout in the rear spar. This allows tightening the jam nut on the flaps pushrod.

With Flaps Position Sensor

Jam Nut Wrench

Flaps Rigging

Nov 13, 2023 Rigging - (4.7 hours) Category: Wings

Rigged aileron cables, tensioned cables and set control stops: Backed off turnbuckles, put 1/4” pins in bellcrank control locks, then tensioned the two main control cables with the sticks centered. Then, tensioned the crossover cable. Set the control stops by checking for proper aileron deflections on both sides.

Also installed the flaps teleflex cables. One of the rod end bearings interfered with the structure of the flap control assembly, so I disassembled it and offset the flap handle with a 1/16” washer. Need to adjust the flaps position at the clevis end on the wing. It is easier to make adjustments at the clevises rather on the flap handle assembly.

Nov 12, 2023 Rigging Ailerons - (3.0 hours) Category: Wings

Ran control cables for ailerons and attached turnbuckles. Did a prelinary rigging to ensure everything operates freely.

Nov 11, 2023 Wing Strut - (2.3 hours) Category: Wings

Detached right wing strut to allow for the riveting of the forgotten lift strut exit exit doubler ring (oops!). Also began rigging of right wing aileron cables.

Nov 10, 2023 Ailerons and Flaps - (2.5 hours)

Category: Wings

Completed rigging of ailerons and flaps, except for final torquing of fasteners. Binding of right aileron was found to be a rod-end bearing that required lubrication. Using LPS-2, lubricated all of the bearings in the flaps and aileron linkages, plush the hinge bushings. Cut gap seal on left wing to allow bolt tail on flap clevis to clear.

L Flap Hinge

Flaps and Ailerons

R Flap Hinge

Nov 09, 2023 R Aileron & Flaps - (4.5 hours) Category: Wings

Attaching R aileron and flaps. Fabricated aileron pushrod bushing and attached aileron. Needed to peen gap seal for rivet heads. Also, I remove the aileron and squeezed the gap fairing with my hands to prevent skin binding. Reinstalled, but have another problem with the bellcrank binding.

Made relief cut in right wing gap seal to allow for the tail of the flap clevis attachment bolts to clear. Used my rotary cutter with a HSS cutting bit.

Nov 08, 2023 L Aileron and Flap - (2 hours)

Category: Wings

Rigging L Aileron and Flap. Removed aileron and slightly enlarged slot in gap seal and rear spar. This insures that the control stick aileron stop will limit the movment and prevent the aileron pushrod from contacting the spar in full down position. Reattached.

Peened the gap seal over the Flap to prevent rivet contact when fully retracted

Aileron Pushrod

Nov 07, 2023 Rigging L Aileron - (2 hours) Category: Wings

Working on attaching left aileron to bellcrank. Conflicting plans, so I have chosen to shorten the bushing and follow the new plans. Some rivet heads were interfering with flap gap seal, so I peened the fairing to allow clearance.

Nov 05, 2023 Left Aileron - (1.5 hours) Category: Wings

Worked on attachment of left aileron. Couldn't find a long 1/4 inch bolt to lock the turnbuckle, so used a the shaft of a 12” 1/4” drill instead.

Nov 04, 2023 Tail Cone - (3.7 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Attached taicone nutplates and backing strips. Used NAS1097 flush rivets and lightly countersunk plastic before squeezing.

Re-rigged control stick to be further aft, then torqued ball end bearing and jam nuts.

Closed up tail with fairings and cover plates and tail cone attached. Holding off on riveting VS fairing until I am ready to paint all the fairings.

Almost Done

Rerigged Stick

Tail Cone

Nov 03, 2023 Tail Cone - (2.5 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Trimmed tailcone closeout to fit and provide clearance to elevator. Enlarged slot due to interference with elevator horn. This will also make it easier to lube and inspect.

Tail Cone

Nov 02, 2023 Elevator Rigging - (3.0 hours) Category: Tail Feathers

Rigged elevator and drilled elevator stops for proper deflections. Need to check stick travel ergonomics when seated.

Nov 01, 2023 Tail Rigging - (4.0 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Connected trim servo wires using a 5-pin Microfit 3.0 connector, and wrapped in silicone fusion tape. Tested pitch trim system and trim switches on control stick and panel— reversed motor control wires. Left service loop in place (need to secure) to allow for future maintenance.

Connected trim tab and adjusted for specified deflections. Secured incidence adjustment bolts with blue loctite. Attached elevator pushrod…. I used washers rather than the spacers called out in (one version of the) plans. Another version has a spacer bushing clip for this function. I think the spacer clip was designed to reduce construction time for the LSA and is a good idea. I had no problem using the washers, though.

Incidence Adjustors

Pushrod and Trim Connection

Oct 31, 2023 Elevator Attachment - (3.0 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Attached Elevator and Trim Tab with AN3-11 bolts and castellated nuts. Still need cotter pins. Working on trim servo wiring.

Elevator Attached

Oct 30, 2023 HS Fairing - (4.0 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Drilled out interfering rivets and dimpled skin/spar with pop-rivet dimpler. Re-riveted with flush rivets. Attached nutplates to left side, wet riveted. Attached both side fairings with #6 screws. Trimmed tail cone closeout fairing and checked fit.

Fairings

Tail Cone Closeout

Oct 28, 2023 HS Fairing - (2.5 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Added nutplates to right side of HS. One of the domed rivets on each side needs to be changed out to be flush. This is not shown on the Rev. - A drawing of the HS Skins that I received. A later version (still Rev. - A) shows the additional flush rivets. WTF!! Two different versions with the same revision number? Rans needs a serious injection of ISO-9000 quality control. Of course, the same can be said of Vans Aircraft these days….

Right HS Fairing

Oct 27, 2023 HS Fairing - (3.5 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Trued up the airplane. Both wings have 1.0 degrees dihedral. Set HS to 0/0 with respect to wings and drilled aft bolt to lock it in. Roughed in HS fairing. Installed tennis ball head protectors after several bloody encounters.

LeftHS

RightHS

IMG_3591.jpeg

Oct 26, 2023 Rudder Rigging - (3.5 hours) Category: Tail Feathers

Completed rudder rigging. Attached rudder cables to rudder horn and torqued bolts. Marked all bolts with laquer. It took 2.5 hours to attach the cable to the rudder horn due to limited access. Rebent my 3/8 wrench and bend a magnetic pickup tool to help. A lot of swearing entailed. Would it kill Rans to simplify access?

Rudder deflection approximately +/- 29 degrees.

Oct 25, 2023 Tail Attachment - (2.5 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Final torqued all tail attachment bolts and attached rudder horn. Wired connector to tailBeaconX and tested it…OK.

Ready for Rivets.

Tools Used

Oct 24, 2023 VS Attachment - (2.0 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Torqued the aft bolts on the VS attachment. Used all the tricks to get a wrench on the nuts through the rudder yoke cutout. Used a bag of lead shot and vice grips to hold various socket wrenchs and extensions in place.

IMG_3583.jpeg

Oct 23, 2023 VS Bolts - (1.6 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Worked on installing washers and nuts for VS attachment. Torqued front attach bolts, but need help with aft bolts due to limited access. Fabricated long-arm socket for easier access through rudder cutout.

Extended Socket Wrench

Oct 23, 2023 L Wing Torquing - (1.5 hours) Category: Wings

Drilled extra AN3 bolt for aft spar attach, and torqued all wing and strut atachment bolts.

Oct 23, 2023 Vertical Attachment - (3.5 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Attached Rudder to VS with AN-3 bolts and castellated nuts. Needed to ream the hinge bushings to 3/16” to get bolts to fit. See photo for my extension reamer setup. Used parts from an old hand-crank style deburring tool, a miniature threaded jacob's chuck from my angle-drill kit, and the reamer.

Tacked rubber VS fairing in place. It requires notching in a few locations. Needs to be pushed on firmly to ease installation of the VS. Only a few spots needs to be tack glued— once the VS is mounted, it clamps it in place.

Attached VS-Rudder assembly to aft fuselage, and pinned with required bolts. Also include the rudder stop. Pulled tailBeaconX wires through the snap bushings I had preinstalled in the VS. Working inside the tailcone with limited access is quite difficult!

L’empennage

Reamer Extension

Oct 21, 2023 L Wing Attachment - (5.5 hours)

Category: Wings

Attached left wing, with assistance from Rob. Draped hinges with rags to help prevent cranial damage. Includes 2.0 hrs for Rob.
Also used cyanoacrylate glue to tack VS bottom edge moulding in place. Ensured the moulding is pressed as far up as possible before tacking it with the glue— installing the VS is easier that way! Just tacked it in a few places— the moulding is captured when the VS is bolted in place.

Wings On

Oct 20, 2023 Pull Handle, Wiring, Edging - (2.7 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Finished pull handle installation, ran tailBeaconX wiring harness out of the fuselage, and attached VS moulding.

IMG_3572.jpeg

IMG_3571.jpeg

Oct 19, 2023 Pull Handle - (3.2 hours) Category: Tail Feathers

Cut and trimmed the pull handle tubes to length and disc sanded to shape. Bonded with JB Weld. Cleaned and organized shop. No pics.

Oct 18, 2023 VS Pull Handle - (1.7 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Attached pull handle reinforcements to the VS. Primed faying surfaces and wet riveted in place.

Left Complete

Primed, Ready for Rivets

Right Masking

Oct 18, 2023 Wing Attach - (2.5 hours)

Category: Wings

Torqued L wing spar attachment bolts. Drilled for extra AN3 bolt in aft spar attachment. Attached two cover plates on L wing, just see the result. Apparently I didn't order any fairings to cover the strut-wing attachment.

IMG_3570.jpeg

Oct 17, 2023 L Wing Attachment - (3.2 hours)

Category: Wings

Prepped the left wing for attachment: trimmed forward left fuselage T-bone, match drilled truss attach fittings and up drilled 7/16” spar bolt attachment to truss fittings. Loosely remounted fittings to wing. Upsized forward wing spar attachment holes to 3/8”, by progressively upsizing the holes and finishing with a 3/8” reamer. Rounded strut-fuselage attach fitting to clear the welds on the fuselage fork.

Rounding Strut to Fuse

L T-Bone

Truss Fittings

Oct 16, 2023 Securing Bolts - (4.0 hours)

Category: Wings

Torqued all strut bolts and tightened R wing root bolts (they will be torqued later). Had to R&R aft root bolt to add missing washer. Cleaned shop, getting ready for L wing attachment. Actual install will be on the weekend when my helper is available.

IMG_3557.jpeg

Oct 15, 2023 Right Wing Mounting - (8.0 hours)

Category: Wings

Prepared R wing for mounting and hung onto fuselage. Required a lot of careful drilling, alignment and fussing. Rob P 4.0 hrs. The stand I made worked perfectly to support one end of the wing, allowing the two of us to focus on the task of attaching the wing-fuselage interface bolts.

IMG_3556.jpeg

Rob

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Oct 14, 2023 R Wing - (4.5 hours) Category: Wings

Prepped R wing for installation: wet riveted inspection plate doubler rings in place with CCC-42 (flush) rivets. Carefully measured, then used die grinder/cutting disc to trim R T-bone attachment and primered cut surfaces. 1.0 hrs assitance from R. Prior.

Oct 13, 2023 HS Attach - (4 hours)

Category: Tail Feathers

Primered aft deck and wet riveted it in place. Attached HS and torqued bolts. Required 5/32” shim for aft HS spar to station 11 fitup. Access to the area forward of the station 10 bulkhead requires small hands or clever use of tools. I used a magnetic pick-up tool to mount the AN970 washers and a hemostat to grip the shear nuts until the threads engaged.

Rans has made this area difficult to access and inspect. That's also true on the Vans RVs.

Horizontal Attached

Oct 12, 2023 Tail Attachment - (4.0 hours)

Category: Workshop

Fit HS to fuselage, then removed it to drill the additional tail deck pieces in place. Need to mix up some primer for touch up.

I made the bushings by chucking the tubing stock in my drill press, and trimming them with a hacksaw. Fine tuned the length with a file, then reduced the diameter a few thousandths. Clamped the bushings in a vise with soft jaws, then drilled through the center, starting with a #12 drill, stepping up 1/64th at a time to 1/4”.

HS Bolts in Place

Tail Deck

Oct 11, 2023 Shop Reorganization - (2.3 hours)

Category: Workshop

Moved airframe to center of hangar, along with wing cradles and tail parts, ready for final assembly. Modified my ground power connection to plug into either 12V accessory jack. This circuit is limited by the panel breaker to 7.5 Amps, which will run most of the panel, excluding accessories (fuel pump, pitot heat, lights and other heavy loads).

My power supply also has a 'trailer plug' two-pin connector that can directly connect to the main battery, or a dedicated external power connection for the HDX-1100 EFIS, for charging it's backup battery. This is not strictly necessary, but it replicates what I did on my Harmon Rocket, where it is required.

Ready for Install

Ground Power

Oct 09, 2023 Cowling - (0.5 hour) Category: Engine

Sanded filler on top cowling in preparation for priming.

Oct 09, 2023 Wing Stand - (2.0 hours)

Category: Wings

Fabricated an adjustable wing support stand to assist in installation. Used screws, hinges and scrap lumber for structure. Cut a shop pad up to form the padded cross-piece and attached the pieces with staples.

Wing Stand

Oct 06, 2023 Oil Door - (1.0 hour) Category: Engine

Sanded filler on oil door and cowling. Filled some scratches on cowling and scuffed finish with grey Scotchbrite for paint prep. Still cleaning and organizing shop— moved one tool cabinet and a shipping box for my Rocket's Hartzell propeller to my new hangar — not included in time log.

Oct 05, 2023 Cleaning - (2 hours) Category: Workshop

Cleaning and organize shop. Getting ready for tail and wing attachment.

Oct 05, 2023 Oil Door - (0.7 hour) Category: Engine

Sanded and filled rivet heads on oil door and cowling with epoxy/microballoons slurry.

Oct 04, 2023 Oil Door - (3.5 hours)

Category: Engine

Riveted oil door assembly and attached to upper cowl using both NAS1097 and AN426 rivets. Adjusted fit by bending hidden hinge curved flange to close the gap between the door and the cowling. Filled rivet head rims with JB Weld.

Oil Door Riveted

Oct 03, 2023 Oil Door - (0.5 hour) Category: Engine

Etched and Alodined oil door parts.

Oct 03, 2023 Crate Demo - (3.0 hours) Category: Workshop

Demolished tail kit shipping crate & loaded into SUV for disposal. Easy to do.
— with top lid removed, I flipped it over and cut the bottom transversally with a circular saw. Pried the two pieces off, then collapsed the frame, which came apart easily. Cut the pieces to fit in my vehicle.

Sep 30, 2023 Crate Demo - (2.0 hours) Category: Workshop

Loaded crate pieces into SUV and delivered to disposal yard. Demoed some old scrap pallets.

Sep 29, 2023 Crate Demo - (2.5 hours)

Category: Workshop

Demolished the long shipping crate and cut the pieces up for disposal. Now that my new hangar is ready, I moved my Rocket to it to make more space for the S-21 construction. Demolishing the crates helps!

Photo is my new hangar, with my old airplane. Not ready to move the S-21 yet.

 New Hangar

Panorama

Sep 28, 2023 Oil Door - (1.0 hour)

Category: Engine

Checked fit of oil door when cowling mounted on airplane. Added a 0.032 shim under the strike plate to improve the fit of the oil door. Slightly bent hinge flange and more aggresively fluted the stiffener as well, for the same reason.

Oil Door Latched

Oil Door Open

Sep 27, 2023 Oil Door - (3.5 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Drilled for cowling oil door hidden hinge. Reused existing flange, but changed it's orientation. Drilled for Camloc fasteners and fabricated a fluted stiffener to alow adjustment of door shape. Countersunk for solid rivets, both AN426 on the cowl and NAS1097 reduced head types on the door to attach hinge, fluted stiffener, and Camloc. I may also uses epoxy as a bonding agent.

The blue piece is an Alclad sheet, roughed-in as a strike plate to be attached later. The Inside View shows two rivets set as keepers that allow partial assembly for alignment before cowling holes were drilled

Outside View

Inside View

Sep 26, 2023 Cowling Work - (2.2 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Redrilled and countersunk the glassed-in holes on the L nostril. Trimmed cowling exit to provide more exhaust pipe clearance. Started oil door construction— using an Avery hidden hinge, and an RV-6 composite oil door, trimmed to fit. Plan on using one or two Camloc KM610 button latches. Can't reuse the metal door provided because of the extra holes, but the backing plate I can reverse and use for the flange.

On my RV-9A I used one Camloc, but it popped open in flight once until I tweaked the strikeplate. On my Rocket, I used two with no problems— but the door doesn't have any internal pressure because of a plenum doghouse. I will go with two on the S-21, since it will have internal pressure and to keep the fiberglass door flush. I will put a stiffener on the fiberglass.

Oil Door Mock-up.jpeg

Vans Composite RV Door

Sep 25, 2023 Fairings and Cowling - (2.3 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Attached bottom fairings with #8 screws. Shifted one quarter-turn fastener socket that was out of alignment. Now you can see why I clocked the original mounting— it leaves the option for a re-do.. Filled nostril holes on left side that are used to attach baffle seals. They were over- countersunk— need to redrill and countersink more accurately.

Bottom Fairing and Kilroy

Redrilled Socket

Sep 21, 2023 Cowling Caulking

Category: Engine

Checked the batwing fairing sealant and made adjustments. Added some epoxy/micro filler to intake ramps. A keen observer will see that the fiberglass inlet ramps are not really required, they could be incorporated into the aluminum fairing. I had them in place, so I just used them as structure to support the batwing extensions.

My RV-9A version from 20 years ago was the original inspiration for this setup. Vans has adopted this style for new aircraft (see RV-14 photo), so I will take credit!

These fairings allow the baffle seals to smoothly form to the cowling, turned in to resist the air pressure. In fact, my other baffle mods reflect the way my RV-9A and Rocket were done, which is vastly superior to Rans' technique (which is cloaked in mystery).

Batwing Fairing

RV-9A, 2004

RV-14, Recent

Sep 20, 2023 Cowling - (3.0 hours)

Category: Engine

Sanded filler on cowling halves. Ran a bead if polyurethane around the perimeter of the batwing fairing on the upper cowl, then fastened it to the lower cowl until it sets up.

Filled holes

Sep 19, 2023 Cowling Details - (3.0 hours)

Category: Engine

Removed cowling. Adjusted L exhaust pipe position. Riveted 4-40 nutplates to nostril baffle seal backing plate. Mixed up epoxy- microballons and filled extra holes and nicks in cowling.

IMG_3492.jpeg

Sep 18, 2023 Cowling Details - (3.5 hours)

Category: Engine

Fine tuned the fit of the cowling fasteners and added a pair of nutplates on the lower flanges of the firewall. Sanded the cowling for a better fit in a few places. I may need some shims or washers to adjust the cowling overlap along the sides— the step in the fiberglass is a bit thick in places

Added Nutplate

Fasteners

Sep 17, 2023 Cowling - (3.6 hours)

Category: Engine

Attached lower cowling quarter-turn fasteners. Removed lower cowl inlet baffle strips to attach 4-40 nutplates to backing strips.

IMG_3488.jpeg

Sep 15, 2023 Cowling Fasteners - (3.2 hours) Category: Engine

Continued mounting cowling fasteners. Used solid rivets for firewall flange attachment of receptacles. Dimpled flange to use AN426 rivets. Had to use pull rivets in a couple of places because the engine mount would not allow a rivet squeezer to access.

Sep 14, 2023 Cowling Fasteners - (3.5 hours)

Category: Engine

Mounted cowling 1/4 turn fasteners along the sides and drilled for the aft fasteners. By drilling #11 or #12, 3/16” clecoes can be used to attach the receptacles in position when drilling #40 for the rivet holes. I mounted mine on angles so I always have options for future changes.

Quarter Turn Fasteners

Ready to Drill to #12

Sep 13, 2023 Cowling - (3.5 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Drilled and rivet for nutplates on cowling nose. These are not shown in the plans from my era, but is the current practice. I switched to #8 screws because I had the inventory.

Tidied up the avionics and clecoed the top boot cowl in place. Ready to install wings and tail soon, but preoccupied with smaller tasks and hangar cleanup (crate demolition). My new hangar is done, so I will have much more space soon.

Left

Right

Sep 12, 2023 Avionics Review - (2.8 hours) Category: Avionics

Minor tweaking of avionics to match some changes I made to huVVer-AVI six-pack. Added an option to make one of the huVVer-AVI MFDs into a PMag controller. This involved wiring in a 4-pin Microfit 3.0 connecter to the two RS-232 ports on the huVVer that can plug into either the PMag serial control signals, or the standard instrument streaming data from the SkyView and OnSpeed systems.

Also added a 20K ohm resistor in series with pitot heat sense line, as recommended by Dynon (actually recommended 10K, but 20K works).

Sep 11, 2023 Completed Engine Install - (3.5 hours)

Category: Engine

Reconnected tail pipes. Torqued exhaust fasteners, including cylinder flange nuts. Reattached cabin heat and oil cooler hoses. Check hose fittings and torqued as required. Replaced sump plug with quick drain and safety wired. Engine Install complete.

Left Exhaust

Right Exhaust

Sep 07, 2023 Boot Cowl Rivering - (2 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Wet riveted the forward fuselage bottom, coanda fairing and boot cowl side panels in place. Will remove the top boot cowl to fine tune and test the avionics installation and calibration

Right Boot

Left Boot

Coanda

Sep 06, 2023 Coanda Fairing - (2.5 hours)

Category: Fuselage

AKA Firewall Exit Fairing. Installed exit fairing using stainless rivets and backing washers. Attached breather vent and fuel pump overflow drain to fairing. Since I planned the fairing from the beginning, I didn't use the supplied hardware to mount the drain and breather. The attachment to the fairing uses #8 nutplates.

Firewall Exit/Coanda

Sep 05, 2023 Nutplates and Paint - (3 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Attached bottom fairing nutplates to fuselage bottom skins. Sprayed epoxy primer on bottom fairings and firewall Coanda fairing. The green nutplates pictured in Bottom 2 were installed previously for the interior panels.

Bottom 1

Bottom 2

Bottom 3

Sep 04, 2023 Bottom Fairings - (3.0 hours)

Category: Fuselage

Drilled and deburred for all of the nutplates to attach the bottom fairings. Using #8 nutplates, lined up parallel with fairing edge so that attachment rivets will be hiddem.. Some minor modification to the fuel pump mount was made to allow access for one of the nutplates. The two forward nutplates lay partially under the floorboard, so deburring one hole requires a bit more effort with a chip chaser tool.

The aft outboard nutplates are of the one-legged type, just due to convenience in mounting.

Forward Left Floor

mid Left Floor

Forward Right Floor

Mid Right Floor

Bottom Foreward Skin