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Builder Name:	Greg Kochersperger -

Project:	Vans - RV-10
Total Hours:	1306.9
Total Flight Time:	1.1
Start/Last Date:	Jan 15, 2021 - No Finish Date
Engine:	IO-540
Propeller:	TBD
Panel:	Garmin G3X

Friendly URL:	https://eaabuilderslog.org?s=Greg's_RV-10

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Apr 28, 2024 Harness done for now - (6.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Got everything sorted out and organized back on the board. It turned into a real mess at some points but it all came together really nicely. I'm glad I took the extra time. I'm certain that there will be an extra wire or two to add but I'll deal with that when it happens. For now it looks perfect.

Took a while to figure out a system. Worked on a couple of the major branches back towards the middle and then once I got the middle segment sorted, the rest fell into place. Just time consuming. I bought a bag of 1000 zip ties and went through half of it temporarily tiring wires in small bundles and then bigger bundles and cutting the original ties.

Everything is zip tied for now. I'll use lacing chord when I finalize it with the connectors. Right now I just want it secure so I can put it to the side for a while and get back to finishing the forward fuselage.

5/1: test fit the harness back in the subpanel and realized I had one of the branches off a bit. Put it back on the board, upside down this time to allow easy access to the data wires. Was able to fix the routing and get a few more twists out of the data wires so they now lay as flat and smooth as the power wires. Put it back in the subpanel and confirmed the fit. Looks good.

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Apr 21, 2024 Rear terminal strip - (4.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Wired the rear removal strip below the rear seat torque tube cover. In addition to a convenient place to wire the flap motor, I'm pulling all of the lighting together to one spot and then running it forward. Wing lights from the right wing cut through the tunnel behind the flap control horn. Glued a tie wrap mount in the tunnel to secure everything and avoid fouling the flap actuation.

Just a few feet short of ground wire to finish all the panel wiring. It'll be done this week. It is tidying up nicely, but I'm still going to put it back on the bench.

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Apr 15, 2024 Panel wiring - getting close - (6.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Just continuing one wire at a time. Wires are a guess for the past several days a d are surely low compared to how much time I spend thinking about this. It is all consuming. Had to order some more wire and more shrink tube labels. Amazon told me that I've ordered 10 cartridges at $33 a piece. Ouch!

Was not happy with the trim disconnect switch on the panel. Really wanted it as a breaker, but it was awkward as I'd like to keep it on the essential bus. Also read of challenges of meeting FAR requirements for “flight critical” avionics on fuse panels that are not accessible in flight. Made the decision to abandon the ebus fuse holder and move the whole bus to panel breakers. This solves a couple problems at the expense of pricey breakers. Overall I think it is better though and I ran all the wires long enough that I don't need to rerun anything.

Also moving the GAD27 to the main bus breakers. That puts almost all LRUs on breakers except the MFD, GAD13, COM2 and transponder.

Made a wire checklist based on the original master interconnect diagram. Just added wires to the list and deleted from the diagram until all wires were gone. Then used that list to QC my installation. Already caught a couple of omissions. Just need to punch out that list and it'll be ready to go back on the bench.

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Apr 06, 2024 Still working the panel - (10 hours)

Category: Avionics

Little bit of time here and there this week. Pretty much running or wire at a time and making some minor tweaks in routing and LRU locations. The big change today was rerouting all the tunnel wires down the left side instead straight down into the tunnel. With that rerouting also went ahead and installed the terminal strips and adel clamps for the stick wiring on top of the gear mounts. Should work out well.

Went back to work on the radios stack support angles for the third time. Got everything clamped in place and marked. Measuring three or four times trying to get these holes all in the right place.

Also talked to Stein this week and they suggested switch to the Aithre CO detector. Actually much easier to wire except I had already wired for the GD-40. New detector doesn't have a status light. I was already on the fence about annunciation lights and Stein confirmed that nobody is really doing those anymore. So go rid of all the annunciators.

Almost all the wires are run. I need to buy just a little bit more wire to finish up.

4/7: finally got the radio stack redrilled to a state that I'm happy with. Also added lower braces between the panel and subpanel. There is an opportunity to add some support plates to grab the back GTN screw holes. I'm not sure if they're needed but it will stiffen everything up nicely.

Just a note that the upper most mounting holes of the GTN use #8 screws. The previous owner of this rack may have drilled those out larger. It seems Garmin oversized the holes, but those top ones just felt like #6s were barely holding.

4/10: made brackets to support the rear of the GTN. Not sure if it is needed, but it was convenient enough and really stiffens it up.

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Mar 30, 2024 Panel progress - (8.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Got the harness put back in the sub panel and started worked out the final bus locations. Really didn't like that the GEA was behind the subpanel before so rearranged things a bit and got it forward of the subpanel. Finalized the fuse holes locations and primary bus power routing. Just a lot of staring at it and moving things around. I think I finally got it.

Started drilling some holes in the subpanel for LRU locations. Going to need to reroute some of the wiring but thankfully I ran everything quite a bit long. Should be able to salvage wires, but at some point I will probably rerun all the wires to try to get them pretty.

3/31: just a lot more tinkering. Running one wire at a time at this point. Finalizing LRU locations.

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Mar 25, 2024 Panel work - (3.0 hours)

Category: 41: Up Fwd Fuse

Used the acrylic panel and the GTN/GMC trays to align and drill holes for the center stack support angles. This was the second try at these and still didn't quite get it right. The holes to the panel came out fine, but the holes from the trays into the angles are difficult. I drilled them to #8, but the screws didn't sit very flush. Then saw the instructions for the GTN say to use #6 screws. I guess they oversized the holes in the trays. And despite my best effort to have everything clamped up right, the alignment of the holes is not great. I will get some more angle strock and try again.

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Mar 23, 2024 Wire harness 90% done - (5.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Reran the pilot and copilot headset wires down the middle to the center console. Looks like I will be ble to fit traditional jacks and Lemo jacks in there.

Ran the remainder of the power wires this morning until I ran out out of ground wire and ran out of labels again. Still have a few miscellaneous wires to run but 95% of the wires are run. Certainly enough to take it off the board and trial fit everything in the panel.

Everything is pretty good except in double flipping the orientation of the harness on the board I ended up getting it upside down. It's fine, but I intended the power wires be in the bottom. It actually probably looks better with all the white wires in bottom - we'll see.

With the harness in place below the panel, I was able to finalize locations of a few items and start finishing out the subpanel work.

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Mar 17, 2024 Spar fix - left side done - (3.0 hours)

Category: General

Ended up oversizing some of the rivets to -4s and had to wait on those from spruce along with replacement bolts for the ones I had marred up when removing. Those supplies are in and finally go to finish up the left side. Not looking forward to doing the other side but all in all, not too bad.

As expected, I had to slightly ream the holes for the bolts from outside skin to landing gear mount. This is confirmation that the spar did in fact shift about 0.020”.

Everything is reassembled with the correct number of spacers.

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Mar 16, 2024 Wiring harness progress - (10.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Lots of work on wiring harness. Shop is a complete mess. Wires everywhere. But there is some order in the chaos. I have been using my cut sheets I made for each system and a lot of cross referencing against my wire list and the larger interconnect drawings I have. It's honestly mostly in my head at this point though. Needing to make some adjustments on the fly for CANBUS routing and general routing of miscellaneous wires. I'm afraid some of the runs might come up short but I'll deal with that when and if it comes. To worry too much about perfect lengths now would stop me in my tracks.

Finished most of the data wires and moved on to some of the power and grounds. I got a few of the “branches” complete today including the GTN, IBBS and GTR. Ran out of 2 wire shielded wire, and need some single wire unshielded wire among other things. Putting together yet another large Steinair order.

3/19: little bit of progress running some power and ground wires. Finished out GEA, PFD MFD, GMC and GAD29 bundles.

3/21: some more progress. Bundle is really growing. Starting to second guess headset routing. I wanted traditional jacks on the panel and Lemos in the center console. Stating to wonder why I need regular jacks at all.

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Mar 08, 2024 Wiring harness progress - (3.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Worked a little here and there on the wiring harness this week. Actually a lot of time on my diagrams and excel cleaning up my wire list.

Had use some spare wire I thought was 3 wire shielded and made a few runs between LRUs. Then discovered it was 5 wire unshielded trim servo wire. Had to retrace my steps and pull it all out. Lesson learned.

Slowly building up. Still need to develop a good QC plan for how I'm going to check all of this. So far I've been going off my cut sheets I made for each component. I'll check it all against the Garmin manuals when done.

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Mar 03, 2024 Fixing spar issue - (5.0 hours)

Category: General

Started into fixing the fuselage spar gap issue. The biggest concern was removing the landing gear mount so that I could drill out the rivets. Finally sucked it up today and started into it. Took almost two hours but finally got the gear mount out on the left side. Damaged some bolts in the process so will need to order some new ones. But it's out.

Then drilled out all the rivets in both sides of the spars. Used my all thread to spread the spars apart and inserted the correct number of spacers. Then started the re-riveting. The spacers are tight, but I think I did improve it enough that the wings should slide in reasonably well.

Will finish up the left side once I get some additional parts from Spruce. Then need to tackle the right side.

Gear Mount Removed

Gear Mount removed

Rivets drilled out

Spreading with all-thread

Good spacing

Re-revit

Feb 27, 2024 Wiring harness - (2.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Started playing around with the wiring harness. I transferred my chord lengths from the panel to the workbench and plan to build all the harness there. Ran a few wires I had laying around just to get a feel for how it might go. Need to figure out the order to keep everything organized. I'm building it upside down so I think I want to lay down all the data first then power and grounds. If I need to add anything later, it is most likely power. It's gonna be interesting.

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Feb 26, 2024 Finish kit update Category: General

Spoke to Anne today to inquire on status of my finishing kit she pulled up a big spreadsheet and said I'm listed for October. About 6 months behind schedule. That will slow down my engine purchase discussions a bit.

Feb 25, 2024 Flap wiring - (1.0 hour)

Category: 40: Flap Sys

Just tidied up some of the flap motor wiring. I was planning to install a terminal block behind the flap torque tube cover to transition the wiring from the supplied wire to my wiring. The supplied wire is long enough to run all the way to the sub-panel, although not to the GAD27. I will install a terminal block in the panel or below the torque tube cover.

In the meantime, installed a couple of adel clamps to secure the flap motor wiring within the tunnel and below the torque tube cover.

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Feb 25, 2024 Evaporator drain hose - (1.5 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

Got the drain hose for the evaporator installed. Drilled a 3/8” hole in the bottom skin and then drilled holes in the plastic drain fitting that Airflow provided. Then match drilled those holes to the bottom skin. Used close quarters dimple tool to get flush pull rivets installed.

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Feb 25, 2024 Transponder rack - (3.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Going to mount the transponder behind the sub-panel but need to make some supports to hold the tray. Planning to mount the tray on the copilot side and allow room for the transponder to slide out on the pilot side.

I had previously ordered the tray from Steinair. Used the tray to fabricate some 1 1/2” angles to span between the forward ribs. Cut the angles to length and then ripped one leg down to about 7/8”. Marked the holes from the tray and drilled those mounting holes. Also marked out the airflow holes in the tray to provide holes in the angle as well. And drilled a few more holes just for lightening the thick angles. Came out well.

Then clamped the assembly behind the sub-panel and match drilled holes to the forward ribs for AN3 bolts. It will be tough, but in theory the whole tray should be removable. Transponder itself should be easy slide in/slide out.

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Feb 24, 2024 More rear power panel - (4.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

A little work here and there over the past week tinkering with the rear power panel. Today received several parts included much need mounting hardware and some new primer. Got the power pa el and support brackets prepped and primed and the. Install all the nut plates. Then mounted the fuse blocks, ground power contractor and e-bus relay and started running some wires. Got the fat wire run from the ground power to the master contractor and the hot and switched battery busses. Then ran wire for the left and right mags. Pulled the wires for the mags and e-bus feed to the front.
Crimped a couple of the fat wire connectors onto the master contractor. Need a click bond support or something to secure the wires to the bottom skin.

Came out well and is really helping me visualize the wiring in the rear.

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Feb 18, 2024 LRU placement - (3.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Spent a lot of time with my plexi LRU templates from steinair trying to confirm where everything will go. Was really trying to avoid having anything behind the sub-panel but it just doesn't seem possible without being quite cramped. I got on my back under the panel to see just how difficult it would be to access things - it wasn't that bad for my 46 year old self. It willl get worse I'm sure.

Ultimately elected to mount the transponder between two of the fuse ribs behind the sub-panel. Im also going to mount the GEA and IBBS on the backside of the sub-panel. That moves the fuse holder to the shelf behind the MFD. I think it is better.

With everything mostly set, I decide to go ahead and run some parachord to visualize where the wire runs will go. Still a little ways away but getting set to run wires soon.

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Feb 16, 2024 41-2 thru 41-3: Cutting sub panel - (2.0 hours)

Category: 41: Up Fwd Fuse

Used my plexiglass panel to align the GTN tray and set the spacing of the vertical support angles. Clamped everything I'm place and drilled a couple #40 holes through nut plate holes in the bottom brace. Cleco'd that in place and drilled the #19 holes through the plexiglass and into the vertical angles. Removed the top skin and drilled the top holes from the vertical supports into the top panel flanges. A little tricky, but got it lined up.

Got the GTN cutout marked on the subpanel and cut it with the oscillating tool.

I thought the autopilot head was going to fit below the center forward rib, but it doesn't. Decide to trim a small piece off the corner of the brace and reinforced it with a short piece of angle.

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Feb 13, 2024 Rear power panel - (1.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Made up a little panel for mounting the two battery busses, the ground power contractor, and the E-bus feed relay. Cut the panel from 0.063” and supported with 3/4” angles attached to the j channels similar to the Vans ELT mount.

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Feb 13, 2024 43:2: Cabin fitting - (6.0 hours)

Category: 43: Cabin Cover

Today was the big day for fitting the cabin top. Had Max in town and my friend David came over to help too. Finished the rough cutting along the scribe lines with the oscillating tool. Then sanded with 40 grit on my portable belt sander. Just took a while to get there but not too bad. Put it on and took it back off probably 6 or 7 times until we were happy with the fit. Looks great.

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Feb 12, 2024 AC Hoses - (2.5 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

My nephew Max is in town for a couple of days to get some good plane work done. After his review of the AC installation, We got to work on crimping some of the hoses. Started with the ones in the tunnel. Used a hydraulic crimper I got from Amazon that seems pretty legit. First crimp came out good and then moved on to the smaller hose. That crimp looked ok, but definitely not as good as the first. Did another end and it didn't even crimp at all, hose came right out. Was this Amazon crimper junk? Finally realized it was user error. 8mm does not mean #8 die. 8mm hose is actuall #6 hose, and 10 mm hose is #8. Got the correct #6 die in place and recrimped - good crimp.

Proceeded to get all the hose ends except the firewall, I'll wait on those. Pulled the caps and loosely installed hoses ends on the evaporator and the condenser. Installed the grommets in the bottom of the plane for the condenser penetrations. It is tough to balance the grommet between hose size and ability to install. They're a little loose around the pipe. Max suggested the pros would fill the gaps with proseal.

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Feb 10, 2024 Evaporator mounting - (6.0 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

Got a lot done on the evaporator. With the lower bulkhead cut and the upper bulkhead at least fitted, I was able to locate the upper bolt holes for the evaporator to baggage bulkhead. This locks in the final position of everything and it all fits well. I also located and drilled the Airflow System intake grill, and temporarily installed the air vents - looks pretty sweet.

Now I'm also able to move forward with the final mounting of the evaporator. I started with match drilling the three holes on each side that attach to the longeron support plates. Then I double checked the center of everything and marked the holes in the support tubing for the main slotted holes. Then moved over to the drill press to drill the four holes. Reinstalled and double checked everything. Trial fit the relay box and realized that it makes sense to utilize one of the evaporator bolts to also support the relay. Happy with the orientation of the relay, I disassembled everything again and drilled the remaining holes for the relay to the support frame on the drill press. Reassembled everything and the fit up was good. I did elect to put a local ground to the support frame adjacent to the relay box - it'll just be for the relay box and fan.

Before final assembly, I also had to re-install, hopefully for the last time, the battery/bellcrank assembly. I wanted to install a nice grounding stud while I had it apart. Put in a 1/4" stud per AC43-13 with aluminum washers and steel lock washers. Need to get some low-profile nuts.

With the battery tray re-installed, torqued and marked, I moved on to the final assembly of the evaporator. Riveted the longeron support plates in place, then installed the tray with the final hardware and torqued. Then installed the evaporator, relay box and dryer. I opted not to prime any of the AC hardware. It's 6061 and doesn't really need it.

Went ahead and ran wires for the relays and connections to the pressure switch and temp switch. Nice to be doing wiring. Went ahead and made up the harness that will connect to the plug supplied by Airflow Systems and run the wires to the front.

2/12: temporarily ran the rear seat shoulder harness cables just to confirm everything clears and I wasn't happy with how close the top of the dryer is to the cable run. Flipping the dryer bracket to the bottom of the evaporator tray allows me to lower it a bit, but the high pressure service port limits how much. We'll see how it looks when the hoses are run.

Return grill

Evaporator support tray

Ground Post

Evaporator installed

AC Relay wiring

AC Wiring harness

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Feb 06, 2024 33-8 thru 33-10: Baggage bulkheads - (6.0 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

Need to cut the hole in the baggage bulkhead for the return air into the evaporator. Spent a lot of time just making sure the evaporator was exactly where I wanted it and clamped it in place. Then made a couple of guide marks in the template provided by the AC manufacturer to try to align the bolt. Got everything where I wanted it and taped in place. I'll go through and double check everything before cutting.

2/9: Pulled the trigger and marked the centers of the holes in the bottom bulkhead. Then drilled them to #12. They lined up perfect with the evaporator holes - so far so good. Double checked the marks for the cut out and adjusted a little bit. Then took everything apart and cut the bottom bulkhead with the oscillating tool. Came out really good and straight. Reassembled everything and checked against the evaporator - came out quite good with just a little bit of filing. Cleco'd the upper bulkhead in place over the lower as it would be in the stock plans. Something wasn't quite right though. Based on the nutplate holes in the top bulkhead from Airflow Systems, the upper bulkhead seems to want to be behind the lower. I guess this makes sense as the lower bulkhead will be coming off more often and the upper will be more cumbersome to remove. Slept on it to think about how I want it to be.

2/10: Confirmed the orientation of the bulkheads on the 3D model that Airflow systems provided. Used the original upper baggage bulkhead to match drill all of the holes in both the new bulkhead and the rear fuselage buklheads. Jumping back and forth between Van's instructions and Airflow's, I cut the two wear blocks for the seat belt cable and then match drilled them to the brackets that Airflow provided and to the upper bulkhead. Will need to wait until I can prime to finish all of these.

2/11: got the upper bulkhead cut out for the evaporator. Lot of putting on and Taking off again. Cleaned up some of the nutplates on the side panel and co firmed final routing of AC hoses. Installed the nut plates at the front of the side panel. Then drilled all the nutplates for the upper and lower bulkheads. Going to leave the top two holes in the upper bulkhead alone until I figure out the airflow routing into the overhead console - looks like there will be conflicts.

2/12: Got the nutplates all installed on the fuselage bulkhead. After almost 6 months this section is finally done.

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Feb 06, 2024 Panel mock-up

Category: Avionics

Sent the CAD file to sendcutsend last week and had it cut in plexiglass as a trial. Showed up today. Looks awesome.

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Feb 05, 2024 33-8: Rear bulkhead - (3.0 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

Was ready to get the rear bulkhead cover drilled in place and then finally the instructions say to rivet the bottom of the center vertical support to the battery ribs. There are four rivets and they are very hard to get to. I have no idea why Van's doesn't have you do these sooner.

I had to pull out the battery tray and elevator belcrank mount. Wouldn't be too bad except for the PITA AN bolts that sit below the lip of the battery tray. And then I stripped the head of one of the #8 screws so badly I had to get the dremel out to cut a flat head slot into it. Finally got all that apart with hopes that I'd be able to get the squeezer on the rivets. Got two of them but not the other two. They're tricky and I'm not going to bother trying to get them solo.

2/6: got the wife to help me buck those last two rivets. They came out fine with a partner and a double offset rivet set. Held off on putting the battery tray back together as I'm going to take the opportunity to install a nice grounding post. Ordered some hardware from ACS.

Cleco'd the rear bulkhead in place and match drilled all the remaining holes. That's as far as I can go on this section until I get the AC return air holes cut in the bulkhead.

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Feb 04, 2024 40-5 thru 40-8: Reinstall Flap system - (1.5 hours)

Category: 40: Flap Sys

Now that the bottom rear floors are in I can get back to where I was on the flap system install. Got the torque tubes reinstalled with the appropriate hardware and then mounted the flap motor. Nothing to it.

Need to torque the outboard bolts still.

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Feb 04, 2024 33-5 thru 33-8: Baggage floors - (4.5 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

Picked up back in the baggage floor section now that AC components are routed and everything is set. Vacuumed everything out well and wiped it all down inside as it will get closed up. Sounds or checked some of the dimples and river call outs. I'm deviating a little from the plans on what is flush vs standard rivet.

Cleco'd the baggage floor and rear seat pans in place and started the rivets. Used my pneumatic pull rivet gun and everything went pretty quickly.

Riveted my modification to the side panel and temporarily installed it with the screws.

2/5: got some more work done this evening in the baggage floors. Squeezed all the solid rivets including all the nut plates in the baggage floors and rear bulkhead. Riveted the rear baggage door triangle parts and riveted the little clip angles. Was able to screw the bulkhead in place and all the screws aligned. Almost ready to cut it for the evaporator.

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Feb 03, 2024 35-2: Back to the rear floor pans - (3.5 hours)

Category: 35: Access Panel

With all the AC nutplates finally installed, I was able to permanently install the rear floor pans. Got the pans fit in place. Had to file a little off the openings that accept the seat brackets, it was just too tight. Got all of the pull rivets set and then match drilled the holes into the spar. I can't access to deburr these holes so I drilled an undersized hole and reamed to #30. Installed the LP-3s in those holes. What a big day. Finally have a secure place to put my weight in the fuselage.

2/4: got all the bucked rivets except for about 10. I ran out of 4-4 rivets! I finished enough to proceed with the rear seat pans and reinstall the flap motor and torque tubes.

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Feb 01, 2024 AC progress - (7.0 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

Finally bit the bullet and spent an hour on my back underneath the plane countersinking all of the holes for the condenser scoop nutplates. Dabbed a little primer on each. These will be ready to rivet.

Then moved back to the tunnel hose routing. I changed it up a bit and opted use adel clamps for the hoses rather than the little grommet support I had been thinking. This is much more secure. I still am adding some snap ring supports for the rudder cables and placing them directly over the adel clamp so even if the cables are completely slack there is no way they could snag on a clamp. This basically completes the hose routing in the baggage area.

2/3: big day today. Finally got all of the nutplates for the condenser scoop installed. It was a lot of work, and my wife helped me rivet everything. Didn't take any pictures of nutplates, but did get the condenser scoop temporarily installed.

This is a big milestone as I can now get to work on finishing our the floors.

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Jan 31, 2024 AC/Baggage area work - (4.0 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

Hard to separate work on the AC from the baggage area. It's all moving toward the common goal which is to close out the floors.

Weather was unseasonably warm this week so actually some priming done after work. Got the various AC hose doublers and a few other miscellaneous pieces. Having trouble with gun though and the finishes turned out pretty poor. Just getting a lot of trash in the paint and gun keeps clogging up meaning ithe gun is dirty somewhere. finally found the culprit and cleaned a part of gun not mentioned in the manual, but I found some gunk. Hopefully that fixes it. Will need to sand and respray some parts.

The small doubler parts were salvageable and I installed the two fuselage former doublers as well as the tunnel doubler for the AC hoses.

Then worked a bit on the baggage access cover. It's going to be removable so I installed nutplates in the baggage floor. I also drilled the #8s for where the top attaches Into the longeron. I experimented with tapping those holes instead of nutplates, but I think I'll probably just go ahead and nutplates them.

Slowly coming together.

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Jan 23, 2024 Electrical/Avionics Design - (30 hours)

Category: Avionics

It's been too cold to work in the garage and it has been a long time since I reviewed my electrical and avionics design. With the AC hoses going in, I'm losing some conduit space so thought it would be a good time to revisit the wire runs and confirm where everything is going to go. Spent a lot of time over the past couple weeks updating diagrams and visualizing the data and power wiring. Made some decisions on:
- IBBS power distribution - hooking directly to the critical components more in line with Garmin and IBBS manual
- Battery Bus - figured out circuit protection and finalized circuits. Moved the hot buss and E-bus relay to the back to avoid long run of high current, on-switched hot wire per Bob Knuckles. It's a fire issue in a crash.
- Fuses - moving most of the avionics items to fuses to save space, weight and money. Only airframe items (flaps, lights, etc) and AP and trim will be on CBs.
- Final decision on GTN750 vs. GTN650 and a GNX. I will the G3X as backup GPS - even though it is not IFR approved it should be sufficient in an emergency. Will mount a remote GTX behind the panel. Trying to still figure out if I will fit a GMA on the panel or mount remote.

Developed wiring layout for the major behind panel harness for power and data - it's a lot of wires!

Found someone on VAF selling a GTN tray, backplate and connectors for a good price and bought it. Ordered a GMA tray from Stein, but I may end up not needing it. Also ordered their acrylic G3X component templates - those should help me finalize locations and even wire everything before ordering components.

Started CAD drawing of panel cut-outs. It is going to be difficult to fit the GTN, GMA and GMC in the center stack without modifications to the cross support bar and center rib. I do want to extend the panel all the way to the bottom of the cross support though, and maybe extend it down in the corners to house the vents. I'm going to have the panel cut for me, so might as well make the geometry what I want.

Also did a little research on the courtesy lights - I want some LED strips in the footwells and want them on a slight timer. Can do a simple circuit with a capacitor that achieves what I want. Open door - lights slowly come up. Close door - lights slowly go out. Like a couple of seconds. It'll be a nice touch.

1/26: was able to get the panel actually drawn up properly in CAD.helped me identify some spacing issues and make some adjustments. Very happy with it.

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Jan 13, 2024 AC: Tunnel hose routing and condenser work - (4.0 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

A lot of time just thinking and tinkering with this throughout the week. Finally started cutting some metal. There are two options for the condenser connections - inside the tunnel or outside. Inside is a little tight adjacent to the elevator pushrod and the rudder cables. But outside, I'd need to make some new access panels below the rear seats to access the connections. The 3D model shows inside the tunnel, so I'm going with that.

The hoses have to penetrate the rear seat bulkhead and it is very tight with the existing holes for elevator pushrod and rudder cables. I strategically located the two new holes to provide maximum edge distance between the holes. Still, it felt like I was not leaving a lot of material in the bulkhead so I opted to fabricate a little doubler out of 0.040” scrap aluminum. Then to secure the hoses inside the tunnel in the baggage area, I fabricated a clip angle for the #10 hose. I was able to use a Vans clip for the #8. Then wanted to secure the rudder cables a little more out of the way just in case they ever go slack, so cut a slot in the vans clips and a slot in a snap bushing to slide over the cables. Drilled and cleco'd all of those angles in place to see how the fit looks. Not bad.

Redrilled all the belly scoop holes. And then drilled all of the holes for nut plates. Need to order more single lug nut plates to finish those off.

Mounted the condenser back in the scoop and marked where the hoses will penetrate the bottom skin. Drilled those holes and fabricated a doubler for those penetrations. The AC kit came with two small individual doublers. I put a larger single piece doubler across both holes.

With the hose routing and the condenser hose connection locations, I need something like a 75 degree bend in the connector, not the 90 supplied. I tried a 45 bend connector for giggles but it is not right. Something in between is what I need. Don't know if I can bend the connectors that were supplied.

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Jan 07, 2024 AC - Condenser scoop - (3.5 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

I had previously marked the centerline on the belly of the fuselage in preparation of mounting the scoop. Then tried my best to mark the centerline of the scoop itself which was a bit of a challenge. It is a compound curved piece and the flange width around the perimeter is not perfectly symmetrical. I felt pretty good about measuring to the middle of the scoop on the front, but the back was a challenge. I measured it several ways and sort of took the average.

Strapped the scoop under the fuselage and set it on centerline and the prescribed distance back. Then roughly marked areas where I did not want want screws - conflicts with ribs and spars. Then removed scoop and laid out the screw holes on roughly 3” centers and missing the conflicts. Drilled #40 holes in the scoop.

Back under the fuse, held the scoop in place and started match drilling holes working from the front and inserting clecos as I went. Used a heat gun to try to soften up the fiberglass and allow it to contour to the belly. Not sure how much that helped, but eventually got it to fit pretty well. Once all clecos were in place, it was obvious that I should tighten up the spacing near the kink in the belly to hold the scoop tighter. So adjusted the spacing a bit and made a few new holes. Ok, several new holes.

Satisfied with the fit, I upsized the good #40 holes to #19. Pulled everything back apart and filled the extra holes in the scoop with epoxy and filled the skin holes with JB Weld. Just cosmetic.

This makes it seem simple. In truth it was a lot of back and forth, on and off, climbing under the plane, realizing I didn't have the right tools, squirming out and repeating. Nice to have it roughly mounted though. Still a lot of work to get the 30+ nut plates installed.

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Jan 05, 2024 AC - More hose Routing - (3.0 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

Have been working through different scenarios for routing of the AC hoses down the co-pilot side. Purchase a variety of grommets and snap bushings from ACS and finally settled on a combination that fits the holes. I wanted to run the hoses through the top two holes in the F-1004 and F1-005 spar bulkheads, but there would not be very much material left at the top if I were to enlarge the existing top hole. Opted to move everything down and drill two new lower holes for wires in the spar bulkheads.

The F-1034 rear seat back bulkheads are pretty thin and although they already have large holes in them, I needed to enlarge two of them for the hoses. I opted to go ahead and make a doubler for this location.

Will still need to clean up with some zip tie mounts, but this is worked out enough to let me proceed.

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Dec 30, 2023 May have messed up months ago - (1.0 hour)

Category: General

When joined the front and rear fuselage together, I had already located the stack of 0.125” spacers that get bolted between the spars. I counted out 13 for each side and confirmed 13 in the instructions. Today, in a different bag I found 4 additional 0.063” spacers. Where do these go? Looked back at the instructions and confirmed it is 13 each side. Hmm. Then re-read and saw “13 0.125” spacers plus one 0.063” spacer” missed that part. If the number of spacers had not been correct I suspect I would have had a hard time getting rivets to align when I joined the bottom skins or on the side skins. I don't recall having any difficulty. The aluminum tube spacers between the spars inboard also fit just fine.

So now I have a potential problem. I took out the bolts and measured the gap. It's pretty consistent around 1.650”.the stack should have theoretically been 1.688”. I don't have the wings so can't measure them but will get it soon. Crossing fingers.

Not even sure how to fix it. Drill out all the rivets in the bottom skin? Would maybe need to re-drill and upsize the holes with -4s. May need to call Vans.

12/31: wing measurement came back at 1.710”. That's not good.

1/3: spoke to Van's. Need to get some more measurements and they will send to engineering.

1/5: I did experiment with using some all-thread and nuts on the inside to see how easily the spar would spread. I was able to easily achieve 1.7"+/- but it immediately closes back up. I'd be hesitant to open it to the point that it doesn't come back - it would need to inelastically deform somewhere and that's probably not good.

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Dec 27, 2023 AC - baggage area work - (4.3 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

AC instructions show hoses running down the copilot side. That should work, but I need to figure out how to get them through the baggage area and through the baggage bulkhead. This will require cutting two 1.125” holes in the fuselage former. I planned out a doubler for this former out of 0.032”. Decided to reinforce the face of the former and wrap it around to river to the skin too. This should allow me to minimize the edge distance for the AC holes and reduce the loss of baggage space.

Will also need to figure out modifications to the baggage area cover on the copilot side. I will either change the angle of the whole cover plate or just fabricate a little cover out of aluminum or fiverglasss to cover the hoses.

Mocked up a little cardboard piece to see what a cover might look like. I think it will work well.

12/28: got some better poster board to continue refining the cover plate. It will need to extend all the way under the bulkhead closure panel which will change the angle a bit. Used the olde baggage closure panel and it cut to where I think it would need to be to maintain screw spacing and edge distances. Gives me a good feel for the cover plate and then I can transfer the marks to the new baggage closure panel that Airflow Performance provided.

Thinking now about making it all removable. Would just need nut plates to the longeron and in the baggage floor.

12/30: spending about a 10:1 ratio of thinking time to doing time on this. Finally made a cut in the baggage area side cover plate. It will get covered with the new plate I have yet to fabricate. If it's going to be removable, a couple of the existing holes are too close to stiffeners or ribs so I cosmetically filled them with JB weld and will drill new holes for #8 screws. Cut the AC bulkhead and match drilled the holes based on the original bulkhead. Coming together slowly.

1/2: bent the aluminum version of the cover plate and it came out good on the first try. Went ahead and drilled the holes to the baggage floor and to the longeron. Found that I was able to tap the holes in the longeron for #8 screws.

1/3: drilled out the holes in the skin that coincide with the stiffener I'm putting in. Then match drilled and dimpled the hole in the stiffener. Then laid out the holes from the stiffener to the baggage bulkhead and drilled the two large holes for the AC lines. Will still add some mounts and zip ties to secure everything but so far it seems to all fit pretty well and as planned.

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Dec 25, 2023 Relocating COM antenna - (4.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

That was a lot of work to move the antenna. I drilled out all of the previous doubler rivets and removed the double let and the fill plate. I wasn't in love with the previous doubler plate so scrapped it and made another with 0.060” plate I had specific for making doublers. I was able to salvage the fill plate and use it to transfer the hole pattern to the new doubler and the bottom skin. Took some careful back and forth, but go all the hole redrilled.

Made a new splice plate to patch the old antenna hole in the bottom of the skin and then made a small circular plug to fill the hole. I put three small oops rivet to hold the plug.

Got everything deburred, countersunk and then Alodined. Alodine came out good. Will need the dimple the bottom skin with close quarters die and then rivet. Good for now though.

1/6: Dad was in town, and we were able to get the cover plate and new doubler riveted into place. They're alodined, but I will paint them before I close it up.

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Dec 22, 2023 Air conditioner arrived - (3.0 hours)

Category: Air Conditioner

AC arrived today and I spent about an hour inventorying the kit. Everything was included although the 3” skeet tubing needs to be replaced. Quick email to Bill and a new one is one the way. The aluminum bulkhead was also bent a little in two corners but I was able to bend it back with a hand seamer. It's not perfect but good enough. Really impressive kit. Everything well packaged and the evaporator and manifold are both very nicely made plastic. I separated all the FWF items that I won't need for a while and put them away.

Couldnt help but start framing up the evaporator a bit. Marked the longerons and clamped the support plates in place. Drilled the holes. Exciting stuff.

12/24: installed the temp probe into the coil and attached to the side of the evaporator frame. Photos in instructions show electrical connections going forward, but model shows them going back. Going back gives more room so going with that even it meant drilling new holes for mounting. Instruction indicated that was possible. Marked the centerline of the condenser scoop and marked the centerline of the bottom of fuselage.

Loosely mounted the condenser scoop under the fuselage and confirmed a fear. The condenser conflicts with the hole in the bottom of the fuse that I made for the com antenna. I'll have to move it and plug the hole.

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Dec 20, 2023 43-3: Started cutting on the cabin top - (1.5 hours)

Category: 43: Cabin Cover

Nothing much to do so thought I'd start cutting the cabin too. Used my oscillating tool and it actually does a really good job. Got the verticals cut to the scribe line and as everyone else has reported, it is not even close. The cabin top is 1/2” too wide. Even if they get shaved down razor thin, I don't see how the get down to the 37” width they need to be.

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Dec 17, 2023 42-2 thru 42-4: Right seat back - (2.5 hours)

Category: 42: Rear Seat Bk

Vans parts department is up and running and I received my angle stock within a week. Was able to fabricate and assemble the right seat back to match the left side. Also went back and countersunk the holes that match the dimples at the crossbar.

Won't be able to prime and finish these until it warms up a bit in the spring.

Also sent payment for the remainder of the AC. Doubling down on Van's making it through all of this.

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Dec 10, 2023 35-2: Rear floor pan prep - (1.5 hours)

Category: 35: Access Panel

I've been told that the rear floor pans are very difficult to get in and once they're in, you really can't get them out. So wanted to get everything prepped. I had previously deburred and primed them so just needed to get them dimpled and install the nut plates. Use the DRDT to dimple everything and then even used it to rivet the nut plates. A little bit of trial and error but I found as long as I could keep the assembly level, and if I preinstalled all the screws, I could set pretty flush rivets. Came out good.

Once the floor pan is in, they do have you match drill the spar. I won't have a lot of opportunity to deburr these holes (wouldn't have good access even if I could remove the floor pan) so I will drill the holes undersized and ream them to #30.

Can't install these floor parts s until I have the AC, but they're ready at least.

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Dec 09, 2023 42-2 thru 44-3: Left rear seat fabrication - (3.0 hours)

Category: 42: Rear Seat Bk

Just chipping away at whatever I can. Decided to build the rear seat backs today. Quick inventory though confirmed that I'm short some of the angle stock I need. I can build one of them at least.

Cut the angles to the required length and laid out the holes in the seat back. Match drilled the side angles to the seat back with a #40. The top angle has to be shaped to remove the vertex from the angle so that it will fit under the bend at the top of the seat back. This was a bit of a challenge but just had to work with a few different files and belt sander to smooth it down. Pretty happy with the fit. Then laid out the holes for the top angle and match drilled everything to the seat back assembly. Trimmed the hinge material for the bottom and aligned everything in place and match drilled.

Once everything was match drilled #40 and cleco'd together, I final drilled everything to #30. Then deburred everything.

Fun little project with a lot of fabrication. I think the seat back is basically the same as what is in an RV-6 and it was fun to get a sense of what it was like for those builders that didn't have any predrilled holes. It came out really well.

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Dec 08, 2023 Stalled out a little Category: General

This has been developing for the past couple months, but this week it is official that Van's has filed chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Best case is that costs me some more money for my finishing kit. Worst case is that Van's doesn't make it through this and I can't finish my build with any reasonable amount of time or money. I'm hearing 30% increase in a lot price that I already committed to. That's not the end of the world but the overall uncertainty of the situation is causing me a lot of anxiety.

I'm basically stalled in the build right now. I can't finish the baggage area until I get the air conditioner and I'm reluctant to sink more costs into the build until I at least know what my kit price increase is going to be. Even then, I'd like to have some more confidence in Van's ability to deliver my finish kit. I'm. It going to vent in VAF or Facebook, but I will track my frustration here.

Might just take a pause for a few months and see how things shake out.

Nov 20, 2023 33-4: Baggage floor redo - (5.0 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

I had primed the new baggage floor last week so this weekend I temporarily installed them so that I could match drill the door frame pieces again. Then got out the DRDT2 and dimpled all the holes in the floors. Given how difficult it will be to dimple a few of the substructure holes along the edge of the baggage floors, I'm opting to leave them as LP4 instead of CS4s. They're covered up anyways. Alternatively, there are some rivets along the edges of access panels that are called as LPs that I have dimpled for CSs.

Got the old stiffeners backriveted into the new floors and installed the access plate hardware. Short a few -6 nut plates so ordered a few from spruce. Still can't install these floor until I see what the AC install looks like.

Weather was mid 60s and the sun was out. This could be my last chance to prime for a while. So I prepped the rear floor pans and the baggage door frame parts and baggage access panels. They did not come out well. Too cold and/or too humid. Not terrible, just poor surface. I will end up sanding them a bit and repainting.

11-24: installed the missing -6 nut plates.

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Nov 11, 2023 39-2 thru 39-10: Control system - (11.5 hours)

Category: 39: Control Sys

Started the weekend off removing the flap torque tubes. It actually wasn't that hard - maybe 30 minutes. I don't want to do much with the rear floors because I'm waiting on the air conditioner to confirm nut plate locations. So the control systems is actually the next viable thing to work on.

Started the section with the fabrication of the pushrods. Got them cut to length and then drilled and primed the inside of the tubes. Once the primer had cured all day, I riveted the ends on and then primed the outside of the completed pushrods. Worked on the safety wiring of the forward pushrod and did it a couple of times until I was super happy with it. The plans show the safety wire loosely wrapped around the rod bearing, not necessarily the bolt - wasn't really sure how to accomplish this, but did my best to have a loose loop. Installed the forward pushrod, then installed the rear pushrod in the tunnel. Removed the battery tray and installed the bolt through the rear pushrod to bottom of the bellcrank - what a pain to install that bolt. I was fairly contorted through the baggage door and the pushrod was pretty locked in by the hole in the bulkhead - they really give you just enough room to get it done. Little did I know this was a preview of how this entire section would be. Got the battery tray re-installed and called it a day.

11/12: Started the day with minor work on the idler arm to get it drilled and deburred. Was optimistic that it might actually be warm enough to prime today, but not yet. Moved on to drilling of the control sticks to the control stick bases. Messed around with several different clamping scenarios before I was happy with it, but ultimately was just eye-balling to check if the stick was in-plane with the stick bases. Once happy with the alignment, match drilled to #12. Installed the control column to the two brackets in the fuselage and ran into the first instance of washers that needed to be inserted into tight spaces. I know some use washer wrenches, but I don't have any. I used a piece of blue painters tape to low the washer into position and then push the bolt through it. Still very challenging and took several attempts, but ultimately was sucessful in getting washers into tight spots.

Checked the length of the control stick base bushings and compared to the control stick bases. Filed the bases down a little to provide the 0.010" difference between the base and bushing. Then used the bench vice to press the bushings into the bases. Then went to fit in the control column, and they were both almost 1/16" too long. I wish the instructions had stated to check that measurement before pressing the bushings in. Oh well, was able to shave the assembly down on the disc sander and get them to fit. Installed the stick bases into the control column and installed the castle nuts with cotter pins. Loosely installed the control sticks.

Got the aileron pushrods installed with more tight washers, but had my technique down pretty good now. Then went to attach the forward elevator to the control column and couldn't get the safety wired pushrod end to fit. The hole I left in the safety wire was too big. I tried to loosen up the safety wire in place, but just made it to where I wasn't happy at all with it. Taking that pushrod out to redo the safety wire would require removing the rear pushrod and the battery box, including redoing that very difficult bellcrank nut. Decide to try to redo the safety wire in place. I was tough, but actually worked out pretty well. Instead of guessing, I was able to wrap the wire on either side of the pushrod end bearing and twist it reasonably tight. Very difficult working around the fuel lines in the tunnerl, but got something I was happy with.

Weather turned out nice in the afternoon and was able to prime the idler arm along with the new baggage floors. Then assembled the idler and installed. More difficult washers, but got it all together.

Need to adjust parallelness of sticks and check bolt length or washer configuration on idler arm. Something is off.

11/26: adjusted the sticks to be parallel and figured out the washers on the idler arm. I misread the instructions and had an extra washer on the rear pushrod. I don't know how the heck I got that washer in there.

Rear bellcrank bolted

Idler arm prepped

Idler arm assembly

Idler arm primed

Idler arm installed

Drilling control stikcs

Control Column

Stick bases installed

Stick/Control Column assembly

Forward pushrod

Safety wired in-place

Somewhat finished

Nov 05, 2023 35-6: Tunnel covers - (1.5 hours)

Category: 35: Access Panel

Have had the tunnel covers loosely installed for a while, but wanted to go ahead and prime them today. I noticed that the notch in the front of the F-1015A forward tunnel cover was touching the brake lines. Decided to make that notch a little larger to provide clearance.

Then primed everything with a batch of other tunnel parts.

A little tight to the brake lines

A little better

Tunnel covers primed

Nov 05, 2023 40-4 thru 40-8: Flap work - (4.5 hours)

Category: 40: Flap Sys

Finished cutting the support blocks.

After some trial fitting and anticipating difficulty getting the support blocks over the torque tube powder coasting, I tried putting the torque tubes in the freezer. Was able to fairly easily get the supports over the frozen tubes.

Had my brother in law in town and he helped me get the tubes installed and bolted the blocks in place. Then installed the center flap crank and installed the AN3 bolts. Initially had the clocking of one of the tubes off by 180 degrees and it was enough to make the installation of the bolts very difficult. Thought I could tap it in with a mallet but ended up marring the threads a bit. Will need to order a new one.

Installed the AN4s that secure the external flap horn. Those bolts were tough to get to but managed.

Used a 9V battery to extend the flap motor. The description of the wires in the manual is a bit confusing but then read online that it is the two larger wires; makes sense. Once extended, measured the length of the rod end bearing per plans and confirmed adequate thread insertion. A little locktite on the jam nut and torque sealed it.

Took advantage of the warm weather today and went ahead and primed a batch of miscellaneous parts in the tunnel and rudder pedal supports. Once that was dry, installed the flap motor. Don't believe I had the AN4-12 bolt that connects the flap motor to the crank in the kit so will need to order one.

[Update - shouldn't have done all of this yet. It all has to come out to put the rear floor pans in.]

JP helping out

Flap torque tube install

Tough bolts

Outboard flap horn

Priming misc parts

Flap motor and rod end bearing

Motor installed

Temp bolt to flap crank

Oct 29, 2023 40-2 thru 40-4 & 40-6: Starting on flap controls - (2.5 hours)

Category: 40: Flap Sys

Match drilled the flap torque tubes. Used the W-706 jig to set the clocking per the plans. Pretty easy. Primed the inside of all the pipes.

Cut the first couple of UHMW blocks and trial fit them to the torque tubes. As expected, they are very tight. Will need to play with heating the blocks and/or chilling the torque tubes to facilitate installation.

Jumped ahead and trial fit the flap motor. Deburred the bracket pieces to be ready be priming.

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Oct 28, 2023 Replace fwd fuse rib - (1.0 hour) Category: 31: Upper Fuse

Had just the one LCP that I'm replacing, the center rib in the forward fuse.

Just a little time to take things apart and reassemble. Revisiting this section though I did realize that I don't have the F-1083Q throttle cable support for the quadrant option. I'll need to order one, but with the issues at Van's, who knows when I'll get it.

Oct 28, 2023 Forward rudder pedal position - (1.0 hour)

Category: 38: Rud Pedals

Although I plan to use the aft rudder position, I realize it is probably better to go ahead and do the work now to accommodate the forward position in case I get taller some day. I had previously run the crossover brake lines below the center support and realize now that they'd be in the way of sliding the pedals back. Thankfully the hole I drilled for the adel clamp is exactly where it needs to be for the rear rudder position.

So unbolted everything and slid the side support brackets back to the rear position. The match drilled the center support block in the rear position. Ran the crossover cables above the center bracket and drilled a hole through the too flange. Decided to install a nut plate to maybe make it easier to remove in the future. Maybe. It's going to be very tight up in there but at least now you'll only need to get one wrench on it and not two.

That's it. Can disassemble it all now and prime a few parts.

Drilling forward holes

Nut plate install

Rerouting crossover hoses

Oct 27, 2023 Bad news from Vans Category: General

A depressing weekend with a lot of uncertainty on what things will look like going forward. Van's announced that they are essentially insolvent and sounds like on the verge of bankruptcy.

Even if they're not going out of business it sounds like I could lose a deposit on my finishing kit or pay an increased price. Oh, I hope I don't have a $60,000 paperweight in my garage.

Oct 24, 2023 33-4: Redo baggage floors and step access - (1.8 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

Received new baggage floors and access plates, but need to harvest all of the stiffeners from the olds floors. So got to drill out about 80 rivets.

Then carefully laid out the location for the new access panels knowing what I know now. Marked and drilled the corner holes. Called it a night.

10/26: cut the access holes. I really struggle with these. On the second one, I held the dremel well short of the line and then files to the line. Came out better. They'll both be covered with carpet so not too concerned.

Drilling out old floors

Access plate holes

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Oct 22, 2023 Running list of kit modifications/additions Category: General

Modifications and Additions:
Empennage:
- Ran conduit and installed doubler and nutplates for VS mounted NAV antenna (As a contingency in case Archer antennas don't work well)
- Installed Garmin pitch servo bracket
- Installed RV-14 Yaw Damper bracket with minor modifications for RV-10. Use with RV-10 Bow from Garmin.
- Installed upgraded Static ports from Cleaveland Tool
- Installed nut plates in bottom rudder fairing to make removable
- Purchased and drilled holes for ADAHRS bracket, but likely not going to use
- Aeroled tail light

Wing:
- Aluminum pitot mount
- Garmin Regulated Pitot/AOA
- FlyLED seven star landing light.
- Aeroled nav/strobe lights
- Ductwork leading edge light kit
- GMU22 Magnetometer bracket near tip
- Bob Archer wingtip NAV antenn
- Electric aileron trim
- Roll Auto-pilot servo mount
- Warner Fuel Sending units
- (Planned) Icing proof fuel vent? https://vansairforce.net/community/showthread.php?p=21691
- (Planned) Fuel caps?
- Installed extra bung for possible fuel return line - capped
- Stainless hex head screws for installation of fuel sending units
- Inadvertent use of LP4 rivets on left aileron end ribs instead of CS4. Looks fine. Went ahead and did the same on right aileron to match.
- Fiberglassed over the wingtip trailing edge rib to close up hole and just generally better finish.

Fuselage:
- (Planned) Tosten Grips or Pioneer?
- Andair fuel valve - FS20-7T with 90 degree fittings on left and right and straight AN fitting out bottom
- Stainless Heater Box
- TS Flightlines brake lines at pedals and gear legs
- installed return springs on brake master cylinders to reduce brake drag.
- (Planned) TS Flightlines wing root filters
- (ordered) Airflow systems air conditioner
- (Planned) Aerosport center console w/o throttle
- (Planned) Aerosport overhead console
- A pillar conduit run to overhead? GPS, lighting
- Overhead pod? Lighting, Heat, AC controls?
- (Planned) Leaning toward stock panel - hydrodip?
- access panels for landing gear mount. 45 degree bolt install, TCW bushings
- 3M fire stop around firewall
- Airward tunnel access kit - just on co-pilot side
- Com antenna doubler under rear left passenger seat
- transponder antenna under copilot seat

Finish:
- (Planned) Plane around door handles
- (Planned) Low profile handles
- (Planned) Sikaflex (sikadur?) window attach?
- (Planned) upgraded Matco brakes
- (Planned) heavy duty door struts

FWF:
- (Planned) lava shield
- (Planned) TCW vent control servos
- (Planned) TCW oil cooler servo
- (Planned) Red Cube mount FWF

Oct 20, 2023 38-6 & 7: TS Flightlines brake lines - (2.0 hours)

Category: 38: Rud Pedals

My general rule of thumb is that I'm not going to pay for things just to reduce my build time. I was happy to bend the hard brake lines through the tunnel and under the seats, but the stock configuration of flexible nylon hoses between the brake pedals seems pretty cheap and likely to leak some day. So I did splurge a little for the stainless steel braided hoses from TS Flightlines, just for the hoses between the pedals, and they arrived this week.

Was very pleased to see the included all of the AN hardware needed for the master cylinders and the reservoir. The hoses are varied in length and there are not any instructions provided so it took me a minute to figure out which hose goes where. Once I got that sorted out though the installation was very easy.

Loosely installed the AN fittings in all places, will need to come back and seal the pipe threads and final tighten. Then connected the hoses to confirm the routing. The two holes in the center rudder support bracket don't work well for these lines so you either go over the top of the bracket or below. Was going to go over, but the top flange of the bracket isnt really wide enough to drill and install an adel clamp to hold the hoses. So I went under and secured both hoses with two clamps and a single bolt.

Tidied things up with a few tie wraps and checked the motion of the pedals and brakes. Clearances are good.

Will not final torque anything yet. This whole assembly need to come out when I paint the interior. But it's done for now.

Also went ahead and springs on the master cylinders to help them fully extend and not drag. It's a common modification and I got the McMaster-Carr part numbers off another builder's log. Part numbers in image. All went together pretty easy, but the springs are a little firmer than I wish they were. We'll see.

Routing brake lines

Complete brake line install

Brake return spring

Return springs installed

McMaster spring parts

Oct 16, 2023 38-8 thru 38-10: Running the rudder cables - (3.5 hours)

Category: 38: Rud Pedals

Wow, what a pain. Tried to get my son to crawl in the back of the tail cone to run rudder cables but he couldn't get the spade on the cables through the snap bushings. Ended up crawling back there myself and was able to get it. But of course the first try ended up with the cables twisted and had to redo it. I think I was in and out of the tail a total of three times. Each time more awkward than the last.

Finally got them run all the way to the front and then installed the adel clamps in the rear and the adel clamps at the front tunnel exit.

10/22: fabricated the links and primed and then installed them. Drilled the holes in the nylon cable guides and then match drilled them to the tunnel ribs. Installed. When fully tightened, they are a bit too tight in the cables, so backed off a little. Need to play with that later.

No cotter pins installed yet, all of this needs to come apart later when I paint the interior.

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Oct 15, 2023 38-2 thru 38-5: starting in rudder pedals - (2.0 hours)

Category: 38: Rud Pedals

Trying to get everything that needs EkoPoxy prepped and ready to prime,so I'm skipping ahead a little bit.

I had previously prepped the rudder pedals and brake master cylinder brackets so finally it was time to river eat the doublers to the pedals. Based on the diagram in the plans, I misinterpreted which was the front face of the pedals and installed all the rivets backwards. I will need to drill them out and redo.

Drilled the center support block per the plans and cut it in half. Match drilled the side support blocks. Bolted everything up and match drilled the center support bracket.

Always knew that I didn't want the stock nylon brake lines. Ordered just the firewall lines and gear leg line from TS Flightlines. Also ordered hardware for McMaster Carr to install springs in each master cylinder to prevent brake drag. I may convert to the single bolt pedal support, but those long bolts are $25 a piece! May hold off on that for now.

10/15: got the pedals all drilled out and re-riveted. Then installed the pedals and brake master cylinders. Looks pretty slick and everything moves freely.

Center bearing fabrication

Installing rudder pedals

Match drilled center support

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Oct 14, 2023 Air Conditioner Planning

Category: Air Conditioner

When I started the build, I promised my wife we would have an air conditioner. I have since waffled a bit on that promise as costs are adding up, and I was thinking the overhead console with rear NACA vents might be enough. After this very hot summer of not flying GA primarily because of the miserable thought of getting in the airplane, and then finally our annual trip to Port Aransas really convinced me that we need it. I realized an AC was more than a convenience, it is a safety issue in Texas. If I'm discouraged from flying all summer because of the heat, then I won't be proficient in the fall when we want to make trips. Not to mention not utilizing the airplane for 4 months out of the year is a real waste and it's only going to get hotter. Maybe more important, what is the point of having the airplane if I'm always going to be apologizing to my passengers with some vague wishful thinking that it cools off once we get to altitude. So, I'm pulling the trigger on the AC and making good on the promise I made to her, and myself, at the beginning of the build.

Now is the time to make the install before I close up anything in the fuselage.

Reached out to Airflow Systems and got some details on their latest system. It seems they have made some upgrades over the years, and the new system fully integrates into an Aerosport overhead console, as well as still providing rear bulkhead vents. The whole install looks very well developed and doable. Also the weight is listed quite a bit less than previously at 46 lbs. I got these install photos from them along with a link to a cool 3D model that shows the install.

https://a360.co/3XT9Fen

Sent a deposit. 7 week lead time.

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Oct 12, 2023 Aerosport Options

Category: Interior Finish

Trying to make some decisions on panel, center console, overhead console, interiors, etc. The only things I'm certain of is that I want an overhead console, whether I end up doing AC or not, and I really would like to have a center console/arm rest. The Aerosport Center Console with the quadrant throttle is ideal, but that really starts to force you into their whole system with the one of their panels. I really don't want one of their panels. They look great, but I like the stock.

If I just do the plain center console, without the quadrant, I can still have Van's quadrant on the panel, and I think I can cut the console back to not need the aerosport panel.

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Oct 11, 2023 Transponder Antenna Doubler - (3.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Finalized the location of the transponder antenna under the co-pilot seat. Laid out the holes based on the pattern for the RAMI antenna, it appears the same as the Commant. Sized the doubler and number of rivets per AC43-13 and laid them out of a 0.063" sheet. Drilled, cut and positioned in the fuselage so that the bolts and coax fitting lined up with the joggle that I put in the fuel line. Drilled a couple alignment holes in the bottom skin, and then cleco'd the doubler onto the underside of the skin and match drilled everything. Upsized the bolt holes and center coax hole and then trial fit the Commant antenna in place - fits perfect.

Then being stupid, I'm looking at it from the top and it appears that I missed the four holes right around the coax hole as I can see primer through them. I thought I got them, but I guess I'll just redrill them from the top. When I looked under the belly, I immediately realized that I wasn't seeing primer, I was seeing the antenna and I drilled #40 holes right through the base. Just cosmetic damage. I guess it is too late and time to go to bed. Before checking out for the night though I thought I would check how stiff my doubler is and pushed on the side of the antenna. With a disappointingly small amount of force, the base of the antenna blade broke right off from the base. Well, that's official, I just trashed an antenna.

11/13: Alodined the doubler plate. Didn't come out nearly as dark as previous but I think it is adequate to protect the doubler. I initially planned to remove the primer below the doubler and alodine that portion of the skin too, but when I tried to remove the primer with some acetone, it didn't budge. Nice durability EkoPoxy.

11/15: countersunk the holes n the bottom skin since it is 0,040”. Touched up w the holes with primer and then riveted the doubler in place with my wife's help. Tested the continuity between the doubler and some other parts of the airframe and had good results despite not removing the primer below the doubler.

This little side project is done and ready for a new antenna install.

Laying out the double

Doubler cut and drilled

Match drilling to skin

Checking antenna clearances

Temporary Antenna mount (before I ruined it)

Finished double

Oct 11, 2023 Antenna planning Category: Avionics

Documenting spacing requirements and planned location for each antenna:
COM1 - mounted on belly under pilot side rear seat, at least 6' from other COM, no specific requirement from xpndr. measured 42" from planned xpndr location.
COM2 - mounted on top of tail cone - at least 6' from other COM antennas, "as far as practical from ELT" per G3X manual
GPS - minimum of 2' from com antenna. min 3' from COM unit. No closer than 9" to other passive (GPS) antennas. per G3X manual. Some are mounting on top of fiberglass cabin top. Van's says not to drill hole in cabin, need to research.
ELT - didn't find specific spacing requirements. Will mount on tail, just ahead of the rear fairing.
XPDR - mounted on belly under co-pilot seat. Minimum 3' from unit. Not within 3' of ADF OR ANY OTHER COM ANTENNA per GNX375 manual
NAV - In the left wingtip - no issues (Back-up location is top of vertical stabilizer)

Oct 08, 2023 33-2 thru 33-5: Baggage Area work - (1.5 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

I had already jumped into Section 33 a bit as I was trying to figure out the access panels for the steps; now I'm going back through from the beginning to pick up the steps that I skipped. Fabricated the hinge for the seat backs and match drilled to the floor. Then cleco'd everything in place and started fitting the baggage door frame. Match drilled the holes into the baggage floor.

Installed the F-1924B baggage floor angles and noted that they cause yet another conflict with my step access holes. It's not bad, but just another little annoyance with those. I proceeded the cleco all of the access panels in place to see if it is really going to be feasible to remove and install these cover plates. It's not easy and the whole set up is a little wonky. I've been fighting all the little things with the setup, none are a deal breaker but the summation of small things I know I won't be happy with it. I'm going to bite the bullet and order new baggage floor pans and redo it. It's $100 - lesson learned.

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Oct 07, 2023 Baggage Floor Conduits - (2.5 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

I've been messing around for weeks with planning of conduits so that I can start sealing up the baggage area. I think I finally have those figured out well enough the I can proceed. I have four conduits on each side: On the left side, I'll have the #2 battery wire in its own conduit, static line in its own with plenty of room for more later, other power feeds from the battery buss in one, and one spare. On the right side, we'll have a lot more data wires including the AP servos, pitch trim, tail light?, ELT, COM antenna, maybe even a remote transponder. I cut 4 holes in each F-1024 rear seat pans to run the conduit up into the side walls.

10/8: happy with the routing, I started securing the co suits using the one hole clips that I got from Vans. These are great except they're $2 a piece.

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Oct 04, 2023 Andair fuel valve - (3 hours)

Category: 37: Fuel System

Snuck out to the shop to do a quick project. Made the modifications to the fuel valve support bracket to accommodate the andair fuel valve. I had ordered some 0.063” stock for antenna doublers that works pretty well for this too.

Just roughly laid out the holes then used the template from andair to center punch the holes. Then drilled those to size with a #12 and a unibody for the big middle hole. Then used the original bracket to lay out some lines for cutting the plate.

Then match drilled the new plate to the old. There is only about three spots on either side with adequate edge distance from all the lightening holes in the original bracket but that should do fine. Then I cut the original bracket leaving only the ends and the new river holes.

Came out good. Nice little night cap project.

10/5: followed up this morning with a little trimming and lightening. Looks much nicer now, and I shaved off 0.000001 pounds.

10/6: ran the fuel lines from the selector to the fuel pump and up to the firewall. Temporarily installed the fuel pump. Finally made the mistake that everyone has made - flared the pipe without the nut in place. It was fortunately recoverable; pipe was a little too long anyways. Ordered the rubber pads from ACS.

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Oops

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Oct 01, 2023 37-3: Starting fuel lines - (1.5 hours)

Category: 37: Fuel System

Brake lines all finished and on a roll so started on some fuel lines. I'm using the TCW bulkhead connections at the fuselage exit so that I can use filters at the wing roots. This means that the fuel line between the tunnel and the fuse side is a straight shot with hard points at each end. Decided to bend a little chicane in the line to relieve some stress and allow for installation. Bends came out good. Gives a little extra room for the transponder antenna connection too.

My andair fuel valve finally arrived but has the wrong engraving on the plate. Not a time critical issue but a little disappointing after waiting 5 months for it. I did go ahead and install nut plates on the fuel valve. Really nice quality part.

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Sep 30, 2023 36-3 thru 36-4: Tunnel brake lines - (5.0 hours)

Category: 36: Brake Lines

Started the work on the tunnel. Started at the firewall bracket and just went slowly through it. I started with a flare and nut on one end, temporarily connected it, measured the first bend, removed the line, bent the line, reinstall, adjust, measure next bend, remove, bend, and so on until I had the line bent all the way back to the fitting at the tunnel exit. Thought I had it all good but then saw the note about clocking that last fitting and routing the brake line to avoid the fuel line. I was able to massage it into place.

Then the installation of the adel clamps. Ugh. That was difficult and required getting into the airplane and contorting a it to get the screws in.

Had a bit of scare when I got forward enough in the fuselage that the tail lifted up off the cradle and actually hit the ceiling and one of my shop lights. A lot of racket, but no damage to the airplane. Big hole in my ceiling though!

Got everything finished up and torqued. Then reinstalled the front heater vent and final riveted in place.

I thought bending these hard lines was going to be a big pain and something that wouldn't look good when I was done. I'm very happy with how everything came out and bending the lines is actually one of the more enjoyable parts of the build.

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Sep 27, 2023 Laser Cut Parts Update

Category: General

Van's finally released the portal for getting laser cut part replacements. I was expecting to order new rear baggage floors and the upper fuse center rib because they were listed in yellow on the previously released list of affected parts and I haven't installed them yet so might as well. The baggage floors have been removed from the yellow list, but the forward fuse center rib (F-1044A) is still on it. I requested a new rib - this will hold up my upper fuse completion a bit, but I already figured that would be the case.

There are two other parts on the yellow list, the outboard baggage ribs that support the steps. Van's suggests these are highly loaded from the step, but low cycles. The step is also supported by a steel weldment, and the rivets aren't dimpled. I'm going with Van's determination on this one that replacement is not necessary.

There are three other fuselage parts that are on the red list - the F-1048-L&R which is the main tunnel sidewall ribs, and the F-1005A which is the rear spar bulkead. It is the F-1005B plates that really carry most of the load though, and those aren't laser cut - too thick. Both of these parts have notes indicating they're priority may be reduced with further testing, or they recommended to not replace and wait for additional instructions. I'm 95% certain that these particular parts were not laser cut in my kit, but I can't be absolutely certain. Given the difficulty or replacing these parts and the fact that they are relatively easy to inspect, I am not going to do anything regarding replacement.

I was thinking that I had no exposure on my wing, but they did include the opportunity to order wing parts and that got me looking. There are some parts that entered the inventory in January through March of '22. I received my wing kit in March so it's possible. Thankfully I do have photos from my wing inventory and there are enough to verify all of the aileron and flap parts are good.

So that's it - I'm ordering just one part off the portal and putting the Laser Cut Parts behind me. I feel bad for others that have it so much worse than me. I look at the list of red parts on the empennage and wing kit and my heart breaks for those that have completed those parts. Then again, I might welcome the opportunity to redo some of my early empennage parts.

10/8: I had a big order of other stuff from Van's so just went ahead and ordered that fwd fuse rib and paid for it out of pocket.

1/7/24: F-1048 L & R moved to blue based on further testing. No concern.

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Sep 24, 2023 32-2: Starting on brake lines - (1.5 hours)

Category: 36: Brake Lines

I'm hung up a bit on baggage floor and forward fuselage waiting on some laser cut part resolution. I think I may my baggage floors anyways so just waiting for the Vans portal to open.

So looking forward, I think it is pretty safe to start on brake lines and fuel lines. Also just got notice that my and air fuel valve has shipped.

So made up my first brake line. Started trying to rough bend the tube and then trial fit it, but quickly realized it was better to just attach thsline near the landing gear mount and bend it in place. Then trimmed the length to the fitting at the tunnel and straightened it up a bit. Came out good. Happy with my flares too. Used a touch of boelube on the flat and I think that helps a lot.

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Sep 23, 2023 32-5: Finishing up tailcone attach - (2.5 hours)

Category: 32: Tail Attach

Got the remaining rivets underneath the tailcone finished with some help from my wife. Then solo riveted the baggage ribs to the aft bulkhead. That was tough. Section is done and tailcone is permanently attached.

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Sep 17, 2023 32-2 thru 5: Final attachment of tailcone - (8.0 hours)

Category: 32: Tail Attach

Nephew was in town and we had a big weekend in the shop. The big goal was to get the tail cone finished and attached. But somewhere along the way I would also need to replace the castors on the fuselage stand as they have become unusable.

First task was to drill the longer one and temporarily install the AN bolts. Then match drilled all of the remaining holes between the mid-fuse skins and the tailcone skins. Then countersunk all of the rivets that were called out in the plans.

Then took the tailcone off and deburred everything. Masked off an primed all of the forward portion of the tail cone skins that would be under the fuse skins. Took the opportunity while that was drying to lift the forward fuselage off the stand and retrofit the castors with some nice new ones. Removing the old castors confirmed that they had all deformed and flat spotted. Cheap HF castors. They were rated at 200 lbs a piece but I think maybe the heat got to them. New castors are so much nicer. Can easily move the whole assembly around the shop.

Once the primer was relatively cured, proceeded with carefully dimpling all of the skin and bulkhead holes. Also went back to 32-2 and installed some of the nut plates I had skipped previously. Then riveted the bottom of the baggage bulkhead to the sides and to the bell crank ribs.

Then the moment of truth. Got everything blocked up and with my nephews invaluable assistance, we managed to get the skins and tabs all lined up and mated the two assemblies. Reinstalled the longeron bolts and proceeded with riveting the skins and bulkhead together.

A good weekend of work. Just the bottom skin rivets left. Will get those next weekend.

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Dimpling the bulkhead

Priming the tailcone overlaps

Countersinking

New castors

Garbage castors

Shim

Longeron bolting

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Sep 01, 2023 30-4: Redrill left step - (2.0 hours)

Category: 30: Step

After mocking up the baggage area with some of the additional side panels in place it is clear that the bolts in the steps have to be clocked. Should have just paid attention to what everyone has said on the topic. I just missed that there was another panel that was going to prevent removal of the bolt straight out.

Removed the bolt and pulled out the left step. Then using fishing line, threaded a line down and around the TCW bushing. Then used the fishing line to pull some larger twine through that I could use to pull out the bushing. A little frustrating but got it out.

Then reinstalled the step and drilled a new hole at 45 degrees. Upsized to #12, deburred, reinstalled the bushing, reinstalled the step, touched up the primer, and torqued the bolt.

At least both sides are the same now.

Section is done. Again.

Conflict with side panel

Re-drilled

Aug 28, 2023 31Q-2, 5, 7 & 8: continuing on upper fuse - (2.5 hours)

Category: 31: Upper Fuse

New parts received from vans for the Panel attach flange and the F-1044C spacer. Took care of the remedial fabrication work on those then proceeded with the match drilling of the attach flanges to the upper fuse skin. A little awkward at first but was not hard. Then drilled the holes from the panel into the attach flanges. Drilled the nut plate holes and machine countersink them for oops rivets. It's too tight in the flange to dimple any of those holes. I'll just machine countersink all of the nut plate in the panel. Should come out better anyways.

Gently formed curves into the handhold reinforcements and match drilled them to the skin.

A little more countersinking nut plate holes and then section should be ready to prime.

8/29: finished up the countersinks.

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Aug 26, 2023 33-4: Baggage floor work - (5.5 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

Wanted to wrap up the step access panels so that meant progressing the baggage floor. Spent a little time cleaning up the openings that I had cut previously just to get them more uniform. Used the dremel with a sanding drum.

Fabricated all the baggage floor stiffeners. Fabricated the filler plates that would be needed to mate up with the access panel rings.

Then prepped and primed the baggage floor parts. Planned to use Ekoprime on everything but ran out and finished the top surface of the floor pans with Ekopoxy.

8/27: dimpled the floor pans and back-rivetted the stiffeners to the baggage floor. In trying to confirm which holes are dimpled and not, I looked at the side panel. I knew it would go over the access panels, but was thinking it was screwed in place. It gets riveted and even has a rivet in the middle of the access plate. I think I can replace that rivet with a screw and the access plates will just have to slip under the side panels. It will work. Just hope I'm actually able to get the step bolts out if I ever have to. Should have clocked them both 45 degrees.

Also found that one of the side panel rivets is coincident with a floor stiffener rivet. It's the same rivet that is coincident with the access panel backup plate. Left that rivet out for now.

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Aug 16, 2023 31Q-2 & 4 thru 7: Upper fuse fabrication - (6.8 hours)

Category: 31: Upper Fuse

Just a little fabrication of the spacers and angle pieces. Bent the tab on the 1/8” angle with a mallet on the vice. No problem.

Separated the other light angle pieces and panel support angles.

Some upper fuse components are laser cut. Just documenting the pieces and proceeding with prep of the parts. Will hold off on final riveting.
F-1068BL&R
F-1068A
F-1044A

8/17: made the bends on the sub panel. Just clamped to the kitchen table (in the a/c) and slowly bent with wooden blocks. Came out ok.

8/19: got all of the parts deburred and then reassembled the skeleton for real this time. Installed the angle brace and drilled the hole at the firewall. I knew it was going to be close, but after drilling, it definitely didn't meet edge distance. Gabri Syed a new one and was much better the second time. Realized that the spacer I cut was an inch too short.

Proceeded to flute the angles next to the panel to match the curvature. Then realized one of the angles was too short also. I read 11 3/16”. It clearly says 11 13/16”. I don't have any spare stock to cut another one so ordered one from Vans along with stock for a new spacer.

Will need to pause on this section till next week.

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Laser parts

Bending sub panel

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Aug 13, 2023 32-2: retrieve tail cone - (2.0 hours)

Category: 32: Tail Attach

Went to retrieve the tail cone and other tail feathers today. Couldn't help but attach the tail cone to the fuselage. Just to get a sense of how much room it's going to take up. Still need to do some work rearranging the garage to fit everything.

Tailcone attached

Back in the garage

She just barely fits

Aug 12, 2023 Step access panels - (3.0 hours)

Category: 33: Baggage Area

Jumping ahead to start thinking about access panel for the steps. Had already done some figuring of these so it was just a mattter of final locating the opening and cutting it. Realized that the stiffener would cross the access panel doubler and be a bit awkward. Solved that issue by using a filler plate below the stiffener. Trimmed the doubler plate to clear the filler plate and not conflict with the other primary rivets. Right side pretty much figured out. Need to mirror over for the left side. Won't assemble until I get to this step later.

8/20: got the left side knocked out today. Used the right floor as a template for drilling to make a perfect mirrored pair. Cut out with dremel. Results so so. It will all covered up anyways.

10/8: This was all wrong. Ordered new baggage floors and will redo.

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Aug 08, 2023 30-2: thru 30-4: Step installation - (3.5 hours)

Category: 30: Step

Snuck into the garage for a little while tonight and drilled the baggage rib for the step blocks. Easy peasy.

8/11: drilled the right step this morning. Drilled the #30 guide hole through the step bracket and step no problem. Then upsized to the #12. When I pulled the assembly apart, I had two holes in the bottom of the step - a #30 and a #12. With minimal material between them. Must have had the #12 tilted a bit. As I tried to assess whether that would be acceptable, I remembered that at one point I was going to clock the bolts 45 degrees. That made me realize I could just clock the bolt get enough distance from the original hole(s) and redrill.

So after work, I confirmed that I'd still be able to access the bolt if clocked 45 degrees and redrilled it. No issues this time. Installed the TCW bushing, touched up the primer, installed the bolt and torqued it. Hopefully I never have to get back into these bolts but if I do, I'll see that one is vertical and the other is clocked 45 deg.

This section is done.

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Aug 07, 2023 31: Just messing around - (1.0 hour)

Category: 31: Upper Fuse

After all the work on the side skins, I needed a little win and some motivation. Cleco'd on the upper fuse pieces and panel just to see how it goes together.

With the panel in place I just couldn't resist printing some of the Garmin full-size face plate templates to see what this panel might look like.

I swear I did not get in and make airplane noises. I actually have still not sat in it once.

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Aug 05, 2023 29-17, 18, & 23: Left side skin finish up - (7.0 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Got a lot done on the left skin today despite the heat. Got my loyal riveting partner to help rivet the lower forward fuse channel and then got her to get the underside rivets on the front. Came out really good and flush.

With those rivets in place, I was able to proceed with installing the pilot side floor pan.

8/6: Finished up the last of the bottom ri ets this morning. Then installed the last forward fuselage rib. Cleaned everything up and installed a few of the cover plates just to keep dust and FOD out.

With that, this section is finally done. 88 hrs and 3 months.

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Aug 04, 2023 29-18: Right front skin rework - (1.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

After no doing much work the last month, but spending a lot of time just staring at the fuselage in the garage, I noticed the right front skin was not sitting as tightly as I'd like against the C channel. I must have not been holding the rivet gun perpendicular to the skin. Decided to drill them out and redo them. I was actually really proud of how good a job I did drilling them out - I'm a real builder now. Dozens of nice little rivet head donuts on my 3/32" punch. Got it re-rivetted and it is much better now. Glad I re-did it.

Before

Lots of perfect rivet donuts

AFter

Aug 04, 2023 29-21 & 22 Left gear mount bracket - (2.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Braved the heat a bit today and made some progress on the left gear leg mount. First rivetted the doubler plate to the side skins. Then installed all of the AN hardware and torqued. Got Ben to help again with the tough to reach nuts.

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Jul 29, 2023 Airventure 2023 / Laser Cut Parts - (2.0 hours)

Category: General

Really just a place holder to remind myself that I went. Ben and Max and I drove up and tent camped in Scholler. Friday-Thursday.

Didn't take a lot of photos but did see several nice RV-10s including my friend David's - hadn't seen it since it was painted.

Picked up a couple of antennas from someone off of VAF and ordered my nav/strobe lights.

7/30/23: Didn't catch the Van's update on laser cut parts, but I watched the recording of it when I got home. Seems there is more concern on parts that don't have visual defects. I took some time to go through Van's list and at least confirm what has and has not been installed and what I can confirm is laser cut versus punched. I was hoping I'd have enough photos to eliminate some parts that have already been installed, but I typically immediately pull the vinyl off now - I was not able to eliminate any parts from the list. I have identified a handful of parts that have not been installed yet that I will ask for replacements.

My friend David’s RV-10

Ben enjoying Wednesday fireworks

Jul 16, 2023 30-2: Right side step - (1.8 hours)

Category: 30: Step

Have been messing around over the past couple weeks trying to understand the modifications people have been making for the steps and providing an access panel. I purchased the TCW step bushings and an extra and access plate (already had one left over from stall earning that I didn't install) to put in the baggage floor. I had read that people click the bolt 45 degrees to allow removal from the top. I had my neighbor 3D print a drill guide and he ever added a littl window to cleco to the original guide hole that would set the new hole at 45 degrees +/-. I've been trying to mockup the access hole to understand how it all will go together and honestly struggling figure out what to do.

Today I think I figured it out, but I also concluded that I don't need to clock the bolt 45 degrees. I believe I can orient the access panel to allow removal of the bolt straight up and I confirmed that I can reach my hand around the step with a wrench to get on the backside to hole the nut. I'm just going to use the original guide hole. I will go ahead and drill the pilot hole all the way down through the bottom skin just in case I ever need to get to the nut from the outside.

With that figured out, I proceed to mark and drill the holes in the black nylon step support block. When drilling it on the drill press, I didn't hold it tight enough to the table and the drill press picked up the piece, which then tilted in my hand and the bit just ate a big, slanted hole in the nylon. Trashed piece, ordered a new one. I drilled the other one and it came out fine.

Went to the storage unit to retrieve all the cover panels including the baggage floor panels and cleco'd them in place per the plans. Then fit up the step and support block to match drill into the baggage floor ribs. Drill doesn't fit. Ordered some #12 screw in bits for my 90 degree drill. Will continue this after Oshkosh.

I will still use my nice drill guide to final drill the holes and ensure straightness.

8/6: New piece arrived and drilled with no issues.

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Jul 16, 2023 29-21: Left side landing gear mount - (1.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Hit a dead end on the step so started work on the left side landing gear mount. As with the right side, the mount was tight in the hole so took the dremel to it to get a little clearance. It dropped in much better than the right side after a little work. Installed the temporary bolts and cleco'd the double and drill jigs in place. That's enough for today.

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Jul 15, 2023 Laser cut parts Category: General

Seems the $h!t is hitting the fan for Van's regarding the switch to laser cut parts. I had no laser cut parts in my wing or empennage and just a few in my fuselage. I don't recall exactly which ones, but most are access panels that I'm not too worried about. I know there were at least a few ribs and miscellaneous parts that have made it into the construction to date but in general I have been impressed with the quality of laser cut parts. I've looked over a few of the remaining laser cut parts on the shelf and holes are very clean. None of the dramatic notching or slag that I've seen in photos from others. I don't think I have a lot of exposure to their quality issues. Maybe RV-10 parts are from a different vendor, or I had a good run. I have not seen any cracks in dimples or riveted holes.

I understand everyone's frustration though. I will hold off some remaining laser cut parts for further direction.

Jul 15, 2023 29-18, 20 & 22: Finishing up right side - (5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Finally got all the rivets on the right side done. Then moved on to installing the floor pan on the right side. Carefully removed all debris and vacuumed everything well before sealing it up. Floor slipped into place fairly easy and was able to align all the holes with clecos. Starting using the manually rivet puller then used my pneumatic one. The pneumatic one sprays oil all over the place though so went back to manual. Got tired of that and decided to just deal with the oil spray. Then the pneumatic one stopped working - not sure what's wrong with it. Back to manual. Took a long time to get them all pulled.

7/16: got the last side rib riveted in place. The right side of Section 29 is done. This section is taking forever.

Just noticed that at some point in the past week I passed 1000 hours.

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Jul 08, 2023 29-21: Right landing gear mount - (4.0 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

This is a pain. First I had to work to hike in the bottom skin a bit with the dremel to try to get the landing gear bracket to fit. Then it still took a good amount of coercing with a mallet to get it in place. The. Try to temporarily install enough bolts before I match drill the remaining holes. Could get those to line up. Finally ground the threads off an AN4 bolt and used it as a drift pin and got it started. Then was able to install the other bolts. Very difficult to get my hand between the spars to install the nuts but finally figured how to reach the from the end. Got the hardware all temporarily snugged up. It does seem that the AN4-14s are too short. [figured this out - I was using the wrong nuts. Too bad I already ordered new bolts.]

Got the drill templates cleco'd in place and match drilled the #30 holes, then upsized to 1/4”. Now I need to take it all back apart. Not looking forward to it.

7/9: was able to remove the aluminum doubler and get it deburred. And was able to get the steel weldment deburred in place. I gave up on trying to remove it. Was able to rivet the skin diuble in place with the weldment in place. Then installed all the bolts, with the correct nuts, and tightened. Needed someone with little hands to get a wrench in the in board bottom nuts.

Right gear mount is done. Hopefully the left one goes a little more smoothly, but this really wasn't bad.

Fitting the gear attach weldment

Drilling the exterior holes

Holes drilled

Stiffener riveted in place

A little help from skinny hands

Right gear mount finished

Jul 08, 2023 Tunnel access panel finish up - (1.2 hours)

Category: 28: Fwd Fuse

Finally go around to finishing up the tunnel access. I was putting it off a bit because I really don't like #8 plate nuts. I dimpled the ears then straightened them back out a bit. Then cleco'd one ear and installed the #8 screws. Then riveted the other ear. They all came out really good, happy with the results. Riveted the reinforcement ring to the tunnel rib and screwed in the cover plate. Done.

Nut plates attached

Back up ring in place

Finished access panel

From inside the tunnel

Jul 06, 2023 29-18: Back at the side skins - (3.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Got back at the side skins after vacation. Got the right side cabin opening piece riveted in. Got some of the rivets along the front lower channel taped in place ready for my rivet partner this weekend.

Played with the landing gear mount a bit. It doesn't fit.

7/9: Got the wife to help rivet the right rear quarter where it wraps underneath. There was a bit of a gap in the skins with the cleco's in place (~3/16" max). I was worried it wouldn't easily pull tight when we rivetted it, but it came out great.

Right side rail done

Jun 29, 2023 29: Wing root priming - (3.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Looking ahead I can see that the new gear reinforcement plates go on the outside of the skin within the wing root area. I had already primed the reinforcement plates, but thought I should prime the outside of the skins. Might as well just prime everything within the shadow of the wing.

Masked everything off dust to the outside of the faring attach angles and prepped and primed. Felt like good masking and painting practice for doing the interior.

Also primed the tunnel access parts.

Masking the wing root

Finished

Access panel parts

Jun 23, 2023 29-18: Right side skin riveting - (8.0 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Back at the fuse side skins a bit this evening. It was hot in the garage, but I got most of the right forward skin done.

6/25: Worked through the heat and got a good amount of riveting done this weekend. All of the solo work on the right side is complete including the rear passenger vent. The right side is now to the same state as the left side. Still need a partner to get the bottom wrap around a front and back.

Riveting progress

Jun 22, 2023 Oshkosh countdown

Category: General

Not a lot of work lately, just so hot. I did manage to do a little flying though. Got bonanza current, got a flight review, and a tail wheel endorsement in a cub. A lot of fun. A little boost of aviation in my blood before Oshkosh.

Oshkosh is a month out and getting excited to talk to new folks. This year focusing on interiors, engines, and wheels and brakes. Need to make some decisions.

Also plan to pick up my NAV/strobe lights if there is a deal.

J3 Cub flight

Jun 18, 2023 29-18: Left side skins - (3.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Made some good progress on skins today. Got the left side done with the exception of the bottoms.

Riveted the left side center fuse cover in place lace.

Then countersunk the holes for the rear passenger vent and riveted the doubler and brackets in place.

Started on the right side skin rivets but didn't get far.

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Jun 16, 2023 Finish Kit Ordered

Category: General

Finish kit ordered today. Just a couple weeks ago it showed January 2024 delivery date - that was a little too soon so I waited. Now it says November 24. Guess I missed the Train.

Price dropped since the wheels and brakes are no longer included. Will just need to add them later anyways. Likely upgrading to Matco so will have to talk through that with them.

6/26: order processed and I was happy to see an estimated crate date on the portal of March-April 2024. That would be perfect. We'll see if it holds.

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Jun 11, 2023 29-17: Side skin riveting - (3.0 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Started on the left side skin. Got most of the left front done except for the lower ones that I'll need some help with. Put a cherry rivet in the very forward longeron hole. No way to get on it buried up behind the bracket.

Moved on the mid-fuse skin and got most of the footwell area done. Had to remove the temporary spar bolts to get to some of the rivets. Used my swivel set for pretty much the first time ever. Was able to wedge in tight against the spar to get the few that were right up against it.

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Jun 05, 2023 29-16: Longeron and Fwd Fuse riveting - (5.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Woke up early this morning and started on riveting the longerons. Got the rear seat brackets and baggage door seal angles all riveted in place. Had to redo a couple because I can't follow instructions.

6/7: getting just a few rivets here and there this week on the fwd fuse to firewall brackets.

6/8: got the remaining tough rivets on the firewall brackets. Got the forward longerons riveted to the front gusset.

6/9: cleco'd front skins in place. Applied 3M fire stop sealant to firewall flanges. Backriveted the baggage area angles to the mid-fuse skins and then cleco'd them to the skeleton. This page is finally done.

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Jun 04, 2023 29-16 & 29-18: Bucking bar modification and rear vents - (5.0 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Spent most of the day today trying to cut the taper on to the end of the empennage bucking bar. Using my pneumatic angle grinder, it took forever. Eventually got it cut through.

While the compressor was catching up, I assembled the rear passenger vents. Those were pretty easy.

6/12: After all that effort to cut the bucking bar, I don't even think I'll hardly use it. Small tungsten bar works fine.

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May 29, 2023 29-15: Priming and dimpling - (8.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Squeezed in a little priming time at the end of our holiday weekend. Got all of the forward fuselage parts primed with Ekopoxy.

6/2: did another small batch of ekopoxy and got some miscellaneous parts like rear seat vents and rudder pedals. Had to do a lot of prep and deburred going before painting. Then primed the rear fuselage parts with ekoprime. Then dimpled the skins.

Not many photos to show for my work.

Skins primed and dimpled

May 25, 2023 29-14: Rework - (3.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Slow going this week but got back to about where I was with new parts and adequate edge distances.

Got the old firewall brackets drilled out and removed. Installed new brackets and redrilled to the side channels. Paid more attention to the alignment this time and edge distances are all good.

Twisted the new lower fuse channel on the right side and test fit with the skins in place. Still very difficult to get good edge distance. Opted to match drill the floor pan to the channel without the skin in place with minimal edge distance with the hope that it will pull in to place when riveting. Still not feeling great about the edge distance of that aft most hole on either side so opted to add an additional river between the last two. The floor pan attachment is not structural, but I'll feel better with an extra rivet.

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May 15, 2023 29-13: Deburring and Countersinking - (3.0 hours) Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Spent a little time this evening just continuing to disassemble and started deburring the various parts. Realized that I also have a tight edge distance on an F-1041 stringer from drilled the floor pans. It's not really structural but it's no good. Ordered another.

8/16: Proceeded to countersink the longerons and bulkheads on the right side.

8/17: Left side longerons and bulkheads countersunk. Van's parts shipped so should be able to get the front end fixed up soon.

Purchases: Vans - F-1041-R

May 13, 2023 29-12 thru 14: Fwd Fuse ribs and longerons - (6.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

A lot of assembly and disassembly to get skins aligned and ribs installed. Installed floor pans, hopefully permanently, and got entire assembly cleco'd together. Then match drilled #40 holes on the outside of the steel engine mount brackets. Then match drilled the longerons. Started to match drill the #30's on the top and bottom of the engine mount brackets. People have trouble with the edge distance on these, so I did my best to pull them in tight. Still, you're drilling blind and I won't know if it's ok until I take it all apart.

Drilled the rudder block mounts in the longeron using the template supplied.

5/14: Finished match drilling the steel engine mount brackets today then started to disassemble everything, The moment of truth for the engine mount brackets. The bottom ones look good, but the top right is a little tight on edge distance. I would let it go based on what I've read online from other folks that had shy edge distance. Then revealed the top left and it has literally zero edge distance in the last hole. The hole clipped the edge - it's trashed.

If I'm going to replace the top left, might as well replace the top right too. Ordered two new brackets. I since reread the recommendations from others to install and tighten the engine mount bolts to better pull them into alignment. We'll do that next time.

Purchases: Vans - new WD-1002 L and R.

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May 09, 2023 29-9: Longeron Drilling Issue - (4.0 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

I got the F-1046 longerons clamped in place and ready to match drill the holes from F-1005E gussets. It is a bit awkward to access with the skin in place and had to use a 90 degree drill to get to it from the bottom. The very first hole I drilled in the left longeron came up through the longeron and I could tell the edge distance was no good - measured at about 3/16" to centerline. Maybe the drill was not perfectly perpendicular to the part - hard to tell since I was drilling somewhat blind from the bottom. Proceeded to drill the remaining holes and they seemed better, but still a little less than ideal edge distance - was measuring about 7/32" from edge to centerline of hole. That's a little less than 2 diameters. What is going on here? When I measure from the inside edge of the skin to the holes in the gusset plate, I get about 17/32". It's a 3/4" angle, so that leave 7/32" edge distance. I looked at some of the other holes along the longeron and some of those are also about 7/32", and those were drilled with the template. The left one is definitely trashed, but the right might be ok - seems about the same as some of the other holes.

I sent a note to Van's to be sure I've got this right before I mess up one of the long F-1013 Longerons. In the meantime, I was able to source some 3/4x3/4x1/8 6061-T6 aluminum angle locally at Metal4U. $20 for two 5' long sticks.

Already got the new left longeron bent to the template and ready to match drill again.

5/11: warm muggy night, a sign of the months to come. But I got the longerons redrilled and they came out much better. I measured and drew a line 1/4” offset from the holes on the gusset and used that line to align the longeron. Turns out the bulkhead that held the gusset could twist a little and must have out of alignment the first time. With my marks lined up I drilled it with the air drill from below. Perfect.

Proceeded to match drill all the #40 holes from the mid fuse skins to both longerons.

Purchases: Metal4U - Aluminum angle stock

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May 06, 2023 29-2 thru 29-7 & 29-10: Longeron and side skin bends - (6.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

Trimmed the mid fuse longerons from angle stock. Bent them to match the template. Then match drilled them to the template. Then cut the two different main longerons to lengths per plan. Marked the various bend and twist marks and bent to match the template. Match drilled longerons to the template. All in all this was not a hard task but did take a little time to get it right.

Cleaned off one of the benches and got prepared to bend the skin. Cut and trimmed the assembly angles and clamped the skin down to the board. Had to run out to the storage unit to retrieve the baggage bulkhead form the tail cone assembly.

5/7: started the side skin bends. Got through the rear skins pretty easily. The bending block was sliding a little bit so I put the screw through the flap torque tube hole and that held it in place well. Did the first one to where I thought would be good but test fit it and it needed more. Ended up bending to more like 70 degrees, not the 60 degrees the manual shows. Final result was really good.

Then tried the front skins. A little more difficult because the assembly angle done have clecos to hold them in place, just clamps. Started to bend the skin and the clamps slipped which put some dings in the first skin. Used a piece of masking tape to give a little more grip. That seemed to work a little better but still was precarious. Overall not perfect, but got passable results on all four skins. Pretty cool to have them all cleco'd in place.

Proceeded with fabrication of the baggage door stiffener angles and cleco'd the seat back brace and baggage opening angles in place.

Did some late-night shopping looking ahead at what I will need in the next few months.

Purchases: Airward Tunnel Access Panel, Andair Fuel Valve, TCW Step Bushings

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Apr 30, 2023 28-14 & 15: Fwd fuse finish up - (6.8 hours)

Category: 28: Fwd Fuse

Finally got a chance to prime the final few parts to close out this section. Assembled the fwd seats with a lot of plate nuts.

5/1: before I turned in last night I noticed an error that I made weeks ago. The side skin support has a joggle that is supposed to go behind the bulkhead flange. Seems obvious but I had installed it with the joggle still on the outside. Today I decided to drill out all the rivets in the bottom of side skin support and try to bend it back into place. Got all the rivets out without too much trouble but there was no way it would bend into place. The tip flange of the side support has a relief notch in it but the bottom does not. I decide I would need to cut a small relief notch in the bottom flange too to allow it to bend. Cut a triangle with snips and then drilled the tip and smoothed it all out with a file. Was able to just bend it into place. Looks good. Bullet dodged.

5/2: got the bottom rivets on the right side redone and riveted the F1004K side pa els in place. Flipped the fuselage over to tackle the other side.

5/3: drilled out the left side and fixed the side support skin, then cleco'd everything up for riveting.

5/4; got everything re-riveted tonight. This section is finally done. Shouldn't have been that much work. Just took a while.

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Apr 30, 2023 29-3: Side skin bending block - (2.5 hours)

Category: 29: Fuse Skins

It took two tries but finally got a bending block cut that I'm happy with. Tried to cut in my band saw but it wanted nothing to do with cutting the 2x4 on end. I don't have a table saw so tried to make do with a skillsaw. First attemp was a good proof of concept but I needed to make some adjustments to keep the miter cut from getting all the way into the edge. I figure the angle doesn't need to be perfect but you do want the edge as straight as possible. Second attemp was better and strategically placed my cuts in a way that always allowed me to run the skillsaw on a flat edge. Then had to finish off the final cuts with a hand saw. I think it will do.

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Apr 22, 2023 28-13 & 14: Riveting bottom skin to spars - (4.5 hours)

Category: 28: Fwd Fuse

Did a little prep work throughout the week and then today finally got the wife to help me rivet the bottom skins together and to the center bulkhead spars.

Moved on to countersinking the seat pans and associated pieces.

4/22: permanently installed and torqued bolts for the forward seat support bulkhead parts. Had my first passenger as I was comfortable letting Everett sit in the back seat.

Crappy weather today so didn't get to prime.

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Apr 16, 2023 FF2: Oil cooler bracket - (1.5 hours)

Category: 27: Firewall

Based on recommendations of other builders, and common sense, I pre-ordered the oil cooler mount from Van's and I'm installing it now -prior to the firewall forward kit. Assembly was quite straightforward. The only challenge was dimpling and the subsequent riveting of the two rivets which are blocked by the air intake. I used a combination of close quarters dimpling tool and just hammering a rivet with a flush set and a countersunk piece of steel. Came out good enough.

Back-riveted everything to the firewall. The two tricky rivets used a thin steel bar backed up with my tungsten bar to back-rivet. Again, good enough.

Sealed the holes and around all of the edges with 3M fire-resistant caulk to make it air tight.

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Apr 15, 2023 28-9 thru 28-11: More forward fuse assembly - (8 hours)

Category: 28: Fwd Fuse

Started this morning with back-riveting the forward fuselage ribs onto the bottom skin. Had a little help from Everett with setting rivets and taping them in place. Was able to back rivet all except the short "-D" ribs which are C channel shaped and needed to buck. Temporarily clecod the firewall and tunnel ribs in place to support the assembly and my wife helped me get the 6 or so rivets on each side. Back-riveted the seat support bulkhead pieces to the skin with the exception of a few that had to buck, but was able to get those myself. Back-riveted the systems support brackets in place.

Time to join the firewall permanently to the front skin. I used 3M Firestop caulk along the bottom flange of the firewall to skin and also used it to fill the gaps in the corner of the firewall recess.

4/16: big day today. Wife helped me rivet the tunnel ribs to the bottom skin then I finished a few of the rib tab rivets myself. Time to join the fuse halves together. I got the front propped up on a crate about the height of the rear, which was on the cradle. Then pulled them together and installed the spacers with some hardware store bolts. All lined up pretty well.

Cleaned up the shop and then permanently installed the heater controls boxes in the firewall.

Everett pre-inserting rivets

Everett setting the tape

Bottom skin back-riveted

Seat support bulkhead in place

Temporary attachment of firewall

Sealing up the recess

Ready to rivet firewall and tunnel

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Apr 10, 2023 28-11: Forward fuse assembly - (2.2 hours)

Category: 28: Fwd Fuse

All the parts are primed so began assembly this evening after work. Dimpled the systems brackets and the bottom holes of the forward fuse ribs. Installed the nut plates on the seat supports. I'm short a nut plate and short AN426D4-5 rivets. Ordered some from Spruce.

Riveted the side brackets on the center fuse ribs and riveted the seat support brackets to the seat frames. Riveted the nut plates to the floor panels.

4/15: parts arrived from ACS today and was able to squeeze the final rivets in the seat support bulkheads and finish the fuel flow bracket.

Floor pan nut plates

Seat support bulkhead

Tunnel bracket installed

Floor ribs clecod and ready to rivet

Dimpling floor pans #30

Apr 08, 2023 28-4 thru 28-10: Forward fuse work - (12.5 hours)

Category: 28: Fwd Fuse

Just a little work here and there over the last week. Haven't really been logging well. I got the seat supports assembled and fabricated the control support angles. Got everything cleco'd and bolted together just to see how it fit. Confirmed everything was already final sized and had to drill a few of the #12s.

This morning I fit the floor plates and then took everything apart. Installed the mid fuse spar and match drilled the holes for the tunnel ribs. I skipped 28-9 which would have temporarily joined the front fuse to the back since there was nothing left to match drill or final drill. Then proceeded with countersinking all of the seat supports and the bottom of the spar.

Smoothed out the landing gear elliptical holes and then marked and cut the radius on the 1049K sidewall.

Then deburred everything. Ready for priming.

4/9: was planning on flying today but overcast sky. Perfect for prepping and priming. Got all the fuse forward parts done.

Smoothing the landing gear hole

Spar bulkhead temporary install

Forward center spar bulkhead

Fit up

Control column supports

Shaped control supports

Constrol supports temporary install

Left seat support bulkhead fit up

Apr 01, 2023 27-3 thru 27-5: Tunnel assembly - (6.0 hours)

Category: 27: Firewall

Prepped and primed the tunnel ribs and attachment angles.

Startedtes clecoing to the firewall and realized I had made a mistake last week. I riveted the rudder pedal support brace to the firewall inset. I was supposed to rivet the tunnel attachment angle at the same time and put the rudder pedal brace on the outside. I had counter sunk the rudder support brace to receive the inset dimples. That's a problem. Ordered a new rudder support brace.

Proceeded with clecoing everything up and installed the scat tube support and installed all of the #8 nut plates on the tunnel ribs.

4/2: riveted the nose wheel attach brackets to the ribs. Then riveted the rib assembly lies to the firewall. Everything is done except the rudder brace. I don't know how I'm going to get those rivets in.

4/8: received my replacement rudder bracket and primed it along with some other fuselage parts. Installed using five cherry max rivets.

This section is done.

Scat tube support

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Oops - not supossed to countersink

Sequence for rudder pedal bracket

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Firewall shaping up

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Mar 30, 2023 28-2: Starting on forward fuse - (4.5 hours)

Category: 28: Fwd Fuse

Just a little light work during the week. Removing vinyl and deburring some of the front seat support parts.

4/1: prepped and primed the seat supports and some miscellaneous parts.

4/2: installed the nut plates and assembled the forward seat supports.

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Mar 25, 2023 27-2: Riveting firewall - (3.5 hours)

Category: 27: Firewall

Riveted the firewall stiffeners and corner hardware in place. No issues. Had to use one pull rivet in a nut plate that there was just no way.

Thought I was all done and started researching potential firewall insulation. I saw a picture of some else's firewall and noted the had riveted the recess to the wrong side. Then saw another photo where someone else had done the same. Checked the plans - turns out I'm the one that did it wrong. Wasn't too bad to drill out those rivets and fix.

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Mar 22, 2023 26-7: Riveting bottom skin - (5.0 hours)

Category: 26: Fuse Ribs

This one is going to take a while. Spent about an hour and a half pre-inserting and taping rivets. Will knock this out a little at a time over the next week.

3/26: my father in law came to town and graciously agreed to help river the bottom skins. We knocked it all out in a few hours. Good day of work.

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Mar 18, 2023 27-2: Starting firewall - (3.0 hours)

Category: 27: Firewall

Pulled out all the firewall parts and deburred them. Cleco'd together just to get a feel for the assembly and confirm everything is all final sized. Then disassembled and countersunk all the holes that contact the firewall. It was a lot of countersinking. Not much to show except a pile of parts.

Did rivet the inset box together. It that's not much.

Did notice than Van's sent me two right WD-1002-PCs. The left one is mislabeled. It's actually a right.

3/19: Read ahead and saw that tie of the nut plates are mounted on the front side of the firewall. Was initially thinking that is contrary to the previous direction on 27-2 to dimple everything for flush rivet in the front of the firewall. At this point I have already countersunk the stiffener to accommodate a dimple in what is maybe the wrong side. The. Realized if I can just dimple the nut plate, but backward from what I normally do, the manufactured head can sit it the nut plate dimple. Had to modify the male side of the dimple to get in there but think it will work.

Then it warmed up enough this afternoon I was able to prime the firewall stiffener parts. Once cured, I cleco'd everything together. Realized that it was going to be very difficult to rivet the rudder pedal support bracket after the firewall recess is already riveted in place. Proceeded to river the bracket in place ahead of time. Crossing my fingers that is not a mistake. [spoiler alert - it was a mistake.]

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Mar 15, 2023 25-7: Priming and dimpling - (7.0 hours)

Category: 26: Fuse Ribs

Prepped and primed the bottom skins and stiffeners. Started dimpling the bottom skins in the DRDT2.

3/16: finished dimpling both bottom skins. Cleared off the bench to set the skeleton upright on it to prepared for dimpling - it's too tall! Measure the width and check against the cradle; it's just the right width to support the rear fuselage upright and a little closer to the ground. It even balances on the flange but I clamped it down for good measure.

Started dimpling the substructure.

3/17: finished dimpling the substructure and the footwell stiffeners. Then fluted the stiffeners. Countersunk the holes in the aft spar and all the holes coincident with tabs. Then the big moment - cleco'd the bottom skins on the frame. That's about as far as I can take this section until I get a riveting partner for the skin.

3/19: well anal retentive me remembered that I planned to put Ekopoxy in the tunnel. So I proceeded to uncleco everything and masked off the tunnel and spar area to overcoat in Ekopoxy.

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Mar 12, 2023 COM1 antenna - (4.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Going to mount the COM1 antenna under the rear passenger seat. Need to make a doubler plate as I'm working on those seat ribs.

Plan is to have a 0.032” doubler plate between seat ribs. I will also need a 0.025” filler plate to make up for the seat rib flange. Decide I would bend up the filler plate to attach to the rib that doesn't have a flange. 13/16" hole - AC43-13 Table 4-10 says 8.9 rivets per inch for 3/32" rivets in 0.032" 2024T3 plate, so 8 rivets min per side. In this case the rivets for the nutplates will count toward that.

Drew up a basic sketch of what I thought I'd do and then just started working directly with metal on the plane. Harvested 0.032” from the baggage door cut out of the side skin. Once I had the overall dimensions figured out I cut and bent the plates. Then marked edge distances and drilled a starter hole in the doubler to align with the rivet in the seat rib flange. Then just worked from there drilling and clecoing, and removing and marking additional holes and then drilling the filler. Eventually got to where I had all the holes drilled in the doubler and filler. Then removed the bottom skin from the skeleton and drilled the holes in the skin. Dimpled the filler and countersunk the doubler. Came out good. I'm going to alodine these parts to maximize conductivity.

3/14: I was not 100% happy with the doubler. Some of the holes had wandered a bit when I countersunk them. I was thinking it's ok, because they're only holding nutplates, but really these rivets are critical to transferring the load from the surrounding plate to the doubler around the hole. Decided it was easy enough to make a new one. Just back drilled everything using the holes that were already in the skins. Then was much more careful with the countersink - did it on the drill press with a solid aluminum angle to back up the hole. They say 0.032" is the minimum for countersinking a -3, but when you go 7 clicks past to accept a dimple, it is a little too thin.

3/14: Alodined these parts today. Used a zip lock bag. Only left then in a minute or so. Seems like they overcooked a little. Alodined the skin too before priming it.

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Spacing rivets with fan

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Roughing it out on paper

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Masked and alodined skin

First try at Alodine

Mar 11, 2023 26-5 & 25-6: Rear seat ribs assembly - (10.0 hours)

Category: 26: Fuse Ribs

Got all of the seat ribs and baggage compartment ribs prepped and primed. It was a lot, but now I'm ready to do a lot of assembly.

Built the seat belt attach sub-assemblies. Then I upsized the tooling hole on three of the left ribs for a coax cable for the con antenna I plan to put under the left rear seat.

Then started assembly of the ribs by riveting the flush heads in the outboard seat ribs. The riveted the uprights. Now I had to take a pause and figure out what all needs rivets or countersinks. I feel like they're not very descriptive in this section. Went ahead and cleco'd all all of the seat ribs, the baggage bulkhead and the baggage ribs in place so I could visualize it all.

3/12: started riveting everything together this morning. The rivets down inside the uprights were intimidating but actually got them without too much trouble. Just enough room for the gun and the double offset set to fit down between the bulkheads. All of the rib the rear spar rivets were easy except the inboard tunnel that for whatever reason I struggled with the double offset. Had to drill three out with the 90 degree drill. Recovered ok.

Riveted the step doubler on the outboard baggage floor ribs.

3/13: all this thinking about conduit runs and I almost went too far before drilling holes in the seat ribs. I had already riveted the baggage bulkhead on to the first rib when I stopped myself. I was able to shift ribs around and get a 7/8” step bit between the ribs. To drill enough holes for four conduits. Then installed the remaining rivets from the baggage bulhead to the seat ribs.

Snuck out late and got the baggage floor ribs riveted too. Ready for bottom skins.

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Mar 11, 2023 24-6: Tips done - (1.5 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

Finally had good weather today and had a chance to prime the tips. Made a final pass with 400 grit and filled a couple pin holes.

Then mixed a total of about 300g of EcoPoxy. Thinned with 20% water and shot through a 1.3mm tip with about 12 psi at the gun. Came out great. Smooth satin finish. A little dust in the finish so not perfectly smooth but that what I get with no paint booth. Acceptable for primer.

So glad to have it done as I can clear out all of the epoxy, filler and sanding devices from the garage and have more room for the growing fuselage.

Final sand - ready to prime

Left tip done

Right tip done

Mar 07, 2023 26-5 thru 26-7: Lots of deburing - (2.0 hours)

Category: 26: Fuse Ribs

Not a lot of big chunks of time to work but a little bit here and there over the past few days got all the remaining parts except the skins deburred. Was hoping to prime one night this week but it looks like rain the next few days.

I did get the outboard seat ribs fluted to follow the contour of the bottom skin. Thought that might be hard but sort of guessed and got pretty close on the first shot.

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Mar 03, 2023 26-2 thru 4: Prime and assembly of seat ribs - (5.5 hours)

Category: 26: Fuse Ribs

Prepped and primed ribs and misc parts for the passenger footwells.

3/4: big day of assembly today. Riveted all the inboard seat ribs together. Then riveted the outboard seat ribs. Cleco'd the seat ribs to the aft center bulkhead and match drilled the #12 holes through the spar. Installed and torqued all of the AN3 bolts throughly the spar. Then riveted the seat ribs to the spar web with a double offset river set. Tough access, but all the rivets came out fine. Looking good.

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Mar 03, 2023 25-6: Priming and assembling rear fuse bulkheads - (2.5 hours)

Category: 25: Mid Fuse

Got the remaining bulkhead parts prepped and primed. Split time with Sec 26 parts. After much consternation, I have settled on my rules for priming:
- everything center bulkhead and forward will be Ekopoxy
- anything potentially awkward to topcoat with interior paint will be Ekopoxy
- tunnel interior will be Ekopoxy
- all else is Ekoprime
Based on those rules I used Ecopoxy for the bulkhead uprights.

3/4: riveted the rear fuselage bulkhead assembly together with the squeezer. Then riveted the rear spars to the rear spar bulkhead. Tried using the DRDT2 to set the -4 rivets in the rear spar. Worked out but you really have to be careful to keep it level or the rivets would clear over. Got the hang of it and only drilled out a couple. Worked out, but in hindsight I could have just bucked them all.

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Feb 26, 2023 A little more tip work - (2.5 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

Was just about to spray the tips when I looked closely at the trailing edges. The left tip maintains a nice even thickness all the way to the end and then rounds off. The right tip tapers a bit over the last few inches. Decided to hold off on priming and to try to fix it. Mixed up some flox and applied.

2/27: sanded down the flox and applied micro to fair it out. I think it is going to look better.

2/28: sanded out the micro. Still a bit wavy but I think it will do fine until the painter gets it. Applied epoxy skim coat to the area sanded.

Floxing tip - again

Fairly uniform TE thickness

Final fill and sand

Feb 26, 2023 25-4 thru 6: Center bulkhead prime and assembly - (8.0 hours)

Category: 25: Mid Fuse

Prepped and primed all the center bulkhead parts. It was 100% humidity this morning but the forecast said it was going to burn off. It didn't. It was still very humid when I sprayed and the primer just would not dry. Finally did and started assembly in the afternoon once the sun had finally come out. Really just need to avoid priming on humid days.

Assembled the foreword and aft seat support brackets and installed the nut plates for the seat supports and uprights. Installed the screws for the bulkheads and seat supports but have started riveting yet. Most will need to be bucked.

2/27: worked on aft center bulkhead a little. Primed the countersunk holes in the spar and installed the nut plates. Then installed and torqued all the AN bolts through the spar. Inserted the -4 rivets in their holes just to make sure alignment was still good.

2/28: riveted all the -4s on the aft bulkhead and then fabricated the wear strip, carefully measured the centerlines, clamped and drilled it. Riveted in place and I think it good. Aft bulkhead done.

Riveted forward bulkhead. It's done too. Good night in the garage.

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Feb 22, 2023 26-2: Starting fuse ribs - (2.5 hours)

Category: 26: Fuse Ribs

Waiting to prime the bulkhead parts so moved on to fuse ribs tonight. Mostly just tooling around with Ben in the shop but we did manage to deburr and countersunk a few parts on the inboard ribs and seat belt attach lugs. I hope this is the beginning of more shop time for Ben.

2/25: just looking forward a few pages and deburring more parts

Inboard rib seat belt attach

Feb 20, 2023 25-2,3 & 5: Getting started on mid fuse bulkheads - (7.5 hours)

Category: 25: Mid Fuse

After confirming that SB-0007 was taken care of, I proceeded with the two center section bulkheads with the carry-through forward spar. These parts will get epoxy primed so I'd like them ready to go when I do the final prime of the wingtips.

Everything pretty straightforward. Lots of countersinking for nut plates. They also have you countersunk for a #8 screw head. I don't have a #8 counter sink but I remembered that a #30 works well if you use a nut plate to guide it. Temporarily installed nut plates and countersunk away; worked great. For the #10 screw countersunk I drilled a pilot hole in some scrap thick aluminum and that worked great. Overall getting much better at nut plates and countersinking in general. About time.

Some very light fabrication of stiffener angles on the forward spar. The aft spar required just a little bit more match drilling through the spar, but it was not a big deal. Got a lot of progress tonight. And Ben is excited to help me.

The two main spar bulkhead parts are ready for priming.

2/21: A little more work tonight on the rear spar bulkhead and the very rearmost fuselage bulkhead. Just deburring and a little bit of countersinking. More #8 countersinks with temporary nutplates.

2/25: was hoping for decent weather today to do some priming but didn't get it. 45 degrees and very humid. Not ideal for trying out my new spray gun. I did decide to add some additional holes in the spar bulkheads for more wiring runs. Added two holes on each side for a total of four. Disassembled the bulkheads and did a little more debuting in preparation of priming tomorrow.

Forward spar stiffener

Ben on the clecos

Temporary nutplate

#8 countersink

Aft spar

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Feb 19, 2023 25-2: SB-007 - (1.5 hours)

Category: 25: Mid Fuse

Vans included the templates and drilling dies for completing SB-0007 which, from what I gather, converts the older style three leg gear to the two leg gear. I was expecting to need to drill some holes in the spar before proceeding with the mid-fuselage bulkheads.

Beside running a reamer through the holes on the landing gear mount to clean out the powder coating, I believe everything related to this SB is already taken care of. I test fit all of the bolts and everything seems good. Calling this ok and moving forward.

My carry-through spars were manufactured in January ‘23. I guess Van's is just including the SB templates in case an older spar ships.

Test fit landing gear mount

Feb 17, 2023 Fuselage inventory - (8 hours)

Category: General

Broke down the boxes and unpacked everything as best I could into the garage. Some stuff is going to immediately go to the storage unit. The windshield and side glass are obvious, but also all of the access panels and baggage door work that won't be needed until tail cone joining.

I'm missing one part - F1003-C. And I'm not thrilled about the weld quality in the center cabin to brace. I can grind it down but it will then lose the powder coating. Maybe Vans will just replace it. [They said to just grind it down and touch it up]

Still some work to do cleaning up and organizing before I dig in.

2/19: got out the label printer and went to work organizing all of my hardware. Got through all of the larger bolts and nuts, as well as organizing all the rivets. Still need to go through the smaller screws and whatnots.

Ugly weld

Another angle

Feb 15, 2023 Fuselage arrives / wings depart - (3.5 hours)

Category: General

After XPO losing my crate and having to call them every day for updates, it finally spontaneously showed up at the house today. Perfect timing as I'm hauling off the wings this weekend.

2//17: rented a UHaul and packed up the wing. Lesson learned.- a 15' truck must be counting the attic space because I had to put the wings on an angle to get them to fit. I was hoping to transport the cabin too too but it won't fit with wings skewed.

Also note that the loading ramp is 25” wide, about 2” narrower than the wheels on my cradle. After struggling with loading the wings individually into the truck and then loading the cradle into the truck, there was no reasonable way to get the wings back into the cradle once it was all in there. Just too tight.

So since the wings were out of the cradle, I took the opportunity to remove and reposition the wheels so they would fit within the ramp. Then reloaded the wings and pushed it up the ramp. That sentence grossly simplifies a fairly difficult process for just the wife and me but we got it done. Off to Houston to storage.

Purchases: XPO shipping, UHaul van

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Wings loaded up

Cabin top

All tucked in at their new home

Feb 04, 2023 Airplanes and Coffee Fly-in

Category: General

Went out to Airplanes and Coffee fly-in this morning at KGLE and got to see the AOPA Sweepstakes RV-10. The owner was very nice and let me sit in the cockpit. He had a full aerosport center console and 310 panel. I found I had plenty of room, so that is still certainly an option. Looked good. He had rear NACA vents feeding the South Florida overhead console. I asked if it worked well and if he wishes he had air-conditioning - Texan to Texan. He said he doesn't regret not having AC, but he does recommend the Aerosport overhead console over the SF. The SF tends to leak around the vents.

Thought there might be more -10's out this morning. A -6, a -7, and an -8, but just the one -10. It was a very nice example though.

AOPA Stock Photo - not mine

Feb 04, 2023 24-3: Finishing up left tip - (7.0 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

Remounted the left tip on the wing and final drilled the #6 holes.. Removed and installed all the nut plates in the top, still need to countersink the #6's. Started working on the bottom nutplates but remembered that I need to install the Bob Archer nav antenna. It will get sandwiched between the reinforcement strips and the nut plates - the rivets through the nut plates will provide the ground. Doesn't seem like enough, but I guess people say it is. To keep it from flopping around in the wingtip, I opted to lay my last short strip of BID cloth across the outstanding long leg. I wrapped the antenna with tape and coated it with mold release wax. I don't know if I'll ever really be able to easily remove it, but that was the intent. We'll see when it cures.

2/5: yah, that antenna is not coming out of there very easily. Oh well, I'll cut it out if I ever need to. Proceeded with installing the remaining nut plates and countersunk for all the #6 screws. Did some final sanding on the right tip, need to get a DA sander - Amazon next day! Knocked off and went flying.

2/6: keep pushing today to finish at least to the point I don't need the wings anymore. Got the tip mounted and taped off and applied a layer of micro. While that cured I cleaned up the shop in preparation for fuse delivery this week.
Then I busted out my new DA sander and sanded down the high build primer on the right tip. Just a couple of very small pin holes. It will be ready for epoxy primer.

Micro on the left tip finally cured enough to sand. Got it all knocked down and then cut the paint gap. That's it. That was the last thing that had to be done while the wings were still in my possession. Got the right wing back in the cradle and tucked in to the garage. Ready to be shipped out.

2/12: thought I would shoot the final epoxy primer today but my cheap HF gun is shot. I get a lot of rust on the needle, I have since learned this very common on waterborn paints and I should shoot some laquer thinner through it when all cleaned up.

Decided it was time try a nicer gun. Ordered one from Eastwood.

Instlling nut plates

Bob Archer antenna

Match drilling antenna

Glassing in antenna

Micro filling seam

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Sanding it down

Feb 02, 2023 Starting to think about paint schemes

Category: Painting

When the project started, I told my wife she could pick the colors and I meant it. I met with Scheme Designers briefly at Oshkosh and will have her work them to come up with something. I'd like to get her engaged in that process now so we've been pulling photos of schemes and colors that we like. I'll track our initial notes and photos in this entry.
- likely to do sika for the windows so note that we will have a black border around the glass. Maybe even the Egyptian eyeliner look.
- dark on bottom seems better than dark on top. Staying cool in Texas, also less oil discoloration on belly

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Egyptian eyeliner

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Feb 02, 2023 Finish up tip lenses - (4.5 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

1/30: Ice day in Dallas today but getting a little a little work done in the very cold garage. Final fit the right tip lens and drilled and installed the nut plates. Then taped off the lens and applied a first coat of micro to the edge.

1/31: Sanded out the micro. Will need a second coat.

2/1: Re-masked the lens and applied second coat of micro. Sanded out. Removed masking from lens and check fit - looks pretty good, but as expected the fiberglass is a little high due to the thickness of the tape. Trial fit and sanded a little more to get it smooth.

2/2: still ice days so getting a little done while working from home. Happy with the fit of the right lens, cut the paint gap using the pull saw. Had just a couple spots that were not even so touched up with a little glazing putty. Looking at the unmasked lens, I had a few scratches from saw and from sanding operations. I had previously ordered a micromesh polish kit and went to work on the scratches. Started by sanding them out with 600 grit normal paper and then worked through the micromesh pads and eventually to the polishing compound. Came out pretty good. The big scratches are out at least; I'll probably touch it all up later when final assembling. A long time between now and then to pick some additional small scratches in the lenses. Happy with the right lens, I took some micromesh to the left lens too and addressed the few scratches I picked up in that one too. I wrapped both lenses in protective blue tape and will set them aside.

Picking up a little ice

Nut plate installation

First round of micro

Ready for second round

Touch up after cutting paint gap

Micromesh polish kit

Feb 01, 2023 Fuselage Shipped Category: General

Got the email today that the fuselage has shipped. Right in the middle of the crating window that Van's had set back in October. Good timing.

Jan 28, 2023 24-3: Back on the left tip - (4 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

With the right tip pretty much to the prime and sand stage, switched attention back to the left tip today.

Sanded back the joggle on the tip and mounted the tip on the wing, confirmed alignment and then floxed the joint closed. Once cured, sanded flush to the tape, then removed and sanded the remainder down leaving just the slight edge filled. Reinstalled the tip and double checked the gap to the aileron. Shooting for 1/4” so that when I add the fiberglass close out, it should be about 3/16”. Also marked the trailing edge for trimming even with aileron. Cut the trailing edge with the pull saw.

Installed the trailing edge rib and then mixed up some more flox to fill the end rib and adhere the fiberglass piece I had previously made.

1/29: trailing edge close out is cured so sanded it all down then proceeded with the reinforcement strips. Mixed up the flox and glued and clamped in place. Drilled only a few holes for alignment this time to avoid the puckering between the holes that I had on the left tip. It's a bit colder today so this epoxy is going to take forever. Going to clean the shop.

Sanded out flox joint

Fitting the trailing edge rib

Trailing edge rib riveted

Rivet fan for spacing

Close-out epoxied in place

Close out piece sanded

Installing reinforcement strips

Jan 15, 2023 24-2 & 3: Right tip mostly done - (12.0 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

Stalling on wing tip work. Not a lot done during the week but finally made myself a punch list to get organized. Step one was to move the left wing out of the cradle to give me some room to work on the right tip. Final drillled the right tip to #28s, Deburred and dimpled the skins for #6 screws.

I was very apprehensive about installing the nut plates but jumped in and went for it. Had nothing to worry about, everything was fine. Installed a #6 screw backwards in the nut plate and used that as a jig. Held in place and drilled the first hole, then cleco'd in place and drilled the second. Countersunk the #40s by hand with the deburr tool with 4-6 turns. Riveted with 3-4's except a few at the front that needed a little longer. Once all the nut plates were in place, I countersunk the #6 holes testing with a coupon as I went. About 40 turns with the deburr tool was good.

Also mixed up some micro and smoothed out the trailing edge closure piece. Also applied micro to the tip lense interiors to smooth them out.

1/16: checked the fit of the right tip with the screws. Fits pretty good. The. Took it off to clean up a couple of countersinks and then wrap the end of the skins with electrical tape. Reinstalled with the electrical tape and applied a layer of micro to the joint.

Then redrilled the holes for the left tip for hopefully the last time. Looks good this time.

1/22: lots going on this week but slowly progressed the right tips. Applied second round of micro and sanded the interface with the skin. Trimmed the right lens and then drilled the attachment holes and installed nut plates. First round didn't go well, but plate seemed out of alignment. Floxed over the holes and try again. Better results second time. Once lens was fit well, I applied micro and sanded. All looked good but had many more scratches in the lens, will need to get some micro mesh and polish.

Final step was cutting a paint gap between the lens and the tip, and between the tip and the skin. Just carefully cut it with the pull saw leaving a fairly uniform 1/32" gap.

Applied a skim coat of epoxy to seal up any pinholes. Still need to sand out next week. Everything sounds quick but each step involves multiple applications of micro and several sanding sessions over multiple days. Right tip is mostly done short of final sand and priming.

Other nephew stopped by the house today and helped move the right wing out and left wing into the cradles to start work on that tip.

Nutplates and countersinks for #6's

Micro applied on trailing edge

Micro at skin interface

Micro'd the lens interiors

Sanded smooth

Drilling for lens screws

Lens nutplates

Checking fit

Lens masked and ready for micro

Micro applied

Micro sanded

Epoxy skim coat

Jan 08, 2023 24-3: More right tip progress - (5.0 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

Still unseasonably warm January which is working out great for my fiberglass work.

There were a few holes in the floxed interface between the left tip and the skin so I re-taped it and applied some more flox to fill those spots. Also, filled the previously drilled holes on the right tip because I still wasn't happy with the alignment. Will redrill once cured.

Then laid up some flat pieces of glass to close out the trailing edge of the tips. Just two ply of BID fabric between plastic sheets. Let them cure overnight then cut to shape.

Inserted the trailing edge rib in the left tip and marked the end rivet holes. Used my new rivet fan to lay out the remaining holes. Riveted with solid -3s except the last two, used pull rivets for those. Then applied a layer of epoxy and flox to the rib and edge of the tip and installed the close out piece I made the day before. When it was all cured, I trimmed to fit and sanded smooth. Looks good.

Meanwhile, match drilled holes for the reinforcement strips using the wing skin as a guide. Pressed the strips right to the end rib expecting that it will extend beyond the tip fiberglass in many places. Intent is to use the reinforcement strip as a guide to add additional flox to to the tip flange to extend the edge distance in a few places where it is a little light. Once holes were drilled, I applied a flox mix to the inside of the tips and installed the strips on the left tip, holding in place with clecos as I went. There were a few places where the holes didn't quite align because the match drilling didn't account for the thickness of the fiberglass tip around the curves. I snipped the reinforcement strips in a couple places to relieve their tendency to buckle between clecos. Wiped Vaseline on the clecos to prevent them from getting stuck, worked well. Applied additional flox along the edge of the tip flange where reinforcement strip extended. Once cured, cleaned up all the extra flox and finished the edge of the flange. A little touch up to do, but seems to have all worked according to plan.

Pre-drilling reinforcement strips

Floxing reinf strips in place

Fitting trailing edge rib

Laying out rivet spacing

Countersinking holes

Trailing edge rivets

Layup of trailing edge closeouts

Trailing edge closeout epoxied in place

Trailing edge closeout trimmed

Dec 31, 2022 24-2: Tips progress - (7 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

Beautiful day outside and wanted to get some epoxy work done. Holding off on the left tip, I went ahead and started on the right tip. Low and behold the right tip had a nice scribe line of where to cut. After measuring it comfirmed that it would leave the 1/16” to 1/8” gap in the joggle. Cut again with a pull saw and sanded with the permagrit bar, checking the fit as I went.

Finally got the right tip where I was happy and clamped and taped it in place. Double checked the alignment and drilled the holes. Much better alignment all around. They're a couple holes with minimal edge distance but I plan to install an aluminum backer plate and will add some flox to the edges.

Did an initial sanding of the tip seams and the joggle then proceeded to fill the joggle gap with flox per chapter 5. I wrapped the skins in electrical tap and clecos the tip in place. Then mixed up some flox and used a ziplock bag to dispense directly in the gap. Smoothed it out with a hotel key card and will let it cure.

1/1: Happy new year! The great weather continues and this morning I sanded down the flox from yesterday. Transition looks good; will look better after micro. I'm out of epoxy though so looking for something else to work on.

Went ahead and cut the lense for the tip light on the left side. Separated the big single lense into left and right and then roughly marked the outline of the lense within about 1/2” of final. Cut that with snips. Fit it a little better now and marked with about 1/8” of final and cut with some nice curved lexan scissors I had from my RC car days. Continued cutting it closer to the line and remarking with masking tape. Got it close enough and then sanded the edge smooth 80-100-160-220-400 wet. I intentionally left a small gap that I will micro similar to the tip onto the end.

Still looking for things to do, I marked the line to trim the trailing edge of the right tip. Just marked it with a straight edge clamped to the aileron and then cut it with the pull saw. Finished it with permagrit bar. Came out good.

1/2: Out of epoxy so worked on the reinforcement strips for the nut plates. I had a trashed aileron skin that I held on to and it is just the right length to cut strips from. So marked off four 5/8" wide strips and cut them on the band saw. Sanded and deburred the edges and primed one side. Meant to do the other tip lense today but ran out of time.

Accentuating the scribe line

Trimming tip with pull saw

Electrical tape masking

Floxing the gap

Initial fit of tip lense

Lense trimmed a little closer

Final fit on lense

Marking trailing edge for cut

Trailing edge cut line

Good alignment

Priming the tip ribs

Reinforcement strips

Dec 10, 2022 24-2: Starting on left tip - (5.5 hours)

Category: 24: Wing Tip

The tip flanges were quite a bit longer than needed and there was no scribe line in the parts. So I measured and marked the rough cut of the left wing tip. Used a Japanese pull saw to make the cuts. Went pretty easy. Then used the permagrit bar to clean up the edges and get to the line I marked.

It actually fits up pretty well on the first try. I'd seen where people have to used ratchet straps and carefully drill and ratchet to pull the tip into place. Mine lines up with no issues. Maybe that is just the ziptips that don't align well but it thought I had seen it in -7s and -14s too with the stock tips.

Still needs a little shaving for perfect fit but happy so far.

12/24: Hours are a guess; I've been working here and there over the last month on the left tip but not making a lot of progress.

I got everything lined up on the left tip and drilled it. Thought it was good until I sighted down the tip and saw that it wasn't in the same plane as the aileron. It was not square to the end rib. Very disappointed. Also realized that I didn't leave a very good gap between the skin and the joggle in the tip. Chapter 5 would say to leave a 1/16” to 1/8” gap to be filled in with flox.

So, I filled in all of the holes I had drilled in the tip and filled them with flox. Then sanded along the bottom of the tip and tried to sand the joggle out of the tip so that if would sit better. Thought I had it all squared up pretty good and re-drilled it. It's much better, but not sure if it's as good as it could be. I feel like the tip itself is a bit curved. Maybe I can just sand that out.

Marking and initial cuts

Trial left fit

Alignment is good this way

But not aligned this way

Dec 03, 2022 Right flap twist - (2.5 hours)

Category: 22: Flap

When I got the right flap and right aileron installed and rigged, I noticed the flap doesn't align well with the aileron. It is only about 3/32” out of alignment vertically and if that was the only issue I'd probably let it go. Based on what I've read on VAF this is a common issues and in other models 3/32” would be pretty good. The problem in the -10 (and -14) is the pivot point of the flaps means that a 3/32” vertical offset is also about a 1/4” horizontal offset. My conclusion is that the flap is slightly twisted. I am going to drill out the trailing edge rivets and try to untwist it a bit. I hope I don't regret this.

12/6: have about half the trailing edge rivets drilled out. Popped the heads off in the normal manner, but can't really grab the recessed double flush shop heads with side cutters like normal. Opted to just carefully drill a 3/32” hole down the exposed center of the rivet. Most popped right out. No damage to the holes. Still holding a cleco tightly.

12/10: once I had the trailing edge unzipped, I tried to twist it. It doesn't budge. I was afraid I'd damage it if I out too much force in. Certainly doesn't move easily. I thought I had improved it slightly and went ahead and re-riveted it back together. Remounted to the wing and it honestly looks exactly the same as it did.

It's really fine and I'm sure will fly fine. Just annoying. I priced out new flap parts from Van's - about $500. Could throw it into my fuselage crate. I'll think about it.

Flap to Aileron mis-alignment

Resetting the trailing edge

Dec 03, 2022 20-5 & 20-6: Finishing up the right wing skin - (3.5 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

Finished off the step 12 rivets in the right wing this morning.

Moved on to the access panels with no issues. I always knew getting the trim servo hooked up to the springs would be difficult. I happened to see in someone's build log this week that they used zip ties to pull the springs together and then cut them once the servo was connected. Worked like a charm and the trim servo went in super easy.

This section is done. All that is left is the tips.

All rivets done

Zip tie trick

Installing trim servo

Access panels all done

Nov 27, 2022 20-5: Right bottom skin - Step 11 - (6.5 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

After a brief celebration of completing the left wing, I turned the cradles around in the garage to better position for the right wing skin. Didn't really intend to do a big chunk of the right skin today but just slowly started going through the motions throughout the day. Hung the skin, put in some clecos, inserted first set of rivets and taped them. Well, I guess I could set a few…. And next thing you know I had completed step 11 down to the j channel. I'll stop there.

Wow, going much faster and the quality is much better. Pulled in a couple lessons learned like not even messing around with that one corner rivet against the flap bracket; just pull it and go.

11/29: finished step 11 over the past couple nights. No issues.

Bottom skin rivets

More bottom skin rivets

Didn’t even bother trying

Nov 26, 2022 20-5 & 20-6: Left wing finish up - Step 12 - (3.5 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

Got through Step 12 over the past few days. These are the final rivets that are mostly accessed from the lightening holes in the end rib as you awkwardly pull the skin back. Got it all done solo, and my arm has the bruises to prove it. Overall came out good, a few dings here and there, but I'm overall happy with it.

Proceeded to install the nut plates for the access hole covers. Twisted the head off a #6 screw while installing - opted to just drill out the nutplate and replace it. Easy peasy.

Left bottom skin done

Left bottom skin other angle

All beat up

Finished access cover plate

Installing access nut plates

Broken screw

Nov 23, 2022 Pitot tube and OAT - (0.5 hour)

Category: Avionics

As part of the left wing bottom skin riveting I made the final installation of the pitot tube and the outside air temp probe.

Tied the pitot heater wires up as best I could while confirming the ties can still be cut in the future through the access hole. Air hoses are routed nicely but not tied to anything. Shouldn't flip around with the stiffness if the lines. Blue is pitot. Green is AOA.

Installed pitot to the mast with stainless button head screws. Need to come back with some lock-tite.

Pitot plumbing and wiring

Pitot plumbing and wiring 2

Outside air temp probe

Pitot tube

Pitot tube 2

Nov 20, 2022 20-5: Back to the left bottom skin - Step 11 - (6.0 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

Getting back to the bottom skins. Been a little cold lately so tough to find motivation. Dug out the larger outboard skin for the left wing and realized that it never got dimpled. Set up the DRDT2 and took care of that. Then cleco'd the skin in place, taped the first line of rivets, and riveted the trailing edge. A long way to go.

Step 11 covers the riveting of the inner half of the outer skin. Similar to Step 10, this starts at the trailing edge and works forward. Just a lot of time on my knees.

11/21: a little more progress on the left wing. Almost done with step 11. Got everything down to the J channel. Got the pitot mast shoehorned in. Had to trim the pitot heat controller back a bit with a dremel to get everything to clear and go together as planned.

11/22: got through step 11 on the left wing finally. The inner portion of the outboard skin that is riveted mostly from the bottom. Step 12 is the outer portion that is riveted from the end. Off my knees at least. Had a little help from Everett - at least he doesn't run away when he hears the rivet gun anymore.

Trimmed angle

Pitot mast fitted

Riveting in progress

Everett's contribution

Step 11 complete

Nov 19, 2022 20-5: Right bottom skins - Step 10 - (2.5 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

Started the morning with goal of getting the right in board skin done by the end of the weekend. Pretty much knocked it out in a couple hours. Went much faster than the left side and came out perfect.

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Nov 10, 2022 OP-38: Aileron trim servo - (1.5 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

Temporarily installed the pushrod and trim servo and marked the centerline of the servo arm on the pushrod. Measured and drilled the locations for the spring attach brackets. Then wrestled with getting all of it temporarily installed in the wings. I don't know how I'll get it all installed after the bottom skins are in place.

Mounting tabs on pushrod

Temporary installation

Nov 10, 2022 Tech Counselor Visit - (1.8 hours)

Category: General

Had a tech counselor visit today prior to closing up the wings. He looked over the wings and asked several questions about why I had done certain things the way I did, and we had good conversation about the progress. He had no issues with my work.

We did discuss the location of the pitot tube related to the tie down ring and the possibility of the rope fouling on the pitot tube. It was a consideration when I determined the location and I felt like I was clear, but it is something I'll have to be conscious of when tying down.

He raised some good questions about bolt lengths that caused me to go back and check a few bolts with significant thread exposed. The concern is that if the bolt was too long, I may have been tightening against the shoulder of the bolt and not compressing the plys. I put a wrench on a few of them to see if I could move them easily. While I was able to move them it a bit, it took some effort and no less force than the bolts which I'm confident were fully torqued. I think I'm ok, but I'm glad he brought it up and something I'll keep an eye out in the future.

He also pointed out the lack of minimum threads on the ends of the torque tubes. I explained the challenge of the additional washers I added on the inside of the bearings to take up the slack and I had already used narrow washers. I thought they were good enough with a sliver of thread showing, but he pointed it out as an area that DARs have commented on before on RV-10s. He suggested that these nuts were nut in tension and that a slimmer "shear" nut could be used. I verified those would be appropriate and ordered some from ACS. Good catch and good suggestion.

Good visit. Thanks for coming by Michael.

Before

After

Nov 06, 2022 20-5: Left bottom skin riveting - Step 10 - (4.2 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

I knew this step would be one of the most difficult. I didn't expect that I'd be able to solo rivet the bottom skin on but so far so good. Well, so far ok. Starts with Step 10, which is the inboard skin. Rivet to the trailing edge first then work your way forward using the access hole and rib lightening holes to get the rivets closest to the spar.

I got most of the inner left skin done today. It was definitely a challenge to get the bucking bar on all the rivets, particularly the tightly spaced inner ribs. I spent most of the time on my knees with may arm extended up into the wing and the gun in my opposite hand. Most are pretty awkward, but you can get on them. I did have a few dings in the skin where the bucking bar was not cleanly on the rivet. At least it is on the bottom. It did get better as I went, but I haven't had dings like that since working on the empennage. I'm going to stop with just the inboard skins for now. I have tech counselor coming later this week before I close up the wing.

11/7: Finished up the inboard left skin. I need to remember to rivet the first rivet ahead of the J channel before riveting the J channel. I did that successfully on the top skin, but forgot on the bottom. Getting that rivet that is covered by the J channel is very difficult. I had to drill out the very last one and messed up the hole a bit. I was not confident I could drive an oops rivet so upsized if and installed a -4 cherry. It sits a little proud. Oh well, got it done. I'll do better on the next one - solo riveting skills were a little rusty.

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Nov 06, 2022 18-8: Right tank finish up - (2.0 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Prepped and primed the right tank. Ready for install. Mix 150g of part A Ekopoxy and had quite a bit left over. Finish was not as smooth as left tank. Need to turn up the paint a bit to get it to flow. It was maybe a little warmer today.

11/8: dimpled tank and installed. Easy peasy. Temporarily held with clecos.

11/11: Neighbor helped me pull the left wing out of the cradle so I could access all the right tank screws. Installed all the AN bolts through the spar and torqued. Right wing tank is done.

Right tank final prime

Completed right tank

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Nov 04, 2022 23-8 & 23-9: Left wing aileron actuation - (2.2 hours)

Category: 23: Aileron Actu

With the left tank finally in place I was able to install the torque tube and finish up the airleron pushrods in the left wing.

Struggled with the torque tube a bit as you have to slide the powder coated ends a bit further into the torque tubes in order to engage the fore and aft bearings. After sanding more primer off the torque tube and finally getting it in place I realized there was too much slop in the torque tube between the bearings. I need to add a washer. Take it apart, install a washer and redo. Faster the second time. With the additional washer on the inside, I'm not getting a lot of thread projection through the nut - not sure what to do about that.

Measured the distance from the rib per the plans and installed the hardware. Torqued the belcrank hardware but held off on the inboard hardware to allow adjustment for final rigging.

11/6: pushrod tube had to come out to give access for bottom skin riveting. Got a little ahead of the plans here.

11/10: realized today just prior to Tech Counselor visit that I had installed the torque tubes backwards. It was apparent because the pushrods were going through the wing at quite an angle. Disassembled, flipped the orientation and re-assembled and re-torqued. Pushrod runs more straight down the lightening hole now. Also resolved the thread projection issue.

Outboard belcrank

Inboard torque tube

Nov 02, 2022 18-8: Left tank done - (3.0 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

With the left tank leak free, I decided to prime it with a final coat of Ekopoxy. This would satisfy my OCD need to have a nice uniform primed finish and provide a little more resistance to fuel and solvents. I had not used the Ekopoxy yet and was concerned about how thick it is. I stirred the thick part A with a paddle mixer on an electric drill. The Part B was much thinner viscosity and when mixed with part A resulted in an almost flowable paint, but not sprayable. I added the recommended water to thin it a bit and it was still a little thicker than I'm used to but worth trying before thinning more.

After thoroughly cleaning the soapy residue off the tank, I sprayed a tack coat and then a second coat but it wasn't flowing out well. Ran out of paint and mixed up another batch. Added a little more water this time, about 20-25%. Flowed out better and didn't run. Very happy with the results. Will target 20% water on future mixes.

Primed the pitot mast too while I was at it. Came out really well.

After a few hours, I decided to proceed with dimpling the tank. At the very least it would give me a data point for how well the primer takes a dimple after 3 hrs cure. No issues. With the dimples done I guess I could hang the tank. Wasn't sure I'd get it in place by myself but it actually wasn't that hard. Installed a couple AN bolts in the spar to keep it in place then proceeded with all the #8 screws in the bottom. Then finished installing the AN bolts and torqued them. Will need to get the top #8 screws when I have some help to move the wing out of the cradle. Looks great though!

11/5: wife helped me lay the wing on a table
So I could get to the top screws. Had to do a little filing of the edge of the tank skin to get it to lay flat. All screws installed. Looks awesome.

Final priming of left tank

Pitot mast

Dimpling for #8s

Initial fit up

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Complete left wing

Filing the edge for clearance

Oct 31, 2022 23-8 & 23-9: pushrod installation - (1.5 hours)

Category: 23: Aileron Actu

Don't have the tanks done yet so can't install the inboard torque tube. Went ahead and installed the pushrods though. It's going to be a lot easier to do this now vs after the bottom skins are on. I've checked as best as I can and I don't there will be any interference. If I have to pull them out later, oh well.

Measured the rough lengths of the main pushrods and the bellcrank to aileron pushrods. Used the outboard RV-14 templates to rig the ailerons to the correct position and then installed the short pushrods and set to final length using the W-730 template. Tightened the jam nuts and torque sealed. Installed final hardware and torqued. Don't think any of it will need to come out again.

Temporarily installed the main pushrods and loosely tightened the hardware. Final install will have to wait for tanks and torque tubes.

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Oct 30, 2022 Adjust coax conduit - (0.5 hour)

Category: Avionics

As I was trial fitting the aileron pushrods, I noticed that it directly conflicts with the future coax conduit I had installed in the left wing. In all my wire runs I was conscious of the main pushrod and the belcrank, but wasn't thinking at all about the smaller bell crank to aileron pushrod.

Easy fix. Just popped off the sharkbite clamp and removed the rivets. Moved the clamp on the ribs just inboard and outboard if the bell crank. Re drillled and re riveted. All good now.

Conduit conflict with pushrod

Conduit realigned

Oct 29, 2022 20-5: Bottom skin work - (7.5 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

I've been messing with bottom skins on and off over the last few weeks. Mostly putting them on to get them out of the way. I did sand the corners at the overlap as I had done on the top skin. I had kinda been going off the instructions so thought I should get back to them before prepping and priming the skins.

This morning cleco'd the j channels and skins in place and match drilled the remaining holes in the j channels. Also drilled the holes for nut plates in the in board rib.

Deburred right wing skins and dimpled the wing ribs. Used close quarter simple tool next to flap brackets. Had to use just the male dimple, a block, and some pliers to dimple the aft most #8 screw.

Prepped and primed right skins. It was about 65 out and the paint just wouldn't dry. What a difference from the summer when it dries almost instantly.

10/30: dimpled the right skins. Then got to work on the left skins. Deburred, prepped and primed the j channels and skins. Realizing I'm almost out of ekoprime, I prepped the access panel covers too. This will be the last prime session on the wing. Got everything primed with just enough.

Dimpled the j channels and the inboard left skin.

Initial fitting of bottom skins

Fitting bottom skins

Sanding the corner

Primer goes on very wet when it is cold out

Dimpling the skins

Oct 28, 2022 Fuel tank repair 3 - (2.0 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Received my third repair kit from Van's. Got everything prepped and cleaned with acetone as best as possible. Mixed up some proseal and filled two small syringes to get into the tank.

Used the syringes to apply a new bead above and below the existing bead in an attempt to slather new beads in there. It was all blind. Used a popsicle stick to try to make some fillets. Camera confirmed I had applied a good bit of proseal in the problem areas.

Put a little proseal on each rivet hole in the back baffle and applied two continuous beads, one inside the rivet line and one outside. Inserted two rivets into the repair plates to help align and installed the back baffle repair plates. Installed remaining rivets and pulled them all with the pneumatic squeezer. Good squeeze out on all.

We'll see in a few days how we did.

10/30: proseal was pretty well cured so thought I'd see how we did. Set up the manometer and pressurized. It was immediately dropping and quickly. I could actually hear the air leaking out. $?&@$!

It is leaking out the rivets that I put in the patches. They're hermetic rivets but appear to be leaking right though the center hole. Other leaks appear to be sealed but without it holding any pressure it is tough to be sure. Nothing left to do except slather proseal over the river heads from the outside. Order more proseal.

11/1: quick turnaround on the proseal from ACS. Took the opportunity to seal up the rivets. I figured that if I drew a vacuum with a small dollup of proseal on each rivet that it would draw down into the stem of the river. Worked pretty well. I applied a little to each and as I drew the vacuum, I could hear them hissing again. On several of the rivets I could see that it had formed a small hole in the dollup meaning it had drawn in. Good. Reapplied proseal and actually couldn't hear the hissing anymore. Removed the vacuum, and the. Applied a large Hershey kiss to each rivet. Put a fillet around the outside of the plate for good measure. I'm optimistic.

11/3: Finally! Right tank passes leak check. What a milestone.

Access holes cut in back baffle

Proseal applicators

New proseal bead

More sealant

Seal the holes

Seal the plate

Install the plate

Install the rivets

Seal the rivet heads

Wait and cross fingers

Oct 22, 2022 23-2 thru 23-6: Aileron pushrods and bellcranks - (6.5 hours)

Category: 23: Aileron Actu

Cut the main pushrods to length and match drilled the pushrod ends. Primed the inside of the tube and the ends. I'll let that sit for a couple days to cure.

Cut the shorter pushrods to length. Vans sent alternate pushrods that need to be reamed to 7/16”. I had purchased a reamer from Yardstore specific for this task but as I went to ream them it was apparent that I had bought the wrong size. Ordered the right size.

Move on to the torque tubes. Match drilled and installed the ends into the powder coated torque tube ends. Searched the plans for a while trying to see how long to cut the torque tube to. A 22” tube was provided by no indication of how long to cut it. Quick search on VAF confirmed to just cut it in half. Cut it and inserted into the powder ends. Match drilled to #30 and then upsized to #12 and temporarily installed the bolts. Took everything apart and primed inside and out of all non-powder coated surfaces. Couldn't reassemble after priming and had to take the primer off the ends of the tubes. Installed the AN3 bolts and torqued.

Made a 5/16" spacer out of popsicle sticks and set the clocking and length of the torque tube assembly, careful to make a right and left. Drilled the #30's and upsized to #12s. Will have to wait for tanks to be done to final install.

Cut the big pushrod tubes to length and match drilled the ends. Primed the ends and inside the tube then rivetted together once dry.

Fabricated the aileron bellcrank spacers. Installed the nut plate to the right aileron bellcrank to accommodate the autopilot servo connection. Final drilled all the #12 holes in the bellcranks and permanently installed and torqued.

10/23: Amazon came through with my new reamer this afternoon. Made pretty quick work of small pushrods. Clamped them in the vice and let the reamer do itswork with a good bit of oil.

Drilled the #40 pilot holes in the ends of the pushrods. Then primed them. Inserted the pushrod ends and drilled to #30, cleco'd as I went. Rivets were too long for the squeezer but used the gun against the back-rivet plate and it worked well.

Torque tube as supplied

Cutting Torque tube in half

Torque tube ends

Drilling torque tube

Drilling the torque tube ends for AN bolts

Setting the torque tube clocking

Finished torque tubes

Drilling the pushrod ends

Bellcrank spacers

Nutplate for AP servo

Bellcrank installed and torqued

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Oct 22, 2022 Fuel tank repair 2 - (2.0 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Got my tank repair kits from Vans and started on cutting the holes in the back baffle. I'm a little concerned now that the leaks potentially extend across three bays. My attempt to proseal from the outside likely extended the apparent limits of the leak, but with all the proseal removed it still appears to leak from the ends. Just to be safe I will seal all three bays. I need another patch kit then.

Cut the holes a few different ways, none is great. I tried drilling a perimeter of holes and then snipping out the skin between. This leaves a very rough, almost saw tooth edge, that quickly eats up the sanding drums I was trying to use to smooth it. On the second one I used a carbide bit in the dremel to just cut it out. Came out a little better but time consuming.

I also purchased a $40 borescope for my phone to get some visibility on the repairs. The existing proseal beads look pretty good to me, but they apparently leak. I'll just lay a new fat bead in there and cross my fingers.

10/23: last night a strong gust of wind blew my tank off the table it has been sitting on outside. It bent the bottom skin a bit in the corner, but I was able to bend it back by hand. Hardly noticeable. Lucky.

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Oct 11, 2022 Fuel tank repair 1 - (2.5 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

My A&P brother and A&P nephew were in town and convinced me we should try to draw a vacuum on the tanks and suck proseal into the leaks.

First step was figuring out how to safely draw a vacuum. Rigged up the manometer to the vent line to read the negative pressure of 27” of water or about 1 psi. McGuyver'd together my shop vac, a kid's cup and a medicine syringe to pull a vacuum on the fuel drain line.

After proving the vacuum concept, mixed up some proseal and applied to the vicinity of the left tank leak. Drew the vacuum and initially it didn't hold. But the proseal appeared to seep into the space between the baffle and the skin and eventually it seemed to hold the vacuum. Let it sit under vacuum for about 30 minutes and the pressure seemed to stabilize.

Moved onto the right tank. Similar, but less conclusive results. Seems to hold but was slowly losing vacuum. Weather was also changing so we'll see.

10/12: after 24 hrs was anxious to check it. Probably should have let it sit longer. It was leaking right out the end of the proseal I had applied. I think that is a sign that it was a superficial seal and didn't really seep into the joint. I scraped all the proseal off and redid it, extending it further along the seam and drawing the vacuum for at least two hours on the left and then overnight on the right tank. Seems to be holding but who knows. Will patiently wait until the weekend to test it.

10/15: right tank is still leaking in the same spot. And I found another spot. Good news is that I think the left tank is sealed. No bubbles around the repair and it is holding pressure on the manometer.

10/17: left tank is good. Decided to make one last pass at the right tank before cutting it open. Bought some toluene to lightly thin the proseal. Used about 10% by weight. Applied to both areas that were leaking. It still doesn't viably draw into the seam so I'm not hopeful. If it at least fixes the new, smaller leak then I won't have to cut two holes. We'll see.

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Oct 09, 2022 Right flap work - (10.5 hours)

Category: 22: Flap

Deburred the remaining skins and spar for the right flap the. Prepped and primed.

10/10: started assembly of the flap bracket assemblies.

10/11: took advantage of my nephew in town and got a lot of work done this evening. Everything dimpled and started riveting the skeleton together.

10/13: finished the skeleton and got the leading edges and top skin cleco'd and set in the cradles.

10/15; got the top and bottom skins riveted and trailing edge taped and cleco'd to the board.

10/17: got it all back-riveted and finished of. Missing two pull rivets.

10/21: got two rivets from another builder. Right flap is done.

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Oct 08, 2022 Landing light install - (3.0 hours)

Category: Lighting

Decided to tackle the landing lights while wrapping up the other wiring. Hadn't quite figured yet how I would run the wires through the mounting plate; the FlyLed power connections are in the front of the light. I also wanted Toni corporate an adel clamp somewhere to provide some strain relief.

Decide to put the adel clamp on the back side of the bracket, very close to where the outboard molex connection would be. Then I drilled a hole through the face of the bracket to run the wire through with a rubber grommet.

Planning is easy; execution was challenging. Just getting both the mount and light into the bay requires a little bit of a dance. You do have access to the backside through the outboard wing rib, but everything has to come in from the hole in the leading edge. I wanted to use hex head #8 screws to mount the light but the nut plates were #10s. Drilled those out and replaced the nutplates with K1000-08s. Even with the hex head screws getting the light installed in the bracket it's everything inside the wing was difficult, but got it done.

Very patiently worked to get the brackets installed and wires routed, stripped and inserted into the friction connections on the Flyleds. Left enough room for a service loop behind the light and tied it up well to keep it clear if the heat sink. Much of the work was done laying on the floor looking up at the lights with the leading edge pointing down in the cradle.

The most difficult part was installing the lense now that the light is in place. I finally got the technique which I'm sure I will forget by the next time I have to touch these. I can only describe it as squeezing the lense like a taco and getting the whole lense above the light. Once inserted in the top, the bottom of lense just barely clears the light but it does.

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Oct 06, 2022 Tank leak found - (2.0 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

For weeks I have been inflating balloons, tightening clamps, replacing balloons, repeat…convinced that the slow leak was related to my balloon connection.

Today I finally made a manometer to more accurately measure the pressure and mostly to eliminate the balloon from the equation. After getting it all set up I could very quickly see the pressure was dropping. I sprayed the back baffle with soapy water and there were clearly bubbles coming out along the seam. In the last month I have sprayed every inch of that baffle a hundred times and there were never any sign of bubbles. Then with the manometer setup, it was so obvious.

Started researching ways to fix it. Some suggest drawing a vacuum on the tank and it will draw the proseal in from the outside. I'm not sure how well that will work. I'm just going to bight the bullet and order some repair kits from vans.

At least I found it.

Figured I'd move the left tank over and double check it too with the manometer. Sure enough, it's leaking too. Right out at the end. Guess I'll get two repair kits.

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Found a left tank leak too

Oct 04, 2022 Back on the wing wiring - (5.8 hours)

Category: Avionics

Need to at least check continuity and pin-outs before closing up the wing. I bought a new multimeter; my old one was garbage. Mad up som long test leads so I could check the root all the way to the tip. Started checking the power wires and realized I put the molex pins in backwards on the tips - female pins in the female plug. It still seems to make a good connection, but I decided to fix it.

Then got to the wing root and realized I basically did the same thing the small CPC connector. Put the male pins in the male plug. Took that connector all apart and receipted new pins and reassembled. Not bad, but tight quarters. I'll be more careful in the future.

Got started on the right wing root connection. Received my larger unibit from Amazon so was able to drill the hole for the larger CPC. Cut the hole for the molex connector with the dremel as before.

10/6: worked on the CPC connector tonight. I got all the shield drains soldered and wires trimmed and stripped. Ready for pins. Used a little different technique for the shield drains that I like. First cut a window for the drain wire, then make the solder connection, then remove the remaining shield leaving a short piece of insulation between the window and the end. This keeps the shield in good shape for soldering with no chance of unraveling. Then I used the wire label heat shrink to cover the whole thing.

10/7: got all the pins crimped and then checked continuity of all the wires - all good. Installed the pins in the CPC and finished off the backshell. Finished off the molex connections for all the power wires. Wing roots are finished.

10/8: Finalized installation of the conduit all the way out to the end of the left wing for future coax.

The wing wiring is done. Organized all of my leftover electrical supplies and tools and put them away. Won't need them again for a long time.

Wing root bracket

Wires striped and ready to crimp

Right root finished

Wing wiring is done

Conduit with Sharkbite clamps

Sep 25, 2022 Wing wiring - Left root connection - (2.8 hours)

Category: Avionics

Made up the brackets for the wing root connectors. The right wing will have a large CPC for the data and a molex for the lighting wire. The left has a much smaller CPC for just the pitot sense and OAT probe and a similar large molex connector for lighting and the pitot heat. I am also making an accommodation for coax in the left wing so will provide an adel clamp just in case.

Marked and cut and bent some scrap aluminum plates to make the brackets. Laid out where the connectors would go and started drilling. Need to get a larger step drill bit for the large CPC on the right wing. Proceeding with the left wing. Got the CPC drilled, then marked the adel clamp location and marked the molex connection. Predrilled the corners of the molex then used a dremel wheel to cut the opening. Finished it with files. Fits good.

Running a piece of the Vans conduit in the left wing for potential coax. Using shark bite clamps to secure to the ribs. They're a little big but wrapping the conduit in six wraps of electrical seems to work well. Marked on the inboard rib where the center of the adel clamp would fall then tried to center the conduit on that point. With everything clamped tightly in close proximity I shouldn't have to worry about chafing at the end of the conduit. Riveted the shark bite clamp in place. The rivets will preclude rivets in the middle of the connector bracket but can still fit four rivets total.

Trial fit everything. Looks good.

9/26: got the pins all crimped and finished off the left wing root connections. Very happy with how it looks.

Laying out the bracket

Shark bite support

Aligning conduit with bracket

Test fit bracket and drill

Adel clamp

Finished bracket - left wing

Molex crimps

Left wing root done

Sep 24, 2022 22-8: Left flap finish up - (1.8 hours)

Category: 22: Flap

Finally got the shop cleared enough to get back on the left flap. Got the trailing edge double flushes done this evening. Came out really straight. Looks good.

9/25: pressed the bushings into the brackets. Got the initial set with a vice clamp and a block of wood, then fine tuned it with a socket and clamp. Later realized this was probably a mistake as the bottom skins will be very tight fitting over them. Hopefully not too much trouble. My fault for going out of order.

Back-riveting

Pressing the bushings

Left flap mounted

Left Flap finished

Trailing edge is straight

Sep 24, 2022 Pitot Mast - (3.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Getting the cut done in the bottom skin for the pitot mast. Now that the heater control box was mounted, I concluded that the location I was planning was a bit too far away from the box. I moved it to the inboard rib in the same bay, so just outside of the heater box, on the same rib. Rather than just using the paper template to directly mark and cut the hole in the skin, I decided to make an aluminum template that I could cleco in place and help me align everything prior to the big skin being in the way.

So I traced the paper template onto the scrap aluminum and drilled a couple holes, then up sized with the uni-bit. Then used the dremel to trim it to the line. Test fit the mast a few times and got a nice fit. Got the template and mast assembly clamped to the skeleton and confirmed the initial alignment then back drilled from the spar through the template. Now I could cleco template in place. Then drilled the holes in the mast from the outside.

Then went to install the angle bracket that I want between the mast and the rib. Predrilled some #40 holes in both legs and then clamped it in place behind the mast. Then match drilled into the rib, and upsized to #30s. Cleco'd that in place then backdrilled through the mast and template. Riveted the angle bracket to the rib.

With the mast drilled, I mounted the actual skin on the wing and cleco'd the template over it. Traced the hole onto the skin and made the initial holes in the skin. Same deal, upsized with the Unibit and then dremeled to the shape. When I got close to the line, I just cleco'd the template back in place and sanded right to the hole in the template. Test fit the mast and decided to give a little more room for the chrome plating.

Now the trouble. I need to be sure that I'm going to be able to follow the assembly sequence for riveting the bottom skin. The rear half of the skin will be riveted and I will need to carefully install the mast and skin together. Well, I tried but there is no way. The angle bracket I had riveted to the rib prevented the mast from being able to slip into place. So I drilled those out and I'll just have to use blind rivets from the access hole when it comes time. It's still difficult but I was able to get the mast and skin into position with the rear half of the skin cleco'd in place.

Flipped the template over to mark a mirror of the three bracket holes on the opposite side of the mast. Marked to additional holes and then match drilled everything through the skin and mast. Then countersunk all of the holes in the mast that will receive skin dimples.

Put the GAP 26 pitot tube into the mast and tried to mark the screw holes using extended centerlines. First shot at the hole locations was not as good as I hoped, but I was able to enlarge the holes a bit and get the 6-32 screws to align. I have some old RC hardware to check the fit, but I'll need to order some nice button head screws.

Started work on the GAP 26 pitot tube itself. Cut the tubes to about the minimum length required in the install manual and flared the ends for the AN hardware. Installed the AN fittings and the transitions to push fit fittings for the plastic hoses.

Everything looks good. Fun morning of work. I'm going to call around town and find someone to chrome plate the mast.

Paper template taped in place

Transfer to aluminum template

Cutting the hole in template

Template

Trial fit with template

Bracket clamped in place

Transfer template to skin

Bracket installed

Cutting the hole

Finished hole

Match drilling the other holes

Countersinking the mast

Marking the holes

AN fittings

Sep 19, 2022 Pitot heat controller - (2.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Messing around with how to mount the pitot heat control box. I want it in the aileron bellcrank bay so I can access it, yet outboard ofthe bellcrank so none of the wires cause problems with controls. With the lightening holes and the formed flanges on the ribs, there is no good level spot to mount all four screws. The plan is to run two screws through a flat spot on the rib and then use a piece of angle stock to provide an additional line of support through the lightening hole. Want to keep the angle stock high enough that I still have access to the pitot through the lightening hole.

Version 1 - this worked pretty clean although I end up with a lot of unsecured wire in the pitot tube bay. I will tie a service loop, but it still feels like I should have an adel clamp somewhere to provide some strain relief to the heater box. Plus a service loop in the pitot bay will be difficult to access and re-tie if necessary.

Version 2 - Flipped the box over so the wires come through the lightening hole nearest the spar. Then I can actually put an adel clamp on the leg of the angle and secure the wires with the service loop in the aileron belcrank bay. This will be easy to access, and I think I can even get a wrench on the adel clamp.

9/20: Satisfied with the design I started fabricating the angle and carefully marked out where the screw holes would be. Assembled, clamped, drilled, disassembled, install nut plates, reassemble, temporary bolts, drill, disassemble, install nut plates…finally had something that looked about right. Installed the controller and used several nylon washers to provide enough stand-off to clear the rib hole flanges. I think it looks good. Exactly as I planned. As hard as I tried to accommodate, it will still be very difficult to replace if ever needed. Don't let me down Garmin.

9/21: finished this off by crimping the wires from the controller onto the appropriate wires in the main harness that I had already run.

Version 1

Version 2

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Wires spliced

Sep 18, 2022 Wing wiring - (5.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Spent a lot of time in the garage on a variety of wing close out items, mostly wiring related. I had previously used 5/8” snap bushings for all of the holes in the ribs for wiring. That was a good size for the max number of wires, but outboard of the roll servo t the wires were pretty loose in the bushings. I elected to pull all the wires out of the wing and install tighter bushings where appropriate. Happier with it now.

Other motive for pulling the harness was I wanted to replace the ground wire for the AP servo. It was a little shorter than the other wires and preventing me from adding the service loop I want to have at the wing root. Could have spliced a little more wire on, but why have a wire splice on a brand new wiring install? Took apart the Garmin connector and switched out the wire.

I noticed as I was removing the harness that many of the original ties I had done are not holding up well. I had some Gen 1 lacing ties that were garbage that I had already removed and redone. These were Gen 2 and still aren't holding up well either. The Gen 3 ties seem to be ok. I'll re-tie everything in the wing and probably get rid of my group ties, just tie the big bundle.
Then worked on the molex connectors at the tips. Got the connectors done and wiring tidied up. Looks good. Going to just keep working from the tip toward the root finalizing all the wiring as I go.

9/19: got the right wing wire bundles all tied. Cleaned up the AP servo loop and the branch for the trim servo. Still need to add the connectors for the trim.

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AP Servo

Trim Servo

Root wiring

Sep 18, 2022 20-4: Flap gap fairings - (2.0 hours)

Category: 20: Bottom Skins

Did some more riveting on the flap gap fairings. Got the right wing done. Also moved the wing over to the main part of the shop to start focusing on a lot of the close out items I need to do before tackling the bottom skins.

9/22: put in a little time tonight and got most of the left wing done too. Just the ones that need to be bucked are left.

Flap gap fairing installed

Sep 13, 2022 22-6 thru 22-8: Back on the flaps - (6.0 hours)

Category: 22: Flap

Stalled out on flap construction a bit as I took care of some misc items. The flap skeleton is just too big for the bench. Got back after it now that the right tank is pretty much done.

Deburred, prepped and primed the right flap parts. Also did the countersinking of the brackets for the double flush rivets.

Then got back to assembly of the left flap skeleton. Was able to squeeze most but there are several awkward rivets that have to be bucked with the double offset. Got the leading edge skin cleco'd on and back in the cradles, then cleco'd the top skin in place.

9/15: got all of the top skin rivets done with combination of gun, back-rivet and squeezer. Flipped it around and got the bottom skin cleco'd in place, then went ahead and set half the bottom skin to spar rivets. I was anxious about that, but picked up a tip somewhere to put tape over the trailing edge dimples to keep them from tearing up my knuckles. What a difference that made. It was actually a breeze. Very happy with the quality; I've come along way since the practice kits.

9/16: got the bottom spar rivets finished and set the pull rivets for the leading edge except the ones adjacent to the brackets. I need at least a 6” drill bit to reach those. After my success with the double sided tape on the ailerons I proceeded with that method for the flaps. Got everything cleco'd down to the door with a little overhanging each end. Looks straight though. Will let it cure a few days.

9/21: got my long drill bit and finished the blind rivets in the leading edge.

Lots of parts to prep

and prime

Skeleton assembly

Riveting skins to spar

Cleco the trailing edge

Sep 10, 2022 18-8: Right tank finish up - (4.3 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Got the right tank prepped and primed this morning. Forgot to mask off the areas on the back baffles for the zee brackets, but just cleaned the areas with acetone after painting.

9/11: sealed up the back baffle this morning. Broke my rivet puller on the last rivet.

9/14: finished up the final countersinks and rivets in the right tank. satisfied that the left tank was holding I moved the balloon and schraeder valve over to test it. Looks like it's leaking around the fuel pickup. I removed it and put more thread sealant on and reinstalled. Still leaking. Hard to tell if it's the pick up or through the skin adjacent. Pretty sure it's the pickup.

9/15 am: removed the fuel pick up, cleaned it all up with acetone and resealed it with a healthy bead of loctite 567. Re-inflated the balloon and it seems to be holding.

9/15 pm: balloon was deflated when I got home. :(
I can't find the leak and getting frustrated. My wife casually mentioned that those are really cheap balloons I was using. And I had reused the one from the left tank. Could it just be the old cheap balloon slowly leaking through the skin? I replaced the old balloon with a new one and it seems to be holding. I also inflated the old balloon and ties it off; in an hour it had noticeably deflated.

Lesson learned - don't use old balloons.

9/25: have been chasing a slow leak for weeks in this tank. Balloon holds for 2 days, but slowly is getting smaller. By the 3rd day it is completely deflated. So am I. Can't find a leak anywhere.

Ready to seal back baffle

Sealant curing

Leaking at AN fitting

Holding - for now

Sep 07, 2022 20-4: Flap gap fairings - (1.0 hour) Category: 20: Bottom Skins

Started on the flap gap fairings. I had previously primed the fairings and the stiffeners. I dimpled all the holes and countersunk the holes on the inboard spar doubler. Cleco'd everything in place and started riveting. Didn't get far though.

Sep 05, 2022 18-8: Sealing up left tank - (2.5 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Decided to bite the bullet and seal up the back baffle on the left tank. Watched than Vans video one more time over the weekend and felt prepared. Laid out all my tools and got after it.

Cut a little off the tip of the proseal applicator to produce a little thicker bead. Laid the tank on its side (bottom down) and laid a nice bead just below the rivet line. Flipped it over and did the top. Then did the end ribs and got big blobs into the corners. Put just a small amount in the outermost holes of the interior ribs per the video. Dropped the back baffle in place without smearing it around and cleco'd every hole in the skins and ribs. Looks good so far. Set the outermost blind rivets in the ribs. Then removed every other skin cleco and set the skin rivets with the squeezer. Then removed all but every 10th cleco and set the remaining rivets. Repeat on other side. Then set the blind rivets for the zee brackets. Put just a dab of proseal on each hole and swirled each rivet then set them. I don't know if the zee brackets on the RV-10 are wider than older models, but I had plenty of room to get my rivet puller on the rivets and did not need to use the wedge method.

Got it set on its back to let what little bit of sag in the proseal work for me. Will let it sit there for a few days and cross my fingers. All and all pretty easy, but who knows.

9/7: finished off the tank this morning countersinking the few remaining holes in the skin and setting the last few rivets. The proseal left on the plate appears to be fully cured so I bit the bullet and strapped on a balloon to the vent line and pumped it up. It appears to be holding and no sign of bubbles in the soapy water. We'll see.

9/10: balloon is not holding. Suspect it is leaking around the balloon itself. Need a better clamp.

9/12: wrapped the vent tube with silicone tape and pulled three tight zip ties. Seems to be holding.

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Sep 02, 2022 22-6: Left flap assembly - (1.8 hours)

Category: 22: Flap

Riveted the doublers and flap brackets to the front ribs. Did the double flush rivets on the brackets with the squeezer. Cleco'd together the skeleton. Squeezed the rivets for the leading edge ribs that I could. Need to use the gun for a few on the end ribs.

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Sep 01, 2022 Pitot mast and Heater - (0.8 hour)

Category: Avionics

Planning: Need to get the pitot mast figured out before I can button if the bottom skin. Apparently the Gretz mount t that most people seem to have used is no longer available so I bought the blue anodized Avery mast from Aircraft Spruce. Previous versions of this mast had weld problems, but I believe they have been addressed. The mast looks good. The installation instructions don't seem very stout though and I'm going to add an angle bracket to the adjacent rib to stiffen it up. That means I need to mount it next to a rib with the web on the correct side. I've decided to mount in the bay just outboard if the aileron bellcrank. The heater box will mount in the same bay as the bel tank but in the outboard rib; it allows for pretty clean wiring with no chance of interference with the aileron pushrods.

Used the template provided in the instructions to mark the cut out in the skin. First clamped the mast in place where I think it will go. Used a sharpie to mark holes through the spar to confirm edge distances. Then slid the template over the mast and taped it to the leading edge skin. Then removed the mast and cleco'd the bottom skin in place, then traced the template into the skin.

I think I'm going to chrome plate the mast once everything is fit up and drilled. Will look pretty sweet.

Transferring template for cut

Fitting support angle

Angle mock-up

Sep 01, 2022 Wing tip wiring - (1.2 hours)

Category: Avionics

A little rainy day project. Did a lot of thinking about how to route wires for wingtip lighting. Decided to go ahead and have molex connections for the landing lights and the nav/strobe lights. Made an aluminum bracket to mount the molex connectors and riveted it to the wing. Carefully cut out the holes for the connectors by drilling the corners, dremel cutoff wheel, and then finished off with a file. Came out pretty good.

Trimmed the wire and crimped a molex connector on to the landing light lead. Plan is to run the landing light wire through a snap bushings in the face of the duct work bracket and then secure with an adel clamp just as it exits the wing rib. There will be slack for a small service loop and the connect to the new brackets.

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Aug 27, 2022 22-5: Left flap deburr, prep, prime and dimple. - (7.0 hours)

Category: 22: Flap

Got all of the flap parts deburred this morning and then cleaned the shop.

8/28: preppped and primed all of the flap pieces in two batches. What a difference a new gun makes. I guess I'll try to do a better job of keeping this one clean.

Got the DRDT2 out and dimpled the skins and leading edges. Dimpled the remaining ribs and spar with the squeezer. Not much for photos today, just a big pile of parts. Ready to start assembly though.

9/1: using masking tape prior to etching is a mistake. Acid gets under the tape and stays. When I pulled the tape, there was a lot of corrosion on the flap brackets. Had to remove it all and went ahead and primed them.

Priming a stack of flap parts

Aug 26, 2022 Water leak check and fix - (2.5 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Decided to leak check with water before putting the back baffles on. Didn't figure I'd find any leak, but better safe than sorry.

Filled up the left tank and could immediately see the stream of water coming out the inboard leading edge. The out board is leaking a little too. Obviously not enough proseal in those areas.

Right tank passed with no issues.

8/27: rinsed out the tanks and let them dry, then scuffed the areas at the leading edges and cleaned with acetone. Then mixed up about 30g of proseal and worked a nice thick fillet into the nose on each end. Slathered a little on the outside too for good measure. Will check it with water again when it cures.

8/30: rechecked the left tank with water. Passed!

9/1: primed outside of left tank

Filling with soapy water

A gusher at left inboard

Seeping at left outboard

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Aug 23, 2022 21-9: Right Aileron finish up - (1.2 hours) Category: 21: Aileron

Got the right aileron off the board and back-rivetted the trailing edge. I was a little skeptical while I was riveting it as it seemed to be taking a bow, but once all of the rivet were set it was perfect.

Got it mounted and it seems a little tight to the in board aileron bracket. It was even rubbing a bit, but I pushed the tip of the inboard rib inward and took care of that. Still a little tighter than I'd like. The outboard bracket seems to be slightly bent inward - I may need to give it a whack.

Aug 23, 2022 New Primer Category: General

I've been using Ecoprime to date on everything and I'm happy with it, but I do note that it is not solvent resistant at all. I'm out of Ecoprime and opted to get one more quart to finish out the wing, but I'm going to switch to the Ecopoxy for the fuselage where exposure to fluids is much higher. Bought a quart of each and a new spray gun.

9/1: after two shipping errors from aircraft spruce I finally received my paint. I opened it and it had the consistency of drywall mud. That can't be right. Need to call Stewart. Frustrated. Update: so it is right and that's just how ekopoxy is. They suggested a drill driven paddle stirer to get it mixed up.
Purchases: ACS: Ecoprime, Ecopoxy, Proseal

Aug 22, 2022 22-2 - 22-4: starting on flaps - (4.0 hours)

Category: 22: Flap

Nothing else to work on so starting on flaps. Got some of the initial fit up and fabrication done. Opted to drill the lightening holes in the spacers. Doesn't save much weight by looks cool.

Removed the tab from the main ribs. Just used snips and then a needle file to smooth it out. And little scotchbrite to finish it off. Tedious but easy.

Still a ton of deburring to do. I'll do it all at the end before priming.

8/23: started initial assembly of the left flap just to see how big it really is going to be. It's pretty big. Got everything cleco'd together and marked the trailing edges to trim. Trimmed on the bandsaw and reinstalled.

8/25: had to uncleco the trailing edge so I could cleco it it to the door as I drill the trailing edge. Got it set on the door with just a little overhang on each end. Left clecos in the overhangs for wedge alignment. Then one at a time, started drilling every other hole while inserting clecos through the wedge and into the door. Then went through and picked up all the holes I skipped. The. Unclecod everything a again and shifted the flap over to get the ends that were previously overhanging. Got both ends and then removed all the clecos again and put it in the cradles. Slow going but I think it worked and should be straight. Last step on the page was to match drill the flap brackets with the hardware installed for alignment.

Ready to disassemble, deburr and prime.

8/26: got everything taken apart and realized that I never match drilled the holes in the leading edge ribs. Scoured through the instructions and couldn't find where it says to do it, but I figure now is the last good opportunity to do it. So cleco'd the leading edge back together with the spar and ribs.

Lightening holes

Flap parts

Trimmed rib

Flap skeleton

Big sucker

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Aug 21, 2022 21-9 & 21-10: Left aileron done - (1.0 hour)

Category: 21: Aileron

Unclecod the aileron from the board after a few days of tape curing. Back-riveted the double flush trailing edge. Came out really well. The tape method is a success.

Pulled some of the mounting hardware and temporarily mounted to wing. This is done for now. Will permanently mount after the flap gap fairing is installed.

I did realize that I made a mistake, but I think it is just a cosmetic one. The pull rivets on the end rivets are supposed to be CS4-4s and I used LP4-3s. I was looking for those rivet callouts in the plans and couldn't find them. I should have remembered the 120 degree dimple dies though. I ordered some just for these rivets! Oh well, doesn't look bad. I'll probably do the same on the right aileron to match.

8/28: the more I look at it, the left aileron has a slight bow to it. I put it back on the board and sure enough it sits about 3/32” high in the middle. Worse, there seems to b a slight twist. I drilled out about 2/3 of the trailing edge rivets and tried to fix it. With everything drilled out, it was laying flat again. Then I redid the back rivets hoping it would come out better. Put it back on the board, twist is gone but it still bows 1/16” or so. Better but not perfect. Calling it good.

Completed left aileron

Drilling out trailing edge

Aug 20, 2022 21-5 thru 21-9: Right aileron progress - (6.6 hours)

Category: 21: Aileron

My replacement aileron skin arrived so spent time this morning priming it. Also primed the wing flap gap fairings.

Dimpled the skin and backriveted the stiffeners. Then cleco'd the assembly together. Will wait to drill until I have the left one off the door.

8/21: with the left aileron done and off the board, I put in a big day to get the right aileron pretty much finished. Leading edge riveted together, cleco'd the top and bottom skins and drilled the trailing edge, countersunk the wedge, dimpled the skins, riveted the skins to the leading edge and spar, taped the trailing edge wedge and cleco'd everything down to the door. Looks good. Decided to repeat the mistake on the left aileron for consistency.

Right aileron assembly

Right aileron on the board

Aug 19, 2022 18-5 thru 18-7: Last ribs for left tank and fuel sender - (3.2 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Got the j stiffener installed and the inboard bracket and rib in one session today. Left tank almost to same point as right tank.

8/20: started looking at the fuel sender. Bent the wire for the float, but went to measure the resistance and noted that there is a dead spot at the bottom of the range. I'll need to call Van's to get a new one.

8/23: Figured out the problem with my fuel sender - multi-meter user error. Got both sending units prosealed and screwed in place. Used stainless hex screws with the thought that it might be easier to remove them in the future if ever needed. Installed the remaining AN fitting in each tank and capped the fuel return lines for now.

Left tank ribs complete

Aug 17, 2022 21-8: Left aileron assembly - (2.6 hours)

Category: 21: Aileron

Got the leading edge skin riveted to the spar assembly and installed the blind rivets to the counterweight.

Installed the top skin and cleco'd in place. Had a few that didn't set tight and I was able to drill out and redo. Learned I need to lean the gun slightly toward the edge to keep it tight.

Riveted the end ribs to the spars and then cleco'd the bottom skin in place just to see how it all looked.

8/18: got the bottom skin riveted with no problem. Had to make a little spacer to rivet the three end rivets that sit below the level of the skin. Of course, I mounted it temporarily to the wing just to see how it looks.

Decided to try the tape method. The wedge sticks out slightly past the skin and I was worried about how to align the tape on the wedge so it didn't stick out. Turns out the width of tape is perfect when aligned with the top of the wedge. Got the parts cleaned and applied the tape to both side. Let it sit 20 minutes for an initial cure then cleco'd through the tape every 10th rivet to make sure it was all aligned. Then unclecod the bottom skin and removed the backing from the bottom of the wedge. Pressed it down and cleco'd as I went. Let that sit a little while, then came back and removed the clecos to expose the top of the wedge. Then removed the final backing and squeezed it tight while clecoing every hole. Looks good. I'll let it sit for about three days to cure before riveting.

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Aug 15, 2022 21-6 thru 21-7: Left aileron pre-assembly - (3.3 hours)

Category: 21: Aileron

Finished the backriveting of the bottom skin and started assembly of the left aileron. It all went together easy and I set it up on a very straight door blank that I used to build RC planes on. Laid it flat on the board as described in the plans, but then they say to cleco the trailing edge wedge in place. How to do that with the aileron flat on the board?Decided to use my spare aileron skin to pre-drill holes in the door for the clecos. Then got the aileron back in place and cleco'd through the door skin. Everything looks good and straight.

Drilled the trailing edge using the angled wood block I made long ago for tail feathers. So far so good.

Disassembled everything. I could tell the skin stiffeners were conflicting a bit. I trimmed the ends a little more with snips and filed them smooth.

8/16: got everything dimpled this morning before work. Still not sure about proseal vs tape method.

8/17: countersunk the trailing edge wedge and riveted the spar doubler.

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Aug 15, 2022 Flyled Landing lights - (1.0 hour)

Category: Lighting

My Seven Star lights I picked up in Oshkosh were missing a few parts, but Paul at Flyleds got them quickly shipped from Australia. They arrived today and I was able to assemble the lights quite easily. Tested them with a 9V battery and thought they were not working, but when I looked again with less ambient light I could see they were faintly lit. I guess that is expected since that little battery can't put out the amperage needed. I'll check it with a bigger battery later. I think they work for now.

8/27L finally got them hooked up to a car battery and tested. They work, and they're bright.

Seven star lights

Aug 14, 2022 21-5: Aileron prime and assembly - (5.0 hours)

Category: 21: Aileron

Very tedious, but got the aileron parts all prepped and primed.

Got all of the stiffeners, ribs and skins dimpled and prepared for assembly. Back-rivetted the top right skin and went to start on the right bottom skin; realized I had two bottom left skins. I had taken my time to correctly identify and make separate top and bottom skins for each but I guess I messed up. Ended up priming and dimpling two left bottom skins. Not worth trying to correct. Ordered a new bottom skin from Van's.

8/15: back-riveted the left top skin.

Purchases: Van's- new bottom aileron skin

Prepped

Primed

Back-rivet set up

Aug 13, 2022 18-5: Left tank work - (4.5 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Finally got the weekend time I needed to do some proseal. Got three ribs done in one batch today.

8/14: finished up the last three ribs this morning. Just the j channel and inboard tub left. Coming along.

Data point for future projects. One 3.5 oz tube will do three ribs with just a bit to spare. Put the tube in the freezer after applying to the faying surfaces to keep it from setting while you rivet. Pull it back with enough working time left to do the fillets and rivet heads.

Left tank chugging along

Aug 11, 2022 15-3 & 15-5: Right aileron bracket - (1.2 hours)

Category: 15: Rear Spar

Finally got around to finishing the redo of the aileron bracket. I had received a new part from Vans back in June, but accidentally countersunk the incorrect holes. Ordered another bracket. That part came in a while back but has just been sitting. Finally got it primed and assembled. Easy-peasy. This is done now.

Finished right aileron bracket - Finally

Aug 10, 2022 21-2 to 21-5: Aileron work - (4.0 hours)

Category: 21: Aileron

Primed some aileron parts to pre-assemble brackets. I tied to take advantage of cooler weather as a storm passed but it was very humid and primer did t come out great. Lesson learned.

8/11: cleco'd left aileron together and predrilled the counterbalance holes. Took a minute to figure out what they were trying to have me do, but figured it out eventually. Removed the skin and cleco'd the counterbalance to the ribs and marked the other holes. Then upsized those holes to #27. Realized I'm going to need some new drill bits to get through this stainless steel. Bolted the counterbalance with the correct hardware. Reinstalled the skin and match drilled the leading edge holes in the counterbalance.

8/12: got right aileron to same condition as left. Setting aside for now to get back on tanks.

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Aug 10, 2022 Fuel Return - AN Fittings - (1 hour)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

After three tries to get the correct AN fitting for the fuel return line, I finally got it right. I just needed a 3/8" bulkhead fitting right?
1. Ordered an AN816-6D pipe to nipple transition for 3/8" tube. The 6D is for 3/8" tube. - WRONG. It's 3/8" tube, but also has a measured 3/8" pipe thread and I need 1/2" to go into the fuel return bung.
2. Ok, I've got this figured out. I need an AN816-6-8D - which is a 3/8" nipple (the -6) transition to a 1/2" pipe (the -8D). This fitting was surprisingly hard to find and had to get it from Skygeek. WRONG AGAIN. The 1/2" end was way too big, like 3/4" or more. What am I missing? NPT pipe thread is what I was missing. What measures approximately 1/2" is actually 3/8" NPT. So then why wasn't the original AN816-6D correct? 3/8" nipple and 3/8" pipe, right? No - standard transitions apparently are downsized on the pipe side. So, an AN816-6D is really the same as an AN816-6-4D. I guess everyone knows that.
3. So finally figured out that I need an AN816-6-6D and spruce carries those. Correct part finally arrived today.

AN816-6-6D

Jul 31, 2022 21-2 thru 21-5: Starting on ailerons - (2.5 hours) Category: 21: Aileron

Pulled down the aileron parts and started removing the vinyl. Separated some of the hinge brackets and doublers. Trimmed all of the skin stiffeners and deburred. Separated end ribs and deburred.

Reading ahead a bit, I see they call for 120 degree dimple dies for the CS4 rivets. Ordered one from Aircraft Tool Supply.

8/4: countersunk attach brackets

Purchases: ATS - 120 deg dimple die

Jul 29, 2022 18-5: Back at the left tank - (3.8 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

After taking a week off for AirVenture, I got back on the tanks today. Got all of the stiffeners, the fuel flange, and fuel drain prosealed and riveted. Got it all done with one tube of sealant. Put a few once's in a sandwich bag in the freezer and then had that available for clean up.

7/31: mixed up 20g and got the fuel bungs and nut plates installed on the inboard rib and installed the inboard half-rib.

Left rear inboard rib

Left forward inboard rib

Jul 22, 2022 Airventure 2022

Category: General

Filed KADS to Iowa City (KIOW), ended up diverting to Centerville, IA. Found a great Mexican joint for lunch, Ben's pick. Second leg was VFR past Cedar Rapids, over Dubuque, across the Mighty Mississippi and into Wisconsin.

Picked up the ATIS indicated the arrival procedure was starting at Puckaway Lake. We were already following someone since Dubuque about 3 miles in front of us and we just kept following as he made the turn at the lake. We were looking for other planes joining from the north or west, but no it was just us. This was looking pretty easy. As we hit Green lake, we could see someone coming from the south on ADSB that looked like he was going to cut in front of us. He did, but still a good 1-2 miles in front of us. No issues. Held my 1800' and 90kts pretty well, hit Fisk, rocked the wings, landed 27. Piece of cake. Not the great Green Dot landing I was hoping for but passable. So glad I came Friday.

Got a great camp spot in the North 40. Row 521. Right between the Red One Market and the Cafe. Couldn't be a better spot. Had I known our spot would be so good and that you can in fact get coffee at the market at 6am, I wouldn't have brought a stove or as much food.

Great time at KidVenture and the rest of the show Monday and Tuesday. Went to the RV-10 dinner and met some nice folks. Of course stopped by Vans and saw the RV-15. Visited with Garmin, Steinair, Scheme Designers, and Flyleds. Was set on buying my Flyleds nav/strobe and landing light at the show. The more I look at the nav/strobe lights though I don't think I like the look. I'm leaning toward Aeroleds now. I do still like the seven star landing light though and I did pick up a pair.

Wednesday morning was set to leave but the bonanza failed a mag check before takeoff. Taxied over to maintenance and they confirmed the left mag was dead. Stayed an extra night hoping the airplane could be fixed. Long story short, left the plane in Oshkosh and took the airlines home on Thursday.

Purchases: Flyleds Landing lights

North 40

Our ride - N87MT

RV-15

Jul 17, 2022 18-2: More left fuel tank work - (4.1 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Took some time this morning to clean the shop and then started disassembly of the left fuel tank. Scuffed the rivet lines on the skins and scuffed all the stiffeners.

7/20: woke up early and got some work done before work. Got the ribs scuffed and cleaned and then dimpled. Set up the drdt2 to get ready for the skins.

7/21: got the skins all dimpled and masked the stiffeners in preparation for proseal. Leaving for airventure tomorrow so that will wait until I get back.

Scuffing skins

Dimpling tank skins

Taping off the stiffeners

Jul 16, 2022 OP-38: Aileron trim - (2.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

I was having a hard time visualizing how the wiring for the aileron trim would go without the trim servo in place so I decided to go ahead and install it. I did the small amount of part fabrication and primed everything. Then assembly was pretty straightforward. On to wiring.

I didn't like the way it shows the connector mounting in the instructions. They would have you make the connection inside the trim servo housing. Doesn't seem like you could keep if from fouling the bellcrank arm. I decided I would just make a small bracket and cut a hole for the micro molex connector. It took two tries but I ended up with a nice rectangular hole snug fit to the connector. I just drilled a couple starter holes and then used the square file to finish it. Not too bad. Good practice for future connector brackets.

The micro molex pins were pretty easy to crimp but I found it difficult to get them to engage in the connector. Just no positive click. I tugged on them and they seem secure.

Finished off the wiring with a little snake skin and some shrink wrap. Looks professional grade.

Cleco'd the assembly to the wing and now it is easy to see how I'll run the wires from the harness.

Priming

Initial assembly

Mounting to access plate

Wiring

Pins crimped

Micro molex bracket

Finished trim servo

Temporary install in wing

Jul 15, 2022 18-2: Starting left tank - (2.2 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Got started on left tank. Fabricated the stiffener angles and cleco'd stiffeners and tank ribs to skin. Cut j channel and started match drilling.

Countersunk skin to back baffle holes.

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Jul 15, 2022 More wing wiring - (2.5 hours)

Category: Avionics

Hard to really track all the time I e spent researching and contemplating wiring in the wings.

I did test the co to unity of the previously made connectors and sure enough had a bad shield drain on the AP CANBUS. Redid that. Also re-tied some of my original wire groups as I used a bad knot technique and they were already loosening.

Measured and leveled the mount for the GMU 22 in the wing tip. I extended a perpendicular line from the spar - that should be close enough to level. Drilled and mounted with four solid -4 rivets. Trying to figure how to mount the CPC connector still. The bulkhead connector I ordered is the wrong sex and the correct one doesn't seem to exist. Someone on VAF suggested to just tie wrap it, but I feel like I want something better. Maybe a large adel clamp around the CPC shell.

Got the AP servo wires clamped with an adel clamp which fixes the position of the entire bundle in the wing. Then started tying the individual wire groups into a large bundle. It's getting stiff and is pretty cool to see.

7/16: got all the wires bundled and tied in the right wing. Ran the additional wires for the trim servo. Installed adel clamps on the wingtip to secure lighting and GMU wires.

Marking GMU level line

Mounting GMU bracket

GMU Bracket and connector

AP Servo wiring

Jul 13, 2022 18-7: Rt tank fuel sender - (0.6 hour)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Tinkering around this morning before work. Pulled out one of the fuel senders and bent the wire per the dimensions in the plans. Fit pretty good, just bent a little to clear the vent line and ensure it was moving full range.

Full - 32 ohms, Empty - 232 ohms

Empty position

Full position

Jul 09, 2022 Connectors / OAT Probe - (2 hours) Category: Avionics

I spent a lot of time researching connectors for the wing roots. I know some people try to avoid connectors here, particularly in the CANBUS, but I really want to be able to close up and finish the wings with all the wiring in place because the first time they are mated to the fuselage and remainder of the wiring harness is likely to be in a hangar, and I just don't want to deal with it them. So I've been thinking CPC connectors for the data and molex for higher power stuff. I had purchased the molex stuff a few weeks ago, but was holding off on the CPC because I just really didn't get it and the sites that sell it (Mouser, Digikey, etc) are overwhelming. I saw what ACS and Stein were selling, but it didn't seem to be the sizes that I wanted and based on my limited understanding of the TE Connector Catalog, I thought I could do better.

After hours of research and cross-referencing part numbers on Mouser, I finally had what I thought I wanted. But it used Class 1 pins which are different than the d-sub pins used in Class 2 connections. When I tallied everything up with those pins, it was very expensive - much more than just buying a larger connector from Stein or ACS. So, I ended up just buying a 28 pin Class 2 CPC connector from ACS, even though I only need about 20 pins.

Also had been doing some reading on OAT probes. I originally planned to put it in the back of the tail, below the horizontal stabilizer, but now I think in the left wing is better. I went ahead and ordered the Davtron probe with the Garmin GAD 13 to connect it to the CANBUS. The Davtonr/GAD13 combo was quite a bit cheaper than buying the GTP59 they specifically suggest for a G3X install. The GAD13 documentation talks about G5 installations, but I'm pretty sure it will work with a G3X - VAF seems to think so too.

Purchases: ACS - CPC connectors, Stein - OAT Probe, Molex connectors and pins, D-sub pins

Jul 09, 2022 18-5 & 18-6: Right tank assembly 4 - (7.5 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Took a little time off for holiday and work stuff but got back at it this morning. I have tubes of proseal which are probably good enough to do almost 4 ribs. I knew I'd be fighting the clock though and set out to do three. No way. With it so warm out, the tube was setting up after about an hour. It was enough time to do the faying surfaces and get everything riveted but by the time I went back to fillet the edges, it was set up in the tube. Had to mix another 30g to fillet the edges and encapsulate the rivet heads.

Had enough left over to set the -6 rivets and the anti-rotation plate on the left in board rib.

After watching the vans tank assembly video several times, one of my favorite take always is using the paper strip to scoop the excess proseal out of the dimples. Works great and keeps thing from getting too messy.

Not much time for photos today.

7/10: two more hours this morning and got the last rib and the j channel installed. I mixed a tube of proseal and put half of it immediately into a sandwich bag and put it in the freezer. Got the end rib done and then when I started applying the proseal to the j channel, I noticed it was a little streaky with I mixed proseal. Not good. Scraped that off and squeezed the remainder of the tube into another sandwich bag see if it got better; it didn't. So pulled out the good bag from the freezer and finished the channel.

Instructions suggest applying proseal to skin instead of channel but I could t see how that was going to work. I just laid the tank on its bottom and very carefully inserted the buttered channel. It worked fine with minimal smearing.

Got another 1.5 hrs in this afternoon. Fabricated the vent line, installed the attach bracket and then the final inboard rib. I'll put this tank aside for a while and may do some water leak testing once it is cured.

Paper strip trick

Outboard rib in place

Completed inboard rib

Tank attach bracket

Vent line installed

Vent line bent in place

Jun 25, 2022 18-5: Right tank assembly 3 - (3.2 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Started installing ribs. Started with the inboard half-rib. Only mixed 8g and it really wasn't quite enough. I'll put some more on the fillets when I do the next rib. As expected, it is slow going and messy.

Mixed up another 40g to do the first full rib. Put as much of the proseal as I could into a ziplock bag and cut the corner off to make a little squeeze tube. This made doing the fillets much easier and let me really goop it into the critical spots. I didn't bother with a lot of masking and overall did a fair job of not getting proseal everywhere. I just kept the acetone and plenty of rags handy. I was able rivet everything myself except the front three rivets on the top skin; called the wife out to help with those and they were easy. The 40g is just the right amount for a single rib. It took a little over an hour.

I can see that my pint of proseal is not going to get me far, and with the larger quantities the 3.5 oz pre-measured cartridges may work out better than hand mixing. I'm going to go ahead and order 8 tubes to get me throught the tanks. I'll keep the pint for small batch items.

6/26 - mixed 40g again and did another rib. Really getting good at it and minimizing mess. Another 1.2 hours.

Purchases: ACS - 8 tubes of proseal

First mini rib

First mini rib

First full rib

First full rib

2nd full rib

Jun 23, 2022 Starting on wing wiring - (5.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Tired of working in the hot garage so moved to the kitchen table to do some wiring and try my hand at building some connectors. Thought I'd just see how it goes and if it gets written off as practice, oh well.

Decided to start on the GMU 22 connector. It's a simple CPC connector and doesn't have any CANBUS wiring so it's pretty simple. First used my new label maker to print heat shrink labels. Then gathered supplies and started stripping wires. Stripped off the insulation and trimmed the shield flush. Then stripped another 1/4” of insulation leaving the shield exposed. Wrapped a drain wire around the shield and soldered and heat shrunk. Trimmed all the wires even and stripped the wires. Learned that my “nice” Klein wire strippers don't work well on 22 ga wire. That sucks.

Crimped d-sub pins on the wire ends and inserted into the CPC connector. Double checked the pin outs several times. Got to use the pin removal tool a few times too.

Also learned backshell for CPC connector needs to go on wires before inserting pins.

Wrapped wires in silicon tape at the strain relief and screwed it together. One GMU 22 connector complete. I think it came out pretty good.

6/24: started cutting the full lengths of wire for the lights and pitot heat. Landing light and taxi lights share a ground so I bundled the three wires together and twisted them using a drill. Just clamped one end in a vice and the other chucked in the drill. Worked great. Pitot heat is 12 ga and I couldn't get red and white wires that gauge so I just put black bands of heat shrink every 6”-8” on the ground wire. Then twisted that pair too. Made labels for each end knowing that one will probably get cut off in the future when wing harnesses are cut to final length.

6/26: cut the wire for the roll servo me built the connector. Used solder sleeves for the shield drains and I think they came out well. Tedious but fun work.

6/27-28: starting lacing the wires into individual bundles for each component. Then I plan to run them through the wing and then tie the bundles together into a larger harness. Looks good so far. Ordered more of the larger snap bushings from Van's. Don't know why I didn't buy more before

6/29: laced more wires. Also ordered molex connectors for the lights. Still not sure what to use for inboard data connections.

Purchases: Van's - snap bushings, mini molex connectors. Stein - molex connectors

Removed Insulation and shield

Expose shield

Attach shield drain wire

Crimp D-sub pins

Insert in CPC connector

Finished connector

Wiring for wing

AP Roll Servo Connector

Inside D-sub connector

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Trial install in wing

Lacing the wires

Jun 20, 2022 18-5: Right tank assembly 2 - (3.5 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Started attaching the stiffeners. Mixed up 40g and got 5 ribs done. I masked off the skins to keep them clean and that worked well. I should have masked the leg of the stiffeners too - I seem to recall others doing that.

6/22 pm - set three more stiffeners. 28g. Damn hot out there.

6/23 pm - mixed up 40g and riveted the last 4 bottom stiffeners. Had enough left over to do the drain flange too. Pretty straightforward.

6/24 - worked from home and squeezed in an hour at lunch. Got the remaining skin stiffeners on the top skin then riveted the fuel cap flange. Straightforward, just messy. Had one rivet sitting proud after it was all done and cleaned up. When ahead and drilled it out and reset it while the proseal was still wet. 26g for two stiffeners and the flange, quite a bit extra.

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Jun 19, 2022 18-5: Right tank assembly 1 - (1.5 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

After much research and consternation, I finally mixed up a little proseal and started assembling pieces of the tanks. Started with the end ribs. Ended up installing a -6 rivet in the tooling holes as others have done. Ordered the shortest I could from spruce and then shortened them a bit on the belt sander. Installed with proseal. Then installed the anti-rotation plate and the fuel bungs. I cleco'd the ribs into the skin to support them while I bucked rivets. Could have squeezed the fuel bungs but went ahead and bucked them as I was set up for it.

Got it all riveted then went back to seal up each rivet. Difficult to discretely seal each rivet so slathered on a good amount on the backside of each bung to try and encapsulate everything.

I put a little proseal on the nut plates for the fuel sender but will plan to encapsulate the entire nutplate and screws when the senders are installed.

Contemplated installing the return line AN fitting wet while installing the anti-rotation plate, but ultimately decided not to. Just very carefully cleaned out any extra proseal that would prevent it from seating in the future.

Total of 15g proseal to seal the external ribs.

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Jun 05, 2022 18-4: Final prep for right tank - (3.7 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Disassembled right tank and scuffed the rivet lines on the skins. I've seen folks tape off the limits, but that seems like overkill. I traced the areas in sharpie prior to disassembly and then just scuffed to erase the marks. I deliberately went well outside the mark to get good bond in the fillet areas. Scuffed then wiped with acetone until clean. Took a lot of wiping to get a white cloth to come out clean.

I see that the fuel vent clip gets a snap bushings in future steps but I don't see where I'm supposed to drill the hole. Obviously it needs to be done so just did it now. Was difficult to hold while drilling with unibit but figured a way to clamp it to bench with a popsicle stick. Worked out great.

Also drilled the holes for the fuel return line in the inboard rib using the VA-140 bung as a template.

Then started dimpling the skin. Handling everything with gloves after initial cleaning. Was almost done with the skin and had the. Skin in a fairly precarious position. I went to adjust the skin while the DRDT2 was still engaged in the previous hole. I'd done this before without problem, but this time the DRDT2 sprung up out of the hole rebounded and came back down on the skin. It made a little pimple, but didn't pierce the skin. It's going to be ok, but whew.

6/6 am: scuffed faying surfaces of all the ribs and cleaned with acetone. starting to dimple. Countersunk the holes in the T-1005 attach bracket. Not specifically called out, but it is 0.063" so it wasn't going to dimple. Starting to seem more instances of Van's assuming you'll figure it out by now.

6/7 am: finished all the dimpling before work. I think we are ready to start assembly.

Fuel return bung

Lines marked on skins

Rivet lines scuffed and cleaned

Dimpling tank skin

My little oops

Drilling fuel vent attach

Stack of dimpled parts

Jun 03, 2022 First big Steinair purchase Category: Avionics

Well, it wasn't that big in the grand scheme, but a big order, nonetheless. Ordered most of what I need to wire the wings, short of the actual AP servo and GMU 22 Magnetometer. Got the wires, connector kits, mounting brackets, etc. And some crimpers for molex and D-sub. The wiring has begun!

Shopped a little between Steinair and Aircraft Spruce. Steinair reflected a recent jump in Garmin prices, and Aircraft Spruce was a little cheaper. Until I got to check out on both and realized that I was paying sales tax for ACS and not Steinair. That made a big difference and would rather just get everything from Stein.

Purchases: Steinair - Wing wiring and avionics; Wicks - terminals, backshell screws

Jun 02, 2022 18-4 & 18-5: Chipping away at tanks - (5.0 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Installed the back baffle and zee brackets for right tank. Countersunk the holes in the skin and the zee brackets.

Trying to think about what I will prime prior to assembly. Probably prime the zee brackets, the outside of the back baffle, and the inboard attach bracket that is outside the limits of the tank. Once tank is all assembled, I will spray everything with a topcoat of EcoPoxy. I don't trust that EcoPrime is going to hold up well to fuel. I will probably hold off the EcoPoxy until I have the fuselage kit - I was planning to use it in the tunnel and below the floor pans too.

6/3: after some contemplation and looking at some other peoples logs, I decided to prime the zee brackets and the inboard portion of the attach bracket. I masked off the face of the zee brackets that contacts the rear baffle where there should be some proseal bond.

Went ahead and fabricated the zee brackets for the left tank and then prepped and primed the parts for both the left and right tank.

6/4: Installed nut plates on the zee brackets and then installled nut plates with spacers and installed bearings on the inboard attach brackets. It was really hard to keep the thin shims from distorting quite a bit during dimple and riveting. Hope it doesn't affect the fit of the fairing.

Countersunk holes in fuel caps. Need to research some fuel cap options before I commit to these. Fellow on Facebook is making flanges for the nicer aluminum caps. Might go that route.

I see that the fuel vent clip gets a snap bushings in future steps but I don't see where I'm supposed to drill the hole. Obviously it needs to be done so just did it now. Was difficult to hold while drilling with unibit but figured a way to clamp it to bench with a popsicle stick. Worked out great.

Can of proseal from ACS arrived today so that will let me start on some ribs.

6/5: Drilled the hole for the fuel return line using the VA-140 bing as a template.

Disassembled right tank and scuffed the rivet lines on the skins. I've seen folks tape off the limits, but that seems like overkill. I traced the areas in sharpie prior to disassembly and then just scuffed to erase the marks. I deliberately went well outside the mark to get good bond in the fillet areas. Scuffed then wiped with acetone until clean. Took a lot of wiping to get a white cloth to come out clean.

Then started dimpling the skin. Was almost done with the skin and had the. Skin in a fairly precarious position. I went to adjust the skin while the DRDT2 was still engaged in the previous hole. I'd done this before without problem, but this time the DRDT2 sprung up out of the hole rebounded and came back down on the skin. It made a little pimple, but didn't pierce the akin. It's going to be ok, but whew.

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Jun 01, 2022 Research - CANBUS length - (2.5 hours) Category: Avionics

Spent a little time today researching and shopping. I've known that there is a limit to the overall CANBUS length of 66 ft but thought I should be able to stay under that. Running through some rough numbers though, I'll be right at the limit, or even over if I put the GMU 11 magnetometer in the right wing tip as planned. I don't really want to mess with alternate locations for fear of interference, and I do want to reserve the option of putting an air conditioner behind the baggage bulkhead. So the general consensus on VAF and even the RV-10 Facebook group seems to be use a GMU 22 in the wingtip. The GMU 22 uses RS-232, not the CANBUS, so it doesn't count against the overall length - probably saves 5' of CANBUS wiring, which is enough.

Lots of finalization of wiring planning in the wings and I have $1400 worth of stuff in my Steinair cart, but haven't pulled the trigger yet. The heated pitot is the big item, and then brackets and garmin connectors and wire. Wire seems cheap, but it adds up.

May 30, 2022 18-2 & 18-3: Starting on fuel tanks - (3.2 hours)

Category: 18: Fuel Tank

Got started on the fuel tanks. I may bounce around to other items, but figured I should at least get one tank going.

Fluted and straightened the ribs. Fabricated the stiffeners and zee brackets for the right tank. Cleco'd the stiffeners and adjust the in board ones per the plans. Cleco'd all the ribs in place and installed the j channel. Match drilled the j channel.

Need to buy proseal and order extra VA-141s for fuel returns. Not planning on EFII, but want to include the return lines now just in case I change my mind.

Tank parts fab'd and fluted

Tank pre-assembly

Tank cleco'd up

May 29, 2022 17-4: Attaching leading edges - (4.0 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

Still working with Max this morning. Got in a solid session and accomplished everything I wanted for the weekend.

Pulled the left wing out of the cradle and set it aside. Put the right wing in the cradle with the leading edge and cleco'd in place. Installed the pull rivets through the spar web, then bucked all the top rivets. Finished off squeezing the bottom rivets. Sounds easy but took an hour and a half of solid work.

Moved the right wing over to a table and repeated the whole process with the left wing.

Looks amazing. Took a while to just admire the pair of wings and then out them both in the cradles.

Max on the squeezer

Leading edge cleco'd in the cradle

Rib to spar pull rivets

Ready to rivet

Max admiring his work

Right leading edge done

May 25, 2022 16-3: Right top skin riveting - (4.2 hours)

Category: 16: Top Skins

Starting tonight with clecoing the skins in place.

5/26 pm - got all the rivets pre-inserted into the holes.

5/27 pm - taped all the rivets. Good job for Ben to help. He was quite excited.

5/28 - My nephew Max was in town to help tackle the right wing skin. We knocked it out in about 3 1/2 hours. Then finished off the section by installing the outboard aileron attach brackets.

Was also able to go back to the left wing and buck some of those difficult rivets with solid rivets.

Top skin cleco'd

Ben on the rivet tape

Bucking the top skin

Max on the gun

Me on the bucking bar

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May 24, 2022 16-2: Right skin final prep - (2.9 hours)

Category: 16: Top Skins

5/24 am - Got the completed left wing moved to the cradle to clear the bench for dimpling. Got the DRDT2 setup and dimpled the inboard skin.

5/24 pm - dimpled the larger outboard skin after work. Wasn't that bad. Used my steel shot bags to help hold the skin flat to the dimpling table when the overhangs got long. Supported the ends with some boxes and the other workbench. Actually did the whole skin unassisted; it can be done! Moved skeleton over to bench to do some other clean up work.

5/25 am - drilled out the aileron bracket. I had already ordered new attach angles feeling like the holes in the bracket itself would be fine. They are not. Might as well just order the whole shebang. Bracket shows as backordered though.

5/26 pm - finished up the last few items tonight to be ready to hang the skins and rivet this weekend. Was able to use my new longeron yoke to squeeze the flush rivet on the inboard spar. Then dimpled all the remaining holes in the rear spar and ribs.

Purchases: new aileron bracket and associated parts

Skin dimpling

Drilling out the aileron bracket

Flush rivets installed

May 22, 2022 16-3: Left top skin riveting - (5.0 hours)

Category: 16: Top Skins

Big day for riveting the left skin. My neighbor Darren came over to help. Planned on back-riveting everything, but the double offset back-rivet set wouldn't sit well on the rivet tails. The set just wasn't centered enough on the rivet. I even sanded a flat spot in the plastic tip, but still was cleating over the tails. Plan B - rivet everything with the flush set. Darren worked the gun, and I had the bucking bar. Most of it was pretty straightforward. There we a couple tough spots on the rear spar at the aileron bracket and at the inboard doubler. I don't see how these are buckable. Going to order some pull rivets for those. Next -10 I build; I think I'll wait to rivet the aileron bracket and the inboard doubler until after skin it on. [5/25 update - got these rivets bucked with the foot end of the bucking bar.] Got all the ribs and rear spar in about a 3.5 hr session. Later in the evening, installed and taped the front spar rivets on the left skin.

I did note a couple things I wish I had anticipated. At the skin overlap, and also at the J channel overlap, there will be small gaps between the supporting structure and the skin. If you just buck these rivets normally, it will put a slight bend in the skin. This is the only "defect" in the skin that we had - otherwise flawless. Might try to buck a little more softly on the right skin, I don't know. It won't be noticeable when painted.

5/23 - Darren came over this evening and we knocked out the remaining rivets in about 40 minutes. Then I proceeded to squeeze the rivets at the wing root along with the nut plates. Made the small doubler for the area that I had to redrill - looks pretty solid.

Struggled with the inboard doubler at the flap attach bracket, right where the skins overlap. The rivets called for were a little short, so I drilled them out and installed longer ones. The combination of enlarged hole and longer rivets made them all cleat over. I will order some cherrymax rivets for those holes.

Purchases: ACS: 3/32 countersunk cherry pull rivets

8/27: I had installed the cherry rivets at the inboard doubler but wasn't happy with it. Not all cherry rivets are cherrymax, and the options for -3 are limited. The ones I got didn't seem very structural. I opted to drill them out and use -4 oops rivets instead. They look more solid, and the thicker shank allowed me to use a good length without them cleating over.

Getting started riveting top skin (Darren has ear plugs)

Admiring our work

Mostly done after long first day

Can't buck these

Can't buck this on either

May 20, 2022 16-2: Left and right skin final prep - (3.3 hours)

Category: 16: Top Skins

Rearranged some stuff in the shop including moving the right wing to the cradles and the left wing back to the bench to prepare for riveting. I plan to rivet one top skin this coming weekend, and the other the following with some help I have lined up. To make the most of everyone's available time, I have a lot of small tasks that need to be done in a specific order in order to make this work. I'm working on both wings at the same time in my small shop so need to be very methodical. I sat down and made a list of items for each wing so I could sequence the work.

5/2 - Pulled the skins off and dimpled the rear spar which I had not done yet. Then re-cleco'd the skins on after blocking securely to the benches. Everything aligns and looks good for riveting this weekend.

Also sanded the corners on the right skin and deburred the edges. Those are ready to prime.

5/21 - pre-installed most of the rivets and taped in place. Finally bought some actual rivet tape and glad I did. It will be much better than the scotch tape I've been using to date. Primed the right wing skins this afternoon too.

All celco'd up

Rivet tape is the best

Preping right skins for prime

Making lists

May 17, 2022 16-2: Right top skin work and fix left skin - (1.9 hours)

Category: 16: Top Skins

Started on the right side top skins. Got the vinyl off the skins and got them cleco'd in place. Slow progress in the shop these days as it is very hot. Did buy a new fan though.

I started marking the #19 holes for the inboard fairing screws and carefully compared the holes to the locations in the plans. One stood out since it would get a one-sided nut plate. Hmm…I don't remember running across that on the left wing. Check the left wing and sure enough I had drilled the #19 hole in the wrong place. That should just be a #40 to hold the nut plate. Unfortunate mistake, but it's not structural and not worth scrapping the inboard skin for. I'm going to try to JB Weld the hole closed and then re-drill it. It only needs to hold the nutplate to keep it from rotating. I'll make a doubler for the inside of the rib.

5/18 am - Double checked holes in the right wing and proceeded with countersinking the #19 holes using my dimple coupon to check depth. Countersunk all the #40 holes common to the wing walk doublers. Spot primed the countersinks.

5/18 pm - sanded out the JB weld after letting it cure about 24 hrs. Pretty happy with how it turned out. Primed the area with some self etch and re-mounted to the skeleton. Drilled the #19 in the correct position and then cleco'd the one sided nut plate and carefully drillled the #40 hole through the JB Weld. Came out ok, so proceeded with delicately countersinking the hole. Everything looks good so far.

Right skins clecod in place

Countersinking right wing

Checking dimples with coupon

Prep holes to fill with JB weld

JB Weld Application

JB Weld sanded smooth

Repair area primed

Finished repair

May 15, 2022 15-2 thru 15-3 & 15-5: Right rear spar assembly - (1.8 hours)

Category: 15: Rear Spar

Started assembly of the right rear spar. Got the aileron brackets squeezed and cleco'd everything to the wing assembly.

Installing rivets in the aileron bracket was a challenge. First couple didn't set flush because of the rivet set riding up the filet of the angle. Drilled out and redid them, but then the -11 rivet was not long enough. Ended up with a good flush head but ended up with an inadequate shop head. Ordered some -12 rivets to redo.

Riveted the ribs to the rear spar and realized it would be good to have the Longeron yoke for the squeezer. I don't know how I got these with the squeezer on the left wing; ended up bucking most of the rivets on this wing. I've been putting off that purchase for a while; time to give in.

5/16 - finished the inboard doubler rivets before work.

5/17 - drilled out the -11s in the aileron bracket. The holes a pretty wallowed out. I opted to fabricate a new bracket with fresh holes. Just happened to have a short piece of .125 x 3/4 x 3/4 angle stock that fits. Used old bracket to match drill holes to the rear spar. Then clamped to bracket assembly and match drilled bracket holes. Everything came out good. Ready to prime and re-rivet.

5/21 - looking more closely at the other angle of the aileron brackets, I'm not 100% happy with them. The countersinks were hiding a bit of the hole damage. I think if I replace both angles on either side of the brackets, it will be more secure. Trouble is, I don't have any more angle stock to replace the longer piece - I'll just order the W-1013F/G replacement from Van's and that will give me new match drilled parts for both sides. It's not in my critical path for assembly - might as well replace it.

Purchases: ACS - AD426-4-12 rivets. Cleveland - 1/2” flush set, rivet tape, Longeron yoke. Van's - replacement W-1013F/G and assorted snap bushings.

Aileron bearings pressed fit

Aileron brackets clecod up

Finished end aileron bracket

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Couple of rivet heads are a little under formed

Drill out rivets - holes wallowed

Holes not bad on this side (actually they are, replace)

Fab and match drill new angle

New angle clecod

May 13, 2022 Duckworks done for now - (1.5 hours)

Category: Lighting

Got the left wing lense trimmed to fit. Was a little easier than the first one, but still I find the instructions a little misleading. The fit is good enough, but there are some gaps in the front. Maybe one day I'll meet someone that knows how to do these better and get them to redo my lenses. They're a pain.

Went ahead and installed the brackets in both wings and put the lenses in place. Only thing not done is the foam tape, but I probably won't do that until the wings are installed and the protective tape is removed.

Fitting lense

Light brackets installed

Bottom retainer screwed in place

May 13, 2022 15-5: Right rear spar - (2.0 hours)

Category: 15: Rear Spar

Cleco'd the rear spar in place and countersunk the few holes that had to done. Match drilled the holes at the doubler plates. Final pass with a scotchbrite pad to deburr everything. Ready to prime if it cools off.

5/14 - got everything primed. Ready to assemble. No photos. Missing rib showed up today to so I guess I'll prime that tomorrow and install.

Rear spar assembly

May 11, 2022 14-5 & 14-6: Right wing rib assembly - (3.8 hours)

Category: 14: Wing Ribs

Started riveting the right wing ribs to the spar. Going much better than left side. Taking my time, tape over the river set. No smileys. [Of course the photo I took has a slightly creased rivet.]

5/12 am - finished up the rivets in the morning before work before the shop gets too hot. Found that with the aileron torque tube bracket in place I had to put the shop heads on the rib. There needs to be some improvement in the sequence of that bracket installation. Suggest bracket to angle, then rivet rib to spar, then rivet angle to rib. Even that will be tough.

5/12 pm - got the various size bolts installed and torqued. Wing ribs are done except for waiting on the missing rib. Vans have a shipping notice today.

5/15 - missing rib arrived. Got it drilled, deburred, fluted, prepped and primed with a couple other small parts. Riveted in place and bolts torqued. Section is complete.

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Difficult area

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May 09, 2022 14-3: Right ribs primed - (5.5 hours)

Category: 14: Wing Ribs

Hot day, but knocked out the right rib priming through the day. Disassembled the ribs from the spar, final deburr of all the ribs, then prep and prime. Just a lot of work. Hopefully that's the last big batch of priming for the wings.

I'll need to go back and prime that replacement rib when it shows up, but I think I can move forward.

Got all of the ribs cleco'd back in place on the spar.

5/10: Realized I forgot to prime and assemble the miscellaneous rib pieces. Snuck in a quick priming session after the kids were in bed.

5/11: Got the flap brackets and aileron torque tubes riveted. Found it was easier to rivet the torque tube brackets to the angle and the rivet the angle to the rib, contrary to the instructions.

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May 07, 2022 15-4: Right rear spar work - (1.0 hour)

Category: 15: Rear Spar

Started progressing the rear spar. Match drilled all of the doublers and cut out the large hole for the aileron linkage.

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May 04, 2022 14-2: Right wing rib prep - (2.3 hours)

Category: 14: Wing Ribs

5/4 am 0.5 - Tinkered around with right ribs this morning before work. Received my replacement W-1012R and deburred and fluted it. Upsized the conduit holes in all ribs and deburred the miscellaneous parts on 14-2.

5/4 pm 0.5 - some additional deburring of flap brackets.

5/5 pm 1.1 - match drilled the aileron torque tube bracket and flap attach brackets. Took down the right spar and started lining up which ribs go where. Somehow had an extra 1012R rib and was short a 1011R rib. Hmm - curious because that is the replacement rib I already ordered from Van's. Review of my photos confirmed what I suspected - the 1012R rib that I thought I had messed up when building the left wing was in fact a 1011R. Not only did I mess up the cut of the rear flange, I cut the wrong rib entirely. Ugh.. Order a new W-1011R from Van's. The extra 1012R will actually come in handy as I had slightly "snowmanned" a hole in the left wing 1012R that I made a doubler to fix. Now I can just replace it.

5/6 pm 0.2 - match drilled the #12 holes from the spar to the ribs. Going to move forward with ribs and rear spar without the missing rib. Shouldn't be difficult to insert it prior to riveting the wing skin.

Purchases: Van's - W-1011R replacement rib

Prepping parts

Fabricate spacers

Flap bracket assembly

Aileron torque tube bracket

Assemble skeleton

May 02, 2022 Duckworks - acceptable brackets finally - (1.5 hours) Category: Lighting

Stripped all of the paint off the brackets down to bare metal in most places. Reshot with self-etch and then top coat with enamel. They're not perfect, but I'm not touching them again.

May 01, 2022 16-2: Prep, prime and dimple top skins - (4.5 hours)

Category: 16: Top Skins

Got the top skins prepped and primed. Lotta work, no photos.

Remembered to roll the edges prior to dimpling. Dimpled the skins on the DRDT2. Was able to get everything by myself except for one bay of leading edge rivets in the middle of the largest skin. Had Ben help me just a bit to stabilize the piece. Not hard, just took a while.

Once the dimples were done, I cleco'd everything to the wing skeleton and stashed it away. It will sit until I have a riveting partner and a full day to work.

Going back to wing ribs for the right side. Get to do it all over again.

Dimpling the big skin

Cleco'd up and ready to rivet

Ready to rivet

Tucked away in the cradle

Apr 28, 2022 Ductwork's redo - (4.5 hours)

Category: Lighting

New Duckworks brackets arrived. Drilled out the rivets for the rails and sanded down all the existing paint. Reprimed with self etch.

Drilled new brackets using existing rails as guide. Forgot to bend the tab at edge of bracket prior to drilling so ended up with nothing to stiffen the edge. Used a piece of scrap j channel - worked well.

Primed and assembled everything together. Painted completed assembly with enamel.

Again, some debris and splatter in the paint. Waited a full 48 hrs the lightly sand the surface with 600 grit. Shot a second coat and same thing - crackling. This time I'll just strip it off and start over rather than power sanding it down.

Frustrated with paint I moved on to trying to fit the right lense in the leading edge. Had a very difficult time getting it to fit. After a lot of sanding, I got something I think was acceptable.

Trimming new brackets

Fitting the lense

Apr 26, 2022 16-2: Top skin prep - (3.5 hours)

Category: 16: Top Skins

With the rear spar riveted I had to get the top skin cleco'd in place just to see it. Started by pulling all the blueing off the big skins. Finally had a need to use the broom stick technique, or pool pole technique for me. Worked great.

Didn't really need to put too many clecos in because it is already final sized and I'll be skipping the drilling step. I just wanted to confirm every thing lines up. It's looking awesome.

Countersunk all of the inboard holes associated with the wing doublers including the #8 fairing attach screwa. It doesn't say to, but it seemed like a good idea to spot prime the countersunk holes. With a Q-tip, it is fairly discreet.

Took the skins back off and went ahead and started dimpling the remaining holes in the ribs and rear spar.

Sanded the corners of the skins at the overlap with a palm sander. Took my time and measure as I went. I think it came out pretty well. It too aggressive, but better than full skins overlapping.

Moved the skeleton and leading edge to the cradle for the first time just to get it out of the way so I can dimple skins. It's pretty big.

Deburred edges of skins with a flat file and scotchbrite. Ready to prime skins.

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Removing vinyl

Wing skeleton

Countersinking at wing walks

Sanding the overlap corner

In the cradle for the first time

Apr 26, 2022 15-4: Left rear spar assembly - (2.6 hours)

Category: 15: Rear Spar

Dimpled the spar bottom flange and 26 inboard top flange holes, cleco'd everything in place for riveting. Trying to make sure which way the rivets go - for most the spar is the thicker material, so shop heads should be on the outside. Shop heads on the inside would be more aesthetically pleasing. Quick search of other builders blogs seems to show shop heads on the inside. That would be consistent with how I did the HS too.

Riveted the spar with various sizes called out in the plans. Was able to squeeze most but had to buck a few awkward ones, particularly near the root. Bucking gun was fine except one that the gun jumped and obliterated the rivet head. Had a very hard time drilling it out and tore up the hole a bit. Tried to save but went with another AN bolt. Just one of several in that field of rivets at the rear attach doubler. Biggest problem is that it is not easy to inspect.

5/4 update: back-ordered bearing arrived so was able to complete the aileron bracket assembly and rivet to rear spar. I used just some rubbing alcohol to remove some tape residue from the rivet heads and was very disappointed to see some of the primer come off. Will need to really consider the EkoPoxy for the fuselage priming.

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Apr 24, 2022 15-2 thru 15-4: Left rear spar - (4.5 hours)

Category: 15: Rear Spar

Did all the fabrication of the aileron attach brackets for both the left and right wing.

Match drilled the doublers and cut the hole in the one for the aileron pushrod. Traced the hole against the rear spar, drilled a couple starter holes with the unibit and then finished it off with sanding drums on the deemed.

Got everything cleco'd to the wing ribs. Was a little unsure about the W-00007C and D brackets but got some answers from RV-10 Facebook group.

Finished up with countersinks in a few places. Almost missed the countersinks in W-1013F but someone on FB responding to my other question pointed it out. Dimpled the rear tab of the ribs. Should have dimpled these before attached flap brackets.

Ready to prime.

4/25: snuck in some priming after work.

Outboard aileron brackets

Inboard aileron bracket assemblies

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Match drilling and marking doubler

Doubler cut for aileron pushrod

Inboard aileron bracket

I think this is right

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Spar cleco'd in place

Apr 23, 2022 14-3 thru 14-5: Left wing ribs prep prime and assemble - (10.0 hours)

Category: 14: Wing Ribs

Upsized the holes in the ribs for conduits and did a final deburr pass through everything. Relieved the aileron torque tube angle for the conduit hole as suggested in the plans.

Double checked the correct position and orientation of all ribs and marked their numbers. Prepped and primed the ribs in batches to try to maintain the order.

Assembled and riveted the flap hinge brackets and some of the aileron torque tube bracket. Missing bearings so just cleco'd for now. I'm glad I did too, because it would have been very hard to rivet the rib to the spar.

Cleco'd all the ribs to the spar and proceeded to rivet. That was very difficult and I had to drill out many rivets because the gun would jump and put a crease. I finally remembered that a little masking tape over the set would keep it from jumping. Got all of the spar rivets done and called it a day. A very long day.

Finished up Sunday morning by installing and torquing all the bolts. Additional QC of rivets revealed several more to drill out and replace. Ended up wallowing out one rivet hole in the spar web. Opted to upsize and replace with an AN3 bolt.

4/5 update: back-ordered torque tube bearings arrived so was able to rivet torque tube bracket together and rivet assembly ronin board rib.

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Replaced one rivet with AN bolt

Apr 21, 2022 14-2 & 14-3: Left Wing rib fabrication and pre-assembly - (3.5 hours)

Category: 14: Wing Ribs

Started some of the light fabrication associated with the wing ribs. I cut the angles and spacer plates associated with the onboard aileron bellcrank. Went to cleco with the bearings when I realized those are in the one parts bag that was backordered. I'll have to check with vans to see if they're available, or I'll need to figure out how far I can make it. I think I can progress quite a bit without it.

Did some trimming of the ribs shown on 14-3. Was actually a little difficult to trim that rear flange off. Rough cut it with snips and then thought I could get the rest with the belt sander. Thought it was good until I saw the sander ate into bother of the flange tabs. One tab is probably ok, but the other definitely violates edge distance. Order a new one. Called it a night.

Picked it up Friday evening. Salvaged a new W-1012-R from the right side and redid the fabrication with a deemed cut off wheel. Much better this time.

Cleco'd and final drilled the aileron torque tube bracket and the flap hinge brackets. Got to use my 90 degree drill!

Cleco'd everything to the rib and double checked all the correct ribs were in the right spot. Match drilled all of the spar to rib attach holes.

Left wing ribs ready to prime.

Purchases: Van's - W-1012R rib

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Apr 20, 2022 14-4: Conduit planning - (1.5 hours) Category: 14: Wing Ribs

Just logging a little time to reflect the research on conduit and holes in wing ribs. I've referenced the Vans information and still don't quite get it. Well, I understand it, it just seems limiting compared to what I've seen people do.

I get upsizing the tooling hole closest to the spar for the pitot, but I'd like to run the AOA up there too. The W-1010 has a second hole in the bottom of the rib near the pitot hole and some have assumed they are free to drill a similar hole in all of the W-1011 ribs. Even if that was ok, I don't like that position because it will make riveting bottom skins more difficult. I prefer an additional hole above the existing tooling hole, sort of mirrored about the chord line. I've seen people do that, but again not covered by the Van's guidance. I will check with Van's I guess, but for now will assume that is acceptable.

For the main wire run, I just don't have a good feel for what will fit in a 3/4” conduit. Is one enough? Probably, but some people seem to run more.

And do I really want conduit anyways? Seems feasible that if you had to you could pull wires through the bushings.

To hedge, I'm leaning toward installing the snap bushings in the recommended holes per the instructions and then running a conduit in each wing. I'll use the conduit for my primary wiring and the snap bushings will actually serve as the future spare in case I ever need it.

If I'm running conduit - what to run? Probably some thin wall PVC or PEX tubing. There are easy PEX joist connectors that could blind rivet to the ribs at the lightening holes. Or Vans conduit with a one hole rivet connector similar to what I had for the VS, but that would use zip ties which I'm not excited about.

Conduit allows me to defer the decisions a little bit. What I need to know now is what to drill in the ribs. I think I will pretty much do it per plans, except drill an extra hole for AOA pending Van's approval.

4/22: update - going to drill an extra hole in the left ribs for the AOA in line with and above the pitot hole. Then upsize the existing hole to 3/4” for installation of Vans conduit. In the right wing, where most of the avionics are, I will go ahead and upsize the pitot hole to 7/16” and install snap bushings for additional capacity if needed.

Apr 19, 2022 Duckworks - painting and assembly - (2.5 hours)

Category: Lighting

Debating about what color to paint the brackets and inside of the LE. Black or white? Decided to just go with white. The white enamel paint from autozone actually turned out really nice.

4/20: Of course looking back at the brackets I noticed some dust and debris in the paint. Good enough, or redo? Well I tried to redo and don't even want to talk about it. Needless to say 220 grit sanding marks show through the 2nd coat of enamel, and then the high build primer I shot over the enamel crackled because I probably didn't let the enamel cure. What a mess! Now I need to take it down to bare metal and start over.

4/21: after trying to sand down the enamel, I'm doing more damage to the metal than I feel like fixing. For the effort it's just not worth it. Ordering new brackets from Ductworks. What a terrible fail and waste of a lot of effort to fix.

Purchases: Ductworks- replacement brackets

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Apr 18, 2022 Duckworks LE cuts and mounting strips - (5.0 hours)

Category: Lighting

Got up early this morning and made the first cut. Start by drilling #30 holes around the curved portions, then used a Dremel cut-off wheel to cut the straight parts. Then used a small sanding drum on the Dremel to clean up the curves and remove excess from the straight cuts - probably could have cut a lot closer to the line with the cut-off wheel. Then a combination of straight file and sandpaper wrapped around a kid's drinking cup that happens to be about the radius.

Not too bad. I did get a gouge in the top skin from a cutoff wheel that jumped. I sanded that out and scotchbrited it out - might need a little more.

Proceeding with the upper lower mounting strips for the left wing. Pretty straightforward, just follow the instructions. There is one point when they say to put slight bend in the retainer plate. Was sure if they meant to bend it outward for more space or bend it inward to compensate for the tendency of a single row of rivets to bend it outward. I went with the latter - hopefully it's not too tight.

Got the lower strips done which are similar except they use #6 screw to hold everything in place.

Repeat everything for right side.

Left side - 3.5 hrs
Right side - 1.5

Cutting bottom

Rough cut top

Cleaning it up

Done

Looking straight on

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Apr 17, 2022 Duckworks landing light mount - (4.0 hours)

Category: Lighting

As I was close to the end of the Leading Edges, my Duckworks landing light bracket showed up. Good timing. My hands need a little break from riveting too so I'm going to progress these a bit.

I was on the fence between the Duckworks kit, which has been the mainstay for RV builders forever , and the newer Van's landing light that comes with the RV-14. The Vans kit has a little larger opening, but I doubt it is necessary. Deciding factor - Van's was out of stock. So Duckworks it is. Kit is pretty simple. Instructions aren't great but I found better photos on the internet that helped me figure it out.

Got the nutplates installed in the two ribs. So glad I'm doing this now and not after the LE is on the spar. Squeezed solid rivets on the outboard rib and used the pull rivets in the in board rib.

They don't give a lot of guidance on the extension angles. I clamped it all together very roughly just so I could confirm edge distances and plan out the rivets. Once I established I would have five rivets on the main body and two on the ends I was able to drill and cleco the main body. I was trying to keep everything square and found that if I clamped a piece of scrap balsa between the angle and the frame it would keep them a constant distance off the bend line and keep them relatively square. Then I clamped the end piece at roughly 15 1/2” total length and fit it into the wing. Then squeezed it a bit to fit snug. There seems to be a lot of slop with the oversized holes so I think it is about as good as it needs to be.

Prepped and primed a small batch of parts and then assembled the brackets.

I think I'll stop there. Time to make the big cut in the leading edges.

Got up the nerve to at least cut the paper templates for the cutouts.

4/16 0.8 - Did just a little cutting and fabrication of the bracket and support angles.
4/17 3.2 - got the holes drilled and fitted for the brackets, drilled the nut plates for ribs, primed and assembled brackets.

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LE skin cut-out template

Apr 15, 2022 17-3: Right LE riveting - (4.2 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

4/15 0.7 - start right leading edge rivets. Going together smoothly. Even let Ben set some with the gun.
4/16 2.0 - finished most of top and bottom.
4/17 1.5 - finished right LE

Leading edges are done for now until I'm ready to attach them to the spars. I'm really proud of the riveting on these. Perfectly flush, no dings, barely even scratches in the skin. I avoided my tendency to overdrive too.

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Apr 11, 2022 17-3: Finish left LE - (1.9 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

Got all of the forward most rivets done. Was able to get them myself without too much trouble. Did a little QC of my work and found about five rivets total that weren't perfect. Drilled those out and replaced. Set it aside and going back to the right LE.

Got the top two rivets and the splice strip rivets all squeezed on the right LE.

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Right LE coming along

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Apr 08, 2022 17-3: Start riveting left LE - (3.1 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

4/8 1.6 - bottom left done, half of top left done
4/10 1.5 - finished all but the front tips of left LE

Took the day off as were packing to go camping. Of course I snuck out to work on the plane too and started riveting the leading edges. Got in a nice zen-like rhythm. Remove cleco, final hole align with 3/32” punch, place rivet, check flushness, drive rivet, repeat…They all came out really good. One minor skin ding where the bucking bar slipped, but no smileys with the Boeing flush set. Was actually able to drive all the bottom rivets by myself.

Got back from camping and knocked out the majority of the remaining left skin rivets. A few in the very front that I'll have to get help with and do them outside of the cradles. Good progress though.

Left bottom skin done

Rows and rows of perfect rivets

Me on the gun

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Apr 03, 2022 17-3: Dimpling leading edges and cleco fail - (4.5 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

Finished all of the DRDT2 work on both skins and then dimples the perimeter and all of the ribs on the right LE with the squeezer. Started clecoing it together. Found that if I start with the leading edge it is a bit easier to align the holes and get the ribs tight to the skin.

Got all of the right ribs cleco'd into the skin, putting a cleco in every single hole and got to the last rib which is supposed to face the opposite direction. It did face the opposite direction, but not the correct direction. I just cleco'd all the right ribs into the left skin! Ugh. That's a lot of clecos to undue.

4/4 update: Was able to put in another 1.5 after work and got left ribs dimpled, fixed the clecos for the left skin, finished the nutplate attachments and even squeezed the top two rivets on every rib. Setting it aside to advance the right LE.

4/5: got the right skin cleco'd in place and cleaned up the shop a bit before work. Going to set the LEs aside and go back to deburring main ribs.

Rib dimpling

Skin is in the cradles

Get the nose first

These are all coming out

2nd one almost done

Apr 01, 2022 17-3: Misc work and priming leading edges - (5.2 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

I was struggling with when I'd get a chance to prime since my weekends are booked. Today was a beautiful day though and I left work early to try to knock it out.

Disassembled the leading edges and deburred the few drilled holes. Countersunk the holes I. The splice strip and messed one up. For some reason the countersink wandered and severely elongated the hole. Drilled a new hole to install a one sided nut plate but a little worried about edge distance to the screw hole. Will check with Van's.

Got everything prepped and primed. About 500g of primer.

Installed about half the nut plates on the splice strips. Removed the remaining blue vinyl from the skins, set up the DRDT2 and did a few skin dimples. Lots more to go.

Got some more dimples done Saturday morning. About 60% of the right skin. I'll get ther perimeters with a squeezer.

4/3 update: I inquired on VAF if anyone by chance had a splice strip laying around. One of the responses suggested to just fabricate a new one since that's how all the older kits are done. I may do that, but I'm the mean time I think I have a good fix. I added a .032” doubler plate behind it and ran it continuous over two screw holes. Took a little work to get the holes all lines up, but I think it came out good. Filled the bad hole with JB weld for just a cosmetic repair and will paint over it when cured.

4/5 update: Van's said my fix on the splice strip would be fine. I may still redo it if I can source some material. Inquired with my EAA chapter if anyone has any.

Priming ribs

Dimpling skins

Aw, crap

Repair Doubler plate

Repair Double installed

Finished Repair

Repair ok per Vans

Mar 30, 2022 14-2: Wing rib prep - (4.8 hours)

Category: 14: Wing Ribs

4/30 pm 0.6 - remove vinyl and label. Start deburring
4/1 am 0,5 - more debur, child labor
4/5 pm 0.5 - lightening holes
4/6 am 0.5 - lightening holes through the W-1011Ls
4/8 am 0.9 - lightening holes through the W-1011Rs, debur edges through 1011Ls
4/12 pm 1.2 - through the edge deburr, half way through fluting
4/20 0.6 - finally finished all the fluting

Can't do anymore on the leading edges so I'll start knocking out some of the main rib deburring. It's going to take a while. A good evening activity.

Spending a lot of time on the lightening holes, knowing that I'm going to be shoulder deep into those holes soon. Deburr with the pencil tool, then scotchbrite. Was using the 1” wheel on the drill press but found using a pad and doing it by hand was as good if not better.

Stacks of ribs

Child labor

Their favorite activity

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Mar 30, 2022 17-3: Fit up leading edges - (1.9 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

Fit the ribs in the skins and cleco'd. Difficult to get everything aligned but it does. Installed the j-channels and drilled. Everything else was already final drilled except the #19s in the splice strips and quickly took care of those.

The weatherstripping on the cradles didn't hold up well at all and it was too tight. Replaced it all with gorilla tape and it is much better.

That's about as far as I can go on these until I have a good day to prime. Next couple weekends are booked so not sure when that will be. Also realized it's time to order the landing light mounts - will be easier to take care of before mounting to spar.

Purchases: Duckworks - RV-10 Round Landing Light

Fit up in the cradles

LE in the cradles

Mar 29, 2022 17-2; Prep leading edge ribs - (1.8 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

Was somewhat dreading the deburring of all he wing ribs, but the leading edges at least were very easy - not too many nooks and crannies. I did try to shape the nose a bit to get rid of any faceting; the tabs are so small though I don't think it will be as much of a problem as it is on the tail feathers.

Used my flange straightening tool, but actually found that the flanges were pretty much straight already; really just focused on the tighter curved areas. Ribs required pretty heavy fluting to lay flat on the bench.

Measured the cuts for rib modifications and cut them on the band saw and finished with belt sander. Deburred and cleaned everything up including the splice strips.

Rib straightening

Nose ribs fluted

Cutting the ribs to clear spars

Mar 28, 2022 17-2: Starting outboard leading edges - (0.5 hour)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

The whole point of working so hard to finish the spars was for the joy of getting out the leading edge skins and putting them in the cradles. I'm jumping ahead to the leading edges so that I have something to attach to the completed spar, rib, top skin assemblies and can drop them straight into the wing cradles I have.

I removed the splice strips from the tank skins and deburred the leading edge skins.

Ready for some fun work on something that actually looks like an airplane.

Big skins

Mar 28, 2022 13-3 thru 13-5: Left spar finish up - (2.5 hours)

Category: 13: Main spar

Mon am 0.5 - finished countersinks, primed, cleco'd nutplates
Mon pm 2.0 - install nut plates and tie down

What was supposed to be about an hours worth of finish up turned into a 2 hr struggle this evening. The bolt holes didn't align well on the tie downs and I had to drill out all the rivets and wrestle the nutplates into alignment. Finally riveted one ear of nutplates, installed the bolts through the spar and then back drilled the opposite rivet. I oblonged the hole in the tie down a little bit, but they're only there to keep the nutplates from rotating so doesn't risk anything. Then unbolt everything, rivet the nutplates, reinstall, tighten bolts and cross fingers for alignment. Finally everything aligned and then installed the -4 rivets to finish it off.

Spars are done. Cleaned up the shop.

Progress to date

Finished and tucked away

Mar 27, 2022 13-2 thru 13-4: Left spar work - (8.5 hours)

Category: 13: Main spar

Thurs pm 0.3 - Started on left spar. Got the tip extension riveted.
Friday am 0.6 - clamped and drilled lower j channel, match drilled hold down
Friday pm 0.5 - a little countersinking on bottom
Sat am 0.5 - more countersinks
Sat pm 3.5- finished bottom countersinks, tank plates, access plates and spar root plates, cleaned up shop, matched drilled top j-channel
Sun am 1.6 - match drilled bottom right j-channel, final drilled all holes. Countersunk flush holes
Sun pm 1.5 - lots of countersinking, but not quite done.

Same as right side. No photos, just kept my head down and knocked it out. Was able to have more of a production line and minimize number of tool changes and spar flips. Did everything on the bottom and then the top. Didn't quite finish the top countersinks, but made a really big dent in them.

Was going to hold off on redoing the right bottom j-channels that I messed up but got the notice that they shipped from Van's. Only $20 shipping. Proceeded with drilling the right bottom channel using the top left spar for spacing.

Found that I can only countersink 15-16 holes at a time before the compressor kicks. So I divided the spar up into sections to make it a little easier to manage the countersinking and QC.

Between the spar work and the leading edge cradles, it was a lot of airplane work this weekend. And I even went flying.

Lots of countersinking

Mar 26, 2022 17-2: Leading edge cradles - (2.0 hours)

Category: 17: Outboard LE

Had to break down the crates to put out in the trash and decided to go ahead and salvage some of the lumber to build the leading edge cradles.

Cut the stringers to length and cut rectangular panels from the plywood. Used leading edge rib as template with about 3/16 extra. Cut them on the band saw and then clamped together and did my best to sand matching pairs. Got them all screwed together and they came out really good.

Will add a little weatherstripping to finish them off.

Cradle ribs cut

Cradles done

Mar 24, 2022 13-4 & 13-5: Right spar finish up - (2.0 hours)

Category: 13: Main spar

Drilled and countersunk all the holes at the wing root. A couple of the counter sinks are too close to the spar flange to use the cage so I did them by hand with the deburr tool. Not a problem. Got stuck when I realized I don't have any AN426AD4-6 rivets that are called for. Doubled checked the inventory and they're not there. Just trimmed some 4-7s and squeezed them no problem.

Match drilled and countersunk the holes in the tie down. Installed the -3 nut plates. Actually installed an extra set of nut plates for AN bolts that weren't needed. Drilled them out and I'll just have a few empty rivet holes. Edge distances are good so not a problem.

Cleaned up the aileron bellcrank brackets, bolted and final torqued.

Right spar is complete.

6/26/22 update: finally looked at the autopilot install instructions and I now see that Garmin's bracket actually replaces the lower aileron bellcrank bracket. Removed the bottom bracket and replaced with Garmin's. I'll final torque after the servo is installed.

No 426AD4-6s in kit

Countersinks in spar root

Hold down cleco'd

Match drilled hold down

AN3 nut plates

Spar root nutplates

Aileron brackets

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Mar 23, 2022 13-3: Right spar countersinking - (6.0 hours)

Category: 13: Main spar

Going to try to knock out a lot of the countersinking during the week before and after work.
Mon morn - 0.5 top front done
Mon evening - 1.6 finished top, primed the holes, cleco'd nut plates.
Tues morn - 0.9 top tank plate nuts riveted, gauge made, finished tank countersinks and primed
Tues pm - 1.0 bottom counter sinks
Wed am - 0.5 bottom counter sinks
Wed pm - 1.5 finished bottom counter sinks, primed holes, riveted bottom tank plates, access plate, countersunk screw holes. Done.

Had been using the cordless drill for countersinking but switched to the air drill. Works better and much less fatigue. Wish I had switched sooner.

Developed a better system too. Make one pass and try to get 90% of the hole, then get the remainder on a second pass. I was finding if I tried to make 100% on the first try, I was having to go back and clean most of them up anyways.

Right spar counter sinks are done. On to the left.

Some after work countersinking

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Cleco’d nut plates

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Tank screw test with coupon

Nut plates installed and countersunk

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Mar 22, 2022 Tools Category: Workshop & Tools

Wasn't happy with my $14 sprayer last session. Time to throw away and buy another one. Also picked up an angle grinder and some roloc sanding pads

Purchases: Harbor Freight: sprayer, angle grinder, accessories

Mar 20, 2022 13-2 & 13-3: Right spar work - (5.0 hours)

Category: 13: Main spar

Primed a small batch of parts including the spar extensions, gusset plates and tie downs for both left and right spars. Will proceed with right spar then come back to the left.

Final drilled and riveted the spar extension. First rivets bucked in a while and had to drill out a few just because they weren't perfect.

Clamped and drilled the lower W-1028A and B taking care to not drill the holes indicated in the plans. I may have drilled a hole I wasn't supposed to because the edge distance on the last hole is too tight on the 1028B. I may need to splice a short J channel piece.

Countersunk the rivets for tank attach and access panel nut plates. Held short of countersinking all the others - need to give my arms and my drill a break. A good task for weekdays after work.

[Update] that mis-drill is going to be a problem. I even masked off the holes I wasn't supposed to drill, but I thought it was only the nut plate holes for the access panels. It appears it extends a little beyond the access plates as they had to modify the spacing. Going to try to salvage form the extra lengths of j channel I have and come up with a minimum length to order from Van's. Trying to avoid another 8' long piece. I don't need it until closing up the bottom so may just have them throw it in the fuselage kit.

Purchases: Van's: new j-channels

Spar extension cleco'd

Starting Countersinks

Spar extensions riveted

First sign of a problem

Mar 17, 2022 13-2 & 13-4: Getting started on wing - (1.6 hours)

Category: 13: Main spar

Just spent a little time getting organized and trying to plan for a first small batch of priming. Deburred the spar extensions and gussets. Then tapped the tie down blocks.

I also designed a little jig to hold a sharpie 5/16 off an edge and my neighbor 3D printed it. Came out pretty nice. Concept to prototype in about 3 hours - so cool. It will be handy for marking rivet lines in j channels.

Cut the j channels to length and used my handy new tool to mark the rivet centerline. Made quick work of it. Cleco'd the extensions in place and clamped the upper j channels in place ready to drill. Stopping there for the evening.

Going forward, I'll work on one spar at a time just for managing shop space.

Deburred and ready to prime

Tie downs tapped

New tool

J channels clamped

Mar 16, 2022 Wing inventory - (3.0 hours)

Category: General

Wing arrived today. No damage. Inventory looks good and only a couple minor things backordered.

I was planning on taking a lot of stuff to storage unit, but most of it fits on my racks. I'll still take a few items that I won't need for quite a while, like wing tips and maybe the bottom skins.

Seeing all these parts reminds me I'm getting low on primer.

So excited! Ready to start on the spars. For the record, spar serial numbers are:
V10-0821-063 and V10-0821-508

Purchases:Stewart Systems: primer

Beautiful spars

It all fits on the shelves

Ready to get to work

Mar 15, 2022 9-17: Trim tab wrap up - (2.0 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Clamped and drilled the hinges to the spar. Everything looks pretty good, although the drill bit did mark the bottom skin in a few places as it punched through the top skin. Should have used a drill stop.

Not happy with the control horn on the left tab. Rivets sitting too proud and the hole for the linkage didn't align well. I opted to drill out a few of the rivets and use cherrymax blind rivets. Upsized to 1/8” and lightly countersunk the dimpled horns to accept the larger rivet head. Used the wedge method from chapter 5 to set the cherrymax rivets tight up against the horn. Overall happy with how it turned out.

[update] I realize what I was doing wrong with the rivets - I was pushing the flush set into the corner of the horn and that was causing the flush set to ride up the fillet and not sit flush. Should have known better - that's what I get for taking off so many months of working.

 No dings

Offending rivets drilled out

Cherrymax installled

Mar 06, 2022 9-17: Trim tab work - (3.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Got the spars backed riveted to the bottom skin. Rivets all came out great, but the dimples may have been a little under done with the squeezer. I opted to redo the top skin dimples on the drdt2, much cleaner. Masked and primed the area where the control horns attach.

Then bucked the rivets for the control horns - my least favorite part of trim tab construction which I'm becoming so well-versed in. Really struggles with these and had to drill out several. Even had to use a few oops rivets. Got it done though. I realize in hindsight was I was doing wrong - I was pushing the flush set into the corner of the bracket and it was riding up the fillet which resulted in proud rivets.

Double checked the fit of the foam wedges and sanded them down a little to reduce the bulging of the skin. Mixed up the proseal, installed the foam ribs and clamped them up. Done for now. Overall, very happy with these and glad I persevered to redo them.

Back-Rivet setup

Good Rivets - dimples could be better

Prime control horn area

Prosealed and in the clamps

Mar 05, 2022 9-16: Trim tabs - 3rd time's the charm - (3.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

New trim tabs and spars came in. Perfect timing to knock them out before the wings get here.

I really took my time on the bends this time and was sure not to push the skin all the way into the corner of the break. I think that is what pinched it last time. Both came out much better.

Then the end tabs. Made sure everything was double sided taped and secure. Did the wood block and rivet gun method. Happy to say they all came out really well.

Vans had the control horns backordered so my plan was to rob them from my second trim tabs if I made it past the bend stage with better results. Having succeeded, I proceeded to drill out the horns. Came right off without any problems. Two old trim tabs are officially trash.

Prepped, primed and ready for final assembly. Used a little self etch to touch up the outer face of the lower close out tabs.

Skin in the break

Close out tab

Close out tab

Close out bend setup

Salvge old horns

Prime inner tab

Mar 04, 2022 Wing shipped Category: General

As I hit the one year anniversary of receiving my empennage kit and the official begin of the build, I received the bill of lading for my wing kit. Finally on its way.

Purchases:ABF Freight:shipping

Feb 17, 2022 Fuselage Ordered Category: General

Based on the lead times I was planning to order my fuselage as soon as I received the shipment notice for my wings. Well, I haven't quite received that shipping notice yet, but I did receive notice that kit prices were going to increase this weekend. So, I went ahead and pulled the trigger - fuselage is ordered.

Purchase: Van's: SB Fuselage Kit

Feb 10, 2022 9-16: Trim tab fail again - (2.0 hours) Category: 9: Elevators

After letting the proseal on the trim tabs cure for a long time, I pulled the tabs out of the clamps. I'm not happy with them. I don't know if the foam ribs were a little undersized, or I just pushed them too tightly into the clamps, but there is a distinct deformation in the skin at each foam rib. It seemed as though the skin was maybe under-bent between the ribs, so I tried to fix it by squeezing the tab between wood blocks as shown in Section 5. This didn't work well and put additional marks on the tabs at the ends of the blocks I used. At this point, I think my original tabs look better than the new ones. It's funny how the things that I struggled with on these tabs were no problem at all on the first tabs, and vice versa. Maybe one more attempt and I can get them perfect - I'm on a quest for perfect trim tabs now. Something to work on while still waiting on wings. Of course, now even some of the trim tab skins are backordered.

Purchases: Van's: new trim tab skins, spars, and foam blocks.

Jan 30, 2022 9-16: trim tab rivets and proseal - (3.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Got the trim tab spars back-riveted to the bottom of the skins. These all came out great. Then tried to back rivet the horns to the skin. Was able to get a few, but ended up having to buck most of them. What a pain. Got them done without too many cosmetic scratches. No dings or dents on these tabs!

Got the foam ribs glued in place and everything is set in the clamps.

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Jan 28, 2022 9-16: Trim tab bends - (1.0 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Bent the ends of the trim tabs ends. People have come up with various other ways to make these bends, but I had good luck with the wood block method in the plans the first go around so opted to do it again. I applied double sided tape to the blocks, but I should have also applied tape to the part itself - taping it down to the table. The first bend came out just ok. I think my previous efforts were better. I modified my method and taped the tab to the table prior to clamping and the remaining bends came out better.

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Jan 15, 2022 9-16: Trim tab - (1.1 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Just a little work on the tabs this weekend. Masked and scuffed the rib areas, then masked for priming. Finished the bend on the tabs in the break I had previously used - glad I didn't scrap it yet. Bends turned out good, slight indentation on the bottom of the left tab, but still looking better than my previous attempt.

Temperature is in the mid-30s so no priming this weekend. Not much else I can do.

1/17: did some countersinking of the spars prior to painting. Also was able to use a block and a spoon to pretty much eliminate the small indent on the left trim tab.

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Jan 13, 2022 9-16: Redo trim tabs - (0.6 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

After fearing that Fedex had lost my shipment, the new trim tabs miraculously showed up at the door today. Made just a small amount of progress removing vinyl and a little deburring. Cut the trim horns and deburred. Printed and spray glued the foam templates.

Ordered a small thing of proseal for bonding the foam ribs.

Purchases: ACS: Proseal

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Dec 29, 2021 Trim Tabs - Part 2 Category: 9: Elevators

Had to get something from the storage unit and took a minute to admire my completed empennage. Well, most of it. My trim tabs are really atrocious, and I know I can do so much better now. Ordered new parts from Van's for left and right elevator trim tabs. Will probably show up before my wings and give me a small project to knock the rust off my riveting skills.

Purchases: Van's: Trim tabs

Dec 26, 2021 More electrical design - (10 hours) Category: Avionics

The hours listed don't begin to capture the near constant thinking, reading, and dreaming of electrical system designs over the last month. I was really struggling with how I thought I wanted it work and why did I feel like I was going a direction that others were not. I had gotten to the point of a dual bus system, plus an e-bus powered by an IBBS. It was too complicated. I wasn't trying to achieve a true dual bus system with cross feeds and whatnot. I did want an avionics switch, and it makes sense for the E-bus to be a sub set of the avionics bus. I was getting hung up on the idea that some things on that e-bus are not avionics, mainly electric trim which I consider critical since there is no manual trim.

I finally went through the various phases of flight, including engine startup sequence and determined what I want when. And what do I want in various emergency scenarios. I simplified and compromised a bit and came up something that looks very much like the Aeroelectric Z-12 architecture, except that I will still incorporate an IBBS to backup the e-bus (primarily for brown-out protection during engine start).

Feels good to have the problem somewhat solved. I'm sure I'll change my mind over the next few years.

Dec 01, 2021 EAA Sportair Workshop - Avionics and electrical - (15.0 hours)

Category: Research/Train

Finally had my class for the electrical and avionics workshop I signed up for six months ago. Great class with lots of good hands on. It was hosted by EAA Chapter 59 in McGregor, TX. They had their own large hangar with lots of space, tools, and a dedicated training room. They even have two Redbird simulators. What a facility. They are very lucky to have such a place.

First day talked about general components and wire sizing. Got to practice some crimping and then built a mock audio panel wiring harness. Plugged it in and it worked! The biggest surprise was how difficult it is to remove the outer insulation from shielded wire. They don't show that in Garmin's YouTube videos.

Second day we covered a lot on antennas which was one of the specific things I was hoping for. I got all of the information I needed. Crimped a BNC connector on a piece of coax and it is just beautiful.

We talked a little about system architecture and the the final project was to build a small panel with light controls. It doesn't look too special, but I'm proud of it.

Overall great class. Highly recommend. I feel very comfortable moving forward with my wiring, although it is going to be a lot of work.

Some crimping practice

Project parts for wiring harness

Audio panel wiring harness

Coax prep

Coax crimping

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Final exam

Nov 23, 2021 Preliminary Panel Layout - (4.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

I've spent a lot more time over the last week working through wiring and reading up on electrical systems. Tonight, I decided to start seriously laying out the panel so that I can better visualize where everything is going to go. I used the Draw.io program for this too and I think it turned out really well. I used overall measurements from Garmin literature and then imported an image of the component to trace some of the detail.

After looking at all the cool panel options from Aerosport, I think I'm leaning towards using the stock panel now. I'm planning on a GTN650 instead of a 750 with just two G3x screens. Looks pretty good with a GTN650. With the com2 radio and transponder mounted remote, I think there will be adequate room. And currently thinking regular circuit breakers instead of the VPX that everyone seems to be doing. I may change my mind on that by the time I'm ready.

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Nov 14, 2021 Continuing Panel Wiring Schematic - (5.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

This one is getting complicated. Still in progress, but have most of the wiring figured out for GDUs, the GADs, the GEA, even the GTN. Working on the Audio Panel. Its funny how a simple function like a trim hat switch can involve 12 wires. I can't wait to build these actual harnesses.

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Nov 11, 2021 More Avionics Schematics - (4.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

Just working my way forward thinking about how wires will run through the fuse and eventually to the panel. This is all in progress. Just posting for posterity.

Electrical System

Avionics Wiring of Panel

Nov 08, 2021 Avionics/Electrical System Layout - (4 hours)

Category: Avionics

Started diving into laying out the electrical system in draw.io. This is a blast! I'm digging through the manuals for each components and really figuring out exactly how everything will connect, and then drawing them up with somewhat correct location on the airframe and figuring out what some of the wire bundles will look like. I'm going to produce a layout for each wing, the tail, and the forward fuselage. I imagine an entirely separate one for the panel. It really helps visualize everything and I think will be so much better for me than just paying someone else to do it. So far I have made an overall G3 Interconnect Diagram, and a draft version of both the left and right wing.

G3 Interconnect Schematic

Left Wing Wiring - DRAFT

Right Wing Wiring - DRAFT

Nov 06, 2021 Lighting research - (3.0 hours) Category: Research/Train

Just documenting some decisions on lighting.

Definitely planning on Flyleds, just trying to figure which ones. The combo lights on the wing tips look good, but I worry about forward visibility of the landing light since the wingtip seems to block a bit. Seems like if you do the tip lights, you would need to add a light in the cowl, which they do have. I do like the look of the landing light in the leading edge though. Planning on a leading edge light would allow for their huge seven star light, but I think that might be obnoxious. At the very least a leading edge light will provide more flexibility for future lighting options.

So for know, this is what I'm thinking:
- “The original” Flyleds nav and strobe lighting in the tips $249
- Flyleds combo leading edge taxi/landing light (not the seven star) 2 x $179
- Flyleds tail light (sold separately) $99
- wiring harness $80
- wigwag switch $80
Optional: Aerosport cowl light $100

Question though - can I just use the works controller board with the original tips and leading edge lights?
Follow up answer - landing and taxi lights with wigwag will be controlled through Garmin GAD27.

Nov 05, 2021 Avionics/Electrical research - (10 hours) Category: Research/Train

I've spent a lot of time over the last month reading up on anything I can find regarding electrical wiring and avionics installation. I think I'm going to get to a point where I'm comfortable doing all of that myself. Bought the Aeroelectric book which seems to be the Bible for home builder electrical systems.

I'm enjoying studying all of the schematics and manuals for the avionics. I feel like I understand the interconnect between all the G3x components and I have watched several CAN Bus videos. It's time to start drawing up the schematics for my system. I think it will help me visualize the harness and where everything goes. Some folks just send their component list to Stein and they will draw up the schematic for you; I may get to that point if I struggle but I think I'll try to do it myself. So what software? I have access to several CAD platforms, but I think it can be simpler. I started drawing it up in PowerPoint, but maybe not that simple. I saw someone had posted a diagram on VAF that they did using draw.io and it looked pretty good.

It's free and I've been playing with it the last few days and I think it is going to work well. It maintains connections of the wires, allows good annotation, and seems to have good logic for the display of the wire runs. I made a basic interconnect diagram and I like it so far.

I can see that I'm going to spend many hours over the next year drawing all of these systems up. To more accurately track my total time, I will start logging it.

Purchases: ACS: Aeroelectric ebook.

Nov 03, 2021 Waiting, buying tools… Category: Workshop & Tools

Waiting for wing kit. Van's gave an updated crating date of January 7. What do we do instead of work on the plane? We buy tools. Finally pulled the trigger on a nice 90 degree drill attachment and also bought a 12” double-offset back-rivet set that I will use on the wing top skins.

Also experimented with a new retainer spring for my rivet gun in the hope that it would work with my Boeing flush set. It fits!

Purchases: Cleaveland tool: 90 deg drill and bits, 12” back-rivet set, retainer spring.

Oct 10, 2021 Moving day - (5.0 hours)

Category: General

Spent nearly all day driving around and directly related to the build so I'll log it. Today I moved the empennage to a storage facility to make room for the wings. The HS just fits running diagonally across a 10'x10' unit.
I also drove down to Lancaster to pick up a wing cradle that was offered to me by a fellow EAA member. Such a great way to pay it forward; I'll do the same. Just seeing the wing cradle in the shop gives a good idea of the scale of the next phase.
Then cleaned up the shop a bit to get ready for the wings to arrive.

Storage unit

Wing cradles

Shop cleaned up and ready for wings

Oct 07, 2021 Empennage complete - (2.0 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

I unceremoniously finished the empennage this evening. Got the final priming done on the HS and elevator fairings. It's not great but it will work for now. A little disappointed overall with the skin to fairing alignment. I spent so much time applying micro and sanding it out perfect and then when I rivet it on, the skin pillows a bit between the rivets. I think I overdid the countersinking on the fairings. Not sure. The painter will fix it up; I just thought I had done better.

Moving everything out of the garage and to a storage facility this weekend. Six to eight weeks of nothing to do while waiting on the wings.

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Oct 03, 2021 Final priming - (1.5 hours) Category: 12: Fairings

Decided to spray Ekoprime over the final coat of high-build primer just to give a uniform appearance and what I assume qualifies as a sealing primer. It's all going to get sanded off later anyways so mostly just for appearances.
Masked everything and cleaned the fiberglass surfaces with Ekoclean, then etched the portions of aluminum that are going to get primed. Sprayed the VS fairing and rudder fairings. The VS ran a little because it was still wet. I'll sand it and respray it with the HS and elevators.

Oct 02, 2021 12-3: Elevator fairings - (4.0 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Quite a bit of time here and there over the last week sanding down the skim coat on the elevator fairings. Very few pinholes. Did the right side first and sanded out all the orange peel, then shot with high build, filled the few pin holes, more high build, then finish sanded with 600 grit. Went ahead and attached to the elevator with pop rivets. A small amount of pillowing between the rivets. I honestly don't know how you would avoid that without epoxy bonding the whole thing together. Masked off the end of the elevator and I will prime with Ekoprime.
Got the left elevator sanded out and initial shot of high build and glazing putty. Finished sanding and installed left elevator fairing.
Overall pleased with the fit. Wish it wasn't pillowed as much. It's certainly good enough for flying and will get all perfect during painting.

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Sep 25, 2021 12-3: HS fairings done - (2.5 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

In the final fitting of the HS fairings, I felt like they weren't pulling tight to the skin and was worried that the countersinking had weakened the fiberglass. So I went ahead and epoxied some aluminum strips on the inside similar to the fairing.
High build primer, sand, glazing putty over the pin holes, sand, prime, repeat. Then riveted in place. These are done for now. I will shoot a final coat of primer to seal them.

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Sep 23, 2021 12-4: HS/Elevator fairing dimpling - (0.6 hour)

Category: 12: Fairings

Dimpled the skins and countersunk the fairings for the rivets. Had to remove the elevator counterweights to get the dimple dies to fit. Reinstalled the counterweights and final torqued the bolts.

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Sep 22, 2021 12-3: HS/Elevator fairing skim coat - (1.5 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Final sanded the last round of micro and finally decided everything was good enough to proceed to the epoxy skin coat. Same as VS fairing, squeeged then rolled first coat, then rolled a second coat after first coat gelled. I expect to still have quite a few pin holes on these larger pieces we'll see.

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Sep 21, 2021 12-3: HS/Elevator fairings - (1.5 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Never ending quest for perfection. Just keep sanding a little here and there to try to get the shape and gap perfect on the horizontal stab and elevator fairings. Right side looks good. Just some final tweaking and checking clearance. Used a tongue depressor to run in and out of the gap to check for tight spots, and then target sanded those to get it uniform.
Still wasn't happy with the left fairing after last batch of micro. The break point ended up in the wrong spot. Sanded much of it down and redid it. I think I'm happy with it now, but still had a little bit to fill near the leading edge. Should be able to sand out that last bit of micro and will be ready for epoxy skin coat and final sand.

Keeping track of time is a guess as it is usually just several trips to the garage of a number of days. Maybe only 10-15 min at a time for a little sanding and admiring.

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Sep 19, 2021 12-3: More fairings - (4.0 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

A lot of work on and off over the weekend. Got the right HS fairing filled and final sanded. Came out really well after having the cut it and adjust. Proceeded with the left HS fairing. Got it drilled up to #30 and applied micro. Tried to fill the gap with the elevator a bit but overshot and had to sand a lot of it off. Still needs some fine tuning.
While HS fairings were curing I proceeded with the epoxy skim coat on both the VS fairing and the top of rudder fairing. Applied one coat with a squeegee followed by foam roller. Then once the first coat gelled, I went over it with a second coat of epoxy on the roller. Once cured, I sanded out the epoxy to remove the orange peel and then shot a first coat of high build primer. Filled the few pinholes with glazing putty, sanded, primed, repeat. Final sand of the high build primer with 400 grit, then one final coat of normal primer and final sand with 1000 grit.

More micro build up on left fairing

VS fairing skim coat

Rudder top skim coat

Rudder top final primer coat

Sep 17, 2021 12-3: More HS fairings - (2.0 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Marked and trimmed the left fairing similar to the right. Rough trimmed the already cured closeout piece and superglued to the fairing.
Removed the fairings from the stabilizer and cut two pieces of BID glass for each to put on the interior. Then mixed up some flox to put a fillet on the inside of the fairings to permanently bond the close out pieces. As I was applying the the flox, I notes that the superglue was loose on the right fairing. I sure if the alignment would be right, but with wet epoxy mix I proceeded. Then laid in the two layers of BID before the flox cured.
When everything was cured I trimmed the excess and checked fit against the horizontal stab. Sure enough the right side must have slipped when the superglue failed and the was a pretty good sized gap between the fairing and the stab.
To fix it, I cut a line down the close out piece close to the fillet with the intent of reinforcing it with additional glass on the inside and outside. Made the cut and applied the outside glass to hold alignment. Also applied some micro to the outer porting of the fairing to reduce the fairing gap a bit as I think it is a bit larger than I'd like. A bit of a setback, but I think it is recoverable.

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Sep 12, 2021 12-3: HS fairings - (1.2 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Started work on the HS fairings. First had to get he shope rearranged a bit and mounted the elevators onto the HS. Used a piece of card stock to trace the limits of the elevator counterbalance to use as a template for cutting the HS fairing. Drilled and cleco'd the fairing in place. Had to guess a little on the gap to get it to align with the elevator.
Cleco'd the template in place and traced the outline of the counterbalance into the fairing and then cut with a deemed to about 1/8” clearance. Sanded out smooth and check alignment with the elevator. Close enough.
Then cut a balsa template to try to match the counterbalance shape and better align the HS with the elevator. Once satisfied, took the previously laid up closure piece and traced the outline and roughly cut to fit. Then superglued to the fairing.
Will do the other side prior to flow and interior reinforcement.
Overall went pretty quickly.

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Sep 10, 2021 12-2: Left elevator tip - (3.8 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Got left elevator sanded to fit and roughed up for flox. Taped the joint with electrical tape and applied flox to fill the joint and build up the leading edge similar to right side. Getting better at this.

In the morning, sanded out the flox and then retaped applied micro. Then sanded out the micro in the evening.

Also laid up one of the close out pieces for the horizontal stab fairing. Bent a piece of aluminum to roughly match the angle of the elevator fairing. Then laid up two layers of bid glass between plastic.

Flox on

Micro applied

Close out laid up

Sep 09, 2021 Yaw damper mount - (2.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

After reading a few forum posts regarding using the RV-14 yaw servo mount on the RV-10, I decided I was up for it. It is a significant savings over the Garmin part. I probably spent more time researching and planning than actually doing. Some people opt to bolt the bracket in place so that it is removable and easier to access the back of the tail in the future. I opted to just rivet it in and probably regret it later.
Not a lot of pics because it was very hard and much of the work was blind. I did get the bracket cleco'd to the upper plate and confirmed that the center hole of the bracket, which is meant to clear the head of the bulkhead rivet on an RV-14, does not clear the rivet on an RV-10. Glad I didn't rivet any of that bulkhead yet. I managed to dimple the bulkhead and squeezed a flush rivet. I then squeezed the upper bulkhead to bellcrank assembly rivet but I had to buck the bottom ones. Not too bad, just very awkward. Then temporarily installed the yaw servo bracket assembly so that I could blindly drill the holes from the back side, through the bulkhead. I had already confirm by sticking a red sharpie through the holes that they would be roughly in line with the existing holes and maintain minimum spacing. What a pain, but eventually got it.
Then disassemble, deburr, countersink the holes in the top plate and then quick prime. Opted to just do self-etch in the rattle can. Will try to assemble tomorrow.

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Holes drilled

Finished

Sep 07, 2021 12-2: Right elevator tip - (1.2 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Got the rough sanding of the right elevator done with my permagrit bar. Wasn't happy with the trailing edge thickness matching up to the skin so put it briefly on the belt sander. Took off a little too much but will build it back up with micro.
Got everything taped for micro. Switched to electrical tape for masking the edge of the skin, seems to work better. Applied the micro to the bottom and sanded down. Then applied the micro on the top.

Micro sanded out

Sep 01, 2021 12-4: More VS faring - (2.0 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

I finally broke down and ordered a Permagrit sanding bar. Everyone says “you've got to get permagrit tools” but you never truly appreciate it until you have one. What a difference. Cuts through flox like butter.

So I was able to make pretty quick work of the new leading edge shape. Very pleased with it. It's ready for micro. And then after much web research I learned that I need to be apply a skin coat of epoxy to seal the micro before finally sanding and high build primer. Makes sense. I ordered some foam brushes for applying.
After punching out the blind rivets that are holding the fairing in place, the clecos don't hold as tight as they used to. Which made me concerned that the replacement rivets won't hold tight either. A lot of folks bond an aluminum strip to the inside of the fairing to prevent crushing of the fiberglass and a rivet pullout. I decided I might as well go that route while I have it opened up.
Mixed up epoxy and laid two more layers on the front of the fairing to close up the rudder gap and then mixed remaining epoxy with flox to bind the aluminum. I primed on side of the aluminum strips with self etch and scuffed the other side prior to bonding.

Was able to get the micro applied before bed.

Purchases: Amazon: permagrit sanding bar, foam rollers, electrical tape.

much better shape now

Primed strips

Aluminum strips clamped in place

Micro - Icing the cake

Aug 30, 2021 12-4: Back to VS fairing - (1.0 hour)

Category: 12: Fairings

Looking over my work on the VS fairing, I realized I had made a bit of a mistake. I filled the front of the fairing to align with the BS but tapered back to meet at the top. I should have done a better job of maintaining the angle of the BS leading edge. Mine had a bend in it.
Decided to punch out the rivets and fix it. Used flow since it is on the leading edge and I want it tough. Sanded out the primer down to bare glass and slathered it on using my long straightedge to check alignment. I think I will also take to opportunity to add a few additional plies of glass on the back side to close the gap with the rudder.
One step forward, two steps back.

Leading edge is not straight

Build up with flox

Better

Aug 29, 2021 12-2: Elevator fairings - (2.5 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

I had already cut and drilled the right fairing, but there was a fairly large gap at the front where it should align with the counterbalance. I mixed some flox and filled in the front of the fairing along with the joint to the elevator skin. Let that cure and did the first pass at sanding it smooth. Going to proceed with left fairing before coming back to micro fill them both.

Cut and drilled the left fairing. May do some flox later tonight.

Also took the HS off the tailcone and organized the shop a bit in preparation for moving these pieces to storage soon.

Right elevator rough sand

Left elevator drilled

Gap at counterbalance

Flox slathered on

Rough sand of tip

Shop reorganized

Aug 28, 2021 12-4: VS fairing - (1.5 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Filling priming and sanding VS fairing. Got it to a pretty good place. Good enough to rivet in place. Dimpled the holes, countersunk the fairing and installed the blind rivets. Done for now.

Also, went to Sulphur Springs for breakfast and saw a nice -10 on the ramp. Got to check out some details like how he did the fairings. His were glassed over or filled smooth. Looked pretty good.

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RV-10 at KSLR

Filled fairing looked good

Aug 25, 2021 Trim tab correction - (1.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Just admiring the beautiful tail assembly in my garage and noticed an error. The pull rivets on the close out tabs of the left trim tab were sitting quite proud. As in, I must have not dimpled them. I drilled out the rivets and sure enough no dimples. Not sure how I missed that step.
Had to drill out about 6 of the top skin to spar rivets on each side so that I could pull the skin back enough to dimple them. Also had to separate the inboard foam rib from the skin. I used a razor saw to slice through it. I will still provide the compression support of the skin and it is close enough to the end that it should be ok.
Got the holes dimpled with combination of squeezer and tight quarters die. Reinstalled the countersunk pull rivets and reinstalled the spar rivets.
All fixed. Glad I caught that.

Forgot to dimple these

All fixed

Aug 22, 2021 12-3 & 12-4: Rudder and VS fairing - (7.0 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Just a lot of work on and off throughout the week. Tough to really keep and accurate tab on time when working in lots of 30 minute spurts.
Got the single sided nut plates from ACS and installed on the rudder bottom fairing. That allowed me to finish the bottom after some more sanding, filling, priming, sanding…
Got the top fairing sanded to its final shape and installed to the rudder with blind rivets. Then bolted the rudder to the VS to check alignment of the VS fairing. It was pretty disappointing. I aligned the back of the fairing with the step in the skin and there was a pretty big gap at the leading edge, about 3/16”. It also didn't align well with shape of the rudder counterbalance and fairing. I used some scrap balsa to make a rib to hold the fairing open, but still wouldn't come close to the shape of the rudder counterbalance. I made the close out of the fairing using the method from the RV-14 instructions - layup two layers of glass on a flat surface and let it cure. Then bond to the fairing and finish with a fillet of flox and two more layers of glass on the inside. That worked well.
Used some flox to reform the leaded edge of the fairing to better match the VS.
Once the fairing was closed out, I slathered a lot of micro onto the VS fairing to try to get the shape to match the rudder better. Got the first round of that all sanded out and I'm happy with the fit now. A few low spots still to fill and then final sand, but it's getting close.

Rudder bottom fairing finished

Rudder top fairing riveted

Some pillowing of rudder top fairing

Aligning the tip to the rudder

Gap at the leading edge

False rib out of balsa

Prepped for flox

Templates drawn on BID cloth

Two layers of hardened cloth

Fitting the close out plate

Close-out plate with wedges to hold

Interior plys

Micro slathered on VS fairing

Sanded out micro - better alignment

Aug 15, 2021 12-3: Rudder fairings - (3.5 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Sanded out the micro on the top and bottom rudder fairing. Not perfect yet, but good enough to shoot a coat of primer to see where the flaws might be.

Moved on to making the bottom fairing removable. Upsized the holes with a #28 for the #6 screws. Used the nut plates as a guide and drilled the first #40 hole on each side, then cleco'd and drilled the other side. Countersunk the #40 holes by hand with the deburring tool, only took a few turns. Then used the countersink cage in the drill to countersink the #6 screws checking them against my test coupon. Installed the nut plates with 3-3.5 rivets. Realized that I will need some single sided nutppates for the front holes. Ordered those from ACS.

Dimpled the rudder bottom skins for the #6 screws. Everyone of them left a small crease above the hole. I thought I was just not holding the squeezer straight but finally realized the female die was hitting against the bottom rib. Had to make a low profile dimple die for the final trailing edge hole and squeezed with a pair of vice grips.

Then spent an hour cleaning up the shop.

Purchases: ACS: nutplates

Micro sanded out

Drilling nut plates

Primed and fit against ruder

Installed nut plates

Fairing countersinking

Rudder skin dimples

Aug 14, 2021 12-2 & 12-3: Rudder fairings - (4.0 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Started work on the fairings on and off over the last few weeks. Today was the big day to actually mix some epoxy and do some filling and sanding. Starting with the rudder fairings, I match drilled the fiberglass fairings to the rudder. They fit pretty well, but I'm following the procedure in chapter 5 to sand back the edge of the fairing along the seam and fill it flush to the rudder with flox. Wrapped the rudder in clear tape and cleco'd the fairings in place. Then mixed some epoxy and flox and smeared it across the joint. Also used flox to build up the front of the top fairing to align with the counterweight better. Tried to minimize the amount of flox since it will be tough to sand. Seems like some use micro for this step, but I really want the new edges to be durable.
Let it cure for a few hours and started sanding. I removed one cleco at a time to compromise between holding the fairing tight to the skin and providing some room to sand. 80 grit with a small wood block wasn't too bad to get through the first pass of sanding along the joint. Then removed the fairings and sanded the remainder of the flox smoooth. Replaced the tape on the rudder skin with fresh tape, reinstalled the fairings and then slathered on a micro mixture to get the first pass at smoothing out pinholes and touching up any low spots along the seam.

I'll let the micro cure over night and sand tomorrow.

Trimmed and match drilled one of the elevator fairings too.

West System epoxy

Flox mix at seam

Top fairing flox

Flox to build up front of top fairing

Micro filler

Elevator fairing drilled

Jul 28, 2021 12-3: Rudder fairings - (1.2 hours)

Category: 12: Fairings

Started some fairing work on the rudder. Just roughing out the mold lines with 80 grit followed by 150. The flange length on the bottom fairing was fine, just had to cut out the end where it conflicts with the trailing edge wedge. Had to cut back the flange on the top fairing.
Aligned the fairings as best I could based on the flange joggle on the pieces and the match drilled and cleco'd in place. Fits pretty well. I will end up sanding out most of the formed joggle and reform it with epoxy and flox, matched perfect to the rudder.

The bottom fairing will get modified for nut plates and screws. This will require countersinking the fiberglass. I made a #6 dimple test piece as well as a spacer to allow the countersink cage to sit right against the flange joggle.

Purchases: ACS: epoxy, glass, Cleaveland: #6 countersink bit

Drilling bottom fairing

Top fairing

Countersink spacer and #6 dimple coupon

Jul 25, 2021 11-7: Rudder attach - (2.2 hours)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

Had to move the empennage down to a lower table so that I could fit the vertical stab and rudder. It's 100 degrees outside so I wasn't going to get much done if I had to push it outside again. And not that the garage is much cooler but I was expecting a lot of iterations to get the rudder fit right.

Got the vertical stab bolted as before with no problem. Then screwed all the rod bearings into the rudder the 3/4” reference dimension shown in the plans. Starting at the top, got the upper bearing in the bracket. It is really tight and I found I had to use a wrench to slightly pry the steel attach brackets open. Once the rod was in, I had to hold the bolt with needle nose pliers and try to fish it in from the top. Not easy. Dropped a lot of bolts and had the kids near by to pick them up and hand them to me since I could not let go of the rudder. Once the top bolt was in, it was a bit easier but still tough.

Initial fit was rubbing along the skins toward the bottom and the measured movement was greater much greater than the 2 3/16”. So I turned the bottom rod out a few turns and re-installed. Took about six iterations of taking off and putting back on to get it right. No rubbing, free swinging, and seems to hit the stops right about the same time it hits stabilizer skin.

Big weekend! I would have rather been headed to Oshkosh but Section 11 is done for now. Will finish the trim during final assembly. On to the fiberglass work!

Bolting rudder

Tail feathers installed

Testing bottom fairing fit

Jul 25, 2021 11-8 thru 11-10: Trim assembly - (2.8 hours)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

With all the trim parts primed, I moved on to assembly of the entire trim mechanism. Riveted the smaller pieces to the mount bracket and then installed the trim bellcrank. Plans call for narrow spacer washers but it was a little tighter than I wanted. Plans suggest reducing the thickness of those washers so I put them on the belt sander. Not easy to thin up already thin washers but I did get a fit I was happy with.

Installed the trim servo and servo link. Plans call for AN960-4L washers on the link pins. I looked all through my hardware and then through the inventory list and found no reference whatsoever to these washers. They were not in the kit. Quick search on Vansairforce and found the answer - the washers are with the hardware in the Ray Allen servo box.

Installed the trim cables to the assembly and then worked to mount the whole thing in the plane. Major pain to route those cables through the HS and out the holes in the elevator. There are a series of snap bushings and very tight access. Basically blindly pushing and feeling. Got it all through finally but the holes in the deck did not align with servo bracket. Just 1/32” off but it was not budging. Plans mention potential binding of the cables against the flange of the F-1014 deck but that wasn't it. The servo bracket was hitting the F-1011 bulkhead. No choice but to remove the whole assembly I had just spent so much time installing and shaving a little off the bracket for clearance. Then re-install. I thought the second time would go faster, but no. Still a pain.

Finally got it all in and the screws aligned and installed. As I was tightening the screws I thought if I should go ahead and fully tighten them and put torque seal on the heads. Then I realized the only way to get the HS off is to remove this whole assembly again. I decided any further work on the trim system should wait until final assembly.

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Jul 24, 2021 11-6 & 11-7: Elevator pushrod install - (1.2 hours)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

Got the horizontal stabilizer re-installed on the tailcone. Installed the elevator pushrod which meant also bolting the two elevators to each other for the first time and getting to see them move together. I also see that they are slightly out of alignment. Less than 1/16” at the tip of the counterbalance, probably tough to get it any better than that. I had the two elevator taped in trail with duct tape, but I should have actually put a clamp on them when I drilled the common attach hole.

Cut the template and adjusted the final length on the pushrod.

Checked the elevator throws again and was 28 degrees up and 23 down. I was able to file the up stop and get it to 30 degrees, but the down stop is tough to get to. That one is going to take some more filing to get to 25 degrees down.

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Jul 24, 2021 Priming - (1.5 hours)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

Prepped and primed what is hopefully the last batch of items for the empennage. Mostly small parts for the trim assembly, but also took care of the AHRS bracket and the fairing skins below the horizontal stabilizer.

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Jul 23, 2021 11-2 & 11-3: Elevator attach to HS - (1.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

With the left elevator finished I finally got to install both elevators onto the horizontal stabilizer. Mounted and removed several times to adjust the rod ends. Confirmed it was closing uniformly along the HS skin at full deflection and had a uniform 1/8” gap along the counterbalance. Used the level app on my phone to confirm full deflection up and down (measured almost 40 degrees up and 30 down without any binding).

Drilled the center bearing with the drill bushing. Had to turn it down a bit in the drill press then drilled the left elevator to #30, and gradually upsized to 1/4”. Repeat for right side.

Installed all hardware and torqued the jam nuts on the rod end bearings. Remaining hardware is not final torqued yet as I assume I will still need to remove the elevator at some point.

Measured and drilled the pushrod attach point in the elevator bracket. Installed a 3/4” wood block as a drill guide and clamped in place. Drillled other side through the block.

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Jul 22, 2021 Left elevator control horn - (1.4 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

When I got home from work I was pleased to find the left elevator control horn was sitting at the door.

Got it riveted in place and closed out the skins. Just need to roll the leading edge.

7/23: rolled leading edge before work. I was anxious about it, but it actually came out really well. Minor pillowing, but very consistent along the length. If not my best LE roll, it was definitely the easiest. I used clear packing tape instead of the gorilla tape I had been using. The gorilla tape is so hard to remove from the skins that you end up distorting the roll a bit. Much easier and more consistent results with packing tape. Will use this method going forward.

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Jul 21, 2021 11-8: Trim servo bracket prep - (1.8 hours)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

After a few days out of the shop it was good to get back to some fabrication. Made the trim belcrank brackets and cable attach brackets from angle stock per the plans. Plans say to be very careful that the 1/4” hole and #30 hole in the bellcrank bracket align perfectly. That stressed me out because it's hard to get perfect even in the drill press. I figured the alignment of the holes between the two brackets is what is really important so in addition to measuring and marking the holes, I match drilled them between the two brackets. We'll see how it comes out when it is all assembled.

Plans say to round the corners of the servo spacer to fit inside the larger bracket. Really had to be aggressive with the rounding to get it to fit. Got everything cleco'd in and match drilled the brackets.

7/22: got a little done before work. Countersunk the #30 holes in the spacer and #40 holes for nut plates in the bracket. Deburred everything and it's ready for priming.

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Jul 18, 2021 Rod end bearing wrench - (1.0 hour)

Category: Workshop & Tools

Made a wrench for installing rod end bearings out of PVC pipe and some fittings. The basic idea is borrowed from someone else. Pretty easy assembly. The hour includes the trip to Lowe's.

Tried it out and it works really well.

Rod end bearing wrench

Jul 18, 2021 Right elevator control horn - (2.0 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Still waiting on the left control horn, but went ahead and finished up the right. Got the horn match drilled and riveted in place. Fairly easy to access with a bucking bar through the trim access hole. Finished riveting the skins around the end of the elevator.

Rolled the leading edge. This was a little difficult as the elevator horn is in the way of my rolling pipe. Had to cut the pipe to fit inside of the horn, but then I didn't have as much room to grip the pipe. Made do with a pair of channel lock pliers. Came out ok, but a little bit of pillowing between the clecos. Rolled the top skin edge to put a slight bend in it and it looked better. Riveted in place. Fit up against the horizontal stabilizer and quickly realized I need to not worry much about these leading edges; they are impossible to see once mounted on the stabilizer.

Looking back at these old elevators gave mixed emotions. The quality is not as good as I know I could do now, but probably not worth redoing. The parts for all new elevators add up to about $1000. Will hold off for now.

The long awaited control horn cleco'd

Control horn rivets

Finished off skin rivets

Leading edge rolled

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Jul 17, 2021 11-6: vertical stab attach - (0.6 hour)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

Rolled the whole assembly outside this morning and mounted the vertical stab. It fit right into place and was able to slip the top bolts in place. Match drilled the middle holes and countersunk the very bottom ones. Temporarily installed all the hardware and sat back to admire. It will come back apart very soon.

I was able to confirm the routing of the VOR antenna conduit so I can install another one hole conduit clamp.

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Rivet spacing laid out on paper

Inside primed

Pushrod end riveted

Rod end bearing installed

Jul 16, 2021 11-5: Horizontal stab attach - (1.3 hours)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

What seemed like a big milestone step was pretty uneventful. The prep work was done, just needed to cut a block of wood to clamp between the forward attach brackets and then measure for alignment. I started measuring with a string, but it had too much stretch to it. Ended up using safety wire. Even though the wire is not perfectly straight, it would not stretch no matter how hard I pulled. I was satisfied that the stabilizer was on square and then drilled the four bolts. That was it. HS mounted.

Bolted the forward attach plate for the the vertical stabilizer and was going to mount it too, but the ceiling got in the way. It's too tall for the garage!

I'll have to wheel the whole assembly outside tomorrow to install the VS. it's really just for the photo opp anyways as it is all immediately going to be taken apart so I can go back to the beginning of the section when my elevator control horns hopefully finally arrive soon.

Clamping the block

Measure with safety wire

Drill the holes

Attached hardware

All bolted up

Finished install

Jul 15, 2021 11-4: Horizontal stab attach - (1.5 hours)

Category: 11: Emp Attach

Deburred and confirmed final drilling of the holes in the vertical stab attach plate. Then fabricated the spacers from bar stock. Attached the spacers with doubled sided duct tape.

Flipped the HS up on top of the tail cone and cleco'd the rear attach brackets in place. Then final drilled the #12 holes and temporarily installed the AN3 bolts.

How exciting.

Shims fabricated

HS mounted

HS rear attach bolts

Jul 14, 2021 10-23 & 10-24: Tail cone complete - (1.3 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Big milestone. Got the last of the tailcone skin rivets done for now. I installed the forward top skin temporarily just because I kept bumping into the flimsy F-1006 bulkhead.

Installed the battery tray temporarily as well as the Garmin pitch servo bracket. Still waiting on the Van's yaw servo bracket. Also attached and torqued the shoulder belt harnesses to close out the section.

Excited about moving on to the empennage attachment this weekend. I'm going to need to skip the elevator attachment to the horizontal stabilizer because I still don't have my back-ordered control horns. I did speak to Van's this week though and they said “imminent”. We'll see.

Getting those last few rivets

Top skins complete

Shoulder belt attachment

Battery tray installed

Tail cone done

Jul 10, 2021 10-23: Top skin riveting - (2.2 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got started on the task of riveting the top skin on the tailcone. I knew this would mean getting inside the cone and was kinda putting it off. I moved the cone to the floor and set up a fan blowing right into it. It wasn't too bad getting in there.

Once again the wife was a huge help working the big bucking bar while I back-riveted from the inside. With me stuck in the cone she helped with a few new tasks like confirming the line pressure on the air compressor and verifying rivet sizes in the plans.

We finished the longitudinal stiffeners in our first session. Will come back for bulkheads and longerons.

7/11: got the bulkheads and most of the left side longerons done. These all came out really well with the wife on the gun and me on bucking bar inside the cone. She's becoming quite the riveter. Will be very helpful going forward.

There is a little bit of faceting of the kin around the aft most bulkhead similar to what the manual describes on the stabilizer ribs. This are will be covered with a fairing so I'm not concerned but a good point to remember going forward - need to shape the tabs on all curved bulkheads and ribs to avoid this.

Cleco'd and ready to go

Inside the cone

Top rivets done

Faceting of aft bulkhead

Jul 07, 2021 Hardware organization - (1.5 hours)

Category: Workshop & Tools

I've made it almost through the empennage kit still working out of the various bags that the Van's hardware came in. There is some logic to the organization, but it is not always easy to find the specific nuts and bolts. At least I now understand what a AN365-1032 is and can find without too much digging.

I had bought some small parts organizing drawers from Amazon but just never bothered to sort them. I think I was afraid to commit to a system, but I need to figure out something before I move on to the wing and fuse as there will e so much more hardware coming.

Spent the evening sorting out parts and labeling drawers. Looks good.

Everything has its place

Jul 06, 2021 Static plumbing and ADHRS bracket - (2.0 hours)

Category: Avionics

I cleco'd the top skin in place and quickly remembered that I should stop and wait for the static lines to arrive. They arrived today along with a lot of hardware from ACS.

I used the snap fit connections and 1/4” nylon tube. The snap fit connectors connected nicely onto the Cleaveland static ports. I ran both lines up to a high point to keep moisture out of the system and then joined them with a “Y” connector and then ran the line forward along the left side of the fuse. I installed a nut plate for the #6 machine screw to hold the Y in place. Then I used a few adel clamps to hold the lines in position against the F-1006 bulkhead. The line coming forward is zip tied to the lower skin stiffeners and then penetrates the F-1007 bulkhead with a 1/4” snap bushing.

I'm happy with install, it all looks pretty clean. I plan to use different colors for static, pitot and AOA and didn't think if there is a standard coding system. Finally found in AC43.13 that shows red is standard for static and red for white is for pitot. Oh well, maybe I'll switch the static to red when it comes into the forward fuse so there is no confusion. Or will it just cause more?

Also installed the ADHRS bracket from VANS. I don't actually plan to put my ADHRS back here but maybe my magnetometer. Maybe nothing. Figured it was easy to install now even if I don't use it. Simply held the bracket in place against the stiffeners and drilled the first hole, then cleco'd as I went drilling the other holes. It just gets blind riveted in place but I'm going to hold off so I don't mess up any alignment of the stiffeners to the top skin.

Also played with laying a board inside the cone. Somebody is going to have to get in there to rivet and it's going to be tight.

Static Lines

Work platform

AHRS bracket

AHRS bracket

Jul 04, 2021 10-21 & 10-22: Aft deck riveting - (2.0 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got back from 4th of July trip early enough to get some airplane work done. Got the aft deck cleco'd in place and proceeded with the rivets. I was able to squeeze a handful of them but most had to be bucked with the double offset set.

Then install some of the bolt hardware. Temporary installed the bolts in the tail attach doubler so that I could match drill the bolts for the tail attach brackets. Those were easy to match drill with the 12” #30 bit but final drilling to #12 was tight. I was just able to get the right alignment with my drill laying in the aft deck.

Proceeded to install the bolts. I contemplated installing the vertical bolts with the nuts on top so they would be easier to inspect, but Van's clearly shows them nuts down so I redid them.

Felt good to get that done. Ready to install the top skin.

Aft deck complete

Aft deck riveted

Jun 28, 2021 10-20 & 10-21: Finally done riveting lower tailcone - (4.0 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Had my riveting partner a bit this evening and was finally able to knock out the rivets in the bottom curved corners. I back-riveted them from the inside while she held the bucking bar on the outside. Worked well and was able to get the bulkhead tabs tight to the skin.

Did a little more work to finish up the aft rivets. Did a little QC of the overall tailcone work and found about five rivets that sat a little proud and I drilled them out and redid them.

Moved on to installing the battery tray ribs. Following the guidance of other builders before me, I installed the ribs to the skin prior to riveting the battery tray attach angles. Worked great.

Riveted the aft portion of the side skins to the longerons. These were fine except the ones that coincide with bulkhead tabs. It was very tough to get those to lay tight. Had to redo several times before getting something passable.

Reflected on a big step: the riveting quality has gotten a lot better. Turn the gun down! I'm running like 30psi and using the flush set with the urethane ring. My confidence in setting flush rivets is much improved. I did back-rivet some against the plate but found the best quality in descending order: squeezer, back-rivet with partner on bucking bar, solo bucking bar and flush set. I did let my wife use the the flush set with me on the bucking bar for hard to reach places and those came out fine too.

Going on vacation for a week tomorrow so this was a good milestone to hit.

One last item to take care of and that was installation of the static ports I bought from Cleaveland tools. Cleaned and scuff the skins around the ports and scuffed the ports themselves. Mixed up a small amount of tank sealant and applied and taped. It can cure while I'm gone. Remaining static system parts should be here when I return.

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Damn tabs - this one got replaced

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Cleaveland Static Port

Static port on inside

Jun 27, 2021 10-20: getting closer on riveting - (2.2 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Flipped the tailcone around and got the bulkhead rivets on the right skin done. Started to proceed with rivets on the aft bottom skin and the rudder stop braces.

I realized I had installed the rudder stop brace F-1056 upside down and it was not aligning correctly with the rudder stop stiffeners F-1055. Had to drill out the four flush rivets in the aft bulkhead assembly and redo them. It could have been a lot worse. Was able to get them with the gun, although I did have to drill them out several times to get them to sit perfectly flush.

Almost done with this section. Just need to get the rivets in the bottom radius done. I tried to back-rivet those myself but they came out terrible. Could t maintain a rotation of the cone against the back plate that would keep those flush. I will try to do them with the wife holding the big bucking bar.

Right side skins mostly done

Aft rivets

F-1056 upside down

F-1056 corrected

Jun 24, 2021 10-20: Still tailcone riveting and static system - (2.8 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Took a break for wisdom teeth removal. Was a little depressed to not get to work on the airplane but felt much better this morning after pounding a few rivets.

Got another couple hours in after work. Got through all of the left side stiffeners and started on the left bulkheads. Was able to back rivet those to try to keep them tight against the skin. Some are tucked under the j channel stiffeners and very tough to get to though.

Looking ahead at installing static ports and realized I should just do all of the static plumbing now before the top skin goes on. Ordered lines and fitting and some hardware.

Purchases: Steinair: static lines, fittings; ACS: nut plates, adel clamps, screws, snap bushings

More side skin stiffeners

Back-riveting bulkheads

Jun 21, 2021 10-20: more tailcone riveting - (1.8 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Finished up the bottom skin, which is great because now I can proceed solo for a while. Had a little challenge with how to set the center rivet in the aft most bulkhead. It sits between to other skins and the flush set cannot get to it. I made a little shim skin to place over the rivet and it set without any trouble.

Flipped the cone back upright and started riveting the side skin stiffeners. Everything is looking good so far.

The verdict is in on my new Boeing flush set with the urethane rim. It's awesome. I also got a red rubber swivel set. It's ok, but is tough to compress enough to keep the rivets from sitting proud.

Shim plate for riveting between skins

Bottoms done - on to the side

Looking good with flush set

Pre-installing a line of rivets

Jun 19, 2021 10-20: tailcone riveting - (2.9 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

This is going to span several days. It's a lot of work.

Set up to try to back-rivet the bottom skin against my steel plate. First set of rivets came out fine, but it does scratch the skin a bit. I wanted to also try out the large round bucking bar I bought specifically for back-riveting. Had to recruit the wife to help a bit. These came out awesome and no scratches on the skin. That's how I will proceed for as much as I can. That means I need a helper though. No problem because it is fun to work with the wife on the project. We developed a good flow pretty quickly which will be important for future dual riveting.

Got through most of the bottom stiffeners today, probably overall 50% if the bottom skin.

6/20 update: made a little more progress on the tail cone but not as much as I wanted to finish this weekend. The good news is that every rivet is perfect. The bad news is that it requires a partner and I only get to steal the wife away to the shop for 15 minute spurts at a time. Oh well, we can finish the bottom in the mornings before work. Kids are out of school now too so more time for pre-work plane building time.

Main reason I didn't get as much done this weekend was because it was Father's Day and Ben and I flew down for lunch with my dad. Almost more fun than driving rivets.

Started with the back rivet plate

Not bad rivets, but a lot of scratches

Try back rivet against the bucking bar

Take a break and go fly

Much better

Pretty rivets

Jun 18, 2021 10-20: tailcone reassembly - (2.0 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got the sawhorses back out and assembled the tailcone similar to before. This time I installed all clecos from the inside. I'm going to at least try to back-rivet most of the stiffeners to the skins and flipping the clecos will allow that.

Got the bottom skin and right skin installed upside down on the saw horses and then flipped it all onto the bench as before and installed the right stiffeners and skin.

Looking pretty good.

Back on the saw horses for assembly

Right side skin clecod

Left side skin cleco'd

Jun 18, 2021 10-18 & 10-19: Bulkhead assembly - (2.1 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Worked on assembly of the bulkhead components. With some clever arrangement of flat dies and washers I was able to get everything with the squeezer. Would have been easier with a Longeron yoke, but I'm mailing due without.

Got down the side skins and finished the section by riveting the nut plates for the rear access cover plates.

Ready to assemble the cone this weekend.

Bulkhead sub assembly

Bulkhead sub assembly

Bulkhead sub assembly

Completed bulkheads ready to install

Nut plates for rear access panel

Jun 17, 2021 10-17 & 10-15: Priming finished - (2.9 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got up early this morning to try to finish up the priming before work and before it gets too hot. Finally got through the last pieces of the tail cone. Decided to prime and paint the battery hold down bolts too as my hands were filthy with rust every time I picked them up.

Was so excited to have some parts to assemble, I started clecoing some of the aft bulkhead pieces together. Then I saw some of the rivet call outs as AD426 flush rivets. Oh yeah, I forgot to dimple! What else did I forget?

Back tracked through section 10 to see what I skipped when I jumped ahead to prime. Found I should be back on 10-15 and proceeded with the dimpling of the aft skins. I also missed the countersinking of the hold down prior to priming. Countersunk it and touched it up with a q-tip.

Dimpled the #30 holes associated with the forward F-1006 bulkhead.

Next, I dimpled the perimeter flanges of all the bulkheads. Now I'm ready for assembly!

Priming bulkeheads

Priming battery hold down bolts

Cleco bulkheads - too soon

Touch up countersink primer in tail hold down

Stack of finished parts

Jun 15, 2021 10-17: Tail cone priming 4 - (1.5 hours) Category: 10: Tail Cone

Primed half the remaining parts this evening. OMG it's hot outside. But got through a good chunk. One more brief session and will be done.

Also finished the dimpling of the right skin perimeter.

Jun 13, 2021 10-16: Dimpling skins and stiffeners - (3.6 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Lots of dimpling today. Still a bit to go.

Got through all the skin stiffeners, the bottom skin, aft top skin and one side skin. Remembered to bend the edges of the overlapping skins prior to dimpling.

Didn't dimple the forward top skin since I'd like to leave the vinyl on it and it won't be installed for a while.

Something to note that I have not previously discussed: I am jumping around a little between sections based on my priming and dimpling process. I am priming prior to dimpling anything. It is very difficult to properly prep parts that have been already dimpled. The dimples just chew through scotchbrite pads and your finger tips. I find that the primer is durable enough to dimple after priming. Their requires me to plan accordingly and prime parts before the instructions typically say to do so. So far no issues.

6/14 update: it's getting quite hot in the shop so trying to squeeze in a little work each morning. Got through most of the right skin. Just need to finish the perimeter holes which I can get with the squeezer. Parts from Van's arrived so need to work in a priming day.

Dimpling the side skins

More dimpling

Me on the DRDT2

Jun 12, 2021 10-17: Tail cone priming 3 - (3.0 hours) Category: 10: Tail Cone

Lots of priming today. Got the remaining skins and all of the stiffeners.

Have a lot of parts that I can start dimpling now so can take a little break from priming. Still waiting on the new bulkheads from Van's anyways.

Jun 12, 2021 7-10: Striker plates - (0.5 hour)

Category: 7: Rudder

Received back ordered striker plates. Deburred, countersunk, and riveted in place.

Rudder is completely done.

Installed with solid and one pull rivet

Striker plates countersunk and cleco'd

Jun 11, 2021 6-6: Rudder stops - (0.5 hour)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Received back ordered rudder stops. Sanded and deburred and installed. Torqued to proper spec and then filed the tips of the stops flush to each other.

VS is officially completely done.

Rudder stops installed and torqued

Jun 11, 2021 SportAir Workshop - Electrical Category: Research/Train

There is a local Sportair workshop in December on Electrical Wiring and Avionics. Not quite there yet, but with wings arriving in the fall there will start to be some amount of wiring next year. Will be helpful as I start to plan ahead. Might as well take advantage of it being close by.

Purchases: EAA: Sportair workshop registration, Electrical book

Jun 09, 2021 10-17: Tail cone priming 2 - (2.0 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got the longerons and all the other misc parts primed. Pretty parts. Just the bulkheads and two top skins left to prime.

My replacement parts from Van's have shipped along with some back ordered items. Unfortunately the yaw servo attach bracket is back ordered. I'll make due.

Priming misc tail cone parts

Jun 07, 2021 10-17 & 10-23: Elevator bellcrank and battery tray - (2.8 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

My nephew was in town so I saved a little project for him. He has a wet A&P so he should be able to handle it.

We separated and deburred the bellcrank parts then cleco'd and final drillled the holes through the center bearing. I assumed those were not final drilled.

Prepped and primed a small batch of parts including the remaining battery tray items.

Squeezed the rivets for the bellcrank assembly and finished the part.

Moved on to the battery nutplates. Might as well move ahead to bolting everything together as shown in 10-23. Found that I did need to final drill the 3/16” and 1/4” holes for the AN bolts to fit. Pretty cool assembly. I final torques the elevator bellcrank bolt but none of the others since the plans say not to.

Max fabricating the bellcrank arms

Max on the clecos

Finished bellcarank assembly - nice job!

Battery tray assembly

Battery tray nutplates

Completed battery tray

Jun 06, 2021 10-17: Tail cone priming 1 - (2.0 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got the big side and bottom skins prepped and primed. This is again going to take several batches.

Side skin priming

Jun 04, 2021 10-16: Battery tray - (0.6 hour)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Just some quick fabrication and prep work on the battery tray. Separated the parts and deburred then countersunk the #40 holes. Not a lot of drilling required.

Battery tray parts

Jun 02, 2021 10-16: Countersinking longerons - (1.8 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Just a little countersinking after work. Nothing special.

Did it all by hand with the electric drill and the micro cage. I have a hard time with this typically, but getting a little better. I've learned that starting at a lower rpm until the bit begins to bite and then accelerating as it cuts works better.

Longeron countersinks

Jun 01, 2021 10-15: Deburring and misc stuff - (2.5 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Cut and removed the forward triangular portion of the right skin per plans. Was a little nervous about that cut but no big deal with some snips. Filed it smooth.

Then step 4 - deburr everything. The one little step that can take hours. All of the holes that were drilled in the stiffeners and longerons get deburred. Upon inspection I actually caught a few holes that didn't get drilled on the left side. Cleco'd the left stiffeners back to the skins and drilled the few missing holes. It was just a couple so not too worried about fit up.

Deburred the edges of the big skins. And set up the countersink for all the #40 holes in the longerons. Tested on the rudder stop brace. I'll tackle the longerons next.

Step drilled the hole in the aft bottom skin for the tie down bolt.

Will come back to all the dimpling in this section after priming.

Hit the 200 hour mark.

6/9 update: deburred the two top skins that I forgot.

Cut the skin extension on right side

Stiffeners deburred

Rudder stop brace countersunk

May 31, 2021 10-12 thru 10-14: Top skins and aft deck - (4.8 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

A very productive Memorial Day. Got the top skins cleco'd in place and match drilled the upper stiffeners. I opted to leave the vinyl on the forward top skin F-1074 since it is going to be quite a while before it is actually needed again. Try to keep it from getting too scratched while in storage.

Fabricated the horizontal stab attachment bar support angle and the elevator up stop angle. Match drilled the aft deck to the longerons, making sure to check that it was all still level. Clamped the support angle and up stop and match drilled all of it in place.

Want much to do on 10-14 since my shoulder harness anchors are back ordered. I did final drill the holes for the static ports and upsized them to accommodate the Cleaveland Tools static ports that I bought.

Then it was time to disassemble everything and get ready for priming including quite a bit of deburring.

Spent at least an hour cleaning up the shop after a long weekend.

Noticed during disassembly that I had a few holes misaligned when I drilled through the longeron and into the bulkhead tabs. Ended up with double holes in three separate bulkheads. After sleeping on it I decided to just order new ones. While I'm at it I ordered an AHRS tray and the yaw servo mount. The yaw servo bracket is unjustifiably expensive yet still significantly less than the comparable part from Garmin.

Purchases: Van's: replacement bulkheads 1007-L, 1007-R & 1008-R, AHRS bracket, Yaw servo bracket.

Clean shop after a long weekend

Disassembling

Static Port

Aft deck angles match drilled

Aft deck drilling

Check for no twist

Attach support and up stop angles

One last shot inside the beauty

Masking skin overlaps

Complete tailcone

Ready for last skin

Moved to the ground for better access

Dreaded double holes.

May 30, 2021 10-11: Longeron drilling - (1.5 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Clamped and drilled the longerons. Just a lot of holes but not too bad. I went ahead and drilled to #40s, not the 3/32” called in the plans since the hole in the skin is already #40 and there will be no additional final drill step later. My bends worked well and had no trouble achieving the alignment with the skins.

Got to skip most of the other steps in this section since everything is already final sized. It would have taken many hours to final drill all of the skins. Thanks Van's!

Drilling longerons

Clamp, drill, cleco, repeat

May 29, 2021 10-7 thru 10-10: More tailcone fit up - (5.2 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Finished drilling the skin stiffeners on the left and then flipped the whole assembly back to right side up on the workbench. Cleco'd the right skin on and marked removed the vinyl along the bottom skin overlap.

Installed the two aft most bulkheads and the bottom rear skin. Took a little while to figure out the orientation of the skin, but then could it is shown clearly in figure 3.

Then drilled the holes for the right side stiffeners. That took a lot of my day with several starts and stops.

Moved on to fabrication of the rudder stop stiffeners and the rudder stop brace. Tricky to get all that installed into the tight back end of the plane but got it all cleco'd and match drilled.

Fabricated and countersunk the bellcrank rib angles and cleco'd in place on the bellcrank ribs. Fabricated the spacer for the aft deck and temporarily held in place on the rear bulkhead with double sided tape. Installed the aft deck and confirmed everything lines up well with the skins and longerons. Ready to start drilling longerons.

What a day. There is definitely a large airplane piece in the garage. Disassembly and priming all this is going to be heartbreaking.

Finished right skin

Flipped on bench

Aft bulkheads

Left stiffeners installed

Hang left skin

Inside the canoe

Stiffeners drilled

Check for twist

Rudder stop brace and stiffeners

Bellcrank ribs and stifferners

Spacer fabricated

Aft deck

May 28, 2021 10-7: Initial tail cone fit up - (2.5 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Plans call for sawhorses at least 38” tall to support the tail cone during assembly. After a bit of searching, there don't seem to be a lot of off the shelf options so I decide to just get some brackets and 2x4s. Quick to trip Lowe's and $70 later! Geez the rising lumber prices are driving up the cost of my build.

Got the sawhorses assembled and started erecting the tail cone upside down, suspended from the bottom skin. Cleco'd the formers in place and the slipped the appropriate stiffeners into place and match drilled them, being careful to keep the centerline hole I drew previously centered in the hole.

Then hung the right side skin. Wow, we have an airplane in the garage! Proceeded with drilling the first bay of the stiffeners then stopped for the day to just admire.

I did leave the vinyl on the bottom skin to protect it a bit and provide masking for primer. I did remove the vinyl where it laps under the side skin. Used the cleco'd side skin as a guide and did the soldering iron against it.

It's so shiny that it is difficult to photo. After seeing such nice unblemished skin, I was finally motivated to pull the trigger on a new flush set with a rubber guard. Maybe I'll have better luck with it. Also ordered a larger round bucking bar for back riveting. Might use it on the tail cone but I'm pretty sure will need for the wing.

Purchases: Lowe's: sawhorse supplies, Yardstore: flush rivet sets and bucking bar

Bottom skin on sawhorses

Hanging bulkheads

Bottom skin stiffeners

Drilling bottom stiffeners

Installing side stiffeners

Hanging right skin

Drilling right skin stiffeners

May 27, 2021 10-6: Longeron bends - (1.0 hour)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got the main longerons cut to length from the 3/4” aluminum angle stock. Drilled and noticed the holes per plan and then marked the bend location.

Clamped in the vice and whacked with a mallet to the 2 degree bend. Checked it against the skin and kept whacking until it lined up relatively well.

Setting up for a nice long Memorial Day weekend of tailcone fit up. Need to go buy sawhorses.

Checking the bend

Drilling for notch

May 27, 2021 10-5: Forward bulkhead and longerons - (2.1 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Got the F-1006 bulkhead pieces deburred and cleco'd. Starting give a sense of the size of the tail cone.

Cut the various F-1047 longerons to length and mitered the corners.

Marked the rivet center lines on the longerons.

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May 25, 2021 10-4: Bulkheads - (2.3 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Did the small amount of fabrication for the F-1010 bulkhead. Cut the angle stock on the band saw for the Horizontal Stabilizer support angle. I measure the 5/32 taper on each end but cut them the wrong direction. Luckily was able to recut them on the opposite leg of the angle and maintain the correct overall length.

Cleco'd the F-1010 pieces, clamped the support bracket and match drilled the #30 holes.

Got the F-1008 and F-1007 bulkheads deburred and drilled the rudder cable holes in F-1007. The rudder cable bracket that attached to F-1008 is back ordered.

Angle fabrication

Bulkhead assembly

Finished bulkheads

May 23, 2021 10-2 & 10-3: Rear bulkheads - (2.5 hours)

Category: 10: Tail Cone

Started on the tail cone with fabrication and tapping of the tie down block. Tapping was straight forward, just took my time and backed the tap out every couple of turns. Then clean the tap, oil and repeat. Took several iterations, maybe a dozen or more. Cleco'd and match drilled the hole down to the two aft F-1012 bulkheads.

Proceeded with some light fabrication of the rudder cable support bracket and drilling for nut plates. Drilled the #12 holes in the drill press thinking they'd come out nice, but they are totally triangular and the AN bolts don't fit well. Time to buy a set of reamers for all the common bolt sizes. Might as well order static ports too; I'll need them soon enough.

Straightened the horizontal stabilizer brackets. As stated in the plans the parts were well out of flat and required bending back in the vice. My vice setup is far from ideal, but I did manage to get it whacked back straight using the method in the plans.

Cleco'd the HS stabilizer brackets to the F-1011 bulkhead and match drilled the rudder cable bracket and stiffener.

Excited to be working on the tail cone. Gonna be a lot of work. And a lot of priming.

Purchases: Cleaveland Tool: reamers, static port

Hold-down fabrication

Tapped hole

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Triangular Holes

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Tap setup

May 23, 2021 8-13: HS complete - (1.8 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Finished up all of the skin to rear spar rivets this morning. Horizontal stabilizer is complete. Still need the last couple LP4's and also the inner rib rivets that I honestly forgot about. Will get them all when the extra LP4's arrive.

In preparation of moving on to the tail cone I cleared off everything from my storage racks and reorganized to get the fuselage parts more easily accessible. Moved my workbenches out a little too to give more room to walk on both sides.

Need to buy some saw horses. Hard to find 38” tall ones so I guess I will just make them.

Couldn't help but set the VS on it

Completed HS

Re-organized the racks

Stash the HS up top

May 22, 2021 8-13: HS rear spar install - (0.9 hour)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

With the skins all riveted, I proceeded with the installation of the rear spar. It attached mostly with blind rivets but there a few solid rivets that are accessible. Thank god I was able to squeeze them. I need a break from bucking for a while.

Started to install the blind rivets and apparently my pop rivet squeezer is broken. Must have busted while dimpling that rib. Quick run to The Lowe's Aviation aisle and I have a new Arrow brand riveter. It got the job done, but I'm not too happy with it. Taking it back. I think I'll buy a pneumatic one from HF.

I had to drill out a few LP-4 rivets the other day and I turned out two rivets short. I guess you don't get to be the top kit company in the world by throwing in extra pull rivets.

Purchases: Lowe's pop riveter, 3/8 tap and handle, Amazon LP4 rivets, maroon scotch rite pads.

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May 16, 2021 8-13: Skin Riveting - (4.9 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

This is going to be a running entry over several days I think it is going to take all week to get this skin riveted.

5/16: got the bottom right and bottom left skin to forward spar riveted. By the time I finished the right side I feel like I really was doing well on the riveting. Had just a little scuffing from the set and the skin, but no dings. I put a second piece of tape over the flush set and the left side came out flawless. I did notice that I somehow left out a rivet in the forward spar doubler. There is no way to set a new one, but I think I can get a cherrymax blind rivet in there. Ordered one from AIrcraft Spruce. We'll see.

5/17: Got the top right skin to spar done tonight in a brief 40 min bucking session. Tried using clear Mylar tape to hold rivets in place and that also worked really well and improved my efficiency a little.

5/18: finished the left top skin to spar. My cherrymax rivet arrived and I was able to get it squeezed into place. Can now proceed with rib riveting.

5/19: started on top right rib rivets. Ended up with a ding on one. not sure what I did wrong, didn't seem that I slipped.

5/21: finished the top skin and will progress the bottom tomorrow. Still hope to finish the part this weekend. Pretty good on the riveting but realized that even if 99% of my rivets are perfect, I'd still end up with 3 dings on a part this big. Nice IMC weather lately. Going flying approaches in actual with my CFI tomorrow.

5/22: got it all wrapped up today. I noticed that the skin was not sitting tightly on one of the ribs so drilled the rivets out to redo. Discovered the rib had not been dimpled. Oops. Was able to use the tight quarters dimpling die with the pop riveter and get dimples in the rib.

Purchases: ACS cherrymax rivets

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Missing a rivet

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May 16, 2021 8-10 thru 8-13: HS assembly - (2.8 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Assembled inner rib and stringer section and then riveted it all to the forward spar. Had to buck all of the rivets since the squeezer couldn't get around the spar flange. Need one of the longeron yokes for the squeezer at some point.

Dropped the rear spar and rib skeleton into the skins. As I cleco'd the spar in place I realized that I skipped the riveting of two of the forward ribs. That would have been a disaster. Pulled the skeleton back and out and bucked those remaining front rib rivets - some of my best work actually.

Put the skeleton into the skins a second time and double check everything as I cleco'd it in place. Squeezed the -4 rivets from the spar to the front ribs on the ends and installed the blind rivets on the remaining ribs. I messed up though and mistakenly installed blind rivets into the holes for the main ribs, not the forward ribs. My first attempt at drilling out LP4-3 blind rivets. Pretty easy actually, just used one of the discarded mandrels to drive out the rivet and then drilled it out with a 1/8” bit.

Installed the remaining main ribs, squeezing the outboard -4s and then correctly installed the blind rivets in the inboard rib.

Stopped short of starting the skin riveting. That's going to be quite a chore.

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May 15, 2021 8-2, 8-3 & 8-6: Priming and spar assembly - (3.5 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Got through the last session of priming on the HS. Got the long spars and stringers all done. Read about other people getting a rough finish from the air being a little high on the gun. Made me consider the quality of my own finish and decided to turn the gun pressure down to about 20psi. I do feel like the primer went on a little smoother and actually wet out a little instead of drying almost on contact.

Then assembled the rear spar and doubler and riveted the elevator attach brackets. Assembled and riveted the center bearing bracket and installed with the AN3 bolts. Torqued to spec and torque sealed.

Assembled forward spar with caps, doubler and attach brackets. Felt so good to finally have all that fitted together and correct after several set backs. Got the variety of rivets installed per plan. Was able squeeze most but had to buck the ones through the attach brackets because they were just too long.

Installed my retrofit skins strips over the spar flanges and installed the center 9 rivets.

Good day, got a lot accomplished.

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May 12, 2021 8-2: Front spar cap one more time - (1.2 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Third times a charm. I was surprised to see the spar cap arrived a day early. Went ahead with cutting the ends, clamped and match drilled all of the #30 holes through the spar web.

Took an extra step to make sure I was making a top or bottom cap, as I recalled the holes are different. Confirmed this is the bottom spar. Still need to drill the #40s through the flange but a little concerned about running a bit through the already countersink spar flanges. I may use the old, ruined spar to drill these holes. I need to make everything aligns. Will tackle that tomorrow.

5/13: got back out tonight and got the #40s drilled through the flange. Used the old spar to preserve the countersink in the new one. Worked well. Drilled the #12s too. Ready for priming.

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May 11, 2021 8-12: front rib rivets - (1.0 hour)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Skipped ahead a bit while I wait on my spar caps. Finished the last few dimples and put the skins back in the cradles. The inserted and cleco'd the front ribs in place. Everything fit pretty snug and I didn't notice any tendency of the skins to pull away from the ribs that I've read some people having.

Squeezed the rivets for the inboard and out board ribs. Then set up to buck the interior ones. Turned the gun down quite a bit; I think I've been creeping up a little with my settings and had contributed to some of my recent struggles. Down around 30 psi, and turned the needle valve on the gun down a bout half way. Seemed to be plenty enough to set a -3 without the gun bouncing around too much. Didn't do too bad, but I think I will finally break down and by one of the rubber ringed flush sets. Some people swear by them, others say they're not as good. I guess I'll see for myself. I'm not going to make it through this build if I continue to struggle with more than occasional dings in skins.

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May 10, 2021 8-9: Dimpling - (1.8 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

I'm really trying to commit to no scratches on the HS skins. I changed up my dimpling set up to put the male die on top so I'm not dragging the outside of the skin around on the table and over the die. It's much slower because I have to carefully align every hole rather than just popping it onto the male die and squeezing. But the results are worth it. Hardly a scratch in the skin.

Also finally got smart about the squeezer. Holding that 10lb squeezer in my hand for an hour would leave me exhausted and with a sore arm for days. I decided to clamp it to the workbench and just move the piece as I squeezed. Duh. Much better experience. Slowly learning.

Got through all the ribs and almost all the skins. Just the perimeter holes in the skins and I'll get those with the squeezer.

Also talked to Van's today and they shipped my spar cap. They're still backed up over a week on orders. He said the fact that I called meant I must need the part so he processes it today. Should get it before the weekend.

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May 09, 2021 8-8 & 8-9: prelim HS assembly and more priming - (4.3 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Even though I'm not final drilling anything, I went ahead and followed the instructions to assemble everything as if I were going to drill it. At the very least it is a good check for fit and to give an idea of how everything goes together before I have a rivet gun in my hand. Everything went together well and no alignment problems. I spot checked several holes with a -4 rivet to confirm final size and all locations were good.

Then took everything apart and prepped the remaining ribs and skins for priming. Got through all of that, but it was a lot. Glad I broke it into sessions. Just the spars, caps and stringers left to prime and I'll have to wait till I get my new spar cap.

I'll have a lot of dimpling and some assembly to keep me occupied this week.

Skeleton cleco'd together

Skeleton in the skins

Center section

Rear spar cleco'd in place

Down the inside

Remaining ribs all primed

HS skins primed

May 08, 2021 8-9: HS priming session 1 - (2.5 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Now that I realize I have final size holes, the HS will essentially go straight to dimpling and assembly. I need to prime everything before I even get started and there are a ton of parts. Thought I would knock out a manageable batch of them today.

Typical session. Clean, etch, spray. Got the front ribs, the four interior main ribs and some of the other miscellaneous parts. I'll leave the spars and the skins and remainder of ribs for later. Might be two more batches.

Waiting on the new front spar cap before I can do much actual assembly. Based on my credit card statement, I don't even think Van's has processed the order.

Etching parts

May 06, 2021 8-5: front spar cap strip - (0.6 hour)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Got the HS skins in the cradles with the spar attached just to get a feel for the size. With the spar cleco'd in place it was a good opportunity to experiment with the thin strips of skin I plan to add to the outside of the spar flanges.

I don't want a gap between the end of the strip and the HS skin, and I also don't want it running long and unsupported. I decided to extend the strip to just stick under the HS skin so the skin will hold the end of the strip in place. The insertion is minimal and I can sand the strip down to a taper to have minimal distortion of the skin.

Cut the strip out of 0.025” scrap, 1/2” wide to match the spar flange width. Had to think a bit about how to match drill it to the spar. I used a 6” bit and drilled through the spar from the back side. Worked great.

Once these are dimpled, they will sit perfectly on the spar and probably won't even notice they're there.

Cap strip cut from scrap

Beveled edge to fit under skin

HS skins in cradles

Cap strip clamped in place

Match drilling from back side

All cleco'd in place

Slight overlap with skin

May 05, 2021 9-18(R): right elevator finished - (0.7 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Wanted to fix the hinge that I riveted yesterday. The pin was a little tight going in and it was squawking a bit when I moved the trim tab. I could tell it was binding a bit. Then I also noticed a slight oilcanning of the elevator skin and pillowing at the joint. I drilled out about seven rivets until the trim tab moved freely. I noticed that I could put a little pressure on the clecos and remove the oilcanning while also giving better alignment of the hinge. I pulled on it, clamped it and riveted checking the trim tab alignment along the way. Ended up much better. No binding, no oilcanning, and no pillowing. I was very pleased that I was able to drill out the rivets and fix it. I admit I did have to use one oops rivet.

Also got the last few rivets in the end rib at the trailing edge that I skipped previously. Just back riveted against the plate using the narrow bucking bar. This is still a pain, but I'm getting pretty consistent, acceptable results.

Right elevator is done until I get my back ordered control horns. Done enough. At first I thought it was turning out so much better than the left. I'd say it's about the same. A few dings here and there. Just different dings.

On hold until my new spar cap arrives from Van's.

Right elevator done

Drilled out hinge rivets

Progress to date

May 04, 2021 9-14, 9-18 & 9-19: Right elevator almost done - (2.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Pulled the right elevator out of the clamps now that the proseal is cured. Got the double flush rivets done. Came out like the rudder did. Straight, but definitely some places where the proseal pulled away from the wedge a bit.

Moved on to installing the hinge for the trim tab. Got everything matched and drilled to the elevator. Match drilling to the trim tab took a little work to try to pull the tab skin and spar into alignment before drilling the hinge. I think I did ok using a 3/32 punch as a bit of a lever in the adjacent hole while I drilled.

Removed the hinge, and cut it to length on the band saw and finished with the belt sander. Riveted to the trim tab, again using a little leverage to hold the hole aligned. Then riveted the elevator rear spar to hinge. There is a very slight amount of puckering at the outermost rivet of hinge to elevator. Then when inserting the hinge pin, there is a slight misalignment at that very end. It moves fine but is a little stiffer than it should be. I will drill out those last couple rivets and try again.

Got the hinge pin bent into place. Tried to get it tucked in tighter than the left side but came out about the same.

Double flush TE setup

Trim tab fit up

Hinge wire bent in place

Trim tab installed

Little bit of pillowing in skin

May 03, 2021 8-5: Another Countersink issue - (0.1 hour) Category: 8: Horiz Stab

I realized that I made another potential mistake with the countersinking. The 9 holes in the center of the front spar do not have skin over them so they really should have been countersink flush to the spar flange. Typical practice to accommodate a dimpled skin is to set the countersink .007” below flush. Of course my cage was set that way and the resulting rivet heads sit below the surface of the spar flange.

This would be merely an aesthetic annoyance, except I can't squeeze them tight down in the recessed hole, the rivet will essentially sit proud in the hole and not make a strong joint.

I considers oversizing the rivets but there is not adequate edge distance for a -4. My other idea was to go ahead and put a narrow strip of 0.025” dimpled “skin” on top of the spar.

I talked to Van's and they agreed that would be acceptable.

May 02, 2021 8-5: Countersinking spars - (3.5 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Plans call for the middle nine holes on the front spar to be countersunk. Eventually all of the holes in the spar flanges have to be countersunk to receive the dimpled skins, but the plans are still written for that step to happen after the skins are final drilled to the spars. I read ahead a little to confirm, but since my holes are already final sized there should be no reason to not go ahead and countersink all the holes. So I set up for a long session of countersinking all the HS parts - both spars and the HS1014 and HS1015 stringers.

I had to rearrange the shop a bit so that I could use the drill press and fit the spars in the garage. So much easier to use drill press than the hand drill.

Got through the several hundred holes in a few hours. But I did have a screw up. I grabbed what I thought was one of the stringers and started countersinking. When I got to the end, I realized it was a spar cap and not the stringer. Crap, I just ruined another spar cap!

Purchases: Van's HS-1013

Countersinking spars

Lots of countersinks - too many it turns out

Countersink setup

May 01, 2021 8-5: HS Front spar caught up - (1.5 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Well, that wasn't bad at all. I guess it's always faster the second time. Got the front spar caps all re-drilled, and I'm official caught up to where I was when I messed up the first spar.

Match drilling the spar caps

More drilling

More drilling

Spar doubler and attach brackets

Finished assembly

May 01, 2021 9-14, 9-15 & 9-17: Right elevator proseal and counterweight - (1.2 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Got the tank sealant applied to the foam ribs and installed in the trim tab. Set in the clamps and riveted the end tabs.

Moved on to the elevator and applied sealant to the foam ribs then coated the wedge pretty liberally again. Installed clecos in every hole then went between each cleco and gave a good squeeze with the vice grip clamps.

Set the weights on the trailing edge and will let it cure for the rest of the week. Back to the Horizontal stabilizer.

I did finish off the right side lead counterbalance weights too and installed them while proseal is curing. Nice to have AN bolt gauge I bought recently to confirm the AN3-13 bolts from the assorted pack of bolts Van's supplied.

Order confirmation letter for the wing showed up today too. Looks like an October 4th crating date. Glad I ordered it when I did.

Prepping for proseal

Trim tab done and in the clamps

Elevator trailing edge

TE wedge proseal

TE finished and clamped

Wing order confirmation

Counterweight fabrication

Bolt gauge

Counterweights installed

May 01, 2021 9-17(R): Right trim tab finish up - (1.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Got back to the right trim tab in preparation for proseal session later today hopefully.

Disassembled and deburred the tab. Dimpled skins and bottom of spar. Countersunk top spar and touched up with primer.

Back-riveted bottom of spar to skin. Came out really well. Remembered to get that corner rivet prior to installing the brackets. Riveted brackets with flush set and tungsten bar. Got one small mark from the bar, otherwise everything came out great.

Deburring

Deburring

Countersinking

Primer touch up

Back-riveting trim tab

Didn't forget the corner rivet

Trim tab horn

Back-rivet helper

Apr 30, 2021 9-13(R) & 9-14(R): Front spar rivets and tip assembly - (1.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

The honeymoon phase of working on the plane has ended. No more 2-3 hours a day in the shop, lucky to get a 1/2 in the morning before work and maybe a little more in the evening. They say just do a little bit everyday and keep the project moving forward.

So used my free 20 minutes this morning to pull the rivets on the wrap to ribs.

Did manage another hour after dinner allowed me to get the tip assembly attached.

Front spar riveted

Tip assembly attached

Apr 28, 2021 9-12(R): Back to the rear spar rivets - (0.9 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

After feeling very frustrated with the bottom skin riveting on the rear spar, I took a break. Plus my second COVID shot really kicked my butt.

Fixed the few remaining rivets in the bottom then flipped it over to do the top skin. This uses the special bucking bar again. Those all came out perfect.

Got a few more minutes in this evening. Enough to finish 9-12 and get the internal ribs blind riveted.

Rear spar rivets - one ding

Front spar blind rivets

Apr 26, 2021 9-12(R): Rear spar rivets - (0.8 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Thought I would knock out the rivets from the skin to the rear spar. Half of these are easy because you can squeeze them. The other half you have to buck and somewhat awkwardly.

Despite the fact the I dinged the skin a bit on the left elevator, I didn't find bucking the rivets to be very difficult. I don't know what I was doing wrong today, but I really struggled. Bucking bar was bouncing around, dinged the skin in several places and ended up with about 10 rivets that I had to completely drill out because they were sitting proud.

Re-bucked the first few and they still were sitting quite proud of the skin. Very frustrating evening. As if I've lost all riveting skills. I decided to call it a night and walk away before I do any damage. Will deal with those tomorrow.

Rear spar rivets squeezed

Rear spar rivets bucked

Apr 25, 2021 9-9(R) to 9-11(R): Right elevator assembly - (3.8 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Got the skins dimpled. Ben didn't last as long as I had hoped. I finished them solo. Scuffed and cleaned the proseal areas and put the small bend on the edge of the skin. Should have done both of these steps prior to dimpling.

Riveted the attach doublers and nut plates the rear spar.

Backriveted the trim cable doubler to the bottom skin and proceeded to backrivet all the ribs to the skins. The back rivets really came out well and these skins have almost no scratches in them at all. Getting better at this.

Riveted the rear spar and associated clip angles to the ribs, but not the skins yet. Calling it quits for the day. Gotta work on the pool - almost summertime.

Dimpling elevator skin

Scuff areas for tank sealant

Attach bracket doublers

Forward spar

Trim access plate

Back-riveting ribs to skin

Ribs and rear spar

Apr 24, 2021 9-7(R) to 9-9(R) Priming right elevator and start assembly - (4.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Got all of the right elevator parts cleaned, etched and masked - ready to prime. Took a break and then came back to priming everything in the afternoon.

Priming went fine. I shot the outside of the counterbalance skins gray to match the left elevator. For some reason the gray ran a little bit. I cleaned it up but may need to touch it up later. Once I had everything cleaned up I saw that I missed the trim tab cable access plate. For some reason I thought I'd already done it with the left one. I'll get it later the next time I prime.

Dimpled all the ribs and miscellaneous pieces. Saved the skins to do with Ben tomorrow. He loves that DRDT2.

Assembled the counterbalance tip assembly and the installed the trim tab access nut plates.

Didn't stop to take many photos. Pretty much the same as the left elevator.

Primed parts

Trim access plate doubler w/ nut plates

Ribs primed and dimpled

Tip assembly

Apr 23, 2021 VS touch up - (0.5 hour)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Can't do much today. Need to prime the right elevator but it's pouring rain

Ben wanted to do something in shop so decided we could pull the vinyl off the vertical stab. Also wanted to trim the conduit flush at the top rib where the VOR antenna will sit. I bought some AN bolts for mounting the antenna but they're too long for the temporary cover plate I made. Decided I should probably order a small assortment of AN bolts to have on hand.

Purchases: ACS assorted bolts, torque seal, safety wire

Trimmed conduit flush to top rib

Cover plate - need shorter bolts

Apr 22, 2021 Right elevator rear spar countersinking - (0.8 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Decide to countersink the holes on the rear spar before priming this time. Seemed like an easy morning task, but took longer than it should have.

Had the countersink all setup already from a previous session. Did one hole and checked depth with a rivet, looked good - about 0.007” recess. Proceeded to do all 29 holes but could tell by the end that they were not deep enough. Couldn't figure out why the cage wasn't fully seating. Finally saw I was hitting the stop on the drill press. Fixed that and re-hit every hole to the correct depth.

Trailing edge countersunk

Rear spar countersunk

Countersink setup

Deburring skins

Skins are done

Apr 20, 2021 9-7(R): Right elevator disassemble and deburr - (1.2 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Took apart the right elevator and started to deburr everything. Got through most of the ribs, just the skins to go. The fact that I now realize this step is entirely unnecessary makes it especially painful. But since I did final drill or ream the holes, I feel I have to follow through and deburr them all too.

Trying to get to a place where I can start priming this weekend. Shouldn't be too hard.

These are done

These left to deburr

Apr 19, 2021 Fuselage stand

Category: Workshop & Tools

Saw a free fuselage stand posted on Facebook in the Houston area. Called my brother and he agreed to go pick it up. I won't need it for a while but the price was right.

I'll store it at dad's barn for a while.

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Apr 19, 2021 9-14(L) & 9-15(L): Left elevator finish up for now - (1.6 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Finished up some miscellaneous items on the elevator including the trailing edge rivets and end rib rivets.

Also got the remaining holes on the trim tab drilled and riveted. Got the wire installed and bent. Not happy with how the bend came out. I realized afterward that I should have bent it shorter so that it turns down behind the rear spar and not beside it. May be able to fix that later.

Started trimming the lead counterweights. Kind of a pain. I went ahead and tried doing them on the band saw. Of course that creates lead dust which is no good. Wore gloves and a face mask and vacuumed often. Had to pause often and let it cool down so that it didn't melt and stick the blade. Got the counterweights mounted with the AN3 bolts and torqued to the proper value.

Called Van's today to check on status of my back-ordered parts, including the much needed elevator horns. They don't have them. No ETA. I'll have to put this aside for now and start on the right elevator.

Trim tab fit up

Trim tab hinge wire bent into place

Set up for double flush trailing edge

Initial cutting of lead counterweights

Trailing edge rivets done

End rib rivets

Counterweights installed

Apr 19, 2021 9-18(L): Left trim tab hinge - (0.8 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Little shop time before work. Got the piano hinge drilled for the starter hole and then cleco'd and aligned the hinge. Used some cleco clamps to hold it tight to the elevator and match drilled the holes.

The trim tab was a little more difficult because the skin and spar didn't want to line up without a little pressure. And I couldn't cleco those together and match drill the hinge at the same time. Pulled it into alignment and cleco clamped as best I could then carefully proceeded with the match drilling. Once I got a couple holes done and clecos in place it all aligned just fine.

Marking first hole

Cleco'd and aligning

Match drilling along rear spar

Match drilling trim tab

Apr 18, 2021 9-14(L): Left Elevator trailing edges - (0.7 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Took a few days off from the build while proseal cured. Just a little work this evening. Pulled the weights and clamps off the elevator and trim tab. Cleaned the excess proseal off the skins and I'm pretty happy with how the elevator turned out. Also, the additional proseal I smeared on the rudder turned out really well. I had ordered extra skins from Van's to be delivered with my wing kit, but I canceled them based on how this came out.

Installed a few of the blind rivets in the close out tabs of both. Will try to get to the double flush rivets on the trailing edge this week.

Elevator TE

Trailing Edge

Trim tab close-out tabs

Apr 15, 2021 8-2: Redo front spar caps - (0.6 hour)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Don't have room to do much in the shop at the moment but did pull out the new HS-1013 front spar caps and fabricated them per plan. Deburred and set aside until I have room to do the spar.

These did come out much better than the first ones too. I've learned to just use the thin wood blade on the band saw. It cuts aluminum just fine and much straighter.

In other good news, I've been reading on some forums about parts being highlighted if they are NOT drilled final sized. I thought it was the final sized parts that were highlighted and I didn't have any that were highlighted so I thought all of mine needed to be drilled. I think I must have read that backwards on the flyer that came with the kit. I confirmed that all of my holes are indeed final sized. That will save me a step going forward.

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Apr 13, 2021 9-14(L) & 9-17(L): Left elevator and trim tab proseal - (0.8 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Not happy with the trim tab but I'm going to build on. Proceeding with the proseal. First, I re-scuffed the foam rib areas on the elevator and I also touched up the primer on the trim tab countersinks.

Proseal - Did the elevator first. I was a little more liberal with the sealant this time and got a little bit more squeeze out. I still feel like there is a gap in the trailing edge that I wish wasn't there it is straight though. I made sure that there was at least sealant filling the gap and it does look pretty uniform.

Inserted the foam wedges into the trim tab and got it set in the clamps.

Took some left over sealant and figured I would try to seal up some of the gaps in the rudder. We'll see.

I'll let that sit for the rest of the week. Not going to make much progress on anything else either - I have too many part spread throughout the shop at the moment.

Elevator TE done and clamped

Ready to start session

Trim tab in the clamps

Touch up on rudder TE

Apr 13, 2021 9-17(L): Left trim tab rivets - (0.5 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Just a quick session this morning to try to wrap up those rivets. Awkward but it thought I could buck them without problem. They went in fine, but when I pulled the tape off I saw that I had dinged the skin with the flush set on every one of them. Ugh, should have stuck with the back-rivet technique. At least it is on the bottom and the paint shop should be able to take care of it.

Riveted the attach brackets. No dings but not my best work. Should have done the rivet in the corner first before the bracket. Had to use a blind rivet.

Dings in skin

Trim attach bracket

Apr 12, 2021 9-16 & 9-17: Trim tabs - (2.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

I bent the tabs on the right trim tab. Now that I have the technique down they bent quite well. When compared to the left elevator tab they are definitely better, but only marginally so. I don't think I could redo the left side much better than it already is. I've heard so many horror stories of cracked trim tabs from these bends, I should be pretty happy with what I have.

Back to focus on the left tab. Took everything apart and deburred, then dimpled the skins and bottom flange of the spar. Set up the countersink and did the top flange. It's pretty thin but came out ok with a wood block backing it up.

Reassemble and get ready to rivet the skin the bottom flange. How the hell do I get to those? Try bucking bar, but was really awkward and had to bend the skins back a lot. Realized that I could actually get back rivet set in there and proceeded to back rivet most of them. Just set clecos in every third hole and used the corner of the backrivet plate overhanging the bench to get them. Pretty good, but did drill out four. They were harder to drill out then they were to set.

Going to stop here for the night. Need to buck the last few rivets on the trim attach brackets. They look tough.

Right trim tab

Right trim tab bend

Can you tell which is the good one

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For the FAA - I swear I built it

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Apr 11, 2021 9-14(L) & 9-16(L): Left elevator work and trim tabs - (4.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

A good full day in the shop. Picked up where I left off yesterday on attaching the outboard rib/counterweight assembly. Bucked several ever increasingly difficult rivets. Most involved precariously balancing the bucking bar in just a few fingers through the pulled back skin, or even through the lightening holes in the spar. Got it done though. Finished the remaining rivets in the skin along the counterbalance and also went back and squeezed the rivets in the bottom of the rear spar - don't know how I missed those earlier. Holding off on the top of the rear spar for the trim tab hinge. Also holding off on the finishing up the in board end of the elevator until I get the back-ordered elevator horns. The left elevator is done to the point of prosealing the trailing edge. I'll set it aside for a bit to work on the trim tabs.

Prepped and primed the trim tab skins, spar and the inside surfaces of the trim cable attach brackets. Masked off the areas of the skin where the foam ribs will be bonded. Priming session went well; getting very comfortable shooting primer. When the parts were ready for handling (<20 min), I pulled the masking tape and re-masked over the freshly sprayed primer to scuff and clean the foam rib areas. Then I got to do the final bend of the trim tab skins. They are pre-bent from Van's, but still open quite a bit to do the work on the inside. So I need to final bend them in the brake that I made last week. That went great - pretty much got it right the first try. I can tweak the bend a little bit by hand later, but the clamps that I made conform to the skin pretty well, and there is no distortion of the skins.

Moved forward with bending the end tabs to close the end of the trim tabs. I started with the longer, inboard end, and figured I would bend the bottom first and then bend the top over it. I set it up with the wedges to clamp it in place and carefully measured the 1/32" from the end shown in the plans. Bent the bottom tab starting with a wood block and then hit it with the flush set on the rivet gun. Came out fine. Flip it over to do the top tab and since the bottom was already bent, I couldn't align the support wedge to be 1/32" from the end - best I could do was closer to 1/8". Well, not much I can do about that now so set the block as close to the end as I could and bent the top tab. It came out fine, but the unbent ends are extending quite a bit past the close out tab. Maybe I can trim those tabs a little and clean it up later - we're talking 1/16th of an inch, but it is noticeable.

Set up to bend the second tab, and this time decided I should set the wedge and do the two bend simultaneously to avoid resetting the wedge. Also, decide to use the double sided tape on the wedge called for in the plans - don't know why I didn't do it the first time. Set the wedge at the 1/32" from the end and clamped it. Started bending the bottom tab with a block, then bent the top tab. Then finished the bottom tab with the rivet gun, then finished the top tab with the gun. Came out much better. Looks like I have another part that I might consider redoing if the right side turns out a lot better. There are things you get to practice on the practice kits, but most things the first realy practice is on the plane. I guess that is why so many people build a second plane.

Got the trim tab all cleco'd together and match drilled the end tabs. Also match drilled the trim cable attach brackets. I didn't see in the plans where it said to actually final drill the skin to spar holes, but the next step says to disassemble and deburr, so I figure I was suppose to final drill those already - I did it.

Almost ready for the proseal session. Just need to deburr and dimple the trim tab.

[update] Asked Tech Counselor about the extensions of the skins past the tabs. He said people typically file them down. I did that and they look a lot better.

Nearly finished trim tab - looks good

Trim tab in the clamps

Final look at inboard bend

This end came out much better

Bend is a little too far from the end

Double wedge set up for first bend

Bend came out good

Final bend of trim tab

150 grit scuff for foam ribs

Masked foam rib areas

Priming trim tab parts

Used the blind rivets per plan, but I could have gotten them with my thru the lightening hole method

Top counterweight skins riveted

Got that sucker with a bucking bar balanced on two fingers through the lightening holes

Much improved after drill out

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Clip angle not sitting on rib - drill it out

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Fun bucking

More fun bucking

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Apr 10, 2021 9-13(L): Left elevator front spar riveting - (1.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Brother was in town and got to see a little bit of airplane building action. He's an A&P so I figured he's qualified to help.

We got the front spar riveted to the ribs and proceeded with the skin to spar rivets. I don't have my elevator horns so was careful not to proceed too far.

Started looking at the counterbalance and realized that I had the orientation of the skins incorrect. I was running the counterweight skin over the elevator skin, which made sense from an aerodynamics standpoint but there is no way I could have installed the rivets as shown in the plans. I see that it clearly shows the elevator skin over the counterweight skin. Looks good that way I suppose. I'll stop here before riveting just to make sure.

And my new HS spar arrived along with two tubes of proseal!

Brother riveting the spar while Dad supervises

New HS Spar!

Correct orientation of counterweight skin

Apr 08, 2021 My other airplane project

Category: General

Not RV build related, but the other ever present object in my shop is the rather large RC Cessna 182 that has been hanging on the wall. Started this project with my dad in 1995 and never managed to finish it until this past year. 25 yrs! Finishing this was my first big COVID quarantine project. It has been done since the summer, but I've been waiting for my dad to come up to see its maiden flight.

Well this is going to be the big weekend. Dad is coming up and we're hoping to fly on Saturday. Had to get it down and clean it up.

Not quite an RV build, but I do know something about having the patience to stick with a long project and balancing the desire for perfection with the reality of just getting it finished.

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Apr 08, 2021 9-11(L): Left elevator rib close up - (0.7 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

A quick morning session to get the blind rivets of the elevator ribs. Despite my relatively large hands, I was able to get the rivets installed without assistance. Once the ribs were in place, I could see places where the skins were not laying flat. I think this is due to slight angle variations of the flange of the rear spar. I was able to bend the flange slightly by hammering on the skin at the spar with a wood block and mallet. Came out ok.

Cleco'd the front spar on and I'm going to set this one aside for now. Will get started on the right elevator. Also need to progress the trim tabs so I can proseal at the same time as the elevator. Trim tabs should be a good project with my dad while he's here this weekend.

I did notice that I got a pretty large mark from the flush rivet set on the top skin. I was trying to not mark the portion of the skin aft of the spar as I bent it up to buck the spar rivets and was intentionally shifting the flush set a bit forward on the spar. I guess I had one a little too far and marked the skin with the flush set just forward if the spar. Nothing the paint shop can't fix, but it is my first big ding in a skin.

Also have noticed some surface corrosion on the outside of the skins. I'm pretty sure it is from some acid etch that didn't get rinsed thoroughly from the skin. Lesson learned to be more careful to rinse both sides of the skin. It will all scuff out.

Trial fit front spar

Surface corrosion

Ding in the skin

Internal skeleton

Apr 07, 2021 9-11(L): Left elevator assembly - (2.0 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Back riveted the elevator ribs to the skins and back riveted the trim access plate doubler. Cleco'd the rear spar in place and riveted to each of the ribs and installed the clip angles. Realized that somewhere along the way I missed that the holes in the E-921 gussets were supposed to be upsized to #30. I did go back and confirm. Also missed the dimpling of the in board rib for the skins. Took care of both and carried on.

Bucked the top skin to rear spar rivets. There were a bit of a pain. Then flipped it over and cleco'd the bottom skin in place and used the special bucking bar to get the bottom skin rivets. Was a little apprehensive about these but they came out great. Did have to drill out a couple that were sitting a bit proud but they re-bucked no problem.

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Apr 07, 2021 9-10(L): Left elevator assembly - (1.0 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Didn't get any work done last night so got out in the this morning before work. Got the tip ribs dimpled and riveted together. Then put the counterweight skin on and riveted. It was a tough fit and actually had to ream a couple holes slightly so they would sit flush. Still anxious about squareness and alignment of these tips.

Moved on the the forward spar and installed the doubler plates and associated nut plates. Finished with the in board rib and snap bushing. A good morning's work.

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Apr 05, 2021 9-8(L) & 9-9(L): Left elevator dimpling - (2.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Dimpled the skins and substructure of the left elevator. Counter sunk the rear spar holes at the trim tab hinge. I should have countersunk these prior to painting. I used a little primer in a q-tip to touch up the holes, easy peazy.

When I primed the skins, I failed to mask off the trailing edge or the areas where the foam ribs get glued. So before dimpling I sanded off the primer in those areas.

I also realized as I was priming that I had prepped and acid etched some surfaces that were not meant to be primed like the outer portion of the trim cable access plate and the outer surface of the counterweight skin. Since I had etched it, I need to prime it to protect it but I don't really want the green on the outside of the airplane. I still have a little bit of the gray tester paint from Stewart. I mixed up less than an ounce of it and sprayed those parts. It won't look bad at all. So nice to have such an easy clean up product. I would never have mixed such a small quantity of epoxy paint.

Elevator skin dimpling

Primer removed from proseal areas

Countersinking rear spar

Priming some exterior surfaces gray

Left elevator parts all ready

Left elevator parts

Apr 04, 2021 9-7(L): Left elevator priming - (4.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

I decide to go forward with just one elevator at a time with intent of getting one a few days ahead of the other to stagger the proseal work.

Not a lot of photos today, but a ton of work. Most of it was the less glamorous part of building. Took apart the cleco'd elevator and deburred all of the holes. Then clean and etch in preparation for priming.

Priming is getting better. Very happy with the results, but also getting much better at getting good coverage without wasting paint. Everything came out great and I finally took a break to take a photo.

Left elevator primed

Apr 04, 2021 9-16 & 9-17: Trim tab prep work - (1.2 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Built the brake for final bending of the trim tab trailing edges from 2x8s and probably more hinges than it needed. Maybe I got lucky, but the hinges all fell in line easily and it actually works well.

Cut the remaining trim tab clamps and wedges for bending the close out tabs.

Did some other miscellaneous fabrication of some trim tab parts. Rough cut on band saw and finished on the belt sander. Clamped a pair back to back on the sander so they would match perfectly. So nice to have good tools.

Purchases: Lowes TE Brake supplies

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Apr 03, 2021 9-16: Prep for trim tabs - (0.8 hour)

Category: 9: Elevators

Looking ahead in the plans, I realize that I will need to proseal the foam ribs into the trim tabs. I'll need to start on the tabs to get them to the same state as the elevator to make the most of my proseal sessions.

A little anxious about the trim tabs as it seems people have trouble. I need to fabricate the trim tab clamps and wedges. I also need to get some 2x8s to make the brake for final bending the trailing edge.

This morning I just made the foam rib templates. I printed them full-size from my preview plans and verified they were indeed 100% scale. Then spray mounted them to the foam blocks supplied in the kit. Rough cut them on the band saw and then sanded to the line on belt sander and block sanded by hand. Got them all knocked out pretty quickly.

Used the dimensions for the clamp shown in the plans to rough out what the wedge dimensions should be. These trim tab close out bends seem to be what trips people up.

Foam block templates

Wedge dimesnsions

Templates mounted to foam

Completed foam ribs

Apr 02, 2021 9-7: Finish final drilling skins - (1.2 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Got the right elevator skins final drilled. Nothing special, just a lot of clecos again. I did have my helper for a bit.

I think I will pause here, disassemble and prime everything.

Final drilling the skins

Lots of clecos

Finished, ready to prime

Apr 01, 2021 9-7: TE wedges and Final drilling skins - (2.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Cut the trailing edge wedges for each elevator and got them cleco'd in place. The elevator trailing edges were very rigid then, and I match drilled the holes in the trim tab close outs. Everything looks pretty good so far. Good alignment on trailing edge.

Next, final drilled the skins on the left elevator. Started in the middle of the spars and worked my way putting a cleco in every hole. A lot of clecos. I'll need to finish off the left elevator entirely so I can harvest clecos for the right side.

I had to skip the step for elevator horn installation because those parts are still back-ordered. I think I can go pretty far without them.

Prepped the trim cable cover plates and installed the steel cable guides.

I'll have to put the left elevator to the side and start on the right side.

Ready to drill

Final Drilled - lots of clecos

Checking square of tip ribs

Trim cable clamp

Trim cable access plate

Mar 31, 2021 9-4 thru 9-6: Elevator skeleton and skins - (3.1 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Deburred hinge reinforcement plates and cleco'd to spar. Cut the trim cable hole with the uni-bit. Deburred the rear spar and cleco'd all of the ribs and spars to the skins and to each other. Installed the E-1022 clips - reread that several times to see what they were trying to say about the orientation. Wasn't a big deal. All of these operations involved flipping the elevator over to access clecos from either side. Flipped it probably four times.

Deburred and cleco'd the trim access reinforcement plates and installed the E-921 gusset angles.

Now cleco'd the previously assembled tip rib assembly. I've read others having trouble with squareness of the tip in the final elevator. I can easily see how it could get slightly crooked. There are just a few common holes in the skin to hold it all square. I checked with a framing square top and bottom to try to keep it square and un-twisted before final drilling the tip to the spar. I'll have to keep a close eye on this when it's time to final drill the skins.

Cleco'd the top skin onto the elevators and called it a night.

I'm doing everything simultaneously on the left and right rudder so every task is times two. Went quicker than I thought though. I'm going to run out of work if I don't get my new HS spar soon. I have some proseal in that order too. I have another dreaded trailing edge in my near future - two actually.

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Trim access hole reinforcement

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Both elevators take up all my space

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Mar 30, 2021 9-3: More elevator skins - (1.5 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Just a little work tonight. Finished the trim tab bends on the other two skins and got all of the skins deburred. Also deburred the elevator spars and hinge attach reinforcement plates in preparation of the next step.

Purchases: HF Hand seamer, air tool fittings; Autozone 1/4" torque wrench

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Mar 29, 2021 9-3: Elevator skins and trim tab bend - (1.3 hours)

Category: 9: Elevators

Ben asked if we could do some work in the garage before bed. So I thought he could help with removing vinyl from the elevator skins. After he went to bed I kept working and got two skins done and got the trim tab close outs bent. Clamped it against the workbench and used a combination of wood block, rubber mallet, and flush set rivet gun. First one came out just ok. Second was actually pretty good.

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Mar 29, 2021 7-12: Rudder complete - (0.5 hour)

Category: 7: Rudder

Got the missing screw from aircraft spruce today. There was a little pillowing between the screws, so I installed the blind rivet suggested by the plans. Final rivets in the counterweight set and the rudder is done! Finally a completed part.

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Mar 28, 2021 8-5: front HS spar - big mistake! - (2.5 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

The replacement angle for the HS-1008 spar attach brackets came in. I got to re-fabricating those and they came out well this time.

Then cleco'd the front spar doubler to the spar and clamped the attach brackets to an angle to keep them square, then match drilled them to the doubler no problem. Then cleco'd the spar doubler to the spar and that is where my screw up began.

Actually my screw up started when I was drilling the spar caps and labeled them top and bottom. My cursory review of the spar itself didn't seem to have a top or bottom. Looked symmetrical like the rear spar so I arbitrarily label one side as up. I missed that the spar is predrilled for the spar attach bracket.

When I then cleco'd the doubler, which obviously has a top and bottom, not all of the holes were there. At this point the doubler is covering up the spar so I can't see the obvious mistake and that there are holes in the spar that should align. Oh well, I proceeded to drill the apparently missing holes through both the spar and the spar caps. Only once I was completely done and removed the clecos that I saw my problem. Not only did I put a lot of unnecessary holes in the spar, the new holes are way too close to several of the existing holes. I'm pretty sure it's ruined.

I feel so stupid. I wasn't rushing, I was taking my time, double checking the plans at every step. I even paused when it looked like a couple of holes in the spar didn't perfectly align with the doubler, but I wrote it off as just CNC misalignment - I should have known better. Many opportunities to catch the error, I just didn't. Then even when I saw that the holes were misaligned, I thought this has to be a problem with Van's. No. I need to trust that Van's is correct and stop until I figure it out.

I'll order a new forward spar and caps and start over. It sucks, I had put a lot of work into those spar caps. The parts are probably not that expensive, but shipping an 11' long spar is not going to be cheap.

3/29 Update - talked to Van's, they're sending me a new spar because of the corrosion issue. I get a mulligan on this one.

Purchases: Van's replacement spar caps, proseal

Attach brackets fabricated correctly this time

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Match drilled attach brackets to doubler

Match drilled doubler to spar

That's way too many holes

Mar 28, 2021 8-7: Cradles - (1.5 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Cut the cradles for the HS from some scrap 1/2” ply and a 2x4. Wrapped it in masking tape then decided that wasn't enough and went back over it with gorilla tape.

Use ribs as template

Cut out on bandsaw

2x4 supports

Gorilla tape to protect the skins

Mar 27, 2021 8-2 & 8-5: HS spar work - (3.1 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Trying to get both spars to the point of priming so I can do them at the same time. Put in a good day today but not quite there.

Rear spar was pretty easy. Just some match drilling of elevator brackets and some counter sinking. The front spar is a bear though. A lot of drilling for the spar caps. I know I'm going to have to come back and counter sink all of those holes too. It's just like the vertical stab spar, only twice as long.

The majority of the time today was just on one step. Parts are getting larger, steps are taking longer.

Drilling spar caps

Front spar caps

Rear spar elevator brackets

Mar 26, 2021 Wing Kit Ordered Category: General

I'm running about two months ahead of my schedule. Things will slow down a bit over the summer, but still I'm going to need my wing sooner than anticipated. Combine that with Van's running a little behind on lead times - they're currently quoting 6 months for a wing kit. So I went ahead and ordered the wing today. I added the fuel tank sending unit and aileron trim options. I think I'd also like to add the Ductwork leading edge landing light kit.

When it gets closer to crating, I need to remember to have them throw in two new rudder skins and a new trailing edge wedge just in case I feel like redoing those.

Mar 25, 2021 7-11 & 7-12: Rudder finish up - (3.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

I felt a little better about my trailing edge after sleeping on it and reading the forums. Today's big task was rolling the leading edge. I was just about to head to Lowe's to procure a 1 1/4” pipe when I noticed one of my pool cleaning poles laying around. I measured it and sure enough it is exactly 1.25” OD. Perfect. With pipe in hand I proceeded with the leading edge roll. This gave me a lot of trouble on the practice kits so I was a bit anxious. It went great. Top and bottom sections are perfect and the middle has just small amount of pillowing between the rivets. Very acceptable though.

Leading edge done and proceeded to the counter balance. This is a lot of work for the amount of area you're working in. Got the skins bent around the weight. It was a little tight at first so I shaved just a little off the corners of the weight with a utility knife. Pulled the skins tight around the nose of the counterbalance and marked them from the back side per plans. Then pilot drilled and final drilled for the #8 screws. All came out well, but somewhere along the way I lost one of the two screws. I guess I'll have to stop just short of rudder completion but it is 99% there.

Laid the rudder and VS on the bench together for the first time. Looking good.

Purchases: ACS misc nuts & bolts, AN bolt gauge

Rolling leading edge

Rolling leading edge

Finished rolling

Counterweight bends

Counteweight bend

VS and Rudder meet

Counterweight ready to finish

Missing one of these screws

Mar 24, 2021 GMP visit with EAA members Category: General

After flying this morning, I made an impromptu visit to go see my tech counselor down at his hangar in Grand Prairie (GMP). I just wanted to get a feel for the airport, see how long the drive was, and maybe get to see his RV-8. First, I was pleasantly surprised that it was only about a 35 minute drive from the house. And then when I pulled up to his hangar, two other gentlemen were already walking over to meet me. It was two other RV-10 builders! One has just a tailcone almost finished and the other just got his finished and had his airworthiness inspection last week. The latter was in the process of reassembling and reinstalling all of the inspection panels that had been removed. It was a fully decked out RV-10, just about every option that is available, including AC and long range tanks. He said his empty weight was 1705 lbs - I think that's actually not that bad. He was running gross at 2900, but that was with long range fuel. I mentioned my progress outpacing my financial plan and he chuckled and said he stopped counting at $215,000; He had a $60,000 panel though.

Had a great time out there with them. Very inviting and great atmosphere. What I would want in an airport. At only 35 minutes away and fairly cheap hangars, I'll definitely consider going out there and maybe sooner than later.

Mar 24, 2021 7-10 & 7-11: Closing up the rudder and trailing edge rivets - (2.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

Proseal should be all set up so I removed clecos and started on the additional blind rivets which hold the rudder spar to the clip angles. Also got all of the skin to spar rivets done. It didn't seem that the squeezer would get to them all so I just decided it would be easier to buck them all. May have been a little overconfident in my bucking skills. After getting through the first twenty or so, I could see under the tape that they were sitting a little proud. I stopped to figure out what was going before I bucked them all. The several layers of masking tape I had put on the flush rivet set to protect the skins had worn through in the middle so the extra tape was causing the set to not sit flush against the skin. Lesson learned. Didn't even need tape on the rivet set since I had already taped all of the rivets in the row. Fixed that issue and set the remaining rivets with no problem. Then proceeded to drill out almost all twenty rivets that were not flush. I also then realized that every one of the rivets I drilled out could have been accessed by the squeezer. I squeezed most of redo.

On to the double flush rivets. I felt everything looked pretty straight still when I removed the clecos and was confident going in to it. I cleaned up all the holes and taped rivets on one side. Since there is really no good side of a rudder, some people alternate sides for the shop head. I just put them all on the same side. The riveting went fine. Used the back rivet set against the plate. I supported the rudder on either side of the plate with carpet that leveled everything up pretty well. Once the shop heads were set, I flipped the rudder over and used the flush set to do a final set of all the rivets.

Honestly I'm not happy with how it came out. The overall straightness of the trailing edge is good but there are places where the skin is pulling away from the wedge. The proseal is not adhered. Not sure where I went wrong. Maybe the proseal was too thin. Maybe it didn't cure all the way. Maybe I should have used the clothespins between every rivet to hold it tighter. We'll see if I can do better on the elevators and then we may revisit the rudder.

Gaps in the proseal

Shop heads on double flush

Double flush set up

Drilling out a lot of rivets

Clecos removed from trailing edge

Buttoning up the rudder

Mar 23, 2021 8-4, 8-6 & 8-7: HS spar caps, stringers and ribs - (2.3 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

More deburring and a little bit of fabrication of HS parts. Nothing too glamorous, didn't even have my little partner tonight.

Cut the HS spar caps and stringers per plans and then sanded smooth and deburred. Came out pretty good, but it certainly does take some coaxing to get my band saw to cut a straight line.

Got the remainder of the ribs deburred and put the 9 degree bends on the inner two. Just clamped the nose of the rib to the workbench and bent it by hand. Eyeballed it. I don't think it needs to be super precise, the skin rivets will take care of the final alignment.

Got the other spar doubler deburred too, so now all of the HS parts are deburred and ready for assembly when I get my main workbench back. Still has the Rudder proseal curing on it. Should be ready tomorrow.

Good night in the shop. And I get to flying with my CFI in the morning - gotta stay proficient during the build.

HS parts ready to go

Bend on inner ribs

Spar caps cut and deburred

Mar 22, 2021 8-7: HS deburring - (1.0 hour)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Can't do much with workbench still occupied by the rudder so I'm skipping ahead and having a little after dinner deburring session with my building partner.

I did come across a change in the parts that is not reflected in the plans. Plans show cutting a hole in the forward ribs for the elevator trim cables, but the parts supplied by Van's already have lightening holes in them. Not sure if they will be adequate for the trim cables though.

Peeling vinyl

New front ribs not in plans

Mar 22, 2021 6-6: Finished riveting skin on VS - (2.5 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

My work day started at 5am today so I was done early and got to get back to work on the plane.

With the VOR antenna conduit run and proseal set up, I used a single rivet conduit clamp I got from Van's to secure the conduit to an interior rib. I'm not sure if the conduit will come out the forward rib or rear rib so I haven't secured the bottom yet, might not even need to. We'll have to see how it goes when we mount it to the tail cone.

Skin riveting was not too much trouble, just a little time consuming. Flipping around the big nearly completed part is awkward; it's going to get worse as the parts get bigger.

VS is complete. Overall happy with it. The rivets came out pretty flush. I wish I had avoided a few of the scratches in the skin. I'm trying to be more careful on the rudder. It will all buff out.

VS done

Skin rivets complete

Mar 21, 2021 7-9: Rudder trailing edge - (1.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

On vacation last week but when I got home my proseal finally arrived. I had everything prepped last night in anticipation of my father in law visiting today. The perfect helper to get me through the rudder trailing edge.

I ordered the 3oz proseal from Vans but was surprised to see they shipped the 6oz tube for the caulking gun. I was tempted to wait until I had more to seal, but thought trying to do the elevators and rudder in one session would be too much and I'm also eager to have some completed parts. Proceeding with rudder. I was only charged for the 3oz tube anyways.

In preparation for the proseal I realized that I had primed the wedge and the skin in the area to receive proseal. Some quick consultation of the forums seemed to say not to prime those surfaces. I did a quick scuff with 220 grit to remove a reasonable amount of primer and give the skin some bite.

Got the proseal all mixed up and confirmed the tube does fit in a normal caulk gun, at least it fit in mine. Applied a very thin coat to the trailing edge wedge and got it set in place. Had father in law hold back the top skin and set clecos per the plans as I did the blind rivets in the skeleton. All went really very easy. Didn't get too much extra proseal on anything and honestly I didn't find the smell to be a problem. It's all cleco'd up now and sitting for a few days. Proseal seems the way to go for me. Very happy with straightness of trailing edge so far. I used a long piece of aluminum angle from the tail cone to take out any irregularities in my workbench.

The other job for the proseal was going around the top of the VOR antenna conduit in the VS. Tough to get around the front side, but I think it is good enough to hold it in place.

Thanks Pappa Joe!

VOR Conduit prosealed in place

VOR Conduit Installed

Finished Rudder TE  Curing

More rudder assembly

Rudder assembly

Applying the proseal to wedge

Scuffed primer from trailing edge

Pretty straight

Ready for proseal

Riveting skeleton while Joe sets clecos

Working the rudder assembly

Mar 21, 2021 8-2: HS spar corrosion - (1.5 hours) Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Haven't heard back from Van's but tech counselor confirmed the best course of action was just to sand out all the surface corrosion and prime it. Got most of it out with 400 grit sand paper and the some 3m pad. Set it aside for now. I will scuff it good again before priming.

3/29 update: spoke to a Van's rep. He was confused by it as well. He said they would just send me new parts. I told him it was really just the forward spar that was bad so they are sending a new HS-1002.

Mar 15, 2021 8-2: HS spar deburr - (1.0 hour)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Decided I couldn't do any harm to just deburr the rear HS spar and doubler. That sucker is long.

When removing the blueing, I noticed my hands a bit sticky and then I could see some fluid on the surface of the vinyl. It almost felt oily, but then was definitely a little sticky. When I pulled the blueing off there were areas where it had run underneath and had eaten into the alclad. I think was able to mostly scuff it out and since I'm priming anyways it is probably not a problem. I'll send a picture to Van's.

Corrosion on HS Spar

More Corrosion

HS doubler

Both spars

Mar 15, 2021 8-3: HS front spar attach brackets - FAIL - (1.5 hours)

Category: 8: Horiz Stab

Can't get anything else done on the rudder so thought I would skip ahead and fabricate some parts for the HS. The front spar attach brackets are cut from a pretty thick aluminum angle stock. One side is angled so I cut them on the band saw and then sanded the angle on the disc sander. They get pretty hot so I was actually stopping to throw them in the freezer occasionally.

I had the right one looking pretty good and while the left one was cooling I started to measure the holes to be drilled. Well, I figured out very quickly that I had cut them too short. They're clearly shown as 2 3/8” tall but I read 2” and cut them both.

No salvaging that. Ordered a new piece of stock from Van's. I could probably source it locally but for $6 I'll just get it from them. Probably $10 to ship though. My first completely ruined part. I guess I got off pretty cheap.

Purchases: Van's replacement HS attach brackets

What's 3/8" between friends

Mar 14, 2021 7-7 & 7-8: Backrivet skins - (1.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

Well I did get back out to the shop after dinner and got the skin stiffeners backriveted and top and bottom ribs riveted.

Everyone says backriveting is easy, but I actually struggled with this a bit on the practice kit. Today it was dialed in and very easy. 1/2 second blurt on the gun and had a perfect rivet every time. Very fast and enjoyable.

Now I really am on hold until I get my proseal. I have to call Van's tomorrow and see what the status is. It's been over a week.

Back-riveting a piece of cake

Temp assembly of rudder

Rudder progress

Mar 14, 2021 7-6 & 7-7: Prime Rudder, dimple and assembly - (6.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

Spent the rainy morning cleaning and etching parts in anticipation of a nice afternoon. Weather forecast held and had good painting weather in the afternoon. Actually used up all of my green primer. The coverage is a little thin on some parts but I got good coverage on all the mating surfaces and all exterior surfaces. Besides running low in paint, priming went really well with light coats - no fisheyes or other defects I had when I did heavier coats. Primed the rudder horn with left over gray since it will be exposed.

Got everything dimpled and assembled a few parts. Made the mistake of assembling the bottom rib prior to dimpling; that made it thought to dimple some of the holes but was able to get them with the dimpling bar I made for the practice kit. I did mangle one hole with the squeezer while dimpling a tight hole on the bottom rib. Drilled it out to a #30 and used a -4 “oops rivet”.

Ready to back rivet the skin stiffeners.

Skin etching came out nice

Rudder horn

Dimpling rudder skins

Mar 13, 2021 7-6: Rudder trailing edge countersink - (1.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

I was just about to disassemble one of my airfoil practice kits to harvest a trailing edge wedge to use as a support for the rudder trailing edge wedge so that the countersink in the drill press would hit it square. I was thinking of how I would attach it to a block of wood to make a jig and then realized I could just sand a wedge into the block on the belt sander. It took a couple tries but I got the angle right and the wedge sits perfectly in it presenting a flat level surface to the countersink. Once that was set, I made pretty quick work of the countersinking. Having the right tools makes all the difference.

Wedge tool

Countersinking the wedge

Mar 13, 2021 6-6: VS skin riveting - (2.5 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

My tech counselor came today. No real comments on my work, but we did talk airplanes for almost 2 hours. He thought my work looked pretty good and didn't have any concerns.

With that out of the way I started final riveting the VS skin. I can only do from the front spar forward because I'm still waiting on my conduit to arrive. I'd like to think I got all of the tough rivets done though.

Purchases: Stewart Systems Primer

Bucking rivets

Completed VOR antenna doubler

Almost complete VS

Mar 12, 2021 7-6: Rudder Skins and VOR antenna - (2.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

Finished match drilling the trailing edge and field rivets on the rudder. That was a lot of clecos! My forearms are quite sore. Got everything deburred and the trailing edge bend in the skins done. The rudder is ready to prep and prime.

My VOR antenna nutplates came in today so I was able to finish match drilling and dimpling the top of the VS rib and stiffeners. Will leave it cleco'd until tech counselor visit so he can at least see what I did.

Still no word on proseal or conduit that I ordered from Van's last weekend. I'm going to be held up on the VS and rudder until I get them.

VOR antenna doubler

Mar 11, 2021 7-4 to 7-6: rudder skeleton and skins - (3.5 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

Took the afternoon off work to work on the plane. I've realized that I have a critical piece of the rudder that is back ordered. I can't close up the rudder without the rudder stop blocks so I'll take it as far as I can and just leave the clecos in place. I should still get all the way through the trailing edge and proseal work. Then I'll have to set it aside too and start on the HS. I emailed Van's to see if they can give an ETA on the parts; no response yet.

Skeleton went together with no problems. Even deburring the big skins was easy. My deburr process for skins: hit the CNC marks with a small flat needle file, then run the edges with the pencil deburr tool, the a large fine flat file, finish with Scott right pad by hand. Coming out pretty good and not too time consuming.

I stopped tonight just before match drilling the trailing edge. The instructions say to put a check in every hole on the spar and trailing edge. With some clecos still in the VS, I'm running out of 3/32” clecos!

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Mar 10, 2021 7-2 & 7-3: Rudder parts - (2.0 hours)

Category: 7: Rudder

With the VS set aside it's time to start the rudder. Got all of the ribs, clips and stiffeners fabricated. The sheet metal fabrication is actually one of the more enjoyable tasks of the build so far. Van's does just enough of the prep work to make it quite fun if you have right tools. The stiffeners were a bit tedious but they came out real nice. Started with snips to separate, then band saw to cut to length, belt sander to clean up, then the 3M wheel to deburr and finish. Had a nice little production line going.

Rudder parts fabricated

Mar 10, 2021 6-3: VS skin dimpling and fit - (1.5 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Got the skin dimpled and fit back onto the skeleton. Ben helped a bit with the dimpling. The VS is official set aside until my first tech counselor visit.

Nearly complete VS

Ben at the DRDT-2

Dimpling the skin

Mar 09, 2021 6-4 & 6-5: VS assembly - (3.0 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Got the dimpling of the skeleton done and all the rivets set. The stupid rudder connection angles...I had to buck most of the rivets since the angle is to tight to get the squeezer on it. Not a big deal but I ended drilling out several to redo. Just when I thought it looked good I realized the are two more holes between the angles that get rivets. I couldn't fit the bucking bar between the angles to get them. Drill them out again and redo it. Final product looked good. Squeezed the remainder of the spar and it looks great. Went ahead and set the remaining rivets for the skeleton except the last three in the middle rib at the front spar. I'll need the double offset for those; that's a task for tomorrow.

I'm pretty much stopping here on the VS until the tech counselor visits.

My first rivets. Not great but in spec.

VOR doubler plate. Waiting on some nut plates.

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Those damn center holes

Mar 09, 2021 VS priming - (2.5 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Woke up early this morning and finished etching to try to get some priming done before work. I thought I was spraying it lightly but it still was going on way too heavy at first. I was also getting some fisheyes. Really didn't look very good. And then the primer on the skins started to run. Took a while to dry, just another indication it was goin in way too heavy. It should dry almost instantly if applied correctly. Got the gun adjusted and flipped the parts. They turned out much better. Gave up on the skin and went to work.

This evening I sanded down the one side of the skin with the runs and reshot it it. Turned the gun down even more and it put down a nice even mist. 1000% improvement. Just took some adjusting of the gun and the user.

How about that green! I like it.

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Mar 08, 2021 6-3a: VS VOR antenna doubler - (3.0 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Took some measurements of the VS top rib and projected where the two antenna would penetrate the skin directly between two rivets. Used that to establish the center of the antenna puck and verified clearances so that it nests into the top rib of the vertical stab. I'm going to use a Rami AV-520 and got the dimensions and bolt spacing from their website. I then took my sketch into CAD and laid out the holes and the limits of the doubler. I just used 1/4” edge distance and 1” max rivet spacing. Based on what I could gather from AC 41-13, I'm just going to match the thickness of the doubler to the rib that I'm cutting a hole in. Printed it out full size and spray mounted it onto a piece of 0.025” to make the doubler. Cut it, clamped it, drilled it, deburred it. I think it came out pretty good. I used the step cutter for the 3/4” hole in the middle. I plan to run some conduit up to it and proseal it to the bottom of the rib to secure. Then use a couple zip tie clamps in the lightening holes of the lower ribs.

I also finished converting some of the left over shipping crate into a spray table. A little heavier than I had hoped, but I think it will work better than just scrap cardboard that I usually use. Should help keep the smaller parts from blowing around as much.

The primer came in today too. I cleaned all the parts and will try to etch and paint in the morning before work. Going to try to meet my tech counselor this weekend before I rivet the skin on.

Clamping the template for match drilling.

CAD drawing of doubler

Cut and drilling the doubler

Doubler match drilled

Finished doubler plate

Spray box.

Mar 07, 2021 6-3 to 6-4: VS ready to prime - (2.6 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Got all of the skins match drilled then disassembled everything and deburred. Took care of a couple miscellaneous items and set it all aside. My new primer arrives tomorrow so I should be able to find a day to prime this week after work.

Still need to fabricate an antenna doubler for the top rib.

Disassemble and ready to prime

Mar 06, 2021 6-3: finish VS spar, skeleton and fit the skin - (4.0 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

Got a lot done today. Started with the machine countersinking of the rear spar doubler. I have to say of my new tools, the drill press is my favorite. Got the countersink cage set and made quick work of the holes.

Deburred the rest of the ribs and forward spar. Based on feedback from others, I went ahead and heavily shaped the front of the ribs to allow for fit of the skin without creating bumps. Got it all cleco'd together. What's next? Fit the skin already? This is moving quickly.

I went ahead and did the partial removal of blueing along the rivet lines with a soldering iron. I know it's silly and the skins will get scuffed before painting anyways, but the practice kits got scratched up quite a bit while riveting. I'd like the skins to be somewhat respectable when final assembled. Maybe I'm just doing it because everyone seems to do it. Oh well, it didn't take that much effort and allowed me to do a fairly simple task that didn't involve a lot of brain activity while I mentally prepared for the next task. There is value in the mundane.

Got the skin fit with no issues. It was tight around the nose but with the extra shaping of the ribs it went on without having to force it too much. My son Ben actually helped quit a bit with getting all the clecos set - he was passing them to me as I loaded the pliers and set them. We got in a good groove; it was a fun preview of hopefully lots of work together on the plane. We put one in every other hole which may be overkill but since the skin is the best geometric control of the whole VS, I didn't want to skimp.

Match drilled half the holes in the left skin and stopped for the day. Should have the skins all drilled before this weekend. Two days in and I already have this huge piece in the garage; I'm wondering where I store all these things.

Machine countersinks

Skeleton assembled

Removing bluing along rivet lines

Cleco helper

Cleco'd and match drilled skins

Initial assembly complete

Another VS shot

Mar 06, 2021 VOR antenna

Category: Research/Train

There seems to be as much debate on VOR antenna as primer. It seems a lot of folks are using the Bob Archer antenna in the tips. But it also seems as though there may be some reception issues. I want a true IFR capable plane, not one that I have to wonder is the antenna is going to crap out while I'm on the ILS. I don't mind the looks of the traditional v shaped antenna on the tail and with it high on the VS it won't be a poking hazard. It is not as though the exterior is going to be completely free of antennas. It would easier to mount on the belly by the rear tie down but I think that would poke an eye if you go to tie it down.

So I think I've decided it's going on top of the VS. I've seen the mounts some others have done running a conduit up through the VS and adding a doubler to the top rib. The Rami AV-520 seems to fit right between the top rib and the rudder counterbalance. Need to order some conduit and proseal from Van's.

I may change my mind on the Archer tip antennas, but if I run the conduit and do the doubler plate now at least I'll have the option when I get closer to avionics install.

Purchases: Van's conduit, proseal, conduit clamps; ACS nut plates and screws

Rami AV-520 Dimensions

Mar 04, 2021 6-2: VS Spar - (1.6 hours)

Category: 6: Vertical Stab

With everything inventoried and organized, and my little project with the kids complete, that first page of the plans was calling. I thought maybe I'll just do a little deburring before bed...I ended up doing a little more but not too much. I got the first spar cap pieces cut and then got them drilled to the 1/8”. I read the next step and it said now match drill spar caps to spar with #40. I thought that's weird, but ok, and proceeded to re-drill all of the holes I had just drilled but this time final sized to a #30. I once again saw #40, and instinctively grabbed the larger bit, which is a #30 bit. The instructions meant for me to match drill the additional smaller holes on the sides of the spar.

Oh well, I don't think I did too much harm. I used a lot of clamps as I final drilled the #30's to keep the spar cap tight to the spar. It would have been easier had I followed the instructions, but all of the larger holes are going to get final sized in the next step anyways.

A mistake like that means it is time to go to bed though. Big first day.

Spar caps cleco'd

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Match drilling spar doubler

Marking spar caps for first cuts

Mar 04, 2021 One final practice kit - (1.5 hours)

Category: Practice Kit

The empennage came with a small practice kit. I was going to hide it away some day and save it as a rainy day project for the kids or for a friend. But my oldest saw it and was so excited to build it. I'm glad we did, I think it really helped to get him excited about the project overall.

He actual got to measure and mark the rivet locations, he center punched them, then drilled (with a lot of assistance). I showed him how to deburr the holes and we tried to cleco the holes but he doesn't quite have the arm strength. We're going to need to work on that forearm grip strength so I can have a real helper in the future. I took care of the rivets but he got to at least see how the squeezer worked and even the machine counter sink. He thought it was the absolute coolest thing. He calls it the “PPP” - Perfect Practice Piece - he's so proud of it.

For my benefit, it actually was good to do this last little kit. It included nut plates which I have not done to date, and I was happy that I set my squeezer perfect right off the bat. I even noticed what I believe is an error in the plans calling too long of a rivet. I made my own call on the rivet length and it came out well.

Mini practice kit included with Empennage

Not bad for a six year old

Mar 04, 2021 Empennage Inventory - (3.0 hours)

Category: General

The empennage kit arrived today. I anticipated I would need some help to get the crate off the truck and recruited my neighbor. Got everything mostly unloaded and into the garage. Time to inventory.

Was excited to see no damage to the crate. I'd seen so many stories of people that had issues. Got through all of the inventory and everything was except a couple back-ordered items. I was happy to see that everything fit on the two 24”x48” shelves that I bought. Even the large skins that I was worried about got tucked away.

Can't wait to start. It came with another very small practice piece. Couldn't hurt to do one more little practice.

It doesn't appear that any of the parts in my kit are final sized. Good thing I bought those reamers. [4/16/21 update - I think I misread the flyer in the kit. All of my holes appear to be final sized.]

Purchases: Roadrunner Freight

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Everything inventoried and organized

Mar 02, 2021 Airfoil Kit #2 - Finish up - (1.5 hours)

Category: Practice Kit

Just a quick session to roll the leading edge and rivet the double flush trailing edge. Trailing edge came out very straight this time. Still had trouble rolling the leading edge without some pillowing. Maybe that is just as good as it gets. As my tech counselor reminded me - that's why they hide it where no one can see it.

After struggling with it a bit, I did get those pesky final rivets near the trailing edge of the ribs bucked. I ended up taping my skinny bar to the tungsten bar, and they bucked pretty easily actually.

Got everything cleaned up and ready - tail kit comes tomorrow!

Just a little pillowing on the leading edge

Finished airfoil

Finished airfoil 2

Leading edge not too bad

Trailing edge pretty straight

Got those last buggers bucked

Custom bucking bar

Mar 01, 2021 Airfoil kit #2 - continued - (2.5 hours)

Category: Practice Kit

With parts primed, I was able to proceed with the dimpling and final assembly of the second airfoil kit. I'm very happy with how this one is going. I do need a little more practice with back riveting; I feel like I'm not getting square on the rivet shank. Several were bad and had to drill out. Even used my oops rivets on several, but those worked well.

I'm very happy with the flush rivets that I had to buck. They all sat nice and flat. Just the trailing edge wedge and leading edge roll left.

I had some urgency to finish the practice kit today because the empennage should be here in two days!

only had to drill out a few

flush rivets looking much better this time

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Mar 01, 2021 Primer test #2 - (1.5 hours)

Category: General

The weather broke a bit today and I really wanted to get my second priming test done. This time I tested out the Stewart Systems Ekoprime - first cleaned the parts with their Ekoclean, then etched everything with the Ekoetch and a red scotchbrite pad. Rinsed and let dry while I figured out my spray gun. Just a cheap harbor freight HVLP gun but it should work for what I'll need. The primer sprayed well. The issues I did have were pure operator error and trying to figure out the flow on the new gun. The primers coverage is fantastic and if you keep the coats light it dries in a couple minutes. I tried for two light coats, but it did get a little heavy in places. No runs, just thicker than it needs to be. Also a little bit of trash in the paint. Again that was my fault; after etching and rinsing and drying I was not careful to wipe everything down with a lint free towel or something.

Within 20 minutes the parts were dry, and finger print resistant. I did a mild scratch test with my fingernail and it was already more scratch resistant than the self etch was after 2-3 days. Within an hour I was dimpling with no problems. I think this is the way to go.

All they offered for the small trial can was the light gray. I really would like to see their chromate green. I'm afraid it will be a little too green though.

One thing I noticed is that the primer covers so well that it covers sharpie. I'll have to be careful tracking parts through prep and priming.

I also sprayed a test piece with varying levels of surface prep - scotchbrite only, etch only, and full etch plus scotchbrite. The scratch test for the etch plus scotchbrite was definitely the best, but the scotchbrite only is also really good. I definitely plan to do the full mechanical plus acid etch per the directions, but wanted to have a feel for durability if the acid doesn't take. The portion with acid etch and no mechanical etch was fine too, but slightly less resistant to a finger nail scratch. I could easily expose metal on the acid only, versus the other two I could not get to bare metal with my fingernail. I went ahead and order a full quart of green Ekoprime. I hope the color is good.

Purchases: Stewart Systems Primer

Sprayed a little thick here so was slow to dry. Dried nice and flat eventually.

Dimple ready in an hour

Ekoprime

Feb 27, 2021 Storage shelves are ready

Category: Workshop & Tools

Bought my storage shelves today. I'd say the airplane factory is all ready to go. Got a tracking number for the empennage. It is officially on its way!

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Feb 26, 2021 Airfoil Kit #2 - (2.0 hours) Category: Practice Kit

Got a big haul from Fedex yesterday. My primer from Sterwart Systems came in and also my 2nd airfoil practice kit from Vans. I started on the practice kit and got all of the parts deburred and fabricated the skin stiffeners. So much easier the 2nd time. Just nice to be able to confidently progress the work without second guessing every step of the way. Cleco, match drill, move clecos, drill more, disassemble, debur, reassemble, repeat... Starting to get into a groove.

Really tried to focus on getting the trailing edge wedge correct this time. It's not possible to have both skins completely cleco'd to the skeleton and also set the trailing edge flat against the bench. My method was to cleco top and bottom skins to make sure everything was aligned, install the trailing edge wedge between the skins, and then use vice grip clamps to hold the trailing edge in alignment. Then I removed the clecos from the bottom skin so that it could sit flat on the bench with the trailing edge clamps just overhanging. Then I drilled the holes. I think it came out a lot better - we'll see how it goes after dimpling and countersinking. For now, I'm happy with it.

Everything is ready to prime, but the weather is crap this weekend. Since I'm really wanting to test out the primer, I should wait for better conditions.

Got another treat in the mail yesterday too. I know at some point in the future I'll need a pair of safety wire pliers. My brother is an A&P and I figured before I buy some I should at least ask him if he has an old pair laying around. I texted him to ask, and he said he actually had a nice pair of Bluepoints that I could borrow. Then I got a text 10 minutes later saying pliers are on their way. I was so surprised that he had gone out and shipped these pliers to me. Well yesterday it all made sense when I received an amazon package with a pair of brand new Milbar safety wire pliers. What a nice gift. He said he didn't want me using the cheap ones. Thanks Bro!

Feb 24, 2021 Empennage shipped! I think.... Category: General

Received an email from Roadrunner freight today with a bill of lading. I think that means my empennage has shipped! At least I think so, trying to get confirmation from Van's.

Purchases: Cleavleand reamers, 2" 3M wheel, oops rivets

Feb 13, 2021 Shop work

Category: Workshop & Tools

It's freezing outside. The worst cold snap Texas has had literally in my whole life. Not much to do in the shop anyways, but I did sneak out to Lowes today and get some miscellaneous tools and the items I need to finish my support tables for the DRDT-2. I repurposed some side-tables that had been in the garage for a long time. They were kinda of nice, but just didn't match any of stuff and we hadn't used them in 10 years. Cut the legs off to the perfect height and wrapped it in some old carpet. I'm very happy with how it turned out.

I was also becoming less happy with my work benches. The plywood top that I put on them was bowed, and I really thought I could take it out when I screwed it down but the overhangs still tended to curl up. I drove some shims between the top and the support frame to take most of the bow out of it. Much better now; I think it will do.

I was warming up a bit in the shop and decided to drill out the trailing edge on the practice kit to try to better align the skins and re-rivet. I had seen a tip to drill out -3's with a 3/32 bit and not a #40. That worked well, and I even tried a 15/64 bit and it was even better. The 3/32 punch fits very tight and the head pops right off. I'll be using that method going forward. It is difficult to align the trailing edge wedge on the practice kit because they do not go through the proseal or double sided tape method; just trying to hold alignment while back-riveting. I thought I was doing ok, but the final product of the re-rivetted trailing edge is terrible. There is a lot of pillowing and the shop head is not large enough to really secure it. I'm going to be very anxious of this stage on the actual plane. Good thing I have another practice kit - I may try to double sided tape method.

Van's said my empennage should ship on March 8th!

Purchases: Lowes Staple Gun, misc tools

Finished - ready for some skins!

Repurposed tables

Feb 10, 2021 Practice Kit - Airfoil (Cont.) - (4 hours)

Category: Practice Kit

DRDT2 arrived so I was able to dimple the skins and start rivetting. Back-rivetting the -3's was pretty easy although I have a tendency to overdrive them. Doesn't take much for -3's. I bucked all of the rivets to the spar and they mostly turned out good. I wanted to meet with my tech councelor this weekend, but it's going to be in the teens and 20's. I'm going to send him some photos and see if he can give any pointers. [He gave a thumbs up!]

I proceeded to the trailing edge and the double-flush rivets. Not very good. First off, I think I had the trailing edge wedge a little too close to the edge when I drilled it. I think these come pre-drilled in the actual kit so hopefully that takes out some of the guesswork. Also, didn't use the double-sided tape or proseal method so tough to keep straight and try to back-rivet while still cleco'd.

Lastly, I rolled the leading edge. I thought that didn't turn out too bad until I realized that I did not run the edge roller tool on the top skin prior to rolling. That made it almost impossible and I was trying to hold the skins open by hand. Then overdid the edge rolling in places and just really deformed the edge. Once rivetted, it was as expected and looking terrible. Really seems like there should be double the number of pop rivets on the leading edge; the spacing is really wide between them. I recognize they are not really structural, but it's tough to keep the skins in contact with so much space between rivets. Really need to practice edge rolling and remember to do that prior to rolling the skin, or dimpling.

Anyways, I think this one is done. I just ordered another practice kit.

Purchases: Shot bags, HF spray gun, clamps, misc tools, Van's Practice Kit

Spar and Ribs

Tight Space Dimples with Bar

Rivets set

Back-Rivets in Stiffeners

Bucked Rivets in Spar

More Rivets

More Rivets

More Rivets

Leading Edge Roll

Leading Edge Pillowing - Ugh

Leading Edge

Double Flush Rivets in Trailing Edge

Feb 05, 2021 Practice Kit - Airfoil - (3.0 hours)

Category: Practice Kit

Everything on the airfoil kit has been pretty straightforward so far. I have all of the skeleton done and the skins are drilled, but I'm at a stopping point until the DRDT-2 arrives and I can dimple the skins. Only potential challenges so far were drilling the trailing edge and dimpling the last couple holes on the ribs. I made drill guide from a scrap piece of oak that worked fine for the trailing edge. I was able to make the special dimpling/bucking bar for the last few rivets and found I could actually put a pretty good dimple in the rib by clamping the bucking bar to the bench and hitting the dimple die with the flush set gun. I did pick up a nice back rivet plate from a local metal supplier, but won't do much with it until dimpling is done. I need some more scrap aluminum for practice.

In my downtime I decided to test some self etch primer. Based on the forums, it seems SEM is the best but $20+ per can and nobody seems to have it. The duplicolor seems preferable over rustoleum and according to the autoparts store website, I thought they had it in stock. When I got there all they had was the rustoleum self-etch so I bought it. I prepped parts several different ways: no scuff with just acetone wipe, wet scrub with soapy scotchbrite pad plus acetone, dry scotchbrite scuff using power sander and acetone wipe, 400 wet sand and acetone wipe. I honestly can't tell the difference between any of the preps and I'm a little disappointed with the product. It holds well and doesn't come off with a tape test, but it scratches very easily with a fingernail and light pressure. And acetone takes it off just by looking at it. I'm going to see if it gets better after a few days of "cure" although the directions on the can don't mention anything about full cure time. I went ahead and ordered some Ekoprime to test that out - hopefully it is better. I think it will be less expensive overall considering that I plan to prime full inside. Going to SEM rattle cans would get expensive, but I suppose not in the grand scheme.

I also redid the flush rivets on the one end of the toolbox. They look much worse than they did before. I think a couple just aren't sitting straight. I may have mangled those holes a bit when I drilled the rivets out. Those rivets also weren't meant to be -4's in the first place so maybe they were doomed to fail.

Purchases: Primer

Primer Testing

Toolbox rivets redone - should have left them alone

Special Dimple bar and die

Dimple Bar

Nice Dimples with Bar

Feb 01, 2021 More Practice - (2 hours)

Category: Practice Kit

The airfoil practice kit arrived. I'm not going to get very far on that until my dimpler arrives. I did make the cuts on the stiffeners - started with snips, but quickly move to the band saw - much easier.
The extra rivets for the toolbox have not showed up yet, but I harvested a few from the airfoil to finish the tool box. Still need to redo some rivets. I'm now suspecting that the dimples for the -4's on the ends are not deep enough.

Airfoil kit also came with a miscellaneous assembly of a couple plates and an angle. It involved countersinking for a -4 in the angle. I thought I did a good job on the countersinking and adjusted the depth several times until the dimple sat flush, but when I rivetted it together, there seems to be a gap on the backside of the angle. I suspected maybe a burr on the countersink, so I drilled it out and re-did it. Still a gap - might just be a slight bend of the plate. I did practice the edge roller and the two lapped plates turned our really well. Using the squeezer up against the back of the angle is tight and I ended up with some marks on the angle; I need to confirm if these would be acceptable or not on the airplane. Will need to be more careful with that.

Overall, very pleased with the rivets though. I bucked all of them instead of the squeezer. The -4's into the angle might need to be countersunk a little deeper. I did set the rivet flush in the hole then added .007" per Section 5; still need to play with that I guess. Seems like it would vary based on the thickness of the skin.

I ordered a back-rivet plate from a local steel supplier too.

Random primer thought - I think I'm leaning toward full skin prime so probably Ekoprime.

Purchases: Back-Rivet Plate Metal4u.com

Misc Assembly

Variety of Rivets

Jan 30, 2021 Practice Kit - Tool Box - (4.0 hours)

Category: Practice Kit

Got to work on the practice kit and do some actual drilling, dimpling and riveting. My first rivets ever. Got every thing deburred and cleco'd the ends on the box, and then immediately made a big mistake. The ends are supposed to be 3/32" (-3) rivets - that registered clearly in my head that those are the smaller rivets and I instinctively grabbed the #30 drill bit. After match drilling half the holes on both ends, I moved the 3/32 clecos over and immediately knew I screwed up. #30 bit is for the 1/8" (-4) rivets. Oh well, that's why it's a practice kit. I just proceeded to drill them all to #30 and used the AN426-4 flush rivets that were provided with the kit. If it were the actual airplane I would have stopped and at least checked the edge clearances for the larger rivets.

My DRDT-2 isn't here yet so I used the squeezer to dimple to the box and the ends. Piece of cake. Then re-cleco'd and started driving flush rivets with the squeezer. That squeezer is way too easy; pretty much all perfect right off the bat. The squeezer won't reach the line of rivets across the bottom so I used the gun and the tungsten bar. Still pretty easy because I had the bottom of the box to rest the bar against and keep it square. Most turned out pretty good and no damage to the skins; I used blue painters tape on the flush set, but also did some without it and really didn't note any difference.

The rivets along the front edge of the box are AN470's with the button head. I used the squeezer on the first few. Again, couldn't be easier so I moved over the gun and bucking bar for the rest. This time I didn't have anything to support the bar against so it was a little more challenging. I got my first smiley too. Then another.

The most challenging rivets were the for AN470's on top that hold the handle. The box top is an awkward shape and hard to support while driving with the gun and bar. All four turned out bad. Got good practice drilling them out. Second attempt a little better, but still drilled out two of them. Third attempt was passable, but still probably the worst of the rivets I did today. Following the recommendation of other builders, I'll probably drill out all of the rivets and redo them just for the practice. Ordered some extra rivets from Aircraftspruce, including the replacements for the -4's I borrowed for the end skins. I can see a lot of time in my future waiting on parts or tools.

I also worked on a rib flange bender this week and finished it this morning. I know I don't need this for a while, if at all, but I saw it on the forums and realized I had most of the parts. I was just itching to fabricate something with all of my new tools. Came out pretty nice; can't wait to use it.

Lessons Learned:
- read the notes, slow down, read it again, before you drill, read it again, before you dimple, make sure it's the right side
- Use the squeezer whenever possible
- Running the rivet gun at about 50psi on the regulator. After setting the regulator, run the gun, then set it again. The pressure drops significantly after the first use of the tools.
- My 18v electric drill seems to run higher rpm than the air drill - might need to increase the pressure on the drill. I was running it at 90psi. Electric drill is definitely an option.
- Find a way to support the work when using the gun. It will move around on you.
- Instinct is to put a cleco in the corner of a plate. When doing this the first rivet is away from the corner and tends to curl the plate up. Better to cleco the second hole so that the first actual rivet goes in the corner.
- This is going to be fun. I'm really enjoying having a metal shop.

Purchases: HF airhoses & accessories, ACS Rivets

Flange Straightener

Toolbox

Toolbox

Toolbox

Toolbox

Toolbox

Jan 27, 2021 It's Official - Builder #42329

Category: General

Order confirmed and deposit paid. I have a builder number! Should arrive in 6 weeks. I also made a nice CPM schedule I can hang on the wall to track my progress. I included somewhat scale representations of what my garage configuration will look like for each stage. It's based on about a 7 year build.

My tools from Isham came today too. It's so much stuff. I'm always so envious of people that have really well organized tools. I need to figure something out if I'm going to be successful in this fairly small space. Just the back-rivet set and DRDT-2 still to come.

More Tools Arrived!

The Schedule

Jan 25, 2021 Empennage Ordered! Category: General

Order form submitted for empennage. Also ordered another practice kit - I'll need it. This one is the control surface.

Purchases: Empennage Kit, Airfoil Practice Kit

Jan 23, 2021 Tools, tools, tools!

Category: Workshop & Tools

I'd say today was the major commitment day. All the workbenches and items purchased to date would certainly have quite a bit of use, even if I backed out of this project. Today, though, we're all in. I purchased the RV-10 Tool Kit from Isham (planetools.com). It really seemed like the best deal, included the pneumatic squeezer and the DRDT-2. I also upgraded to the "sioux like" drill.

With that out of the way, might as well go to Lowes and pick-up the band saw, drill press, bench grinder, and belt sander. Picked up an air-compressor at Harbor Freight. Still have a little bit of piping to figure out. I think I'll mount a filter and regulator to one of the benches so it is handy right there.

Got the note from Vans that my practice kit shipped too. Probably be a couple week before the kit and all the tools arrive, so I'll just keep focusing on getting the shop set up. Almost looks like an airplane factory already. Bulk pickup comes next week and I can finally get rid of all of the extra stuff piled up in the garage that I plan to get rid of.

Purchases: RV-10 Tool Kit, Compressor, Band Saw, Drill Press, Bench Grinder

Harbor Freight Compressor

Drill Press, Band Saw, Grinder from Lowes

The Airplane Factory

Jan 22, 2021 N-number reserved Category: General

I've been thinking about N-numbers lately. I know getting way ahead of myself, but having a name for my project will help. I'm not just building some airplane, I'm building our airplane. I'd like to pay homage to the "10", and of course all of the Nx10RV's are taken. Something more personal - maybe with an MK for wife and my family names. Or maybe the kids - Ben and Everett - would be Bravo-Echo. I prefer Echo-Bravo actually, just sounds better on the tongue. I finally occurred to me - "an RV 10 for Everett and Ben". Has a nice ring. N104EB. Check the FAA registration and it's available. Reserved. Done. N104EB is perfect.

Purchases: FAA Reservation

Jan 21, 2021 Workbenches Done!

Category: Workshop & Tools

Got the workbenches done. Feels like it took about 20 trips to Lowes/Home Depot. I think they came out well. I ran the tops long on three sides on the main tables to give some clamping area. I was hoping the flush end would allow me set the tables side by side with no gap, but the legs aren't straight enough so I end up with a gap. In hindsight, I should have just left an overhang on all 4 sides. Overall, very happy with how they turned out. The casters were definitely worth it; rolls well, but very stable when locked - I locked all four wheels on each. I think they're going to be very practical with lots of storage underneath.

They already take up a lot of room in the garage. I don't know how I'm going to fit an airplane in here too!

And big thanks to my neighbor Darin for letting me use his miter saw.

3 Benches done

Jan 20, 2021 Workbenches

Category: Workshop & Tools

Spent the last two days building workbenches. They came out ok. Not sure how level my floor is so it's tough to say the tables are perfectly flat - they look good on a bubble level. First table was pretty rough on the knees, building it mostly on the concrete floor. At least for the second table, I got to use the first table as an elevated work surface. Made life much easier. Somehow blew my budget on workbenches; need to doublecheck my Lowes receipts.

As planned, I have enough left over plywood to build a couple smaller tables for saws and grinders. May need some more 2x4s though.

Ordered the practice tool box from Vans today. Their shop is closed for quarantine because of COVID, and they are not currently shipping kits. I assume the practice kits are already packaged up though and that it will still ship.

Purchases: Workbench supplies, Van's Practice Kit

Bench #1 Framing

Easier to build Bench #2 on top of Bench #1

Nearly Complete

Jan 17, 2021 Garage Prep Category: Workshop & Tools

Spent a lot of time this weekend cleaning up the garage and prepping it to look something like an airplane factory. The goal is to have at least half the garage pretty well clear of all of the garage stuff and leave at least enough area to build tail components and wings. I know getting the fuselage build in there is going to be a challenge, but I won't need to worry about that for a while. I moved the bikes to another wall, and rearranged a lot of the storage boxes. I went through all of the RC stuff that was out and really evaluated whether I would need any of it. Anything worth keeping got put in a box and put up high. The airworthy planes are hanging nicely on the wall now, which allowed me to get rid of the large table that previously held all of the RC clutter. I only left out the tools to fly; all of my build tools are put away.

I also hung three new shop lights which really brightened up the space. It looks great. And I finally pulled the trigger on a nice rolling toolbox that I have wanted for a number of years. I culled out a lot of stuff that we can get rid of. Most of it is still stacked up in the garage, but when bulk garbage comes next week I'll unload all of it and the space will really open up. Still going to need some storage for parts. I'm planning on two large steel racks that will sit in the middle of the garage to somewhat separate the airplane factory from the remaining garage space.

Next up will be work benches. Planning on two EAA style benches, probably 5'-6" x 2'-0". I'm thinking one with just a low storage shelf, and the other with two or even three shelves for parts. Based on a lot of online feedback, I will plan to let the top run long by about 3" on 3 sides for clamping parts. Definitely want locking casters. I think the floor is level enough that I won't need leveling bolts, maybe just door shims. the left over plywood from the top should give me two additional 2'-6" x 2' tables for a bench grinder/sander table and drill press/band saw table. Was considering a separate table for the DRDT2, but realized it will store below the main workbench and that I would never need it at the same time as I was drilling or riveting.

How to fit the build in essentially a one-car garage - the plan is to store completed components at my Dad's. He has a large shop as well as a nice steel barn that is unused. I figure that I will build the empennage and then drive that down to his place (~3 1/2 hours away) before the wing kit arrives. Once the wing is complete and the fuselage kit arrives, I will drive the completed wings along with the fiberglass fuse top down. Once the forward part of the fuse is complete, I will retrieve the tailcone and the fuse top. I'll build as much of that in the garage as possible. I don't think I'll be able to hang the engine with it in the garage, but should be able to get a lot of the firewall forward work done. I would also like to get as much of the interior and avionics done as possible before moving to an airport. Once I have a hangar, I'll be able to retrieve the wings and tail feathers for final assembly. I was targeting maybe Terrell, but now I think Lancaster i the better choice. They have t-hangars for less than $300/mo, almost outside the DFW Class Bravo, and only about 45 min from the house. That has got to be at least 5 years away.

Purchases: Craftsman Toolbox, shop lights

Jan 15, 2021 Primer Debate Category: Research/Train

I know it is too soon to be digging into, but you can't help but get drawn into the great primer debate. I've sprayed plenty of epoxy paints for my RC models, and yes I would like to avoid that. It really will slow me down, not just physically but mentally. The mixing, the waiting, the spraying, the curing, the clean-up - all of these steps weight on my mind and tend to prevent me from moving forward with my projects. Plus the health issues. But I do feel like I want to prime at least the contact surfaces. If nothing else from a re-sale value. I'll admit, I'm also a sucker for zinc-chromate green finish on interior parts.

I think I'll fall somewhere between using rattle cans or one of the 1-part water-based primers.

Jan 13, 2021 RV-10 Discovery Flight

Category: Research/Train

The reality of moving forward at all with this build brought to the forefront the fact that I have never even sat in an RV, much less flown one. There are not many -10's in the DFW area, but one of the Van's transition instructors is here in South Dallas and he has a -7 and a -10. I called Alex De Dominicis with RVTraining.com, and he said we could do an hour that would count eventually toward my transition training and insurance minimums.

Beautiful afternoon flying out of Eagles Nest (T56). We did a brief preflight, he showed me how to get in the plane (not as easy as it should be), reviewed the instruments (he had a dual AFS PFD/MFD with a GTN 750). He took off and gave me the controls on climb out. I did some turns, he demonstrated a power-off stall, then I flew to Midway (JWY), and I did some touch and go's in the pattern, then he flew back to T56. 1.1 hours of RV-10 time in the log book! Enjoyed my time with Alex. Will definitely go back to him for my transition training, and may take some "motivation flights" along the way.

Impressions: overall very pleased with the performance and handling. Castering nose wheel will take some getting used to. First time flying a stick and it was no issue. The plane goes where you point it with minimal trim; probably the easiest to fly airplane I've flown. It has the power to weight of the Bonanza, but you never feel like you have you're hands full or that it can get away from you. Really good forward visibility, but a little bit different sight picture that I need to remember - the nose looks like it is pointing severely to the right to me. This was pronounced in left turns when I was finding myself adding left rudder that wasn't necessary and on landing I was adding left rudder to align with centerline and Alex asked me what I was doing. I swore the nose was pointed 20 degrees to the right. It will take some getting used to.

His MFD and PFD are both on the master and they tend to brown out when starting. Not a big deal, but a little annoying. I hope that I can avoid that. [Later research says this is why people run a back-up battery.]

The cruise numbers that he quoted were a little disappointing, but I think they are just much more conservative than what others are running. He said he runs 165 MPH at 13 gal/hr ROP. There are several others on vansairforce that are getting closer to the 190-200 MPH book value at 13 gal or less.

Purchases: RV-10 Training Flight - RVTraining.com

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Jan 09, 2021 She said yes...well, she didn't say "no" Category: General

After obsessing about building a plane for the last year or so, I finally have a realistic financial plan and the ambition to get it done. It was time to make the case to the wife. She knew it's been coming. She still thinks it's a huge amount of money, and she's right. But she is generally very supportive of my hobby and knows that it is inherently expensive. I think she sees the opportunity that I do for family trips and adventures. I highlighted how long it was going to take (probably 6-7 years) and that now is the time to start if we want to be finishing it up when the boys are teenagers. I'd also like to work on it some with my dad while I still have time with him.

She only had one request. Don't paint it plain boring white. I promised her she could pick out the paint scheme.

Jan 02, 2021 RV-10 vs. RV-14 Category: General

I've been pretty set that if I were going to be successful building something, it would be a Vans RV. Of course aerobatics are fun, but what I really enjoy about GA is going places, getting there quick, and getting there comfortably. I have a wife and two kids so naturally I'm drawn to a four place airplane. But I do recognize the argument that many make - how many times are you really putting four people in the airplane? For me that is probably only 25% of the time, if that. They say buy (or build) a two place plane and then rent a 4 place when you need it. That would mean building an RV-14 and then continuing to just rent a Bonanza for family trips. That would save considerably on the RV build versus an RV-10, but that would guarantee that this would always be my plane and not the family's plane. I want my boys to help with the build, and I want it to be theirs too. I'd say that is a very big part of this endeavor, and the RV-14 is just not going to work. Even if the upfront cost is higher and the operating costs is marginally higher for the bigger engine, there is no doubt in my mind. It's RV-10.