Project: LMRPanther   -  
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Builder Name:Louis Rosner   -  
Project:   Sport Performance - Panther   -   VIEW REPORTS
Total Hours:800
Total Flight Time:
Total Expense:$10.00
Start/Last Date:Mar 15, 2021 - No Finish Date
 
Friendly URL: https://eaabuilderslog.org?s=LMRPanther

Home or Last Project Picture

Apr 20, 2024     Wheel pant fairings - (8 hours)       Category: Landing Gear
Finished fairings and attached to wheel pants


 
Apr 19, 2024     Upper strut fairings - (6 hours)       Category: Landing Gear
Finished upper strut, fairings and attached. Not yet satisfied with the fit removed and will reattach after paint.


 
Apr 18, 2024     Air oil separator - (6 hours)       Category: Engine
Fitted and attached anti-splat aero air oil separator per manufacturers instructions


 
Apr 07, 2024     Additional cowl preparation for painting - (5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Improving and filling seam for straighter line before painting. A straight edge achieved with tape and superfill epoxy.


 
Jan 24, 2024     It flies - (1 hour)       Category: Inspection
First flight and all went beautifully. I had a retired Air Force test. Pilot fly the first flight. He reported that the airplane flew hands off with no additional trim needed. All systems worked nominally. Couldn't have been a better result. Ecstatic no squawks.


 
Jan 18, 2024     Airworthiness inspection - (2 hours)       Category: Inspection
Airworthiness inspection with Arnold Holmes DAR. The excitement is palpable. Ready for phase 1.


 
Jan 18, 2024     Rudder cable guides - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Replaced rudder cable guides with longer color, appropriate nylon one half inch outside diameter tubing to extend from forward fuselage to aft fuselage through grommets.


 
Jan 17, 2024     Seat - (1 hour)       Category: Interior Finish
Oregon Aero foam core upholstered by Ray Cadillac with fire retardant FAA approved fabrics. Seat fitted to air frame with industrial Velcro and 3M adhesive.


 
Jan 15, 2024     Mixture control, adjust - (2 hours) Category: Engine
Mixture control adjustment .
Enriched mixture, one quarter turn to allow 25 RPM rise during idle cut off
Adjusted trim, control horn to prevent bolt contact with rudder at extreme position.
 
Jan 12, 2024     Tail fairing - (3 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Manufactured retention brackets for tail feather fairing. Getting closer.


 
Jan 12, 2024     Fuel flow test - (2 hours) Category: Fuel System
Boost fuel pump flow tested. Supplies 48 gallons per hour. Replaced O-rings on pitot and AOA to fuselage interconnect. Minor additional adjustments made to left wing spar pass through during folding and unfolding operation.
 
Jan 10, 2024     Hi horizontal tail fairing - (4 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Fitted rear horizontal, stabilizer, fairings. Needed to drill out several rivets along the upper longeron . Use a hole finder to match drill the fairings. Nutplates installed. Fitted vertical tail fairing. Additional work needed.


 
Dec 19, 2023     Weight and Balance - (3 hours)       Category: Inspection
Leveled aircraft. Full weight of aircraft perform. Multiple calculations performed at gross weight, minimal fuel weight. Baggage and various pilots. All numbers seem to be coming out within expected range.


 
Dec 15, 2023     Seatbelts and navigation lights - (3 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Assembled and installed Crow seatbelts. Assembled navigation lights and created fillet with super epoxy filler light. Minor filling around gaps on the air frame with same epoxy filler.


 
Dec 14, 2023     Turtledeck, formers - (2 hours)       Category: Empennage
Fitted turtleneck, formers to empennage.


 
Dec 14, 2023     Wing tips - (3 hours)       Category: Wings
Flush riveted 3/32 aluminum strip to inner surface of wingtips. Fitted external NAV lights to wing tips and trial assembled wingtip to wings with clecoes.


 
Dec 14, 2023     Baggage compartment - (3 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Fabricated baggage compartment closure panels. Assembled closure panels to fuselage with BSP 42 rivets. Relocated e outside air temperature wiring to behind panels.


 
Dec 13, 2023     Tailfeather fairing - (2 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Built up some additional fiberglass resin and filler on fairing. Additional contour with sanding. Will need some more work.


 
Dec 11, 2023     Rear fairing - (2 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Split rear fairing to follow contour of horizontal vertical stabilizers. Single sheet of fiberglass applied with west system 105 epoxy resin system.


 
Dec 08, 2023     Fuel pump overflow - (2 hours)       Category: Engine
Manufactured and installed a fuel pump, overflow line to vent any such fuel overboard and out of the engine compartment. Cleaned up some additional wiring and installed an Adel clamp to the fuel sump to hold the starter power line.


 
Dec 04, 2023     Rewired starter - (2 hours)       Category: Engine
Rewire starter solenoid


 
Dec 03, 2023     Engine start - (2 hours)       Category: Engine
First engine start. Fuel flow in operative. MAP in operative.


 
Nov 24, 2023     Control stick wiring - (2 hours) Category: Avionics
Wire control stick with three conductor with shield Teflon wire. PTT and CWS connected to Ry stick button. Auto pilot disconnect wired to pilots left trim. Will need to find out a better solution for auto pilot disconnect.
 
Nov 22, 2023     Bottom tail skin - (5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Applied sealant and riveted lower tail skin in position. Installed appropriate hardware to secure empennage to forward fuselage.


 
Nov 21, 2023     Antennas - (4 hours)       Category: Avionics
Attached com ads-b and transponder antennas to lower fuselage. Manufactured antenna wires with appropriate BNC and TNC connectors.


 
Nov 20, 2023     Propeller attached - (5 hours)       Category: Propeller
Attached propeller to spacer and engine. Fitted spinner. Pitched prop to #4.
Trimmed wing folding assembly to prevent binding.


 
Nov 19, 2023     GPS Attachment - (3 hours)       Category: Avionics
Manufactured GPS attachment shelf and secured to seat roll bar with appropriate hardware. Shortened control stick and installed control switches.


 
Nov 18, 2023     Landing lens changed - (2 hours)       Category: Lighting
Removed poorly fit lens on left wing and replaced with new lens from Duckworths aviation. ( RV 3)


 
Nov 16, 2023     Wing adjustments - (2 hours)       Category: Wings
Additional trimming of upper wing skin and wing fitting adjustments


 
Nov 07, 2023     Securing fuel lines       Category: Engine

Additional tidying up and tightening of fuel lines. Several brackets and hose clamps, manufactured and installed to prevent excessive fuel line movement.


 
Nov 06, 2023     Fuel servo drain secured       Category: Engine
Manufactured bracket with grommet and secured fuel servo drain to exhaust crossmember.


 
Oct 01, 2023     Still away Category: Research
 
May 21, 2023     Begin landing light installation - (6 hours)       Category: Lighting
Started cut outs in both wings for installation of Duckworth LED landing lights. Cut away a portion of the forward, outboard rib, lightening hole, where it interfered with the light mounting assembly. The kit was for the RV series of aircraft so the light mounting assembly had to be cut, shortened and riveted so it would fit 12 inches on center between the forward wing ribs.


 
May 20, 2023     More wiring - (6 hours)       Category: Avionics
Finished wiring of P mags. Additional cleanup of wires and ignition. Not yet the final product but decent. Finally flipped the switch. No smoke. A great day. Have to troubleshoot the alternator field which shows +12 V even with the alternator off. Possibly a wrong pin in the connector on the forward Fuselage cable.


 
May 12, 2023     Fuel vents - (2 hours)       Category: Fuel System


 
May 01, 2023     Fuel controller reinstalled - (5 hours)       Category: Fuel System
Fuel control unit re-installed with sniffle valve placed by Performance airflow. All fuel hoses connected fuel flow transducer mounted to firewall with an offset bracket, allowing a more gentle band for the firewall fuel pass-through connection. Some additional securing of wires and hoses to reduce chafing.
Final bend for crank case, ventilation line, so that oil will drip on the exhaust stack and burn away.


 
Apr 11, 2023     More panel - (3 hours)       Category: Avionics
Cut additional openings in panel for remote Avionics boxes


 
Apr 09, 2023     HDX1100 mounted - (4 hours)       Category: Avionics
Cut out in panel to template of HDX 1100. Secured with MK 1000–06 nut plates.


 
Apr 03, 2023     Avionics started - (4 hours)       Category: Avionics
Mounted several boxes with 8-32 rivnuts.
Removed starter in preparation for 12v exchange. Measured hose lengths in preparation for order of completed conductive Teflon hose package.


 
Mar 25, 2023     Boost pump installation - (4 hours)       Category: Fuel System
Finished installation of boost pump. Needed a 1/8 inch shim under the rear of the assembly so that a fitting could be screwed onto the filter.
Installed fuel pressure and oil, pressure and oil temperature sensors. Hydraulic sealant applied. Torqued temperature sensor 160 inch pounds. Drilled a small hole into the side of the sensor facets and drilled an additional 16th inch hole into the oil adapter tab to allow placement of safety wire for temperature sensor.


 
Mar 09, 2023     Cockpit fuel lines - (6 hours)       Category: Fuel System
Fabricated and assembled cockpit, fuel lines, utilizing vibrant performance, 6AN fuel hose and fittings,. Completed assembly and installation of oil, cooler lines, utilizing vibrant performance, 8 AN fuel hose and fittings.


 
Mar 08, 2023     Oil, cooler installation, and baffles finished - (5 hours)       Category: Engine
Completed oil cooler installation. Stainless steel bracket manufactured and installed which resulted in complete security and no movement of oil cooler. Oil cooler fittings installed with Loctite hydraulic sealant.
Lower baffles secured with stainless steel threaded rods, double nuts and lock washers.


 
Mar 01, 2023     Additional firewall, throughput and ignition wires - (3 hours)       Category: Firewall
Fitted and secured temporarily with Crico's rear baffle heater intake 2 inch aluminum collar. Completed clamping ignition wires with additional Aydell clamps to upper engine pushrod tubes. Heater hoses installed.


 
Feb 28, 2023     Heater box, cable, assembly - (4 hours)       Category: Controls
Routed heater box, cable, through bulkhead, eyeball, and connected to heater box. Function verified. Started attaching ignition wires to pushrod tubes with a dell clamps.


 
Feb 27, 2023     Ignition wire, firewall throughput - (3 hours)       Category: Firewall
Drilled rear baffles for nylon blocks to secure top engine ignition wires


 
Feb 15, 2023     Install rear inspection covers - (3 hours)       Category: Empennage
Installed reinspection covers with 6–32 nut plates. Some difficulty encountered installing the upper nut plates because of proximity to longeron and rear doubler.


 
Feb 11, 2023     Oil cooler installation - (7 hours)       Category: Engine
Reinstalled oil cooler in lower location to clear the Cowell. Utilized a .050 inch doubler on the rear baffle and a 1/8 inch Doubler at the number four cylinder to rear baffle connection. Will connect with number six screws to allow for later disassembly. Original 42 length bolts too long. Will substitute for AN 3–40A


 
Feb 06, 2023     Fuel controller - (6 hours)       Category: Engine
Cables, trimmed and fixed with Bowden clamps. Solid wire attached to rod ends with appropriate hardware. Mixture control is stop to stop with adequate pushback. Throttle control is solid to idle with good. Push back. Hits the stop of throttle quadrant at wide-open throttle. Checked with performance airflow, and they recommend, that wide-open throttle should be 1/16 inch behind the stop. Excess movement noted at cable bracket in the cockpit where it is riveted to the skin. This will have to be strengthened with a Doubler or strap from the bracket to the throttle quadrant.
Quick oil, drain safety, wired to an added, screw placed at the aft end of cable management system.


 
Feb 01, 2023     Throttle cable connection - (4 hours)       Category: Engine
Determine the best possible position for throttle cable pass-through on firewall. Drilled to 1.078 with step drill and utilized a spherical metal grommet hole size .240. Passed throttle cable through mock up at fuel controller. We'll hold off on final trimming of cable until the other cables are passed through firewall. Re-purposed a Bowden cable clamp 7/32 of an inch by milling center on a lathe .240 inches. The clamp fits perfectly in the mock up and will hold down the cables very nicely.


 
Jan 31, 2023     Fuel system - (4 hours)       Category: Engine
Install fuel selector valve with 832 screws washers and nuts. Resource work for AN fittings and fuel system.


 
Jan 27, 2023     Baffles - (4 hours)       Category: Engine
Further trimming and fitting of baffles. Using paper clips.


 
Jan 23, 2023     Engine compartment - (5 hours)       Category: Engine
Modified fuel control inlet with PVC coupler. Manufactured oil cooler, Plenum, and trial fit oil cooler. OK, mounted and trial fit alternator assembly.


 
Jan 21, 2023     Fuel controller - (3 hours)       Category: Engine
Additional mock up on cable attachment. Fuel, controller, positioning. Manufactured retention washers out of finishing stainless steel Timmerman washers and drilled to 3/16 inch inside diameter. This will prevent fitting from rubbing against lower Cowl as the 970 size washers did.


 
Jan 19, 2023     Cowl attchment - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Cam lock fasteners completed for upper Cowl


 
Jan 13, 2023     Exhaust and fuel controller, mounting - (10 hours)       Category: Engine
Mounted the performance airflow FM 150 fuel controller. 90�lbow. Purchased the performance airflow updraft cable, mounting kit, which required considerable deconstruction and reconstruction for possible cable installation. Used double sided sticky. Tape to reassemble the parts in appropriate positions. Mounted the Federman exhaust system. Exhaust bolts torqued to 200 inch pounds. Giving further consideration to cables with rod and bearings as specified by vans. Already purchased the open wire cables, but appears to have too many possible points of failure at the throttle and mixture control linkage end.


 
Jan 12, 2023     Additional front Cowl fitting - (5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Trial fit of the upper Cowl and positioning for the 2000 series camlocs (smaller units). Needed some additional fill to raise the cowl to approximate the upper Avionics bay skin. A total of four ply, fiberglass, and epoxy, 1 inch strips applied.


 
Jan 10, 2023     Cowl adjustment - (2 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Trial fit upper Cowl. Need an extra .040” elevation for the camlocs. Two layers of fiberglass applied to Cowl. Will try to refit for tomorrow.


 
Jan 02, 2023     Cowl installation - (12 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Measured distance from forward, engine hoist loop to back of spinner after installing fly wheel, spacer and rear spinner bulkhead. Total distance equaled nine and three-quarter inches. Manufactured wood jig such that Cowl face would extend 9 1/2 inches leaving 1/4 inch between Cowl and rear spinner bulkhead. Moderate amount of trimming to get the Cowl to fit just right.


 
Dec 27, 2022     Installed engine - (8 hours)       Category: Engine
Originally installed engine with an 8–44 bolts. These turned out to be one size too long so I need to remove them and replace them with an 8-43. Ordered wrong type of bolts so with the help of a machinist drilled the bolts to except cotter pins. Nuts tightened so that rubber engine mounts were compressed to exactly 1.80 inches.


 
Dec 19, 2022     Right forward fuselage - (4 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Attached right forward fuselage skin. Attached right cheek and right exhaust tunnel. Right wing attach pin locking plates installed.


 
Dec 17, 2022     Horizontal tips - (5 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Finished installation of horizontal tips and closure. Ribs. Also safety wired and secured hinge pins for vertical and horizontal tail.


 
Dec 16, 2022     Finished roll servo installation - (5 hours)       Category: Controls
Installed roll serve upper plans. MM four on control stick bearing and MM3 at servo end. Ops check with no chance for controls to over center.


 
Nov 16, 2022     Wing root fairings completed - (8 hours)       Category: Wings
Finished fairings.


 
Nov 15, 2022     Left wing root fairing - (7 hours)       Category: Wings
Fashioned left wing root fairing. This took a long time and quite a bit of thought to get the parallel reference line and make measurements to the fuselage. Once that was done, the faring was carefully clamped to the wing, and all holes drilled and upsized to number 30. Dimpled and riveted with countersunk rivets, I was able to use the original row of wing skin to rib number one holes that were dimpled prior and using the small right angle pneumatic drill. I was able to back drill to the outer skin through the faring and that saved me from making an extra line of rivet holes. Applied rubber seal. Replaced wing and it appears to be a nice fit cosmetically.


 
Nov 14, 2022     Brakes - (5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Attached AN compression fittings to master cylinders and brake calipers. .138 inside diameter, nylon tubing placed in aft gear grooves. Brake line routed through nylon tube. Preliminary routing of brake lines performed. Final routing will be determined once I have the reservoir attached to the firewall. Wing walk, Doubler trimmed and fitted to left wing. Dimpled all holes and riveted with appropriate countersunk rivets.


 
Nov 13, 2022     Fuel tanks attached - (4 hours) Category: Wings
Final fit and riveting of fuel tanks. Need to secure tanks with bolts at the wing route
 
Nov 11, 2022     Pitot disconnect - (8 hours)       Category: Wings
Attached pitot disconnect and angle of attack disconnect. Assembled jig so that the drill could be passed from inside the fuselage perpendicular out to the wing. Male disconnects attached to wing. Trial fit wing and disconnect seems to be well positioned. Need final pressure check.


 
Nov 07, 2022     Flap controls - (4 hours)       Category: Wings
Finally back to building. Attached wings. Slight adjustments made. All four pins engaged. Set ailerons to 0�Matched ailerons to flaps with clamps. Drilled flap control arms to 3/16 inch and bolted with hardware. Flap control check.


 
Jul 11, 2022     Installed wings - (12 hours)       Category: Wings
Attached wings to wing fold support and tubes. Swung wings and reinserted spars. Tight fit will need further adjustment. Not happy with placement of pitot tube which slightly limits folding of left wing against fuselage.
Further build on hold until I return in August.


 
Jun 11, 2022     Optional wing folding mechanism - (4 hours)       Category: Wings
Fashioned wing fold tube cut outs. Use Dremel to make multiple successive cuts and polished with sanding wheels.


 
Jun 10, 2022     Finished flap construction and return Springs - (6 hours)       Category: Wings
Finished assembly of right and left flaps. Flap drive angles too tight on flap drive levers. Removed powder coat on levers which corrected fit. Flap stops installed. Flap return springs installed per instructions. Cut outs in back of each flaps modified slightly to prevent interference with inboard rib. Flap doublers fashioned out of .060 inch aluminum. Rivets spacing modified to prevent interference.


 
Jun 07, 2022     Completed left wing aileron controls. - (6 hours)       Category: Controls
Completed left-wing aileron controls. Similar description to yesterday's build. Again noted slight rubbing of pushrod exit.


 
Jun 06, 2022     Aileron rigging - (6 hours)       Category: Controls
Assembled pushrods joiners and belllcranks. Trimmed distal wing spar to allow for wingtip installation later. Trimmed joiner mount per manual. Assembled bellcrank and push rods. Identified slight rubbing of pushrod as it exited the wing cut out which will need some later trimming. Trimmed approximately 1/4 inch of threads from the push rod so that inner attachment stack would not hit rib number nine. Using a digital angle measure confirmed 15�wn and 25� motion of Aileron.


 
Jun 03, 2022     Adjusted forward wing pins - (5 hours) Category: Wings
Adjustment to forward wing pins went to fairly straightforward. Took a little bit of time but got them to slide in and out fairly easy. Rear shims adjusted to maintain equal incidence within 0.1 degree on both sides. Rear pins drilled.
 
Jun 02, 2022     Fit wings to fuselage - (6 hours)       Category: Wings
Attached upper wing spar guides. Installed right and left wings. Adjusted upper and lower guides and rollers. Rough fit of forward spar wing pins. Incidence checked on both wings. Within 0.2�n the left. Within 0.1�n the right. Slight difference between right and left at wing route. Sanded temporary rear wing spar shim down approximately 1/32 of an inch. Incidence at roots within 0.1�


 
May 27, 2022     Flap repair - (4 hours)       Category: Wings
Repaired right flap hinge. Removed and replaced MS 20257–3 with a MS 20257–4 hinge. Raised center of hinge line one 16th inch so that flap would better meet with aileron profile. Improved slightly less than when the left flap was repaired. Will leave it like this and see how the final finish looks. Also finished re-drilling and dimpling new holes in the flap skin for the shortened sport version and attachment of the control rib.


 
May 26, 2022     Finished canopy installation - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Reassembled all canopy frame parts with appropriate hardware. Canopy bubble attached to skirt with 632 screws. Used 1/2 inch length screws instead of those supplied with kit. Fitted canopy to fuselage frame. Latching mechanism appears to work well. There is clearly some torque when the canopy opens and closes in a clockwise direction. Left portion of the canopy needs to be spread slightly when closing but closure mechanism works well. Emergency release mechanism also appears to work well. Gas strut installed. Operation worked well. Satisfied at this time.


 
May 09, 2022     More canopy work - (5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Further fitting of canopy rails to fuselage. I accidentally oversized several of the screws to 1032. Fit fine and should be OK. Attaching the forward nylon block through the instrument panel resulted in the nut coming out immediately behind one of the forward skin attachment lugs. Will have to trim this later. Satisfied with latching mechanism which appears to operate smoothly.


 
May 08, 2022     Canopy attachment structure - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Needed to grind away some of the additional welds for hinges to fit properly. Cut the grooves for the quick release pins forward and aft. Drilled additional attachment holes. Several of the holes should have been 832 and a upsize to 1030 to an error but should be OK.


 
May 03, 2022     Canopy attachment - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Manufactured latch pins as per plans. Groove attachment to handle widened to accommodate nylon washers.


 
May 02, 2022     Completed left-wing - (8 hours)       Category: Wings
Left wing riveted per builders manual. Wing walk and rib one rivets left out. Waine removed from fixture. Fixture disassembled. Another great moment. Plan to tackle canopy next.


 
Apr 29, 2022     Finished pitot tube - (4 hours)       Category: Wings
Finished installation of pitot tube. Rerouted lines to prevent chafing against wing slider tube. Checked all connections. Skins replaced and flap and Elron hinges placed in position. Area of wing walk primed as well as the back of the wing walk itself.


 
Apr 28, 2022     Left wing - (4 hours)       Category: Wings
Installed pitot tube and hoses. Intended to attach to skin but would have needed a 1/4 inch shim. Attached to ninth rib with angle stock and end to spar with BSC 44 rivets.


 
Apr 18, 2022     Further work on left wing - (7 hours)       Category: Wings
Ribs attached to forward Spar. Ribs stiffeners attached to ribs one through eight. Appropriate rivets applied. Close tolerance bolts used to affix spar to rib Stefiner. Fuel tank mounts installed with close tolerance bolts. Fixture further squared with plumbob and level.


 
Apr 14, 2022     Trial fit of control surfaces - (6 hours)       Category: Wings
Hung aileron and flap on right wing. Noted poor fit and alignment between the two surfaces. It's possible that I mounted the hinge on the flap too low. Manuel called for a 1/16 inch offset and it is possible that it is offset more than 1/8 of an inch. Sent Dan a query for possible correction. I'm hoping that I can drill out the rivet on the hinge and place a new hinge in the appropriate position.
Started assembly of the fly LED light boards. Easy but time consuming like everything else.
Shortened right flap per PDF file. Drilled new matched holes in skin to accept control rib per instructions. Had to offset some of the rivet holes to clear and maintain edge distance.


 
Apr 13, 2022     Completed attachment of right fuel tank - (6 hours)       Category: Wings
Needed to trim approximately 1/16 of an inch of the inboard section of the outboard forward skin in order for the fuel tank to fit properly. Additional holes match drilled and dimpled. Countersunk upper row of fuel tank rivet attachment holes. Dimpled lower row of attachment holes on both sides. Measured left portion of tank skin to F spa. 22 and three-quarter inches at all four corners. Appears to be a good fit. A bit tight and needed to use ratchet straps to bring tank into position. Hopefully this will not be a problem causing tank skin separation and leaks.


 
Mar 30, 2022     Final fit of right wing skins - (8 hours)       Category: Wings
Final fit of inboard and outboard aft skins. Final fit of outboard nose skins. Rechecked wing for any twist using plum bobs. Wing continues to remain straight without any warp. Assembled lower inspection hole ring with nut plates and dimpled inspection cover for 632 countersunk screws. Trial fit with Cleco. Dimpleed skins with dyeNQ. Holes in the skin which would attach to spar forward and aft we're dimpled with number 30 dies and both bars countersunk. Rolled edges of fuel tank and upper skins only. Seem to fit better than the lower skins. Dan advised against edge rolling but it does seem to make a slightly nicer fit.


 
Mar 18, 2022     Rt wing - (5 hours)       Category: Wings
Prepared rear spar rib one and nine tail piece and rib one nose piece. Prepared right rear spar stiffner and clecoed in position. Transfer drilled rib one stiffener and clecoed. Trial assembled rib one bell crank bracket trim. Found the step extremely confusing as parts were labeled rib one stiffener and joiner mount. Pictures in manual were for left which was also confusing. Getting a headache. Will look at this again in the morning.


 
Mar 14, 2022     Permanent attachment a tail feathers - (4 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Removed temporary hardware on vertical and horizontal tail. Replaced with appropriate close tolerance bolts. Rear vertical tail spar with NAS 6603–6 bolts. Forward vertical tail spar with NAS 6603–8 bolts AN 960 PD 10 washer additional AN 960–10 washer and MS 210–42L3 locking nuts. Tail socket permanently secured with AN525-10R12 and AN 365 1032 a. Additional AN 960–10 flat washer required for proper tightening of forward vertical tail spar to fuselage attachment.


 
Mar 12, 2022     Install trim cable - (7 hours)       Category: Controls
Trim cable installed and routed to trim tab. All areas of contact with clamps insulated with a single layer of self adhering red silicone tape. Cable appeared to rub against lower skin of vertical fin and this was trimmed as appropriate. Alex tech expandable PET braided sleeving applied to aft and of trim cable to prevent chafing. Edges of the sleeves were contained with heat shrink tubing. Hardware as supplied. I noticed that the trim cable outer housing was slipping slightly in the aft most clamp when the elevator was flexed for up and down deflection. This was somewhat controlled and contained by application of single turn of safety wire proximal and distal to the clamp. Operational check of trim tab good. Torque on all nuts re-checked and torque seal applied


 
Mar 10, 2022     Finished Rudder and elevator controls - (7 hours)       Category: Controls
Installed Rudder cable guides and fairleads. Forward fairlead is a bit long but was safety wired in place. Assembled and installed Rudder pedal adjusters. Ran rudder cables and connected Adjuster bracket from Rudder to forward pedals Using central bolt hole.. Centering confirmed.
Joystick bearings bolted to frame and lower skin with appropriate hardware.
Hardware from adjuster cable attach bracket to pedal calls for a 15 mm screw with castellated nut and cotter pin. Additional 960–10 washer applied as the bolt seemed slightly long. A big day, getting closer to flight.


 
Mar 08, 2022     Forward bottom skin completed and riveted - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Needed to bevel maingear clamping brace while in place. Used Dremel which took a long time but allowed for accurate bevel. Cutaway some additional skin to further clear the main landing gear. Adhesive applied and forward skin riveted preserving holes as per plans. A cumbersome and messy procedure. Quite a bit of oozing of the adhesive which cleaned up nicely with acetone. Used rubberized wing walk for heel protectors. Very pleased with the result.


 
Mar 07, 2022     Fitting a fwd fuselage bottom skin - (4 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Skin once again fitted to forward fuselage. All holes are drilled to number 30. Checked fit of firewall. Deburring of lower firewall and all skin holes as well as tube holes.


 
Feb 28, 2022     Tire and tubes - (5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Assembled maingear hold down supports. Tire and tubes assembled with brake calipers and disks ready for placement on gear legs. Also a affixed forward rudder cable support clamps.


 
Feb 27, 2022     Prepare Landing gear - (7 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Both right and left landing gear repaired for painting. Tooling marks sanded and polished. Top end of each gear leg beveled. Acid etched, scuffed the greased and painted with epoxy primer


 
Feb 15, 2022     Vents - (3 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Initial fit and manufacture of RV right and left vent kits. Ready for riveting . Trimmed rear fuselage faring. Quite a mess. Will need a fair amount of fiberglass and ingenuity.
Engine arrived. Beautiful.


 
Feb 13, 2022     Rudder rigging - (4 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Using wood template at 28�djusted Rudder stops. Stop on right needed 1/8 inch of material removed in order to achieve approximately 25�f right rudder throw. Left rudder stop OK.
Primer applied to several forward fuselage parts including cheeks and lower exhaust tunnels


 
Feb 08, 2022     Seat servo access panel - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Fashioned seat servo access panel out of 32 thousandths aluminum. 24 8/32 nut plates installed. Seat panel and cover repeat primed. Paint bubbled, removed and repainted. Vertical fin and rudder reinstalled. Template for rudder rigging cut per plans. Ready for Rudder rigging tomorrow.


 
Feb 07, 2022     Painted bottom skins - (4 hours) Category: Fuselage
Forward and rear bottom fusela skins epoxy primed.
 
Jan 28, 2022     Rudder pedals installed. Throttle quadrant installed - (8 hours)       Category: Controls
Permanently installed rudder pedals. Drilled brake pedals to torque tubes. Brake pedals angled forward 10 Degreesneutral position with rudder pedals hanging straight down. Rudder return spring plate installed per plans. Needed to substitute a 5/16 inch spacer for master brake attachment to rudder pedal. Return springs installed. Springs placed over spacers. See pictures.
Throttle quadrant permanently installed after painting inner face. Sat in seat which was up drilled to number 30. Made engine noises.


 
Jan 25, 2022     Throttle control - (3 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Throttle control Trial fit throttle controls.
Trial fit right and left map pockets. Painted interface of throttle control smoke gray rust oleum. Needed to shrink inferior edge of left mat pocket with fluting pliers to clear bellcrank support tube.


 
Jan 24, 2022     Completed ailerons and flaps - (20 hours)       Category: Wings
Completed ailerons and flaps. Attached hinges utilizing scrap aluminum and 60 thousandths shim (1/16 inch). Some difficulty obtaining a completely straight edge on the hinges. Hopefully the hinges will meet with the wings with the measurements shown on the plans.


 
Jan 18, 2022     Forward upper skin attachment - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Finished attaching upper skin. Used 8-32 countersunk nut plates, screws and washers. Tedious, repetitive but straightforward.


 
Jan 14, 2022     Left aileron assembly - (6 hours)       Category: Wings
Fabricate both aileron control rib assemblies. Fabricate counterbalance arm assemblies. Attempted to install into aileron skin but found an unacceptable fit. Lead weight is two and three-quarter inches wide. Cut out in aileron skin insufficient. Will need to discuss with Dan.


 
Jan 10, 2022     Wing guides and adjustment rollers - (5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Drilled upper and lower center guides and put aside for later. Right and left nylon guide blocks installed per instructions. Found manual extremely difficult to understand at this juncture. Instructed to counter sink for number eight screws but only number six hardware supplied. Nylon blocks previously drilled for number eight screws. Pictures also confusing between right and left aft and forward. Page 548 recommend installing P4908 to forwards spar plate when it should be to rear spar. Nylon blocks poorly fit to Spar plates because of welds. Hopefully this will not be a problem later. Some adjustments affected with sanding but not complete. Right and left roller guides assembled and installed per instructions. Upper wing adjuster holes seem to already have been pre-drilled on both sides.


 
Dec 31, 2021     Installed control stick - (6 hours)       Category: Controls
Installed control stick and forward elevator control rod. Will delay bolting assembled control mount to floor until bottom skin is completely prepared and riveted in place.


 
Dec 30, 2021     Rudder pedal install - (3 hours)       Category: Controls
Assembled rudder pedal and master brake assemblies. Fashioned master cylinder push rods out of 1/2 inch stock. Fitted assembly into aircraft. Final fitting and adjustment will be performed after fuse placed to landing gear. Unable to step in to plane at this time.


 
Dec 28, 2021     Getting ready for cowl - (4 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Installed forward side flange strips. Positioned trimmed. Drilled hole for step in lower skin and enlarged to appropriate size.
Researched Dynon Avionics package and test fitted for HDX 1100 (10 inch) display.


 
Dec 27, 2021     Adjust elevator control rod - (2 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Elevator control rod binding at bulkhead four and aft horizontal deck. Adjustments made to formed area of skin to release binding. Tooling hole widened on aft deck to allow additional space for movement. Movement free and clear. Up-and-down stops rechecked. 24.8^ up and 20^ down. Horizontal stabilizer bolts torqued to 35 inch pounds.


 
Dec 25, 2021     Cheeks - (8 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Installed right and left cheeks. Needed to trim back forward 4 inches of each forward side skin To have appropriate 1/16 inch clearance below edge of steel tubes. Cheeks trimmed back to forward formers. Additional joggles installed for front cowling.


 
Dec 13, 2021     Elevator joiner install - (7 hours)       Category: Empennage
Elevator joiner installed as per instructions. Relatively straightforward. Slight less than 1�ashout noted in right elevator. Reviewed position for up and down stops. Control bearing installed with bushing. Will set up and down travel tomorrow.


 
Dec 07, 2021     Tail feathers mounted - (20 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Leveled fuselage in all three axis. Mounted aft and forward horizontal tail supports on aft fuselage deck. Mounted horizontal stabilizer. Measurements from outboard rivets/tubes equal on both sides. Stabilizer leveled into axis. Pilot holes drilled into aft and forward mounts with right angle drill and sequentially enlarged and reamed to 0.188. NAS close tolerance bolts installed as per manual. Number 10 washers and temporary nuts installed.
Drew horizontal line across rear vertical tail mount at 7/8 inch from aft deck. This was specified for the newer mount 13/8 inch tall mount and vertical tail would not fit properly. Forward vertical tail spar would not have seated properly deep enough and through bolt hole would've come out to low near the end of the spar. A new line was drawn at 3/4 of an inch above the aft horizontal deck and this allowed the forward spar to seat a little more deeply giving more purchase for the through bolts.
Trimmed bottom of skin at leading edge of vertical tail for appropriate fit. Plumbob was used to check for vertical alignment wall holes were first drilled with number 30 through existing pilot holes. Right angle drill used to upsize to number 16. Tail assembly removed and all holes were reamed to 0.188 for proper fit of bolts. rear vertical tail spar attachment drilled for number 30 and riveted with BSPS 44 rivets. The rear siet of holes was further enlarged and reamed for proper fit of close tolerance bolts.


 
Nov 30, 2021     Install prep horizontal tail - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Trimmed horizontal tail skins as per install prep diagram. Reviewed horizontal tail attached points. Identified rivets in tailcone that need to be removed prior to placing low horizontal tail faring. Oops.


 
Nov 29, 2021     Finished for and aft fuselage attachment - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Finished deburring lower skin on forward fuselage. Reattached for and aft fuselage sections. AN hardware attached and secured as per instructions. Slight oil can of left rear fuselage skin noted. Cut out in fwd right spar cover to clear fuselage tube.


 
Nov 23, 2021     Mounting of tailcone - (10 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Marked location of 3/16 inch AN bolt hardware. Original measurements on bottom skins not correct. After reading ahead it became evident that the lower bolt holes needed to be centered on the side longeron bolt holes. This was not clear in the instructions. Drilled forward skins through rear skins to tubes and upsized all holes to 30. Rechecked alignment with string and laser and levels. All correct. Small gap between lower left longeron and aft fuselage tube.


 
Nov 22, 2021     Aft fuselage alignment - (10 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Aft and forward fuselage sections removed and replaced several times. Alignment achieved with string and laser. All flat surfaces balanced with levels. Sims four longerons and spices needed to be remade at 4 1/2 inches. Original shims too short.


 
Nov 18, 2021     FF firewall - (6 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Added aileron paddle cut out and fuel line disconnect stiffener. Attached firewall and drilled holes through stainless. Multiple fresh drillbits and tap con oil made the job go relatively easy.


 
Nov 17, 2021     Skinning FF - (12 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Attached bottom and side skins. Stiffeners and fuel line cover also attached. Side skins best fit but not always an equal 16th of an inch alloy around. Will require some trimming. Spar openings kept clear. Supporting picture show slight bowing of the forward fuselage frame on top. Skins are best fit.


 
Nov 01, 2021     Getting ready Category: Fuselage
Getting ready to return to Florida to continue build.
 
Sep 01, 2021     Nothing new Category: Fuselage
Still up north, unfortunately.
 
Jul 01, 2021     More parts Category: Fuselage
No for the building unfortunately as I'm still up north. Stan and Tom picked up parts from the factory which I will inventory in one or two weeks. Look forward to getting back to the build.
 
Apr 25, 2021     Finished Tailcone - (22 hours)       Category: Empennage
Relatively straightforward build. No specific deviations from plans. Installed tail wheel socket in place with bulkhead 4 clecoed in position. Used long number 40 drill bit to place starter holes finished drilling after removing bulkhead number four. Longer one countersunk on drill press. All skins dimpled. Unfortunately I did not roll the edges and I think that this would've given a slightly better fit even though this was not in manual and was not advised by kit manufacturer. Checked with level four and aft and no twists identified. Relatively good build. Proud.


 
Apr 18, 2021     Completed right and left skins - (7 hours)       Category: Empennage
Fitted all stiffeners and longerons. Match drilled upper and lower longerons. Lower longerons countersunk using a .020 inch shim and countersinking tool on hand drill. Difficulty getting accurate depths because of the step on the lower longeron. Might have been better on the drill press with a jig but satisfactory. Dimpled both skins on the table. Dimpled all stiffeners with hand squeezer. Reassembled with Cleco‘s and riveted with BSC 42 and BSC 43 rivets as specified. Side skins completed.


 
Apr 17, 2021     Begin rear fuselage kit - (3 hours)       Category: Empennage
Completed inventory. Prepared right and left side skins and picked stiffeners and fitted longerons.


 
Apr 16, 2021     Completed the VT - (7 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Completed assembly of vertical tail. Dimpled and flush riveted all surfaces. Marked and drilled rudder hinge in place between outer skin and spar stiffener. Then dimpled and replaced into position beneath the aft spar channel. Used BSP-43 rivets for rudder hinge. Trail fitted rudder to completed VT. Note discrepancy on lower end of hinge.


 
Apr 15, 2021     Prepare for VT rebuild - (3 hours) Category: Tail Feathers
Prepared vertical tail parts for assembly.
 
Apr 03, 2021     Test       Category: Tail Feathers
Picture test iphone


 
Apr 03, 2021     HT finished - (6 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Big day. Dimpled all skins. Riveted rear portions of ribs to spars. Borrowed an old cheap rivet puller which fit these rivets. Clamped hinges to rear edge of skins and drilled, then dimpled. Hinges should recess rear edge of skin by 1/16" to give proper clearance from sitiffener and allow enough metal around rivet hole ( formula is 2-2/1/2 diameter of rivet). Attached skins, clecoed and riveted flush. Attached elevators to check fit. Happy day.


 
Apr 02, 2021     HT build - (5 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Turns out the reverse flutes on the ribs were not wrong. They are needed to allow the skins to fit flush with the forward spar. Reversed my error with a c- clamp and rolled in some elevation to the forward rib flange with a brass compressor connector. Refitted all parts and disassembled once again for dimpling of all surfaces. riveted aft spar stiffener.


 
Apr 01, 2021     HT build - (5 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Assembled HT. Repaired improper fluting on all ribs to straighten. Drilled attach point of spars through existing pilot holes with drill press (per Dan). Assembled table jig and affixed and verified structure with tapemeasure and level. Deburred. Riveted ribs to forward spar. Un-clecoed ribs from aft spar to allow ribs to be displaced to side allowing pneumatic rivet gun access to forward rivets. Applied skins and verified line up of pilot holes. Had a beer and look forward to match drill of skins tommorrow.


 
Mar 31, 2021     HT build - (2 hours) Category: Tail Feathers
Received new Aft spar channel from SPA. Fitted perfectly. Clecoed but not riveted as per notes in BM reference later flush dimpling needed in aft spar.
 
Mar 30, 2021     Failed VT build - (5 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Today was a very frustrating day. Completed entire VT assembly with jig. Everything looked great. Unfortunately could not get skins to line up. Disassembled entire vertical tail. Drilled out and removed Forward spar stiffener which appeared salvageable. Unfortunately forward spar channel and three ribs could not be saved. Ordered new parts from SPA. Still waiting for elevator channel to arrive. Not a total waste as I did learn how to remove SS rivets. (not so easy). Ego and a few pieces of metal injured. Will get better.


 
Mar 29, 2021     Started VT build - (4 hours) Category: Tail Feathers
Prepared all pieces. Clecoed assembly. Dimpled Aft spar channel and countersunk Aft spar stiffener. Trial fit all pices. Cut supporting blocks.
 
Mar 28, 2021     HT spar build - (3 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Prepared spar stiffeners. Beveled edge of stiffener . One of the aft spar channels was too small in width and spar stiffener would not fit properly despite quite a bit of beveling with the spinning debur tool. Will need to discuss with manufacturer. Nominal width should be 3 5/128ths. Second channel under 3".


 
Mar 27, 2021     HT build - (3 hours) Category: Tail Feathers
Extended project table to 86" for horizontal tail build. Started to prepare spars and spar stiffeners.
 
Mar 25, 2021     Rudder completed - (8 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Straightforward build. Followed plans and build manual. Yes, dimpling takes forever (at least 2 hours). Hinge spacing set with drilled yardstick jig 1 inch on center. Used drill press to drill # 40.. Clecoed to skin and updrilled to # 30. Used flush BSC 4-2 rivets on skins. BSPS 4-2 protruidng rivets on hinge and BSPS 4-4 rivets on control horn Rudder and hinge extremely straight. Very happy!


 
Mar 24, 2021     Started Rudder - (3 hours) Category: Tail Feathers
Prepared all parts for rudder. Trimmed stiffeners. Manufactured jig/template out of yardstick for proper drill spacing for hinge. (can be used for all hinges with one inch drill spaces.)
 
Mar 23, 2021     Left elevator build completed - (5.0 hours)       Category: Tail Feathers
Final dimpling, re-assembly and riveting.


 
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