Project: gsisson   -  
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Builder Name:Glenn Sisson   -  
Project:   Kitfox - Series 7   -   VIEW REPORTS
Total Hours:394.85
Total Flight Time:
Start/Last Date:Aug 22, 2023 - No Finish Date
 
Friendly URL: https://eaabuilderslog.org?s=gsisson

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May 09, 2024     Riviting of Spar Reinforcement Fittings - (1 hour)       Category: Wings
Prepared the last 2 (of 16) Spar Reinforcement Plates and the Spars for riveting and bonding by cleaning with denatured alcohol. Riveted and bonded the 2 Plates onto the spar. All 16 of the 16 Spar Reinforcement Plates are now installed. Also, drilled out and replaced the one rivet that did not "seat" properly yesterday.


 
May 08, 2024     Riviting of Spar Reinforcement Fittings - (1 hour) Category: Wings
Prepared the next 6 (of 16) Spar Reinforcement Plates and the Spars for riveting and bonding by cleaning with denatured alcohol. Riveted and bonded the 6 Plates onto 2 of the 4 spars. Total of 14 of the 16 Spar Reinforcement Plates are now installed. Also, one of the rivets did not appear to "seat" properly, so I will have to drill that out and re-rivet.
 
May 07, 2024     Riviting of Spar Reinforcement Fittings - (.75 hour)       Category: Wings
Prepared another 4 (of 16) Spar Reinforcement Plates and the Spars for riveting and bonding by cleaning with denatured alcohol. Riveted and bonded the 4 of Plates onto 1 of the 4 spars. Total of 8 of the 16 Spar Reinforcement Plates are now installed.


 
May 06, 2024     Riviting of Spar Reinforcement Fittings - (1.25 hours)       Category: Wings
Prepared the (16) Spar Reinforcement Plates and the Spars for riveting and bonding. Riveted and bonded 4 of the Plates onto 1 of the 4 spars. Thus 4 of the 16 Spar Reinforcement Plates are now installed.


 
May 06, 2024     Spar Reinforcement Fittings - (4 hours) Category: Wings
Continued work on the sixteen (16) Spar Reinforcement Fittings. Completed all of the drilling and de-burring of the 16 Spar Reinforcement Plates as well as the Spar.
 
Apr 30, 2024     Spar Reinforcement Fittings - (.75 hour)       Category: Wings
Continued work on the sixteen (16) Spar Reinforcement Fittings. Completed the drilling and de-burring of the 7th and 8th of the 16.


 
Apr 28, 2024     Spar Reinforcement Fittings - (3.0 hours)       Category: Wings
Began work on the sixteen (16) Spar Reinforcement Fittings that go on the Front and Rear Spars to reinforce the Spar where it attaches to the Forward and Rear Spar Attachment Lugs on the Fuselage. Got 6 of the 16 drilled, de-burred, and clecoed.


 
Apr 28, 2024     Wing Lift Strut Unpack and Prep - (1.0 hour) Category: Wings
Removed much of the foam wrapping from the Wing Lift Struts and located the mounting hardware for the Struts and assembled the hardware. (but didn't mount the Struts)
 
Apr 28, 2024     Consolidate Parts into Fewer Boxes - (1.0 hour) Category: Inventory
Spent another good hour (while doing the earlier noted search for the STi Wing instructions) to also consolidate items from relatively empty boxes so as to take up less storage space. Did some labeling of boxes as well to make it easier to locate things in the future.
 
Apr 28, 2024     Search for STi Wing Instructions - (1 hour) Category: Inventory
Was puzzled by the non-STi Wing instructions I was following recently, so made a long effort to search all boxes for any additional instructions for the STi Wing that I had overlooked. Eventually found stored with a binder of kitfox docs, so moved it to the Assembly Manual replacing the very similar non-STi Wing instruction chapter. Spent a good hour searching.
 
Apr 27, 2024     Wing Rib and Strut Prep - (3.25 hours) Category: Wings
Prepared the Lift Strut Attachment Brackets by drilling out and deburing the many rivet holes. Unpacked the left Lift Strut and verified that bolts/pins fit everywhere already due to the Factory Pre-Rig option. Study and puzzle
 
Apr 27, 2024     Sand Ribs 1A, 1B, 1C, Butt Ribs, and Rib 2. - (2.75 hours)       Category: Wings
Inspected and sanded the #1A, #1B, #1C, Butt Ribs, and #2 Ribs. Took care of a few of the "temporary staples" on the cap-strip that were not fully installed (either removed staple or ground down).


 
Apr 26, 2024     Door Handles & Trim/Elevator Assist Option - (2.0 hours) Category: Fuselage
Spent .5 hours putting together the Door Handles, after receiving handles from Bryan Bowen.

Spent .25 hours studying how the "Trim Assist" option is installed. I think I'll need to contact the factory, as the instructions are too terse and show a different looking mounting bracket. I did not install the option as it isn't entirely clear where to place it exactly.

Spent 1.25 hrs inspecting the wing spar and other aspects of the wing for any possible damage. No damage found.
 
Apr 20, 2024     Reading Wing Chapter (over dates of 4/16-4/20) - (5.25 hours) Category: Wings
Reading the entire Wing chapter, as per the chapter instructions.
 
Apr 14, 2024     Prepare Door Hinges and Gas Strut Brackets - (3.25 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Drilled and deburred holes in, and cut out and filed edges of, the four Door Hinges from the stock hinge material.


 
Apr 14, 2024     Acrylic Door Trimming Fitting Drilling Mounting - Pilot and Passenger - (5.5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Mounted the pilot's Acrylic Bubble Door to the frame with clecos. Trimmed the passenger's side Acrylic Bubble Door to fit the Door Frame. Drilled the Door Frame and the Bubble Door and mounted with clecos.

Drilled out Door Frames for rivnuts and installed rivnuts. Drilled out Acrylic Doors a bit more to be slightly larger to allow for thermal expansion.


 
Apr 13, 2024     Acrylic Door Trimming Fitting Drilling - Pilot Side - (3.5 hours) Category: Fuselage
Trimmed the pilot's side Acrylic Bubble Door to fit the Door Frame. Drilled the Door Frame and the Bubble Door.
 
Apr 02, 2024     Acrylic Door Inital Fitting - (1 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Made the first basic cuts in the Acrylic Bubble Doors, to begin to fit them to Door Frames.


 
Apr 01, 2024     Hot-Glue Final Door Shims and Doors into Frames - (1 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Hot-glued the temporary shims into final place, trimming slightly to achieve Door fit and ensure Doors are not forced in. Completed the temporary hot-glue of the Doors into the Door Frames for the upcoming Acrylic Bubble-Door fitting and trimming.


 
Mar 31, 2024     Fit Door Frames Into Fuselage - (2.25 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Fit the white powder-coated Door Frames into the Fuselage and centered with shims. Hot glued the shims to the fuselage and tie-wrapped the Door Frames. Made one very slight bend to pilot door to fit best, and two slight bends to passenger door.


 
Mar 26, 2024     Study Bubble Door Build Instructions - (.25 hour) Category: Research
 
Mar 26, 2024     Built Wooden Tail Skid - (1.25 hours) Category: Tools
Built a wooden tail skid from 2x6 scraps so that the tail of the fuselage could rest on the ground but keep the rudder from ever touching the ground.
 
Mar 25, 2024     Bond and Rivet Fuselage side Stringers to Window and Door Frames - (.5 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Bond and rivet Fuselage side Stringers to Window and Door Frames.


 
Mar 24, 2024     Begin shimming the Painted Passenger Door into the Aluminum Door Frame - (.5 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Began to shim the Painted Passenger Door into the Aluminum Door Frame.


 
Mar 24, 2024     Bonded and Riveted Door and Window Frames. - (3 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Prepped the metal Door and Window Frame aluminum with Scotch-Brite pad, as well as the white painted Fuselage where the Frames will be mounted.
Cleaned with denatured alcohol. Mixed Hysol by weight with microballons and bonded and riveted Door and Window Frames into place. (did not rivet or bond where the Stringers attached to the Frame as I will do that later after the Frames are secured)


 
Mar 17, 2024     Attach Fuselage Stringers - (5.25 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Notched out the Fuselage Stringers to avoid "bulge", as Harlan Payne did on his KitFox and as he says the factory also does. Fit front of Stringers to Window Frames and drilled for future Rivets. Bonded Stringers to Fuselage with Hysol and Rivets.


 
Mar 17, 2024     Window and Door Frame Timming and Fitting and Dimpling - (2.75 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Completed the trimming and fitting of the Window and Door Frames and used dimple tool to prepare for Flush Rivets.


 
Mar 16, 2024     Window and Door Frame Timming and Fitting - (7.75 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Continued trimming and fitting the Window and Door Frames.


 
Mar 10, 2024     Window and Door Frame Timming and Fitting - (1.75 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Began trimming the Window and Door Frame material.


 
Mar 10, 2024     Rivet Nutplates to Yaw Dampener Bracket - (1 hour) Category: Fuselage
Countersunk eight holes in the Yaw Dampener Bracket for installation of Nutplates. Riveted the Nutplates to the Bracket.
 
Mar 05, 2024     Window and Door Frame Fitting - (1.25 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Initial test fitting of the Window and Door Frame material.


 
Mar 03, 2024     Study Door and Door Latch Installation - (1.5 hours) Category: Fuselage
The next section of the Fuselage Chapter is the Door Latch installation onto the Door Frames. But, I opted for the Dual Pin Door Latch Option so I don't have the hardware for the regular Door Latch. So, spent time studying the Dual Pin Door Latch installation instructions, but they appear to be written to be performed after the Acrylic has been applied to the Door Frame. Also the instructions are confusing in a few areas, so I will reach out to the factory tomorrow to get some guidance.
 
Mar 03, 2024     Trim Position Sensor Installation Preparation - (.25 hour) Category: Avionics
Read installation instructions for the Trim Position Sensor Kit and examined the parts. This will be simple to install but it must be done after the Horiz Stab is trimmed, and thus this will need to wait until later.
 
Mar 03, 2024     Auto-pilot Servo Mounting Pre-work - (2.75 hours)       Category: Controls
Pre-assembled as much of the Auto Pilot brackets as possible, for pitch, roll, and yaw. Still need to get a solid rivet tool to complete the riveting of the nutplates. And need the Garmin servos as well before proceeding much further. (ordered a hand-squeeze solid rivet tool from Amazon, plus a die assortment - tool research and ordering time not included in build-time)


 
Feb 25, 2024     Final Cut and Fit of Bottom Stringer - (1.5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Cut the bottom Stringer and fit to Fuselage. Drilled and debured holes for attaching Stringer. Used ScotchBrite pad to prepare surface of Stringer and the powder coated Fuselage. Did not bond in place, but set aside with the other two side Stringers for installation later.


 
Feb 22, 2024     Prepare Bottom Stringer - (.5 hour) Category: Fuselage
Prepared to cut and install the Bottom Stringer.
 
Feb 22, 2024     Drill and Cleco Side Stringers - (2.0 hours)       Category: Inventory
Drilled the Stringer Mounting Tabs, top and bottom. Placed the two side Stringers in place and secured with bungees. Drilled through the Tabs and into the Stringers, cleco'ing as I went.


 
Feb 21, 2024     Inventory newly arrived Option Kits from Kitfox - (.5 hour) Category: Inventory
Inventory the boxes from Kitfox for the 1) Trim Position Sensor 2) Yaw Dampener install kit 3) Pitch and Roll auto-pilot install kit.
 
Feb 18, 2024     Stringers along Sides of Fuselage - Prep - (3.25 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Prepared to install the two aluminum tube Stringers for the sides of the Fuselage by cutting each to length and trimming the ends to fit exactly. Filed the tube ends to remove sharp edges and burrs. Marked the drilling locations for the rivets but did not yet drill. Prepped the surface for Hysol by scuffing the aluminum and the powder coated Fuselage tabs. (photo shows the Stringer on one side, held out of the way as I was prepping for Hysol)


 
Feb 18, 2024     Add Rib Stiffeners for Rudder - Prep - (.25 hour) Category: Controls
Prepared a few new rib stiffeners for the lowest Rib on the Rudder after seeing on the KingFox YouTube channel that Brandon had recommended doing that to avoid that Rib from bending upward when the fabric is shrunken on the Rudder. (did not Hysol in place but will wait until I have more bonding work to do)
 
Feb 18, 2024     Draft Emails to Kitfox - (.75 hour) Category: Research
Collect photos and draft email to Kitfox regarding Seat Belt opposite latch operation, and fore Elevator Push-Pull Tube contact with Fuselage.
 
Feb 18, 2024     Install Seat Belts - (.5 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Attached Seat Belt Shoulder Harnesses to Fuselage and torqued the two bolts. Attached inboard and outboard Seat Belts to Fuselage but did not yet torque the bolts. (since I'm sure Seat Pan will need to come out again for something)


 
Feb 18, 2024     Readjust Rod End at Aileron Bellcrank - (1 hour)       Category: Controls
Readjusted the Rod End at the connection of the Aileron Bellcrank to the Control Stick Torque Tube. The Rod End was limited in rotational freedom and was preventing full Elevator travel, so loosened the Check Nut and adjusted to have full Elevator travel.


 
Feb 15, 2024     Begin Seat Belts installation - (1.25 hours) Category: Fuselage
Reinstalled the floorboards and began the Seat Belts installation.
 
Feb 14, 2024     Rigged Aileron Pushrod - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Rigged the Rod Ends for the Aileron Pushrod to set the Flaperon Connect Tube Arms to the specified 26 degree angle (on left) and 32 degree angle (on right).


 
Feb 14, 2024     Rigged Aileron Bellcrank - (2.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Rigged the Rod End length from the Control Torque Tube to the Aileron Bellcrank ("Final Assembly" chapter, pg 35) to achieve the required 90 degree angle specified.


 
Feb 14, 2024     Rigged Flap Pushrod - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Rigged the Flap Pushrod length to achieve the specified 11.5 degree bellcrank angle ("Final Assembly", pg 35). Tightened the Check Nuts and torqued the Flap Horn Nut and the Flaps Handle Nut and marked them with torque-paste.


 
Feb 14, 2024     Prepare Fuselange and Control Stick for Some Rigging - (.75 hour) Category: Fuselage
Before installing the Seat Pan and Seatbelts, which would make access to some of the Control Pushrods more difficult, I read the Rigging section of the "Final Assembly" chapter and saw that some of the initial rigging can be done now, since that rigging starts at the controls and works its way back.

So, to prepare the aircraft for the next few steps of initial rigging near the front of the aircraft, I leveled the Fuselage at the front belly and secured the Control Sticks to the vertical position (vertical at the base of Stick) per Assembly Manual.

 
Feb 13, 2024     Seat Pan Final Work - (5.5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Final drilling of the six holes in the Seat Pan for the six Mounting Tabs. Final fitting of Seat Pan to Fuselage and Screw fitting. Minor final trimming of Seat Pan Edges. Drilling of Seat Belt Harness slots in Seat Pan. Final sanding of all edges.


 
Feb 12, 2024     Installed Seat Pan Nutplates - (4.75 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Drilled and mounted the six Seat Pan Nutplate. Seat pan also drilled ahead of time for upcoming mounting bolts.



 
Feb 12, 2024     1 hour- Turn bolts around in middle rudder pulleys / rudder pulleys cotter pins - (1 hour)       Category: Controls
Realized that 2 of the 4 bolts holding the mid-Fuselage Pulleys were installed backwards per the assembly manual, so removed them and turned them around. Also inserted the 4 Cotter pins to keep the Rudder Cables from jumping off the Pulleys.


 
Feb 12, 2024     Reposition Rudder Pulley Cable Jump Guards - (1 hour)       Category: Controls
I realized that the Rudder Pulley guards to prevent Rudder Cable from jumping off the front Pulleys was not at the specified 60 degrees, so re-adjusted them to 60 degrees.


 
Feb 10, 2024     Hooked up Rudder Connecting Hardware - (.75 hour) Category: Controls
Added to the Rudder Control Horns, the various hardware that hold the Rudder Cables. Did not hook up the hardware to the Cables, as the Cable ends are not yet swaged (that comes later).
 
Feb 10, 2024     Trim Seats To Fit - (2.75 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Trimmed the fiberglass Seat edges until it slid into the fuselage properly.


 
Feb 09, 2024     Building Dolly for Fuselage - (2.25 hours) Category: Tools
Complete the Fuselage dolly that fits under the Landing Gear Mount points.
 
Feb 07, 2024     Building Dolly for Fuselage - (1.5 hours) Category: Tools
Continue building a Fuselage dolly that will fit under the Landing Gear Mount points.
 
Feb 07, 2024     Sand Vert Stab & Rudder Tips - (2.5 hours)       Category: Empennage
Added more balsa and did more sanding on the Vert Stab and Rudder Tips.


 
Feb 06, 2024     Sand Vert Stab & Rudder Tips - (.75 hour) Category: Empennage
More sanding of the balsa Vert Stab & Rudder tips.
 
Feb 05, 2024     Begin Building Dolly for Fuselage - (1 hour) Category: Tools
In need of a low-to-the-ground dolly for the Fuselage, I began creating one from 2x6s lying around. Missing the long bolts I need to hold it to the Fuselage, so I will need to visit hardware store tomorrow to get some.
 
Feb 05, 2024     Forming Vert Stab Tip in Balsa - (.5 hour)       Category: Empennage
Bond more balsa to the Vert Stab Tip.


 
Feb 04, 2024     Swaging Rudder Cables and Running All Cables - (7 hours)       Category: Controls
Finished swaging the remaining 3 Cable Eyes to attach to the two Adjustable Rudder Pedal Levers. Installed Rudder Cables and routed and swaged the co-pilot's Rudder Cables onto the pilot's Rudder Cables with NicoPress Sleeve as a "splice", per instructions.


 
Feb 03, 2024     Swaging First Rudder Cable Eye and Running Cable - (4.0 hours)       Category: Controls
Spent about 30 minutes with Jim Kepford at his hangar who lent me his swaging tool and showed me how to swage my first NicoPress Sleeve onto the Cable end. Nonetheless, I messed up so had to later, at home, cut off and abandon that NicroPress Sleeve and about 3" of cable. Second swage attempt went well for the copilot's Right Rudder Pedal.

Mounted all the NylaFlow Rudder Cable guides and fed the one Rudder Cable down through the Pulleys and Guides towards where it will swage onto the pilot's Rudder Cable. Bound the Rudder Pedals together with a board to make sure Pedals were all even, and set the copilot's Adjustable Rudder Pedal Lever to mid-range, per instructions, and measured out the Cable to 63" back from the Lift Strut Carrythrough Tube). That is the location, mid-way between two sets of guides, where the pilot/copilot cables "splice" together. I assessed the travel of the Cable, and thus the "splice" location, during Rudder Pedal travel tests, and Adjustable Pedal Handle travel tests, and confirmed that the cut location makes sense and that the NicoPress Sleeve "Splice" won't interfere with the Guides.


 
Feb 03, 2024     Prepare NylaFlow Rudder Cable Guides - (1.75 hours)       Category: Controls
Used heat gun to straighten the NylaFlow Tubing that guides the rudder cables, then cut into correct lengths and sanded to fit.


 
Feb 02, 2024     Apply 3rd Coat of Varnish to Access Cover Foreward Bulkhead - (.1 hour) Category: Empennage
Applied the third coat of varnish to the Forward Bulkhead Access Cover.
 
Feb 01, 2024     Begin Rudder Cable Installation - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Read Instructions and Collect parts for the Rudder Cable installation.


 
Feb 01, 2024     Apply 2nd Coat of Varnish to Access Cover Foreward Bulkhead - (.25 hour)       Category: Empennage
Applied the second coat of varnish to the Forward Bulkhead Access Cover.


 
Jan 31, 2024     Apply 1st Coat of Varnish to Access Cover Foreward Bulkhead - (.5 hour) Category: Empennage
Applied the first coat of varnish to the Forward Bulkhead Access Cover.
 
Jan 30, 2024     Bond Access Cover mounting brackets - (1.75 hours)       Category: Empennage
Bonded and riveted all six Access Cover brackets to Ribs and Forward Access Cover Bulkhead. Also a bit of time sanding the balsa Rudder and Vert Stab tips.


 
Jan 29, 2024     Finalize Access Cover mounting brackets and fittings - (4 hours)       Category: Empennage
Finished fabricating all six Access Cover brackets. All were drilled and mounted to the Vert Stab Ribs and the Forward Access Cover Bulkhead was trimmed slightly to final size. Prepped all surfaces for Hysol epoxy application which will be the next step to be completed.


 
Jan 28, 2024     Empennage Access Cover Mounting Brackets - Begin Install - (4 hours)       Category: Empennage
Begin creating the Empennage Access Cover mounting brackets and fitting to the Vert Stab.


 
Jan 28, 2024     Bond Balsa Rudder Tips - (1 hour)       Category: Empennage
Bonded the initial pieces of balsa to the tip of the Rudder and the Vert Stab using Hysol epoxy.


 
Jan 27, 2024     Begin Forming Rudder Tip in Balsa - (.5 hour)       Category: Empennage
Began to fit balsa wood chunks to the Rudder Tip.


 
Jan 27, 2024     Cut Bolt Access Holes on Rudder Leading Edge - (2.5 hours)       Category: Empennage
Mounted Rudder to Vert Stab and enlarged bolt access holes on Rudder Leading Edge until access holes were large enough for reasonable installation of bolts and nuts.


 
Jan 26, 2024     Prepare to Cut Bolt Access Holes In Rudder Leading Edge - (.5 hour) Category: Empennage
Prepared to cut larger bolt access holes in the Rudder Leading Edge.
 
Jan 25, 2024     Bond Leading Edge Fairing to Rudder - (1 hour)       Category: Empennage
Lightly sanded the inside of the Rudder Leading Edge fiberglass and wiped clean with denatured alcohol on a rag. Lightly sanded the contact area of the Rudder Ribs where the bonding will take place and cleaned with a rag. Applied 2-part Hysol epoxy adhesive to front of Ribs and slid the fiberglass Leading Edge onto the Rudder. Applied more Hysol to form fillets at the joint locations and then used masking tape to bind together and hold all tightly in place as it cures.


 
Jan 22, 2024     Images of the bonded Trailing Edge Fairing       Category: Empennage
Removed the clamps and took some pictures of the bonded Trailing Edge Fairing.

Very happy with the tight fit between the fairing and metal vert stab which squeezed out the Hysol nicely giving a wide bonding surface.


 
Jan 21, 2024     Bond Trailing Edge Fairing to Vert Stab - (1.25 hours)       Category: Empennage
Used Scotch Brite pad to roughen the powder coated trailing edge portion of the vertical stabilizer. Lightly sanded the contact area of the Vert Stab Ribs and the inside portion of the Vert Stab Trailing Edge fiberglass Fairing where bonding will take place. Cleaned surfaces with denatured alcohol on a rag.

Applied 2-part Hysol epoxy adhesive to the rear edge of the Vert Stab Ribs and along the rearmost section of the power coated Vert Stab and slid the fiberglass Trailing Edge onto the Vert Stab to bond them together. Applied more Hysol to form fillets all joint locations and then clamped to hold all tightly in place as it cures.


 
Jan 21, 2024     Final Fit of Vert Stab & Rudder Fairings - (3.00 hours)       Category: Empennage
Final fitting and trimming of fiberglass Vertical Stabilizer Trailing Edge Fairing to fit nice and tight and be ready for bonding.

Also, did more trimming and fitting of the Rudder Leading Edge Fairing, but have not yet cut the holes necessary for accessing the Rudder hinge bolts. (which will be done later after the Vert Stab Trailing Edge Fairing adhesive has cured)


 
Jan 20, 2024     Rough Fit of Vert Stab & Rudder Fairings - (5.75 hours)       Category: Empennage
Fit, trim, adjust, repeat. Many iterations of those steps to get the fiberglass Vertical Stabilizer Trailing Edge Fairing and Rudder Leading Edge Fairing to fit nicely and tightly.


 
Jan 19, 2024     Apply 2nd Coat of Varnish to Rudder and Vert Stab Ribs - (.75 hour)       Category: Empennage
Applied the second coat of varnish to the Rudder and Vertical Stabilizer Ribs.


 
Jan 18, 2024     Apply 1st Coat of Varnish to Rudder and Vert Stab Ribs - (3.25 hours)       Category: Empennage
Varnished the Rudder and Vertical Stabilizer Ribs and Stiffeners. This is the first coat of varnish.


 
Jan 17, 2024     Hysol the final Vert Stab Rib Stiffeners - (1.75 hours)       Category: Empennage
Trimmed and Placed the final Rib Stiffeners for the Vertical Stabilizer. Added additional Hysol to previously installed Ribs and Stiffeners where needed, in the Vert Stab and Rudder.


 
Jan 16, 2024     Add Longitudinal Rib Stiffeners to Vert Stab and Rudder - (3.0 hours)       Category: Empennage
Cut the various longitudinal Rib Stiffeners and fit to the Vert Stab and Rudder. Hysol them in place using masking tape to hold tightly together and in place. (did not yet add the short stiffeners running along pitch axis)


 
Jan 15, 2024     Finish Gluing Vert Stab and Rudder Ribs - (3.5 hours)       Category: Empennage
Finished using Hysol epoxy to attach the last 13 (of 19) Vert Stab and Rudder Ribs in place. (next job is to Hysol on the Rib Stiffeners)


 
Jan 13, 2024     Fit Vert Stab Ribs; Begin Gluing - (6.75 hours)       Category: Empennage
Measure out Rib locations on Vert Stab and Rudder. Adjust locations to line up and make even. Sand and grind Ribs to fit.

Begin gluing (Hysol) the Ribs. Completed 6 (of 19).


 
Jan 10, 2024     Rudder Stops and Rudder Vert Stab Ribs - (1.25 hours)       Category: Empennage
Ground down the Rudder Stops to achieve the desired 25 degree deflection to both left and right. Unpacked the Vert Stab and Rudder ribs and removed the small bits of "separation tape" from them all. Lightly sanded each side of the ribs.


 
Jan 09, 2024     Initial Mounting of Rudder - (2.25 hours)       Category: Empennage
Reamed the three Rod End Mounting Tabs on the Rudder for a tight fit. Used 1/4"x28 tap to clean out the threaded Rod End Bushings in the Vertical Stabilizer Tail Post. Threaded the Rod Ends into the Tail Post to achieve the proper Stabilizer-Rudder spacing. Mounted the Rudder to the Tail Post. Found some slight mis-alignment of the Rod Ends with the Mounting Tabs causing some unnecessary friction so bent the Mounting Tabs up/down as necessary to reduce binding.

Began measuring the angular travel limits of the Rudder and can see that some filing will be necessary to achieve the 25 degree right and left deflection called for in the instructions.


 
Jan 08, 2024     FAA Registration Preparation - (1 hour) Category: Research
Read through the EAA's guide to Registration. Prepared some forms but was stumped on needing to have the engine Serial Number. Called EAA and they said I could not submit the Registration form until I had the engine's Serial Number, so I guess I won't be registering anytime soon.
 
Jan 07, 2024     Mid-Fuselage Rudder Cable Pulley Install - (1 hour)       Category: Controls
Installed the four Rudder Cable Pulleys mid-Fuselage. Had some trouble that required me to temporarily take off the aft-end Elevator Push Rod from the Idler Arm as the Push Rod was interfering with insertion of the lower left-side Pulley bolt. (fortunately I had not yet torqued those push rod nylock nuts, as I was concerned that something MIGHT come up later requiring me to remove some of them... and indeed, this case popped up!)

Also, applied orange torque-marker paste to the four torqued bolts.


 
Jan 07, 2024     Final Install of Rudder/Brake Assemblies - (4.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Re-installed the floorboards now that the drill holes had been varnished. Installed nested Rudder Torque Tubes applying final grease to the bearings. Installed two Brackets to Floorboard for the inboard Brake Master Cylinders. Torqued all those 10 bolts to required settings. Installed all four Master Cylinders and added Clevis Pins. Installed Return Springs. Applied orange torque-marker paste to 10 nylock nuts (although I know that really isn't necessary).


 
Jan 05, 2024     Varnish Floorboard Drill Holes - (1 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Since all is now done for the Rudder Pedal/Brake assemblies, I removed the assemblies to then remove the Floorboards so I could varnish all the screw and bolt holes made in all Floorboards (to avoid any future liquid intrusion such as from brake fluid). Left to dry/cure overnight.


 
Jan 05, 2024     Understand Beringer Brake Hardware and Installation - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Go through Beringer box and try to understand all the parts and where they go.


 
Jan 05, 2024     Mount Inboard Brake Master Cyl Floorboard Brackets - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Carefully located and drilled the four holes for the two inboard Master Cylinder Floorboard Brackets. Mounted the Brackets and Master Cylinders and made final adjustments their lengths.


 
Jan 04, 2024     Fit Beringer Brake Master Cylinders - (4.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Began fitting the Beringer Brake Master Cylinders. All were too long and I had trouble adjusting the length to the required 7.25". Felt like I was going to break them if I applied anymore force to remove the check-nut to shorten them, but an email message to Bryan Bowen who I purchased the Beringer items from showed me (via one of his YouTube videos) how to adjust the length. His approach was better than what I was trying, and it worked, but it required a lot of force and still felt like I was about to break them. But in the end it worked and I was able to set the proper 7.25" length.

Still need to make a last "test fit" install of these items and think about Brake Line routing to ensure I install them in the correct orientation. Bryan's videos showed that he installed his right-most Master Cylinder at a 90 degree angel to the others, so I need to see if that will be necessary for mine as well.


 
Jan 03, 2024     Collect Items for Master Cylinder Brake Installation - (.5 hour)       Category: Controls
Collected the Items for Master Cylinder Brake Installation which is next in the manual. I plan to fit all the Brake parts to the Rudder Pedals and Fuselage to ensure everything fits properly before I do the final tightening of the Rudder Toque Tube to the Fuselage.


 
Jan 02, 2024     Fabricate Shim to Ensure Frictionless Rudder Torque Tube Operation - (1.25 hours)       Category: Controls
Fabricated an angled shim for the leftmost Rudder Torque Tube Bracket for the left side. This allows the Torque Tube Brackets to all be tightened down to the Floorboards without any undo friction preventing the Torque Tubes from rotating freely.


 
Jan 01, 2024     Mount Rudder Pedal Assembly into Fuselage - (5 hours)       Category: Controls
Mounted the two Rudder Pedal Assemblies into the Fuselage. First photo shows a test-fit (w/o wooden floorboards) and second shows closer-to-final installation on top of the floorboards. Determined that I will need minor shimming under left Bearing Bracket on the pilot's side to obtain near-friction-free rotation of the Rudder Pedals and Torque Tubes.


 
Dec 31, 2023     Final Assembly of Rudder Pedals - (2.75 hours)       Category: Controls
De-burred the rivet holes in the Rudder Torque Tubes. Performed final assembly of the four Rudder Pedals and their nested Torque Tubes, greasing them per instructions, followed by final riveting.


 
Dec 31, 2023     Rudder Torque Tube End Bearing Assembly - (.75 hour)       Category: Controls
Mounted and torqued the Rudder Torque Tube End Bearings onto their Brackets.


 
Dec 30, 2023     Final Mount of Rudder Pedals onto Pedal Arms - (.75 hour)       Category: Controls
Made final mount of Pedals onto their arms and torqued.


 
Dec 30, 2023     Drill Rivet Holes thru 2nd Rudder Pedal Control Tube - (1.25 hours) Category: Controls
Drilled the Rivet holes thru the 2nd Rudder Pedal Control Tube. (first tube done already)
 
Dec 29, 2023     Drill Pilot Holes thru Rudder Control Tube - (1.25 hours)       Category: Controls
Mounted Rudder Pedal onto one Rudder Control Tube and positioned in vise for alignment. Drilled the pilot holes thru the Rudder Pedal Tube and into the Control Tube. (1 of 2 completed)


 
Dec 29, 2023     Finish Re-fabricating the Four Rudder Pulley Retaining Straps - (1.75 hours)       Category: Controls
Completed the remaining 3 of the 4 replacement Rudder Pulley Retaining Straps. Image shows new strap next to distorted old strap, and also the jig to hold each Strap securely for drilling the 3/8" hole w/o snagging and mangling the Strap. (as happened earlier)


 
Dec 27, 2023     Continue Re-fabricating the Four Rudder Pulley Retaining Straps - (.75 hour)       Category: Controls
Completed 1 of the 4 replacement Rudder Pulley Retaining Straps. (image shows new strap around pulley and old strap lying flat)


 
Dec 23, 2023     Begin Re-fabricating the Four Rudder Pulley Retaining Straps - (2 hours) Category: Controls
Was not happy with the quality of the four Rudder Pulley Retaining Straps I had fabricated and drilled around Dec 6th, so I got some 304 Stainless .019" from fellow EAA member Jim Kepford and began re-fabrication.
 
Dec 23, 2023     Fitting Rudder Torque Tube Bearings - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Continued and completed the sanding and fitting of the four Rudder Torque Tube end Bearings for no play and low friction.


 
Dec 19, 2023     Begin Fitting Rudder Torque Tube Bearings - (1.25 hours) Category: Controls
Sanded the four Rudder Torque Tube Bearings. Still plenty more sanding to do.
 
Dec 11, 2023     Fit Nested Passenger Side Rudder Torque Tubes Together - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Fit Nested Passenger Side Rudder Torque Tubes Together


 
Dec 10, 2023     Fit Nested Rudder Pedal Torque Tubes - (4.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Sanded the Bearing "load" area of (one of the two) Rudder Torque Tubes until the nested concentric Rudder Torque Tubes moved smoothly in their two Bearings and with very little friction. Then began the fitting of the nested Torque Tube bearings to the Torque Tube Brackets.


 
Dec 08, 2023     Fit Brake Pedal Bearings - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Ream eight Brake Pedal Bearing holes. Trim and sand Brake Pedal Bearings for friction free operation and optimal fit.


 
Dec 07, 2023     Drill Pilot Holes in Rudder Control Tubes - (1.75 hours)       Category: Controls
Drill 24 pilot holes in the two Rudder Control Tubes.


 
Dec 06, 2023     Finish Anti-Derail Retention Straps for Rudder Pedal Cable Pulleys - (2.75 hours)       Category: Controls
Finished Straps by drilling holes. Test fit to Pulleys and bent for tight fit. Mounted Straps and Pulleys to two of the Rudder Control Arms on Rudder Torque Tube. The straps probably will need to be re-fabricated, as their creation was a learning experience.


 
Dec 04, 2023     Fabricate Rudder Cable Retention straps for Pulleys - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Collect additional Adjustable Rudder Pedal Hardware. Fabricate Rudder Cable Retention Straps for Pulleys.


 
Dec 03, 2023     Collect Items for Rudder Pedal Installation - (.75 hour) Category: Controls
Collect items for Rudder Pedal installation.
 
Dec 03, 2023     Install of Floorboards with Final Tinnerman Hardware - (2 hours) Category: Fuselage
Install of Floorboards with final Tinnerman Hardware, and install of Console Side Panels.
 
Nov 30, 2023     Final Install of Console with Brackets Attached - (2.75 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Countersink holes for lever brackets on top of Console. Bond and rivet two adjustable rudder pedal lever brackets and flap lever bracket to underside of Console. Install Console into fuselage using Tinnerman nuts.

Also, filled 8 holes in floorboards with hysol where my initial drilling was off from final position.


 
Nov 29, 2023     Study Install of Beringer Parking Brake - (1.5 hours) Category: Research
Watch videos and email people to learn more about installation choices for the Beringer parking brake.
 
Nov 28, 2023     Apply 3rd Coat of Varnish to Floorboards - (1.5 hours) Category: Fuselage
Sanded sanded floorboards with 220 grit and then 400 grit and applied third coat of varnish to floorboards. (used 50% reducer to get nicer finish this time)
 
Nov 27, 2023     Apply 2nd Coat of Varnish to Floorboards - (.75 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Lightly sanded floorboards with 400 grit and applied second coat of varnish (no additional reducer) to floorboards.


 
Nov 26, 2023     Apply 1st Coat of Varnish to Floorboards - (1.25 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Prep floorboards for varnish by sanding with 220 and then 400 grit sandpaper. Applied first coat of varnish (with 50% reducer) to the floorboards.


 
Nov 26, 2023     Console Side Panel Fitting and Cutting - (6.25 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Fit the Console Side Panels to the already installed Console. Back drilled the lower flanges of the Side Panels. Trimmed excess sheet metal from front and top of Side Panels. (did not make final install as floorboards need varnish)


 
Nov 25, 2023     Initial Install of Adjustable Rudder Pedal Levers - (7.5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Assembled Adjustable Rudder Pedal Levers (which progressed much easier than the Flap Lever assembly now that I had some experience)) and ensured the friction-free button travel. Installed in Fuselage.

Then, fit the Adjustable Rudder Pedal Lever Detent Blocks under the Console and over the Levers and ensured friction free travel and positioning and then clamped to the Console. Removed Console and back-drilled and Clecoed the Detent Blocks and drilled and mounted temporary with Cleco's


 
Nov 25, 2023     Fit Console and Flap Handle Detent Brackets - (3 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Fit the flap detent bracket under the console and adjust for friction free fit. Had to adjust the two back screws for the consol. Had to enlarge the flap handle slot in the console on both edges since the flap handle front-back path is slightly offset at an angle from the slot that was cut at the factory. This enlargement will allow the handle to move smoothly.


 
Nov 24, 2023     Research Console and Floorboard Installation - (4 hours) Category: Research
Studied YouTube videos on Console and Floorboard Installation and problems and solutions.
 
Nov 20, 2023     Enlarge Flap Lever Detent Slots; Fit Console to Mounting Tabs; - (1.5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Bolted the Flap Lever Detent System halves together. Enlarged the detent slots until the pins on the Flap Handle fit well. Began fitting the Console into the fuselage and to the Mounting Tabs.


 
Nov 20, 2023     Final Fitting of FloorBoards; Collect Parts for Flap Lever Detent System - (8 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Final fitting and trimming of the Floorboard panels. Drilled and Mounted, but not varnished, as I want to get the center console fitted to be sure of its location before finalizing the floorboards.


 
Nov 17, 2023     Prepare Plywood Cabin Floorboards - (2 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Trim and test fit the Plywood Cabin Floorboards. Backdrill and Cleco the two rear-most Boards covering the Control Tube.


 
Nov 16, 2023     Watch YouTube of Others' Builds - (2 hours) Category: Research
Watch YouTube of Others' Builds.
 
Nov 15, 2023     Install Middle and Rear Elevator Connect Tubes - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Install Middle and Rear Elevator Connect Tubes and worked to get friction-free action in the Rear Elevator Bellcrank Idler Arm.


 
Nov 12, 2023     Build/Mount Flap Handle; Mount/Connect Flaperon Mixer System - (7.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Build Flap Handle. Install Flap Handle. Mount Flap Aileron Mixer Assembly. Insert Aileron and Flab Connect Tubes and connect Flap/Aileron Mixer Assembly to Flap Handle and Aileron Bellcrank.


 
Nov 11, 2023     Aileron Flap Flaperon Linkages - (8.25 hours)       Category: Controls
More reaming of hardware related to aileron and flap linkages. Connected flap bellcrank and aileron bellcrank with various hardware.


 
Nov 08, 2023     Reaming Various Holes in Aileron/Flaps/Flaperon Linkages - (3 hours) Category: Controls
Reaming various holes in the Rod End Tabs, Mounting Tabs, Pivot Bushings, etc, for the Idler Bellcranks and Horns of the Flap, Aileron, and Flaperon linkages.
 
Nov 07, 2023     Install Elevator Idler Bellcrank - (2.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Removed powdercoat on Elevator Idler Bellcrank and pressed bushings into place with Liquid Bearing Lock 680. Reamed Bellcrank holes and greased pivot bolt of Bellcrank and mounted into fuselage then added castle nut and cotter pin


 
Nov 05, 2023     Test Fit Aileron Bellcrank - (.5 hour) Category: Controls
Test fit the aileron bellcrank to ensure zero friction. Enlarged one mounting tab to avoid friction.
 
Nov 05, 2023     Mount Control Column Assembly into Fuselage - (4.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Final mount (hopefully) of the Control Column Assembly into the Fuselage. This required shimming 3 of the 4 Control Mounting Bracket mounting tabs with provided thin washers to level the Bracket and keep Control Column Assembly friction at near-zero levels. Then, hours of sanding on the two nylon bearing halves to avoid friction. Note: used regular nuts while test mounting for friction tests, and then replaced with final nuts (nylocs) before final torquing to 25 in lbs. Applied orange torque tamper paint once torqued.


 
Oct 29, 2023     Mount Control Tube into Fuselage - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Attempted to mount the Control Tube into the Fuselage. Unfortunately, as soon as the bolts are tightened, the friction on the Control Tube increases and prevents easy Control Stick movement. Spent time trying to figure out where the friction is occurring.


 
Oct 29, 2023     Apply Metal Primer to Bare Metal Filed Tab Welds - (.25 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Mix up White Poly Fiber Metal Primer and apply over bare metal spots where tab welds had been filed down earlier today.


 
Oct 28, 2023     Prepared Aileron Bellcrank - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Prepared the Aileron Bellcrank for installation by filing Powder Coating to allow tight installation of brass Bellcrank Bushings. Applied Loctite Bearing Compound and pressed in the brass Bearings. Checked fit into fuselage and selected slightly thinner washers for mounting, per instructions. (did not yet mount into fuselage)


 
Oct 28, 2023     Back Drilled Control Bracket (and Nylon Control Bearing) - (3 hours)       Category: Controls
Carefully positioned the Control Tube and Bracket and Nylon Control Bearing so that Control Sticks will be centered and aligned in the fuselage. Clamped and back-drilled from below into Bracket and Bearings. (did not mount into fuselage yet)


 
Oct 28, 2023     Filed Tab Welds Flat - (.5 hour)       Category: Fuselage
Filed down the welds on the tabs to be flat per instuctions so that the Control Bracket would lay flat.


 
Oct 28, 2023     Attach Control Bracket to Control Tube - (1 hour)       Category: Controls
Attach the Control Bracket to the Control Tube. Torqued per spec and applied Orange Torque Tamper Detector paint.


 
Oct 22, 2023     Reaming Various Holes on Fuselage - (1 hour) Category: Fuselage
Reaming various holes on fuselage and verifying that the hardware will fit.
 
Oct 21, 2023     Control Column Final Assembly - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Tightened and torqued the hardware with bearing lock on the 4 bearings. Mixed some Poly Fiber White Metal Primer and painted the bare metal spots and set up to cure.


 
Oct 20, 2023     Test Assembly of Control Sticks and Tube and Linkages - (2.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Drilled the holes through the Control Sticks and their Control Stick Pivot holders. Assembled all items with the rod end bearings and hardware but did not make the final assembly with the Bearing Lock and did not Torque the nuts yet. As suggested in the manual, I used a dab of super glue to hold the two washers onto the right-side Control Stick Pivot where the rod end bearing connects.

Next steps will be to use the Bearing Lock liquid and torque the nuts, then use the Poly Fiber White Metal Primer to cover the areas of bare metal where various sanding and Power Coatings were removed or scratched.


 
Oct 19, 2023     Control Sticks and Linkage - (3 hours)       Category: Controls
Removed power coating from the Control Stick Pivots to allow a dry-fit slide of the Control Sticks over them. Located hardware for Connect Tube between Control Stick Pivot bottoms and attempted a dry-fit assembly. Found that the holes at the bottom of the Pivots, while already reamed, were not quite big enough for the bolts so I had to re-ream. Then did a dry-fit assembly of everything while outside of the Control Tube to ensure it all fits (as it will be VERY difficult to put this all together inside the Control Tube and that is assuming it all fits already - I certainly don't want to be working with parts that haven't already been fit together successfully outside the Control Tube)


 
Oct 19, 2023     Control Stop Screws - (1 hour)       Category: Controls
Tapped the 4 threaded tubes for the Control Stop Screws, and inserted the screws and nuts.


 
Oct 18, 2023     Reaming Control Column and Control Stick Pivots - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Reamed the two Control Stick Pivots and the Control Column in about a dozen places. Smaller holes easy to ream, but .2500 reaming was difficult in the Pivots as the reamed tube is verrrry long and it takes foreeeever.


 
Oct 18, 2023     Control Column Bracket Assembly - (1.5 hours)       Category: Controls
Fitting of the various items of the Control Column Bracket Assembly together. Pressed the pins in place and riveted. Pressed the bearings into place and riveted.


 
Oct 17, 2023     Shoehorn Right Control Stick Pivot into Control Column - (2 hours)       Category: Controls
Very difficult to get the right Control Stick Pivot into the Control Column. The instructions are to file bearing housing area until the Pivot can be "turned" into place. This required a LOT of time to file and file and file to get it to finally fit. Now that it is inserted, I have some bare metal that is going to need Poly Fiber Metal Primer to be painted on. Oh, fun.


 
Oct 17, 2023     Locate Parts for Control Stick Assembly - (.75 hour)       Category: Controls
Locating various parts as needed for upcoming control stick assembly.


 
Oct 16, 2023     Sand Stop Pins to Fit Control Column Mounting Bracket - (1.75 hours)       Category: Controls
Sanded, using electric drill, the two Elevator Stop Pins. They didn't fit fit into the Control Column Mounting Bracket until sanded. Prepared to drill the holes through the Pins for riveting, but it looks like I don't have a #30 drill bit. Time to head to the hardware store.


 
Oct 16, 2023     Prep Nylon Control Tube Bearing - (1 hour)       Category: Controls
Measure, mark and use drill press to drill two holes into one of the nylon bearings.


 
Oct 16, 2023     Collect Items for the Control Tube Assembly - (.25 hour) Category: Controls
 
Oct 15, 2023     Add Poly Fiber Metal Primer Paint to Bare Metal on Fuselage - (2 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Mixed up a small batch of Poly Fiber Metal Primer Paint that I bought from Kitfox.

Applied to the bare metal places where I had had to trim metal to make things fit. Namely the horiz stab strut lower connection points which were interfering with their connection tabs. Also the tabs that hold the bottom of the trim actuator which had to be trimmed down a bit to allow the actuator shaft to be mounted.

Also applied the paint over the fuselage locations where I had added hysol (Oct 2) to cover various gaps in the powder coating.


 
Oct 15, 2023     Trim Actuator Electrical Hookup (partial) - (1.5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Did some of the trim actuator electrical hookup. Learned how to use my new wire connector crimper tool and added the molex collector to the actuator, shortening the length of the cable from the motor by a bit so that the connector will be close to the rear stab access panel later. Did not put connectors on the long cable to run in the fuselage but will save that for later when any additional wires need to be run, such as for the tail marker light.


 
Oct 11, 2023     Study Trim Actuator Electrical Hookup - (2 hours) Category: Fuselage
Tried to understand the wiring required for the Trim Actuator and Trim Button. Confusing and incomplete instructions leave me still wondering what exactly I am to do. Will have to call the factory tomorrow. Want to understand why some connectors are pink and others blue, and why the wire supplied is shielded yet the instructions refer to it as shielded, and need to understand whether I should remove the shielding for some of the hookup, as it appears in the simplistic drawings, or do something else.
 
Oct 08, 2023     Install Scissor Bracket for Elevator Trim Actuator - (1 hour)       Category: Empennage
installed the scissors bracket for the elevator trim actuator. I have no clue what purpose this mechanism provides, but I guess it keeps the actuator rod from rotating. (although it seems there would be easier ways to accomplish that)


 
Oct 08, 2023     Install Elevator Trim Actuator - (4 hours)       Category: Empennage
Installed the elevator trim actuator. Had to file the tabs holding the actuator for clearance. Had to ream 2 holes on the stab (not mentioned in the instructions). Had to use Dremel cut-off wheel to wide the gap in the squeeze tube, as it wasn't wide enough to squeeze down sufficiently to grab onto the trim actuator rod/shaft.


 
Oct 08, 2023     Mount Stab and Elevator - (2 hours)       Category: Empennage
Mounted the elevator and re-mounted the stabilizer (w/o nuts) to check fit.


 
Oct 06, 2023     Additional Fitting of Horiz Stab to Fuselage - (1.5 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Leveling of horiz stab and final drilling and mounting of nylon blocks at front of horiz stab.


 
Oct 05, 2023     Mount Horiz Stab to Fuselage - (2 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Mounted the horizontal stabilizer to the fuselage.


 
Oct 05, 2023     Prep for Horiz Stab Install - (2 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Prepare fuselage and horizontal stabilizer for initial stabilizer installation and fitting.


 
Oct 02, 2023     Hysol Fuselage Powder-Coat Vacancies - (4 hours)       Category: Fuselage
Inspected fuselage for places where the powder-coating had failed to cover. Buffed the areas with ScotchBrite pad and cleaned them with denatured alcohol. Applied Hysol to the vacancies to fill them in and prevent future water and moisture intrusion.


 
Sep 29, 2023     Varnish Horiz Stab and Elevator - (2 hours) Category: Empennage
Applied two coats of varnish to the horizontal stabilizer and elevator ribs.
 
Sep 28, 2023     Plan Varnish Application - (.5 hour) Category: Empennage
Prepare to varnish the wood on the horiz stab and elevator (planned for tomorrow).
 
Sep 28, 2023     Done Gluing and Sanding Horiz Stab & Elevator Tips - (2 hours)       Category: Empennage
Finished gluing and sanding the tips for the horizontal stabilizer and elevator.


 
Sep 27, 2023     Gluing and Sanding Horiz Stab & Elevator Tips - (6 hours) Category: Empennage
Lots of hours, gluing and sanding the tips for the horizontal stabilizer and elevator.
 
Sep 26, 2023     Guel Rib Stiffeners; Shape Stab & Elevator Tips - (4 hours)       Category: Empennage
Final gluing of the elevator rib stiffeners. Began shaping the stabilizer and elevator tips from balsa.


 
Sep 25, 2023     Glue Elevator Ribs & Stabilzer Rib Stiffeners - (1.5 hours)       Category: Empennage
Glued the Elevator Ribs in, and added rib stiffeners to Stabilizer ribs.


 
Sep 21, 2023     Prep Horiz Stab Rib Stiffeners & Glue Elevator Ribs - (3 hours)       Category: Empennage
Prepared the Horizontal Stabilizer Rib Stiffeners to fit in the locations selected, but not glued.

Began gluing the Elevator Ribs in place.


 
Sep 20, 2023     Drill for Horizontal Stabilizer Trim Bearing - (1.5 hours)       Category: Empennage
Drilled the 4 top holes for the horizontal stabilizer trim nylon bearing, per plans. (bottom 4 get drilled-through later after nylon bearing is installed)


 
Sep 20, 2023     Fitting Elevator Ribs - (3 hours)       Category: Empennage
Sanded the elevator ribs to get them to fit exactly where I had marked them to go to align with the horizontal stabilizer ribs.


 
Sep 12, 2023     Press Elevator Bearings - (2 hours)       Category: Empennage
Pressed the 7 brass bearings into the horizontal stabilizer. Used a bolt/nut/washer to press the bearings in. Used Kitfox Toolkit Loctite RC680 bearing cement to secure.


 
Sep 11, 2023     Final Gluing on Horizontal Stabilizer - (1 hour)       Category: Empennage
Performed the final bit of gluing on the horizontal stabilizer.


 
Sep 10, 2023     Sand and Prep Stabilizer Ribs - (4.5 hours)       Category: Empennage
Sanded all horizontal stabilizer ribs and trimmed to fit exactly in spots specified in plans. Cleaned powder coat surfaces with denatured alcohol and used scotch brite pads to roughen. Fit all horiz stab ribs and taped in position in prep for future hysol adhesive.


 
Sep 09, 2023     Glue First Stabilizer Rib - (1 hour)       Category: Empennage
Sanded and prepared first rib for horizontal stabilizer. Used Hysol dispenser gun and nozzle for first time and installed one rib.


 
Aug 25, 2023     Sand Elevator Bushings - (2.0 hours)       Category: Empennage
Fit all 7 elevator bushings to their bearings. Sanded the steel bushing to reduce diameter to fit the brass bearings.


 
Aug 24, 2023     Reaming - Horizontal Stabilizer and Elevator - (2 hours)       Category: Empennage
Reamed the horizontal stab and elevator. Had to grind hex shape onto end of reamers (which came with the optional kitfox "toolkit" that I purchased) to be able to turn the reamers with a wrench. Had to buy wobble socket extension to allow use of electric drill at a slight angle due to clearance issues.


 
Aug 23, 2023     Reading Assembly Manual - (1.5 hours) Category: Research
Reading intro chapters of assembly manual and the first chapter on building the empennage.
 
Aug 22, 2023     Inventory - (6 hours)       Category: Inventory
Inventory of the parts in the kit. Followed the inventory instructions from Kitfox. Found 1 missing item, the LED tail light which Kitfox later sent to me.

(actual inventory was on 1/23/2022 but I re-set the date so that the calendar build time will not include the 7 months the kit was sitting in my house before project was started due to the demolition of my old 1-car garage and the re-construction of a new 3-car garage/shop)


 


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