Van's Air Force
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RV-8 N83274
- Thread starter riseric
- Start date
Reply to TK
Hi TK,
Ha...!!!
As you may know, all these fine aircraft parts will be shipped across the big pond to Québec in due time... I prefer leaving the leading edges as is for transport and roll them after the inside inspection...
As to your procrastination, it can be a good thing sometimes... I do it often...
But you'll have to procrastinate a long time while I do my slow build wings as you have the QB!!!
Hi TK,
Ha...!!!
As you may know, all these fine aircraft parts will be shipped across the big pond to Québec in due time... I prefer leaving the leading edges as is for transport and roll them after the inside inspection...
As to your procrastination, it can be a good thing sometimes... I do it often...
But you'll have to procrastinate a long time while I do my slow build wings as you have the QB!!!
Empennage (almost) done
Finally, after getting the replacement stiffeners, they were cut to the correct lenght, prepared, primed and installed.
The left elevator was closed and hung with the other tail parts.
No more will be done on these until the MD-RA inspection!!!
Finally, after getting the replacement stiffeners, they were cut to the correct lenght
, prepared, primed and installed.
The left elevator was closed and hung with the other tail parts.
No more will be done on these until the MD-RA inspection!!!
Wings started !!
So, 5 days after my birthday, I went to the airport cargo area.
These were waiting for me!!
OK, how to get these in the van???
The long box is 4.70 metres (15' 5")
When the need arises, one finds a way!!!
I only had to drive 5 kilometres (3 miles) to get to my airplane factory.
Brilliant packaging as everything inside was intact despite obvious abuse on the crates. I'm glad I chose air freight. I heard horror stories about maritime shipment...
Inventory was done and unfortunately, there's one small glitch. I got 4 of the same part instead of 2 left and 2 right.
The wing stand is built. On wheels of course because of the restrained space.
The spars are a beautiful sight for the eyes. Too bad they will not be seen when the wings are done.
After careful studies of the plan, (one does not want to goof on these...!!!) work is officially started!!
Platenut rivet holes are drilled to size and 2 are countersunk.
A rivet is used to check the depth, all looks good.
Holes are then countersunked and spot primed. Underneath, the debbured holes are also primed.
Platenuts are done on one flange of the left main spar!!! 3 flanges to go!!!
I really love doing this !!!
So, 5 days after my birthday, I went to the airport cargo area.
These were waiting for me!!
OK, how to get these in the van???
The long box is 4.70 metres (15' 5")
When the need arises, one finds a way!!!
I only had to drive 5 kilometres (3 miles) to get to my airplane factory.
Brilliant packaging as everything inside was intact despite obvious abuse on the crates. I'm glad I chose air freight. I heard horror stories about maritime shipment...
Inventory was done and unfortunately, there's one small glitch. I got 4 of the same part instead of 2 left and 2 right.
The wing stand is built. On wheels of course because of the restrained space.
The spars are a beautiful sight for the eyes. Too bad they will not be seen when the wings are done.
After careful studies of the plan, (one does not want to goof on these...!!!) work is officially started!!
Platenut rivet holes are drilled to size and 2 are countersunk.
A rivet is used to check the depth, all looks good.
Holes are then countersunked and spot primed. Underneath, the debbured holes are also primed.
Platenuts are done on one flange of the left main spar!!! 3 flanges to go!!!
I really love doing this !!!
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December Update
Work continues on the wing kit.
Hint: put some tape to cover the crack between the main spar flanges and its doublers. It prevents alu shavings from getting stuck in there.
Ask me why I know!!
After the 144 platenuts on the flanges and the 4 on the spar are done, time to attack the tie-down bracket parts. The 2 spacers are made from a bar of alu. The main body is tapped to accept the tie-down bolt.
All is bolted to the spar, with the aileron hinge brackets in the back.
Next up are the rear spars, and it's pretty straightforward. Time to get those edges nice and smooth!!
Lots of hole drilling and deburring...
Once primed, time for riveting. I'm glad all rivets were possible to do with the squeezer. The only trick here is to leave the correct holes free for further riveting of the ribs and other stuff.
Ok, here comes hole and edge finishing, flange squaring and fluting for 40 or so ribs, (not counting the tanks) before clecoing, drilling, deburring, priming and riveting to the spars...
I guess I won't post again in 2012...!!! ahahah
May everyone have a great holiday season !!!
Cheers !!!
Work continues on the wing kit.
Hint: put some tape to cover the crack between the main spar flanges and its doublers. It prevents alu shavings from getting stuck in there.
Ask me why I know!!
After the 144 platenuts on the flanges and the 4 on the spar are done, time to attack the tie-down bracket parts. The 2 spacers are made from a bar of alu. The main body is tapped to accept the tie-down bolt.
All is bolted to the spar, with the aileron hinge brackets in the back.
Next up are the rear spars, and it's pretty straightforward. Time to get those edges nice and smooth!!
Lots of hole drilling and deburring...
Once primed, time for riveting. I'm glad all rivets were possible to do with the squeezer. The only trick here is to leave the correct holes free for further riveting of the ribs and other stuff.
Ok, here comes hole and edge finishing, flange squaring and fluting for 40 or so ribs, (not counting the tanks) before clecoing, drilling, deburring, priming and riveting to the spars...
I guess I won't post again in 2012...!!! ahahah
May everyone have a great holiday season !!!
Cheers !!!
Back to work!!
Back to work on, then off, then on the wings again...
On the wings: Ribs now all squared, fluted, drilled for electrical conduit, and deburred.
Then mounted on spars to final drill.
Starting to look good!!!
Then I had a solo discussion about Proseal...
The expiry date is 04/13. Four months away.
Will I have enough time to finish the wings and skins before?
Maybe not, so I better start on the tanks...
Can I do the tanks before the wings?
Some say yes, some say it's better if done after for tank and leading edge alignment...
So I decided Go with the tanks.
Tank instructions start by drilling holes "perfectly centered" in the Z brackets.
I did my best to do them Perfectomundo centered but obviously it wasn't good enough... A few are "OK", but some not, and this one is the worst:
My hole was off to the left, couldn't get the cleco and the tank baffle to agree.
I drilled through the baffle and even it was off-centre...
Lessons learned: I might not be precise enough in my drilling or maybe the instructions should be changed, so I will not repeat this way of doing the Z's.
I believe the 1/8" holes should be drilled AFTER the Z's are bolted to the spar.
Sadly, I read this post only AFTER:
http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=93916
I will follow this method next time!!!
http://www.rv7factory.com/log/060108.php
So new Z's, platenuts and bolts are ordered.
Meanwhile, back working on the wings, I don't stress too much about the Proseal since my shop is nicely refrigerated most of the time and it should keep the Proseal OK.
Back to work on, then off, then on the wings again...
On the wings: Ribs now all squared, fluted, drilled for electrical conduit, and deburred.
Then mounted on spars to final drill.
Starting to look good!!!
Then I had a solo discussion about Proseal...
The expiry date is 04/13. Four months away.
Will I have enough time to finish the wings and skins before?
Maybe not, so I better start on the tanks...
Can I do the tanks before the wings?
Some say yes, some say it's better if done after for tank and leading edge alignment...
So I decided Go with the tanks.
Tank instructions start by drilling holes "perfectly centered" in the Z brackets.
I did my best to do them Perfectomundo centered but obviously it wasn't good enough... A few are "OK", but some not, and this one is the worst:
My hole was off to the left, couldn't get the cleco and the tank baffle to agree.
I drilled through the baffle and even it was off-centre...
Lessons learned: I might not be precise enough in my drilling or maybe the instructions should be changed, so I will not repeat this way of doing the Z's.
I believe the 1/8" holes should be drilled AFTER the Z's are bolted to the spar.
Sadly, I read this post only AFTER:
http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=93916
I will follow this method next time!!!
http://www.rv7factory.com/log/060108.php
So new Z's, platenuts and bolts are ordered.
Meanwhile, back working on the wings, I don't stress too much about the Proseal since my shop is nicely refrigerated most of the time and it should keep the Proseal OK.
February progress
One other thing I learned and that I can share here is to not rivet with a gun if the parts are not as stable as possible.
I tried to rivet the main wing ribs on the spar while it was on the wing stand.
Even if the spar is solidly attached, not moving and I put extra hand/arm pressure on the gun to the rivet to ensure a good contact, this was the result:
"Exploded" manufactured heads...
I can say that I'm now a very good rivet remover because I must of bucked and removed at least 12-15 rivets before calling it quits, go home, and sleep on it.
The next day, frustrated, thinking my riveting technic went out the window or that I had a "bad" batch of rivets, or a defective rivet cup and looking for a solution, I "practiced" riveting a lone rivet on a scrap piece of alu. All was perfect!!! Then it struck me: the wing stand...
It tend to think that when the spar is on the wing stand, it can vibrate ever so slightly when the rivet gun is in action. Thus the above outcome.
I then moved the spar to the work bench and, magic!!!
So the work continues:
And the wing spars and ribs are back on the stand:
The skin and cleco festival with the drilling that follows.
I counted 1380 holes for skins and leading edge...
On to the tanks. I received my new Z's and drilled the root bracket off centre by 1/16" away from the flange for more wrench space. The other 6 were drilled 1/16" towards the flange for more Pop rivet tool space.
No 1/8" holes are yet drilled on the Z's.
They are squared, bolted through the lone hole and clamped to the spar to drill the other 2 holes.
The tank is pushed as much as possible against the leading edge and pushed down on the spar and secured in place.
Drill the root Z as it's the only one exposed at this time.
Then, the leading edge is removed to expose the tip Z drilling.
Protect the spar with a scrap piece of alu.
One other thing I learned and that I can share here is to not rivet with a gun if the parts are not as stable as possible.
I tried to rivet the main wing ribs on the spar while it was on the wing stand.
Even if the spar is solidly attached, not moving and I put extra hand/arm pressure on the gun to the rivet to ensure a good contact, this was the result:
"Exploded" manufactured heads...
I can say that I'm now a very good rivet remover because I must of bucked and removed at least 12-15 rivets before calling it quits, go home, and sleep on it.
The next day, frustrated, thinking my riveting technic went out the window or that I had a "bad" batch of rivets, or a defective rivet cup and looking for a solution, I "practiced" riveting a lone rivet on a scrap piece of alu. All was perfect!!! Then it struck me: the wing stand...
It tend to think that when the spar is on the wing stand, it can vibrate ever so slightly when the rivet gun is in action. Thus the above outcome.
I then moved the spar to the work bench and, magic!!!
So the work continues:
And the wing spars and ribs are back on the stand:
The skin and cleco festival with the drilling that follows.
I counted 1380 holes for skins and leading edge...
On to the tanks. I received my new Z's and drilled the root bracket off centre by 1/16" away from the flange for more wrench space. The other 6 were drilled 1/16" towards the flange for more Pop rivet tool space.
No 1/8" holes are yet drilled on the Z's.
They are squared, bolted through the lone hole and clamped to the spar to drill the other 2 holes.
The tank is pushed as much as possible against the leading edge and pushed down on the spar and secured in place.
Drill the root Z as it's the only one exposed at this time.
Then, the leading edge is removed to expose the tip Z drilling.
Protect the spar with a scrap piece of alu.
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Tanks continued...
Then remove the tank skin and inside ribs, leaving the end ribs and baffle on the spar.
Make sure to use a good drill stop and drill the Z's through the baffle.
Perfectly drilled Z's and positionned tank!!!
This way of doing the Z's is straightforward and can't go wrong!!!
Then remove the tank skin and inside ribs, leaving the end ribs and baffle on the spar.
Make sure to use a good drill stop and drill the Z's through the baffle.
Perfectly drilled Z's and positionned tank!!!
This way of doing the Z's is straightforward and can't go wrong!!!
Tanks continued...
So the tank is drilled and countersunk.
The tank attach angle and doubler are prepared. For info, I found it easier to cut the big alu angle with a hacksaw than using the dremel tool. Almost the same time, less noise, no smoke...
The big hole is cut using a fly cutter then the access plate and flange are drilled, countersunk and dimpled.
The ring, rib and platenuts are riveted together. Notice the offset ring from the rib. I need to better centre the plate on the left side. I don't believe the offset is a problem, I'll see later.
The Deluxe locking fuel cap flange is drilled. The flange is then countersunk and the skin dimpled for flush rivets.
The skin is scored with ScotchBrite pads so the sealant will stick better. The ribs and stiffeners get the same treatment. The scored aluminium is then thouroughly cleaned with acetone to remove any pollutants.
I'm using Rick's Sealant Method for my tanks. I tried the "normal" way and boy, was it messy!!! Here the stiffeners and the skin get sealant then get 100% clecoed for the sealant to cure a couple of days before riveting.
More to come tomorrow...!!!
So the tank is drilled and countersunk.
The tank attach angle and doubler are prepared. For info, I found it easier to cut the big alu angle with a hacksaw than using the dremel tool. Almost the same time, less noise, no smoke...
The big hole is cut using a fly cutter then the access plate and flange are drilled, countersunk and dimpled.
The ring, rib and platenuts are riveted together. Notice the offset ring from the rib. I need to better centre the plate on the left side. I don't believe the offset is a problem, I'll see later.
The Deluxe locking fuel cap flange is drilled. The flange is then countersunk and the skin dimpled for flush rivets.
The skin is scored with ScotchBrite pads so the sealant will stick better. The ribs and stiffeners get the same treatment. The scored aluminium is then thouroughly cleaned with acetone to remove any pollutants.
I'm using Rick's Sealant Method for my tanks. I tried the "normal" way and boy, was it messy!!! Here the stiffeners and the skin get sealant then get 100% clecoed for the sealant to cure a couple of days before riveting.
More to come tomorrow...!!!
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Thanks!!! Appreciated !!!
Tanks continued...
After the fuel drain flange was sealed and I wanted to rivet it, I noticed that the countersinks were too large for the indicated size 3 rivet . The head is recessed in the hole instead of being flush to the surface. These countersinks were already made on the flange from the supplier. After measuring, I found that a size 4 rivet would fit nicely. That would mean to drill the flange and skin from 3/32" to 1/8". Althought I can't see any issue by enlarging the holes, I contacted Van's for advice and it was declared OK to enlarge the holes to 1/8" for a size 4 rivet.
My other thread here on the same subject.
The end rib tooling hole is plugged with an A 426 6-4. I used these instead of the AD 470 6-X just because I had some on hand with the dimple dies to repair my boo-boo on the Vertical Stabiliser.
The stiffeners riveted and the shop heads with the "blobs".
The ribs are sealed and clecoed.
The fuel cap flange is sealed to the skin. Some cleaning will be done before closing the tank. I don't know about the normal flange supplied by Van's, but for the deluxe locking one like this, instead of the 426 3-4 called for on the plans, the rivet call is 426 3-4.5 and 426 3-5 for the different holes because of a thicker flange. For the next tank, I will install the vent line clamp but not roll it before inserting the tube.
Inside the inboard rib, the access plate flange is sealed and the blue fitting is ready (but not sealed yet) to receive the vent line.
The vent line is fitted to the fitting. It's offset from the holes in the ribs so a couple of bends are required.
At the outboard end, the vent line is held by the small bracket and bent to be closer to the top of the tank. The holes in the ribs will be equipped with bushings to prevent chaffing between the vent line and the rib.
After receiving Van's OK to drill the flange holes to size 4, it was done and the appropriate rivets installed. After checking with the gauge, instead of 426 3-4, I installed 426 4-5 rivets. Here, they received their blob of sealant with some space between so that any water will reach the drain valve.
The outside of the drain flange with the size 4 rivets.
The inside ribs are now riveted, I only have to blob the shop heads. Photos coming soon.
After the fuel drain flange was sealed and I wanted to rivet it, I noticed that the countersinks were too large for the indicated size 3 rivet . The head is recessed in the hole instead of being flush to the surface. These countersinks were already made on the flange from the supplier. After measuring, I found that a size 4 rivet would fit nicely. That would mean to drill the flange and skin from 3/32" to 1/8". Althought I can't see any issue by enlarging the holes, I contacted Van's for advice and it was declared OK to enlarge the holes to 1/8" for a size 4 rivet.
My other thread here on the same subject.
The end rib tooling hole is plugged with an A 426 6-4. I used these instead of the AD 470 6-X just because I had some on hand with the dimple dies to repair my boo-boo on the Vertical Stabiliser.
The stiffeners riveted and the shop heads with the "blobs".
The ribs are sealed and clecoed.
The fuel cap flange is sealed to the skin. Some cleaning will be done before closing the tank. I don't know about the normal flange supplied by Van's, but for the deluxe locking one like this, instead of the 426 3-4 called for on the plans, the rivet call is 426 3-4.5 and 426 3-5 for the different holes because of a thicker flange. For the next tank, I will install the vent line clamp but not roll it before inserting the tube.
Inside the inboard rib, the access plate flange is sealed and the blue fitting is ready (but not sealed yet) to receive the vent line.
The vent line is fitted to the fitting. It's offset from the holes in the ribs so a couple of bends are required.
At the outboard end, the vent line is held by the small bracket and bent to be closer to the top of the tank. The holes in the ribs will be equipped with bushings to prevent chaffing between the vent line and the rib.
After receiving Van's OK to drill the flange holes to size 4, it was done and the appropriate rivets installed. After checking with the gauge, instead of 426 3-4, I installed 426 4-5 rivets. Here, they received their blob of sealant with some space between so that any water will reach the drain valve.
The outside of the drain flange with the size 4 rivets.
The inside ribs are now riveted, I only have to blob the shop heads. Photos coming soon.
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One tank finished!!
Tony,
The experience of building the wing and tank is very educating indeed.
The caps are a beauty and close or open with a really good feeling. I'm very happy to have them.
Watch out, I'm closing, I'm closing on you!!!
After close to 100 hours of work, the right tank is completly done.
I built one fuel pick-up tube but was not happy with the cuts at the end.
So I ordered the ones that Van's sell with the wire mesh.
Much better!!!
I also installed a fuel return line that ends up in the 4th fuel cell from the inboard side.
Here it is below the vent line.
And the outside AN fitting. I turned the opening towards the center; planning to have the return line close to the fuel feed line.
The float sending unit bent in position.
The sealant bead for the baffle.
And the bead inside after the baffle is in position.
The Z brackets are on and sealed, and the skin to baffle rivets are almost all done.
Sealing the access plate. I chose to not install the cork gasket but only use sealant.
The fuel sending unit is installed and sealed and the electric continuity is OK!!
The rivet shop heads were blobed with sealant and a good bead was laid between the skin and the baffle.
An all around check and small sealant touch-ups were made.
The tank is curing at home where it's warmer than at the shop.
In a few days I'll do the leak test.
Hoping for the best...
Tony,
The experience of building the wing and tank is very educating indeed.
The caps are a beauty and close or open with a really good feeling. I'm very happy to have them.
Watch out, I'm closing, I'm closing on you!!!
After close to 100 hours of work, the right tank is completly done.
I built one fuel pick-up tube but was not happy with the cuts at the end.
So I ordered the ones that Van's sell with the wire mesh.
Much better!!!
I also installed a fuel return line that ends up in the 4th fuel cell from the inboard side.
Here it is below the vent line.
And the outside AN fitting. I turned the opening towards the center; planning to have the return line close to the fuel feed line.
The float sending unit bent in position.
The sealant bead for the baffle.
And the bead inside after the baffle is in position.
The Z brackets are on and sealed, and the skin to baffle rivets are almost all done.
Sealing the access plate. I chose to not install the cork gasket but only use sealant.
The fuel sending unit is installed and sealed and the electric continuity is OK!!
The rivet shop heads were blobed with sealant and a good bead was laid between the skin and the baffle.
An all around check and small sealant touch-ups were made.
The tank is curing at home where it's warmer than at the shop.
In a few days I'll do the leak test.
Hoping for the best...
tkatc
Well Known Member
That looks great. I have not sealed the ends of my tanks yet. I don't even have any pro seal. I am undecided about the FI so I don't know about a return line yet.
About to order finish kit although I'm nowhere close....just trying to avoid price increase. When are you back in Canada for good?
About to order finish kit although I'm nowhere close....just trying to avoid price increase. When are you back in Canada for good?
Thanks Tony,
Prosealing is not that bad.
Saying that after sealing a tank, I now know better what to do and what to avoid...
Still, I'm glad to move on and do "normal" work on the wings before attacking the 2nd tank.
As for the return lines, I plan on a FI engine but don't know if I'll need only 1 or 2 returns depending on the engine and/or the fuel selector.
So I will make a return line in both tanks, in case one or both are not used, I'll just cap as needed...
I am also thinking about ordering the fuse to avoid the price increase. Like you I'm not close to start it, probably in a year or so...
I'll try to arrange to have it prepared/shipped in 8 or 9 months.
The plan is to finish my ATC work here in Nov '16 then cross the big pond with the bits and pieces of the RV in a container to continue and finish the build in Qu?bec. I hope to fly it within a year or so after the move...
Welcome Home...Eventually
Salut Eric
Whenever you show up on this side of the pond, let me know, we're quite a group of RVs and spam cans flying all over La Belle Province for breakfast on week-ends...
Have a look at our site..
http://www.aeroclubmirabel.org/
Bruno
[email protected]
Salut Eric
Whenever you show up on this side of the pond, let me know, we're quite a group of RVs and spam cans flying all over La Belle Province for breakfast on week-ends...
Have a look at our site..
http://www.aeroclubmirabel.org/
Bruno
[email protected]
H?, salut Bruno!!
Thanks for the link, that will definetely be in my plans to meet fellow RVer's for breakfast, lunch or any other insignificant reason...
Can't wait for it to happen!!!
I should be based in the Qu?bec city area but it will be only a short hop to YMX (where I worked for a year). 130NM @ 165Kts = 50 minutes
Vous ?tes bas?s o?? ? St-J?rome?
International VAF Police
The IVP (International VAF Police) asked me to intentionnally mount my fuel pick-up tube the wrong way just to see if anyone here was keen enough to catch the mistake...
Great catch indeed Tom & Robert !!!
Geeeeeezzz...
What a major brain fart I had!!!
And the drawings on the plans can't be clearer...!!!
From the beginning, I had in my mind that the tube was forward.
Why??? Can't explain... Since it doesn't make sense to be towards the front because the end of the tube would be higher than the bottom of the tank...
Don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure that one out!!!
So I took everything appart, dissambled, cleaned, and assembled as should be...
And 3 1/2 hours later...
The sealant was only 3 days old so not too set and hard to remove except for the anti-rotation bracket which was sealed a while ago...
Again, a million thanks to you guys for seeing this!!!
And if someone needs a perfect example of the value of this site managed by Doug and the people here, this can be it!!!
Donate if you haven't already!!!
The IVP (International VAF Police) asked me to intentionnally mount my fuel pick-up tube the wrong way just to see if anyone here was keen enough to catch the mistake...
Great catch indeed Tom & Robert !!!
Geeeeeezzz...
What a major brain fart I had!!!
And the drawings on the plans can't be clearer...!!!
From the beginning, I had in my mind that the tube was forward.
Why??? Can't explain... Since it doesn't make sense to be towards the front because the end of the tube would be higher than the bottom of the tank...
Don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure that one out!!!
So I took everything appart, dissambled, cleaned, and assembled as should be...
And 3 1/2 hours later...
The sealant was only 3 days old so not too set and hard to remove except for the anti-rotation bracket which was sealed a while ago...
Again, a million thanks to you guys for seeing this!!!
And if someone needs a perfect example of the value of this site managed by Doug and the people here, this can be it!!!
Donate if you haven't already!!!
Duckworks leading edge light
A quick update,
Preparing the leading edge for the Duckworks light.
First cut then smooth edges.
Seen from below.
After drilling holes in the skin and ribs comes the plexiglass.
Kind of a practice shot for making the big cut in the canopy...
With the edges smoothed out.
Then drilled and countersunk.
The mounting plate in place.
The lens with its retaining strips. I chose not to put rivets through and use only the double sided tape.
The lamp and ballast installed. I still need to tidy up and attach the loose wiring.
The lens screwed in place.
The lamp is not lit here, it's just the camera flash reflecting.
It's a very nice kit, and I understand that it will provide lot's of light, being 75W HID.
I will have one in both wings...
A quick update,
Preparing the leading edge for the Duckworks light.
First cut then smooth edges.
Seen from below.
After drilling holes in the skin and ribs comes the plexiglass.
Kind of a practice shot for making the big cut in the canopy...
With the edges smoothed out.
Then drilled and countersunk.
The mounting plate in place.
The lens with its retaining strips. I chose not to put rivets through and use only the double sided tape.
The lamp and ballast installed. I still need to tidy up and attach the loose wiring.
The lens screwed in place.
The lamp is not lit here, it's just the camera flash reflecting.
It's a very nice kit, and I understand that it will provide lot's of light, being 75W HID.
I will have one in both wings...
Tank declared leak free!!
No building for the last 3 weeks as I was half way around the globe for work at a conference and a little vacation.
Before leaving, I had my tank sitting at home waiting to be tested.
So yesterday, after 2 soapy water tests, no bubbles were found growing.
Knowing that the balloon is not indicative, I still left the pressure in the tank and after 5 hours, the balloon visually stayed the same.
As far as I can test, this tank seems leak free and is declared as such!!!
No building for the last 3 weeks as I was half way around the globe for work at a conference and a little vacation.
Before leaving, I had my tank sitting at home waiting to be tested.
So yesterday, after 2 soapy water tests, no bubbles were found growing.
Knowing that the balloon is not indicative, I still left the pressure in the tank and after 5 hours, the balloon visually stayed the same.
As far as I can test, this tank seems leak free and is declared as such!!!
One year build progress report
One year ago, May 29, I officially started work on the horizontal stabiliser rear spar and doublers.
Since that day, I feel priviledged in acquiring an incredible amount of new learnings, mostly the self type, but still a lot from the fantastic people here in VAF!!!
Learning about working with aluminium, reading and understanding instructions and plans, using the tools, and developing some sort of craftsmanship is very rewarding and I'm still thrilled to go work at the shop any time I can!
I still have a very long way to go but, one rivet at a time will do it...
In a year, I managed about 420 hours of build time, a bit short of my 500
hour goal. The large majority of these hours were happy ones mixed with a few frustrating ones, but those bad ones were expected and I accept them as being part of the global experience.
In summary, the empennage is done without the fiberglass (will redo the trim tab), and one wing including its tank and a leading edge light is done outside the bottom skins, the fiberglass and the aileron push-pull parts. Most of the preperation work on the second wing (spar & ribs) is also done so assembly will start just after returning from abroad (again) in 2 weeks.
I have set roughly 3460 rivets (yes, I keep count). This should be a higher number at this stage but keep in mind that I need to keep inside access to all elements for the MDRA inspection. For that, all elements (HS, VS, elevators, rudder) have one skin installed with a few, easy to remove blind rivets and the bottom skins on the wing will get the same temporary treatment.
After the tank was declared by myself as done, it was installed on the spar along with the leading edge assembly (only temp riveted).
The top inboard skin and its doubler was riveted with my girlfriend as bucking partner. We found a good pace, me back-riveting and her handling the bucking bar on the skin.
In another session, we finished the outboard top skin in the same manner.
Kind of looks nice to me...!!!
Then, the tube for electrical wires was installed. I followed a suggestion here to start from the center ribs out. It was not as bad as I though, but still pretty physical compared to normal building...
Both last pictures above were taken outside the garage as I was turning the wing around so I could lay it on the work bench.
Finally, the aileron brackets, the flap and aileron fairings were primed and installed.
That's it for now, next step might be the aileron push-pull mechanism or continue with the left wing. I'll see in 2 weeks...
See you soon!!!
One year ago, May 29, I officially started work on the horizontal stabiliser rear spar and doublers.
Since that day, I feel priviledged in acquiring an incredible amount of new learnings, mostly the self type, but still a lot from the fantastic people here in VAF!!!
Learning about working with aluminium, reading and understanding instructions and plans, using the tools, and developing some sort of craftsmanship is very rewarding and I'm still thrilled to go work at the shop any time I can!
I still have a very long way to go but, one rivet at a time will do it...
In a year, I managed about 420 hours of build time, a bit short of my 500
hour goal. The large majority of these hours were happy ones mixed with a few frustrating ones, but those bad ones were expected and I accept them as being part of the global experience.
In summary, the empennage is done without the fiberglass (will redo the trim tab), and one wing including its tank and a leading edge light is done outside the bottom skins, the fiberglass and the aileron push-pull parts. Most of the preperation work on the second wing (spar & ribs) is also done so assembly will start just after returning from abroad (again) in 2 weeks.
I have set roughly 3460 rivets (yes, I keep count). This should be a higher number at this stage but keep in mind that I need to keep inside access to all elements for the MDRA inspection. For that, all elements (HS, VS, elevators, rudder) have one skin installed with a few, easy to remove blind rivets and the bottom skins on the wing will get the same temporary treatment.
After the tank was declared by myself as done, it was installed on the spar along with the leading edge assembly (only temp riveted).
The top inboard skin and its doubler was riveted with my girlfriend as bucking partner. We found a good pace, me back-riveting and her handling the bucking bar on the skin.
In another session, we finished the outboard top skin in the same manner.
Kind of looks nice to me...!!!
Then, the tube for electrical wires was installed. I followed a suggestion here to start from the center ribs out. It was not as bad as I though, but still pretty physical compared to normal building...
Both last pictures above were taken outside the garage as I was turning the wing around so I could lay it on the work bench.
Finally, the aileron brackets, the flap and aileron fairings were primed and installed.
That's it for now, next step might be the aileron push-pull mechanism or continue with the left wing. I'll see in 2 weeks...
See you soon!!!
Mid summer progress !!
Since June, progress has mainly been focused on the left wing.
But a few things were left to do on the right wing:
The bottom skins are temporarily riveted to the wing. (Remember the MDRA inspection in Canada).
Seen here is the inboard skin
The access plates are now screwed in place. The temporary rivets holding the skin to the wing can be seen on each side of the plates. There is one in every fifth hole. The wing, without the aileron and flap, will now be stored so that the other one can be completed.
The left leading edge will have a mechanical stall warning device. Here, the access hole, its panel and doubler are all ready for priming before riveting the platenuts.
The stall warning mechanism and electrical stuff will be held together with this small riblet. It still needs to be fitted and match drilled to the skin. The lower flange is not yet at 90?
The small stall warning opening is done, some more deburring to do.
All the main skins for the wing plus the tank and leading edge are drilled.
The left tank is now under construction and almost finished with only the sender and rear baffle to install.
Here, a view of the vent line and fuel return line end.
Time for a couple weeks of holidays, then back to the airplane factory in early August...!!!
Since June, progress has mainly been focused on the left wing.
But a few things were left to do on the right wing:
The bottom skins are temporarily riveted to the wing. (Remember the MDRA inspection in Canada).
Seen here is the inboard skin
The access plates are now screwed in place. The temporary rivets holding the skin to the wing can be seen on each side of the plates. There is one in every fifth hole. The wing, without the aileron and flap, will now be stored so that the other one can be completed.
The left leading edge will have a mechanical stall warning device. Here, the access hole, its panel and doubler are all ready for priming before riveting the platenuts.
The stall warning mechanism and electrical stuff will be held together with this small riblet. It still needs to be fitted and match drilled to the skin. The lower flange is not yet at 90?
The small stall warning opening is done, some more deburring to do.
All the main skins for the wing plus the tank and leading edge are drilled.
The left tank is now under construction and almost finished with only the sender and rear baffle to install.
Here, a view of the vent line and fuel return line end.
Time for a couple weeks of holidays, then back to the airplane factory in early August...!!!
Well, it's been almost 2 months without updating.
Been busy with work, mainly traveling away from home but still managing to put in some build hours here and there.
Then seeing the previous post made here by Tony makes me sad again and confirms that he will be greatly missed... My best wishes goes to his family and friends.
Then to summarise my build since last July...
The stall warning access plate and other parts are primed and installed.
The aerodynamic vane still needs to be slightly adjusted.
As for the right wing, the left one gets a Duckworks 75W HID.
Then it's aileron time, starting with trimming the 32 stiffeners.
As it went, I strayed a bit with the shear cutters on 2 stiffeners.
I felt that they would be weakened so I doubled them up with stiffeners that were cut too short from the empennage kit.
I spun around and spent quite some time studying the plans because it says left aileron and it shows the inboard bracket as A-407-R. Tried as I could, the R bracket would not fit as per the drawings. I emailed Vans about this a few weeks ago but got no reply to this date.
Anyone else noticed this??
Maybe my parts were labelled wrong...?
Oh, and the left tank passed with flying colors the soapy water test!!!
Here's a close-up of the inboard side, and how I plugged the 3 outlets. In the middle top, I screwed on a closed fitting. On its left, I fabricated and installed a flared tube with a closed end, and on the bottom, I fabricated another flared tube, this time with an open end were the balloon was installed. It's encouraging that my tubing flares are done well enough to be leak free!!
More to come...
Been busy with work, mainly traveling away from home but still managing to put in some build hours here and there.
Then seeing the previous post made here by Tony makes me sad again and confirms that he will be greatly missed... My best wishes goes to his family and friends.
Then to summarise my build since last July...
The stall warning access plate and other parts are primed and installed.
The aerodynamic vane still needs to be slightly adjusted.
As for the right wing, the left one gets a Duckworks 75W HID.
Then it's aileron time, starting with trimming the 32 stiffeners.
As it went, I strayed a bit with the shear cutters on 2 stiffeners.
I felt that they would be weakened so I doubled them up with stiffeners that were cut too short from the empennage kit.
I spun around and spent quite some time studying the plans because it says left aileron and it shows the inboard bracket as A-407-R. Tried as I could, the R bracket would not fit as per the drawings. I emailed Vans about this a few weeks ago but got no reply to this date.
Anyone else noticed this??
Maybe my parts were labelled wrong...?
Oh, and the left tank passed with flying colors the soapy water test!!!
Here's a close-up of the inboard side, and how I plugged the 3 outlets. In the middle top, I screwed on a closed fitting. On its left, I fabricated and installed a flared tube with a closed end, and on the bottom, I fabricated another flared tube, this time with an open end were the balloon was installed. It's encouraging that my tubing flares are done well enough to be leak free!!
More to come...
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All the aileron parts are primed, and the stiffeners are riveted.
Pretty easy back riveting to do here.
Then they were bent witht the 'ol bending brake seen in the background.
I did give them a bit more bend after this photo so they would be almost touching the spars.
Doublers and platenuts installed.
Nose ribs blind riveted to the steel pipe.
Then comes a tricky part. The rear skin is clecoed on top only to leave access to the inside from the bottom. This is to rivet the top forward and rear skins to the spar. I used blocks of foam to keep the skin open so I can access the rivets with the bucking bar.
Seen in the middle of the photo, a horizontal line of driven rivets.
The aileron brackets were bolted on. However, I will have to remove them as I didn't install the washers correctly...
Here's a good use of water weight and clecos. They hold the aileron down and keep the skin flat while riveting.
Apart from removing the bolts, nuts and washers that hold the brackets and reinstalling them correctly, this is the most I can do until the MDRA inspects the ailerons.
On with the flaps now...
Pretty easy back riveting to do here.
Then they were bent witht the 'ol bending brake seen in the background.
I did give them a bit more bend after this photo so they would be almost touching the spars.
Doublers and platenuts installed.
Nose ribs blind riveted to the steel pipe.
Then comes a tricky part. The rear skin is clecoed on top only to leave access to the inside from the bottom. This is to rivet the top forward and rear skins to the spar. I used blocks of foam to keep the skin open so I can access the rivets with the bucking bar.
Seen in the middle of the photo, a horizontal line of driven rivets.
The aileron brackets were bolted on. However, I will have to remove them as I didn't install the washers correctly...
Here's a good use of water weight and clecos. They hold the aileron down and keep the skin flat while riveting.
Apart from removing the bolts, nuts and washers that hold the brackets and reinstalling them correctly, this is the most I can do until the MDRA inspects the ailerons.
On with the flaps now...
December update
Work continued this fall on finishing both flaps, the aileron pushrods and bellcranks and the pitot mast hole and doubler.
Flap construction process is simple. Spars, ribs and skins. All need to be fitted, drilled deburred and dimpled like many other components.
Oops... For the second time (see the Vertical Stabiliser), I did a figure 8 with the dimpler... Again, I enlarged the spar and skin holes to 3/16 and dimpled accordingly.
Here, all the internal flap parts except the spars and the skins.
Don't forget to rivet the flap ribs to the rear "spar" of the skin. These rivets are done first without the top skin installed otherwise they could not be reached on both sides.
The next step is a bit challenging as I have relatively quite large hands. Ribs and flap skins get riveted together. I used a small tungsten bar inside and the rivet gun outside. I finished with bruised knukles from rubbing my hand inside the flap skin.
A view of the complete left flap. I now have installed more than 5000 rivets since the empennage. Since all sub-assemblies have temporary rivets, that number should be higher at this stage.
After priming the inside of the pushrods, threaded inserts are hammered in. The fit is very, very tight. USE LUBRICANT AND DON'T TAP TOO HARD ON THE ROD ENDS, YOU RISK DAMAGE TO THE FIRST THREADS. Guess how I know...
Rivets, locknuts and end bearings installed. On one of the threaded rod ends, I had to cut off about 1/16 inch and tap the thread at the start because of my too intense hammering had flattened it and I could'nt fit the end bearing...
Use Boelube lubricant and go easy with just enough pressure to insert those threaded rod ends.
After priming inside and out of the long pushrods, the rod ends are riveted and the bearings are threaded in to the plan's call of 72 inches and 11/16. These will be adjusted more precisely when the wings are installed on the fuselage.
These are the bellcranks that will later connect the two pushrods.
Brass sleeves and AN bolts will hold them to brackets on the main wing spars.
The bellcranks and sleeves need just a touch of reaming so all parts fit nice and snug with no gripping or looseness.
I used two different sizes of round files and a little elbow grease for this.
The bellcranks and the brass sleeves will need to be shortened a little to fit correctly between the wing brackets.
All the aileron bellcrank hardware are prepared for installation on the wings. This involved cutting the bellcrank's tubes and their brass bushings to fit between the wing brackets. The brass bushings are kept about 1/32 longer than the bellcrank. Two small aluminium bushings are also made from stock tubing. All bolt holes are final drilled to size.
The aileron bellcrank is installed.
The top bracket needs to be removed to insert the longest bolt.
Don't forget to grease the brass bushing before closing the wing.
As a standard safety practice, the bolts are installed with their heads on top and the nuts on bottom. The bellcrank is seen here from below.
Only the small pushrod is installed for now.
Also seen here is the black wiring tube running spanwise, and the stall warning wire sticking out from the spar.
Work continued this fall on finishing both flaps, the aileron pushrods and bellcranks and the pitot mast hole and doubler.
Flap construction process is simple. Spars, ribs and skins. All need to be fitted, drilled deburred and dimpled like many other components.
Oops... For the second time (see the Vertical Stabiliser), I did a figure 8 with the dimpler... Again, I enlarged the spar and skin holes to 3/16 and dimpled accordingly.
Here, all the internal flap parts except the spars and the skins.
Don't forget to rivet the flap ribs to the rear "spar" of the skin. These rivets are done first without the top skin installed otherwise they could not be reached on both sides.
The next step is a bit challenging as I have relatively quite large hands. Ribs and flap skins get riveted together. I used a small tungsten bar inside and the rivet gun outside. I finished with bruised knukles from rubbing my hand inside the flap skin.
A view of the complete left flap. I now have installed more than 5000 rivets since the empennage. Since all sub-assemblies have temporary rivets, that number should be higher at this stage.
After priming the inside of the pushrods, threaded inserts are hammered in. The fit is very, very tight. USE LUBRICANT AND DON'T TAP TOO HARD ON THE ROD ENDS, YOU RISK DAMAGE TO THE FIRST THREADS. Guess how I know...
Rivets, locknuts and end bearings installed. On one of the threaded rod ends, I had to cut off about 1/16 inch and tap the thread at the start because of my too intense hammering had flattened it and I could'nt fit the end bearing...
Use Boelube lubricant and go easy with just enough pressure to insert those threaded rod ends.
After priming inside and out of the long pushrods, the rod ends are riveted and the bearings are threaded in to the plan's call of 72 inches and 11/16. These will be adjusted more precisely when the wings are installed on the fuselage.
These are the bellcranks that will later connect the two pushrods.
Brass sleeves and AN bolts will hold them to brackets on the main wing spars.
The bellcranks and sleeves need just a touch of reaming so all parts fit nice and snug with no gripping or looseness.
I used two different sizes of round files and a little elbow grease for this.
The bellcranks and the brass sleeves will need to be shortened a little to fit correctly between the wing brackets.
All the aileron bellcrank hardware are prepared for installation on the wings. This involved cutting the bellcrank's tubes and their brass bushings to fit between the wing brackets. The brass bushings are kept about 1/32 longer than the bellcrank. Two small aluminium bushings are also made from stock tubing. All bolt holes are final drilled to size.
The aileron bellcrank is installed.
The top bracket needs to be removed to insert the longest bolt.
Don't forget to grease the brass bushing before closing the wing.
As a standard safety practice, the bolts are installed with their heads on top and the nuts on bottom. The bellcrank is seen here from below.
Only the small pushrod is installed for now.
Also seen here is the black wiring tube running spanwise, and the stall warning wire sticking out from the spar.
Pitot mast and doubler
This is not Van's standard pitot tube installation. Night or IFR flight require a heated pitot, seen here on the right.
In the middle is the mounting bracket or mast.
My plan is to install the pitot just outboard of the aileron access panel seen on the left.
As the pitot needs to be perfectly inline with the airflow, I started by using 2 screws from the access plate and a ruler to draw a reference line parallel to the wing spar.
I will also fabricate and install a strenghtening doubler under the skin. It will be riveted to a rib, the skin and the spar.
Next is to align the front mast holes with the reference line.
The outline of the bracket, its holes and the mast are drawn on the skin. The mast is actually bigger than the drawing so this is just to start the hole.
The first hole is made. The 4 holes will be dimpled to receive no.8 size screws. The mast was used as a drill pilot.
Using a Unibit, small holes are made to start the mast cutout.
After filing away little by little, the mast is starting to go through. More filing is needed to ensure a better fit.
The mast hole is now done.
This is the finished look.
Next step is to fabricate the doubler that will strengthen the whole assembly.
To make the mast doublers, I inspired myself with a few fellow builder's solutions. I used three pieces (2 only seen here) of flat stock aluminium. One (0.025 inch thick) has a bend so it can be riveted to the rib while the front end will be riveted to the spar on the opposite side of the wing skin. The smaller but thicker plates (0.032 + 0.032) will compensate for the spar's 0.063 thickness. Here, I'm positioning the bracket against the rib and the spar to drill the front holes using the spar as template.
Next step is to drill the no.8 screw holes by clecoing the bracket to the skin and using it as a template.
The guide line to open the mast hole in the bracket/doubler.
Platenuts holes are drilled through the mast flange. Drilling chromed stainless steel is more demanding compared to drilling aluminium. I used a new drill bit and lots of lubricant. Countersinking for the rivets and screw heads on the other side was also tougher of course.
This is not Van's standard pitot tube installation. Night or IFR flight require a heated pitot, seen here on the right.
In the middle is the mounting bracket or mast.
My plan is to install the pitot just outboard of the aileron access panel seen on the left.
As the pitot needs to be perfectly inline with the airflow, I started by using 2 screws from the access plate and a ruler to draw a reference line parallel to the wing spar.
I will also fabricate and install a strenghtening doubler under the skin. It will be riveted to a rib, the skin and the spar.
Next is to align the front mast holes with the reference line.
The outline of the bracket, its holes and the mast are drawn on the skin. The mast is actually bigger than the drawing so this is just to start the hole.
The first hole is made. The 4 holes will be dimpled to receive no.8 size screws. The mast was used as a drill pilot.
Using a Unibit, small holes are made to start the mast cutout.
After filing away little by little, the mast is starting to go through. More filing is needed to ensure a better fit.
The mast hole is now done.
This is the finished look.
Next step is to fabricate the doubler that will strengthen the whole assembly.
To make the mast doublers, I inspired myself with a few fellow builder's solutions. I used three pieces (2 only seen here) of flat stock aluminium. One (0.025 inch thick) has a bend so it can be riveted to the rib while the front end will be riveted to the spar on the opposite side of the wing skin. The smaller but thicker plates (0.032 + 0.032) will compensate for the spar's 0.063 thickness. Here, I'm positioning the bracket against the rib and the spar to drill the front holes using the spar as template.
Next step is to drill the no.8 screw holes by clecoing the bracket to the skin and using it as a template.
The guide line to open the mast hole in the bracket/doubler.
Platenuts holes are drilled through the mast flange. Drilling chromed stainless steel is more demanding compared to drilling aluminium. I used a new drill bit and lots of lubricant. Countersinking for the rivets and screw heads on the other side was also tougher of course.
Pitot mast and doubler (part II)
Platenuts installed on the mast.
The bracket is positioned for drilling the rib. To ensure a perfect fit, the skin and the pitot mast will be installed prior drilling.
I marked approximate hole positions on the rib.
The pitot mast is screwed in and the bracket is clecoed to the spar to ensure a tight fit of the bracket to the rib.
The rib with the bracket holes. AN 470 AD4-4 rivets will hold the bracket to the rib. For added stiffness, doublers will also sandwich the rib and bracket when riveted.
Seen here is the bracket and its 2 doubler plates, dimpled and primed.
The two 0.032 inch plates are fixed to the bracket and all is primed.
The 0.064 thickness now matches the spar's 0.063 thickness.
This concludes for now the wing construction. Both wings were moved to a storage facility to make room for the fuselage build.
The fuse is on order and expected early in 2014.
Platenuts installed on the mast.
The bracket is positioned for drilling the rib. To ensure a perfect fit, the skin and the pitot mast will be installed prior drilling.
I marked approximate hole positions on the rib.
The pitot mast is screwed in and the bracket is clecoed to the spar to ensure a tight fit of the bracket to the rib.
The rib with the bracket holes. AN 470 AD4-4 rivets will hold the bracket to the rib. For added stiffness, doublers will also sandwich the rib and bracket when riveted.
Seen here is the bracket and its 2 doubler plates, dimpled and primed.
The two 0.032 inch plates are fixed to the bracket and all is primed.
The 0.064 thickness now matches the spar's 0.063 thickness.
This concludes for now the wing construction. Both wings were moved to a storage facility to make room for the fuselage build.
The fuse is on order and expected early in 2014.
Early 2014 Update
After a two month break of non-building, waiting for the fuselage kit (my fault for late ordering) here's a short update.
What is there to do with no aluminum to work on?
Clean and re-organise the airplane factory!!
In the "new" shop, I turned the paint booth 90 degrees so it's now along the wall, freeing up center space so I have full lenght available. The red tool chess is on wheels and easily out of the way.
Additional lighting is installed above the left "operating table" and in the paint booth.
All of this is possible with the tail and wings out of there.
They are now resting on foam matresses, in a secured storage facility.
Here's a bad photo, the wings are resting on their outboard edges while the inboard spar prodruting from the wing is safety wired to the building's ceiling frame. Except for the HS which is resting on the wing, the rest of the parts are in there to the right and out of sight.
How to destroy a perfectly tidy shop??
Receive and start unpacking a fuselage kit !!!
Packing was top-notch and no part was dammaged.
Inventory (boy, there's a lot of hardware...!!!) showed only 2 very small things amiss; in one hardware bag there was one AN3-5A bolt and 3 AN3-6A instead of 4 AN3-6A. In another bag, one cotter pin is missing...
Construction continues with the firewall and its parts drilled, deburred, dimpled and machine-countersunk. Next step is priming.
The ol' smartphone's digital level was handy for the 8 degree forward bend in the firewall. Making sure it's at 0 to start with...
On with the forward floor while I wait to prime the firewall angles and stuff.
After a two month break of non-building, waiting for the fuselage kit (my fault for late ordering) here's a short update.
What is there to do with no aluminum to work on?
Clean and re-organise the airplane factory!!
In the "new" shop, I turned the paint booth 90 degrees so it's now along the wall, freeing up center space so I have full lenght available. The red tool chess is on wheels and easily out of the way.
Additional lighting is installed above the left "operating table" and in the paint booth.
All of this is possible with the tail and wings out of there.
They are now resting on foam matresses, in a secured storage facility.
Here's a bad photo, the wings are resting on their outboard edges while the inboard spar prodruting from the wing is safety wired to the building's ceiling frame. Except for the HS which is resting on the wing, the rest of the parts are in there to the right and out of sight.
How to destroy a perfectly tidy shop??
Receive and start unpacking a fuselage kit !!!
Packing was top-notch and no part was dammaged.
Inventory (boy, there's a lot of hardware...!!!) showed only 2 very small things amiss; in one hardware bag there was one AN3-5A bolt and 3 AN3-6A instead of 4 AN3-6A. In another bag, one cotter pin is missing...
Construction continues with the firewall and its parts drilled, deburred, dimpled and machine-countersunk. Next step is priming.
The ol' smartphone's digital level was handy for the 8 degree forward bend in the firewall. Making sure it's at 0 to start with...
On with the forward floor while I wait to prime the firewall angles and stuff.
Spring progress report
The firewall and its angles are done.
The fwd floor crossmembers and ribs done, except for the front one of course.
The gear towers will get modified. I copied from another RV-8 builder.
The webs are marked for cutting.
Then marked for drilling.
Drilled for #8 screws.
0.040" sheet is first cut to leave 1/2" overlap all around.
Then match-drilled to the web.
And final trimmed.
Platenut holes done.
The firewall and its angles are done.
The fwd floor crossmembers and ribs done, except for the front one of course.
The gear towers will get modified. I copied from another RV-8 builder.
The webs are marked for cutting.
Then marked for drilling.
Drilled for #8 screws.
0.040" sheet is first cut to leave 1/2" overlap all around.
Then match-drilled to the web.
And final trimmed.
Platenut holes done.
Spring progress report II
After priming, the platenuts are done.
Gear tower mod done!!
One little catch, previously in the instructions it says to rivet the angles to the tower webbings. When it's time to fit the mid-cabin brace, the instructions say to mark one hole so as to not rivet it before the part is installed. But it refers to a hole for the outside weldment. No mention of leaving this one free... So it has to come out.
Another small catch with the instructions. After installing the platenuts as per the instructions, it says to rivet this bracket to the gear tower. The platenuts interfere with the rivet gun straight set or offset set.
So off goes the platenuts and on goes the bracket.
Then on goes the platenuts one more time.
The fwd floor section is almost done with the towers and braces riveted and bolted on. Under the floor, the front crossmember and the front of the towers are left clecoed only at this stage.
The firewall is clecoed to the fwd floor assembly for match drilling. The whole is on its side for easier access as the holes to drill are on the bottom.
Our old friend, Proseal, is back !!! The middle 9 holes receive a thin layer of sealant to prevent entry in the cockpit of any liquids from the engine compartment.
The firewall is riveted to the floor, except for the 9 middle rivets that were covered with sealant.
They will be done at a later stage, as for the baggage bulkheads.
Working on the middle section and the seat ribs now...
After priming, the platenuts are done.
Gear tower mod done!!
One little catch, previously in the instructions it says to rivet the angles to the tower webbings. When it's time to fit the mid-cabin brace, the instructions say to mark one hole so as to not rivet it before the part is installed. But it refers to a hole for the outside weldment. No mention of leaving this one free... So it has to come out.
Another small catch with the instructions. After installing the platenuts as per the instructions, it says to rivet this bracket to the gear tower. The platenuts interfere with the rivet gun straight set or offset set.
So off goes the platenuts and on goes the bracket.
Then on goes the platenuts one more time.
The fwd floor section is almost done with the towers and braces riveted and bolted on. Under the floor, the front crossmember and the front of the towers are left clecoed only at this stage.
The firewall is clecoed to the fwd floor assembly for match drilling. The whole is on its side for easier access as the holes to drill are on the bottom.
Our old friend, Proseal, is back !!! The middle 9 holes receive a thin layer of sealant to prevent entry in the cockpit of any liquids from the engine compartment.
The firewall is riveted to the floor, except for the 9 middle rivets that were covered with sealant.
They will be done at a later stage, as for the baggage bulkheads.
Working on the middle section and the seat ribs now...
May update
May building time is somewhat hampered by professional engagements that kept me away and will keep me away for about 17 days...
Nevertheless, I did some progress when I could.
I stole an idea of using PVC tubing cut to size for joining the centre section.
The spacers are in place and the bolts installed with just enough torque to keep the assembly snug and not squeeze in the parts. 1.438 inch on the 4 corners!!!
The centre section parts are now bolted and riveted together with the correct distance between them.
Because of the diehdral angle of the wings, the skin edge overlap is bent using this special tool. A small angle is made by rolling along the edge making the 2 skins mate tightly. This must be made prior dimpling the holes.
Just an view of all the seat parts and skins all deburred and ready for priming.
Following advise from fellow builders, a larger relief notch is made on the centre bulhead. This is to make room for riveting a bottom skin rivet there. I enlarged it to 1/4 inch wide.
Again, the 'ol phone is used in the longeron twisting. The required angle is 7.25 degrees but I didn't have 2 decimal points on the electronic level...
7.2 will do fine !!!
I bought a set of longeron dies from Buller Entreprises, (I have no connection to them) a RV builder that did not think highly of the prehistoric bending method of clamping and whacking the longerons. They need to be taped and greased for best results and work very nicely with almost no effort.
The only drawback is that the work in one plane only. With the longer longeron needed to bent in both horizontal and vertical planes, I used them for the bigger bend and whacked away for the other bend.
Rolling the mid side skins. To finish, after the angles are removed the roll is massaged by hand, comparing with the bulkhead helps to check the needed curve. Be conservative as it is easier to install an under-rolled than an over-rolled skin.
The middle side fuselage skins are clecoed on the mid section and the floor. The arm rests are clecoed and drilled as for new rear bulkheads.
The mid and front sections are clecoed together.
The front side skins get clecoed, further joining the forward and middle sections. To get this done easily, I removed all the clecoes on the mid bulkheads and the gear towers (except one to keep the gear twr plate, doubler and longeron in place). I started with one cleco in the lower aft, middle and front then moved upwards. 1 in every 2 holes gets a cleco. This to keep everything aligned correctly, otherwise the front and middle sections don't match. I also used a wood block to support the middle part and align it as close as possible before clecoing.
That's it for now, next RV work will be in June !!!
May building time is somewhat hampered by professional engagements that kept me away and will keep me away for about 17 days...
Nevertheless, I did some progress when I could.
I stole an idea of using PVC tubing cut to size for joining the centre section.
The spacers are in place and the bolts installed with just enough torque to keep the assembly snug and not squeeze in the parts. 1.438 inch on the 4 corners!!!
The centre section parts are now bolted and riveted together with the correct distance between them.
Because of the diehdral angle of the wings, the skin edge overlap is bent using this special tool. A small angle is made by rolling along the edge making the 2 skins mate tightly. This must be made prior dimpling the holes.
Just an view of all the seat parts and skins all deburred and ready for priming.
Following advise from fellow builders, a larger relief notch is made on the centre bulhead. This is to make room for riveting a bottom skin rivet there. I enlarged it to 1/4 inch wide.
Again, the 'ol phone is used in the longeron twisting. The required angle is 7.25 degrees but I didn't have 2 decimal points on the electronic level...
7.2 will do fine !!!
I bought a set of longeron dies from Buller Entreprises, (I have no connection to them) a RV builder that did not think highly of the prehistoric bending method of clamping and whacking the longerons. They need to be taped and greased for best results and work very nicely with almost no effort.
The only drawback is that the work in one plane only. With the longer longeron needed to bent in both horizontal and vertical planes, I used them for the bigger bend and whacked away for the other bend.
Rolling the mid side skins. To finish, after the angles are removed the roll is massaged by hand, comparing with the bulkhead helps to check the needed curve. Be conservative as it is easier to install an under-rolled than an over-rolled skin.
The middle side fuselage skins are clecoed on the mid section and the floor. The arm rests are clecoed and drilled as for new rear bulkheads.
The mid and front sections are clecoed together.
The front side skins get clecoed, further joining the forward and middle sections. To get this done easily, I removed all the clecoes on the mid bulkheads and the gear towers (except one to keep the gear twr plate, doubler and longeron in place). I started with one cleco in the lower aft, middle and front then moved upwards. 1 in every 2 holes gets a cleco. This to keep everything aligned correctly, otherwise the front and middle sections don't match. I also used a wood block to support the middle part and align it as close as possible before clecoing.
That's it for now, next RV work will be in June !!!
June update
June was more productive than last month!!
Here are 5 of 6 bulkhead assemblies ready. It doesn't look much but deburring all these is time consuming because of all the nooks and crannies on the contours. The 6th bulkhead is still being worked on.
The tail-wheel mount drilled to the bulkhead.
Here, a side view of the fuselage assembly from the firewall to the last bulkhead.
The photo is taken with the garage door open as the fuselage takes all of the garage lenght.
I have about 10 centimeter of clearance in front and the same in the back.
I will need to re-organise the shop in order to position the fuselage diagonally for increased space.
Otherwise, I won't be able to install the tail-wheel...
Also, I'm almost out of clecos. A bunch of them are not seen here as they are either inside or underneath the fuselage.
Drilling the upper longerons was a bit nerve wracking but clamping them down and working with caution did the trick.
A small heads-up when drilling to size 19 some holes at the base of the gear towers. On the plans, a zoom of the right skin is shown with a pattern for the chosen holes to enlarge. Don't forget to mirror that pattern for the left side skin shown here.
At this stage, the aft bottom and side skins are drilled to the longerons and the bulkheads. That's a lot of holes...
The outer edges of the cockpit rail must be flush with the side skin's outer edge so clamps are used to align them.
Ratchet straps are used to bring the longeron's vertex flush with the upper gear tower flange for drilling.
The front seat back support is clecoed to the fuselage. Nice !!!
June was more productive than last month!!
Here are 5 of 6 bulkhead assemblies ready. It doesn't look much but deburring all these is time consuming because of all the nooks and crannies on the contours. The 6th bulkhead is still being worked on.
The tail-wheel mount drilled to the bulkhead.
Here, a side view of the fuselage assembly from the firewall to the last bulkhead.
The photo is taken with the garage door open as the fuselage takes all of the garage lenght.
I have about 10 centimeter of clearance in front and the same in the back.
I will need to re-organise the shop in order to position the fuselage diagonally for increased space.
Otherwise, I won't be able to install the tail-wheel...
Also, I'm almost out of clecos. A bunch of them are not seen here as they are either inside or underneath the fuselage.
Drilling the upper longerons was a bit nerve wracking but clamping them down and working with caution did the trick.
A small heads-up when drilling to size 19 some holes at the base of the gear towers. On the plans, a zoom of the right skin is shown with a pattern for the chosen holes to enlarge. Don't forget to mirror that pattern for the left side skin shown here.
At this stage, the aft bottom and side skins are drilled to the longerons and the bulkheads. That's a lot of holes...
The outer edges of the cockpit rail must be flush with the side skin's outer edge so clamps are used to align them.
Ratchet straps are used to bring the longeron's vertex flush with the upper gear tower flange for drilling.
The front seat back support is clecoed to the fuselage. Nice !!!
June update II
Many builders report that drilling the seat back support can be tricky for 2 main reasons.
First, the hole must be drilled from below through the seat back support.
Second, obviously as seen here, the aft hole is half outside the spacer and cockpit rail.
Needless to say that edge distance here would be insufficient knowing additionally that this 1/8 inch hole need to be enlarged for a screw...
Another ratchet strap pulls everything in place and an angle drill adaptor is used with a mirror for proper drilling. The hole is now correctly done.
All holes for the seat back support done.
The instructions says to fabricate 3/4 inch shims to fill any space between the TW mount and the bulkhead. Some builders don't need these but I found that a 0.040 inch gap needed to be filled. I did two of these that I find somewhat small in surface. I will search and see if larger ones would be more appropriate.
A top view of the mount now drilled to the bulkhead.
Seen also are the 2 small shims at the corners.
I don't like the remaining gap between the mount and the bulkhead between the shims, thus my plan to fabricate a larger, full size shim.
The bottom skin after trimming. I had to shave away more than the template. Mainly to clear the welding on each side of the tail-wheel mount.
From the start of the project, my girlfriend wished to be the first passenger. Here she is, her wish (almost) done with a thumbs up. This is just before putting the assembly back on the work table before dismantling.
Many builders report that drilling the seat back support can be tricky for 2 main reasons.
First, the hole must be drilled from below through the seat back support.
Second, obviously as seen here, the aft hole is half outside the spacer and cockpit rail.
Needless to say that edge distance here would be insufficient knowing additionally that this 1/8 inch hole need to be enlarged for a screw...
Another ratchet strap pulls everything in place and an angle drill adaptor is used with a mirror for proper drilling. The hole is now correctly done.
All holes for the seat back support done.
The instructions says to fabricate 3/4 inch shims to fill any space between the TW mount and the bulkhead. Some builders don't need these but I found that a 0.040 inch gap needed to be filled. I did two of these that I find somewhat small in surface. I will search and see if larger ones would be more appropriate.
A top view of the mount now drilled to the bulkhead.
Seen also are the 2 small shims at the corners.
I don't like the remaining gap between the mount and the bulkhead between the shims, thus my plan to fabricate a larger, full size shim.
The bottom skin after trimming. I had to shave away more than the template. Mainly to clear the welding on each side of the tail-wheel mount.
From the start of the project, my girlfriend wished to be the first passenger. Here she is, her wish (almost) done with a thumbs up. This is just before putting the assembly back on the work table before dismantling.
August update
After a bit of research and questions put here, I fabricated this full-sized shim for the tail wheel mount, replacing the 2 small 3/4 inch shims.
The centre hole is not quite perfectly round as it contours the welding on the mount.
49 hours of work on the RV in the last month...
That's the time I took to disassemble, deburr, dimple, countersink and prime all the fuselage parts. whew...
Not seen here are the upper and mid-aft longerons and all the skins that are also primed ready to install!!
Time now for final assembly !!!
After a bit of research and questions put here, I fabricated this full-sized shim for the tail wheel mount, replacing the 2 small 3/4 inch shims.
The centre hole is not quite perfectly round as it contours the welding on the mount.
49 hours of work on the RV in the last month...
That's the time I took to disassemble, deburr, dimple, countersink and prime all the fuselage parts. whew...
Not seen here are the upper and mid-aft longerons and all the skins that are also primed ready to install!!
Time now for final assembly !!!
rightrudder
Well Known Member
Nice work, Eric!
You're at a good place in the build, where you've prepped a big batch of parts and can get on with the oh-so-satisfying assembly phase. (I was just there with my seat backs!)
You're at a good place in the build, where you've prepped a big batch of parts and can get on with the oh-so-satisfying assembly phase. (I was just there with my seat backs!)
Fall update I
Since starting this project, this last September was the less productive month. Only ... 3 ... hours done...!!!
Mainly due to work having me travel twice around the world, lol.
Anyway, some work was made before and a little since.
The front, middle and seat sections are joined together now.
The arm rests and side bulkheads are riveted together, then they are riveted to the middle side skins.
The rear arm rests are not riveted to the skins at this time.
Here, the left mid-side panel and the upper longeron are added to the assembly.
A view from the back. When both sides are installed, it's time to rivet the upper longerons to the landing gear boxes and to the engine mounts on the firewall.
Van's standard fuel valve is not compatible with my desired engine configuration (Electronic Fuel Injection and Ignition). The supplied fuel valve bracket is too small for the Andair Duplex Fuel Valve. Duplex meaning fuel feed to the engine and return to the tanks.
After searching and thoughts, I came up with a plan to fabricate a twice as wide bracket using a 0.032 inch plate trimmed to clear the platenuts on the mid-cabin brace. The plate will be held under the brace and longeron by countersunk screws. The longeron is temporarily clecoed with the gusset on the outside so as to keep it flush as if the skin was there.
Here is a pilot's view of the valve.
Missing are the holes through the longeron and the top plate covering all except the knob and face plate of course.
I test rotated back and forth only once and the assembly felt really solid. (Andair suggests to avoid excessive dry turning of the valve)
This is a really well engineered valve and nice looking also !!
Bottom view of it all. Leaves plenty of room to install the 6 fuel lines. The lower section will draw fuel from the tanks and feed the engine while the upper section will channel the returning fuel from the engine to the tanks. My logic here is cooler fuel below, warmer fuel above. The valve operates one tank at a time, feeding from and returning fuel to the same tank.
The requirement of having full fuel return lines to the tanks means 2 lines crossing the fuselage. The centre bulkhead is normally fitted for only one fuel line running from the tank to the selector. I temporarily installed the control column to check for clearance with 2 dummy lines, using extra Adel clamps and all seems OK.
... continued ...
Since starting this project, this last September was the less productive month. Only ... 3 ... hours done...!!!
Mainly due to work having me travel twice around the world, lol.
Anyway, some work was made before and a little since.
The front, middle and seat sections are joined together now.
The arm rests and side bulkheads are riveted together, then they are riveted to the middle side skins.
The rear arm rests are not riveted to the skins at this time.
Here, the left mid-side panel and the upper longeron are added to the assembly.
A view from the back. When both sides are installed, it's time to rivet the upper longerons to the landing gear boxes and to the engine mounts on the firewall.
Van's standard fuel valve is not compatible with my desired engine configuration (Electronic Fuel Injection and Ignition). The supplied fuel valve bracket is too small for the Andair Duplex Fuel Valve. Duplex meaning fuel feed to the engine and return to the tanks.
After searching and thoughts, I came up with a plan to fabricate a twice as wide bracket using a 0.032 inch plate trimmed to clear the platenuts on the mid-cabin brace. The plate will be held under the brace and longeron by countersunk screws. The longeron is temporarily clecoed with the gusset on the outside so as to keep it flush as if the skin was there.
Here is a pilot's view of the valve.
Missing are the holes through the longeron and the top plate covering all except the knob and face plate of course.
I test rotated back and forth only once and the assembly felt really solid. (Andair suggests to avoid excessive dry turning of the valve)
This is a really well engineered valve and nice looking also !!
Bottom view of it all. Leaves plenty of room to install the 6 fuel lines. The lower section will draw fuel from the tanks and feed the engine while the upper section will channel the returning fuel from the engine to the tanks. My logic here is cooler fuel below, warmer fuel above. The valve operates one tank at a time, feeding from and returning fuel to the same tank.
The requirement of having full fuel return lines to the tanks means 2 lines crossing the fuselage. The centre bulkhead is normally fitted for only one fuel line running from the tank to the selector. I temporarily installed the control column to check for clearance with 2 dummy lines, using extra Adel clamps and all seems OK.
... continued ...
Last edited:
Fall update II
... continued ...
The instructions says to rivet this bulkhead to the bottom skin. 2 things prevents me doing this step. First, the tail wheel mount and the tail wheel spring are not factory drilled as I bought them as extras. It will be almost impossible to remove if the bulkhead is riveted. Second, with the skin riveted, there is no reasonnable room to insert a wrench under the mount to hold a nut, that is tightened on the bolt holding the tail spring.
(I am not affiliated in any way with this brand of drill guide.)
The tail wheel mount is fitted with a guide for drilling through tubes or round stock.
As this is steel, lots of lube, slow drill speed and high pressure on the drill worked fine and the hole is nicely centered.
Same procedure for the tail wheel spring. After the hole was made, the mount and spring were fitted together and the drill bit was passed through using the guide to ensure perfect bolt hole alignment.
The finished hole in the tail spring... Sorry for the fuzzy photo...
At the other end, the tail wheel swivel is drilled to the spring. This time, I match drilled both parts together instead of individually. Once one hole was made, I put a bolt in it to secure the assembly for drilling the second hole.
The mount is final bolted to the bulkhead and the spring to the mount. I bolted the spring at this stage even if the instructions say to bolt it later. Unless I missed or don't understand something, I can't imagine how it's done when the skin is riveted to the bulkhead.
On to riveting the bulkhead to the aft bottom skin. I had to slightly enlarge the hole in the skin as my bolt is a little offset from where it would be if factory drilled. As explained on the previous photo, I don't see how to put a wrench on that nut when the skin is in place.
... continued ...
The instructions says to rivet this bulkhead to the bottom skin. 2 things prevents me doing this step. First, the tail wheel mount and the tail wheel spring are not factory drilled as I bought them as extras. It will be almost impossible to remove if the bulkhead is riveted. Second, with the skin riveted, there is no reasonnable room to insert a wrench under the mount to hold a nut, that is tightened on the bolt holding the tail spring.
(I am not affiliated in any way with this brand of drill guide.)
The tail wheel mount is fitted with a guide for drilling through tubes or round stock.
As this is steel, lots of lube, slow drill speed and high pressure on the drill worked fine and the hole is nicely centered.
Same procedure for the tail wheel spring. After the hole was made, the mount and spring were fitted together and the drill bit was passed through using the guide to ensure perfect bolt hole alignment.
The finished hole in the tail spring... Sorry for the fuzzy photo...
At the other end, the tail wheel swivel is drilled to the spring. This time, I match drilled both parts together instead of individually. Once one hole was made, I put a bolt in it to secure the assembly for drilling the second hole.
The mount is final bolted to the bulkhead and the spring to the mount. I bolted the spring at this stage even if the instructions say to bolt it later. Unless I missed or don't understand something, I can't imagine how it's done when the skin is riveted to the bulkhead.
On to riveting the bulkhead to the aft bottom skin. I had to slightly enlarge the hole in the skin as my bolt is a little offset from where it would be if factory drilled. As explained on the previous photo, I don't see how to put a wrench on that nut when the skin is in place.
Wicked Stick
Well Known Member
Enlarge the hole so you can insert a socket onto the nut.
Excellent suggestion!!
Hi Dave,
That's an excellent suggestion, thanks!!
I did think about enlarging it, not to put a socket around the nut but I was concerned about the skin being stressed by touching the nut.
Is this what most builders do instead of just drilling it ?"??
It also makes sense maintenance wise!!!
Hi Dave,
That's an excellent suggestion, thanks!!
I did think about enlarging it, not to put a socket around the nut but I was concerned about the skin being stressed by touching the nut.
Is this what most builders do instead of just drilling it ?"??
It also makes sense maintenance wise!!!
