The rest of the kits will come the same way, and they only get bigger from here. The shipper will send it on a truck with a liftgate if you pay extra (arrange it when they call to schedule delivery). If you pick up your crates from the shipper's distribution facility you can save some extra cash. I picked up all of my RV-9 crates with the Home Depot rental truck, and I've been getting my RV-10 crates with a flatbed trailer. I believe there was a $75 discount for picking it up from them. They even loaded it with a forklift for me (both Fedex and ABF).

Yeah clearly I will have to do this for the next ones..

Pick up
 

+1
You also get the peace of mind knowing your baby is well handled. I rented a U-haul and they loaded it for me. Slid them down the ramp into my RV factory.

Honestly, it didn't even occur to me to do this.

I'm so used to, in this day and age, ordering something online and having UPS or Fedex ship it.. larger shipping concerns didn't cross my mind..

Lesson learned!

1 month update!
 

Hi all! Time for an update!

I'm now officially 1 month into the build and I just finished the Vertical Stabilizer section 6..

In my build log - I have each days worth of work grouped as one post (sometimes more than one if it's a long day) with photos and video where I talk about my goings on;

http://randomstringofwords.com/build-log/

Comments are 100% welcome!

So far only a few mistakes were made that I can tell. I had to drill out a couple rivets just due to them not seating correctly during the riveting process (read: operator error.) But in each case they drilled out cleanly and the replacement went in without a hitch.

The squeezer is a god send. It really makes your life a lot easier. Once you get it shimmed up correctly the rivets come out perfectly every time. I used the little rivet testing tool (the bent piece of metal with a hole in a one end and a gate in the other) on just about every rivet and they all were just right.

This has been one **** of a fun process. It's hard to believe a month has gone by already.

Today or tomorrow I'll start on the rudder! Fun!

I love my rivet squeezer. I'd really recommend the adjustable set holder. You can very quickly get to the right gap. If one of the rivets in the line isn't quite squeezed enough, give it an 1/8 turn, squeeze again and move on.

I'm finishing up the HS riveting this week and moving on to the Elevator this weekend (I hope!!)

I'd also recommend getting a rivet buddy if you can find one. I've found a second set of hand to be really valuable on the HS. We haven't had to drill out a single driven rivet.

Have fun!

Oh I'll have to check out the set holder. Right now I'm using the "shims" (washers) they supplied. It works because they come in lots of different thicknesses but yeah it sounds like you have the better setup.

Whats a rivet buddy?

^ Note this was meant to be a joke.. I'm doing most of my riveting alone =) Once it gets warmer the wife will likely come out.

Checked out your build log. Thanks for sharing!! I hope to building and found your blog very informative! Keep it coming. Keep pounding those rivets, one at a time.

Luis

Jason,

Not sure how it took me this long but I finally stumbled on your post and over to your blog.

We started at almost exactly the same time and I see now that you've shot far ahead of me onto the HS. Well done!

First let me applaud you for the blog. You're obviously investing a great deal of your time to create narrated videos to help other guys and gals along. That was something I'd hoped to also be able to do but alas let life get in the way and stuck to typed commentary.

What I find amazing is that the thought process we are going through is nearly identical:
- dang these vs spar caps need to be clamped on tight to prevent gaps
- gee the manual doesn't really say when to remove the vinyl
- how the heck do I cleco this vs skin to the skeleton when it's so tight, and uh oh I better shape down those nose rib tips some more

Well, however selfishly, I find myself obsessively watching your videos to forsee what issues are coming next now that you're well ahead of me! I really did get bogged down using a cheap squeezer and have probably drilled out 40 rivets by now!

Thanks again, and look forward to trying to catch up to you!

Sumit