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RV-12 N417E Build Milestones

02-25-13 Kit arrives

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It took awhile longer than expected, but the empennage, wing, and fuselage kits finally arrived with nothing but one minor poke from a fork truck.

http://www.rv12.pflanzer-aviation.com/empennagekit01.htm
 
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Wow! Two minutes from "haven't even opened the crates yet" to "finished vertical stab"!

You should have it ready for it's maiden flight by next weekend, right? :D
 
Is it just an optical illusion from the camera... or the rivets on your rudder horn looks like they are not squeezed enought!?

On another note! Wow great progress! Keep on building like that and it will be ready probably next week! ;)
 
I had the same issue

Is it just an optical illusion from the camera... or the rivets on your rudder horn looks like they are not squeezed enought!?

Randy,

I originally installed the rudder horn rivets with the manufactured heads on the bottom, like in your photo, and got the same result. The thin sheet of the ribs puckered at each rivet shop head and left the rib standing off the horn slightly, with the only points of contact being at the rivets and nowhere else. Didn't like it, so I drilled them out, pounded the puckers flat and reversed the installed direction of the rivets, which BTW does agree with the general standard of putting the manufactured head on the side of the thinner material. That resulted in a nominal interface.
 
I had a very little bit of pucker, but not enough to make me want to take it apart. I did not like the first rivets I set and I drilled those out. I used my pneumatic squeezer and it squeezed them too hard and quick, which increased the pucker. After removing them, I used my hand squeezer and the results where much better.

You are always going to get a little pucker squeezing a -4 rivet in such thin material, but it's pretty tight considering.

Good eyes guys. Thanks for the feedback. I appreciate you all looking over my work. Keep it coming.
 
Wow! Thanks Randy, for taking the time to document your excellent workmanship. I remember how I admired your previous builds. Wish I lived closer to you so maybe some of your excellence could rub off on me!
 
Appreciate the comments. I live on an airport so if you have a way up, anyone is free to stop by at any time. I love to have visitors.

Seating starts promptly at 7:45PM otherwise you may get seated behind the stabilator. :D
 
Thanks. I "think" the yellow band is the wire identifier. There is a red band on the wire and that's what I positioned in the opening, but I will double check.

Thank you for taking the time to point this out. Much easier to fix now than later.
 
Wow! That is beautiful. I'm so glad that you're still building beautiful airplanes...and sharing your progress with us. :D
 
Randy.... how the heck do you keep your skins so beautiful.

Why obviously, I polish them up just for the pictures!:p Really, I don't do anything special except build on a couple of blankets.

Thanks for the kind words guys. I feel great and all is clear so far so I'm going to keep on truckin'.
 
06-27-13 Fuselage Marriage Consumated

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The center section is complete and ready to be mated to the empennage cone.

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I used my engine hoist to raise up the empennage using the cradle as the attach point. This isn't how the instructions say to do it but when you are by yourself, you need to be creative. This worked well for me, YMMV.

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After about 3 hours total time, I successfully consummated the marriage of the fuselage. All in all, it went very well and the parts fit together perfectly. I continue to be amazed at the precision of the parts.

http://www.rv12.pflanzer-aviation.com/fuselagekit03.htm
 
07-18-13 On the Gear

Sitting on the gear.

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The fuselage kit is nearly completed. I'm just finishing up the panel. Work will now commence on the fuel tank. My last war with the "Black Death" shall commence.
 
07-26-13 Fuselage Kit Completed

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Finished up the fuselage kit right before Airventure. I've already started the finish kit and have the gear and wiring completed. Work will slow down now since I've accepted some temporary consulting work that will generate cash for the avionics package.
 

Randy,
Did you also have very close tolerances where the wiring bundle passes under the flaperon mixer?

If I built another -12, I'd take the advice of some previous builders and roll the fuselage on its side (before gear installation)- to do the wiring. I have muscles aching all over my body, along with countless cuts and scrapes, from crawling in and out of the cockpit.
 
I had to manipulate the cover but I have it now where there's no interference. It's close but they don't touch.

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I read in another thread about turning the fuselage over on its side to do the wiring and the controls. I already had the gear on and the empennage attached so I wasn't going to take all that off just to wire it. Now, I may feel differently when I install the controls!!

I'm not small and I'm certainly not as flexible as I used to be but I didn't find it that hard. Laying in the cone to reach the bulkhead behind the fuel tank was probably the hardest part.
 
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I had to manipulate the cover but I have it now where there's no interference. It's close but they don't touch.

I read in another thread about turning the fuselage over on its side to do the wiring and the controls. I already had the gear on and the empennage attached so I wasn't going to take all that off just to wire it. Now, I may feel differently when I install the controls!!

I'm not small and I'm certainly not as flexible as I used to be but I didn't find it that hard. Laying in the cone to reach the bulkhead behind the fuel tank was probably the hardest part.

Just wait until you get to the controls, hehehehe:).
I just crawled back out of the plane after installing the AP servos. I'm 48, not in shape, and probably drink way too much beer. But I feel like I need a massage after that. Maybe I should start stretching before these work sessions? I now take every tool known to man when I crawl in, and it helps to eleminate constant in and out. Bottom line? I'm fat and out of shape. But I'm having a blast :)
 
Nope, don't think so. I debated it and determined that there's not that much of a benefit for me to install it. I'm glad Van's decided to include it in the kits going forward, but I don't think it's that important.

Now, I may change my mind after I start flying but for now, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.
 
Just completed the leak test after letting the tank sit for several days. No leaks!!! Yea. Proof that you can use fuel tank sealant sparingly and in the right places and get a good seal.
 
10-05-13 - Wings on, controls and wheel pants done

Wings are on, controls have been installed, and the wheel pants are done. Getting ready now to paint the interior.

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Looks really nice, Randy! Has Abby sent your interior to you yet? Wait until you see that craftsmanship! You'll love her work- if you haven't seen it by using her products in your other planes before?!

You'll be in the air in no time!
 
She is shipping it this week. Yea, Abby did the interior in my Rocket. Great work and great service.
 
Improving the Air Conditioning :)

She is shipping it this week. Yea, Abby did the interior in my Rocket. Great work and great service.

Obviously I am not flying yet. However, I have been told it works WONDERS, to modify Abby's side panels- where they cover our high-tech 'air conditioners' :D

The side panels have some mesh sewn into them, where the openings are located that cover the air vents. I've been told by two people flying already, that removing this mesh makes a HUGE difference in airflow coming inside the cockpit. You'd think the tiny mesh wouldn't make that much of a difference, but apparently it does. One guy was in the copilot seat and pulled off the side panel in-flight to do a test before cutting out the mesh. Apparently it made such a difference that they cut out both sides of the mesh upon landing.

Just something to think about before attaching the side panels- although it appears they'll be easily removable with the Velcro attachment.
 
Thanks.

I only ordered seat cushions and carpet. I an installing my own custom interior once my 5 hours have been flown off and it is legal to do so.
 
11-04-13 Canopy Completed

I just finished up three weeks of very intensive work to finish up the installation of the canopy. I built the fairing off the airplane and then glued it in place using fuel tank sealant.

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I finished both the inside and outside. I am very happy with the way things turned out. Details of the install are documented here.
 
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