New Builder Hints

[ship]

never put 3000 AN3.5 & AN4 rivets in the same cheap plastic storage bin drawer with removable divider because you WILL eventually drop the drawer or pull the divider at the LEAST convenient moment.

corollary #1: if your eyes aren't good now, they sure as #&_$ won't be good after sorting 3000 rivets of nearly the same size.

corollary #2: a pharmacist's tablet dispenser is excellent for sorting rivets

corollary #3: you can never have too many cheap plastic storage bins.

mr. murphy's universal "builders/restoration/motorsports hobby" law:
--when you have the time, you won't have the money.
--when you have the money, you won't have the time.

fail to plan, plan to fail

the actual number of years to complete your first aircraft will be equal to "10" divided by your most optimistic estimate.

[ship]

if you plan on impressing your friends by rolling out the fuse on the gear with the tail PERMANENTLY mounted, make sure not to forget to add the width of the STINKIN' fiberglass tips when measuring for the width of the shop door BEFORE you build the friggin' workshop and AFTER you glassed the tips onto the HS

...ESPECIALLY if you build houses for a living....

[Ironflight]

...wear your VAF hat to the airport if there is any chance you are going to do maintenance...like an oil change...white hat, old oil...it's not pretty...

Paul

[thallock]

If you have any clothes that you would prefer not to get any blood on, then do not wear them out in the "airplane factory."

If you have a shirt that your wife gave you that you absolutely hate to wear, then wear it when you Pro-Seal your tanks. This works with pants, girly handkerchiefs, or stupid hats, also.

You might want to remove all items of clothing before starting to Pro-Seal your tanks. You might want to close the "factory" entrance when you do this.

Tracy (wearing rags in the "factory").

[johnp]

don't try to shoot rivets with the bucking bar in the vise and the work in your hand -- especially if you haven't edge finished the work well -- results are similar to drilling your finger, except the fissure created is less regular and takes longer to heal.

[RV_7A]

Always stick your finger in a small airplane propellor instead of a big one!

[Dan_E_Root]

Here's a tip for builder's lacking those cool parts holders for nuts, washers and various small widgets.

Scatter a small handful of whatever small part you're installing on the ground, about where they would be if you dropped them. You'll spend less time looking for the one you dropped, if a replacement can easily be picked up.

[Jamie Aust]

Make a backup of your build log and photos onto another pc or burn to disk before you pc's hard disk crashes

[Jekyll]

Buy 2 microstop countersinks and leave one permanently set for -3 and one permanently set for -4. You'll save a BUNCH OF TIME. Buy a third and use that for all the odd jobs like -5 rivets, #6 and #8 screws, #12 or 19 drills.

Not only will you save lots of time but, you will have consistently perfect sinks on your -3 and -4 rivets which are the majority of uses.

Check out a pro wood workers shop: they have a router for each bit they use. The time to change bits and set up the depth is a killer and not worth the extra expense.

Jekyll

[sadams]

Painting rules
1. No matter what you say, what you do, or how closely you guard your work, your kids will find a way to touch your freshly painted part "just to see if it's wet."
2. Just as soon as you get everything prepped, mix up a batch of paint, and make the first pass with the spraygun, either one of your children or your wife will need your help "right now".
3. Your paint job will never look quite as good as it does when you first pull the tape and masking paper off after spraying the last color, enjoy it.