I am about to embark on a RV 10 build as soon as my tools and empanage kit arrives.
My question to other builders is....if you were to build again what would you do differently? I’m mainly looking at construction techniques, other tools, homemade jigs to make things easier, etc.
In talking with a few other builders it seems like there are differences in the way they did their projects, tools they used and so on.
Thanks for the input.
A lot of it is personal. Do you value time over cost? Do you have the room for more tools?
tools: beyond the stuff that van's lists as required, a tungsten bucking bar is well worth the $120ish.
A couple rolls of blue masking tape is nice to have on hand to hold rivets and protect the work.
You will need about 50% more 3/32" and about 25% more 1/8" clecos than what Van's recommends unless you work on one section and one side at a time. Doing both elevators at once will use up all of them.
A 4000 rpm pneumatic drill is far more comfortable to use than an electric and does a better job. Although if your kit has final-drilled holes you probably won't use it much!
Drill press is optional but nice. A mill would be even nicer than the drill press and save a bit on layout time and will increase accuracy.
It's also nice to have a center drill to start holes in the thicker stuff.
Band saw is also nice but optional. I'd probably look at getting a handheld metal saw and an aftermarket stand for it over getting a traditional band saw.
I like having a pneumatic squeezer but others hate them.
A (digital) caliper will let you double check drill bit diameters and double checking of your marks and other tasks.
jigs: really depends. If it's something you only do a couple of times it's generally not worth making a jig IMO.
There are a couple of places where you'll be doing the same mark over and over (cutting stiffeners to length in the ailerons for example). Cutting the end of a craft stick (3/4"x6") straight and drilling a hole for a rivet to locate it for marking will save you an hour easily.
A jig or guide for marking j-stiffeners will save quite a bit of frustration and time (i used craft sticks again with a hole in it for the sharpie).
I used a furring strip and cut an angle in it to countersink the trailing edge but there is also a jig you can buy. Van's also recommends a tapered pilot for countersinking those on the 14 but I haven't had much issue with the regular pilot.
I use other bits of furring strip to hold parts for cutting in the band saw. Again with the aileron stiffeners I could put them on the strip and follow my previous cut to rough shape the taper. Finished up on the 1" strip sander.
Some sort of tubing holder is nice to have once you get to making the push/pull tubes.