What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

More tool questions

Randy777

I'm New Here
I recently received my Empennage and have more tool questions. 1) If I get a tungston bucking bar do I still need the steel ones? 2) I have several drills but no air drill. Should I get one? 3) My grinder needs a 6 x 3/4 x 1/2 scotchbrite polishing wheel. Is any 3m wheel ok? The ones at the tool places seem very pricey. 4) I bought a belt and disk sander but the pads are very coarse (80 grit)
What grit do I need? Thanks for all your help. I have been reading this forum for the last three months and it is a wealth of information. This forum is the reason I believe I might be able to build a plane.
 
I recently received my Empennage and have more tool questions. 1) If I get a tungston bucking bar do I still need the steel ones? 2) I have several drills but no air drill. Should I get one? 3) My grinder needs a 6 x 3/4 x 1/2 scotchbrite polishing wheel. Is any 3m wheel ok? The ones at the tool places seem very pricey. 4) I bought a belt and disk sander but the pads are very coarse (80 grit)
What grit do I need? Thanks for all your help. I have been reading this forum for the last three months and it is a wealth of information. This forum is the reason I believe I might be able to build a plane.

Just my opinion:
1) yup, pretty much.
2) ya, cleaner holes.
3) 3M is best and yes they're expensive. You'll only use one.
4) I'm using 120, works well.

Regards
 
Randy, when you're first starting out the tools seem expensive and you would like to save money wherever possible. But you have to keep things in perspective. You're building a $100,000 airplane and the cost of the tools is not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Neither is the cost of the parts you're bound to ruin along the way. We all make mistakes and ruin a few things. Keep the big picture in mind and get the quality tools you need to do a good job. Cutting corners here won't pay off in the long run.

Having said all that, you can find quality used tools if you look around. Not too many builders that I've known sell off their tools when they're finished. But I found some great deals on eBay, the classifieds right here, and so on.
 
Tools

I have been doing blue collar hands on for 50+ years. Good tools are your friend and will pay you dividends.
 
Hi Randy,

You'll find that having several bucking bars, of different sizes and shapes, will serve you well during the build. At least versus tungsten, the the iron ones are VERY affordable! On the grit question, I've got 80 on my belt/disc sander and it works great to quickly remove material. When deburring, I'll use the belt sander first (for long pieces like empennage spars, etc.), use a file to slightly bevel the edges and then finish with either the Scotchbrite wheel or 400 grit paper.
 
Some thoughts on tools

Can you ever have enough? not likely
Some tools I treasure having bought, my air drill, now i own another the angle drill.... not necessary but pretty nice to have
My tungsten bucking bar... essential! yes you will need others
My segregated inexpensive small parts boxes.. 6 to 15 dollars each they house ALL my rivets, bolts buttons, washers and hundreds of parts that would get lost otherwise..... this thing takes years to build just try to remember where you put aileron bolts after two years.
A good compressor..... not essential to buy big but those die grinders love lots of air... good on is 10CFM at 90 psi
I have a pnuematic riveter.... it makes some lines of rivets way easier but you can buck them or do them with a hand squeezer too.

Good luck, and remember to have fun.... i forget that once in awhile as it takes so long to do this.:):)
 
Buy a reverse cycle air-conditioner for the workshop, unless its a hangar, one of the best tool purchases ive made. Comfortable builder = more build time.

Also bar fridge helps to keep fluids up.... And morale high... You will need this when you start on the fuel tanks ;)
 
Tungsten bucking bar: Yes, get one. I use mine about 95% of the time or more. Once in a while I need to pull out the steel bar from my red-box riveting kit.

Drills: Here is my take on drills. I resisted spending the $200+ on the little Sioux drill everyone raves about, but finally did it... and don't regret it. That said, it's not a "must have", it's a "really nice to have".

Scotchcbrite wheel: I wouldn't give mine up. Yes, expensive. Oh well. And buy a box of the maroon pads, you'll need them.

Remember that whatever you spend on specialized tools, you can (in theory) recover a lot of it when you sell the tools after you're done building. If you're the kind of person who can sell a tool. For most of us it's kind of a one-way street, no matter what we think when buying.
 
Tools

Tungsten bucking bar: Yes, get one. I use mine about 95% of the time or more. Once in a while I need to pull out the steel bar from my red-box riveting kit.

Drills: Here is my take on drills. I resisted spending the $200+ on the little Sioux drill everyone raves about, but finally did it... and don't regret it. That said, it's not a "must have", it's a "really nice to have".

Scotchcbrite wheel: I wouldn't give mine up. Yes, expensive. Oh well. And buy a box of the maroon pads, you'll need them.

Remember that whatever you spend on specialized tools, you can (in theory) recover a lot of it when you sell the tools after you're done building. If you're the kind of person who can sell a tool. For most of us it's kind of a one-way street, no matter what we think when buying.

2nd that.
Tungsten
Sioux drill
6"x1" 7a Scotchbrite wheel
3 countersink cages
 
Quote:
I recently received my Empennage and have more tool questions.
1) If I get a tungston bucking bar do I still need the steel ones?
2) I have several drills but no air drill. Should I get one?
3) My grinder needs a 6 x 3/4 x 1/2 scotchbrite polishing wheel. Is any 3m wheel ok? The ones at the tool places seem very pricey.
4) I bought a belt and disk sander but the pads are very coarse (80 grit)
What grit do I need? Thanks for all your help. I have been reading this forum for the last three months and it is a wealth of information. This forum is the reason I believe I might be able to build a plane.


Just my opinion:
1) yup, pretty much.
2) ya, cleaner holes.
3) 3M is best and yes they're expensive. You'll only use one.
4) I'm using 120, works well.

+1 I got my tools from Avery. Full kit. It is so easy discovering I needed a tool and looked to find it was included. I made several customer bucking bars for the rudder, even with the standard steel ones. Also got two scotchbrite wheels from Bob. The standard (hard) and a softer one. I got the HF (cheap) buffer and use both wheels, mostly the soft one. The standard wheel will cut the teeth off of a file easily - tell you something about it's hardness?

2) cleaner holes and fits in tight spaces. My drill is 40 years old, bought it new and used heavily, it put me through college. You won't regret a good air drill.

Just my experience and opinion, too.

Just so you know, by the end you will spend way more on shipping than tools, so don't order parts or tools piecemeal.
 
Last edited:
At 1.9 lbs and no noisy air compressor, no air hose, I love my 12 V. Dewalt and built the entire airframe with it.
 
Back
Top