Rotating fuse stand

apatti · #1 01-28-2007, 08:23 PM

Those of you that have rotating fuse stands...

How high off the ground is your upper longeron?

How many different postions can you set it in? Is zero degrees (normal; upright), 45 degrees, and 90 degrees enough?

On the A models, how is the tail mounted/supported? That last bulkhead seems too flimsy to support the weight of the fuse.

Do you have to make sure that the center of rotation for the front and an the back are aligned with each other?

Thanks in advance,

RVbySDI · #2 01-29-2007, 08:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by apatti

Those of you that have rotating fuse stands...

How high off the ground is your upper longeron?

How many different postions can you set it in? Is zero degrees (normal; upright), 45 degrees, and 90 degrees enough?

On the A models, how is the tail mounted/supported? That last bulkhead seems too flimsy to support the weight of the fuse.

Do you have to make sure that the center of rotation for the front and an the back are aligned with each other?

Thanks in advance,

I am not sure exactly what type of rotating stand you are looking at but here is a pic of my stand. It rotates in any position as it acts as a gimble. I rotate it to any position I desire and then clamp the front pivot point down which secures the fuselage from rotating any further. I do not have the figures anymore that I used to build this but there is a set number of inches above the front pivot point that the tail pivot needs to be.

I modeled my stand after this one:

http://www.jeffsrv-7a.com/FuselageStandsForSale.htm

Jeff sells these stands. They work very well. Now, I do not want to keep Jeff from selling his stands so if you are interested in buying one I suggest contacting him. However, I will say that this stand was not that difficult to build if you feel you would like to build it yourself.

RV_7A · #3 01-29-2007, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RVbySDI

http://www.jeffsrv-7a.com/FuselageStandsForSale.htm

Jeff sells these stands. They work very well. Now, I do not want to keep Jeff from selling his stands so if you are interested in buying one I suggest contacting him. However, I will say that this stand was not that difficult to build if you feel you would like to build it yourself.

I appreciate the plug. But "contraire monfrair" I decided to quit offering them because they are far too labor intense.

At this point I encourage anyone to build their own if they have the means. I am currently building one for my last customer and I'm done. Maybe after I get my bird in the air I may offer them again.

-Jeff

RVbySDI · #4 01-29-2007, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RV_7A

I appreciate the plug. But "contraire monfrair" I decided to quit offering them because they are far too labor intense.

At this point I encourage anyone to build their own if they have the means. I am currently building one for my last customer and I'm done. Maybe after I get my bird in the air I may offer them again.

Sorry to hear that you are not selling them any longer but if the time spent building them was keeping you from getting your plane in the air then you have made a wise decision. Get the bird flying and then sell them to others afterwards.

As far as the design, it is a great stand. I built mine last summer and cannot imagine working on the fuselage without it.

Perhaps instead of selling completed stands you should consider selling plans for those interested in building their own. Just as the original poster of this thread asked about some dimensional information about setting up a rotating stand I am sure there would be many out there that would be interested in knowing this information for the purpose of building their own. I am sure they would be willing to pay for detailed plans on how to build these stands.

Just a thought.

DarylT · #5 01-29-2007, 01:06 PM

All I can say is it is very sad that Jeff is no longer making these stands. But on the other had I guess I should be glad as the resale value just went up.

I would never try to build one of these planes without it now that I have gone thru it. Especially his because it rotates 360 degrees. You can get in any postion at 90 degress you can sit on a stool next to it and work all inside the canoe. Even with the top skins on you can rotate 180 and get underneath it and work over your head but still be in a confortable position. I keep thinking about how all of that is going to come to a halt once I remove it. SO I want to make sure I have as much done as I can before that time.

So overall I would say get one. So watch for the adds as folks sell them to make your life easier.

RV_7A · #6 01-29-2007, 01:25 PM

So to answer your question Tony. My stands held the fuselage at 27" from the ground measuring from the bottom of the fuselage to the floor. The forward pivot point was basically the center point of the 4 engine mount bolts in the firewall and the front stand pivoted at 37" from the floor. Once that was attached, you would raise the fuselage and put a level on the aft HS deck. The rear stand pivot was also at 37" and once the fuselage is level fore and aft, then match drilled into the mount that attaches to the aft bulkhead.

I hope this helps.

-Jeff

lostpilot28 · #7 01-29-2007, 02:34 PM

I just got my QB fuselage on Saturday and was looking at options for stands. I came across Jeff's website (I actually use it for reference while building if I have questions - thanks Jeff!)...I think the stand looks easy to build if you know how to weld - which I do not.

So I was thinking, would making the stand out of wood (using 2x4's) be a good idea? I could brace the bottom legs with an angled piece of ply wood. The fuselage is relatively light so I would think it'd be strong enough.

Any suggestions or alternatives?

RVbySDI · #8 01-29-2007, 02:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lostpilot28

I just got my QB fuselage on Saturday and was looking at options for stands. I came across Jeff's website (I actually use it for reference while building if I have questions - thanks Jeff!)...I think the stand looks easy to build if you know how to weld - which I do not.

So I was thinking, would making the stand out of wood (using 2x4's) be a good idea? I could brace the bottom legs with an angled piece of ply wood. The fuselage is relatively light so I would think it'd be strong enough.

Any suggestions or alternatives?

It may work. I would guess it would be pretty heavy but that may not be a bad thing. The key is the pivot point on the stands. The rest of the stand is just supporting those pivot points.

I know that some builders have modified a normal engine stand to support the fuselage at the firewall. I am not sure what they have done with the attach point at the tail but those engine stands might work ok.

jlfernan · #9 01-29-2007, 06:10 PM

When did he stop selling them? I got mine three weeks ago and had an assembly question, he didn't mention anything about not selling them anymore.

RScott · #10 01-29-2007, 08:34 PM

I'm not there yet--fuse is scheduled to come in March--but I wonder if you could simply use iron water pipe? Say, 1" pipe, a 4 way cross type fitting at the bottom for the horizontal arms, an elbow to go vertical from one of the arms. Drill thru the intersection of the elbow and the cross so you can put a cotter pin thru them to make sure it doesn't unscrew on you and drop your fuse on the floor. Then a "T" at the top of the vertical. A piece of 3/4" plywood to go on the fuse, a pipe flange attached to the plywood. Put a 1/ 1/2 "T" at the top of the vertical. Put a short pipe on your flange to go thru the "T" at the top of the vertical and a cap on the end of the pipe from the flange to keep it from coming out of the "T". Wouldn't cost more than about $10-20, I would guess. What's wrong with this?