G

gpblair

Member
Hello All,

Let me introduce myself. My name is Grant and I currently live in Newfoundland, Canada. I have recently received my brand new RV-7 empennage. I am a first time builder with very little metal working experience at all. I have assisted briefly in some riveting and of course am trying to make use of the wealth of knowledge available on the internet. My question is, do you feel that the expense of traveling a great distance to attend one of the EAA Sportair Workshops is a good investment? Or should I just get a practice kit a figure it out myself? Maybe I should just dive right in and learn as I go. My initial thought, after looking through the tail kit is to take one of the workshops...I would appreciate opinions.

Thanks very much,
Grant
 
EAA workshop

Grant,
I attended an RV building workshop before I started on my kit. I'm now almost finished with the wings. The workshop was an extremely valuable experience. It's one thing to read about the metalworking techniques you need, and quite another to actually try them. The immediate feedback from experts gave me a lot of knowledge that I would otherwise probably still be working to accumulate. You also have the opportunity to ask a multitude of questions that you might otherwise end up calling Van's to ask. I understand that you would have to do some traveling to get to a workshop, but if you can do it I don't think you will ever regret it. Short of going to a workshop, find someone who's built a metal airplane before and arrange a few hours of tutoring to learn the basics. A little training will make your building experience much more enjoyable and safe.

-Bruce
 
Hi Grant,
I strongly recommend attending a workshop if you can, building a airplane is a fun, rewarding experience. But it is worth the time and money to have a bit of confindence in what you are doing. I would highly recommend coming down to one of Tom Emerys workshops, he is a master airplane builder and is with out a doubt one of the best airplane guys I have run into. You will learn alot more than just what a bucking bar is :D
Check it out http://www.wparvbuilders.nstemp.com/
Best of luck
 
I attended an EAA sheetmetal workshop, SportAir, I think, and wasn't particularly impressed by the instruction. You do however have access to all of the tools, and fellow students, who you will learn much from. This workshop was set up so you "shared" a practice project and tools, for the price I paid to attend, I think they could have sprung for some more tools and $5.00 worth of aluminum and rivets. This was a generic aircraft sheetmetal class, so maybe an RV specific class would be better.
I recently purchased Van's toolbox kit, and the airfoil section kit, and found them to be an extremely beneficial. I built both projects before I started riveting on my 9A empennage and felt that I was well prepared, and had few problems. If you have access to someone, especially a fellow builder, who can answer questions, I think you would be fine skipping the workshop. I know I would have. I also had my QB wings and fuselage available to compare my work with. If you have a digital camera, you can send pictures to the VAF and I'm sure one of the experienced builders would be glad to help you. I did enjoy the workshop, especially talking with other builders, and visiting the other classes, but I did feel it was a little pricey. This is just my opinion of the class I attended, most of the comments I have heard about the classes have been very positive.

Mike Doyle
http://www.kitlog.com/users/index.php?user=mdoyle&project=82
 
KirkGrovesRV8 said:
Hi Grant,
I strongly recommend attending a workshop if you can, building a airplane is a fun, rewarding experience. But it is worth the time and money to have a bit of confindence in what you are doing. I would highly recommend coming down to one of Tom Emerys workshops, he is a master airplane builder and is with out a doubt one of the best airplane guys I have run into. You will learn alot more than just what a bucking bar is :D
Check it out http://www.wparvbuilders.nstemp.com/
Best of luck
Click to expand...


Ditto to Kirk, I attended Tom's EAA workshop 3 years ago when he was still in California and found him to be top notch! Glenn in Arizona -9A fuselage.
 
Is anybody else here going to any of the SportAir workshops this weekend in Osh? I'm doing the avionics/electrical one. If so, want to have dinner and talk RVs?

there's a great Hardee's right up the road.:D
 
By the way, I don't know if all the SportAir RV workshops are the same. I went to one in OSH years ago (when they started on Friday nights). The only -- and I emphasize ONLY -- compalint I have about is they requried you to double-up on your sample project.

I think for the kind of money these things cost, you ought to be able to do all the dimpling and drilling and riveting, etc., without having to share with someone else; that's just time and experience taken away.

I udnerstand whyt hey had to do it --they can get more people in the class that way and there was a limit on the # of workstations, but I would consider paying more in order to get more hands-on time.
YMMV.
 
experience required

I also had no metal working experience before starting my 7A, but after a weekend with Tom and Nickie Emery at his Western PA RV Builder's Workshop (http://www.wparvbuilders.nstemp.com/) I gained both significant knowledge and confidence to tackle a metal plane.

Tom not only has decades of experience building metal planes (professionally, not just as a hobbyist), but he is also a good teacher. His workshop gives an overall understanding of the building process, hands on experience with an actual project and the ability to use a variety of QUALITY tools and try a variety of techniques.

Prior to attending Tom's workshop I attended an EAA open-house introduction to building metal planes. It was useless. That isn't to say that they are all useless, but this particular event did nothing to impart any understanding of the process, any knowlege of techniques or any awareness of the differences between good and bad tools.

Tom's workshop was an invaluable weekend and really not that expensive in light of what I gained. I stayed in an inexpensive motel nearby which I only slept in since we spent our days fully occupied at the airport. I didn't rent a car since I was lucky enough to hook up with guys in the class who had rented (and declined my payment of a share -- thanks again Dick). Tom's wife Nickie helped coordinate my contact with classmates prior to arriving. I flew myself down and flew myself home. The overall expense wasn't too bad, and as I said above, very worthwhile.

Hope this info. is useful.

Antony

LOL! Oh yeah -- and Nickie fed us like kings. There was so much good food the local RVers were following their noses to the hangar. I think Nickie used the food as bait so that we could get to chat with some more RV guys about their rides.
 
Last edited:
Thank-you everyone for the input. Although I don't doubt that I could get along without taking a course, I think my comfort level will increase significantly if I do take one. I do have a few concerns about the sharing of practice kits or the lack of hands on training that some of you have mentioned. I will have to look into the details of each course before signing up.

Thanks again,
Grant
 
I loved the Weekend RV assembly seminar. My hubby and I both attended so I could learn more about all the tools I bought and how to properly use them, and so Rich could learn how to as well. Ken Scott taught the class and it was lots of fun besides informative.

Hey Bob!!! Go have dinner at Kodiak Jack's. It's on the other side (west) of 45 a few exits north by the Walmart. Great food and atmosphere. Much better than Hardee's ;)

Roberta
 
Alexander Building Center

No body has mentioned Alexander in Atlanta. He has a quickstart program in which you build YOUR entire tail kit in 1 week working 10 hour days (at least that is what is advertised). It is quite pricey at $1575 but it is a good way to look at all the tools, develop your skills, and relieve that anxiety of drilling the first hole. When you are done you will have a completed tail kit instead of a toolbox or a practice project. The testamonials are pretty good and it looks like a pretty complete program in which you are actually doing the hands-on on YOUR airplane.

Check them out as well as the others.

http://www.buildtofly.com
 
Seminar or practice project?

I didn't go to one of the seminars or workshops 'cause I had some previous exposure (30 years ago!), but as already noted the right one is priceless for someone with no previous experience.
I did do the Class Project Van's sells earlier this month, and I would recommend that as a minimum for anyone jumping into airplane building for the first time. It's a cheap way to get an idea of what you're going to be facing - riveting in tight quarters, AEX trailing edges, countersinking, dimpling, reading prints, etc. I made mistakes that would have had me getting new parts from Van's. It's an eye opener and learning experience and comforting thing all at once.
So now I'm 20 hours into the "Real Thing" and loving it! Stay sharp, read carefully until you're sure you understand, and if you have any doubts about the step your about to take, stop! There are so many resources practically immeadiately available (this forum being a huge resource) there's no need to charge ahead and hope for the best.
-Johnny
RV-9 Horizontal Stabilizer
 
I have to let everyone know (brag) that the new west coast EAA SportAir RV Assembly instructor is SoCAL's Dan "Sharpie" Checkoway. Dan's first class will be March 4/5th in Corona (CA). Having lost Tom Emery to retirement on the east coast, EAA was fortunate to find another great instructor in Dan. EVERYONE attending his classes will get some fine instruction, so if you've been considering attending a workshop in California, GO FOR IT! :) Rosie
 
robertahegy said:
Hey Bob!!! Go have dinner at Kodiak Jack's. It's on the other side (west) of 45 a few exits north by the Walmart. Great food and atmosphere. Much better than Hardee's ;)

Roberta
Click to expand...
I've heard about that. I'll dot it. Thanks. I ended up at some Mexican restaurant during that Monday rainstorm at OSH last summer. Kind of a dump, but good atmosphere and food wasn't bad. Somewhere on the east ...or northeast side of the airport, I think.

Tough to get into these places during OSH so it's always fun to go in te winter.
 
Rosie said:
I have to let everyone know (brag) that the new west coast EAA SportAir RV Assembly instructor is SoCAL's Dan "Sharpie" Checkoway. Dan's first class will be March 4/5th in Corona (CA). Having lost Tom Emery to retirement on the east coast, EAA was fortunate to find another great instructor in Dan. EVERYONE attending his classes will get some fine instruction, so if you've been considering attending a workshop in California, GO FOR IT! :) Rosie
Click to expand...

I will be there (I hope). Just found out that I will be traveling back from France that Friday.
 
Too Easy!!

You guys over in the US are too spoilt!! :p

Its hard enough to find someone else in NZ building a plane, let alone an RV, and let alone someone experienced enough to teach you anything. Workshops? Ha!!!

I did the airfoil practice kit, practiced again on some scraps and then got stuck in. According to everything I have found and read, in books and the Internet, I think I'm doing ok. If anything, I may be a little more predantic than I need be... Of course, if it falls out of the sky a few years after it was built I'll know I was wrong! :D
 
Workshops are for sissys. I didn't take no sissy workshop when I started building. I just opened the box and dove right in there, like a real man. Now, only 9 months later, I'm almost done with my empennage kit. Nope, no workshops for me.

By the way, if anyone needs any scrap aluminum, I have a garage full of miscellaneous skins and ribs and things that look suspiciously like mangled parts from an RV-7 empennage kit...

(pssst....do the workshop :) )
 
You must log in or register to reply here.