J

JohnR

Well Known Member
I just enter today's work in my log. I have 110 hours so far.

  • HS done
  • VS done
  • Rudder ready to rivet
  • Right elevator ready to prime then rivet
  • Let elevator needs dimpled yet
  • Haven't started the trim tab

I am really enjoying everything so far, but have no idea if I'm on track for a 1,500 hour build or a 8,000 hours build. Not that it really matters, but I do hope it doesn't take me 8,000 hours. :eek:

When people ask how long it will take to build it I always tell them "however long it takes". And that is what I plan on.

So, those of you with the empennage done, about how many hours did yours take? :)
 
JohnR said:
So, those of you with the empennage done, about how many hours did yours take? :)
Click to expand...

I did a poor job of keeping track of hours (see
my old build log for crummy estimates of time). However, I can give approximate months of building - I typically worked 1-2 hrs most week nights and one full day on each weekend.

For my QB 7A, it was 23 months from the day I finished the emp (excluding fiberglass - that happened later) to first flight. My emp took about three months.

Based on helping a friend with their 9A build, I think going SB would have added a year. I did my own wiring harness, but did not do paint. If I had done tip up, might have been a month or two less.

For my next RV (RV-11 please!), I suspect it will go faster and/or better. :D
 
Last edited:
Emp build time

RV-8A. I did it over three months, including basic fibreglass fitted (but not filling/priming, etc) for a total of 171.25 hrs. I made a couple of mistakes that I had to correct and I was truly surprised at how long the fibreglass wrk took - mind you, I did do the 'ribs' inside the HS & VS tips twice, which cost me some time (wasn't happy with my first attempt). Waiting for wing kit to be delivered...
 
JohnR said:
When people ask how long it will take to build it I always tell them "however long it takes". And that is what I plan on.

So, those of you with the empennage done, about how many hours did yours take? :)
Click to expand...


John, it is not relevant knowing how long a builder took to finish his empennage unless you know the quality of his construction. Speed of construction is the antithesis of elegant workmanship. Therefore as a general rule the shorter the build time....the worse the quality.

I know of an RV that was built from a slow build kit in less than 18 months....but it's a dog (the rushed projects almost always are, because they reflect impatience, lack of research, and a "close enough is good enough" mentality).

It's a bit like going around asking people how much they paid for their car....but not asking what sort of car they have... everyone will give you a different figure but they're all meaningless.
 
I don't even keep track of hours spent. To me, it isn't a race. It is about the journey.

Enjoy the build.

How is your end product? That is where the rubber meets the road... or where the wind meets the wing!

:D CJ
 
Empennage Build time

Bob Barrow said:
John, it is not relevant knowing how long a builder took to finish his empennage unless you know the quality of his construction. Speed of construction is the antithesis of elegant workmanship. Therefore as a general rule the shorter the build time....the worse the quality. ...
Click to expand...
Then my tail must be a real dog! :) I got it finished in a week of 12 hour days, not including any plastic. Of course, I cheated, and built it in a build center (http://www.buildtofly.com/). The main advantage there is you don't have to spend a lot of time pouring over the instructions to figure out what to do next. There are a team of instructors telling what to do, why, and how. They're also giving you hints, tips, and tricks that you can use throughout the rest of the project. A great experience, and as others have described, like drinking through a firehose.

Of course, I do agree with the sentiment of your note.
 
Estimate of thumb I saw somewhere for modern slow-build kits, assuming daily build sessions:
Empennage - 200 hours
Wing - 400 hours
Fuselage - 400 hours
Fini and FWF and all fiberglass - 400 to 600 hours

forward fuselage,
Steve
 
Steve said:
Estimate of thumb I saw somewhere for modern slow-build kits, assuming daily build sessions:
Empennage - 200 hours
Wing - 400 hours
Fuselage - 400 hours
Fini and FWF and all fiberglass - 400 to 600 hours

forward fuselage,
Steve
Click to expand...
This is pretty much where I wound up. Perhaps a a little less for the tail and wings, and more for the fuse (a non-preppunched -8 fuselage). I flew after 1600 hrs of work, and then painted it myself a year later (an extra 200 hours). With the level of prefab on the -10, these numbers seem pretty reasonable.

Your mileage may vary ;-)
 
I agree that it is hard to compare your build times with other people, because everyone brings a different skill set to the mix. I also wouldn't be too terribly concerned about your build times being shorter than others. If you are comfortable with the quality of your work (and if you have doubts, you have checked with a trusted and exerienced advisor), then it takes what it takes!

I built my QB -8 in 18 months from first rivet to first flight. My log shows 1042 hours from start to finish. It took me 85 hours to build the metal portions of the tail. Of course, although I'd never done metal fabrication before, I've been tinkering with airplanes since I was a teenager, so maybe that made a difference. (I guess that short build times shouldn't be a reason to brag, if that means the airplane is a dog....)

I understand you're looking for a reality check - the problem is, everyone has different realities! ;)

Paul
 
So, those of you with the empennage done, about how many hours did yours take? :)[/QUOTE]

192.5 hours for me....but....I agree with the other guys about times, though.
I'm a first time builder without readily accessible help. I do "alot" of research!

My attitude, towards building, is to build a nice looking, straight flying, "safe" plane, to "learn" about airplanes and HAVE FUN doing it!

Good luck with yours!

R C Lewis Jr
 
Last edited:
rv8180 said:
So, those of you with the empennage done, about how many hours did yours take? :)
Click to expand...


Gawd....mine is taking FOREVER. I started builing March of last year. I screwed up the first one so badly in so many ways that I just gave up and rebuilt the whole thing. What others make look so simple and crank out in a couple of hours, it takes me a week to figure out and get right...that's just how it is. I don't have my metalworking chops yet. I'm now up to the elevators on Tail II and should be done in a few weeks.

I expect, though, that this slow progress in the beginning will be offset by the fact that I have lots of robotics and opto/electrical experience. Talk about complicated systems/wiring in tight quarters. Comparatively, all of the panel and FWF stuff in the RV seem really basic and straightforward to me and I don't understand what all the fuss is about. I think this happens a lot where people that are weak in one skill (metal work for me...aluminum hates me) are strong in other areas (systems design and integration) and it all balances out.
 
Last edited:
'course ther are those builders whose philosophy is "beat to fit and paint to match"

Van's doesn't put tolerances on the print, but you still aim for the nominal value. No reason to scrap a part for a 1/16" error. Not even Toyota can hit nom every time.

Steve
 
Thanks for the replies. I'm happy with where I am and the quality of the work. I actually expected things to progress slower than they are. I can't point to a specific time and say "wow, look at all I got done". I've just been trying to put in a couple of hours a day since Christmas and am seeing good progress. :)

If it wasn't for my boss being so demanding I would get a lot more done on the airplane. (I suppose I should mention that I'm self employed. ;) ) This is my busy time of year and I would expect to have more time this summer.

One reason I asked about time is that I want to make sure I get the fuse ordered in plenty of time. I wasn't sure how all the various kits stacked up as far as work to complete. Some of the replies here help me getter a better idea of that. I don't think I need to worry about ordering the next kit for a little while yet. :eek:

Thanks again to all who replied.
 
It took me 3 months and 165 hours to do the empenage. That included fitting up and glassing in the tips. I puttered around a bit since I had time till my QB kit arrived.

Roberta
 
Last edited:
Times for Emp

Yep, I suppose I'm right in there with the average, 165 hrs to complete the emp but that includes about 20 hours working glass on the tips. Got the wings done in 350, doing one at a time. You'd be amazed how quick the second goes after doing one complete wing!

Jim
 
rv8ch said:
Then my tail must be a real dog! :) I got it finished in a week of 12 hour days, not including any plastic.
Click to expand...

Be fair to me Mickey...I did say "as a general rule". Of course getting professional assistance/guidance will greatly accelerate a project.

As another interesting observation I find that it is a common belief that repeat builders build better second time around. But I have not always found that to be true. What I have observed is that repeat builders build faster the second time around..but not always better. The desire to pursue perfection is an innate quality. Some people are driven to it, and some are not, regardless of how many planes they build.

Incidentally I thought your description of the use of Sikaflex to bond your canopy was most interesting and informative.
 
Forgive my lack of knowledge on this, but just what am I required to keep in the way of a builder's log? Up til now I've written down notes on whatever I worked on and recorded the date and time spent. However, at this stage in the project I'm starting to care less and less about the record keeping. There are so many little bitty things to take care of and I do them whenever I find a free minute. Writing this down seems like a pain. What's really needed?
 
szicree said:
Forgive my lack of knowledge on this, but just what am I required to keep in the way of a builder's log? Up til now I've written down notes on whatever I worked on and recorded the date and time spent. However, at this stage in the project I'm starting to care less and less about the record keeping. There are so many little bitty things to take care of and I do them whenever I find a free minute. Writing this down seems like a pain. What's really needed?
Click to expand...

http://home.hiwaay.net/~sbuc/tvrvbg/ac20-27e.pdf
Just look at this....it explains it all. There's even a very unambigous answer to the "if I take over someone elses project and it's almost done, does it still meet the 51% rule?" question. It might be a little out of date, but I'm sure it's close enough.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.