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Apartment rv building?

M

Matt2kkota

I'm New Here
First post here. My names Matt...really looking forward to starting my rv7 but i have some concerns since i currently live in an apartment.

My apartment has a two car garage so space isnt an issue. The thing im worried about is noise. ive already found out i can use a quite air compressor but how loud is riveting? And also how loud is it gonna be when i need to use the scotch brite wheel on the grinder? I know its going to make some noise but do you guys think my neighbors will start complaining?

My apartment seems to have pretty thick walls as i can never really hear my neighbors. im just looking for some opinions here. worst comes to worst i end up building this at my parents house on the weekends which is 2 hours away. at least until i can find a house to rent with a garage.
 
well, there's only one way to find out.

If you'd like to keep the noise to a minimum here are some tips

Use electric tools wherever possible (less noisy when in use and you don't have compressor noise cycling as well)

Buy a Pneumatic squeezer

Buy a DRDT-2 from experimental aero

Using a rivet gun will be noisy. As far as I've found, there isn't any way around it. Be respectful of the time that you rivet-- Most complexes have mandatory quiet hours-- find out what yours are and stick to quiet stuff in quiet hours.

I'd say in order Most to Least Decibels: Rivet gun, bandsaw, belt sander, air drill, scotch brite on a bench grinder, Compressor.... get the point? Way down the list is the rubber mallet, pneumatic squeezer, the battery powered drill , DRDT, and the broom.

I wouldn't suggest a two hour drive to build-- two minutes with some restrictions wins... no contest.

Welcome to the forum Matt. Buy a kit and Get to work!
 
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Using the scotch-brite makes very little noise, riveting a fair amount. But use a pneumatic squeezer/DRD2 for dimples & squeezing as many rivets as you can and you'll minimize the noise. Actually banging rivets is really a small percentage of all that needs to be done. If the compressor doesn't bother them, then pretty much nothing will. Send in your order and get building! :)

-Jim
40603
 
You think banging rivets will make your neighbors hate you, wait till you tell them you'll be using the parking lot as a runway!

I don't know, there's a lot of riveting. Apartments may have rules against noise like that. Once you get to the finishing stage (perhaps half-way) you would be fine. Maybe a quick-build would be okay.
 
Been done

I built RV empennage in a small city studio. No issues with neighbors at all. Run compressor when people mostly at work and didn't rivet after 8 pm. Squeeze as much as you can. Doable.
 
From my old RV-6A website: http://www.flion.com/rv6a/chap04.htm. I built the empennage and wings in the living room of a 2 bedroom apartment. Be considerate of your neighbors, do quiet things at quiet time and noisy things when everyone's away or being noisy themselves. If you make too much noise, they'll want to help ... ;) (Well, not usually, but most of the reactions I have gotten were positive.)
 
Blinding Flash of the Obvious

Of course, you should warn your neighbors in advance of noisiness, invite them to come see what you are doing when they are curious, and agree to quiet down if they ask you to. Sort of a corollary to inviting them to the noisy party to keep complaints down!
 
I've built my empennage behind my couch in a second floor apartment. I think the noise generally hasn't been a problem, the neighbors say they can hear it but it doesn't disturb them as even the TV at normal volume drowns out the sound of riveting.

On the other hand, the vibrations were what got me my complaints. When back riveting and dimpling, the vibrations go right through the floor and simulates the end of the world to the guy and his dog below me. Also, I only have a 5 gallon air compressor so I just held it up off the floor while it ran and had to go to a friends hangar at the airport to dimple most of the holes and back rivet.

Summary: Don't back rivet if you live on the second floor, get a DRDT-2, be loud when people aren't home or won't care.
 
Welcome! Hope you have a good experience and that the neighbors are a non issue. I know personally that the loudest noise in my shop isnt always the tools-Its my cursing! Though it doesnt occur to often, it does happen.
I think it's neat how people get the job done. From living rooms and kitchens, to basements, garages, and hangars or shops. RV builders find a way to get it done! I say do it! Tell your neighbors and get them involved. If it becomes a problem later, solve it later. Good luck!
 
I built most of my airframe in a townhouse living room without any complaints from my neighbors. You will want to silence the compressor by locating it in a central closet or a large padded plywood box. The rivet noise is loud, but represents a small portion of the overall build. I tried to do most riveting when my neighbors werent home or in the middle of the afternoon on weekends when everyone was loud. The scotchbright wheel makes a high frequency noise, which doesnt carry through walls like low frequency noise. So long story short, its been done, go for it.
 
One of our club members many years ago built an entire wooden homebuilt (I never knew what kind) in his 14th floor apartment. He brought the supplies in small pieces at a time, and a few years later lowered the completed aircraft--painted, wired, engine mounted, etc.---off the balcony with a block and tackle and the help of some friends and neighbours. The fuselage was lowered first, then the (one piece) wing.
 
Another possiblitiy is to look into a hanger at a nearby airport, Depending on the airport they can be rented from anywhere between $125 and upwards of $300. I have found that even thought it adds more financially the experience and help that you can recieve is priceless. There is always someone around that will be more than willing to help you pound a few rivets.

-david
 
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