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Empennage and tools ordered!

S

Slats Extend

Member
Finally, I am at a point in my life that will allow me to start construction on the awesome RV 7! Well, not really but I am going to start anyway :)

I have been following this forum for almost a year and absolutely know the RV is the way to go.

So, I attended Den Checkoways RV assembly School last fall and took a RV 7 Demo Ride this spring at Vans.

Both of those events just cemented my desire to build the RV 7.

So, I ordered the tail kit last night, with electric trim...And a set of tools from Plane Tools. I chose that set because I wanted a DRDT 2 and a pneumatic sqeezer...I know I will need to purchase a longeron yolk and a backrivet plate..

Anything else for now?

Thanks,

Bill
 
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Bill,

Welcome aboard! Sounds like you've got a good start.

Yes, a longeron yoke is very useful, and a back-rivet plate and set are pretty much a must.

You'll be buying many more tools along the way, but don't worry about getting it all today. You'll figure out what you need as you go.

You've got a million steps ahead of you, take them one at a time. Have fun!

-Roee
 
dude, aren't you freaking out? I just about placed the same exact order last night and then almost had a panic attack. I ended up pulling out at the last second... Still on the fence... Want to pull the trigger so bad...
 
haha - yeah, that's exactly what I kept thinking! Ack! Since I'm not a homeowner, that rivals any single-day spending total I've ever made. It freaks me out!

I'm happy for you, good luck on the build. I'm going to check out some RVs this weekend, maybe I'll be joining you in purchasing on Monday... we'll see...
 
Back rivet plate

Bill,
Welcome to the group, but you really should consider a -7A ;) (and be sure to prime everything!)
As for the back rivet plate, you can save some money by not buying the real thing from the tool suppliers. I went to the local welding shop and got a piece of flat steel from their junk bin for free and polished it up. If you do a search of the archives, I think you can find many ways to save some money without sacrificing quality at all.
Also, you will likely want a band saw pretty early on in the building process to trim the spar doubler in the horizontal stabilizer (and lots of other things down the road).
Also, I agree with Alton, the no-hole yoke is VERY useful! Just leave the checkbook handy and the credit card number on file at Van's, Avery, and Spruce.
Have FUN!!!
 
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The longeron Yoke is great for the fuselage. but for the tail kit, I think a thin nose-no hole yoke would be more useful.

I have the longeron yoke. Next time, if I have $150 burning a hole in my pocket, I will get the no-hole yoke.
 
RE:Have Fun

Bill and SteelMike

Welcome to my world back in Aug 04.................Sould I no......Shoud I yes..........Should I no............Should I yes.....................so

Budget established.....Tools were purchased......Emp ordered from Van's..................and I am now in the final stages of the build. Fun, friends made, mistakes overcome, many..many...many...many...many...lessons learned, and yes the budget was blown along time ago.............

It is like looking at the long road to any long term/seemingly impossible project(college degree, building a house, starting a business......): just one step at a time and before you know it you will be a few years older/much wiser/new knowledge learned/and the satisfaction of accomplishing what few have done and or finished.

Bill congrats and steelmike jump off the fence do what few have done!!!!!:D

Frank @ 1L8....RV7A....last 939 details.....
 
steelMike

I am close to the same boat, but maybe a bit further along. I have the tools (bought them from a great guy on VAF) and have completed the tool box and the practice kit from Van's.

I am headed out of town for the 4th but will hopefully pull the Emp trigger in July. I am definately new at this, but I would absolutely recommend doing the tool box and practice kit from Van's. Better to make the first big mistakes on those instead of the HS. just my 2 cents..

happy 4th everyone
 
vbpiper said:
Bill,
Welcome to the group, but you really should consider a -7A ;) (and be sure to prime everything!)
As for the back rivet plate, you can save some money by not buying the real thing from the tool suppliers. I went to the local welding shop and got a piece of flat steel from their junk bin for free and polished it up. If you do a search of the archives, I think you can find many ways to save some money without sacrificing quality at all.
Also, you will likely want a band saw pretty early on in the building process to trim the spar doubler in the horizontal stabilizer (and lots of other things down the road).
Also, I agree with Alton, the no-hole yoke is VERY useful! Just leave the checkbook handy and the credit card number on file at Van's, Avery, and Spruce.
Have FUN!!!
Click to expand...

Excellent advice! I was looking at band saws today....

Now, about that collapising nose gear... :)

Just kidding...I have 10,000 hours in conventional gear aircraft and 1.5 in a tail dragger....I was a passenger in a DC-3 :D

So, I think it is time to try to even up the stats a little :)

Cheers, Bill
 
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fstringham7a said:
Bill and SteelMike

Welcome to my world back in Aug 04.................Sould I no......Shoud I yes..........Should I no............Should I yes.....................so

Budget established.....Tools were purchased......Emp ordered from Van's..................and I am now in the final stages of the build. Fun, friends made, mistakes overcome, many..many...many...many...many...lessons learned, and yes the budget was blown along time ago.............

It is like looking at the long road to any long term/seemingly impossible project(college degree, building a house, starting a business......): just one step at a time and before you know it you will be a few years older/much wiser/new knowledge learned/and the satisfaction of accomplishing what few have done and or finished.

Bill congrats and steelmike jump off the fence do what few have done!!!!!:D

Frank @ 1L8....RV7A....last 939 details.....
Click to expand...

Thanks, I relayed your words to wifey tonight over a beer :)

Cheers, Bill
 
Okay, okay, the deed is done.

Ever hear of someone taking a lesson in a Citabria and being convincend they wanted to get an RV? It was my first tailwheel lesson, and something about it just reminded me how fun it is to fly and how much I just absolutely love it. I knew that I needed to get started building.

Emp ordered. Deposit placed on slow build wings. And the rest is history...
 
CONGRATS!!!! i bet your really stoked!!

i'm on deployment now.. i might order the emp kit when i get home.... lots of extra deployment cash hangin around.....;)
 
Taildragging Slider FTW!!!

Best configuration of all time, and be sure you build light with a big motor :).
 
Congrats! I just pulled the trigger a few weeks ago myself. I am still setting up the shop and getting some practice. I'll look forward to hearing how it all goes!
 
Congrats on your first step! You're actually a lot further ahead than I am. I spent a couple of days last week building Tim Olson's workbench to get the wheels turning. Today I ordered the preview plans for the 7/7A. My choice was coming down to the 7A or 9A, but chose the 7A because of the limited aerobatic capabilities.

I'm a student pilot atm with approx 24 hours. Hope to finish up this year, take the build class in Danville, IN (Grov-Air) and order my empennage kit next year...unless someone is willing to sell one!
 
This is funny.. Apparently my girlfriend is going around telling her co-workers that I'm building a plane. Now I have to finish.

Tell me about that workbench(?). I need to get someting going on that before the emp arrives...

mb
 
I'll make one suggestion on workbenches (other than you can never have enough benchtop space)...

Make the benchtop hang over a couple of inches on all sides so that you can clamp things to the top. I forgot to do this on my primary workbench and it's kind of an inconvenience at times.

Oh, and when you get the wing kit? just flip that crate upside down and make it into a second workbench...remember...you can never have enough workbench space! :)
 
I should add one more thing that might sound pedantic, but I hope is not...

Make it as flat and level as possible. My "tech counselor" (neighbor and RV-8 builder who got me into this LOL!) got on my butt about not picking out straight, flat pieces of wood for the frame and the top. He was absolutely right in making me rebuild the whole thing so that it at least started as flat as possible (we used shims underneath the braces to get the top surface flat). It may not stay that way, but it started that way and it's been very useful.

Of course, for things that need to be ultra-straight and flat (like flaps and ailerons), we use his granite kitchen countertop for final riveting. Goes over real well with his wife... :)
 
Flying Scotsman said:
I should add one more thing that might sound pedantic, but I hope is not...

Make it as flat and level as possible. My "tech counselor" (neighbor and RV-8 builder who got me into this LOL!) got on my butt about not picking out straight, flat pieces of wood for the frame and the top. He was absolutely right in making me rebuild the whole thing so that it at least started as flat as possible (we used shims underneath the braces to get the top surface flat). It may not stay that way, but it started that way and it's been very useful.

Of course, for things that need to be ultra-straight and flat (like flaps and ailerons), we use his granite kitchen countertop for final riveting. Goes over real well with his wife... :)
Click to expand...

I don't have an overhang, but I can add that. I didn't trim out the ends, so not an issue. I went through an entire stack of 2x4's at our local building supply box store to pick out the straightest and sturdy boards. Made a huge difference as I now have a nice flat, level surface.
 
Tool Day!

Guys, thanks for all the good info.

Today, Fed Ex showed up with a 50lb box from Isham (Plane Tools)

I opened it up and man, was it jammed with goodies...

Now, I ordered from Isham due to their total package consisting of a pneumatic squeezer and a DRDT 2 with no substitutions needed..

So, as I did the inventory, I noticed that they threw in a few items FREE!

What, like "Plane Tool" stickers for my tool box????

No! Like a Tungsten bucking bar, a keyless chuck and a really nice right angle drill!

Also, enclosed is a packet of info describing how to use most of the tools involved...

I know that Avery and Cleveland tools are also first class outfits, now I know that Isham is at least that and maybe a little more...

Cheers, Bill
 
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Slats Extend said:
No! Like a Tungsten bucking bar, a key less chuck and a really nice right angle drill!
Click to expand...
Bill,

Welcome to the cult! Reading this tread reminded me of how I felt five years ago! Now with 10 months and 164 hours of flying behind me, I can honestly say the journey is one worth taking!

Just remember:
"The journey of 15,000 rivets starts with the first one."
"Rivet's don't pound themselves."
"Build the plane you want, not the one others want you to build"

There are some more but I can't think of them right now.

Have fun!
 
Jealous on all those tools. I can't figure out whether or not i'm going to break down and buy a tool kit or what. I finally just decided to just build two workbench tables. I've designed them myself, although they are really just the ea1000 tables in different dimensions.

mmm.... tooools...
 
Bueno!

Dang!

I got the DRDT-2 yesterday...What a massive piece of equipment!

I think I am good to go now...I ordered the practice kit from Vans also..

It has been awhile since I did the RV school, so I am going to start with the airfoil...If that goes well, I will start on the tail..If not, I will order the toolbox... If, I am still not comfortable, then I will take another Sportaire class...

Oh well, it is 110 here so I can be patient for now...I think :)

Cheers!
 
I broke down and ordered the isham toolkit. I also broke down and bought some tools at home depot (band saw, drill press, grinder). I also broke down and bought the lumber to build two custom EA1000-style workbenches.

Now I just need to move that **** pool table that's taking up so much room and I'll be able to get moving! Emp arrived yesterday!
 
SteelMike said:
I broke down and ordered the isham toolkit. I also broke down and bought some tools at home depot (band saw, drill press, grinder). I also broke down and bought the lumber to build two custom EA1000-style workbenches.

Now I just need to move that **** pool table that's taking up so much room and I'll be able to get moving! Emp arrived yesterday!
Click to expand...

Turn it into a workbench!!! A nice, perfectly flat, smooth slate surface would be *perfect* for finishing control surfaces to ensure they're perfectly straight!
 
SteelMike said:
I broke down and ordered the isham toolkit. I also broke down and bought some tools at home depot (band saw, drill press, grinder). I also broke down and bought the lumber to build two custom EA1000-style workbenches.

Now I just need to move that **** pool table that's taking up so much room and I'll be able to get moving! Emp arrived yesterday!
Click to expand...


Outstanding Mike! It is like Christmas when those tools show up!

I hear slate makes a good base for a workbench...;)

Cheers!

DOH! Steve beat me to it! lol
 
Slats, since we're starting at basically the same time, dare I challenge you to a race to first flight?
 
Slats Extend said:
...Just kidding...I have 10,000 hours in conventional gear aircraft and 1.5 in a tail dragger....I was a passenger in a DC-3 :D
Click to expand...
FYI - "conventional gear aircraft" are all tail draggers. Tricycle gear is that new fangled invention, the old stuff is the conventional type.
 
SteelMike said:
Slats, since we're starting at basically the same time, dare I challenge you to a race to first flight?
Click to expand...


Aw, I wish...I am halfway through serving a term as a union chairman...Not only that, I am paying cash as I go until engine/avionics...

I am figuring a 4 year build...

I will however be happy to buy the first 2 rounds should we run across each other once finished :D

Cheers, Bill
 
I think i'm about the same place as you two, but there's no way I could race. I'm also guessing 4 years to complete. Being younger and more career focused in my life right now, I don't think I'll work more than 10-15 hours a week.

SteelMike, your info says "South Bay", is that like San Jose CA sorta south bay, or some other part of the country?
 
Ah come on, don't you guys know anything about credit cards?

South Bay = Los Angeles (redondo, torrance, hermosa, etc)
 
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