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Pre-builder questions

WingedFrog

WingedFrog

Well Known Member
I will start in basement or shed on the RV-12 empennage kit first, waiting for a workshop construction to complete:
1 - What minimum working space size do I need to build empennage, including door size to exit :)
2- What workshop size would you recommend for complete project (wings off)
note: I already have a double car garage that I don't want to condemn and would prefer build something a bit smaller if possible.
Thanks
 
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Workshop size

1. The tail cone is about 40" in diameter at the forward end and is 9 feet long. The horizontal stabilator is 8 feet wide. The vertical stabilizer is about 4 feet high. These 3 major units do not have to be connected to each other until the plane is almost finished.

2. My workshop is 11.5 feet by 23 feet and is adequate for building the entire plane. Of course there is no room to mount the wings. 12 feet by 24 feet would be a nice sized workshop. There must be others who have built a RV-12 in a smaller space.

Joe
 
Thanks Joe, right what I expected: figures say all! Glad to see that 12 by 24 works for the workshop. I just hope I don't need an 8' door to get the horizontal stab. out: how deep is it?
JP
 
The spec. says height 8ft 4 for the RV-12, I would assume that you need a ceiling 9 ft high minimum. Has any builder had any problem getting through a garage door lower than 8'4 by pushing the tail down? (I do that frequently with an Allegro but it's a smaller plane). What would be the minimum height for such a door?
 
After you finish building the tail feathers, and installing them to make sure they fit, remove them and store them somewhere safe. That's what I did because I am working in a small workshop. When I am ready to move to the airport I wil roll the plane out, minus the tail, and re-assemble in the driveway for the cable hookups and tensioning.
 
What I did

I left the wings, HS, VS, cowls and prop off. It fit in the car-hauler better. Spent 2 big days finishing everything at the airport in the hanger. Worked very well. If that happens to be in the middle of winter up north, then it might be an issue. Much easier to handle everything at the airport. I took my 2, 3' X 6' building tables and they supported the wings very well while finishing up things on them. I put a packing blanket over the foam/plasitc topped tables, and not a mark on the wings. I used an auto creeper to roll around under the plane to work on things.

John Bender
 
We have two slightly different approaches: Big John will be completing the tail assembly in his driveway while JBPilot did it at the airport which I assume required some riveting tools to be relocated to the airport? Are you both going to trailer the completed plane (wings off) to a paint shop?
 
NOPE

I had painted all of it at home before the trip to the airport. Nothing to rivet - - - ? ? ? Just bolted things together.

John Bender
 
Workshop size

The vertical stabilizer and horizontal stabilator are bolted on, rivets are not required for final assembly whether done in a driveway or at the airport. You asked about the stabilator "depth". I assume you mean the fore and aft measurement, which is 31 inches. Another consideration is the landing gear width. Mine is about 7 feet wide right now; but it is going to spread after the weight of the engine is added. You could install the landing gear outside if necessary. A 9 foot garage door would be ideal for moving the finished airplane out. I plan on holding the tail down to get the plane out of the garage. I can always remove the VS if necessary. I suppose that an RV-12 can be built with a ceiling height of 7 feet, but 8 feet or more is better. The tail can be held down if necessary or the nose wheel can be set on blocks. The canopy needs 8 feet or more to open fully. I limit my canopy from opening fully by tying it with a cord.
Joe
 
WingedFrog said:
We have two slightly different approaches: Big John will be completing the tail assembly in his driveway while JBPilot did it at the airport which I assume required some riveting tools to be relocated to the airport? Are you both going to trailer the completed plane (wings off) to a paint shop?
Click to expand...

Ah, the dreaded paint question! I must admit, I haven't made that decision yet. I toyed with the idea of doing it myself, like John B. but I've never painted anything this big, and I don't want to screw up my beautiful airplane with an amateurish paint job. I have a friend who has offered his expertise and paint equipment, I have a local autobody guy that does nice work, and there is the possibility of test flying it naked, then flying to the airplane paint shop where I had my Arrow repainted a few years ago. Stay tuned!
 
I'm not sure I would test fly naked, for two reasons:
- Once you start flying you never want to stop! (seen it...)
- More seriously, paint will affect the W&B
I would go with the autobody paint shop: they are cheaper and if they are a bit open minded, they will love doing something different (seen it...)
 
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