Geico266
Well Known Member
I just finished installing the RV-12 light kit and I thought a thread about installation tips would be helpful.
The kit is exceptional. Everything fits, instructions are clear, another fine example of Vans engineering.
You can install the kit without pulling the wings off. It would be easier, and the plans recommend it, but it is doable. You'll need to remove the pins and pull the wing out about 1.5 feet. The wing tip MUST be supported to keep the weight off of the plastic guilds. The wing tip fiberglassing can be done without flipping the wing over.
Make sure you secure the strings in your wings to pull the wires though. Without them it's gonna be tough to route the wires.
Install the noise suppressor while running the wires.
I did anyway with the Molex connectors, and direct soldered the ends of the wires together. Just personal preference, connectors are heavy and they can corrode.
Adding a weep hole to the wing tip extension may keep water from becoming trapped.
Make sure you trial fit the Nav/ Strobes after attaching the mounting bracket to the tip extension. The light can be repositioned to better match the fit of the fiberglass.
For those who have already painted, be careful not to over heat the cut out area as it will burn the paint, other than that you should be good to go.
I decided to skip the pro-sealing part. I'll use caulking to seal the light extension after paint.
Since I have not painted the fiberglass yet I decided to use CS4-4 counter sunk blind rivets for the entire fiberglass tip. This way the painters can finish the fiberglass without having to go around the protruding rivet heads.
The lights & strobes are bright and really look nice on the plane. The flashing landing light will really get your attention on the ground. I would have preferred two lights, one on each wing.
Total install time 22 hours.
The kit is exceptional. Everything fits, instructions are clear, another fine example of Vans engineering.
You can install the kit without pulling the wings off. It would be easier, and the plans recommend it, but it is doable. You'll need to remove the pins and pull the wing out about 1.5 feet. The wing tip MUST be supported to keep the weight off of the plastic guilds. The wing tip fiberglassing can be done without flipping the wing over.
Make sure you secure the strings in your wings to pull the wires though. Without them it's gonna be tough to route the wires.
Install the noise suppressor while running the wires.
I did anyway with the Molex connectors, and direct soldered the ends of the wires together. Just personal preference, connectors are heavy and they can corrode.
Adding a weep hole to the wing tip extension may keep water from becoming trapped.
Make sure you trial fit the Nav/ Strobes after attaching the mounting bracket to the tip extension. The light can be repositioned to better match the fit of the fiberglass.
For those who have already painted, be careful not to over heat the cut out area as it will burn the paint, other than that you should be good to go.
I decided to skip the pro-sealing part. I'll use caulking to seal the light extension after paint.
Since I have not painted the fiberglass yet I decided to use CS4-4 counter sunk blind rivets for the entire fiberglass tip. This way the painters can finish the fiberglass without having to go around the protruding rivet heads.
The lights & strobes are bright and really look nice on the plane. The flashing landing light will really get your attention on the ground. I would have preferred two lights, one on each wing.
Total install time 22 hours.
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