... a comment about the RV community in general is that its getting too big for its britches... I'm not so sure, I think it's just the same dozen or so posters over at VAF that think they speak for everyone. It's hard to imagine much of a boycott of Oshkosh just because EAA won't let the race use t...

Good work, Spike!! Congrats and Enjoy!!

... the guy that builds the crates is totally blind. He knows his wood shop so well that he doesn't need his cane in there though. The rest of the Van's personnel don't dare move or deliver anything without him being there because he has the layout and location of everything perfectly memorized. Ha...

Spike wrote:Hey John Good to see you!

-- Spike

Thanks! I still exist!

Wings done (just about), and a big box full of fuselage parts due any day now!

John

... the guy that builds the crates is totally blind. He knows his wood shop so well that he doesn't need his cane in there though. The rest of the Van's personnel don't dare move or deliver anything without him being there because he has the layout and location of everything perfectly memorized. Ha...

Not sure which tool you are using to do this, but I highly recommend the vise grip edge roller from Avery Tools as the way to go. I have both the vise grip version, and the "...round piece of wood with two rollers attached ..." version. I think the vise grip version is much better. However, I think...

... Be prepared to grind down a cheap pop rivet gun so you can pull the rivets ... I've cut down and ground down my cheap pop rivet tool so much that I'm amazed it's still able to hold itself together in one piece. Building this plane has given me new skills in making and reshaping tools of all sor...

Thanks to all, I'll just let them collect more dust. No, I haven't made the seat backs yet, but I hope when I get that far, that the instructions give me a hint about which long pieces it's ok to cut up into smaller pieces; I'd hate to find out afterwards that I have to pay to ship a new long piece ...

The -9 wing kit, which may be similar, comes with two 4-inch aluminum tubes labeled AT6-058X5/16X4.

John

Fellow builders, Now that I'm reaching the end of my hyper-slow-build 9A wings, I came across four long angle pieces on the top of my parts shelves. I recall that two 15 foot angles included with the wing kit are for the fuselage, and I set them aside long ago, but I don't remember any mention of th...

... I am pretty sure it went air freight to BWI ... Wow, air freight sounds expensive, is that typical how it gets across the country? Ever since I saw my wing crates arrive in ABF's subcontractor's truck upside down and sideways, I've been wondering if there's a better way to get my fuselage to Ba...

Spike wrote:My finish kit is in town and ready for delivery/pick up. Looks like shipping cost from Oregon to Baltimore was $520 and I am pretty sure it went air freight. I can't say that I am too upset by that.

WooHoo!

Who was the shipper, I'm just about ready to order the fuselage kit.

John

In addition to the gauge output, do the AOA systems also provide an "idiot light" warning of stall (either a horn or a blinking light)? (in case I'm not looking at the AOA gauge)

John

Nicely done, Mr. President!

I work for a large defense contractor.

My academic background and original technical work (15-20 yrs) was in aeronautical engineering focused on guided missile design. Now I am mostly involved in air defense concept studies and sensor networking.

John

I generally followed the EAA plans for overall construction and made my bench surface about 34 inches above the floor. I am about 6' and this bench height works well for me. Also, as many others have done, I added a 1.25 inch overhang all around for attaching clamps. This overhang has been very usef...

Spike,
What is the RPM limitation for the 320/fixed pitch combo?
John

Spike, Excellent panel, looks very much like my thoughts for my 9A; traditional flight instruments with as many fancy boxes in the radio stack as I can afford. Is that a blue knob next to the throttle? Are you going constant-speed prop? I haven't thought much about the autopilot yet, although I am l...

Great news! It's been a while, do you remember how the thing works?

John,
I've been out of touch on vacation, sorry to hear about your troubles! I wish you a speedy recovery.
John K