Hey! putting the wood beneath the work to keep the C/S from drifting looks like a great technique. I'm finishing up the fus now and there are a lot of places on the QB that you can't put any backing. I just finished C/S the fwd upper skin/under structure and used the deburring tool on at least 60 - ...

Maybe I'm slow and everyone else already knows about this.... BUT, I got tired of having the countersink get away from me and buggering up my work. Initially I went to the portable elec drill to use a slower speed. However, it seemed unless the work piece was wide and flat, I had a hard time getting...

Ya might also check the 24 yrs of the RVAitor... I think there is an article on someone weighing all the lightening holes on his project.

0-360 w/ 3 blade Catto, BTW

Thomas, I didn't put in the lightening holes, since Van's gave us the option. Where you put that battery will make a lot more difference. I'm gonna be so light up front that I may need to put mine in the spinner! Anybody know of a bullet shaped battery with swivel connectors???

CJ, I'm in the process of installing the ail trim on my 8. I had some of the same thoughts... is this necessary? The wt is pretty small, but I was wondering how much the springs affected the feel of the ailerons. Has Anyone out there added the elec trim to an already flying RV? How much did it affec...

Im with Trotter... some rivets just come out UGLY, but are probably srtonger than being replaced in a drilled out hole.

Basically, the wings were pretty straight forward. On the fuselage you have to read the instructions and check off what has been done until you come to something that HASN'T been done. You will continue to run across things that have already been done thruout the fuselage process, so there is no def...

roger that! I just took the plunge and ordered a 3-blade Catto (17lb) and the Grove AL gear. I'm goin' lite baby. Now if I could only find someone to anodize the entire airframe in the color I want.....

Pete makes some great points. I belive there is ONE substitute for cu in and that is LIGHTER WEIGHT. Light weight won't make you go much faster, but if you can already reach Vne then the only thing the extra horses will bring is better climb and acceleration and both can be purchased by keeping the ...

I'm salivating...

You're welcome! I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat... however, I believe that I'd be the one getting a little green if you took me up in your -4 and beat it around. These machines look like they could fly up their own empennage. Can't wait!

I did the same thing. Put my first rivet in the bearing and it was too short. So I drilled it out and was a little curious as to why Van's went to the trouble to tell us specifically that this was the right size. Later I re-read a sentence in the instructions that stated that sometimes the rivet cal...

I've heard good things about the Catto. I assume you are running a 0-320 on your 6 since you mentioned the rpm restriction. I did not realize that the Catto was "rain-proof". Did you get the 2 or 3 blade model? You also seem happy with the pitch. Did Catto get it right on the first rry, or did you s...

Loved the story about the RV-4. Thats what I want to do when my 8 is finished. Great pictures Snap! we are all lucky to be aviators... One cool morning when I was stationed in Idaho I was to be flight lead in a flight of two F-4 Phantoms on a 1v1 dogfight mission. My wingman ground aborted due to a ...

Food for thought... We all know that constant speed propellers provide more power available during takeoff and climb. They are also heavier than fixed pitch props, and approximately 5 times more expensive. A fixed pitch prop is simple, light, cheap, and basically optimized for a given speed regime. ...

I find this subject confusing too. There are lots of aluminum airplanes out there with zero paint on them (American Airlines comes to mind as well as a few RV's I have seen). So... what if ya just wanted to leave it in primer? Seems a few folks have done that for a while during testing phase and eve...

I think the GRT compares more to the BMA Sport. About the same price, although the GRT is a little bigger. If you are going to fly IFR in Mountainous terrain (not me), the BMA's virtual terrain display would be nice. I like the GRT a lot. They are adding XM wx, terrain, and traffic capabilities too.

Spike, I think the big advantage is weight and simplicity. No vacuum pump, filter, hoses, and heavy gyro instruments. Also important would be reliability, and enhanced situational awareness. Keep it light! These crates'll only fly like they're supposed to if we keep the weight under control. Cheers

G'day snap.
Naww, the elec trim runs the trim tabs and the auto pilot servos actuate the primary flight controls (ail,elev).

Larry, I have a QB. While I enjoy a lot of the building process, I want to finish this bird and get to flying it as soon as I can. The QB saved me a tremendous amount of work and my wings and fuselage are straight, whereas as a first time RV builder maybe they would not have been as well done. You s...