New RV7 builder

BSwayze · Post by **BSwayze** » Wed Jul 13, 2011 4:09 am

johnson81 wrote:I'm hoping to order the empennage kit by my 30th b-day which is July 29th. Been lurking here trying to soak up all the info I can before I dive in. Just wanted to say hi to everyone and say thanks in advance for any questions I might have along the way!

July 29th is my birthday, too!! I've got a few years on you, but around here it doesn't matter a bit. Welcome! I like the idea of getting your kit ordered now so it's here by your b/day. Better yet, it's here in time to START on your b/day! Be sure to post some pictures for us.

Post by **Spike** » Wed Jul 13, 2011 7:06 am

hydroguy2 wrote: My friend Neil said: if you can't learn to land an RV taildragger, then you probably won't learn to land a nosewheel RV properly either.

Which says nothing about whether or not you want to learn to land a tail dragger.

Bob Barrett · Post by **Bob Barrett** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 6:58 pm

I have a tail wheel endorsement but I didn't have it when I started my airplane

Therefore I built a 6A. At the time there was significant difference in insurance premuims. I don't know if that is still ture or not

You may want to check that out before you make the decsion

hydroguy2 · Post by **hydroguy2** » Thu Jul 14, 2011 7:04 pm

Spike wrote:[ Which says nothing about whether or not you want to learn to land a tail dragger.

I agree, I think his point was both models need proper training and attention. I chose TW since I know I'll be on many grass and dirt strips.

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 12:37 pm

Bob Barrett wrote:I have a tail wheel endorsement but I didn't have it when I started my airplane Therefore I built a 6A. At the time there was significant difference in insurance premuims. I don't know if that is still ture or not You may want to check that out before you make the decsion

That's a good point. I haven't researched the difference in insurance premiums for the two models. That unfortunately might be the deciding factor.

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 5:16 pm

Ok, I've read over the preview plans and am ready to order the empennage kit! This is probably a dumb question, but the Waiver and Release of Liability Agreement/License Agreement form has a blank where a serial number is entered. Where do I get that? It does need to be notarized as well and sent in with the first order? I know I should probably just call Van's to get this answer but my work schedule makes it difficult to call during business hours. Any input is much appreciated!

Bob Barrett · Post by **Bob Barrett** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 8:04 pm

Fill out the model and get your signature notarized and send in you check with the agreement. They will assign you a build number which should eventually become the serial number of your airplane. A few people will use something other than their builder nuber as the serial number, but that has a lot of drawbacks. Someday you most likely will want to sell your airplane. Just from model number and serial number the factory can help the new owner with questions parts etc. When I build my RV-6A, there was no such thing as pre-punched skins, ribs, bulkheads etc. Now you can buy pre-punched complete airplane kits. By using the builder's number they will have a pretty good idean about your kit. Sot write the check, slect the model, and have your signature notarized.

Good Luck

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 8:27 pm

Bob Barrett wrote:Fill out the model and get your signature notarized and send in you check with the agreement. They will assign you a build number which should eventually become the serial number of your airplane. A few people will use something other than their builder nuber as the serial number, but that has a lot of drawbacks. Someday you most likely will want to sell your airplane. Just from model number and serial number the factory can help the new owner with questions parts etc. When I build my RV-6A, there was no such thing as pre-punched skins, ribs, bulkheads etc. Now you can buy pre-punched complete airplane kits. By using the builder's number they will have a pretty good idean about your kit. Sot write the check, slect the model, and have your signature notarized. Good Luck

Sounds good. Thanks for the reply.

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Wed Jul 27, 2011 5:52 pm

Alright, the empennage kit is scheduled to be here Friday!

Bob Barrett · Post by **Bob Barrett** » Thu Jul 28, 2011 1:09 pm

Carefully inventory all materials. Develope a method of sorting and storing that you can live with. Keep several copies of the inovice and packing slips. They are different. Keep the orginal in a safe place where you can make another copy of each if necessary. Ditto for construction instructions. They are differnt than what came with my RV-6A so I am not sure what the format will be. I kept the orginal of my construction-instruction manual in our house and made copies to use in my workshop. If you can do that with the plans do that also. Keep the orginals safe from tears, spills, cuts etc! My storage wasn't well organized and I wasted a lot of time looking for the contents of bag ??? and I didn't have good cross referencing. Sometimes a rivet or screw would be called for other times a part-number would be called for. Sometimes the part number was a rivet or screw. Maybe they are more consistent now. The big thing is to have a means of cross referncing.

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Thu Jul 28, 2011 5:16 pm

Thanks a lot for the tips/advice! I'll post some pics as soon as I get started. Still waiting on a few tools though...

BSwayze · Post by **BSwayze** » Thu Jul 28, 2011 5:44 pm

johnson81 wrote:Alright, the empennage kit is scheduled to be here Friday!

Well, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! What a great way to celebrate!

I'm just ready to start cutting the canopy on my 7A, and having a blast! Can't wait to see your pics! Congratulations!

itisgood · Post by **itisgood** » Thu Jul 28, 2011 6:34 pm

Bruce, Happy birthday!!!!

I noticed that you have the finish kit ordered. Way to Go! You will get a kick out of working on the canopy and then finishing the fiberglass around the windscreen. A blast
Dave

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Thu Jul 28, 2011 6:58 pm

Thanks Bruce! Happy Birthday to you too!

Bob Barrett · Post by **Bob Barrett** » Thu Jul 28, 2011 7:20 pm

Happy Birthday to both of you! On 7/31/2011 I hope to be camping at Devils Lake, ND and attempting to catch some walleyes! Hope your projects go well next week!

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Wed Aug 03, 2011 7:41 pm

Well, I got the inventory done and the only thing missing is bag 402-1 of rivets. The only damage I could find was a crack in R-911, the fiberglass piece for the tail. Is that about par for the course? I'm ready to get started but still waiting on tools! I ordered the kit from Cleveland but got a email that some of the tools are backordered do to Oshkosh. I'll post some pics once I get rolling.

BSwayze · Post by **BSwayze** » Sat Aug 06, 2011 5:09 am

I wouldn't worry too much about a crack in the rudder bottom at this point. Fiberglass can be repaired easily enough when the time comes. This piece will need some trimming anyway. One mistake I made was to carefully fit it to the bottom of the rudder and do all the prep work such as drilling, countersinking for rivets, etc. I was working on the fiberglass stuff while waiting on my wing kit. Problem is, much later when I mounted the empennage to the fuselage, I found out that the rudder bottom sticks down below the fuselage by at least an inch. I didn't know at the time that it would need to be trimmed! So it's no big loss, but I have to do all that work over and trim the piece to fit this time.

I would line up a visit with a technical counselor from your local EAA chapter ASAP. Get to know him and pick his brain right from the start. It will save you many hours and many mistakes and shorten the learning curve.

johnson81 · Post by **johnson81** » Sun Aug 07, 2011 8:31 pm

Thanks for the tips Bruce! So are there specified points during construction that require inspection? Also, I've noticed while checking out others' build pics that they only remove enough of the plastic coating to rivet the skins on and leave the majority I'm guessing just for protection from scratches? How would you go about scoring the coating without fear of damage to the aluminum? Thanks for any advice. My ignorance is really showing right now...

RobDob · Post by **RobDob** » Sun Aug 07, 2011 8:57 pm

I 'think' the scoring can be done with a warm soldering iron, but don't quote me on that!! Hopefully someone will give a definitive answer shortly!!!

captain_john · Post by **captain_john** » Mon Aug 08, 2011 4:45 am

Let me save you a TON of work right now.

Take off ALL of the blue plastic when you begin working with a part!

Leaving some of it on is just plain silly if you ask me!

If you are gonna paint the airplane (and most do) the first thing the painter does is scratch it all up!!!

Don't waste your time. Peel it all off!

Even if you were polishing, if you are reasonably cautious you won't get scratches large or deep enough to be concerned with.

CJ

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New RV7 builder

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