RivetBangers.com

Posted: **Sat Jan 30, 2010 12:12 pm**

Well, not "The" moving day, but a significant chunk of aluminum left my basement for the airport today.

All in all, extremely uneventful. Feels great to have made this first step! Maybe next weekend the fuselage will go.

Posted: **Sat Jan 30, 2010 12:20 pm**

Mike, That is awesome!

What kind of RV does that wingtip belong to? Looks like you are in good company!

CJ

Posted: **Sat Jan 30, 2010 12:24 pm**

captain_john wrote: Mike, That is awesome!

What kind of RV does that wingtip belong to? Looks like you are in good company!

Thanks CJ! That's my hangar mate's RV-4. The thing is stunning.

Posted: **Sat Jan 30, 2010 5:00 pm**

Nice. Must be a special day when the shop starts clearing out.

Hey, when does winter hit your place? It's been crap for months here.

Posted: **Sat Jan 30, 2010 7:15 pm**

Mike,

Congratulations. That has to feel tremendous. Nice work.

CD

Posted: **Sat Jan 30, 2010 8:34 pm**

Dude that's awesome!! It REALLY gets real at the airport!! Very cool man...

Posted: **Sun Jan 31, 2010 7:10 am**

Sweet Mike. I assume you went DMW?

Posted: **Sun Jan 31, 2010 9:35 am**

Great news!! How long of a drive is it to the airport?

Posted: **Sun Jan 31, 2010 9:44 am**

Yup, its at DMW. It's about 15 miles / 30 minute trip to to the airport from my house.

Brian -- funny you should ask when winter hits. About 30 minutes after I dropped the wings off it snowed about 4". Timing was perfect.

Posted: **Sun Jan 31, 2010 10:24 am**

Looks like you are going to be soon dealing with "empty nest syndrome"!

Congrats Mike.

Posted: **Sun Jan 31, 2010 10:29 am**

Looking good Mike!!!! Gitter Done!

Posted: **Sun Jan 31, 2010 4:50 pm**

Good luck on the rest of the move and the assembly Mike!

It is a great feeling to have a larg portion of the project at the airport. I hope you get it flying this year!

Posted: **Sun Jan 31, 2010 10:34 pm**

WTG Mike !

I'm hoping to be right behind you come March.

Question for you... had you considered moving the wings while still in the cradle ? What kind of support/padding did you use when laying them down in the truck bed to assure no dings or scratches from running into potholes or bumps ?

Posted: **Mon Feb 01, 2010 8:45 am**

Wicked Stick wrote: Question for you... had you considered moving the wings while still in the cradle ? What kind of support/padding did you use when laying them down in the truck bed to assure no dings or scratches from running into potholes or bumps ?

WS -- The cradle was too long to fit into a full sized pickup. I also didn't consider this a good option because I was concerned about all of the stress that is on the outboard leading edge of the wing where it sits in the cradle. I though a big "bump" might cause an excess force here to cause some damage. Also, I don't think the cradle is all that stable for any lateral movement of the wings. I thought the outboard plywood could of cracked.

When I moved them, I put down a thick blanked on the bed of the truck. Then I put the left wing in first, top down. Another thick blanked on top of that. Finally, the right wing, bottom down. I put an old life vest between the fuel tanks so the exposed fuel drain flange wouldn't rub the other wing.

It worked perfectly.

Posted: **Mon Feb 01, 2010 10:53 am**

Dave,

Just for comparison, I did move my wings twice in the cradle...once in a rented U-Haul-

And once on a flatbed trailer-

Data point...

Posted: **Mon Feb 01, 2010 2:55 pm**

Mike,
Congratulations! What a great day, and a significant milestone!

Posted: **Mon Feb 01, 2010 3:26 pm**

Sounds like the final stage has begun for you Mike, congrats!

Posted: **Wed Feb 03, 2010 9:46 pm**

I moved my wings in a cradle twice. First to the paint shop and then to the airport. I had a 4'X8' open trailer with 16" high sides. I tied the wings carefully and let the spars extend forward over the front side of the trailer. No problems and if the cradle has good carpet, it should not be a problem.

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Moving Day!

Moving Day!