My first major screw up happened while working on the piano hinge of the Trim Tab. I’ve checked the drawings and the construction manual. However, I didn’t mark the part that I had to trim, because I was sure what I was doing, NOT! At this point everything was still […]
My dad helped me today with the elevators, which works much faster than working alone. Also while discussing things the changes that you make a mistake becomes much lower. We started with clecoing the ribs to the spar of the left and right Elevators. Here you can see the construction […]
The last and according to Van’s, the hardest part of the Empennage are the Elevators including the Trim tab. I’ve selected the electronic Trim tab instead of the mechanical (cable) Trim tab. Also the construction manual is getting briefer as we go along. Instructions that took one page to explain […]
A few more tasks and the Rudder is finished. First set the remaining rivets of the tip rib. I could use the squeezer for all but the last two holes. The second last I could do with the rivet gun and a barn door hinge for a bucking bar. However […]
My dad helped me with gluing the wedge and the two skins together that make up the trailing edge of the Rudder. We hesitated, because I’m keeping close contact with another RV-7 builder in the Netherlands (Joop Sint Jago) who tipped me on using Proseal on the stiffeners to prevent […]
In the top of the Rudder there is a counter balance weight, which compensates the weight of the Rudder on the other side of the hinges. On several places in the RV-7 there are counter balance weights. The Rudder counter balance weight is placed in a rib on the top […]
After match drilling the skins of the Rudder, I can now prepare for priming the Rudder parts. The first step is dimpling the skins, spar and ribs. Many builders do this step after priming, but I rather do it before. Again the DRDT-2 is invaluable for this task (although quite […]
With the Rudder halfway finished, it is time to start thinking of the next part, the WINGS. I ordered the wings kit including the left and right tank fuel sender, quarter gallon of tank sealant (nasty stuff), two locking fuel caps and one inverted fuel tube (flop tube). At this […]
The stiffeners created previously need to be match drilled with the skin. Again great care must be taken with the very thin skin. After having the stiffeners match drilled the must be detached, deburred and dimpled. According to the building plan they can be primed and back-riveted to the skin. […]