The wing kit has arrived!

October 24, 2008 the ABF truck pulled up with two very heavy and awkward boxes. Now I have to get to work as the reality of what I have done hits me.

I have decided to log every event in a notebook along with digital photos. This might be useful when applying for an airworthiness permit from the FAA when I (dare I say it?) am done.

In the intervening time since the delivery, other life events have occurred, as in every one's life but I have accumulated about 25 hours of build time.

I did have to drill out an errant rivet and availed myself of the excellent how-to videos on the EAA home builders website before attempting same. It was successful and I felt a little pride.

Looking ahead in the plans book reveals a complicated (to a novice) but very well thought out sequence of procedures that will result in a structurally sound and aerodynamically straight wing that will carry me safely into the sky. Pretty poetic, huh?

A lot of small parts had to be assembled and it seems that the bulk of the time will be spent on deburring the metal. All of the holes are pierced except those that are drilled during assembly and all of the panels and parts are sheared. These operations leave sharp edges that must be removed to avoid stress concentration concerns and to insure proper rivet bonding requirements. The deburring tools purchased from Avery Tools are excellent for the task.

The following photos show an angle device I milled to allow riveting close to brackets, some miscellaneous parts and rivet squeezing.

Based upon the recommendation of Vans plans book, I ordered a boat load of tools necessary to build my airplane. I started with a spreadsheet and listed all of the tools supplied by three vendors. I was looking for quality, application and cost comparisons. The results indicated that Avery Tools was the best choice with Cleaveland Tools a close second. I ordered everything except the rivet squeezer from Avery. Cleavland supplied the squeezer. Why? I thought it looked the coolest.

I always appreciated tools and it was only later in life that I was able to purchase quality tools rather than affordable ones.

A good craftsman can make a good product with an inferior tool but a poor craftsman will make inferior parts with good tools.

I hope to improve my skills to be worthy of my tools and to build a most excellent airplane.

Why choose a RV 12?

During my first series of flying lessons in early 1993, the concept of building my own airplane seemed very appealing. I was looking in depth at a Kitfox. My training plane was a Cessna 152 and the association was natural. When I reconvened my flying lessons last year and finished in a Piper Warrior with a private pilot license, a low wing, all metal airplane seemed like a better choice. Reverting to the Light Sport Catagory and attending the Sebring LSA show, the Sun and Fun show and multiple Oshkosh conventions caused me to select the Zenith CH601 with a quickbuild option. I attended the Zenith rudder workshop in Mexico, MO last year and built the rudder seen in the photograph. With my desire to build a Experimental-Light Sport Aircraft (E-LSA) rather than a Experimental-Amateur Built (E-AB), the Vans' RV 12 fit the requirements. Rans' S-19 and Zenith's CH601 now CH650 are not E-LSA buildable. After talking with a number of RV builders (and there are vast numbers of them) I felt a trip to Aurora, OR was in order. Seeing Van's factory and flying the prototype was all of the convincing I needed. The order was placed and the wing kit should arrive in about two months.

Initial Post.

Hello. My name is Frank and I am an enthusiastic latecomer to aviation. I recently passed my private pilot checkride and am flying now in the light sport catagory. I took my flight training in the Cessna 150, 152 and Piper Warrior airplanes. I currently fly a CTsw at LPR. I purchased a Van's RV 12 airplane kit and will be using this blog to share my experiences during the construction. I've read other blog sites doing a similar thing and have gained knowledge and information about the techniques, tools and travails in airplane construction.