Let There Be Heat! And Building Resumes...

Heat in the Garage

 Well after a two month hiatus due to bitter cold temperatures, my workshop has received an upgrade.  We have run a fresh line for power and installed a mini split in the garage.  Now my garage is not 100% insulated as the outer walls are not shared to living space, so I had to insulate whatever I could.  I insulated the ceiling space, front doors, and cleaned up the weather stripping to insure I am as tight as I can be without drilling into the walls.  After that was done, my HVAC friend came by and installed our new mini split.  I am not expecting 75 degrees in the winter, but keeping the room above 60 makes it comfortable to work out there and not be freezing.  I gave it a quick test the other day and I am quite happy so far.  It will also be nice in the summer if its scorching as I can cool the garage as well.  Back to work now!

Let there be heat....

Christmas Tool and Workshop Additions

In other news, Christmas came and I added some new tools to the collection.  I know there are plenty of tools and parts that I will purchase over the life of my build, so I have started to compile a list of everything I will need over time.  I am starting with some basic tools and will buy some parts as I approach needing them.  However, my family has come through and picked up some basic tools for Christmas.  I now am a proud owner of a soldering iron, label maker, 12" offset back rivet set, and some extra countersink cages.  These will all be quite useful and helpful as my build continues.  I am going to continue updating my list of things and hope that my future birthdays and Christmas' will help lighten the hit to my wallet.  

My Wife's Christmas Gift to Me.

One thing that I was super excited about was a surprise gift from my lovely wife.  We all know that the spouses will either make or break any home build, but mine has been amazing.  From the minute I asked to do it, she has been supportive and willing to help anytime I need.  Now, I haven't had to have her crawl into the tail cone yet, but I think she will do so without issue.  She purchased me a sign for the workshop that I cannot express my gratitude.  I am so happy and have mounted it on the wall right above my workbenches.

Building Resumes....

I've continued to build on the rudder section.  I began where we left off with match drilling the entire rudder skins and substructure.  I have now disassembled and labeled the skins.  I got to break out a new tool and play with that tonight.  The new tool is the Cleaveland Edge Forming Tool.  I broke it out of its plastic finally and played with it on the scrap pieces I have.  The directions were not very detailed, it only said don't over do it, but the website for Cleaveland had a short video describing how to adjust and do it.  I still am not overly thrilled by the video, but it is good enough.  The real question is trying to determine how much is overdoing it.  I might reach out to my tech advisor to discuss this briefly before doing it.  So thats where we will continue next, edge forming and deburring for priming.

Rudder structure all built and match drilled...  Time to take it apart now...

Workshop Cleanout and Electric

 So we last left off trying to figure out storage and heating solutions.  Well, we have made progress on both tasks.  My new storage unit is setup and I just moved the large crates into the storage unit for the time being.  This frees up all of my floor space in the garage, which may not be important for now, will make a major difference as I get into the larger parts.  I also just had the 240V line run for my new mini split unit that will be installed this week.  So despite a lull in build time due to the bitter cold, I am hoping to be back on the bandwagon next week.  I am looking forward to a great 2023 build year!

Storage and Heat..... Who Needs That?

 So My rudder is assembled and ready for the match drilling of ribs.  However the last month has been quite hectic with the holidays and winter approaching.  I haven't been in the garage too much because the temperatures have been getting down to the 30's and 40's, making for a very cold work session.  It's very difficult to work with fine motor skills at such low temperatures.  I have been in the process of getting quotes to install a mini split into my garage so I can make the workshop reasonable.  For those that don't know me, my attached garage is a 2.5 car garage and I prefer to avoid the flammable liquids/gases based systems.  As a firemen, I have seen numerous occasions of Carbon Monoxide poisoning in homes where these types of heating systems do not operate properly or the room doesn't ventilate well.  So I hope to have this heat settled in the next two weeks or so.

In other news, my wife has been on my case about getting her garage back for the winter.  With the fear of winter snow coming, my wife would like to be able to park in the garage during a storm.  As a result, I've been searching around for the best options for off site storage.  Most of the storage solutions near me are fully packed or only have smaller units.  After some searching and luck, I happened to come across a storage place who just actually had a tenant move out the day before.  This allowed me to snag a larger unit which gives me room to grow as the plane gets larger.  This also allows me to open up floor space as I build further into the project.  So I am hoping to be back on the bandwagon shortly and get the rudder finished up.

Chowder Run : Farmingdale to Plymouth, MA

New Equipment to Learn

 I have been trying to make a conscious effort to still fly and stay current.  Now that I finished my instrument rating, I want to use it and stay current.  The archer I rent got a new GFC500 installed and I have to admit, its an amazing piece of equipment.  I did a local flight with my instructor and went over autopilot procedures, usage, and best practices.  We shot a few approaches, did a hold, and just played with the functions on it.  It was a really fun flight to do, and really made me confident that I could use it in single pilot IFR situations.  I still want to do a lot of manual flying, but it will be good for enroute and high workload parts.  

Off to Plymouth

Now that I have learned the basics of the autopilot, I wanted to do a flight and enjoy the weather.  The weather hasn't been bad this fall so far, and we have had some very warm days.  My friend Amanda is a great safety pilot and I try to invite her along any time I can.  It allows me to keep my instrument skills sharp and stay safe at the same time, plus it's always good having a second capable pilot on board.  I have been making a conscious effort to file IFR every flight just to utilize the system and keep sharp.  Despite I am very aware of the rules and such due to my day job, I'm an FAA controller, it's good to do it anyway.

So I had a craving for some chowder and felt like heading north to somewhere new.  I love exploring new airports and spots that are unique, so the east coast of New England was calling.  I searched around and came across Plymouth, Massachusetts.  There is a nice little diner at the field with a new terminal building.  We filed IFR, headed north, and flew east over New England along the way.

The ride was pretty smooth, but the winds started picking up as we got closer to Plymouth.  The forecast had no serious weather or wind forecasted, but as we got to Plymouth, the winds had picked up quite a bit.  Winds were gusting into the twenties but it was practically down the runway.  After an uneventful flight, we landed, and got to enjoy lunch.  The chowder was delicious and the Reuben I had to go with it hit the spot.  After we tracked down the fuel guys, we finally headed back to Farmingdale. 

The flight home was a bit more interesting than the flight up.  We got a hold for release clearance when trying to depart due to inbound traffic, then we departed VFR, and picked up IFR in the air.  After we got airborne, we got some weird clearances.  Boston approach sent us direct to Groton off a vector to rejoin our course, however, when we checked into Providence, they recleared us to a fix that was previously on the route.  The odd thing was that was technically no longer part of the route, so we had to verify everything between. 

Cruising along with Amanda

Once we got back to Long Island, we crossed the sound and basically followed the North Fork.  As we got further west, we had some clouds building up, and worried about icing if we got stuck in them for a long time.  It was a thin layer, so we asked for lower and New York Approach took their sweet time before giving us the clearance.  As we descended through and out of the layer, it got pretty bumpy.  We had moderate chop until about a thousand feet below.

While we were up in New England, the winds out west began to grow as well.  Returning to Farmingdale found a significant crosswind, and it was the perfect direction to be a crosswind to any runway.  To further complicate things, Farmingdale was landing runway 19 when 32 would of been better.  Regardless, we flew the visual approach and landed safely.  Another beautiful day for flying and a great flight to add to the logbooks.

Where should I head next?  I was thinking maybe heading west on the next one, maybe Philly or somewhere that way?  If you got any favorite spots, let me know.

Rudder Match Drilling Prep and Storage Concerns

 I have been a bit busy with life the last two or three weeks.  Between work and family stuff, I haven't had a significant amount of time to get outside.  I also started to realize I need to plan for the winter accordingly.  My garage is insulated for the most part but has no heat source currently.  I am waiting for some quotes to get a Mini Split or Heater installed to allow me to work out there in the winter months.  It get a bit hard to work fine motor when its 30 or 40 degrees out.

Another thing I have realized is my wife wants her parking spot back.  My wife is very understanding and allows me to utilize the entire garage during the majority of the year, however, winter is coming.  As such, the boss has ordered me to make space for her car in prep any snow events.  As such, I spent a lot of time calling around to local storage places looking for a medium sized unit.  I figure if I can get rid of the two large crates, I can easily fit my wifes vehicle in the garage when needed.  However, finding a unit was a serious struggle.  Most of the ones I can find are very small and won't work for my needs, and the larger ones have one of two issues.  One issue was they were inside units with tight hallways to access, I didn't want to risk swinging a flight control or large part and denting it when I don't clear something.  Also, many of them were simply unavailable.

I eventually struck a bit of luck and happened to check a unit in the next town.  I asked about mid size units, but the only thing open was a large unit, which literally became available that day (it was the first of the month).  Since I haven't been able to find anything, I decided to take it.  My thought process was I have some extra space in back for some household stuff, but I have the large unit to grow into as I finish other parts.  It also will allow me to store some racks for small parts in a more organized way.  And I am buying some saw horses to build some "skin tables" to store skins flat until needed.  I am hoping to have the unit setup and everything moved sometime next week, which will allow me to focus on the rudder again.

In the meantime, I was able to finish the rudder prep and have the skins placed for match drilling.  This process wasn't terrible, lots of little prep work.  Separating the stiffeners and lots of deburring was in order to get to this point.  I constantly am debating about the level of deburring, many people seem to argue online about how "smooth" or how perfect things should be.  I find the cut pieces are a bit less precise but the stamped parts are pretty straight forward to deburr.  I don't feel any major sharp points or anything, so I think I am doing ok.  

Lots of deburring to get the structure together.

After a long deburring session, I got to clecoing the skin together.  It's amazing how precise the kit is, and match drilling should be pretty straight forward.  Another thing I am still trying to figure out is how crazy I need to be.  On the vertical stabilizer, I would simply run the drill in and out quickly, most parts were not taking much if anything off at all.  So do I need to waste time with this step every time or now?  The plans aren't updated to reflect what parts are final sized or not, so I have been cautious and making sure to do it quickly.  I guess this makes a more exact part anyway and makes riveting easier.  Should I just be reaming everything instead?  What do you guys think?

Rudder skin cleco'd in place.

So that's where I stand right now.  The rudder hasn't been too terrible, but I am looking forward to my first back riveting experience which will be coming soon.  Time to get back out there this week.

Chapter 7 Begins : The Rudder

 So we have completed the last remaining step of chapter 6 and have officially broken ground into chapter 7.  Chapter 7 is the Rudder, which will be mounted eventually to the back of the Vertical Stabilizer from chapter 6.  This piece uses some different and new building techniques which I did not get to use in chapter 6.  During this chapter I will do a bunch of backriveting, some pull rivets, rivet a trailing edge, and roll a skin.  I am looking forward to this, the only thing I didn't do in my fundamentals class was the actually adhesive that goes in the trailing edge.  On that note, I should go order that soon so its here when I get to that point.

Today I pulled out the beginning parts and got organized.  The first few steps of chapter 7 have me labeling the cut lines for separating the pieces.  Many of the pieces come together as on larger piece, and some need to be cut apart or trimmed down.  The directions are very clear and make the process easy, its just a tedious job making sure to line things up.  I wish I had a metal break as the did in Atlanta, but the cost isn't conducive to my light use.  Here are the pieces I had marked up which are ready for cutting.  This took me a little over an hour to get done.  Next session will be cutting and deburring all of these parts down. 

Marked Rudder Pieces - Pre-Cutting

Marked Rudder Pieces - Pre-Cutting

Another item on my to do list is to finish organizing the parts.  I have honestly been debating getting a storage unit but that is going to be about $150 a month.  I really don't want to do so yet but spaces are limited around my area and I don't want to miss out on the right size one.  Optimally, the unit will be large enough to store the bigger pieces as I finish them and other parts I don't need yet.  This will also free up much more garage space to allow for work once I get to the tail cone and bigger pieces.  I have to make some calls and see what's available.

Vertical Stabilizer - Part 3 of 3

 So I have been busy lately trying to finish up the vertical stabilizer.  The kids went back to school last month and this has freed up a lot of time during the day.  It has given me a good four hours three to four days a week to get this completed, and I had taken full advantage.  So let's jump in.

Deburring and Dimpling - Take 1

After we finished the last section, the entire assembly was cleco'd together, the skins were mounted, and we were ready to start drilling.  I quickly match drilled the skin onto the associated spars and ribs and then started the most fun part, taking it apart to do it all over again.  I deburred all of the rib holes, deburred the skin, and I got ready for dimpling.  I had not used my DRDT yet, so I was excited to bust it out.  I got it setup on my bench and made a small adjustment to it because the dies were slightly off center.

I quickly worked my way through the skin and rib pieces.  They were pretty simple to work through.  One note to future builders, go slow and make sure to go in order.  Don't skip around or anything weird because you will forget one of them and notice it later (I missed one!).  The actual job of dimpling isn't very difficult, it just takes time to finish.  Once that was done, I went to work to completely deburr everything.  Deburring was pretty straight forward, I purchased an electric screwdriver to make it easier.  This tool was a god send, as you could just hold the trigger and move from hole to hole.

First Big Batch of Priming 

After everything was deburred and cleaned up, I sprayed it off with some fresh air to make sure there weren't any metal pieces floating about.  After my first try at priming the rear spar, I made some adjustments to my priming setup.  I got some frames from plywood sheet and bought some metal wire which I stapled over the top.  These were easily laid out over two long pieces of wood on a pair of sawhorse's.  This allowed me to manipulate the pieces and spray easily on my lawn.  I haven't quite figured out what I will do in the winter, but this works for the rest of the year.

My Priming Frames Setup

The priming went fairly well.  I am using the Stewart Systems EkoPrime and EkoEtch products which were well reviewed by Charlie Derk, another past builder in his blog (his blog is linked on my page).  The product is not as toxic as most of the other products out there.  I like this as I don't need to go as crazy and I think it will be easier to spray inside as needed.  The EkoEtch is easy to use, just mix it up in a spray bottle and spray everything.  After a quick spray, you scrub it down, and then rinse it off good.  One issue I had, I hadn't removed the outside skin blue plastic trying to protect it.  During the rinse/etch process, a small amount got stuck under the plastic which I didn't notice.  It discolored a tiny section of skin, but was easily cleaned up with some acetone and corrosion protector.  This won't even be noticed after paint down the road.

Priming Session In The Yard.

After getting the etching all done, I got right to work priming the parts.  The primer goes on pretty easy, I sprayed it all once in each direction then the other way.  It dried within minutes which allowed me to flip over everything and spray again.  It turned out pretty well, but I noticed I had some small sections where it was heavier than others, something to work on moving forward, but everything was fully covered.

Riveting Continues and Skin Riveting

After priming and letting everything set for a day, I got back to work re-assembling the parts.  I started to rivet up the rear spar and get things put together for the final time.  I wanted to try different things, so I tried using the squeezer for as much as possible and then utilized the rivet gun with an old fashioned bucking bar for the remaining sections.  

Aft spar riveting

I had a little issue when I first did the aft spar.  On page 6-4, you beginning to reinforce the aft spar with the VS-1017 doubler and the VS-1012 rudder brackets.  The directions don't really tell you any specific order to put these rivets in.  So I started attaching the brackets first, but I quickly realized I had no way to access the shop head of the middle rivets between the brackets.  So I got some practice removing the four rivets in one bracket so I could squeeze those rivets.

After the spar was completed, I got to work assembling the ribs and riveting those.  These weren't terrible, but there were some tricky ones to buck/squeeze due to the flanges or other rivets.  I think I had two rivets that ended up being unacceptable and had to drill out.  I tried to drill them as I did in my class in Atlanta, but they didn't come out as simple.  I need to modify and grind down the pliers a bit to make it easier to grip the shop heads after drilling.

After I got all of the ribs done, I got to work with the skin.  Once again, the skin takes a bit of maneuvering in order to get things lined up.  After it was lined up, I went cleco crazy to make sure things were lined up.  Get a good worklight that can shine into these parts, this way you can verify the rivets actually have captured the skin and ribs below.  The work light made this pretty easy to do.  However, alot of the rivet checking is done simply by touch with the rivet gauge due to the tight spaces in the stablilizer.

Riveting the skin on the Vertical Stabilizer.

It took me about two days worth of working, but I got the stabilizer skin fully riveted on.  A few were drilled out but it wasn't too bad.  I highly recommend trying to squeeze anything you can, but sometimes the orientation can be challenging.  The nice part of the squeezer is you can setup one calibration and squeeze a line in quick succession.  The bucking bar is a bit more involved and requires more thorough checking as you build.

So I have completed the entirety of section 6 now with the exception of the VS-1010 bracket as I am waiting for a new torque wrench.  I am going to start pulling the parts for the rudder out to get those laid out and prepped.  Hopefully next week we can get that started.

Completed Vertical Stabilizer

Things I learned or points for future builders:

• Get a carpet or something soft to "line" the top of your workbenches.  The skins and parts can get scratched or cut with too much bumping around.
• If you have the space for a bigger workbench depthwise, go for it.  I really wish I had a three foot deep table as parts would fit more nicely on it.
• Organize the parts as best as you can.  The worst thing is looking for a part an having no clue where it is.  I currently have most of mine in the crate, and need to spend some time organizing them better.  I am thinking of totes/bins with numbers on them and a spreadsheet. 
• On section 6-4 Section 5, make sure to do the doubler only rivets first, these are the AN470AD4-4.  Then do the 4-5 that hold the brackets on.
• Figure out your priming methods early and try to have an established workflow before you get to big batches.

Coming Up Next: Section 7 - Rudder

Time to binge watch some youtube for research first :)