Category Archives: Logistics

The 2022 Labor Day weekend saw the transportation of fuselage and wings to the final assembly location in my hangar at KTTA.  Many thanks to Terry G. for the use of his equipment, his expertise and patience in dealing with a very nervous builder (me) during the “Big Move”.

The cowl was attached to the fuselage for transport, then pushed outside the shop to be loaded onto a 22′ heavy equipment trailer. Initially we intended to load the plane facing forward, but found rolling it on backwards would be much easier.

The trailer was about 8’6″ wide, but the main landing gear wheels were about 8′ even.  As a result, the movable ramps had to be relocated outwards to accommodate loading the plane. An electrical winch attached to the tail cone started pulling the fuselage up the ramp.  Eventually the pull angles were wrong, so we used the body weight of two people to hold down the tail while others pushed the main wheels between grates on the loading ramp.

Loading was a very slow, deliberate process as the leeway between main wheels and edge of the trailer was only about 3″ on either side. The fuselage was carefully inched backwards up the ramp and into position.  A wheel coming off the trailer would have spelled disaster and could have ruined the entire fuselage.

More photos inching the fuselage onto the trailer.

Eventually the main wheels were chocked close to each edge.  Multiple ratchet straps held down the main and front wheels. These were tightened into a very stable configuration; one secured from movement in all directions (left, right, forward, backwards, and up).

Rolling down the highway towards the airport!  The actual road transport went without any issues with a safe arrival at the end.

Multiple volunteers helped unload the fuselage – basically the reverse of the load process, but much easier with the gravity assist.  Here the fuselage was moved off the trailer…

… and into the hangar.

Now that the ‘big move” was complete, the protective film on the windows was removed.

WING TRANSPORT

The wings were moved to the airport with Tal’s trailer just as previously posted from house to shop.

Eric and I drove to Airventure 2018 in Oshkosh primarily to order an engine and propeller from Van’s.

The show discounts from Van’s amounted to $1000 when ordering both components together, plus free shipping.  The engine is a 260hp Lycoming XIO-540-D4A5, while the propeller is a 3-blade Hartzell C3Y1R-1N/N7605C with a C-4582-P spinner (picture at left).  The engine will be added to the production schedule and should be built in 3-4 months.  The propeller is expected to ship in 4-6 weeks.  After much discussion, I was also able to get a free hat from Lycoming.

We stopped by SteinAir to ask a few questions about G5 autopilot connections, and VOILA! – they had a demonstration panel with nearly the exact equipment and layout I have been imagining for some time.  This is essentially how mine will be configured with a few alterations for internal lights, USB power and CO2 sensors.  Otherwise excellent.

These two products were obtained during the week. Both are very versatile for aeronautical and home use.  My first application was replace an air hose clamp with .032 safety wire. The combination works great and eliminates the sharp edges of the hose clamp when handling.

The entire week was used to prepare for the first interior paint in the cockpit.  Materials were transported from the garden shed, my usual paintbooth, to the shop.  These included air compressor, paint gun, supplies, hoses, fans, filters, and barrier walls. Quite a logistics challenge. Eric and I got up Saturday at 5:00am to beat the oppressive heat which comes later in the day. Temperature in the shop was a comfortable 74F in the shop before the sun came up.

A rudimentary paint booth is constructed of large cardboard sheets and thin plywood paneling.  This is not intended for long term use, just enough to keep paint/fumes fairly contained on the side.

Fans/filters placed in the tail and on the plywood barrier are just enough to keep a gentle air flow from back to front, then out the shop door.  This concept, while looking very crude in the photos, worked extremely well in practice.

The basic process getting ready to shoot remains the same:  suit up, shake and mix well. Then pucker and pull the trigger.

Now for the results – baggage door and rear seat areas. Only those visible areas are painted. The remaining parts are covered by side or floor panels.

Firewall and side panels.  Some areas here are perhaps a bit thin on paint, but no worries about appearance, as these sections will be covered with soundproofing material and probably panels as well.

Front floorboards and forward seating areas.

I used PPG Concept paint coded DCC in Boeing grey (BAC707).  This is a three part system with paint, reducer and hardener. This stuff is fantastically hard, flows together when applied properly, and covers very well. Any runs can be sanded and resprayed for a smooth finish .  The downsides to this material are its high expense and caution must be taken for personal safety. The poly-isocyanates in the hardener are toxic and exposure must be avoided. Fortunately I have the HobbyAir breathing system, safety glasses, gloves and professional paints suits for protection.

Next steps are install the sound dampening material, run the electrical conduit under floor boards, then rivet all the floor panels in place. I may not do another round of painting, as the overall results for the first round were pretty good.

Rich forwarded an old set of 1″ and 2″ precision tools purchased by our grandfather over 70+ years ago.  The smaller model is a No.113 Starret micrometer, while the larger version is a Starret No.213.  A good cleaning and some fresh Starret Tool and Instrument oil have both actions working very smoothly.  They have a bit of surface rust (not much) which greatly adds to their character. Both read down to 0.0001 inches and seem fairly accurate. I purchased a special adjustment wrench specifically made for these devices for $12 and will get a final read once a precision gauge block arrives.

Old school tools are becoming my new hobby, and having the family connection with my grandfather does not hurt. He was trained in Germany shortly after WW1 as a fine tool and die maker, then came to this country in 1925 to eventually work at Timken Roller Bearing in Canton, OH as a quality inspector.

Here the 4th generation (my son Eric) is using the No.113 to measure the thickness of rear floor panel material.  Our goal is install some inspection panels in the floorboards to later evaluate step bolts and ADSB/transponder connections which will be located under the riveted floor. At one time we thought about making the panel removable, but changed our minds when Van’s indicated the floor provides structural rigidity between fuselage and tailcone.

July 22 – I was in LA on a business trip when the quickbuild kits for wings and fuselage got delivered.  Fortunately I have two strapping sons to provide the brawn needed to unload the parts.  The driver, Mike, from P+M Express out of Bend, OR transported my parts together with identical QB kits for a fellow builder on the same trip – saved freight costs for both of us.

The pictures speak for themselves, as the well packed items came out of the trailer.  Upon returning home, I did a quick evaluation for damage or problems.  So far everything looks good, but the detailed inventory starts this weekend.  I  have 30 days from delivery to report any issues back to Van’s.

Eric and I have also done quick inspections of the professional workmanship provided by the factory against our own efforts.  While certainly there are items I would like to redo, most of our work compares favorably.  From a quality perspective I will not be ashamed to bolt my tailcone onto the Van’s fuselage base.

Here the truck is parked outside our rented shop space. Apparently the temperature was still in the high 90’s after 6:00pm when unloading occurred.

First item out is the cabin canopy.

Next the Lexan windscreen.

The fuselage section rolls out on a Van’s jig. After inventory is complete, I will build a similar jig out of wood.

I thought the shop was big, but these parts started to take up space quickly.

Wings stored overhead in the trailer.

Out come the wings – heavy and bulky.  This required at least three people to man-handle without dropping.

Either jigs or a rotisserie will be constructed to hold the wings as well.

Rich bought two old Chicago Pneumatic riveters from Raybourn Thompson as part of his shop liquidation sale.  New ones cost $700-1000 each, but Rich got the pair for $165.  The tandem unit worked poorly, the single piston model did not function at all.  I contemplated sending these out for repair, but read online somewhere that “if you can build an RV10, you can repair these yourself”.  I took that advice and disassembled everything, then looked for places to get parts.  On a tip from my technical counsellor, I contacted Bob Avery at Avery Tools.  After many email exchanges with his advice and guidance, about $250 in parts were obtained and the rebuild began.