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About to pull the trigger

njherr

I'm New Here
Hey Everyone,

So I've convinced the wife it would be a good idea for us to build a -10. Perhaps not the biggest hurdle in the process of building one, but probably up there! However, I'm in the military and am scheduled to move down to Oklahoma this coming spring. As such, given the 6 mo lead time for the Empennage Kit on the Van's website, we probably won't place the order for a few months so that we have a month or so to get settled in the new place before the kit arrives.

That being said, probably going to buy the practice kits soon, just so we can practice our riveting skills between now and then. Any other tasks or activities that would be useful to take care of in the mean time (also considering that we'll be packing everything up and moving in about 6 months)?

I realize it's a bit early to be worrying about some of these things, but I'm very interested in adding the Show Planes' cowling and composite tailcone skin. Looking at the forums and other videos online, I can find a reasonable number of examples of the cowling, but other than N104AL I haven't seen the composite tailcone mod on a completed or in-progress aircraft. Curious of anyone has any experience/thoughts/insight on the composite tailcone. I realize it is a bit superfluous, and I love the -10 as is, but to my eye that slightly adjusted profile really appeals to me.

Anyways, thanks for any input you may have to the above questions/considerations.

-Nick
 
Hi Nick - welcome to VAF! You might want to place the order now and then when the time comes you can just delay shipment. Talk to the folks at Van's - they are very easy to work with.
 
Welcome Nick

I think what you’ll find is that there are tons of mods that you can implement, and every builder is a bit different as far as what they perceive to be worth the extra cost and effort. I agree with you that the composite on the back looks nice. I don’t remember it being popular. Same with the fiberglass wing root covers. They’re out there but not a ton of takers.

But at the end of the day, build the plane you want. IMO, that’s the biggest benefit of doing this. Depending on where you are… I would recommend AC. It’s my biggest regret. It’s somewhat tolerable, but my trips would be so much more enjoyable if I had AC anytime OAT was 80 or higher. That cockpit is a big fish bubble and while many taxi with their doors open, I don’t recommend it.

My $0.02 your mileage may vary…
 
The RV10 is a fantastic airplane built per the plans. Think hard about all the modifications you what to implement. With very few exceptions, every change adds time and $$$ to the build. That being said, if I were to build another 10 I would implement 90% of the modifications I made to my current plane.

While you are waiting for your tail kit, working on a practice kit is a great idea. If you have the time, build the practice kit, then drill out all the rivets, and put it back together. Becoming an expert at removing a rivet is almost as important and being an expert at setting a rivet.

Consider attending a Builders Assist Class. I know Synergy, EAA and others have them. In addition to learning the build techniques you will have the opportunity to use lots of different tools so you can decide which tools are right for you. Local EAA chapters also provide support, but since you will be relocating that may not be that useful now, but it will be at your next duty station.
 
The composite tailcone skin might reduce the torsional stiffness of the tailcone, since fiberglass has a significantly lower modulus of elasticity than aluminum. If so, and that depends on the design of it, at least one flutter mode might occur at a lower airspeed than stock.

It's worth asking them about torsional stiffness and the flutter testing that they did.

Otherwise, I'd avoid that particular product.

Dave
 
If the composite skins are lighter, it is the wrong way to go. The 10 is nose heavy and the battery is in the tailcone for a reason.

Put all your electronic boxes behind the baggage compartment, oxygen bottle and the dog and cat back there and you will be happier.
 
Look for an EAA sheet metal class and take it before you start. Worth every penny.

Couldn't agree more. I completed it back in May of this year at EAA HQ in Oshkosh. The class was fantastic with a great instructor and it gave me a good overview of the kind of tools I would want to get and the workshop setup. The mini project we completed during the class was more complex than the Van's toolbox practice kit.
 
I took both the EAA class and the one at Synergy Air (Eugene). I learned a lot more at the Synergy Air class - much better student to instructor ratio and much better tools to work with.

If you take the one at Synergy Air South, there are three RV-10’s currently under construction in the main hangar and a couple more at the auxiliary hangar. Doubtful you will see any at the EAA class.

https://synergyair.com/
 
crack open the wallet

the hardest part is cracking open the wallet, the rest is easy, i have built 2-10's, 1-6, 1-8A, 1-14A and now a 7A. enjoy
 
Welcome and thank you

First, thank you for your service.

I'm just a bit ahead of you. I ordered my tail kit in May. Crate date was September 9th. I just emailed Van's and they tell me 8-10 WEEKS for crating. As others have said, order it NOW!

I set up my shop and did the flap and toolbox practice kits. I then took the Synergy Air one day class in GA which I thoroughly enjoyed and learned so much in. After Synergy, I ordered a second flap practice kit. The difference between my first and second flap kits are staggering and worth the money. Highly recommend it. You don't want to have that steep learning curve on your plane. While I wait for my kit I'm thinking about drilling out all the rivets on my first kit and doing it again.

I'm sure you've discovered the score of excellent YouTube videos to get you prepared as well. I really enjoy Kit Plane Metal Magic, BuildFlyGo, Jason Ellis, Plane Lady, Tech Fun Style, and Missile Twenty Nine.

I look forward to learning along the way with you.

JC
 
Thank you all for the replies, advice, and insight.

Given that we live in eastern Washington, I think we're gonna try to take a trip down to Vans sometime later this fall or early winter and will combine the trip with one of Synergy Air's Fundamental classes since they are located relatively close by.

Having the time/schedule to build is highly contingent upon me getting this next duty station, and while I have been notified that I've been selected for it, nothing is really official in the Air Force until I have orders in hand, so it'll be another few months before placing the order with Vans. Still, it should provide plenty of time to build, tear down, and rebuilt the various practice projects that Vans offers.

The composite tailcone skin might reduce the torsional stiffness of the tailcone, since fiberglass has a significantly lower modulus of elasticity than aluminum. If so, and that depends on the design of it, at least one flutter mode might occur at a lower airspeed than stock.

It's worth asking them about torsional stiffness and the flutter testing that they did.

Otherwise, I'd avoid that particular product.

Dave

Dave, great point on the torsional stiffness re: the composite tailcone mod. I know their website says the kit has no impact on design limit loads, but that doesn't really address the other material properties, as you mention.

It's been a while since my materials and structures classes as an undergrad, but I certainly need to do a bit more analysis. Don't mind deviating from the design, but not much of fan of TLAR engineering (at least not for critical areas that impact the safety of the family).

Initial thought is that even a 1/8" core thickness on the composite panel is so much greater than the 0.025" aluminum skin thickness, that the modulus of elasticity of the panel is likely higher even though the values for aluminum are greater than glass... IIRC, the value increases by the cube of the core thickness. However, this also ignores the anisotropic properties of a composite layup vs isotropic properties of aluminum. Either way, definitely something I need to look into more.
 
Thank you all for the replies, advice, and insight.

Given that we live in eastern Washington, I think we're gonna try to take a trip down to Vans sometime later this fall or early winter and will combine the trip with one of Synergy Air's Fundamental classes...

Good plan. These classes fill up so you need to sign up yesterday.

Also recommend the Columbia Gorge driving route from Fairchild if you haven’t done that before. Also worth it if you have an extra day or so to plan a stop at WAAAM in Hood River and the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville (used to be free admission for EAA members).
 
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