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Empennage is Done!... I think

toolmanmike

Well Known Member
Patron
So, I did not skip any steps. Initialed them as I went but after attaching the elevators and setting up the travel the directions just stop!?
No where in the directions does it tell me to connect the rudder. Doesn't even give me a length to set the hinge bearing bolts to and the elevator was very specific about that. Am I missing something?

I have a completed Vertical, Horizontal stabilizer, a rudder, 2 elevators that are attached. I did some trimming on the tips but won't attach them till the end.

I have 2 months till the wings are due to show. What now??

toolman
 
Plans

So, I did not skip any steps. Initialed them as I went but after attaching the elevators and setting up the travel the directions just stop!?
No where in the directions does it tell me to connect the rudder. Doesn't even give me a length to set the hinge bearing bolts to and the elevator was very specific about that. Am I missing something?

I have a completed Vertical, Horizontal stabilizer, a rudder, 2 elevators that are attached. I did some trimming on the tips but won't attach them till the end.

I have 2 months till the wings are due to show. What now??

toolman

Dimensions are in there somewhere. Seems like they are on the plans. Bearing dimensions are there. I used a section of polished steel rod. Easy to measure and get them in line.
 
Dimensions are on the drawing but not in the instructions. The instructions normally go step by step for most things once, after that they just expect you to look at the drawings and know how to do things. By the end of your build, youll barely reference the instructions and just be looking at whatever drawing you need.

If you want to glass in the tips, do that now. It'll give you something to do and you never have to run a wire in the tail tips (minus the rudder bottom) so you don't have to delay them like the wingtips. Read the wing assembly instructions a few times to get an idea of the order of things. Go read the 20+ page thread on plan "gotchas" so you know what to avoid with the wings. Make a schedule for long lead items. Andair fuel valves can take 6 months to deliver, sam James up to a year for a cowl, Lycoming is over a year long wait right now. Make the list of what you want to include in the build and build a schedule of when you need to put the order in. There's plenty to do until the wings arrive....
 
Rudder

The attachment instructions are at the end of the fuselage section. Look at page 8-18. I recommend reading the instructions and studying the plans for your wings while waiting for your wing kit. If your wing kit is QB make sure you know what is left to do. If it’s a SB kit set up your shop for and build the wing jig, watch the Vans video on fuel tank construction, and start planning what accessories you will install in wing (landing lights, position lights, Pitot/AOA, roll servo, etc.).

Two months will go by pretty fast.
 
Suggestion before calling done.

I left my tips until later and concluded it would have been better to have it done well before the final assembly. Fill rivet gaps, center holes of pull rivets and finish all the balancing with tips all primed and ready for paint.

BTW the blue film is about the same area density as final prime/paint.
 
Original poster here, I am just about finished with the fiberglass on the empennage. I did some research here and built my wing cradle and a rolling fuselage dolly as well. Took a tour of the Lycoming plant! Really cool! Cleaned the shop, read every post here on VAF. Still gonna be waiting for 6 weeks or so till QB wings and fuse get here.
Should I install the elevator and rudder to vertical and horizontal now or let them separate till time to mount on the fuselage?

Any advise on receiving the QB shipment? Does it come as wings for cradle, fuselage for dolly, and a big box with all the pieces? What am I missing?

Toolmanmike
 
Assembly

Original poster here, I am just about finished with the fiberglass on the empennage. I did some research here and built my wing cradle and a rolling fuselage dolly as well. Took a tour of the Lycoming plant! Really cool! Cleaned the shop, read every post here on VAF. Still gonna be waiting for 6 weeks or so till QB wings and fuse get here.
Should I install the elevator and rudder to vertical and horizontal now or let them separate till time to mount on the fuselage?

Any advise on receiving the QB shipment? Does it come as wings for cradle, fuselage for dolly, and a big box with all the pieces? What am I missing?

Toolmanmike

You can install them but they will come back apart. HS and VS have to be drilled mounted. Very difficult if control surfaces are installed.
 
Original poster here, I am just about finished with the fiberglass on the empennage. I did some research here and built my wing cradle and a rolling fuselage dolly as well. Took a tour of the Lycoming plant! Really cool! Cleaned the shop, read every post here on VAF. Still gonna be waiting for 6 weeks or so till QB wings and fuse get here.
Should I install the elevator and rudder to vertical and horizontal now or let them separate till time to mount on the fuselage?

Any advise on receiving the QB shipment? Does it come as wings for cradle, fuselage for dolly, and a big box with all the pieces? What am I missing?

Toolmanmike

It comes with all of that and a gazillion parts, bolts, washers and rivets to inventory. Vans will Make-up shortages but there is a time limit, 30 days? So you might want to determine where all that stuff will be stored. Storing in a very organized manner will speed up the process of, where did I put that part.
 
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