Yet another Build Log Tool (BenchLog)

[tsaG]

Hey all,

While waiting for my RV-10 kit to arrive I needed something to keep me busy, so I started building a small web app to track my shop time. What started as a simple "clock in / clock out" timer quickly grew: I wanted to note down the section, page, and step from the plans, attach photos, and eventually export everything into a proper PDF report for the LBA (the German equivalent of the FAA) at the end of the build. That's how BenchLog came to be.

It's a self-hosted tool you run on your own machine or home server (Raspberry Pi, NAS, whatever you have).

What it does:

Time Tracker: Log every build session with a start/stop timer that runs server-side, meaning if you close the browser or walk away, the clock keeps ticking. Each session gets tagged with an assembly section (Empennage, Wings, Fuselage, etc.) and you can log the exact Section, Page, and Step from the Van's plans. Optional notes and photo attachments per session as well.



Build Report: When you need a record of your work, for the FAA, insurance, or just your own satisfaction, you can generate a formatted PDF report directly from the app. You can sort chronologically or group by section, include or exclude plans references and session notes, and even attach a custom logo. There's also a section summary showing total billable build hours before you generate.


Build Journal / Blog: Every logged session automatically appears as a blog entry,no double entry needed. The journal is publicly accessible (of course, only if you share it on your server), so you can share your build log with the community. You can filter posts by assembly section or browse by month. A separate rich-text editor lets you write longer standalone entries with embedded images. My favourite feature in the "Build progress overview" (still have to find the proper names for it) is, that you can filter the blog for sections (for example if you click on the small book next to section 8 Horizontal stabilizer).


There's also a dashboard with total hours, estimated finish date based on your rolling pace, and hours broken down by section.


Demo: You can poke around a live demo here (read-only, no login needed): https://benchlogdemo.bihnairy.de/ be gentle, its hosted on my desktop computer . I currently only have some test posts with nonsense and pictures of my Training kit build but I hope you get the idea when browsing around.

Self-hosting:It runs in Docker, so getting it up takes about two minutes if you have Docker installed

Everything, sessions, photos, settings, lives in a single SQLite database on your machine. There's a full export/import function so you can back it up or migrate easily.

Full source and documentation on GitHub: https://github.com/tsaG1337/BenchLog

It's free for personal use. Happy to hear feedback or answer questions, especially from fellow RV builders who might have ideas for features that would actually be useful at the bench.

Cheers

Patrick

 

[tsaG]

Another update, and this one comes straight from the top: my wife, who also serves as head of the build budget department, has been requesting an expense tracker since day one. It's finally here.

The expense tracker lets you log every cost associated with the build in one place. You can attach the invoice or receipt directly to each entry, so everything is backed up inside the tool rather than scattered across your inbox. Expenses can be exported as part of the build report, which is useful when you need to hand something to your accountant, or document costs for certification.



As for the current state of my own expenses: it's looking promising on paper, although the aircraft is still very much unshipped and the sales tax line is growing at a concerning rate.
There's also an optional budget feature, set a total per category and track how much of it is used. Since I'm not yet on a strict budget (note the optimism), I'll leave that one for others to enjoy.



On the technical side, I've also been working on Siri Shortcuts integration. The idea is simple: say "Hey Siri, start a build session" and the timer starts on the server, no touching the phone required. Particularly useful when your hands are covered in Proseal and the last thing you want to do is unlock a touchscreen. The stop command should work the same way.

Let me know what you think! The demo session is updated, so feel free to give it a try ( https://demo.benchlog.build/ ). You can access it (same as the blog) via the burger menu on the top right.

 

[rolivi]

You're flirting with the long held knowlege: Don't tell the SO what it costs!

 

[catmandu]

You're flirting with the long held knowlege: Don't tell the SO what it costs!

Heck, I don't even want to know.

 

[tsaG]

You're flirting with the long held knowlege: Don't tell the SO what it costs!

Haha, true! Maybe I should add a "Wife acceptance Factor (WAF)" to the settings that scales down the numbers reported in the Expense Log?


Somehow, this got moved into the "My Project" Section. I would however consider this thread more of a documentation for a tool..

 

[tsaG]

You're flirting with the long held knowlege: Don't tell the SO what it costs!

Haha, fixed




The Tool now received another big update and is now publicly available at https://benchlog.build/ for everyone who doesn't one to self host. On this page, on the top right, there is also a demo session available (if you just want to have a look ).

 

[Fenderbean]

I'm building a 10, and I was wondering the other day if and why would the need be for tracking time? Other than a personal thing, is there something to be aware of for your final inspection? Its just hard to track time spent because days go by with very little work.

Cool tracker, I started using one online but its limiting pictures some so I need to find another.

 

[tsaG]

At least here in Germany, the authorities require you to keep a construction diary (“Bautagebuch”) as proof that you actually built the aircraft. I believe there’s a similar concept in the US as well.

Strict time tracking isn’t explicitly required at this level, but in my previous project I would simply build and then later fill in an Excel sheet with photos and the dates I worked. The problem was that I sometimes forgot to take pictures or couldn’t remember exactly when I had worked on it, especially with short sessions here and there. As a result, it became quite time-consuming to reconstruct everything afterward and maintain a proper build log. Importing photos into Excel and formatting everything nicely wasn’t particularly straightforward either.

That’s why I created a tool where you can just press “Start” at the beginning of a session and “Stop” at the end. Each session can be directly linked to the chapter, page, or step you were working on, along with adding photos. Since the time is recorded automatically, I thought: why not also track progress toward the 2,500-hour build time specified by Vans?

And that’s basically how the tool got started

 

[Fenderbean]

Thanks, yes we have to show we built it but I think some get way more in depth than needed. Some just take pictures along the process and check steps in the manual.
I personally like a log, but it has to be easy to use and uploading pictures has to be easy.
It just takes too much time trying to keep up with how much time was spent doing things for me time wise.

 

[tsaG]

There has been a big update to Benchlog,

you can import your plans into the Tool, so you can access them from everywhere.

• Upload your section PDFs once; the filename parser sorts most of them automatically (empennage, wings, fuselage, finish), the rest you assign with a few clicks.
• Per-builder annotations: sticky notes and freehand pen strokes anywhere on a drawing. Scoped to your account, not shared.
• OCR'd part-number search. Ctrl+K, type WD-1017, get every page and callout that part appears on across every sheet you've uploaded. Click → there.
• In-PDF text search (Ctrl+F). this one actually finds what you typed, highlights every hit in amber, and gives you a sidebar grouping matches by page.
• Service Bulletins pinned to the drawings themselves. Yellow markers on the exact figure the SB applies to — click for what Van's says, the official link, and whether it's incorporated yet. RV-10 catalog is currently implemented (or actually ongoing); happy to extend to other models if there's interest.

One thing up front: BenchLog doesn't ship the plans. The manufacturer (in this case Van's) owns the drawings, so you upload your own set or the PDFs that came with your kit.






Feedback welcome. The roadmap stays short and shaped by what comes to my mind (or has been requested).

I am currently working on a feature that lets you create the Schematics, lets you design the harnes and exports all you need (Pin2Pin, cut length table, export to Harness Formboard (TBC))... I will update you when its done! You can check out the Demo at https://demo.benchlog.build/

 

[Fenderbean]

Thats awesome, I have been enjoying it so far, I dont have the full RV10 plans on digits yet. I guess I can order the thumb drive the sell now with it all on it.
Being able to check the steps in the log at the same time as track times is a great feature!

 

[tsaG]

Thats awesome, I have been enjoying it so far, I dont have the full RV10 plans on digits yet. I guess I can order the thumb drive the sell now with it all on it.
Being able to check the steps in the log at the same time as track times is a great feature!

Awesome, that is great to hear.

As I understood, when you bought the kit within the last x years, you can download the plans in the vansaircraft.com store under "my aircraft".If you don't have it assigned to your account, maybe you can contact Vans to get them.