ARGH!!!
My shop has clamps everywhere, but I can never find them when I need them! So here is a tip:
Screw or nail a length of 1×2 to the wall, and Volia! Clamp holder!
Oh ya, I guess you can use a shelf too. BUT that would have been a lame tool tip!
Dkb
The radio stack is in!
We have installed the frames for the radios. KX-155, KY97A and a KT76A transponder. Nice King stack, and the frames are in. We are adding an MC-60 digital CDI but that will be installed on the left panel, to the right of the EFIS display. If the GPS goes south, I’ll still have a NAV with CDI to use. No wiring yet.
Radio stack
We also installed the engine monitor, the EIS4000 from Grand Rapid Technologies. By the way, these guys are GREAT to work with and they have really superior customer service! I still have room on the center section to add the warning light for the EIS, a COM switch, and maybe some other switches. Left panel will be busy! I’m hoping to add an iFLY 720 with AHRS for the GPS backup on the right. The iFLY is also a really great electronic flight bag. Check out iFLY for more info.
We installed the flap position sensor. This is a copy of some friends at the airport, and it turns out, a copy from many folks.
flap position sensor
It has been a quiet couple of weeks at the hanger, with a bunch of small but critical tasks. We installed doublers for the COMM antennas as well as the Transponder antenna. We finished the attach points for the instrument panel, and fit the three part panels into place. We still need to map all the stuff that will be installed on the panel tho. TONS of stuff.
We have picked the radios! From top to bottom, I’ll have:
- King KX-155 NAV/COM with KI-209 CDI (maybe. I’m also looking at a MC-60 digital version.)
- King KY-97A Comm
- King KT-76A Transponder
in the radio stack. We also have a PS Engineering Intercom and a simple audio amp instead of an audio panel. No marker beacons.
This week-end we added the parking brake control. It is located on the Left side (Pilot’s side) below the air vent. Simple pull / push operation with a push-button lock to prevent accidental operation. Easy to install and easy to use. Here is the control:
Parking Brake Control
The cable goes to the Matco parking brake valve. The pilot simply steps on the brakes and pulls the knob out. Knob full in releases the brakes. Here is the valve (looking down from the top):
Parking brake valve
We also finished installing the instrument panel frame and temporarily installed the panel sheets. Does this look cool or what:
Dave’s blank instrument panel
Today, Superbowl Sunday, Feb 3, 2013 is the 5 year anniversary of this project. As it just so happens, it was SuperBowl Sunday when we started as well.
A lot of stuff has happened in 5 years. We completed the tail, wings, flight surfaces, gas tanks, much of the fuselage, installed the ELT and some wiring. Here is what we completed yesterday:
We have purchased an engine, the finish kit, and some of the firewall forward. Since we began, I have three new cats, a new car or two (we keep cars a long time) remodeled a bathroom, re-did the upstairs of the house, kept my job, learned a bunch of new skills, both with the airplane and at work, and stayed married. We have many new friends in the Van’s RV community, and have watched some speed past us, and some fall by the wayside.
We are planning flight instruments and radios. My Key: Keep it simple to start. 2 comms, 1 nav, 1 GPS external, and of course the GPS in the EFIS. We are still planning on Dynon Avionics, but we will simplify the panel to start. One EFIS for now. IFR VOR Nav configuration and maybe an IFR GPS. We will see about that. We have the transponder (King KT-76A) and the Audio panel.
Tom and I still love to build, and we are not about to rush to finish now. We have been very careful builders, and the work we have done is top notch!
So, When will the plane be finished? Not sure. Still much to do, but the next phase is to get the fuselage off the rotisserie and on a cart for setting the wings. Get the motor on and get the wiring done.
We’ll see.
Happy New Year!
Dkb
So, that is what we did. This week-end we added the throttle/mixture/carb heat/flap switch panel to 18TD. The control cables went in reay easy, but not so much with the flap switch. A normal flap switch has 6 connectors so it is pretty wide. Looks like the flap switch plate I bought was not designed with that in mind. We got it to fit, but it was a bunch of work.
Engine Control Panel
We are making pretty good headway with the three part panel, but I’m kinda nervous about leg room. I’m a tall guy, and it looks like the panel is getting into the pilot area. We will not know until I get the fuse off the rotisserie and on to a safe stand where I can sit in the thing.
I got the firewall forward plans today, so we are starting to verify we are ready to add a motor mount. Battery is in, Master/start relay is in, and we have most holes punched. I’m gonna do some control cables after I have the motor mount in place to verify position.
Next week is a special anniversary for us, so stay tuned.
We are getting close to the time we will need panel $tuff. Yikes!
Here is the panel superstructure.
Panel Support Framework
We got the Affordable Panels three part panel, so you can remove sections for maintenance. Really a good idea. AP sells two designed, the 1./3, 1/3, 1/3 design where each of the three sections are centered (the kind I bought) and one where the left (pilot side) is larger. I’m not sure I bought the rigth version, because the center support rib lands smack dab in the middle of the radio stack, and will severely limit the space available for radios. I’ll have to work on that. This would be fine for a VFR only aircraft, or one that has lots of remotely mounted radio stuff.
Here is a Hint I got from Keith, a fellow builder: Put platenuts on the bottoms of the panel support ribs to add adel clamps later if you need them for wiring support.
In my opinion, you can’t have too much support for wire. I also plan on lots of holes with snap bushings.
CC
Yikes! I have a butt-kicking vise in my shop that will grab a hunk of metal, and hold on like a Gila monster!
But sometimes, you want to hold something a bit easier, and not make marks in the item clamped in the vise. A simple solution is to cut a 3/4 by 3/4 angle into a 4 to 6″ length. Place that in the vise, and voila! An easy holder for small parts.
Aluminum inserts
But wait. These baby’s are always falling out and on to the floor every time I try to put something into them. So, HERE IS THE TRICK:
Buy some self-stick magnets from your local stationary store, and cut to size, and glue them on to the angle. They stay in place, and make it easy to move the insert around.
Aluminum vise jaw inserts with magnets.
Remember to put the magnets on top of the vise so you do not try to squeeze them.
CC
First of all, we have mounted the battery box on the firewall, and are working to finish the Panel Frame. I bought the Affordable Panels XL three piece panel and I’m very happy with the fit and finish. We are building the substructure that the frame attaches to, and we will do a final mount to be ready for the panel parts. We will have some grief with the stack tho. No much room for radios with a support rib right smack in the middle!
Dave with Fuse
Now for a tool tip. I had a battery drill go south, but the chuck was still good. Normally, in the old days, You would put the chuck key in the chuck, and whack it with a hammer (counter-clockwise) to cause the chuck to unscrew. BUT in the new days:
1. No chuck key
2. Drill is reversible, so just going backwards does not unscrew the chuck!
No worries. First, the chuck probably has a screw in it, so you need to open the chuck fully, and put in a screwdriver to remove the retaining screw. Here’s the secret: The screw has Left-hand threads! So turn it opposite to remove it! Next, put the short side of an allen wrench (1/4 or so) in the chuck and whack it with a rubber mallet (counter-clockwise) and that baby will spin right off!
Forward!
Dkb
Drill, Deburr and dimple. Back to the plan. We did the top skin today. Nice!
Top skin in an RV-9A
We also installed the heater control valve, a Fire-wall pass-through, and did some additional painting. Was a nice but rainy day. Bad day to fly, but good day in the hanger. Actually, I guess any day is a good day in the hanger.
I’m starting to think about the EMS (engine management/monitoring system). I have an EIS 4000 from Grand Rapids Technologies, but I’m also getting a Skyview from Dynon Avionics. I’m also thinking about a EFIS/EMS from MGL (the Xtreme) which would be an EMS AND a backup EFIS for not a lot of extra $$$. I really do not want to build a plane where the panel costs as much as the rest of the plane. Simple Avionics, (like VAL radios and Nav) and a nice simple panel that is VFR/IFR Day/Night. Maybe something like:
Dynon Skyview
2 -Val Avionice Comm radios
1- Val INS-429 NAV
King KLN-94 GPS (enroute and approach certified)
Dynon Transponder
Keep the panel under $15K?
More later.