Finished Horizontal Stabilizer - Total 57 hours

Great Thanksgiving week! Kids were home (for a few days, at least) and we shared a wonderful holiday with family and friends. Even though I had family and work commitments, still managed to break away for a few hours in the shop and - lo and behold - suddenly the horizontal stab was finished. Van's is right - you learn a LOT during this stage. I drilled out more than a few errors, but acquired (I hope!) some valuable insights along the way. A key lesson was that when I encounter a simple instruction - say "don't rivet this hole" - then mark the hole then and there, even if I'm simply reading several steps ahead. More than once I thought "I'll remember that when I'm back in the shop next time" - and of course I didn't. Overall, even with the errors (and self-inflicted "lessons learned") I enjoyed every minute. Finished this stage with exactly 57 hours of actual construction time in my builder's log. Hope the next couple of thousand are equally enjoyable!!

Good week!

I managed to get out in the shop several times this week. Riveted the rear spar HS-609 bars to HS-603 rear spar, then attached the hinge brackets and center bearing. Unfortunately, I also learned about the perils of using an uncalibrated, borrowed torque wrench. I way over-torqued the bolts attaching HS-411! Quick email order to Vans for new bolts and nuts!! (Fortunately less than $8 plus mailing for the set - maybe the cheapest aviation-related purchase I've ever made). After searching options on Vans Air Force web site, I decided to purchase a ParkTool beam-type torque wrench calibrated in 0-60 inch pounds. $30 dollars to Amazon and one day later it's in hand! This weekend I finished the front spar assembly and riveted on the HS-801 left skin. Lots of practice in squeezing, riveting and drilling out bad rivets, but in the end I'm pretty happy with the result. Next - right side skin, then I'll have my first "congratulations - you've finished the first major sub-assembly on your new airplane" (to quote page 6-4 of the Van's Construction Manual)!!

Priming Day

I was out of town on a business trip most of this week - BUT - had the opportunity to spend a few hours in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum yesterday (mall only this time). This was my first visit in almost a decade (since Sept 11, 2001 as a matter of fact - but that's another story). Talk about inspiring!! I couldn't wait to get back in the shop. Arrived home around noon, unloaded the bags and I was off and running. I had previously decided to go the "rattle can" route for priming. The opinions on "best" priming method(s) are all over the board, but a lot of RV builders over the past few years have seemed satisfied with the NAPA 7220 gray self etching primer. After a little experimentation (and a lot of web searching/browsing) I decided that was my choice. I picked up a couple of cases of the primer during the NAPA October sale for $4.99 a can (usually 9.99) before I left town last week. Today I cleaned all of the bare aluminum surfaces on the horizontal stabilizer parts (now all deburred, dimpled, etc. etc.), lightly scuffed the surfaces to be primed with a red scotch brite cloth, then cleaned everything again with acetone. Finally I moved the pieces into my paint booth (a table in my wife's garden potting patio outside my workshop - thanks honey!) and got to work. The conditions were ideal - 70 degrees, gentle breeze and no bugs - and in short order the job was done. Used about 3 cans total. I'm pretty pleased with the results for a first effort.