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Pay phone

Right On! looking good, is that a pay phone? Awesome!

Thanks and yes. It takes quarters but works without paying. I spent a career in Telecom Management. "Wirejock"
They're actually cheap. Not very collectable plus the pedestals are everywhere.
I'm still hunting a rotary. They're harder to find.
 
After a 10 month delay to build the workshop the project now resides in...

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The flaps have yet to be mounted, since I'm shy on edge distance and I need the larger hinge. I'll pick that up at Spruce next time we're in PTC. Otherwise, just the wingtips left.

Fuselage kit arrives Wednesday...
 
Interior panels painted

Lucy's interior floors and bulkheads are painted. Everything is removable so screws will be gold on black. All parts are painted prior to assembly so rivets also show gold on black.
Yes, I know the rudder weldment is black. It's powder coated over the white so any cracks will show white.

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Nice, Larry! Psychologically, painting the interior is a huge step because it helps to more fully visualize the finished airplane. Now work hard to avoid scratches!! Blue 3M tape is your friend. :):)
 
Wings done (mostly). Fuselage started

Both top skins on. One flap hinge drilled. It's going to be in this state for a while as I have started the fuselage.
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I don't get to see my kids that much since they are all grown, I made arrangements with my son and his busy schedule being a Paramedic and SWAT in Reno to come down and help me buck the top skin, did a great job! notice the Tungsten BB, best tool ever! skin on, windshield Sika on this week end!

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That's awesome. Doesn't look like fun though.

The fun part is the rear side part of the top skin, couldent get a bucking bar there with the front roll bar bolts, after coming this far, there are 3 cherry pull rivets here on each side.....O well, won't see it with paint ;-)
 
Finishing kit in...

Howdy all!

My finishing kit arrived this week and I had to be a bit creative about how to store all the big goodies ... the canopy especially ... in my rapidly filling up shop/garage.

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I was surprised by the lack of blue-plastic-covered parts, especially after the wing and fuse kits. The cowl is a pretty pink (Hey, family, it's a girl!), and probably has more surface area than the blue plastic covered aluminum in this kit by at least a factor of two.

After a bit of creative shelving, recycling the shipping crate, I have a place to park the canopy.

I needed a new, lower, carriage for the fuse, so I used the top of the crate plus some extra 2x4's to make a stable base. Height to the bottom of the fuse ~17 inches.

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The under area is a nice shelf to store the seat back, panel, and any other big flat items.

This is the last "cheap" purchase before the engine and avionics .. it feels like I'm getting a bit closer to the end of the tunnel. Happy to see that the this instruction manual has "flight test" as the final chapter.

And, hey, the engine mount fits!

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Keep poundin!

Thanks to you all for the never ending help and motivation.
 
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So glad I'm building an aluminum air O plane.....Ugg, canopy windshield skirt 5% done. I did a test of epoxy on acrylic and aluminum, and even after a prep with 60 grit and cleaning, I was able to pull the test fiberglass off Fairley easy. So I will sit in this chair for a month or so sanding on this skirt, then paint and finally Sika on to the plane.

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Interior panels painted

Finally. All the interior parts are painted and test fit. I still plan to rub the overspray out with medium clay bar to make everyting nice and smooth.
On to fitting gear towers, wings and empennage. Finish kit is due late April.
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Larry, I see you painted first and then riveted. Me, too. I like the contrast of the rivets against the paint.

Very nice color combo.
 
Thanks

Larry, I see you painted first and then riveted. Me, too. I like the contrast of the rivets against the paint.

Very nice color combo.

Thanks Bill.
I think it's the way to go. It gives so much more control over the paint process.
 
I'm beginning the windscreen fiberglass fairing and after CAREFULLY building the canopy and not scratching it I have now moved into the take some rough grit sand paper with the grit count of a hand full of river rocks and scratch the mess out of the canopy and skin to help with epoxy adhesion. Man that felt so unnatural doing that. It ALMOST made me cry.

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The big cut is done

Spent a couple hours staring at it, reading and re-reading the instructions and drawings. Seems to be a little extra plexi between where the slider forward end stops and the windshield begins, which makes it less critical to get the cut exactly right the first time. I used my Dremel on high speed with a diamond blade. The first cut was just to remove the excess from the sides, From there, take an 1 to 1.5 inches at a time so you can keep the rather small cutting disk perpendicular to the Plexiglas. Uses sponges or similar to support the glass while cutting so there is no stress on the cut line.

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Lucy has wings!

Guess what we did today! Thanks Dave for the help and especially all the builder knowledge.
Lots more photos on my blog including detailed install procedure.
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Fresh water running off black epoxy primer, days and days and days............and days of block sanding west epoxy and just today primer, no pin holes! now if I can paint this with no runs.......inside is blinding white acrylic enamel on top of epoxy primer on top of two layers of west epoxy.

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I had my son over for a BBQ and to help me rivet the steps on last night, only a year or two more to go!

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Wow Bret. She's a beauty.
How did you make the faux wing spar? I think that's what it is.

Thanks, I took two pices of 3/4" (23/32?) and a few pices of paper inbetween the two untill I got the correct thickness, and then screwed it together. drilled holes for eventual tie downs for the trip to the airport.
 
Bret - I think we may have a similar background

Nice paint on the plane BTW - looks like an ECG line....

I went to PISC University in '76 - retired as a MasterGunny in '04

SemperFi,
Ralph Capen
RV6A N822AR "Patience" @ N06 250 hrs
 
Finally!

Started this project in February of 2002 (not a typo; 14 years ago).... and today it was signed off as an actual airplane!


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Very nice

I love the purple and white and the matching baffles and covers. Wow, I guess I am going to have to step up when it comes time to paint; you set the bar high.
 
Thanks, just don't look too close, there are lots of flaws in my paint. I bought a used engine and it is the ugly grey lyc color, trying to cover it up, using up the rest of my 600.00 a gallon paint......color ;-)
 
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