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An Unforeseen Journey

Scott is correct

... no surprise there. But the plans not only mention deformation by clecos, but the need to fill in all but the remaining round portion of the keyhole created by the round file. And he brings up a point I want to pick his brains on:

The bracketing of the bracket by the flox no doubt lessens the shear load on the screws when taxiing over bumps (for which Hop-Along Aerodrome is aptly named). But there is this caveat in the plans:

"If the epoxy/flox is allowed to engulf the edges of the bracket the fairings will be difficult to remove. Prevent this by using clay or shims to add thickness to the outboard side of the bracket especially near the edges."

I can imagine it would make it difficult to get the pants free of the bracket after this stuff sets up. Is it a question of how much "engulfing" goes on? It seems like any is going to make it difficult to pull the pants back off, but maybe I'm overthinking the difficulty, given how flexible the pieces are.
 
one other thing

I believe Scott's caution about the screws vs clecos applies only to the common spring-type, which would deform the pant unacceptably.

I realized too late after drilling the #36 holes that, as a SilPruf window installation veteran, I had a good supply of a cleco type that might just avoid this issue - as well as the need to tap all those temporary holes in the brackets. Probably won't be able to use these now that the holes are 4 drill number sizes too large for them - my bad. Might help someone else who has wing-nut clecos in their shop, though.

 
Update on wheel pant fitting

Went back to the shop last night and tried on a pant after the reinforcing plies of fiberglass around the preliminary mounting holes had cured 24 hours. Rechecked Plumb Bob and all his buddies. I was astonished to see that only one of the six holes in the pant were anywhere within 3/16" of where they needed to be to line up with the holes in the bracket. I lay there on the floor beside the main wheel and tried to wrap my head around any possible explanation. A shift of the pant to align more of the holes was physically impossible due to the size of the existing cutouts for the tire and leg, as well as the fixation imposed by the bolt in the axle nut extension.

In the end, I re-drilled 5 of the holes using the Christmas lights on a stick trick someone mentioned here for back-lighting. That was a life saver of a trick. I am unable to explain the misaligned holes, being confident of the pains taken to realign everything exactly as it was before, but I would recommend an alternate technique: drilling the holes in the brackets first, then installing and aligning the pants, then back-lighting the holes and marking/drilling the pants based on the light spot as a reference. Aiming for an ink mark through the semitransparent wheel pant into an angled bracket ear introduces some considerable potential for error, at least in my case.

I plan to follow the recommended procedure for final fitment using 6-32 screws and mold release. This will have to wait till after the kids and grandkids come to visit this weekend. Family first!!!
 
You are up to the task

Say hello to my little friend Bob. Plumb Bob.

Cutting and fitting to reference points in thin air. Don't. let. anything. shift. Drill through fiberglass into landmarks you can barely see - at an angle. This may be the part of the story where I jump off a bridge.

Not sure; those that have gone before say the cowling will also be... "interesting."


Bill,
Although this may be a tense timing, you are definitely up to the task.

Daddyman
 
Daddyman, I got it done. Epoxy shims under the temporary screws are setting up, getting ready for the final few steps. This is a sit-back-and-savor-the-moment moment. ;)

 
RV10 Wheel Pant not transparent

Prereading RV10 plans last night flying home in the center seat of the silver tube, the Bold instructions state wheel pants must remain transparent!!, do not sand paint, etc....

My pants are the dark grey fiberglass....not transparent at all. What technique are folks using to drill holes in these dark grey parts?
 
Prereading RV10 plans last night flying home in the center seat of the silver tube, the Bold instructions state wheel pants must remain transparent!!, do not sand paint, etc....

My pants are the dark grey fiberglass....not transparent at all. What technique are folks using to drill holes in these dark grey parts?

Read the addendum within Section 5 for details on working with gelcoated fiberglass parts.
 
Yves, you have a tool I don't. Good idea, though. I should probably consider using a laser of some sort for cowl fitment one day.

In blatant disregard for the plans (which section I had not read at that point) I used some summer afternoons in the rocking chair to give the wheel pants the DanH pin hole treatment - neat epoxy wipe followed by a thorough wet-sand. The result is my pants are semi-opaque, but a quick wipe with a spit-finger makes them as transparent as needed for a minute ;)
 
Say hello to my little friend Bob. Plumb Bob.

Cutting and fitting to reference points in thin air. Don't. let. anything. shift. Drill through fiberglass into landmarks you can barely see - at an angle. This may be the part of the story where I jump off a bridge.

Not sure; those that have gone before say the cowling will also be... "interesting."


The great thing about plumb bobs, and transparent tubing in it as a water level, is that they will never lie to you:). A water level in tubing can have ends hundreds of feet apart and will still be perfectly level.Simple, but elegant.
 
I don't know, Larry - you start getting the ends of a water level too far apart and you'll need to consult a tide chart to see which end is being affected by lunar gravitation. :D
 
This is what a Quincy compressor looks like when it's been hit with an ABC fire extinguisher because flames were shooting out of the motor's air vents :eek:

I was in the shop riveting tonight when the compressor cycled and started squealing and groaning. I took my hearing pro off and walked over to the compressor closet when I heard and saw a POP and foot-tall flames began issuing from all the vent grilles in the motor. I unplugged the 220V, ran upstairs and fetched a dry chemical extinguisher and let fly, probably unnecessarily since the flames were just a couple inches tall by then. Acrid smoke and monoammonium phosphate dust are a bad combo in a confined space.

The compressor turns freely by hand, as does the motor, and the belt was not burnished anywhere. The motor will be going to a rebuild shop, while I hope that the compressor is not the culprit. It's full of clean oil, and has never given a moment's trouble in the 38 months I've owned it.

I guess I will revert to fiberglass work while this happens. I was on chapter 42, getting ready to stab the wings and do control alignment. Sad...

At least the house didn't burn down this time! The starting caps look fine and the thermal reset switch never popped. Strange :mad:


 
This is what a Quincy compressor looks like when it's been hit with an ABC fire extinguisher because flames were shooting out of the motor's air vents :eek:

I was in the shop riveting tonight when the compressor cycled and started squealing and groaning. I took my hearing pro off and walked over to the compressor closet when I heard and saw a POP and foot-tall flames began issuing from all the vent grilles in the motor. I unplugged the 220V, ran upstairs and fetched a dry chemical extinguisher and let fly, probably unnecessarily since the flames were just a couple inches tall by then. Acrid smoke and monoammonium phosphate dust are a bad combo in a confined space.

The compressor turns freely by hand, as does the motor, and the belt was not burnished anywhere. The motor will be going to a rebuild shop, while I hope that the compressor is not the culprit. It's full of clean oil, and has never given a moment's trouble in the 38 months I've owned it.

I guess I will revert to fiberglass work while this happens. I was on chapter 42, getting ready to stab the wings and do control alignment. Sad...

At least the house didn't burn down this time! The starting caps look fine and the thermal reset switch never popped. Strange :mad:

No warranty? Sounds like the start winding. But . . . if the compressor moves easily, did the pressure release work? Belt squealing and compressor free seems contradictory.
 
The over-pressure valve didn't open, nor should it have. As far as I know this was a normal operating cycle initiated by my usage of enough air in the tank to call for a run cycle. It was the first such of the evening, so the compressor had probably not run in several hours.

I will get the motor to an overhaul shop this week. Should be repairable for less that the 750 that Quincy wants for a new one. Meanwhile I can shift to fiberglass work on the wheel pants as there's still some cosmetics to address.
 
Bill, that motor does not have enough torque at start to overcome back pressure of the tank, so there is a pressure relief so the first couple of revs of the compressor is pumping against a low pressure. It is typically a valve triggered by the pressure regulator to relieve the pressure from the compressor to the tank.

I think the only reason the motor is $750 is because of the direction of the motor rotation, and it is not reversible with normal means. My compressor motor was the same 5 hp on an IR and exactly motors like it turning the opposite direction are only in the $300 range IIRC. Ain't marketing and market access wonderful.

I bought a fully enclosed 7.5HP motor that was reversible, added a fuse for the windings (that size has more protection) a new pulley taper insert and happy days. The compressor (torque) sets the amperage demand, so it actually drew fewer amps than the old motor since it was a little more efficient.

I did not know the motor could be rebuilt, but I did find that the so-called non-reversible motor turning the wrong direction can be reversed at the winding bundle. It might be cheaper at the shop to get a new motor and modify it's rotation.

Please post your findings on the rebuild, I have a core handy.;)

edit: One last comment - the start winding has a smaller wire diameter than the run winding. The thermal switch is only for the run winding in this model.
 
Interesting. Thanks for the info!

IIRC, in looking over the motor last night there were instructions on the label for selecting direction of rotation based on some externally accessible connections.

Based on your info, I wonder if I suffered a failure of a pressure unloader valve in the control switch. Maybe that's a remove and replace just to be safe item after I sink $$$ in the motor rebuild.
 
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Milestone

A great psychological barrier has been crossed in this build: not only is she on her gear now, but this happened last night. Very visible progress, probably the most there will ever be at one swoop.

Thanks to my son and my daughter's boyfriend for manhandling the expensive and delicate pieces without a mishap.







I should probably write "WASH ME!" in the dust before some wiseacre beats me to it.
 
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Mystery

Taking the wings out of the cradle and seeing the previous builder's protective tape over the gas caps reminded me that I have not uncovered anything resembling a gas cap key in my many rummages through the kit bits.

I wonder if Andair uses more than one key pattern for their locking caps, and if they'd have a record of a purchase from a decade ago. I see no serial number of any kind on the caps themselves.

I guess I need to ask them. If the keys had made it to my shop, they'd have surfaced in the last 3 years.

Locked out of my own gas tanks :eek:
 
What, it doesn't look like a canoe any longer!

A great psychological barrier has been crossed in this build: not only is she on her gear now, but this happened last night. Very visible progress, probably the most there will ever be at one swoop.

Thanks to my son and my daughter's boyfriend for manhandling the expensive and delicate pieces without a mishap.







I should probably write "WASH ME!" in the dust before some wiseacre beats me to it.

Bill,
Way to go.
Those guys are handy to have around.
Daddyman
 
Bill,
Looking good.......
Nice to have a basement shop that can handle a RV-10!
Congrats on making it that far.
Bob
 
Bob, I remember sitting down in our cramped temporary housing almost 4 years ago figuring out with paper-doll cutouts of the RV-10 how many support columns in my new basement would have to be replaced with trusses to create the necessary clear space. Sneaky!:D Paid big dividends in workshop comfort.
 
Bill,

Have you figured out what happened with the compressor? This one scares me since I have had the exact same compressor for 4 years, and of all the things in my shop, I probably worried the least about having issues with it. I'm now trying to remember to at least turn the power off to it so it doesn't cycle while I'm away. I know I should have been doing this anyway, but really other than draining it every few days, and an oil change after two years, I've just let it sit in the closet and do it's thing.

Thanks,
Lynn

This is what a Quincy compressor looks like when it's been hit with an ABC fire extinguisher because flames were shooting out of the motor's air vents :eek:

I was in the shop riveting tonight when the compressor cycled and started squealing and groaning. I took my hearing pro off and walked over to the compressor closet when I heard and saw a POP and foot-tall flames began issuing from all the vent grilles in the motor. I unplugged the 220V, ran upstairs and fetched a dry chemical extinguisher and let fly, probably unnecessarily since the flames were just a couple inches tall by then. Acrid smoke and monoammonium phosphate dust are a bad combo in a confined space.

The compressor turns freely by hand, as does the motor, and the belt was not burnished anywhere. The motor will be going to a rebuild shop, while I hope that the compressor is not the culprit. It's full of clean oil, and has never given a moment's trouble in the 38 months I've owned it.

I guess I will revert to fiberglass work while this happens. I was on chapter 42, getting ready to stab the wings and do control alignment. Sad...

At least the house didn't burn down this time! The starting caps look fine and the thermal reset switch never popped. Strange :mad:


 
Not yet.

Things are moving slowly as I live an hour away from motor repair shops and work the same hours they're open. When I get it to a shop I'l see what burned up. The "why" is a different question, though I think a defect in the unloader valve is highly likely.
 
Hidden hinge oil door

Time for a project update. Here's my oil door going together, using ideas shamelessly gleaned right here in VAF.


Hidden hinge made with leftover elevator push tube stock


Hidden latch using hinge pin anchored in the inlet ramp.

Works like a charm. Due to stresses in the hinge parts, it even pops open an inch when unlatched without the need for a mousetrap spring on the hinge pin center, which I will add later for better cooling on the ground and to hold the door fully out of the way during dipstick operations.
 
Now that image posting has been made more direct

I might toss up a few more pics of progress as things move to the final 10 (read: 90) percent left to go.

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Add a couple of collars

Bill, I would suggest adding a couple of collars to your oil door pull wire to limit travel. You can get them at any RC model store.

I have them on mine. It gives a positive feel for open and closed. It would be a real bummer to pull the wire too far and have to pull the cowling to re-thread the wire.
 
Good idea, Leo.

My door has a natural "pop" to it when the pin is pulled enough to disengage the locking hinge section - I was going to rely on operator savvy: stop pulling the pin when the door pops open. Maybe that's tempting fate :eek:
 
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