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Finishing Kit Omissions/Options

iamtheari

Well Known Member
I know it's been discussed before, but not in depth and apparently at a time when the kits were organized differently as I saw people talking about air vents in the finishing kit.

I have decided to do the wings later in the build, so I am working on the fuselage now and just ordered my engine and propeller in time to get the Oshkosh discount. Next up will be the finishing kit, so I can get my plane on its wheels and mount the engine. The cowling will probably take as many hours as the entire empennage did, anyhow, so I want to get started on that and other tedium soon.

What items should I be leaving out of the finishing kit, or adding to it? I know that the canopy comes in a variety of tint/UV protection options and I'll check into those. I am still debating a wheel/brake upgrade and open to input on that topic. I am building the RV-14 taildragger. What else should I be looking at?

I wish I had asked about the fuselage kit, since I am going to end up with a bunch of unused parts when I am done. Plastic air vents, brake and fuel lines, etc. Same with the static port kit that came with the empennage kit. I'm trying not to have a collection of parts in my basement when I finish the airplane.

Thanks as always to the brain trust here at VAF!
 
I wish I had asked about the fuselage kit, since I am going to end up with a bunch of unused parts when I am done. Plastic air vents, brake and fuel lines, etc. Same with the static port kit that came with the empennage kit. I'm trying not to have a collection of parts in my basement when I finish the airplane.

Van's has a 2 year return policy on many items, less a 10% restocking fee. If you have parts you aren't going to use, the cost is sunk. Consider recouping what you can by returning them.

Their full return policy is located here: https://www.vansaircraft.com/pdf/return_form.pdf
 
Vetterman Exhaust
Recommend installing the steps (yes for the 14, I?m 6?3? , can step hi/lo, and still would install them).
Best tail wheel system.
H
 
Here are some things to consider. If you are not using stock wheels/brakes, there are items to omit. Seats from Classic Aero have seatback frames integrated, stock seatbacks can be omitted. If you are not using the stock piano hinge on the cowl, these can be deleted as well.
 
Camlocs on top and bottom , piano hinge horizontal attaching top to bottom and down the side, bottom cowl. I chose not to paint the camlocs and it looks great.
I did this after noticing the 7 rv?s on the field replacing hinge with cams in top/bottom sections.
H
 
Skybolt makes a great "camlock" type fastener kit for the cowlings. We used them on both our RV9a and RV7 builds ... they were functional and looked great!
 
Thanks for the tips on the Skybolt fasteners. I'm almost at the point in the fuselage where you put the hinge material on, so I'd better make a decision and order some parts if I'm going to go that way. Is there any particular reason you kept the piano hinge attachment at the sides of the firewall?
 
Thanks for the tips on the Skybolt fasteners. I'm almost at the point in the fuselage where you put the hinge material on, so I'd better make a decision and order some parts if I'm going to go that way. Is there any particular reason you kept the piano hinge attachment at the sides of the firewall?

In my case:
  • Cheaper than quarter turns everywhere.
  • The upper hinges are the least accessible.
  • The hinges avoid the pillowing that quarter turns can create.

Also, using the F-14134A-L/R Cowl Hinge Shims with quarter turns along the top causes the upper cowl to sit too low where it abuts the F-01471 Forward Top Skin. I omitted the shims, as did another builder who used the SkyBolt quarter turns.

Here's the SkyBolt link: https://store.skybolt.com/vans-rv-1014-c711.aspx
 
Thanks for the tips on the Skybolt fasteners. I'm almost at the point in the fuselage where you put the hinge material on, so I'd better make a decision and order some parts if I'm going to go that way. Is there any particular reason you kept the piano hinge attachment at the sides of the firewall?

My reason was based on recommendation by a Champion Awarded RV builder (3,6,7) who suffered fatigue cracks on upper and lower hinges requiring drilling out the hinges, installing Camlocs, and repainting. He never had issues with the side horiz or vert hinges and the camlocs are not easily noticed.
If you plan to fly infrequently, hinges will hold up fine. Fatigue cracks appeared around a couple of hundred hours. I went with Skybolt products.
H
 
Thanks for the specific details. I am not an infrequent flier and this plane won't be, either. I fly about 150 hours a year in my Arrow that the RV-14 will basically replace and, with lower operating costs, I'll probably fly it more. :)
 
Okay, looking at the plans...

Fuselage page 28-07 is where I put on the lower cowl plates, already done.

Fuselage page 29-08 is where the side cowl hinges go onto the firewall, which I will do.

Fuselage page 35-09 is where you install the cowl pin retention bracket, which looks like it's for the top hinge pins so I can leave that off. Or can I? RV-14E's pictures appear to show the retention bracket in place.

Fuselage pages 35-18 and -19 involve cowling hinge shims and cowl attach hinges, which I understand to be the parts to replace with the Skybolt product

Finishing section 45 will involve skipping and modifying numerous steps to deal with the Skybolt product but, at the end of the day, I'll have a bottom cowl that is connected to the firewall with piano hinge and a top cowl that is connected to the bottom cowl with piano hinge and a couple of nutplates but connected to the firewall with 1/4-turn fasteners.

Am I close? :)



On some of the other suggestions:
* What tailwheel options have people tried, loved, hated, etc.? I'll mostly be on pavement but there will be trips to other surfaces.
* How much better is a Vetterman exhaust and how much do they cost for the 14?
* I already committed to no steps while building the fuselage. I had a chance to get in and out of a -14 (the phenomenal example that Tom Martin built) without steps and it's fine for me. For passengers, a little folding stool isn't a big deal.
* I'm looking at Classic Aero. I had hoped to keep my interior options as open as possible so I might end up with the seat backs from Van's anyhow to keep the option. But thanks for that tip!
* If anyone knows of a good source of cowl hinge pin covers, please share a link. Tom Martin's has covers and they look so clean.
 
I'm about to order the Skybolt hardware. Do I need to order tools from them as well or can the hardware be installed using regular tools?
 
I'm about to order the Skybolt hardware. Do I need to order tools from them as well or can the hardware be installed using regular tools?

Sure helps to have the insert tool:
https://store.skybolt.com/4p3-t26-p3226.aspx

Here's an example of how it's used (poor pic, sorry) from when I finally got the fasteners installed?.



Consider getting quarter-turns for your oil door too, if you don't want to the winged ones that the kit comes with:
https://store.skybolt.com/rv-od2-p4727.aspx

Poor picture of my oil door with the lower profile fasteners...

 
Are the Skybolt fasteners really a big upgrade for the oil door from the quarter-turn fasteners supplied with the kit? I generally prefer the kind you can open without a screwdriver.
 
Are the Skybolt fasteners really a big upgrade for the oil door from the quarter-turn fasteners supplied with the kit? I generally prefer the kind you can open without a screwdriver.

There's no right or wrong here. It comes down to personal preference. I didn't like the look of the winged fasteners. I'm not bothered by needing a screwdriver.

Whatever decision you make, it'll be the right one!
 
It's more that the FBO guy who plugs my preheater in or my friend who helps preflight the plane will need to find a screwdriver to open the oil door and access the preheater plug or the dipstick. I'm spoiled by the push button on my Cherokee oil door, I guess. But I am looking at the Skybolt winged fasteners and they have a fold-down wing, which is an interesting compromise. I'll probably go with the Phillips-head ones, since they don't require me to pick between fold-down and fixed winged heads on the fasteners.

I'm going to be a nervous wreck when it's time to choose paint colors. :)
 
It's more that the FBO guy who plugs my preheater in or my friend who helps preflight the plane will need to find a screwdriver to open the oil door and access the preheater plug or the dipstick. I'm spoiled by the push button on my Cherokee oil door, I guess. But I am looking at the Skybolt winged fasteners and they have a fold-down wing, which is an interesting compromise. I'll probably go with the Phillips-head ones, since they don't require me to pick between fold-down and fixed winged heads on the fasteners.

I'm going to be a nervous wreck when it's time to choose paint colors. :)

There are pushbutton options out there that builders have integrated. Search VAF for them. They might be of interest to you.
 
There are pushbutton options out there that builders have integrated. Search VAF for them. They might be of interest to you.
Nope. I already ordered the Skybolt Phillips head kit. Now I can move on to worrying about something else of little consequence like interior paint colors or sanding my primed armrests to a perfectly flat surface (got a run in the paint in one of them). :)
 
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