New builder - RV-7

Hi,

my name is John Courte and I'm in Los Angeles. Just got the Emp kit from Van's last week and spent most of the holiday reconfiguring the shop. I've just finished drilling out HS609PP and HS603PP (yes.. very new builder).

Construction log/blog is here:
http://stjohn.openbar.com/airplane

Congrats on your new project and good luck!!

Roberta

Good to hear John. Looks like were at about the same stage. I've done the prep on the rear spar just about to prime and rivet

Congrats guys... I started only a month ago.

John, I've tried to take some pics and write some advice about drilling the HS-404, HS-405, HS-702, and HS-710/4 area... You'll know what I mean when I you get there. ;-)

You can read about on my site... www.rv7factory.com/log.html

Don't stop now...

Keep drilling!

Congrats John. Soon you will find that if you don't work on it you have withdrawal pains. I think they are similar to what a heroin addict goes through, but I?m not entirely sure.

Welcome Welcome

John,
Welcome to the RV world. I am not much further along than you are as I am about to rivet my HS. That being said, if I don't stop going on the road for my job, you will be ahead of me in no time flat. And yes, it does become like crack. As soon as I get home, I have to go out and touch the parts, move the parts, cleco parts, etc.... I tend to feel like that ugly guy from Lord of the Rings. "My precious..."

Mikey

Always good to hear from more builders! I'm just getting going on my wings (mmm... ribs), so the emp is fresh on my mind

And Brad, I feel your pain on the HS405/702/710 drilling... It was my double screwup on my emp kit.. http://www.sadecki.net/rv/050206/ and http://www.sadecki.net/rv/050301/ ... All I have to say is BE CAREFUL with that angle drill, it's gets out of hand pretty easily if you aren't being constantly vigilant...

Zach, I hear ya! In my case, drilling it wasn't the problem... it was what I did after it was riveted. D'oh! Read here for full story... http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=2307

BTW... it's always comforting to know you aren't the only one.

Yep. I saw your post a little earlier.

The good thing (!?) about screwups is that the part that gets replaced usually ends up being one of the better sections, as you are extra careful the second (or third) time..

Excellent! Fellow RV Freshmen!

Good to know there are some others in or near the same steps of the process.

I'm trying to build for an at least an hour each day, what most junkies would call a maintenance habit, and binge on the weekends and holidays.

Although, I have to say, it's nice to know what I'll be doing with my spare time from now on.

Glad to be here, and thanks for the support!

Welcome

John,
Welcome to the world of custom aircraft building. In the grand scheme of things we represent a tiny minority (builders) within a minority (pilots)! You are going to love it. I know I do. The ink hasn't even dried on my slowbuild RV-6A's airworthiness certificate and I just started an RV-8. I couldn't help but notice on your website the assembly drawing for your RV-7 horizontal stab. I can't read the numbers printed on the drawing but appears totally identical to RV-8 drawing number 3! Trust me on this one. The matched hole assembly process is way beyond the technology packaged in the older kits. No matter. Go ahead and imagine the anticipation of first flight, but equally important, take delight and savor upon the processes that await you on the gratifying building journey you chose to embark upon. This is one of life's true highs. Do not hesitate to ask questions about any building problem you will certainly run into. The answers are usually just a keystroke away! Congratulations on your project and the best of luck to you.

Rick Galati RV-6A "Darla" 43 hours
RV-8 empennage