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RV-8 #82950

Nihon_Ni

Well Known Member
In Feb, a few months after moving back to the States, a couple members of my local EAA chapter took my wife and me for a formation intro ride in their RV-8As. About two minutes into the flight, my wife keyed the mic and informed me that we were going to build an -8. Within a month of that flight I found a tail kit in the VAF classifieds and set a plan to build a workshop, buy tools, acquire skills and start building by Sept.

On Sunday my wife, a friend and I completed the first step in the plans (on the last day of Sept!) and last night we achieved a landmark I've been dreaming about for a long, long time...

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It's already more fun than I ever imagined!
 
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Let the journey begin!

Hey Rob,
Congratulations on your first step. I remember you were travelling a lot earlier this year (as well as the cross-country move) so I am glad to see that you have sorted all of that out and now you have jumped in! :D

I am about 2 weeks away from ordering/starting the tail too...YIPPPEEEE! :eek:
Jim
 
Hey Rob,
Congratulations on your first step. I remember you were travelling a lot earlier this year (as well as the cross-country move) so I am glad to see that you have sorted all of that out and now you have jumped in! :D

I am about 2 weeks away from ordering/starting the tail too...YIPPPEEEE! :eek:
Jim

Thanks Jim! Things have settled down a bit since summer and I'm finally able to start making progress on the kit.
 
I'm nearing the 50 hr point and things are really starting to take shape. A few big decisions are looming in the near future...TW vs NW, QB vs SB...I thought I had a grip on these decisions, but the closer I get to the the more doubt I have.

Really enjoying the build!

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Progress check!

I've logged 76 hours in the past 48 days since I started building, and it's arealdy looking like an airplane! I called Van's this morning and ordered the wing kit.

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Very nice work! You seem to be moving pretty quickly. At that rate I would advise saving the money and go SB.

You ordered the wing kit, great, I assume you went SB?

Moving on to the control surfaces now....I thought that would be the easier portion of the tail. Turns out it is much more complex than the pieces you have already built. Take your time with the elevator, your wings will take time to arrive, and enjoy the build!
 
Looks Great!

Way to go Rob! You are knocking it right out - keep up the good work and speedy progress!
Jim
 
Thanks guys! I was initially thinking QB all the way, but I'll have a reduced work schedule for the next few months and I have been enjoying the build so much that I'm rethinking the QB idea. I ordered a SB wing kit, but decided to hold off on the fuselage kit for now until I see how the wing kit goes.
 
Over Thanksgiving we made the annual trek to Ohio to visit my family. On the way back we stopped to see HIIFLY and purchase the Todd's canopy he listed in the classifieds.

We laid the passenger seats down and packed the canopy into the wife's Honda Element.

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Driving home tandem was good practice for traveling in the -8!

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When we got home my buddy helped me try it out -- complete with airplane noises!

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(Actual noises can be heard here: http://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/125325467612052/?fref=ts)
 
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Looking Good Rob!!

Hey Rob... That's taking the "U" to the extreme in SUV! :D I love it! I have been thinking about the Todd's canopy too - so let me know what you think. Keep up the good work - you are making very good progress there!!
 
Hi Rob,

Nice! I'm just about to rivet the HS ... doing all the deburring and dimpling now. Any hints or gotchas, esp with the rivets to the forward ribs and HS-702 forward spar. Gotta reach under the skin for these, and it seems long arms are needed. Did you do it solo or with another person?
 
Hi Rob,

Nice! I'm just about to rivet the HS ... doing all the deburring and dimpling now. Any hints or gotchas, esp with the rivets to the forward ribs and HS-702 forward spar. Gotta reach under the skin for these, and it seems long arms are needed. Did you do it solo or with another person?

I did it most of the HS solo. My wife helped cleco and match drill one of the skins, and held a few parts here and there, but in general it's been a one man show. My big tip for the 702 rivets is to get a small inspection mirror. I found one at Harbor Frieght about the size of a quarter ($5) and I found out that many rivets that felt like they were set properly, actually weren't. I used this bucking bar from Avery.

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On the one I have, the narrow strip on the left side of this picture is polished, and it was the only bucking bar I have that would reach most places inside the HS. I taped cardboard to the end of it to act as a spacer, then held it against 702 and that kept that narrow strip of the bar roughly centered on the rivet. After a while the cardboard compressed and I had to add more. In hind sight, I'd use a section of rubber from and inner tube so it wouldn't change dimensions during use. I went down to the local recycle center and found an old inner tube in the used tires bin, so I'll use that in the future. Just take is easy and don't rush, and you're results will turn out fine.
 
Tail Kit -- Check!

I'm happy to announce we completed the tail kit yesterday after 180 hrs, spread over 18.7 weeks. (I was away from home for four of those weeks, but I have been able to maintain a 10 hr/week construction schedule despite my travel requirements.) There's a few items on my punch list including the tips, and I may rework the trim tab, but otherwise it's complete!

On to the wings!!

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Looking good Rob!

NICE! I am close to posting that same picture so I know the feeling (almost) you must be feeling!! :D On to the wings! Keep up the good work - I am following you!
 
Cool!

Hey Rob,

Good job! You and Jim are ahead of me on the emp....keep telling me about the landmines!!! Y'all are good point men! :D:eek:
 
On to the tanks

I intended to construct both wings at once, but a friend gave me a single set of wing stands so I decided to do them one at a time. Once I had the left wing in the jig, I realized I had used all but four of my 325 silver clecoes. (Either that, or there's a bunch of clecoes hanging out with all the individual socks I've lost in the dryer.)

288 hrs on the build Hobbs:

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Starting my second year

Today marks one year since we started construction on the airplane. In the last year, we've logged 470 hours in the factory. The tail is completed and stored on the shelf. The fuel tanks need one more session with ProSeal and they will be finished. While I was waiting on a new can of sealant to be shipped this week, I finished most of the prep work on the wings. I'll be ready to start riveting the wings skins in a few more hours.

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Happy Anniversary!

Hey Rob, I remember last year when you started...as I was right behind you. 470 hours in a year sure didn't seem like much a year ago, but it is quite an accomplishment - especially with all the work-travel you have been undertaking! VERY IMPRESSIVE my friend! I will roll over the one year mark in a month - and looking forward too it...time for the big push :D
 
Jim,

I was just thinking the same things last night. Although I'm a bit behind my goal of 10 hrs / week, I'm happy with my progress considering how many days I've spent on the road in the past 12 months. I was on your build log a few days ago checking on your progress -- looking good!

Rob
 
ProSeal Complete!

I'm pleased to report that after a much-too-long detour I closed the second tank yesterday and finished the final ProSeal session this morning.

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In July I was riveting the internal ribs to the left tank skin when I accidently dropped the bucking bar while changing my grip on it inside the tank. The bar landed on its corner at the leading edge of the tank. Although it didn't break the skin, it did leave a protruding dent. I'm planning to polish the airplane, so repairing this without bondo became problematic. I took it to my EAA chapter a few months ago and got some advice on how to fix it.

The left wing is almost ready to come out of the jig, and the right structure is nearly ready for the top skins. My fuselage kit is scheduled to ship in a week, and it I should be ready to start work on in in a few weeks.

Loving the journey!
 
Looking Good!

Yep, you are moving right along Rob! Keep up the good work and you will have the 40 hours flown off in no time :D But seriously, good job! I know it is not easy with all the traveling you do. We both started our projects at about the same time and are still pretty much in the same place - my fuse should be delivered mid-March. Glad to hear you are loving the build as much as I am. Enjoy.
 
I feel your pain on the 'out dent'. I have one that is clearly visible on a fuel tank too.
I also have a few 'smiley rivets'. I decided to give them a reasonable effort to reduce the damage, and tell people who notice that I'm not letting it embarass me. I feel that anyone who finishes such a project has done very well.
I have 2.5 hours on my RV-8 now :D, and that little dent doesn't seem to effect the way it flies at all.
 
Yep, you are moving right along Rob! Keep up the good work and you will have the 40 hours flown off in no time :D But seriously, good job! I know it is not easy with all the traveling you do. We both started our projects at about the same time and are still pretty much in the same place - my fuse should be delivered mid-March. Glad to hear you are loving the build as much as I am. Enjoy.

Jim, I'm ready for you to pull ahead of me so I can learn from your mistakes! ;)
 
I feel your pain on the 'out dent'. I have one that is clearly visible on a fuel tank too.
I also have a few 'smiley rivets'. I decided to give them a reasonable effort to reduce the damage, and tell people who notice that I'm not letting it embarass me. I feel that anyone who finishes such a project has done very well.
I have 2.5 hours on my RV-8 now :D, and that little dent doesn't seem to effect the way it flies at all.

Thanks for the encouragement Scott. I've decided to tell people that my dent is a custom formed stall strip! :D
 
So, how about a translation of the symbol in the left center of the tank;)

Mike, the 左 symbol is Japanese for left. My wife and I lived in Japan for seven years before we moved back to the States and started construction. There's probably more Japanese notations in the plane than English.
 
the fuselage has landed!

My fuselage arrived yesterday!! :D

For anyone interested in the particulars: I ordered it on 11/22, it shipped on 1/28, and arrived at my home in VA on 2/11. It was $313 in freight fees to get it from Van's factory to my garage.

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I have a little work left to do on the wings, but I plan to be into the fuselage in about a month.
 
Update

With 926 hrs on the Hobbs meter, my project all of a sudden began to look like an airplane! I'm looking forward to getting the fuselage off the glass top picnic table so I can sit in it!!

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First sit!

Our first sit in the plane! Complete with airplane noises and fighting over the controls.

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Looking good Rob!
Before you know it she'll be flying.
What are you doing in the front seat? ;)
 
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Gas to noise converter update

It's been a while since I've updated this post. We're pretty far into the electrical work and will bond the canopy in a few days, but today we got an early Christmas present:

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Titan XIO-370.
 
You've been a good boy this year

It's been a while since I've updated this post. We're pretty far into the electrical work and will bond the canopy in a few days, but today we got an early Christmas present:

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Titan XIO-370.

Beats the heck out of my lump of coal.

A HUGE step closer.

Daddyman
 
Wow

That?s AWESOME Rob!!!! (My forecast is coal again! If only I could get the IO 360 to burn that.... I would never have to buy fuel :D )
 
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