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Another new Rv-12 builder!

J

JwWright57

Well Known Member
After probably 20 years of dreaming about it I sent my kit order into Vans (empennage and wings to start).

I had planned on building an RV-9 as soon as my daughter was finished with school (and I was finished paying for it Lol). But the more I looked at the 12 the more I liked it and the better it fit my mission. I was able to get an intro ride from Vic in Atlanta and I was hooked.

I ordered the tool kit from Cleveland a few weeks ago and sent my kit order in today. I ordered the wings at the same time thinking I would have a long wait (Vans website says a 20 week wait) but AnnMarie said it?s down to about 10 weeks currently. So I guess I?ll have the wings in a box for a while.

I want to thank Doug and this site for keeping me interested for so long and Vic for the great 12 intro.

Any words of wisdom before I dive in?


~Jeff~
 
Get some scrap aluminum to practice on if you?re not familiar with how to use your new tools. Van?s sells something called a trim bundle if you can?t find scraps locally.

Read the directions carefully, especially Section 5 that tells you how to do stuff. You can download Section 5 from Van?s website if you don?t want to wait to receive it until your kit ships.

http://vansaircraft.com/pdf/revisions/RV-ALL_05.pdf

Enjoy the journey?it?s a lot of fun!
 
Welcome Jeff

You will truly enjoy building the 12. I am just ahead of you as I received my empennage last month and the build has been great so far. I am just about to order my wings so good news about the 10 week wait. I also have the Cleveland tool kit and it has been working out great. good luck and have fun.

Jeff S.
 
I took the SportAir sheet metal workshop in Va in the spring and I've been working on my EAA 309 Rv-9 project so I feel fairly comfortable with the tools and the metal at this point. But I'm sure there will be some opps along the way...
 
JwWright57 said:
After probably 20 years of dreaming about it I sent my kit order into Vans (empennage and wings to start).

I had planned on building an RV-9 as soon as my daughter was finished with school (and I was finished paying for it Lol). But the more I looked at the 12 the more I liked it and the better it fit my mission. I was able to get an intro ride from Vic in Atlanta and I was hooked.

I ordered the tool kit from Cleveland a few weeks ago and sent my kit order in today. I ordered the wings at the same time thinking I would have a long wait (Vans website says a 20 week wait) but AnnMarie said it’s down to about 10 weeks currently. So I guess I’ll have the wings in a box for a while.

I want to thank Doug and this site for keeping me interested for so long and Vic for the great 12 intro.

Any words of wisdom before I dive in?


~Jeff~
Click to expand...

Jeff... Welcome to the club.

Watch the VAN's DVD "Air Sheet Metal Tools." Use the "Standard Aircraft Handbook." Practice REMOVING rivets. For instance, on a #30 hole, drill off the head with a #31 drill and use a spring punch to punch out the rivet. Knowing how to remove a rivet makes building that much easier. No worries that way. Grind off the point of an awl so that it can be placed in a #30 rivet hole. This tool will be your friend. You will use this tool to align rivet holes when placing rivets.

Jeff
 
Must have tools, yes must have

From Cleveland Tools
Deluxe Air hose and manifold ACDLXKIT $136
Quick change tool kit QCKITW $190
2nd Quick change chuck( for second drill) QC65 $128
#30 and #40 reamers
From Pilot Shop
Pneumatic Cleco tool 12-01120 a must to save on the wrists
From Harbor Freight
2 Pneumatic rivet puller one each size rivets
2-40 Battery drills

These items will save you much time and make the build a much more pleasant journey Have fun its a fun journey
Rich RV12-838
 
Hand riveter

Vans recommends the USM PRP26A pop rivet tool for close work.
It is an old tool and no longer made (Caveat there is one listed on the internet and online sites for around $250 and up) I was not interested in that one. I looked at flee markets and garage sales for a while but that was a big waste of time.
Best place to find them is eBay. There are two listed today one for $75
eBay item number:172845012090.
Another for $59.99 eBay item number:232463550712
I do not have anything to do with the above listings, just trying to steer you in the right direction.
Not my listings and typical of eBay they were hard to find.
I purchased 4 other brands before I sucked it up and bid on the PRP26A on eBay
for around $50 for an old great American tool that works like a charm,
never looked back.
One other tool is the Main Squeeze solid rivet tool from Cleveland Tool
I borrowed one from another builder and regretted not buying it from the start. Instead of the Chinese made one from the Yard Store.
Good luck and have fun.
 
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