Tools, etc, to keep in your hangar?

Ok
Finally got to rent a hangar after a 6 month wait
Dont have my already built RV yet but hopefully I will find one by summer.
Since I am not a builder and never owned a plane, what do you guys feel is mandatory to keep in the hangar for minor repairs, annuals, etc
How about any other things besides tools to have inside the hangar?
Already have the couch....no electricity yet for a flat screen
Craig

The club I belong to keeps an air compressor and a sturdy work bench in our hangar.

I like to have a reasonable selection of hardware, safety wire, nuts and washers and cotter pins, screws and bolts which are common to the airplane. Also, I keep airplane oil and an oil drain pan at the hangar.

A creeper is a must-have.

Rags and a bin for dirty rags, and probably some solvent for cleaning things. Hand cleaner for cleaning up afterwards, and paper towels. A trash can with spare trash bags.

Incidentally, I buy my solvent in a 5-gallon pail with a spout, filled half full so it doesn't splash over on the way to the airport. I have a second 5-gallon pail for dirty solvent.

This is what I had in my hangar for years. The hangar was open to other airplanes, though, so I didn't keep tools there. Now that I have a hangar which is more secure, I keep these tools there too:

Set of 1/4" sockets and small combination wrenches, with both standard and deep sockets.

Several different types of pliers, including safety-wire pliers. I like duck-bill, needle-nose, common and channel-lock pliers, along with Vice Grips.

A nice selection of different sized screwdrivers, #0, #1 and #2 Phillips, short #2 Phillips and narrow and wide (and short) common screwdrivers.

Some sandpaper and files, a hacksaw and a hammer, along with a flashlight and a parts-grabber, are all handy. So is an inspection mirror.

A tape measure is more handy than I'd have thought. So is a box of pencils and a pencil sharpener and pad of paper. And, hate to admit it, a spare pair of reading glasses. Oh, and a calculator, too.

I often take my iPad out there for connectivity.

It doesn't make any difference what tools I have in the hangar or on my truck, I always need the one that is back at the shop.

> A creeper is a must-have.

I second this!

A spiral notebook and lots of pencils. I am constantly writing myself 'get this, that and three of those' notes on the back of receipts. The top item on my list from the hangar today, written on the back of a Lane Aviation receipt, is a notebook!


> Incidentally, I buy my solvent in a 5-gallon pail with a spout, filled half full so it doesn't splash over on the way to the airport.

David - what kind of solvent do you use? Where do you get it in half-full pails?

Tools to keep in the hangar?

Every tool you can think of.......plus the other one!

pmnewlon said:

>
David - what kind of solvent do you use? Where do you get it in half-full pails?

Click to expand...

I buy Stoddard solvent from a local oil company. They also sell the nice 5 gallon pails with the spouts. They are happy to fill the pail half full, since the solvent tank has a decent meter.

They say that Stoddard solvent is naptha, and that it's "the same," to use their words, as paint thinner or barbecue starter. I don't know about that - but my barbecue is one of those Big Green Eggs and that community is adamant that we shouldn't be using barbecue starter for starting it. So I use those brown fire-starter squares and there's no petroleum taste to the food.

I've also heard that Stoddard solvent is less of a fire hazard than gasoline. I don't know if that's true, but evidently the risk is not zero.

Another useful solvent is lacquer thinner. Your local big box has it in gallon cans. It cuts faster than the Stoddard solvent but can damage paints.

The independent oil company (Bartkus oil, if you're in Boulder, CO) sells a variety of products. It's a useful place, mostly but not exclusively industrial.

If you are going to store used rags don't forget to invest in a good metal can an lid to store them in

Bob burns. Rv-4 n82b

I know there are many ways to get your brake pad rivets squeezed but here's my favorite die set from Avery Tools that works with your hand squeezer Rosie

I'll second that!

n82rb said:

If you are going to store used rags don't forget to invest in a good metal can an lid to store them in

Click to expand...

This is very important anywhere there are solvent soaked and oily rags. A genuine fire hazard. Some airports, like mine, do hangar inspections yearly and the easiest way to fail the test is to not have a metal pail to collect rags.

Mel covered the rest very well!

John Clark ATP, CFI
FAA FAAST Team Member
EAA Flight Advisor
RV8 N18U "Sunshine"
KSBA