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RV-3: Junior Stands Up!

Ironflight

VAF Moderator / Line Boy
Mentor
Ah, isn?t it amazing how fast they grow up? One day, they are in the cradle, and the next ? there they stand, on their own two feet?.I mean, wheels!

The last week in our shop was dedicated to drilling the landing gear legs to the engine mount and the brake brackets to the axles. I must admit, as much as I love to build airplanes, this has probably been my least favorite job so far. We got it done, but not without some broken drill its and lots of angst about keeping things aligned. I don?t have a machinist background, and hardened steel is a lot more challenging than most of the materials we use in airplane construction, so I did my homework here on the forums, and took the ideas and experiences of others to heart ? and that meant not only taking their tips, but knowing that somehow, they got it done.

Being a previous RV-8 builder, I didn?t have to face the task of drilling the rod-style gear to the engine mount on my first RV project. I personally see this as a big plus for the -8, but I know others disagree ? and there is that critical edge distance problem on the lower longeron (of the -8) that you can?t mess up. This time, with the -3, we had no predrilled holes, no markings ? it was old school! We jacked up the fuselage, got the gear legs slid in to their tubes, clamped on a big old angle, and pilot drilled to #30. From there, it was a matter of keeping the holes aligned with the previous sized bit stuck in from the rear as we stepped the holes up to 19/64th, then reamed them to 0.311? The bolts popped right in to place at that size, and I was happy to declare victory. A new ?? corded drilling turning Cobalt bits worked best for me (my drill press has some annoying run-out in the chuck that precludes precision drilling).

Louise built up a set of ?roll-around? tires (on the new wheels) from the vast inventory of worn rubber hiding around our hangar (we used the new tires that came with the kit on one of the other airplanes when we needed them ? no sense in letting new tires sit around and grow old!), so like most youngsters, Junior gets to wear hand-me-downs for awhile. Don?t worry ? he?ll get new shoes before he flies!

With rubber installed and engine mount bolts torque, Louise got the honor of shooting the first ?landing?:
IMG_5219.JPG


I was surprised at how high the -3 sits on the gear ? until I realized that without an engine or wings, the gear doesn?t have much load ? I expect he?ll be a bit shorter after a few additions!
IMG_5221.JPG


So it is on to more finishing work on the empennage and wing tips, both projects that Louise has well in hand! In fact, those occupied most of the weekend, and generated great clouds of fiberglass dust as they were sanded to final shape. The fit of the RV-3 parts is, as you?d expect, a bit ?primitive. But glass and micro covers all sins!

I guess it is time to get serious about hanging that Mattituck work of art sitting in the garage?

Paul
 
Hey, it's starting to look like an airplane now... cool! I wish I could make it down there for lunch this weekend to check it out, but since it is a weekend, I gotsta work. Waahh.
 
Yea, I remember drilling those gear legs, fun stuff (NOT)! Mine ended up straight for which I was most grateful, that wouldn't been an expensive mistake if not.

Keep up the good work!!
 
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