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Show us the status of your 7/7A project!

Looks like they only issue pink slips today if your tail number ends with SB...

Congrats guys.. fly safe and enjoy it! :)
 
Congrats Brian

Great job Brian. I had Lonnie inspect my plane a few weeks ago. Great guy, huh? Have fun, it really is unbelievable.

How many RV's do you guys have over there?
 
We have two on the field at KMOR, mine and another RV6A flown by Tim Mcginnis. Bob Dougherty flys an RV7 out of Flaglor International (8TN4) but is at KMOR more times than not. Charles (Chuck) Windham is building a RV9 and it is looking like he will finish later this year as well. His home base is also 8TN4....There is another guy that is just beginning a 7A that will most likely end up at KMOR.

Come on down and join in the fun anytime you like!!! Our new EAA chapter meets on the 1st Monday of each month around 6:30PM....
 
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RV 7a tipper

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Check out the advanced mod. 5 point landing gear. OK, paved strips only.:p
Wings are now off and working on canopy soon.
 
Congrats Brian! Looks like the Tennessee wing is getting pretty well established. I hope to finish mine by the end of the year. I've got 5 years of building in mine (with a project move). I can't imagine the feeling of being done ( if you can really call it that) after a decade. Good luck and be safe for phase 1. Hope to see you around DKX sometime if you get down this way. Dont forget to add a rebel yell to that RV grin.:)
 
Evidence that a first engine starts is looming...

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Within the next month...this thing will breath! :cool:
 
Still have some wiring to do, but got enough tidy'd up to apply power.
pax view
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pilotside view
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even a night mode
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Still have some wiring to do, but got enough tidy'd up to apply power.

You are so gonna like the throttle quadrant on the side!
 
From a AvMap user

Brian,

Congrats on your progress.

I noticed you are using a AVMAP EKP IV. I am as well.
You can see my panel posted on the AFS customer installations
under N360GJ.

FYI - you are going to love the Avmap - after you get use to it.
It takes some time because there are tons of features.

The GPS wars - lead by Garmin - is a compromise between different
companies. The Avmap will do things that Gamin won't - and visa versa.
In a way, the Avmap is a better unit.

Study the Avmap manual and try out the various functions to determine
your sweet spot.

Best of luck.

Regards,

Gary Jones
 
Non Aircraft Bolts / Beware

CHAD,
The bolts in your picture are commercial bolts that are not designed for use on propellers. Please take my advice and use only the fasteners that are designed and approved for this application.

These are great bolts for alot of things but they are for construction machinery and structural fabrication of ground based equipment, which experiences much different frequencies and loads than what your propeller will.
 
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TOM,
I would say this is something that would need to be addressed on every one of the Catto props out there then...including those that have been flying for YEARS as the bolts come with the Saber extension...
 
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My bolts came from Saber

My bolts came with the prop extension I bought from Saber Mfg. I intend to use a Catto prop. Do I tell Craig to leave the prop bolts out when I order?
 
My mistake...I meant they came from Saber...Craig does NOT supply bolts.

From Saber's site...

BOLTS
While the bolts we stock are not "aircraft-certified", they have been appoved for use on certain FAA certified aircraft. They have superior toughness and ductility compared to the standard AN aircraft bolts. They are machined to close tolerances, and heat treated under strict control so that their high tensile strength does not result in brittleness. AN bolt tensile strength is 125kips and our bolts are 180kips. Over 20,000 of these have been in use on experimental and certified aircraft for the past 20 years with a perfect safety record. The heads are single-drilled if required by your application.

Most importantly, these engine and prop bolts have a shorter grip and a LONGER THREAD, which provide a much greater safety margin against bottoming out the threads. This is critical because each time you re-torque your wooden PROPELLER, you may use up more of the available thread, and risk bottoming out the bolt prior to achieving proper grip between the extension face and prop face. This is also important because some engine models have lugs installed which have unusually long thread length which can allow a standard bolt to bottom out prior to reaching proper extension face to engine face grip.
Click to expand...

Are most people spending $$$ for bolts to replace those that came with the Saber extension??? If most people are...I certainly missed this amongst all those building and flying...:rolleyes:
 
I would bet that the bolts from Saber are likely made by ARP. ARP makes top-notch hardware, I would trust their stuff over an AN bolt any day. Take a look at the head and conn rod bolts for any top-fuel dragster and you will find they are made by ARP (along with everything else on that engine). If it can hold the head down on a 7000hp supercharged, nito-methane burning dragster, it should hold your prop on just fine.
 
Back on topic!

Well, after 4 months and EXACTLY 100 hours, I have a moving assembly of my future RV-7 on the workbench.

Is this where I say, "TADA?"

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And just because I like taking up your bandwidth, one with Jack and Ginger.

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Status... Flying.. over 60 hrs

Finally finished the last parts of my RV 7. The gear leg farings and wheel pants complete the plane. Now with over 60 hours on it, and no major squawks, I am finished with the build of my plane. I'm seeing over 180 TAS!!!

Wayne
 
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Status... Flying.. over 60 hrs

Finally finished the last parts of my RV 7. The gear leg farings and wheel pants complete the plane. Now with over 60 hours on it, and no major squawks, I am finished with the build of my plane. I'm seeing over 180 TAS!!!

Wayne
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Moderater....Pls move this amazingly beautiful RV above to the Finished catergory...This section is for those of us still pounding rivets and awaiting the day for our "Grin". :D
Great work...love that panel and paint.
 
great looking plane

Congratulations on a beautiful plane. Mine just turned over 150 hours and I still get a thrill each time I take to flight. I hope I never loose that excitement. Sure was worth all that time in the shop.
 
VEEERY NICE!!!!

What a really nice looking plane!!! Really really cool!

I'm going to copy that idea with words on the flaps! I've never seen that before. What a great idea!
 
IT RUNS!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCPl9CHMTs4

I had zero oil pressure during the first run, so I shut it down quickly. After a quick look over things, my A&P bud Ray suggested that the line from the case to the sender was air locked. It was. :eek:

Second run to check for oil pressure...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ud-Yibk4rgg

Still no pressure indication, but oil is pumping, and getting to the sender, so I suspect that I either have a bad sender, or something in the EFIS isn't right. I'll figure that out shortly.

Other than that, I was missing RPM, but that's it! No leaks after these two short runs!

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ABSOLUTELY AWESOME!!!
 
Guess I'll throw in an update... Im pushing hard to finish up the other wing... and getting close to ordering the fuse... I NEED to order it now, but Im still saving up for it! I finished the leading edge today, and as soon as my order of proseal shows up, I'll knock out the tank too. Im not going to split it up into so many days like I did on the last one... that one took WAY too long.

On a side note, its so much easier building a wing after you already have one under your belt!! :cool:

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Oh yea, check this out... most people walk their dog... but this guy... :D

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Check out my site for more updates and pics!!! www.danielhv.com

Keep building!!
 
Paint almost finished...

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Re-assembling at the moment. Still have to paint the Emp Fairing....I upgraded to a Fairings-etc fairing recently after I pancaked the vans unit in the paint oven!

In the process of fitting the cowls I came up with a new method of inserting the cowl hinge pin which is really neat....will post some photos and more info on that trick soon....

Re-rigging and tidying up the cockpit....then the last of the firewall forward and first engine start.

There is light.
 
WOW what a fabulous paint scheme Jon!!! Did you design it or work with someone else on it? I love the color combo!!!

NICE WORK!!!

- Peter
 
Thx Steve -

Bit of tidying up to do but broken the back of the paint stage. I'm redoing the wingtips because some hairline cracks in the gelcoat came through the silver base coat. The tips will match in with the paint on the wings (the tip on the right is only basecoated).

Finished shots to be posted soon.

Cheers

Jon.
 
N200PF said:
WOW what a fabulous paint scheme Jon!!! Did you design it or work with someone else on it? I love the color combo!!!

NICE WORK!!!

- Peter
Click to expand...

Thanks Peter -

I designed it - you can see the concept scheme images on page 94 of this thread. I went through about 50 options before i settled on this one and its fair to say that that it was a lot easier to design it than it was to paint it!

Anyway I'm past the cussing stage (cussing at myself for making the scheme so complex). On to finishing and flying now. Can't wait....

Cheers
 
Flipped the Canoe!

It's taken far longer than I expected, but I finally having something that looks vaguely like an airplane. A kid stopped by when I had the shop open yesterday and wanted to know what I was building. His response was, "Oh, I thought you were building a weird canoe."

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Putting off the Rudder Trailing Edge

So, I'm almost to the point on the rudder where I'm going to be forced to start the messy ordeal of riveting the trailing edge. The trailing edge requires me to smear all the pieces that meet at the trailing edge with tank sealant. This is not a task I am looking forward to.

I reached a point today where I needed, and did not have a 7/64" reamer or drill bit. All that remains of the skin to skeleton riveting is four locations where I have decided to use a "pop rivet" (MK-319-BS) in lieu of the standard solid rivet. These locations just can't be reached with a squeezer or bucking bar for a variety of reasons and need to be pilot drilled to the larger 7/64".

I jumped online to the McMaster-Carr website and promptly ordered two 7/64" reamers. Due to the great service and convenient location (only 213 miles north of Indianapolis, in Chicago), those will be here tomorrow. Unfortunately, that means I'll probably need to start on the trailing edge tomorrow.

Picture of the nearly completed rudder...

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