Vertical Stabilizer Construction

It is good, though, that I have learned a lot from my HS antics. As I start into the VS I have a much higher degree of confidence that I know what the heck I'm doing. We'll see if that confidence translates into a well assembled vertical stabilizer!

Started Vertical Stabilizer	November 19, 2001
My vertical stabilizer work is off to a fantastic start. I match-drilled the flange to the rear spar, match-drilled the skins to the rear spar, dimpled the rear spar, and cut the countersinks into the flange. I then cleaned the flange and took it outside for a first coat of primer. All in all, a fantastic start! Time : 3.0 hours

Vertical Stabilizer in Jig	November 22, 2001
I got the VS into the jig, the ribs drilled to the rear spar, and the ribs and forward spar aligned with respect to the skins. It had to take a break to go eat turkey, though. Happy Thanksgiving! Time : 2.5 hours

Drilled Ribs to Forward Spar	November 23, 2001
This took so long because I drilled the tip rib, put in clecos, and then put the skins back on to assure myself that the alignment was still right. It was. I then drew centerlines, measured out rivet spacing, and drilled the rivet holes through the forward spar. Everything got pulled apart and deburred. I'm now ready to rivet the skeleton together. Time : 1.0 hours

Assembled VS Skeleton

November 25, 2001

I assembled the vertical stabilizer skeleton. Given my construction sequence (not exactly what is called out in Van's manual) I had to do all the rivets today. This included riveting the rear spar and the the ribs to the spars. Next .... drill the skin to the ribs/spars (but first, I gotta make a "clothespin"). NOTE: I hated the plywood "clothespins" enough that I came up with what I think is a really superior alternative. I used PVC pipe with pipe insulation around it as flexible clamps. A single clamp is made of a pair of pipes, each about 3 feet long, with holes drilled in the ends such that I could run 1/4 inch threaded rod through the holes. I put a pipe on each side of the skin, put my rod through the holes, and tighten the nuts. The flexibility of the pipes causes them to curve to the shape of the surface and provide fairly even clamping pressure all around the structure. It worked great! Time : 5.0 hours

Repaired Mis-Alignment

November 27, 2001

Upon double-checking my VS I discovered that one rib really would not have adequate edge distance for the rivet holes. This resulted in a careful re-work of that area. However, the re-work went well and I am pleased with the results ... and, furthermore, I feel better about the alignment. It is clear that alignment is one of my "problem areas" and I am going to have to exercise great care in the future. I think I'm learning the old lesson of "measure twice, cut once" the hard way. Then again, I suspect many people learn it the hard way. Right?? Time : 2.5 hours

Drilled VS Skin

December 2, 2001

I drilled the skins to the vertical stab, and the fit is quite good. I am pleased with the alignment. There are two spots where I would have been a little happier if I was better centered on the rib .... but it is clearly good enough. It took so long because I got interrupted at least two times through the drilling process! Time to debur, dimple, and rivet. I also spent some time building clothespins ... and hated the plywood version. I read in the RVator about using 1/4 inch rod and foam pipe insulation, but wasn't happy with that either. What I ended up doing was using 1/2 inch PVC pipe with the foam insulation and it worked GREAT. The PVC forms to the shape of the surface nicely, has 1/4 inch threaded rod at the top and bottom so you can tighten them well, and are easy/cheap to build. Before I dimple, I needed to build my dimple/back-rivet/bending table. I had no good large flat surface upon which to put the C-frame dimpler so I opted to build one. That, too, got finished last night and looks great. The only thing left is to get some carpet scrap to carpet a few 2x4s to use as padded risers for the skins to slide on. Time : 1.5 hours

No Progress!

Mid-December, 2001

The middle of December has seen a long stretch of no progress on the project. Holiday activities as well as my "Real Life (tm)" have all conspired to get in the way. Additionally, my decision to build yet another work table (primarily for dimpling skins, low with carpeted risers upon which the skins can slide without scratching) kept me from working on the metal. HOWEVER, after Christmas itself things are much less hectic (though we are planning for a December 28 party as I type) and work can start again.

Deburred/Dimpled VS Skins/Skeleton	December 26, 2001
I deburred and dimpled the VS skeleton and the skins. This was the first use of the "dimpling table" and it made for a super surface upon which to work on the skins. I'm glad I took the time to build it. The vertical stab is now ready to rivet. Time : 3.0 hours

Riveted Most of VS Skins

December 27, 2001

With Theresa's help, the VS skins were riveted to the skeleton. I drove and she bucked, doing both the "front" and "back" sides of the VS (with the "back" side being the difficult one requiring a hand to be stuck up inside the assembly to buck). I also started to squeeze the rivets around the outside edges and stopped when I ran out of time. These will be completed tomorrow (party prep duties permitting). The riveting went great with only one rivet needing to be drilled out, and only one small "smile" being banged into the skin. I'm very pleased with the results so far! Time : 4.5 hours

Finished 99.9% of VS Rivets

January 24-25, 2001

I have all but six rivets completed on the vertical stab. The six I have not finished are around one of the hinges, and the two at the forward tip of the top rib. Those spots are too tight for my squeezer yoke to work it's way in, and I'm trying to borrow a no-hole thin-nose yoke from a fellow builder to complete these rivets. Why has it taken so long to finish this up? Between multiple family members catching nasty colds (including myself and me having to go to the west coast for just shy of two weeks, time just vanishes. I'm now reconciling myself to being a "slooooow builder" and I'm fine with it. :) Frankly, slow or not, I'm still having fun, and as long as I don't quit I'll still end up with an airplane in the end! Time : 3.5 hours

Finished Vertical Stabilizer

February 16, 2001

My life is insane, as you can tell from this and the immediately previous log entry. It took me that much time to get the time/tools needed to get to those last 6 rivets. Partially it was due to the fact that I could not get my squeezer yoke or any of my bucking bars (including some I fabricated) into the spot between the skin/spar-flange and the middle rudder brackets. I finally broke down and got an Avery thin nose yoke ... and got them installed perfectly in minutes. While I claim to be finished, I actually am only finished with the metal parts. I still need to fiddle with the fiberglass parts, but am leaving them until all the metal work on the empennage is complete. SO, as far as I'm concerned right now, I am finished. :) Time : 0.5 hours

 

Total Time : 27.00 hours 

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