Fuselage - Construction Log
Firewall & Bulkheads (click on any date)
| April 4, 2008 | Picked up Fuselage Kit from Vans | Hours: |
| September 26, 2008 | Fabricated F-601J's, clecoed firewall together | 3.5 |
| September 28, 2008 | Several short work sessions - firewall | 11.0 |
| October 4, 2008 | Fixing stiffeners, countersinking, priming, riveting | 11.0 |
| October 9, 2008 | Finished firewall! Started on F-704 bulkhead | 2.0 |
| October 10, 2008 | More work on F-704 bulkhead | 4.5 |
| October 11, 2008 | Trimmed F-633's, Fab'd F-704 stiffeners | 2.0 |
| October 12, 2008 | Drilled & Riveted nutplates; Finished brackets | 5.0 |
| October 14, 2008 | Riveting and bolting things together | 4.0 |
| October 15, 2008 | New bracket arrived; Work on control stick assembly | 4.0 |
| October 16, 2008 | Control Stick Assembly work; Organizing parts | 4.0 |
| October 18, 2008 | More F-704 Bulkhead Assembly | 1.5 |
| October 21, 2008 | Started on F-705 Bulkhead | 2.5 |
| October 22, 2008 | Made spacers for F-704, more work on F-705 | 2.5 |
| October 27, 2008 | Finished control stick, drilled spacers, finished F-704! | 2.0 |
| October 29, 2008 | Deburred F-705 parts; started on seatbelt anchors | 2.0 |
| October 30, 2008 | Clamped & drilled seatbelt anchors | 2.0 |
| November 1, 2008 | Trimming parts; fabricating parts; ruining parts | 5.0 |
| November 3, 2008 | Measuring, clamping & drilling F-705 parts | 4.0 |
| November 5, 2008 | Work continues on F-705 parts | 3.5 |
| November 6, 2008 | Deburring, filing and finishing of parts | 2.0 |
| November 7, 2008 | Scuffed, scrubbed, and primed F-705 parts | 3.0 |
| November 8, 2008 | Riveted F-705 together, started on F-706 | 10.0 |
| November 9, 2008 | Drilling, deburring, etc. on F-706 parts | 4.0 |
| November 12, 2008 | Fluting and straightening flanges | 1.5 |
| November 15, 2008 | I'm a Celebrity! Then deburring, cleaning parts | 4.0 |
| November 16, 2008 | Priming and riveting the F-706 Bulkhead | 4.0 |
| November 17, 2008 | More riveting on F-706. F-706 bulkhead finished | 0.5 |
| November 18, 2008 | Worked on 5/8" holes through F-706 for electrical | 1.5 |
| November 22, 2008 | Preparing remaining bulkheads | 5.5 |
| November 25, 2008 | Fabrication night! | 4.0 |
| November 26, 2008 | Finished F-711 drilling, tie-down block, fitting work | 7.0 |
| November 27, 2008 | Tapped the F-712E tie-down block | 0.5 |
| November 28, 2008 | Scuffing and cleaning, preparation for priming | 3.0 |
| December 1, 2008 | Finished scuffing & cleaning. Primed all parts | 3.5 |
| December 2, 2008 | Riveted F-707, 708, 710, 711, and 712 together | 2.5 |
| December 3, 2008 | Finished drilling flap blocks. Bulkheads finished! | 0.5 |
Sub-total hours: |
133.0 |
Longerons & J-channels
| December 4, 2008 | Marked, cut, deburred longerons. Marked for bends | 1.0 |
| December 7, 2008 | Started bending longerons | 5.0 |
| December 10, 2008 | Bending and trimming longerons | 4.5 |
| December 11, 2008 | Right Aft Canopy deck drilled to longeron | 2.0 |
| December 13, 2008 | Left Aft Canopy deck drilled to longeron | 1.0 |
| December 14, 2008 | Finished bending and twisting longerons | 3.5 |
Sub-total hours: |
17.0 |
Aft Fuselage Assembly
| December 16, 2008 | Began Aft Fuselage Assembly | 4.5 |
| December 20, 2008 | Plumb Bobs and Drilling J-Channels | 3.5 |
| December 21, 2008 | Drilling everything else to full size | 4.0 |
| December 22, 2008 | Disassembled everything, started deburring | 5.0 |
| December 23, 2008 | A bit of priming, more deburring | 3.5 |
| December 24, 2008 | Work starts on side skins. De-vinyling and deburring | 1.5 |
| December 26, 2008 | More work on Side Skins. Dimpled tailcone skin | 4.0 |
| December 27, 2008 | Scuffing, cleaning, priming. Started riveting tail cone. | 8.0 |
| December 28, 2008 | Final deburring and dimpling | 5.5 |
| December 29, 2008 | Dad helps me Cleco the assembly back together | 0.5 |
| December 30, 2008 | Primed overlap on tail skin; started riveting | 4.0 |
| December 31, 2008 | More riveting on aft end of the assembly | 3.5 |
| January 1, 2009 | Daniel helps finish up the riveting! | 7.0 |
| January 3, 2009 | Rudder stops; wrap-up of the aft fuse | 2.0 |
Sub-total hours: |
56.5 |
Center Fuselage Assembly
| January 3, 2009 | Fab'd F-916C spacers, deburring, work on seat ribs | 3.5 |
| January 5, 2009 | Cut the 2 center seat ribs for access openings | 3.5 |
| January 6, 2009 | Deburring and prep work on seat ribs | 3.0 |
| January 10, 2009 | Work on Seat Ribs continues. Had a visitor! | 3.0 |
| January 11, 2009 | Finished seat rib prep. Center section assembly | 4.0 |
| January 14, 2009 | Baggage Ribs prep work | 0.5 |
| January 16, 2009 | Baggage Ribs - continued | 2.5 |
| January 17, 2009 | Center Section comes together. Help from Dad | 6.0 |
| January 18-22, 2009 | More center section work. Trimming F-623's, straps | 3.5 |
| January 29, 2009 | Trip to Vans | -- |
| January 30, 2009 | Lots of details | 7.0 |
| January 31, 2009 | Finished scallops on F-623's, deburring steps | 3.0 |
| February 1, 2009 | Crotch Strap Brackets | 4.5 |
| February 2, 2009 | Finished brackets, started deburring work | 3.0 |
| February 14, 2009 | Deburring, Dimpling, Cleaning | 9.0 |
| March 1, 2009 | Priming, Dimpling, and some details | 3.5 |
| March 3, 2009 | Scrub night | 2.5 |
| March 6, 2009 | Primed seat ribs, baggage ribs. Riveted nutplates on. | 3.0 |
| March 7, 2009 | Finished drilling crotch strap brackets, clecoing it all | 1.0 |
| March 11, 2009 | Riveted seat ribs and crotch strap brackets | 5.0 |
| March 14, 2009 | Riveted baggage area ribs, other details | 4.0 |
| March 16, 2009 | Luke helped - riveting bottom skin on! | 5.0 |
| March 17, 2009 | Finished riveting bottom skin | 3.0 |
| March 20-22, 2009 | Problems. Ruined F-715 ribs. Worked on other stuff | 10.0 |
| March 23, 2009 | Trip to Vans. Installing new F-715 seat ribs | 2.5 |
| March 25, 2009 | Finished installing F-715 ribs | 2.5 |
| March 26, 2009 | Rearranging my Shop | -- |
| March 27, 2009 | Cutting slots in longerons | 1.5 |
| March 29, 2009 | Finished cutting longeron slots; JOINED the FUSE! | 8.0 |
| April 2, 2009 | Putting curve into lower aft end of fwd. right skin | 6.0 |
| April 4, 2009 | Putting in Skin curve - left skin. Started drilling | 4.0 |
| April 5, 2009 | Drilling, drilling, drilling | 5.0 |
Sub-total hours: |
122.5 |
Forward Fuselage
| April 6, 2009 | Trimmed Longerons to Length on Forward ends | 1.0 |
| April 7, 2009 | Drilled the rest of the Longeron holes, made straps | 3.5 |
| April 10, 2009 | Fitted and Drilled Firewall in place | 3.0 |
| April 15, 2009 | Finished Drilling Firewall Brackets; Drilled Step Holes | 2.5 |
| April 16, 2009 | Prepared to drill holes for gear leg mounts | 2.0 |
| April 17, 2009 | Fitted Rt. Gear Leg Mount to Fuse, trimmed F-704 | 2.5 |
| April 18, 2009 | Fitted Left Gear Leg Mount, trimmed F-704 | 1.5 |
| April 20, 2009 | Cut Gear Leg Holes in Bottom Fwd. Skin | 4.0 |
| April 21, 2009 | Fitted and Drilled F-713's Auxiliary Longerons | 3.5 |
| April 22, 2009 | Fab'd F-719B Angle Clips, worked on F-719's | 2.0 |
| April 23, 2009 | Installed Left Side F-719 Stiffener | 2.0 |
| April 25, 2009 | Installed Right F-719, Fab'd and installed left F-684 | 6.0 |
| April 26, 2009 | Fab'd and Installed rt F-684, Ruined F-717 longerons | 3.5 |
| April 27, 2009 | Deburred, Fluted, Fitted and Drilled F-902 bulkheads | 3.0 |
| April 29, 2009 | Fab'd and drilled New F-719 Longerons | 4.0 |
| May 4, 2009 | Fitted and drilled F-7101 plates | 2.0 |
| May 6, 2009 | Fab'd, fitted and drilled F-796B angles and spacers | 2.5 |
| May 9, 2009 | Re-made the F-796B angles. Tank attach brackets. | 2.5 |
| May 10, 2009 | Started on Rudder Pedals, deburring & fitting parts | 4.0 |
| May 11, 2009 | Rudder Pedals, Brake Pedals - continued | 6.0 |
| May 12, 2009 | Rudder Pedal Brace Installation | 3.0 |
| May 13, 2009 | Trimmed & Lightened Rudder Brace | 2.0 |
| May 14, 2009 | Surprise... Brake Pedals! | 1.0 |
| May 16, 2009 | Finished Brake Pedals; Drilled Fwd. Bottom Skin | 3.5 |
| May 17, 2009 | Floor Stiffeners | 3.5 |
| May 24, 2009 | Baggage Compartment | 5.5 |
| May 25, 2009 | Baggage compartment continued; Gear Leg brackets | 5.0 |
| May 26, 2009 | Trip to Vans; Drilled Gear Leg Brackets | 1.0 |
| May 27, 2009 | More Drilling, Countersinking; started Dismantling! | 3.0 |
Sub-total hours: |
88.5 |
Dismantling Fuselage, Prep work, Riveting
| May 28-31, 2009 | Dismantling and Deburring | 7.0 |
| June 1-6, 2009 | Work on Bottom Fwd. Skin, Dimpling, Countersinking | 10.0 |
| June 7, 2009 | Visitors from Japan! Drilling, countersinking, side skin | 3.5 |
| June 8-13, 2009 | Dismantling and Prep Work Continues | 9.0 |
| June 14, 2009 | Prep Work Continues | 5.0 |
| June 15-16, 2009 | Center Section Removed; Worked on Longerons | 3.5 |
| June 17, 2009 | Center Section Prep | 2.5 |
| June 19, 2009 | Prep work on F-706 Bulkhead, Aft Fuse | 4.5 |
| June 20, 2009 | Aft Fuse, Priming, Tru-Trak Servo Bracket installed | 5.0 |
| June 21-22, 2009 | Installed ELT/Strobe Brackets, Aft Fuse Prep | 5.5 |
| June 26, 2009 | Drilled Bellcrank channel to F-706, Countersunk firew | 1.5 |
| June 27, 2009 | Prepped Longerons; Modified Arm Rests | 10.0 |
| June 28, 2009 | Riveted the F-729 Bellcrank Rib to Aft Fuse Floor | 2.0 |
| July 2, 2009 | New toys! (er... tools) | -- |
| July 10, 2009 | Whole lotta preppin' going on. Paint has arrived! | 3.5 |
| July 11, 2009 | Priming begins, some topcoat sprayed | 6.5 |
| July 12-15, 2009 | More prepping and priming | 11.5 |
| July 17, 2009 | Shooting Top Coat | 6.5 |
| July 18, 2009 | Riveting Longerons and Aft Fuselage | 4.0 |
| July 19, 2009 | Fixed Air System; More Painting | 4.0 |
| July 20, 2009 | Riveting begins; dimpling of the right side skin | 4.0 |
| July 21-30, 2009 | Much riveting, prosealing, and more riveting | 21.5 |
| July 32-Aug. 2, 2009 | Painted Firewall Stiffeners, more riveting | 8.0 |
| August 3, 2009 | Mixed Firewall Sealant & Applied | 2.0 |
| August 5-9, 2009 | More Riveting, Paul comes home and helps | 4.5 |
| August 10, 2009 | Installed Long Bolts on Brake Pedals | 1.0 |
| August 11, 2009 | Jesse helps rivet all remaining rivets | 3.0 |
| August 12, 2009 | FLIPPED THE CANOE!! | 0.5 |
Sub-total hours: |
149.5 |
Aft Deck, Gussets, Top Skins, Steps
| August 16, 2009 | Installing the Aft Deck | 7.0 |
| August 18, 2009 | Side Rails and Gusset Plates | 3.0 |
| August 19-21, 2009 | More work on F-757-T Gussets | 6.0 |
| August 25, 2009 | Drilling F-721A Side Rails to Longerons | 2.5 |
| August 26-30, 2009 | Countersinking, fitting, work on other small parts | 5.0 |
| September 1-2, 2009 | Work on Elevator Bellcrank, F-695 Gussets, etc. | 5.5 |
| September 3, 2009 | Finished Bellcrank; riveted F-695's, etc. | 3.0 |
| September 4, 2009 | Fabricated Static line clips | 2.5 |
| September 5, 2009 | J-stringers (oops!) and Upper Aft Fuselage Skins | 5.5 |
| September 6-9, 2009 | Top Skin Drilling, new Stringer, Static Line Clips | 6.0 |
| September 11, 2009 | F-787 Top Rib, F-707B Angle, Gussets, deburring | 3.0 |
| September 12-14 | Deburring, Prepping, Priming, Dimpling | 5.0 |
| September 16, 2009 | Anodized Canopy Side Rails! | 1.0 |
| Sept. 17-20, 2009 | Edge Deburring the Top Skins | 3.0 |
| September 24, 2009 | Visit to Stephen Christophers project! | n/a |
| September 26, 2009 | More work on Top Skins; Static Ports, Rudder cable | 6.5 |
| October 4, 2009 | Finished Painting Top Skins; Primed Fuse Overlap | 3.0 |
| October 6, 2009 | Dimpling the F-774, and some Riveting | 2.0 |
| October 7, 2009 | More Riveting; F-775 Skin and the F-728 Rib | 2.0 |
| October 10-16, 2009 | The Steps | 12.0 |
| October 17, 2009 | Dad helps me with Riveting - Top Aft Skin | 2.0 |
| October 18, 2009 | Installed Shoulder Belt Anchors and Cables | 1.0 |
| October 24, 2009 | Work Continues on the Steps | 6.5 |
| October 25, 2009 | Soundproofing Begun, Installing the Steps | 4.0 |
| October 26-28, 2009 | The Steps are finished. Finally! | 5.0 |
Sub-total hours: |
102.0 |
Baggage Area, Center Cabin Section, Floors, Seatback Frames, Cabin Frame
| November 4-8, 2009 | Nutplates, Foam, Conduit, and Paint | 14.0 |
| November 9, 2009 | Prep work and Riveting the F-705G | 3.0 |
| November 11, 2009 | Riveted the Baggage Floors in place | 3.5 |
| November 14, 2009 | The Baggage Bulkheads | 4.0 |
| November 15, 2009 | The Baggage Bulkheads - continued | 5.0 |
| November 16, 2009 | Baggage Bulkheads; Started on Seat Floors | 3.0 |
| November 17, 2009 | Seat Floors - continued | 2.5 |
| November 19-24, 2009 | Prep work, priming, painting, riveting | 14.5 |
| November 25, 2009 | Visit from Maya, Riveting Nutplates, Work on Seats | 4.0 |
| November 26, 2009 | Happy Thanksgiving! Worked on Seats | 5.0 |
| December 1-3, 2009 | Prepped all Seat Parts, Started on F-638 Brackets | 6.0 |
| December 4, 2009 | Finished F-638 Seatback Brackets; Priming | 3.0 |
| December 5, 2009 | Cut Z-material and Fabricated the Tunnel Cover | 3.0 |
| December 6, 2009 | Painted the Seats, Started some Riveting | 4.5 |
| December 9-10, 2009 | Riveted the Seats together, Sat in the Plane! | 6.0 |
| December 12-15, 2009 | Fuel Valve and Cabin Cover Plates | 7.5 |
| December 16-17, 2009 | The F-782C Cover | 2.5 |
| December 18, 2009 | Riveted F-782C parts; Fabricated Stick Boot Rings | 5.5 |
| December 19, 2009 | Finished Stick Boot Rings, Drilled F-782C to floor | 2.5 |
| December 20, 2009 | Topcoat Painting; Landing Gear Legs & Left Gear Leg Mount | 6.0 |
| December 21-24, 2009 | Right Gear Leg Mount, Fuel Valve installed. | 3.0 |
| December 26-27, 2009 | Flap Actuator Assembly | 11.5 |
| January 2-3, 2010 | Flap Actuator - continued | 4.0 |
| January 4-5, 2010 | Flap Actuator - continued | 4.0 |
| January 6, 2010 | Flap Actuator - continued | 1.0 |
| January 11, 2010 | Flap Actuator - continued | 2.0 |
| January 12, 2010 | Flap Actuator Finished! Started on Cabin Frame | 3.5 |
| January 14-16, 2010 | Cabin Frame Roll Bar Assembly | 8.0 |
| January 19, 2010 | Cabin Frame - continued | 2.5 |
| January 23, 2010 | Cabin Frame - continued | 8.5 |
| January 25-28, 2010 | Cabin Frame - continued | 8.5 |
| January 30-32, 2010 | Cabin Frame - continued - deburring & countersinking | 4.0 |
| February 1-2, 2010 | Countersinking and Top Support Channel | 4.0 |
| February 3, 2010 | Big Priming Session | 4.0 |
| February 4-5, 2010 | Riveting Cabin Frame, Avoided a big mistake | 4.0 |
| February 6, 2010 | Finishing up the Bow, Topcoat painting | 8.5 |
| February 7, 2010 | Elevator Pushrods | 4.5 |
| February 14-18, 2010 | Elevator Pushrods & Cabin Frame continued | 3.0 |
| February 19-20, 2010 | Visitors! Distractions. Pushrods, Static Line | 4.0 |
| February 21, 2010 | Cabin Frame - work continues | 1.5 |
| February 26, 2010 | Cabin Frame - continued | 6.0 |
| February 27, 2010 | Cabin Frame FINISHED! | 1.5 |
Sub-total hours: |
206.5 |
Plumbing - Fuel Lines, Brake Lines, Vent Lines
| February 28, 2010 | Started on Vent Lines - fabricated vent fittings | 4.0 |
| March 13, 2010 | Bending Tubing for Vent Line - Left Side | 4.5 |
| March 14, 2010 | Vent Lines - Right Side done. Started on Fuel System | 6.5 |
| March 27, 2010 | Visit from Dan Benua - Technical Counselor | - |
| April 2, 2010 | Fuel Line Firewall Fitting Installed | 2.0 |
| April 17, 2010 | Fuel Pump Bracket Installation | 3.0 |
| May 2, 2010 | Fuel Pump continued - working in Miniature | 5.0 |
| May 3, 2010 | Fuel Pump saga continues - Nightmare revealed | 1.0 |
| May 7, 2010 | Fuel Pump and Center Cover - new approach | 5.5 |
| May 10, 2010 | Fuel Pump - Center Cover finished | 3.0 |
| May 14, 2010 | Fuel Lines - Firewall to Fuel Pump | 3.5 |
| May 16, 2010 | Fuel Lines - Fuel Filter to Valve, Pump Housing Cover | 4.5 |
| May 19, 2010 | A Visitor comes to town... Mike Bullock! | - |
| May 23-26, 2010 | Fuel Pump Housing Cover | 2.5 |
| May 28, 2010 | Fuel Lines - finished! (Boogeyman defeated) | 5.5 |
| June 9, 2010 | New Soundproofing - Left Brake Line started | 3.0 |
| June 11, 2010 | Brake Lines Made Easy - all finished! | 2.5 |
Sub-total hours: |
56.0 |
Mounting the Empennage
| May 30, 2010 | Horizontal Stabilizer - Dad Came to Help | 5.0 |
| May 31-June 2, 2010 | Horizontal Stabilizer - angle of incidence, drilling rear spar | 5.0 |
| June 5, 2010 | Horizontal Stabilizer - deburring, drilling elevator horns | 5.0 |
| June 6, 2010 | Vertical Stabilizer and Rudder | 7.5 |
Sub-total hours: |
22.5 |
Front Deck, Sub-Panel
| May 29, 2010 | Rudder Cable Fairings, Started Fabbing Small Parts | 5.0 |
| June 19-30, 2010 | More work on small parts, deburred the Panel | 8.5 |
| July, 2010 | More work on the Sub-panel | 13.5 |
| August 6, 2010 | More Work on the Front Deck | 6.0 |
| August 7, 2010 | Front Deck - continued | 6.5 |
| August 8, 2010 | Front Deck - continued. Riveted Canopy Rails! | 7.0 |
| August 12, 2010 | Front Deck - final prep work | 4.5 |
| August 13, 2010 | Final dimpling, Brake Reservoir, Rudder Brace | 4.0 |
Sub-total hours: |
55.0 |
Mating the Wings, Related Tasks
| August 22, 2010 | First Mating of the Wings! | 8.5 |
| September 6, 2010 | Mating the wings - continued - drilled spars! | 7.0 |
| September 12, 2010 | Arranged Shop for 1 wing; Fuel Tank Bracket, etc. | 6.0 |
| September 15, 2010 | Deburred and fitted Wing Root Fairing - rt. wing | 4.0 |
| September 19, 2010 | Finished Wing Root Fairing & Vent Line - rt. wing | 4.0 |
| October 3, 2010 | Vent Line Fitting Washers; Brake Pedal Cotter Pins | 3.0 |
| October 8, 2010 | Started Fitting the Right Flap; Flap Pushrod | 3.0 |
| October 10-13, 2010 | Visit from friends, Brake Lines, more Flap Pushrod | 6.0 |
| October 17, 2010 | Installed the NACA Air Vent Scoops | 2.0 |
| October 23, 2010 | Finishing up the Right Wing tasks | 2.0 |
| October 24-25, 2010 | Right Wing - Installing Nutplates, Started Left Wing | 5.5 |
| October 28, 2010 | Left Wing Root - Fuel Tank Bracket, Vent Line | 2.5 |
| October 30, 2010 | Left Wing Root Fairing | 3.0 |
| November 14, 2010 | Finished Wing Root Fairing, Flap Pushrod Hole | 5.0 |
| November 20, 2010 | Deburr, Dimple, Countersink, Nutplates | 6.0 |
Sub-Total Hours: |
67.5 |
|
TOTAL HOURS FOR FUSELAGE KIT: |
1,067.5 |
|
Total Project Hours: |
1,949.0 |