David's RV-10 Build

This week was mostly about finishing up the ailerons, plus a 3D printing side project and a little excitement courtesy of Mother Nature.

The storm that kept me home on the 4th dropped a tree at the shop. The branch broke off about 25 feet up and managed to land directly on the main disconnect switch, killing power to the whole building, so the generator ran a good 12+ hours for absolutely no reason, and got knocked off its pad in the process. All things considered we lucked out, because that tree was on track to do real damage to the building. Now I just have to clear it all out, and I’m sure wood chipper rentals will be astronomical this week.

So I started this week by continuing work on the right aileron, I was struggling trying to get the rivets that hold the topskin ribs to the spar. I tried every tool that I had, which would only not fit or would only hit part of the shop head, so I really struggled with this. None of my tools would really fit into the gap on one side but I did find one of my bucking bars of wood. I ended up reversing the flow of the rivet and I was able to make it work.Once that was completed I was able to rivet on the bottom of the skin. I’d also countersunk the trailing edge wedge but I didn’t have any pro seal as I was still waiting for that to come in. I’ve discovered since I started this project that VHB tape tends to be the way to go. I had ordered some of that and that came in during this week and I was able to get that on pretty quickly. While double-checking on how to squeeze those rivets I discovered that there is a rivet tool that is now available that I could use so I got that on order and that should be here sometime next week.

Since I was pretty much at a standstill with that particular aileron, I decided that I was gonna go through a couple steps ahead and figure out what I needed for hardware. I just kind of set them aside so that everything was there and I didn’t have to worry about finding them later.

I did struggle to find some washers and two of the screws that I needed. After I was reviewing the parts list, I was like, “There’s no way that I’m missing this many washers.” It turns out I’m just blind and stared right at them and didn’t even realize it.

Also this week I ended up ordering the Quick Build fuel tanks and a skin for the, I think it was, the right bottom wing skin that I had damaged earlier in the week. Since I had to order all those parts, I figured I might as well order the screws that I needed as well.I also ordered some tank sealant and two tank repair kits because I’m pretty sure I’m going to have to cut open the top tank so that I can install a fuel return line as well as possibly swap out the fuel cap. I won’t know until that actually shows up.

Also this week I found some extra conduit that was laying around for my coax runs that I wanted to do and I did not want to drill holes into the wing ribs anymore. Now that I own multiple 3D printers, I ended up designing some mounting clips that would work and the conduit snaps right in and holds pretty well.I ended up designing these originally in PLA but I knew that wasn’t going to work for the long-term solution just due to temperature and the fact that it’s going to hold stuff for the life of the aircraft. I debated going back and forth between ASA PA6 and PA12. Ultimately I settled on PA12 since it absorbs the least amount of water and I believe has the highest temperature rating out of them. Although I think PA6 might have a bit higher rating. PA6 tends to absorb a lot more water and in theory could eventually bend over time and drop the conduit.

Also this week I received a package from Vance Aircraft. I had ordered a bunch of service bulletin’s kits two or three weeks ago, and that had finally shown up. I went through that and set it off to the side. Fortunately some of the biggest of the service bulletins in there are part of the fuselage project, which I haven’t even started yet, so that will save me some rework time.

Since I was once again at a standstill and I really had nothing I could do, I ended up working on the left aileron. I ended up just making sure I had match drilled everything. I took it apart for the 70th time or so and did all the typical dimple, deburr, sand, acid, and ash. I ended up priming it. I forgot how heavy that squeezer gets after a while. My arm was just killing me.

I was also running into an issue with my 1/2-inch die. I don’t know what it was but for some reason it would always get stuck in the press arm to the point where I would have to take it off, put it in a vice, and use a punch and beat the crap out of it to get it out of there. I just tossed it and ordered a new one.So I ended up finishing the day by effectively finishing the left aileron. Top and bottom skins are all riveted on. The only thing I really have left to do is dimple the trailing edge or countersink the trailing edge and secure that. Once the tool comes in, I can also rivet that together as well.And right as I got done doing that, Miss Daisy stopped by to inspect my work, even though she has her own bed in the shop. She tends to hang out on her favorite couch up in the lobby so it was nice to see her stop by and visit.

Once the ailerons are wrapped up, the flaps are next. I really don’t want to start those until I have everything else done prior to this. I’m not really so worried about the service bulletin aspects yet because to get to the elevators it’s going to be a huge hassle for me. I might do those parts before I start doing the fuselage. I want to make sure that everything that I had skipped forward is now brought up to date and that I’m actually supposed to be starting the flaps before I actually start doing the flaps.

Also I’ve been doing the YouTube videos where I just kind of do a summary of my week or just a recording of everything that I’ve been doing all week and breaking it down. I don’t know if I will continue doing it on a weekly basis or if I will just do it on a per-section basis, like section 22 flaps, section 23, whatever that may be. I don’t know maybe I’ll just do a mixture of both where I do it once a week but I just make sure I stick to one area at a time.

It’s been a while. If you look back at my last post on this site, the last real update is old enough that I’d rather not put a number on it. So let’s just say life happened, a lot of it and leave the gap to your imagination.

Here’s the headline though: I still have the project. The RV-10 never went anywhere. It’s been sitting patiently, waiting, while the rest of my life turned into one long series of plot twists. And I’m finally getting back into it.

So let me catch you up on the detour.

Somewhere in there, I bought a house and walked straight into a remodel I can only describe as a nightmare. The kind where every wall you open up hands you three new problems. It ate time, money, and most of the energy I’d otherwise have spent out in the shop.

In 2018, I bought a Piper Arrow (PA-28R-201). Owning a flying airplane while you’re building one is either the smartest or the dumbest thing you can do, depending on the day but it kept me in the air and kept the dream honest while the RV-10 waited.

In 2020, I bought another house. And, because apparently I don’t learn, I remodeled that one too. About six months after I finally finished it, a hurricane rolled through and flooded the place. All that work, underwater. That one stung.

In 2021, I started another business which is its own full-time adventure and a big part of why the build went quiet.

In 2023, that business had grown enough that I bought a commercial building, twice the size of the one I’d been renting. Good problem to have, but not exactly the kind of thing that frees up your evenings.

And now finally the dust has settled enough that the RV-10 is back at the top of the list. The shop’s sorted (relatively), the business is on solid ground, and I’ve got no more excuses. Time to make some chips and rivets again.

One thing I’m doing differently this time: I’m going to keep the updates regular, and most of them are moving to video. You can follow the build on YouTube at rv10daviid shop sessions, problem-solving, the wins and the inevitable head-scratchers, all of it including other adventures. I’ll keep posting here too, but if you want to ride along in real time, that’s where to find me.

Thanks to everyone who’s stuck around through the radio silence.