Building a RV-9A

What's this about?

I began building an RV-9A in June of 2008. I have always liked RV airplanes ever since I saw one at an air show. Since I am a low time pilot, I chose the RV-9A. I like the idea of a slow stall speed, and efficiency in this era of high fuel prices.

The RV-9A is a two place side-by-side aluminum aircraft. It can carry engines from 115-160 hp. The performance is quite good. It will land and take-off in a short distance and cruise at a respectable speed.

Latest Entry

Miscellaneous

• Rivet Gun Pressures - I got this from Dan Checkoway's website on building an RV-7. There is a lot of good stuff on this site.

Log Entries by category

Total Hours: 933.4

• Empennage
• Wings
• Fuselage
• Finish Kit

• Horizontal Stabilizer (56.0 hrs)
• Received the Empennage kit
• Assembling hs spars
• Match drilling horizontal stab spars and skins
• Dimpling and Countersinking hs skins and spars
• Dimpling hs skin and priming ribs
• Priming and assembling front spar
• Assembling and Riveting Left Horizontal Stabilizer
• Riveting the left horizontal stabilizer
• Riveting right horizontal stabilizer and rear spar
• Horizontal Stab finished
• Drilling attach angles
• Riveting attach angles
• Working on fiberglass tips
• Vertical Stabilizer (15.5 hrs)
• Assembling Vertical Stabilizer
• Deburring, dimpling, vertical stabilizer
• Priming, riveting Vertical Stablizer spars
• Riveting Vertical Stabilizer
• Riveting of rear spar on vertical stabilizer
• Rudder (43.5 hrs)
• Making rudder skin stiffeners
• Finishing rudder skin stiffeners
• Assembling rudder skeleton
• Finish rudder assembly, begin deburr
• Deburring, dimpling rudder skeleton
• Riveting rudder skeleton
• Riveting rudder skeleton
• Riveting rudder skin
• Riveting rudder skin to spar
• Riveting rudder ribs
• Riveting trailing edge
• Fitting fiberglass tips
• Right Elevator (35.0 hrs)
• Making elevator stiffeners
• Skin and stiffener work
• Primed stiffeners
• Assembling skeleton
• Match drilling skins
• Priming, riveting elevator
• Riveting skin stiffeners and spar
• Riveting skin to spar
• Riveting skin, glueing trailing edge
• Riveting trailing edge
• Left Elevator (53.7 hrs)
• Skin and stiffener work
• Primed stiffeners
• Assembling Left Elevator
• Deburring, Priming spars
• Riveting left elevator skeleton
• Riveting elevator horn
• Assembling elevator skeleton
• Tech Counseler visit & Left Elevator riveting
• Started Trim Tab
• Riveting Trim tab
• Assembling trim tab
• Riveting trim tab hinge
• Installing trim tab servo
• Installing hinge rod ends, servo pushrod
• Fitting elevator to horizontal stabilizer
• Skin and stiffener work
• Primed stiffeners

• Setup ( 7.0 hrs)
• Wing kit arrives
• Building aileron and flap table
• Setup (25.0 hrs)
• Making Tables
• Received Avery Toolkit
• Wing stand
• Wing kit arrives
• Building aileron and flap table
• Left Wing (169.5 hrs)
• Prepping forward spar
• Installing tie-down
• Drilling rear spar
• Assembling rear spar
• Deburring ribs
• More Rib deburring
• Rib deburring, etc, etc
• Rib deburring and fluting
• Finished ribs, final drilling ribs to spars
• Finishing ribs
• Priming ribs
• Priming more ribs
• Riveting ribs to spars
• Building the wing jig
• Drilling top wing skins
• Drilling bottom wing skins, Starting tank
• Assembling ribs in tank
• Assembling tank
• Fitting tank to wing
• Countersinking tank skin
• Tank attach angle
• More tank assembly
• Preparing parts for final assembly
• Riveting stiffeners to tank
• Catching up
• Dimpling skins
• Cleaning and priming wing skins
• Riveting outer nose rib and skin assembly
• Riveting assembly to spar
• Finish sealing the tank
• Bolting on tank
• Riveting upper skin
• Landing light work
• Riveting upper wing skin
• Aileron Hinges
• Flap Hinges
• Flap hinge angles
• Tech Counseler Visit
• Fabbing pushrod tubes
• Installing aileron bellcrank
• Right Wing (145.5 hrs)
• Installing nutplates on spar
• Installing tie-down bracket
• Rear spar assembly
• Drilling wing ribs
• Riveting ribs to spars
• Assembling leading edge
• Assembling tank
• Drilling tank
• Countersink skin to baffle holes
• More tank prep
• Tank fab work
• More Tank fab work
• Tank hatch assembly and fuel vent line
• Assembling cap plates
• More tank details
• Skin prep work
• Building tank
• Fabricating fuel pickup tube
• Installing baffle
• Sealing bracket and baffle rivets
• Deburring and Dimpling
• Dimpling skins
• Priming parts
• Wing spar countersinking
• Riveting leading edge to spar
• Bolted tank to spar
• Riveting upper wing skins
• Installing aileron hinges
• Working on flap hinges
• Installing flap hinge angles
• Drilling landing light lens
• Adjusting W-918 aileron pushrods
• Ailerons (37.2 hrs)
• Assembling left spar
• Assembly of aileron
• Riveting A-910 stiffeners to skins
• Assembly of left aileron
• Riveting left aileron
• Starting on right aileron
• Assembling Right Aileron
• Priming skins and stiffeners
• Riveting Skins and Stiffeners
• Riveting right aileron
• Finishing right aileron
• Flaps (50.3 hrs)
• Left flap leading edge ribs
• Start assembling left flap
• Drilling skin holes
• Assembling right flap
• Drilling right flap
• Painting left flap parts
• Riveting left flap
• Riveting left flap skeleton
• Riveting upper flap skin
• Riveting lower skin
• Prepping Right Flap parts
• Riveting Right nose ribs
• Riveting right flap skeleton
• Riveting right flap
• Riveting lower skin

• Bulkheads (82.6 hrs)
• Inventory of Fuselage Kit
• Overhead shelf
• Starting firewall
• Deburring firewall parts
• Deburring, painting, Riveting firewall
• Riveting F-904 bulkhead
• Control Column assembly
• Building brackets
• F-705 Seat belt brackets
• F-706 Bulkhead and catch-up
• Riveting F-706 bulkhead
• After Bulkhead parts
• Cleaning and painting parts
• Riveting aft-bulkhead parts
• Cutting longerons
• Bending longerons
• Tailcone (30.5 hrs)
• Assembling tailcone for drilling
• Alignment and final drilling
• Deburring, dimpling
• Priming and assembling
• Riveting tailcone
• Center Section (36.9 hrs)
• Trimming seat frames
• Installing nutplates on seat ribs
• Assembling Center section
• Baggage rib work
• Finishing center section assembly and drilling
• Priming, started final assembly
• Fitting F-915 ribs
• Riveting center section skin
• Finished riveting
• Forward Section (62.3 hrs)
• Floor skins and fitting tailcone and center section
• Fitting forward side skins
• Bending side skins
• Drilling longerons
• Longeron work forward of F-904 bulkhead
• Left Lower Longeron
• Gusset work
• Lower Longeron, web, Gusset
• Landing Gear web
• Riveting webs and starting rudder pedals
• Rudder pedal Work
• Baggage compartment ribs
• Floor Stiffeners
• Disassembling, deburring, painting
• Forward Assembly (44.6 hrs)
• Riveting landing gear webs
• Assembling Fuselage
• Riveting fuselage
• Rolling it over
• Leveling fuselage
• Drilling aft deck
• Aft deck shims
• Riveting aft deck
• Forward gussets and canopy rails
• Riveting side rails
• Skins/Baggage (38.2 hrs)
• Fitting upper skins
• Drilling upper skins
• Bellcrank work
• Fitting WD-657 steps
• Finishing steps
• Left Brake Pedals
• Bulkhead covers
• Seat backs
• Finishing seat backs
• Floors/Seats ( 0.0 hrs)