You are experiencing the syndrome known as "A homebuilt is never really
finished."
I personally think your rebel looks great in raw aluminum and paint on
the extremities - non-aluminum bits. Do you really want to add all that
weight just to have a little more color?
My plane was built in 1992 and its not finished either. When yours is 16
years old, you too will be able to say you have an unfinished airplane
and always will. In fact, mine is getting on in years and is getting as
much refurbishing as modifications. The workload never does decline as
near as I can tell. All part of the fun.
Would like to be with you guys on the way to Quebec but with my rather
considerable isolation of distance I'll have to settle for going out to
BC and flopping around some lakes I guess. Sighhhh!
Wayne and Bob - how about it?
Garry
068R
Jim Cole wrote:
Well I couldn't help but think of those words today "just get it flying" as
I contemplated what to do next with my Rebel. I went to Downsview last
weekend and was fortunate or unfortunate enough (depending on your point of
view) to park beside a beautifully restored Waco from Vintage Wings in
Gatineau. The Waco had a beautiful paint job and there was mine - looking a
little incomplete.
But...... tomorrow is the first anniversary and I've been fortunate enough
to put 166 hours on the Rebel - been to the West coast and Florida - enjoyed
flying with some great people and generally I have trouble staying on the
ground. I still have a list of things to do and I'm not sure if I can be
without - while I get it painted, but I am starting to feel that that is
next.
Now I raced to get mine finished last year because Bob was organizing his
"last ramble" to the west coast and I really wanted to fly through the
mountains, for the first time, with someone that had done it before.
Well I guess Bob and Anna aren't finished yet!!! (He was just kidding)
I look forward to meeting other pilots and co-pilots on our ramble to Quebec
City and beyond in just over a month - wow just over a month.
So - "just get it flying"
Cheers
Jim Rebel 333
On 6/1/2008 6:34 PM, "Mike Kimball" <mkimball@gci.net> wrote:
Ya gotta hold your tongue just right and cue up your best curses. I started
by temporarily pinning the flaps and ailerons on the wing with overlong 3/16
bolts without the bushings. Then I worked on each bolt/bushing one at a
time. I also took some extra time to custom size each bushing length
(measure, trial and error) and I have absolutely no side to side play. Once
it's all together don't panic like I did when you discover that your
ailerons are floppy, allowing a bunch of play. For instance, if you tie the
stick down tight and can still move the aileron up and down 2 or 3 inches
(or even more from others I've heard about) with your hand, believe it or
not that is normal for a SR/Moose and it flies just fine.
Mike
044SR
-----Original Message-----
From: mike.davis@dcsol.com [mailto:mike.davis@dcsol.com] On Behalf Of Ron
Shannon
Sent: Saturday, May 31, 2008 8:56 PM
To: rebel-builders@dcsol.com
Subject: Re: [rebel-builders] Moose aileron & flap install
Hi Ted,
This PITA has been discussed before, at least with respect to the Rebel,
where it's equally difficult. There was some discussion back when I did
this, not too long ago -- perhaps Nov.-Dec. You might search the archives on
"spacers" "cotter pin" or such. I'll see if I can track it down.
I ended up using a small hemostat to carefully put washers on the bolts (you
may need more than one washer to align the castle nuts properly, of course)
and a small "cylinder" of masking tape on the end of a finger to hold the
nut up against the bolt inside the hole. As you may know, on the Rebel, both
ends of the center bolt have to be manipulated through the little 1" holes.
For getting the bolts in place, through bushings and all, there's no
substitute for a helper, preferably someone more patient than you are.
For getting at the nut(s), I found a set of small ignition wrenches was the
only way, though on the outboard end bolts, where you can get at the bolt
head outside, I turned that and just help the nut. With the center bolt on
the Rebel, I tried to just hold the nut there as perpendicular to the end of
the bolt as possible, until I could pretzel over to get a teeny ignition
wrench on the bolt head, turning it a half a flat at a time until it got
started on the threads. Sheesh!
A needle nose pliers is essential for the cotter pin installation, one with
a 45 deg. nose probably being best. Get the pin started in the hole with the
needle nose, then turn the bolt from the head about 45 deg., and start to
push the cotter pin's "leaves" apart with a small screwdriver blade, at
least enough to keep the cotter pin from falling out. (Plan ahead for these
angles.) Then turn the bolt head the rest of the way to where you can finish
the cotter pin leave spreading with the screwdriver or whatever works. It's
good to practice with a nut and bolt outside in fresh air to get the cotter
pin leaf lengths trimmed just right -- usually different for each leaf if
you're going over the top of the bolt longitudinally, per AC-43.
A couple of times I dropped a cotter pin inside. I was very luck to fish
them out before they skidded between flaperon fabric and stringer with a
small right angle pick.
No doubt, others will chime in here. The funny part is imagining that the
Rebel was originally sold as being trailerable, with easily removable wings.
Hilarious. :-) I dread taking them off again for painting someday.
Good luck.
Ron
On Sat, May 31, 2008 at 8:32 PM, Ted Waltman <tedwaltman@i1ci.com> wrote:
oneMust be some trick that several of us didn't figure out when trying to get
bolts, nuts, washers, spacers and even cotter pins in those WAY TOO SMALL
access holes in the aileron and flaps. Anyone have any particular tool(s)
and techniques that they can share? Took several of us 2+ hours to getaileron installed today-and we didn't even put in cotter pins yet! There
has to be a better way? I'm heading to the tool store tomorrow to see if
an
combination of other wrenches/adapters might seem like good ideas.
How can something that at face value seems so easy take so long <grin>?
Tips/Tricks/Ideas anyone?
Ted
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