Waiex #197
Empennage #8 (Aluminum material recall/repair)
Repair work: 7 hours. On January 9, 2014 I was notified of some bad parts that were included in a very small batch of Sonex kits that were shipped in the fall of 2013 (affected owners were individually notified)… unfortunately I was included in this recall. It included several parts in the empennage and aft … Continue reading
500-hour project update (Videos)
My wings, aft fuselage and empennage are as complete as they can be until the whole aircraft comes together and rigging takes place. I decided this would be a good time to stop and look back at my progress so far. To do so I made several videos. These first 2 short videos I made … Continue reading
Wings #19 (Right wing completion)
Total build time: 493 hours. Finally, time to skin the right wing! The same method as the left wing was used, and there were no surprises. Again I ran conduit for wingtip lighting wires if I so desired, as well as the pitot/static lines. Then on goes the leading edge skin. … Continue reading
Wings #18 (Balancing Ailerons)
Total build time: 486 hours. The ailerons must be balanced for 2 reasons: control feel, and flutter. The plans for the aerobatic ailerons call for both ailerons to be balanced to each other by hanging them by their hinge point and comparing the trailing edges. The lead counterweight is the ballast that provides the balancing, … Continue reading
Wings #17 (Right flap and aileron)
Total build time: 483 hours. Right-side flap and ailerons went together much like the left. Ends trimmed to fit, aileron first. Again I liked having the wing substructure open (no skins) while building the flap and aileron, as I can verify fitment as I go, such as testing the location of the aileron … Continue reading
Wings #16 (Pitot tube)
Total build time: 465 hours. The plans call for the fabrication of the pitot tube, or to buy a pre-made tube from Aircraft Spruce. I used the pre-made tube. It combines pitot and static sensors in the same assembly. The tubes were pretty close where the connections will be made, I used some shims … Continue reading
Wings #15 (Right wing skinning)
Total build time: 450 hours. The skinning of the right wing went much like the left with one small difference. My right wing spar had a slight bow in it, which is a common occurance for Sonex spars and the bow is generally taken out during the skinning process. When fitting the forward skin though … Continue reading
Wings #14 (Left Wing Completion)
Total build time: 438 hours. The wing skins are polished and just about ready to install. I have a few more details to take care of on the leading edge skin. First I dimpled the holes for flush rivets (using the Sonex super-simple-dimple-die), and then I completed the LRI installation. Then I started … Continue reading
Wing Storage Rack
Being almost done with my left wing, I started looking into options to store it that would take up minimal space in my workshop. I am glad that I decided to build the wings before moving on to the forward fuselage, as working on the wings has taken up most of the available room in … Continue reading
Wings #13 (Left Flap)
Total Build Time: 425 Hours As with the left aileron, I prepared several parts for the left/right flap simultaneously. Here are the drive horns: After having made the left aileron, the left flap was a piece of cake in comparison. The aerobatic aileron option actually makes the flap simpler and shorter, with … Continue reading
Wings #12 (Left Aileron, Aerobatic, Video)
Total build time: 404 Hours The aileron skins are complete. I prepared several parts for both the left and right aileron at the same time. First up was the lead counterweights. Lead block is simply no fun to work with, it’s kind of like working with metal, wood, and syrup all at the same time. I … Continue reading
Wings #11 (Aileron/Flap Skins, aerobatic)
Total Build Time: 397 Hours Before I finished the left wing, I decided to complete my left flap and aileron first. This would allow me to perform multiple test fittings of my work as I proceeded, as well as allow me to do some preliminary rigging of the push-rods before the wing skins go on. … Continue reading
Wings #10 (LRI – Lift Reserve Indicator)
Total build time: 381 hours. All of the left wing is now deburred and I’m ready to install my first significant customization to my plane. I decided to install a “Lift Reserve Indicator (LRI)” made by Kelly at Value Engineering. An LRI indicator is basically a poor pilot’s angle of attack indicator, and/or stall warning … Continue reading
Wings #9 (Left wing skinning – forward skin)
Total build time: 359 hours. The leading edge skins came packed in one of the 2 remaining unopened boxes in my shop. The leading edge bend was pre-formed by the factory. This skin takes multiple steps to position and drill. The first step is the easiest, done by draping the skin over … Continue reading
Wings #8 (Left wing skinning – aft skins)
Total build time: 350 hours. Before the skins can be positioned on the wing, the substructure must be made square and free of any twist. My initial method for doing this was to use 2 sawhorses. To hold the frame square, I used 2 pieces of wood bolted to the spars, and clamped them tight … Continue reading