Vans RV12 Build Log
Empennage
Everything Rearward of the Baggage Compartment/ Sub-Kit 1 of 6
Rudder Spar4/23/2018 Going through all the boxes under my workbench and I expectedly had a few left over parts to which I knew some were for the tailcone fairings and the rudder trim tab. What I didn't expect to find was a piece that looked like a small spar that started with an R (for Rudder). This had nothing to do with the trim tab and left me panicking for a bit as I reviewed the plans and the inventory sheets to find out what and where the heck this piece belonged. All the while praying I didn't miss a major step in the plans. As I work through each step in the plans I "check" off each step with a red marker once the step has been fully completed, so I was confident I didn't miss anything. A review of section 7 (rudder) both on paper and electronically a half dozen times showed I didn't miss anything so this left me puzzled and submitting a post on VAF. I was outside of the window of Vans Technical call hours so I impatiently kept checking VAF while continuing to scrutinize my work and the plans. Finally a VAF member who works for Vans responded stating that the part in fact did go in the rudder as there was a revision for section 7 dated for Jan 2018. Well that cant be right, I've searched through every latest revision on Vans website and there are no revisions for section 7 posted. So as it turns out this Spar goes inside the rudder right in front of where the trim tab mounts, which is why I probably didn't pay any attention to the 14 open holes as I thought they had something to do with the trim tab. Dammit, this meant I had to drill out one whole side of the rudder to insert this spar. Well mind as well get r done! Only took about an hour and half to complete, being careful not to screw up any holes in the skin of the rudder. The spar fit right into place and was riveted up. EAA Empennage/Tailcone inspection tomorrow!
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January 2019
Empennage Total Build Hours: 82.24
Inventory: 1.45 Vertical Stabilizer: 13.26 Rudder: 7.5 Anti-Servo Tabs: 4:30 Stabilator: 24.11 Tailcone: 30.42 |