Elevator - Assembly

Work begins on assembly of the elevator sub-assembly.

Parts were cleaned and prepped using my established procedures for cleaning and treating components prior to assembly.

Parts are drying and should be ready to assemble over the next few days.

Evan Brunye has very detailed and helpful video on the assembly of this part:

1.2. Sling TSi Empennage - Elevator 

Elevator ribs

Main spar parts

Building up the main spar on the elevator fitting many of the parts together testing fitment and assembly.

Notes:

• Elevator Hinge Bracket 1 must be installed prior to final riveting on the main spar 

• Because of the length of this part make sure you have sufficient space to assemble this part.
  

• Also due to the length, supporting the assembly is really important because the parts wants to twist as you add the outer ribs.

• I also delayed adding the counterweight until I completely finished riveting the skin and had finished match drilling the fiberglass elevator tips.

You may notice the gap between the doubler and the main spar, in a later step the elevator center channel and center shims are installed to build up this section.

 

Make sure you install the Elevator Hinge Bracket 1 prior to final riveting on the main spar as show here with 3/16" "gold" Clecos.

 Adding ribs and Clecoing the structure together to get a sense of how everything fits.

 

Base plate for the trim servo

Closeup of the small gusset plates used on the training edge near the trim tabs.

These gussets fit with only minor match drilling, I know others were not so lucky.

One critical piece is to make sure you install the elevator hinge bracket 1 prior to final riveting on the main spar.

Securing these gussets in-place while installing the skin becomes quite a challenge but I will save that for another post.

Elevator - Counter Balance Assembly

This is kind of a fun sub-assembly to put together.

Parts were all pre-cleaned, de burred, and treated with Bondrite.

I fully assembled the counter balance using Clecos

I was shorted multiple 3.2x12mm domed rivets and the staff down in Torrence sent me out some spares next day.

Final assembly skipped the installation of elevator balance weights per notification #0009

Removal of Elevator Center Balance Weights

Rudder - Rudder Tip

To complete the rudder assembly there is a rudder tip skin and fiberglass end cap that need to be mounted to the rudder. 

At this point I will also be adding the rudder balance counter weight just prior to permanently mounting the fiberglass ruder end cap.

Evan Brunye has very detailed and helpful video on the assembly of this part:

Assembly of the rudder end cap

I don't have any pictures of the end-cap countersink or the dimpled tip skin prior to Clecoing everything together.

I did follow Evans recommendation to use aluminum backer washers because the fiberglass material is quite thin.

I found these on Amazon and they worked great:

POP Rivet Washers for 1/8" Diameter Rivets

I also used a flexible adhesive to affix the washers to the fiberglass before riveting:

B-7000 Clear Glue

 Fitment of the fiberglass tip went fairly smoothly, I think the parts that Sling are producing has improved significantly from earlier production runs.

I am happy with the the alignment only a small amount of fill will be needed to close the gaps on the leading edge.

 

 

 

 

 

 Trailing edge is also in good shape and possibly just a little full to close any gaps and keep water out.

 

 

 

From here I installed the rivnuts for the beacon aligning the mount locations to the Aveo Supernova DV DayLite beacon.

I like the shape of this beacon as it nearly perfectly fits the existing mount location on the tip.

 

Everything was disassembled, cleaned and I completed the installation of the rudder counter weight.

I opted to leave a service loop for the wire harness protruding through the fiberglass tip and will complete the installation of the lighting after paint.

I also replaced the wire loom provided by Sling with a pre-assembled wire loom purchased through Midwest Panel builders.

Rudder - Close out

Installing the rudder skin is much the same as I have already been doing.

Cleaco the skin in place and adjusting the order to minimize any oil canning.

You do have to be careful with the training edge on this part because you can deform or "twist" the v-shape that is pre-bent into the skin.

I started adding Clecos from the trailing edge forward to maintain the v-shape until the holes in the skin were aligning to the pre-drilled holes in the ribs.

I need a sharp nail punch or drive pin to help align the tabs on the ribs as they are slightly miss aligned.

I have a few of these from Amazon: Drive Pin Punch

I Clecod the whole skin together on both sides to fit rivets and clear drill any holes that didn't line up.

I found that if things weren't lining up it was more likely that I was doing something wrong or the tabs on the ribs needed to be bent back into shape.

One important note is to make sure the rivets are fully capturing the tabs as they are very flexible and are prone to bending away when the rivet or Cleco is inserted.

I used an Articulating Borescope to check that all of the tabs have been captured by rivets.

I had some trouble where the skins wrap together around the leading edge and I Clecod those together prior to riveting the main spar this helped to square the skin to the sub-frame.

Rudder - Assembly

Rudder assembly is straight forward.

 Evan Brunye has very detailed and helpful video on the assembly of this part:

1.4. Sling TSi Empennage - Rudder 

Elevating the part using foam blocks helps to provide clearance for the Clecos.

This part is very flimsy at this stage.

Adding the top rib on the rudder leaving the the counter balance weight off until the part is ready to close.

Hinge point brackets shown here fully riveted in place completing the sub-assembly.

Counter balance weight will be installed prior to the closeout of the fiberglass cap to minimize any flexing of this part until the skin is secured.

Vertical Stabilizer - Close out

The vertical stabilizer skin was prepped in and treated using Bonderite and is ready to be test fit.

I created a 2x6 frame and wrapped it in heavy black plastic so I could bath the skin in the Bonderit.

Color is consistent throughout and I am happy with the results for such a large skin.

Skin is Clecod in place and rivet holes are match drilled prior to notching and installing the VOR antenna.

Following the KAI I used a self-leveling laser to ensure the part was straight.

Green means good right?

Skin was modified to allow the VOR antenna to pass through.

Riveting of the skin is complete

Vertical Stabilizer - Wiring

Prior to close-out on the vertical stabilizer I ran the wiring for the VOR antenna and beacon that sits on the rudder.

This requires drilling of additional holes in the center ribs and inserting nylon snap bushings to isolate the wires preventing chafing.

I used a pre terminated wire on the top of the vertical stabilizer to connect to the base of the VOR antenna.  Once the skin is applied you will lose access to this area so using a factory assemble termination was worth it to avoid any problems down the road.

I also wrapped the beacon wired harness using a expandable nylon wrap and closed each end with heat shrink tubing to hold the wrap in place and eliminate fraying of the material.

Later I replaced the beacon wire harness with one purchased through Midwest Panel Builders that had all of the wired pre-terminated and included molex plugs.

This harness was also wrapped as shown below, though it is quite difficult to replace the wire after the skin is installed it is possible. I enlisted the help of my daughter to help as her hands were much smaller and could fit through the lower spar and feed the wired through the nylon bushings.

Vertical Stabilizer - Assembly

 

Vertical stabilizer assembled using Clecos

 All ribs and hinge brackets must be assembled at the same time prior to riveting everything together.

Evan Brunye has very detailed and helpful video on the assembly of this part:

1.3. Sling TSi Empennage - Vertical Stabilizer 

Here another view of the aft spar during assembly:

 

 

Don't forget the hinge brackets:

The frame is quite flimsy until the skin is attached, the 2x4s help to elevate the lower ribs off the table due their shape.  This keeps the part from deforming when pulling rivets.

 

Vertical Stabilizer - Aft Spar

Prepping all of the parts for the vertical stabilizer for assembly.

All plastic is removed and parts are deburred then washed in in a diluted water mixture with simple green airplane wash using a red 3M pad.

Assembly of the aft spar and the doubler plates.

Up-sizing the holes to accommodate the bolts that pass-through to the M4 rivnuts.

I also enlarged the holes on the lower two rivnuts to reduce flexing on the internal doublers and improved alignments of the all empty holes shown below.

All rivnuts are installed with J-BWeld Steel Reinforced Epoxy

Completed aft spar assembly:

Horizontal Stabilizer - Close out

Pulling rivets

Staged rivets in every other hole and clear drilling where rivets are not fitting.

After clear drilling I removed the skin and cleaned out all of the shavings and re-assembled for the final time and started pulling rivets.

I did not use Bonderite on these skins because I didn't have a chemical bath large enough for them.

Closeup of the skin and rivets

I used 3M scotch bright pads (red) to scuff the skins to promote surface adhesion when these parts are painted.

It was probably overkill to mask the rivet lines using painters tape but I did it anyways to maintain the cladding on the rest of the skin until it is painted.

Horizontal Stabilizer - Assembly

After inventorying everything for the tail section with the help of my parents the work could finally begin on the horizontal stabilizer.

I didn't document the parts prep at this stage using the Bosh Aluma Bright and Bonderite 1201 aero chemicals to treat and prevent surface corrosion.

I will add another post specifically on my process for cleaning and treating parts.

 

 

 

 I was quite happy with the way the Bonderite adhered to the surface of the parts and produced a consistent finish.

 

 

 

 

The intrepid hero embarks on his quest, or just pulls the first of many rivets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Main spare sub-assembly coming along nicely adding doublers, so far everything has fit with minimal match drilling.

It is extremely convenient to have the current building instructions on the screen allowing me to zoom in on assembly details.

Horizontal stabilizer sub-assembly is nearly complete

Skins are fitting nicely, I sure hope I have enough Clecos to hold everything together.

Evan Brunye has very detailed and helpful video on the assembly of this part.

1.1. Sling TSi Empennage - Horizontal Stabilizer

This part is starting to look like a porcupine

 The structure is quite flimsy until all of the skins are Clecoed in place adding a lot of rigidity.

 

Quick Build Arrives

Quick Build from The Airplane Factory in Johannesburg South Africa finally arrives in Arlington Washington

Kit was ordered on December 30th 2021 and arrived at my hanger in Arlington Washington on August 23rd 2022.

Everything appears to have survived the long journey and no apparent damage.

All crates and air frame components were fastened to the shipping container with straps and what seemed like several hundred screws.

Only minor damage on the wing due to the baggage compartment opening during transit and bouncing off the wing causing minor scratching and a small dent.

I took a team of 4 people a full 2 hours to remove everything from the container.

Moving large crates with rollers and mobile work benches with casters to move the fuselage into the hanger.

Wings were strapped to the inside walls of the container with a truss system with ratchet straps.

The fuselage just fits across the back of the hanger allowing me to keep the RV-12 in the hanger while I begin the unpacking and inventory process.

So excited to finally have it here, it felt a little unreal that it's finally here!

There are many like it, but this one is mine!

All of the crates and lumber "neatly" stacked on the side of the hanger.

Everything fits and the doors close, back to work!