Scott & Tanya Card RV9A build log (N4822C)

We finished riveting the aft top skins. Not so much fun crawling back in the tail cone to shoot all those rivets. After the riveting was done I installed the seat belt anchors and did a little anti-chaff protection of the static tubing back there. I used blind rivets for the last three rivets on either side of the forward skin. There is a large bracket behind those locations that make it impossible to shoot a solid rivet. I had long ago planned for this and ground a small recess in those rivet locations into that bracket in order to be able to even get the blind rivets in there. It worked out fine. The canopy frame went on for the last time and we riveted on the upper brace. I had previously made a cover for that brace with some lights in it. I’m quite happy with how it turned out. Lastly I put on the ELT antenna and made a little clip to hold the antenna. I used a blind rivet to secure the clip with a small plastic washer between the clip and the frame.

 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 

I’ve been slowly working on riveting the aft fuselage section for the past couple of weeks (interrupted by a vacation). I also decided to fabricate the rudder stops one slow evening that I didn’t feel like riveting. I hear that some people say the specified stop dimensions aren’t quite right and some end up having to redo them. If I find that to be the case, I’ll just make another set when I get there.

After all of the effort getting the tailcone section to fit, riveting went pretty well. The holes lined up and everything :). It took me about two or three hours just to get the last two bulkheads riveted into the tailcone. It wasn’t too hard, just tedious and time consuming. You have to figure out ways to block and clamp this stuff down while riveting so it doesn’t move all around. After I got the tailcone stuck together, it was time to move on to the big stuff. The bulkheads (except 706) were riveted to the bottom skin, then everything was clecoed together. I sorta’ started riveting at the tail and worked my way forward. I back riveted most of it with a standard back rivet set. This produced a very nice finish and was super easy. Tanya helped of course.

There are just a few more rivets to set, then it will be time to reset the garage (deal with bench clutter, put away all tools, and clean the floor) and get started on the center section. So the general process of rough parts prep, pre assembly, match drilling, deburring, priming, final assembly begins again.

 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 

After all the deburring, I decided to prime contacting surfaces with a rattle can (sherwin williams). So, with 100 degree weather, I got too it. This was the first time in about two months that I had the (air conditioned) garage open. It was 100 degrees in the shade inside the garage and about 108 outside where I was washing and priming the parts. It was kind of an amusing exercise. I washed the J-stringers and skins. They dried completely in about 18 minutes. Wow. So I shot primer in the shade. Yep, it dried quick! It actually did just fine, but I only spent a few minutes outside at a time. I even brought the parts inside for a few minutes just before shooting primer so the surface wouldn’t be 100+ degrees when the primer hit it. All worked out just fine. I (maybe Tanya) will peal the blue plastic off of the skins much later for scratch protection.

 

  

 

I finished up match drilling the aft fuselage section and disassembled everything for deburring and dimpling. I noticed that the bulkheads needed to be trimmed just a bit for the longerons to fit in the slots. Guess who did all of the blue plastic removal. I completed all of the hole and edge deburring and am just about finished dimpling. I had not heard of anybody else do it, but I decided to slightly edge roll the some of the very bottom skin edges.

 

  

  

  

  

  

 

Just match drilling the aft fuselage.