More U.S. Homebuilts Than Factory Pistons In 2010

In 2010, there were more homebuilt aircraft registered in the United States than there were factory piston aircraft delivered worldwide! The latest General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) Statistical Databook covering the 2010 calendar year shows worldwide general aviation aircraft shipments included 2,015 total aircraft, including 889 piston-powered aircraft, 763 business jets, and 363 turboprops. Homebuilt aircraft registrations continued their growth in the U.S. last year. A total of 941 homebuilt aircraft were added to the FAA registry in 2010, an increase of 10 percent from the previous year. There are now more than 32,000 homebuilt aircraft registered in the U.S.

Finished The Left Wing

Yesterday, I finished the left wing except for the fiberglass tip. I was able to do the outboard skin solo without too much trouble. I showed Paula and she said it's fat. Should I be insulted for my wing? I hope she just means it's big boned. It was a perfect building day; 82 degrees in February is not too shabby. Nice being able to build in a T-shirt, shorts and Crocs although the Crocs probably make me look fat.

Riveting The Outboard Wing Skin

Here's a video of me riveting the left outboard bottom wing skin. Helps having long arms!

Finished Another Bottom Wing Skin - Solo

Here, I've finished the right inboard bottom skin. I did it solo and used my handy-dandy riveting aid I wrote about below. I've only got the 2 outboard skins to go so I'm debating whether I should take the time to improve my solo rivet tool to include the rib rivets. I have a simple design that I'm sure will work but I don't know if it's worth an hour or two of my build time.

Solo Rivet Helper

My friend Dan was coming to help rivet the bottom inboard wing skin yesterday while his mom and wife had lunch with Paula and her mom but had to cancel. A trip to the emergency room will change your plans in a hurry. Everyone is fine now. They were also going to the Rodeo in San Antonio and missed that, too. Rough day!

The weather was beautiful so I pressed on solo but had to devise a way to get to some of the more difficult rivets. Below is a picture of what I came up with. Actually works great and the rivets come out very consistent. It's only good for the rivets along the rear spar but some of those are the most difficult, especially the ones where the ribs are close together under the wing walk doubler. It's a very simple tool and took me less than 15 minutes to make. I used a 1.5 x 1.5 board with a hanger bolt in the end that I had used on a tiling project. The notched and angled bucking bar holder is attached to the end of the board with a wing nut and there is a pin (finish nail) that keeps it from rotating if the wing nut loosens. It's actually much smaller than it looks in the picture. It easily fits through lightning holes to remove and reattach in each bay.

Here's the setup sticking out the upper or aft lightning hole. A simple twist of the board keeps back pressure on the bucking bar.

Birthday Present from Shelby

Here's a picture of the birthday present I received from Shelby. Cool tie clasp with a propeller and it really spins. That was so thoughtful of Shelby! Behind it is an access panel I finished yesterday.

Finished First Bottom Skin

Here, I've finished riveting the left inboard bottom skin. There are four bottom skins. Feels good starting to wrap things up on the wing. It might be possible to do it solo but it was much easier having Austin help, especially around the wing walk doublers. The ribs at the wing walk doublers are very close together so it makes access difficult. They're called wing walk doublers because that's where you walk on the wing when you climb into the cockpit and both the ribs and skin are doubled. I also reinstalled the flap but will have to take it off again to finish riveting the flap hinge.