Other Stuff-NEW!
TOOLS!!!
I've been working on this project for a while now, and I thought I should give a small intro (at least to start) of what tools are needed to keep this project moving along.
First of all, not ALL of these tools are necessary, and your methods may vary. However, I have found all of these tools very useful and handy to have around. I pieced my tools together from most of the well known suppliers, as well as ebay. I probably have as much or more money in my tools as some of the pre-packaged kits from Avery, Cleveland, or Aircraft Tool Supply, so this method will probably not save you any money. The kits are great, but I wanted to pick and choose what I wanted, and I could "collect" each one when I needed to, or when I had the money to!
Tool chest, Sears, $90 on sale. This is a late in the game purchase, but the price was right, and I finally bought one. 11/4/2007
I've since quit using the cheap CP drill, and bought a nice Matco palm drill.
Air drill on the left and 3X rivet gun on the right were both ebay purchases. The air drill is a Chicago Pneumatic ($10), and the 3X rivet gun is an APT ($105).
Backrivet plate. I bought this piece of steel from my local welding shop for $7. It had a cold finish (rough and dull) on it, but I used a die grinder and sanding disc to smooth it out. You can see some of the "tooling" marks in this pic. The plate is laid into the table so it sits flush. Used for what else? Backriveting!
Air compressor. This is the one that I started with...well, the second actually. The first one I bought off of ebay for $111 (with shipping), and it was junk. It was supposed to be brand new, but when I started it up, I found oil splattering everywhere from a cracked crankcase. DON'T BUY A COMPRESSOR OFF OF EBAY!!! TRUST ME! This little 3 gallon Craftsman ($115 on sale) worked fine for the empennage. I wasn't using the air drill much, instead using my cordless Black and Decker for drilling. It kept up pretty well for riveting, and the air cleco tool, but would not run the air drill at all. Great little compressor though! I had a friend offer me use of one of his compressors when he found out I was looking for something larger...
This is a Champion nailer compressor ($FREE!!). It's old, but it worked great! At least I thought it did for the first few minutes. It's a continuous compressor meaning that it runs with 100% cycle...all the time. So, I wasn't able to hear the problem at first. When I shut it down, I heard a hissing noise. Come to find out, it has a pin hole leak in the bottom of the near tank, corrosion. Upon further inspection with the borescope at work, the inside was VERY badly corroded, and it's just too high a risk of injury to keep using it. So, I went shopping for a new one, and a few days of research turned me on to this...
Air compressor. This is a 2hp 33 gallon Craftsman ($329). It puts out 8.6 SCFM at 40psi, and 6.4 SCFM at 90psi. This one will do everything I need it to, including paint if I decide to do it myself (unlikely).
Compressor #5 ($380). The other was just too loud, so I sold it. This is MUCH quieter, and is THE compressor you want!!
8" band saw. This is another nice to have, but not really necessary tool. It's a Champion brand ($50 on sale at Sears). I put a 18 TPI blade ($14) on it from Carbide.com for cutting metal. Works great for cutting stiffeners.
Drill press from Sears. Champion ($40 on sale). I would consider this a must for drilling large holes, and using the fly cutter (be careful with that-I'll get a pic of it later) is done with this.
Bucking bars ($15 for both on ebay). These you will need for setting rivets with the rivet gun. I have several others, and will probably need more. They are all made for fitting in different spaces.
C-Frame bench dimpler and dead blow hammer ($7 Harbor Freight). The C-frame is my own design. These sell for $150 and up from most of the suppliers though. I bought the steel tubing and channel from my welding shop ($17), and the sets came from Aircraft Tool Supply ($33). Pretty good bargain, huh? Works great! Email me if you like to know how I made it.
I decided to spend the dough, and upgrade the c-frame dimpling tool to the DRDT-2 ($363 w/shipping). It does the same thing as the c-frame, but there's no noise. The hammering goes away in favor of a cam plunger. It will come in handy with the large wing skins. This thing rocks!!
Clamps!! You can never have too many of these. Get a good variety.
Clecos (usually about $0.34 a piece). Get 400-500 of the 1/8 and 3/32 size each, and a few of the larger ones.
Chip chaser and Edge Roller ($6 and $32). The chip chaser is from ATS, and the edge roller is from Cleveland Aircraft Tools. Avery sells one also, but this one is worth the extra moola (I have both).
Deburring tools. These are absolutely a must. ($8-$20)
Drill bits and Dimple Dies/Squeezer sets ($3-$10 and $20 a set/$30 full set all at The Yard Store). Another must. Drill bits are cheap, so it's nice to have several of each kind on hand because they do dull. The springs ($3) on the bits are to stop the bit from going too far into material or away from something underneath.
Dremel tool ($60 Lowes). I LOVE THIS TOOL!!! Very handy in all sorts of situations. Not a must have tool, but almost.
Fluting pliers and Hand Seamer ($16 ATS and $6 Harbor Freight). Fluting pliers are used to straighten out the ribs, and the seamer makes nice straight bends, as well as working with the fluting pliers to get the ribs straight if you've fluted too far.
Pneumatic Squeezer with C yoke ($350 The Yard Store). Ahhhh, the pneumatic squeezer...I didn't believe in the beginning that this tool was necessary. Now, I'd almost say it is. It makes squeezing rivets SO much easier than the hand squeezer.
Pop rivet tool and Martin Aircraft Hand Squeezer ($8 ATS and $80 ebay).
Aviation snips ($10-$25 apiece). Must have tools. Also in this drawer are a set of mini screwdrivers, and an angle finder/protractor amongst other things.
The good 'ol vise (came with the house). I've used this more times than I can remember. If you don't have one, get one. They are so handy and useful!
Air die grinder ($15 harbor Freight). I decided to add a cheap die grinder to my tool box to aid in deburring and cutting. I passed on this before because my air compressor wouldn't drive one. Now, I have the right size compressor to use this tool!
The bench belt sander is one of those tools that I put off buying for some unknown reason. This thing was only $30 from Harbor Freight, and is portable (as long as there's electricity available...). Can't believe I didn't buy one until now.
DISCLAIMER
This website is intended for entertainment purposes only. It is not for use for instructional purposes, and is in no way associated with Van's Aircraft. Please visit Van's website for further information on these wonderful airplanes.