Monthly Archives: October 2014
Fuselage Completion #9 (brake system)
Total Build Time: 745 hours. For the brake system I intended to use the system as called for in the plans, with an addition of a turnbuckle to allow for easy brake cable tension adjustments. Sourcing the parts for the brake system ended up being more of a chore than I’d imagined. There were several … Continue reading
730 Hour Project Update (Timelapse Video)
It’s now been 11 months since I took delivery of my Waiex kit last November. I took off 3 months of building during the summer, so I essentially have spent 8 months of actual building time on the project. I previously made an update at 500 hours and included a time-lapse video that showed the … Continue reading
Fuselage Completion #8 (Flight Control pre-rigging, VIDEO)
Total Build Time: 730 Hours. With my wings still attached, I decided to do as much as I could before removing them once again. Space in my basement is limited, so eventually I will need to remove the wings both to continue working, and to get the plane out of the basement at the end … Continue reading
Fuselage Completion #7 (Wing Rigging)
Total Build Time: 722 Hours. Finally, the big day has come. My wings have been sitting on a rack in the corner of my basement for the last 7 months. Now I will finally be able to pull them off the rack put them onto the plane for the first time. To prepare the fuselage … Continue reading
Fuselage Completion #6 (Rudder Pedals and Flap Drive tube.)
Total Build Time: 705 Hours. The rudder pedals are held in place using phenolic blocks. I used a 1″ forstner bit to bore the holes in the blocks, and then used a brake hone to ream out the holes for a good fit. I removed the powder coat from the pedals where they will be … Continue reading
Fuselage Completion #5 (Control sticks and mixer assembly)
Total Build Time: 698 Hours. The Waiex comes standard with dual-control sticks. For roll input, each stick is connected to its respective aileron, and the sticks are linked together. For pitch input they are both mounted on a frame that pivots fore and aft. Basically the parts are fit together, clamped in place and drilled to … Continue reading
Fuselage Completion #4 (Rear spar carry-though assembly)
Total Build Time: 691 Hours. I pulled out some of the last remaining aluminum laser-cut parts from my aircraft kit that arrived last November. It was nice to be working with aluminum again after having done so much work recently with steel and titanium. Once I had these parts on my workbench I realized how … Continue reading