Final assembly and wing mounting in process

Ready for the big airplane moving day…

Getting ready for the big move. I really thought that extricating the fuselage from the garage would be a MAJOR ordeal. Thankfully, with the great group of guys I had on hand, it wound up being anticlimactic.— with Shane Barker, Alex Cole and Dan Ruehl.

With Mark Atwood, Glenn Martin, Paul Chuchel and Shane Barker.

With Dan Ruehl, Alex Cole, Glenn Martin and Mark Atwood.

With Dan Ruehl, Paul Chuchel, Shane Barker and Glenn Martin.

With Jean Balch, Paul Chuchel, Dan Ruehl and Shane Barker.

With Shane Barker, Dan Ruehl, Jean Balch and Paul Chuchel.

Out in the sun for the first time!!

With Alex Cole and Dan Ruehl.

With Shane Barker, Glenn Martin, Alex Cole, Dan Ruehl, Paul Chuchel and Jean Balch.

With Shane Barker, Glenn Martin, Alex Cole, Dan Ruehl, Paul Chuchel and Jean Balch.

With Jean Balch.

With Jean Balch.

With Alex Cole and Dan Ruehl.

With Shane Barker, Glenn Martin, Alex Cole, Dan Ruehl, Paul Chuchel and Jean Balch.

With Shane Barker, Glenn Martin, Alex Cole, Dan Ruehl, Paul Chuchel and Jean Balch.

With Jean Balch.

With Jean Balch.

Beginning to load the plane onto the trailer. It looked a little precarious, but having such a great crew made it go smoothly.

Unloading begins…

Getting ready to mount the first wing… — with Dan Ruehl, Shane Barker, Mark Atwood and Paul Chuchel.

With Dan Ruehl, Shane Barker, Alex Cole, Mark Atwood and Paul Chuchel.

With Dan Ruehl, Shane Barkerand Glenn Martin.

With Glenn Martin.

The second wing successfully mounted. That’s the first time that both wings have been on simultaneously. It looks like a real RV now!

Everyone was glad to take a turn trying it on for size. I’m looking forward to giving rides to all of these guys! — with Mark Atwood and Dan Ruehl.

With Mark Atwood and Dan Ruehl.

With Shane Barker, Mark Atwoodand Dan Ruehl.

Most of the crew – missing only Glenn, who had to leave a bit earlier. — with Paul Chuchel, Alex Cole, Jean Balch, Shane Barker, Mark Atwood and Dan Ruehl.

Safely ensconced its hangar…

Wings transport; engine mounting

Wings and wing stand secured in the truck and ready to head for the hangar.

Thanks Jean, Paul, Alex, and Frank for all of the help and support today – much appreciated!!!!

Wings safely ensconced in the hangar awaiting the rest of the airplane sometime this fall.

Engine lifted off the pallet…

Engine top bolts in place…

Engine mounted!! All bolts torqued and ready for cotter pins tomorrow.

Engine mounted!! All bolts torqued and ready for cotter pins tomorrow.

Wings, component installation

Archer antenna wired, secured, and ready for wingtip installation.

Nav light wires (with necessary extensions spliced in) and antenna cable ready for wingtip installation.

Right wingtip rib drilled and clecoed in place.

Right wingtip ready for installation.

Right wingtip wiring complete.

Right wingtip clecoed in place and ready for, ahem, screwing.

Right wingtip fully installed and ready for flight.

Wings, components underway

Right wingtip nav light lens – and all the cutoffs. There’s a lot of extra material as-received.

The good news is that it’s not hard to cut, as a set of right & left tinsnips will do the job. The bad news is that, no matter what you do, it’s still a crappy fit when you’re done. Once the plane is painted, it should look fine from 10 feet, but the 2 foot view won’t be pretty. I really hate these damn things.

If someone at the paint shop early next year thinks that he can do a better job (entirely possible and very welcome!), I’ll have them cut a new pair then.

Right wingtip nav light lens ready to be screwed down, as soon as my new nutplates get here later today. Same size as the ones I ordered for the wingtip, itself, so all is well since I always order extra.