The rudder is the first component of the empennage (tail section) assembly. It's where the learning curve hits hardest—back-riveting stiffeners, fabricating spacers, drilling skins, dealing with part variations across 20-year-old kits, and discovering why battery drills have no place in aircraft construction.
This section documents every session, every mistake, every recovery. The parts that don't fit. The tools that fail. The moments where Ian Warburton's phone call saved the day. This is the unfiltered rudder build.
Pulled everything out of storage. Dust, grime, mouse poo. Researched primer systems, purchased Stewart Systems EkoClean/EkoEtch/EkoPrime. Three hours of garage cleanup and workspace setup.
Read Entry →Starting on the rudder stiffeners. Learned the hard way: battery drills munge aircraft parts. Mangled R-904, called Ian Warburton, got the air compressor running. Six-step drilling with proper tools saved the day.
Read Entry →Moved wire racks, organized empennage parts. Fabricated spacers, assembled skeleton. Front flange wouldn't sit flush—added fluting to fix. Sometimes aircraft building is just glorified metalwork.
Read Entry →Clecoed all skins, drilled to #40 including trailing edge. R-710 trim is deceptive—cut too far and you lose rivet space. Fabricated R-918 bottom attach strips. Had to buy an imperial ruler.
Read Entry →Shop cleanup, then full rudder disassembly prep for dimple/deburr/etch/prime. Dimpled both skins before realizing I should deburr first. Luck held—no damage on inspection.
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