First, Build a Shed

[efwd]

LOL Carl. The moment I read "tossed the rags in the wash" I new what was to follow. I have done that with shop rags before after changing the oil in the the cars. (speaking specifically of the oder) Surprising that you have made it this long without experiencing what women dislike about us! Im considering doing the same with my gear. I picked up some sample product at Airventure from Nuvite. Nuvitechemical.com. they were polishing very old dingy fuselage skins to nearly a mirror finish.
Eddie

[GuppyWN]

The lesson learned should be - don't do laundry!

It's a process that I've honed over 25 years. Shrink a sweater here. Bleeding colors there and before you know it you're banned from the laundry room!

[Cherrybark]

It's been weeks since the last update. "Grownup" responsibilities sometimes get in the way of airplane fun and it's all too easy to let one missed day turn into two or more. But having the project in the garage / workshop makes it simple to put in an hour or two of work at odd times, so progress continues.

The fuselage is at the stage that it is time to mount the wings and the build journal shows 253 hours of work. That logged time doesn't begin to include all of the hours spent reading the forum, looking a pictures, and trying to decide how to best do a task. Repeatedly, something that seemed difficult, turns out to be straightforward once completed. And, once completed, these small tasks that can be so time consuming for a first time builder, just disappear into the overall project. I can remember how much time was spent fitting the cable guides, sanding down the tight fits and securing the loose ones with Hysol. And there was a day of grinding down the installed rudder pedal and flap detents, and repeatedly installing the console to make sure those controls move freely. I can begin to understand a builder never just kicks the tires and lights the fire during a pre-flight.

Several forum threads have been useful but I want to point out the step by step construction photos on Bob Meyer's Facebook page. Bob seems to have taken just the right picture at every stage of the construction. It's become a habit to reference his work when moving to a new task. I've sent him a private message of thanks and encourage others to view his album.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?f...0c208e&theater

[Cherrybark]

After posting the comment about Bob's photos I realized Tom Waid's (Tropical Tuba) website needs a special mention. Tom has pages of photos and comments on the assembly steps. He and I have similar backgrounds of, "simply messing about in boats", SCUBA diving, and appreciation of West System Epoxy. I enjoy his writing and link you to his home page so you can spend hours exploring rather than jumping directly to the Kitfox information.

http://tropicaltuba.com/

I'll quit now rather than get sidetracked linking to other informative threads and sites.

[jrevens]

Thank you for mentioning both of those guys, Carl. I was aware and very appreciative of Tom's site, but didn't know about Bob's. I met him at OSH... he's a great guy, and he built a beautiful airplane. I'm not on Facebook (my wife spends enough time there for both of us), but I just went and looked at Bob's pictures - all 462 of them! I'm so impressed by people like these 2 (I know there are many others also) who have taken the time to so thoroughly document their projects and share them with everyone. What a great resource!

[efwd]

Hey Carl
I was wondering where you went. I almost posted an inquiry only two days before your post. Im fixing to get to covering but I haven't received my Oratex fabric yet. Every day now is another day later than they proposed. Took the Sport Air workshop for electrical/avionics this past weekend. Not excited about the prospect myself so I will be ordering wire bundles to hook up things vs pinning every wire myself. I was going to offer up to you a hand full of the grommets that I used to pass the pitot tubes through the wing ribs. Personal message me with your address, I will send them too you. I have 3x more than needed. I had to order minimum of 50. I needed 12 to get the two tubes through but you may only need 6 if your using the kit supplied pitot tube. They have the exact spacing to accommodate the rib web. I couldn't locally purchase them myself as I couldn't find anyone who carried them. It is also helpful to get the holes done with a step drill before the tanks are installed as the step drill is long enough to enter the tank on the other side among other reasons.

[Cherrybark]

Thanks for the offer of the grommets Eddie. PM on the way.